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Generally speaking, popular sentiment has seen Cixi in one of two ways.
一般来说，公众对慈禧的看法有两种。
The first is the more modern view as a strong capable woman who created a brief oasis of stability in a century of chaos.
第一种是更现代的观点，认为她是一位强大能干的女性，在一个混乱的世纪中创造了一片短暂的稳定绿洲。
The other is as the Chinese equivalent of Agropina, a murderous she-devil who murdered everybody who got in her way.
另一个是中国版的“Agropina”，一个凶残的女魔头，她谋杀了所有妨碍她的人。
Which means you subscribe to will probably dictate how you feel about what happens next.
这意味着你订阅的内容可能会决定你对接下来发生的事情的感受。
On April the 8th, 1881, Cixi's co-region Ci'an suddenly died aged just 43.
1881年4月8日，慈安突然辞世，年仅43岁。
For those of the Cixi murdered everyone's school of Chinese history.
因为那些慈禧太后谋杀了所有的中国历史学派。
This is evidence that her lust for power was growing causing her to bump off her only rival.
这证明了她对权力的渴望正在增长，导致她杀死了她唯一的竞争对手。
But for those who prefer shade more nuance.
但对于那些喜欢更细微差别的人来说。
A kinder reading is that this was the first time Cixi was forced to face real tragedy.
更温和的解读是，这是慈禧第一次被迫面对真正的悲剧。
From the moment, she'd intervened with Xianfeng to save the older woman's life.
从那一刻起，她就和咸丰一起干预，救了这位老妇人的命。
Ci'an had been Cixi's one constant ally, her friend, a confident, a protector.
慈安一直是慈禧的盟友，她的朋友，闺蜜，保护者。
To suddenly be without her must have been like waking up one day to find your legs have vanished.
突然失去了她，就像有一天醒来发现自己的腿不见了一样。
A shock you can't ever imagine recovering from certainly.
你肯定无法想象从这种震惊中恢复过来。
Cian's exit seems to have destabilized the dowager empress.
慈安的退出似乎动摇了慈禧太后。
The years that followed saw the reforming zeal of the 1870s give way to a kind of directionlessness.
在接下来的几年里，19世纪70年代的改革热情被一种迷失方向所取代。
As Cixi refused further industrialization and got in a short inconclusive war with France of Vietnam and even ended up firing her loyal Lieutenant Prince Gong.
慈禧拒绝进一步工业化，与法国和越南进行了一场短暂的无结果的战争，甚至最终解雇了她忠诚的恭亲王。
Finally, in 1889, it seemed as if had enough.
终于，到了1889年，他们似乎受够了。
As the Guangxu emperor reached maturity, the 54 year old Cixi announced that she was stepping down.
光绪皇帝驾到暮年，54岁的慈禧宣布退位。
There'd be no new child emperor no attempt to cling to power, just a peaceful retirement to an expensive recreation of the Summer Palace to wait out the end of her days.
也不会有新的小皇帝也不会紧握权力不放，只会安享晚年，在颐和园奢华的娱乐活动中度过余生。
At least, that was the plan,as can be seen throughout human history though once someone has been in power too long.
至少，这是计划，在整个人类历史中可以看到，尽管一旦某人掌权太久。
It can be hard for them to let go, especially, if their successor isn't up to scratch.
对他们来说，放手可能很难，尤其是如果他们的继任者不合格的话。
And Guangxu was all too aware of his weaknesses.
光绪非常清楚自己的弱点。
Even once made emperor, Prince Chun's son would meet Cixi several times a week to seek her advice.
即使当上了皇帝，醇亲王的儿子每周也要见慈禧几次，征求她的意见。
A habit but soon led his own advisors to basically say screw it.
一个习惯，但很快导致他自己的顾问基本上说去他的。
Why don't we just get this and just go and talk directly to see Cixi?
我们为什么不直接去找慈禧谈谈呢?
Now, this arrangement wasn't necessarily fatal.
这种安排并不一定是致命的。
Not if Guangxu and Cixi were pulling in the same direction, but what if there was some say gigantic catastrophe that pushed them in opposite directions.
如果光绪和慈禧年朝着同一个方向走就不是这样了，但如果有一场巨大的灾难把他们推向了相反的方向呢?
Well, in 1894, that catastrophe blew up in the shape of the first Sino-Japanese War.
1894年，这场灾难以第一次中日战争的形式爆发。
We'll likely cover this over on our new channel wara graphics one day.
我们可能会在我们的新节目看到了这一报道。
Go over and subscribe to that so we'll keep things rather simple here.
快去订阅吧，我们会让事情变得更简单。
And the simplest version is that China got its arse absolutely whipped.
最简单的说法是，中国被狠狠地打了一顿。
In the aftermath of this latest humiliation, Guangxu became convinced that Cixi's reforms hadn't gone far enough that China needed to modernize now to stand any chance of catching up with its belligerent neighbor.
在这次羞辱之后，光绪开始相信慈禧的改革还远远不够，中国现在需要现代化，才能有机会赶上这个好战的邻国。
So against Cixi's wishes, the emperor launched Hundred Days' Reform in 1898, determined to upend society,instead, be brought about his own downfall.
因此，皇帝不顾慈禧的反对，于1898年发起了戊戌变法，决心颠覆社会，结果却导致了自己的垮台。
Always against these reforms, Cixi was told by our advisors that Guangxu had become a puppet of Japan.
慈禧一直反对这些改革，顾问告诉他光绪已经成为日本的傀儡。
So with a coldness matched only by her competence, she launched a coup.
因此，她以一种只有她才能匹敌的冷漠发动了一场政变。
The emperor was arrested imprisoned on an island.
皇帝被捕，被监禁在一个岛上。
His fellow reformers were executed or else, they fled to Tokyo.
改革家们要么被处决，要么逃到东京。
By the time the dust settled, the reform era was definitively over .
当尘埃落定时，改革时代已经彻底结束。
Once again, China's matriarch was in charge.
中国的女统治者再一次掌权。
This time though, it would be the aging dowager impress herself who'd wind up unleashing chaos on her people.
不过，这一次，年迈的慈禧太后会给自己留下深刻印象，最终会在她的人民身上制造混乱。
