Page:Eminent Chinese Of The Ch’ing Period - Hummel - 1943 - Vol. 1.pdf/600

 nominal slaves.) About the same time a sister of Nien Kêng-yao became a concubine of Yin-chên.

In October 1709 Nien was appointed governor of Szechwan and, owing to his ability, gradually came to the notice of the Emperor. During the sixteen years of his administration he quelled several uprisings of the aborigines west of Szechwan. When, King of the Eleuths, sent an army to invade Tibet, and in 1717 succeeded in taking Lhasa, Nien immediately gave aid to the Chinese troops that were dispatched to recover that territory. In 1718 he was made governor-general of Szechwan and thus had power to direct military affairs. Meanwhile [禵, q.v.], the Emperor's favorite son, was made commander-in-chief of the forces that were fighting Tsewang Araptan in Kansu and was given the title Fu-yüan Ta-chiang-chün 撫遠大將軍. This appointment was interpreted as a wish on the part of Emperor Shêng-tsu to give Yin-t'i a chance to elevate himself above his brothers, thus dealing a severe blow to the aspirations of the other contenders for the throne, among them Yin-chên. Nien Kêng-yao seems now to have turned his back on his master, Yin-chên, and for this the latter severely reprimanded him in a letter. Whether or not Nien was won over completely to the faction of Yin-t'i is a matter of conjecture. But the success of Yin-t'i in the recovery of Tibet in 1720, and in the re-instatement of the sixth Dalai Lama at Lhasa (see under ), doubtless enhanced Yin-t'i's claim to the throne, and Nien, invested with the title Ting-hsi Chiang-chün 定西將軍, took an active part in helping Yin-t'i win the Tibetan campaign. In June 1721 Nien was granted an audience with the aged Emperor in the Summer Palace at Jehol and was raised to the rank of governor-general of Szechwan and Shensi. It is probable that he was sent to Shensi to assist Yin-t'i and to promote the interests of that Prince in the matter of succession.

In December 1722 Emperor Shêng-tsu died and Yin-chên (Emperor Shih-tsung) ascended the throne with the support of the military forces of. Yin-t'i was at once recalled and closely watched, and the command of his armies in Kansu was given to. The opponents of Yin-chên were helpless. Nien Kêng-yao, perhaps conscious of the dilemma in which he was placed, repeatedly asked the new Emperor for an audience in Peking—a request that was granted early in 1723. Shih-tsung, realizing that Nien was temporarily needed to maintain order on the frontier and to consolidate his own not too stable position, seems to have inspired Nien with confidence—in fact, awarded him a minor hereditary rank and the title of Grand Guardian, and made his elder brother, Nien Hsi-yao 年希堯, governor of Kwangtung. A few months later, because of his help in ejecting the Eleuths from Tibet, Nien was elevated to a duke of the third class with right of perpetual inheritance. The Emperor addressed intimate letters to him, which sometimes amounted to flattery; and Nien's own memorials, most of which were confidentially presented to the throne, became at times unexpectedly informal. The Emperor also attempted to promote friendship between Lungkodo and Nien, and even ordered that one of Nien's sons, Nien Hsi 年熙 (d. 1724), be given Lungkodo as foster son.

In 1723 Nien succeeded Yen-hsin as commander-in-chief of the forces sent to quell the uprising of the Khoshotes of Kokonor under Lobdzan Dandzin 羅卜藏丹津. The Khoshotes under Gushi Khan (see under ) had been under Manchu suzerainty since 1637. Lobdzan Dandzin, a grandson of Gushi Khan, was ambitious and, after allying himself with Tsewang Araptan, revolted with a part of the Khoshotes. With the help of the able general, Nien won several victories over the rebels and in a few months quelled the revolt, in consequence of which many lamas were killed and their monasteries destroyed. Lobdzan Dandzin took refuge with the Eleuths until he was captured and delivered to Peking in 1755. Other rebel leaders who were captured were sent to Peking where, according to ancient rites, they were presented to the Emperor and executed. Nien was thereupon raised to a duke of the first class, with the additional hereditary rank of a viscount which was inherited by his eldest son, Nien Pin 年斌. Nien's father, Nien Hsia-ling, was also made a duke of the first class. Meanwhile, because Tsewang Araptan pleaded for peace, the conflict with the Eleuths came temporarily to an end. Except for troops left to guard the outposts of Turfan and Hami and the route from Si-ning to these cities, the Chinese forces were withdrawn to Kansu (see under ). Nien presented a memorial of over 10,000 words on ways of pacifying the Mongols and the aborigines of the Kokonor 588