Know all about the secrets of the harem

Chapter 4 How deep is the secluded harem (3)
"Yang Ji Qi Cong Lu" once recorded the process of drafting girls during the Jiaqing and Daoguang years: when selecting girls from the Eight Banners, two banners were selected every day, and the number of people was evenly matched, and the flags were not divided according to order.On the day before the selection, the flags will be lined up for participation and reminders first. If two flags are selected, Zhenghuang and Xianghuang, then Zhenghuang will be divided into three places: Man, Mongolia and Han, and each place will be arranged in sequence according to the age. Set, and then the car starts.The first is the Manchuria of Zhenghuang, and then the Mongol and Han armies.Then there are Manchu, Mongolian and Han Dynasty inlaid with yellow, and they enter with their tails.The car tree has double lights, each with its own logo.Day and night start, and night divides people from the back door to the Shenwu Gate, waits for the door to open, and gets out of the car one by one.His car went out of Donghua Gate from Shenwu Gate, from Chongwenmen Street to Beijie Market, and then went around the back door to Shenwu Gate. The time was already between six and noon the next day.Those who have been selected will board the car one by one and go back to their homes.Although there are thousands of cars, they are neat and orderly, commonly known as platooning... Women should be selected to enter the Shenwu Gate and wait outside the Shunzhen Gate, and there are officials from the household department to manage there.At that time, eunuchs were brought in according to shifts, with five people in each shift. Standing but not kneeling, those who paid attention to them left their name tags, which is called keeping tags, and they were checked regularly, and those who did not keep them after re-checking were called grid tags.Its brand book is the daughter of a certain official and a certain person, and a Manchurian of a certain banner (Mongol and Han army, then the book Mongolia and Han army).Those selected as the show girls, who won the title of emperor, will not be remarried until they die.The show girl who is selected as the queen must also go through the big wedding ceremony, enter the officialdom from the Daqing Gate and Meridian Gate, and go to Kunning Palace to get married.

How the emperors of all dynasties treated their concubines
The emperor is high above, calling the wind and calling the rain, controlling the world with all his strength, and exerting power over the world!The matter of a concubine's entry into the imperial court is an important task in the inner court, just as important as the emperor's court in the outer court.For the emperor, the latter can be dispensed with, while the former is indispensable for a day.Later, Fufu had a special person responsible for handling and recording the affairs of the sleeping concubine entering the imperial court.

In the Zhou Dynasty, there were already shady orders responsible for the monarch's shady affairs.The Ye court decree of the Han Dynasty "the day leaks for eight quarters, and the Bailu record pushes it to be the imperial audience."That is, before the night comes, write down who is serving the imperial bed that day.

After the Eastern Han Dynasty, eunuchs were responsible for this task.In every dynasty, there was a memorandum in the palace to record the emperor's fortune for future reference.Just as the ministers of the foreign court are conscientious about their duties, the eunuchs in this position are also meticulous.

Emperor Wencheng of the Northern Wei Dynasty went upstairs to look around by chance, and saw a beautiful woman in Pingcheng Palace.Emperor Wencheng asked the people around him: "Is this woman beautiful?" Everyone agreed.Therefore, Emperor Wencheng walked down the white building and walked to the beautiful woman, and the two stayed in the Zhaiku.The woman Li became pregnant as a result.

In the future, when the empress dowager inquired, someone who kept the warehouse recorded the time and events at that time on the wall of the warehouse. After checking the two phases, there was no mistake, and the fetus Li's pregnancy was recognized.It can be seen from this that although the emperor did whatever he wanted, the recorder can also capture the trace. The keeper of the treasury is not responsible for this job.

The post-official life of Emperor Wu of the Western Jin Dynasty was associated with sheep carts.Emperor Wu Sima Yan was the son of Sima Zhao. "Sima Zhao's heart is known to all passers-by." It means that Sima Zhao held the power in the court and wanted to replace the emperor, but he did not make up his mind until his death.His son Sima Yan has long been impatient.Although powerful ministers have power, their lust satisfaction is not as good as that of the emperor. Even if the power is greater than that of the emperor, they cannot enjoy countless beauties like the emperor.

Sima Yan's grandfather, Sima Yi, was already tired of his old wife.Sima Yi had been ill in bed, and his wife, Zhang Chunhua, had already faded away, so he tiptoed over to take care of her husband.As soon as Sima Yi saw the yellow-faced woman, he cursed: "The old man is disgusting, why bother!" Zhang Chunhua was ashamed and hated, and wanted to commit suicide on a hunger strike.Sima Zhao's brothers all sympathized with their mother, and followed him on a hunger strike.Sima Yi realized that he had hurt his sons, so he apologized to Mrs. Zhang, and Mrs. Zhang and her sons began to eat.Afterwards, Sima Yi said privately to others: "I don't care about old things, I'm so worried about them!"

When Sima Yan was 30 years old, Sima Zhao died. He replaced his father and immediately forced Emperor Wei to abdicate, and ascended the throne himself.He wants to enjoy the treatment that only the emperor can enjoy.He will never meet his grandfather's grievances again, and the richest are beautiful women.

Emperor Wu of Jin set a historical record of ten thousand post-officials.Due to the large number of concubines, Emperor Wu of Jin had a headache at first where to spend the night.Later, a goat cart was invented, and he was driven on the small roads of Houguan with the goat cart. Whoever the goat cart stopped in front of the door would serve the bed.

The officials and concubines all look forward to the emperor's sheep cart stopping in front of their doors.At this time, smart women showed their wisdom. They inserted bamboo leaves in front of the door and sprinkled salt juice on the path leading to the door, luring the sheep to lick the salt juice, walk to the door along the way, and eat the meat on the door. Bamboo leaves, so the car stopped.

Since then, the sheep cart has become a treasure handed down in the harem.

Emperor Xuanzong of the Tang Dynasty had as many as [-] women in his harem during the Kaiyuan and Tianbao years, and he didn't know how to arrange them to serve him.The emperor, who was going down to the harem, was a little hesitant, not sure who to go to and where to stay tonight.Later, Xuanzong came up with a way to gather a group of officials and concubines together every day and ask them to cast dice, and the winner among the winners would go to bed that night.In private, the eunuch called the dice "the file matchmaker".

In spring and autumn, Emperor Xuanzong of Tang ordered the women in the harem to plant flowers in front of the door. Xuanzong followed a butterfly, and if the butterfly landed in front of the door, he would stay there that night. This method is called "Bie Xing".Because there were too many women entering the imperial court, it was difficult for Xuanzong to remember their names and appearances one by one, so he invented another romantic method, stamping the "Fengyue Changxin" seal on the arms of the palace ladies who had already entered the imperial court, and then soaked them with Osmanthus paste makes the imprint firm and does not fade after washing.

Since Concubine Yang became an official and won the sole favor of the emperor, the "file horn matchmaker", butterfly and "fengyuechangxin" seals were all useless, and the women in the harem had to express their affection to Cowherd and Weaver Girl on Qixi Festival.

Later, Tang Jingzong invented a kind of "Merry Arrow", which was also intended to determine the bedtime.The bow is made of bamboo skin, the arrow is made of paper, and the powder of dragon musk is densely stored in the middle of the paper.Let the officials and concubines get together, Jingzong took an arrow and shot it, and the person hit by the arrow had a strong fragrance and touched his body without pain.Later, there was a saying in the palace that "the one hit by the romantic arrow-everyone is willing".

The adornment of concubines and maids - the ring, has a certain meaning in the emperor's Yuxing system. "Huan" is the same as "return".When the concubine was in bed, she asked the emperor when he would go back. She didn't say it outright, but used Peiyu to ring the ring, and asked, "When will the knife head be big?" .For example, when concubines and maids meet menstruation and cannot attend to bedtime, they can't speak out, but use Dan to inject the face, burning it as a knowledge.

Lizards are called "guardians" because of their unique uses.The lizard was fed with cinnabar in a vessel, and because it ate cinnabar, its body was completely red. After eating seven catties, it was smashed into fine powder.Use these red powders to smear or touch on the limbs of court ladies, and they can be immortal for life, but they will be extinguished when they have sex.There is a poem in Li He's "Song of the Palace Baby": "The wax light hangs high to illuminate the yarn sky, and the flower house is red at night to guard the palace."

In the Ming Dynasty, when it was getting dark every day, two red gauze lanterns were hung in front of the palace gate where the concubines lived.When the emperor was lucky enough to visit a certain palace, the lights on the official gate would be removed, indicating that the emperor had chosen a place to sleep.Therefore, the eunuch in charge of patrolling the streets ordered other officials to put down their lamps and go to bed.Frustrated concubines had no choice but to destroy the red sarongs they wished to favor, and hang them up again tomorrow night.

When the emperor of the Ming Dynasty visited the residence of his concubines for the first time, he had to shop for officials, and the eunuchs would renovate the room, and the concubines who should be honored should also have corresponding decorations.The emperor burned incense as usual at the place where he was lucky, and the fragrance was unusual. His intention was stated in official words:

"When looking at the nose, the air is not clear, and the pulse remains fragrant and charming. The traces of rain and clouds are easy to draw, and the sky is clear when there is no light."

Once, Emperor Chongzhen came to a toilet, felt that there was a strange fragrance permeating the heart, and his heart was pounding, and asked the servant what it was?The answer is: "When the holy man comes to the place of luck, burn this incense." Chongzhen sighed and said: "This is the reason why the emperor's father and brother did not live long !"then.Disable this incense.In fact, the example of burning incense has existed since ancient times. Zhang Ji, a poet of the Tang Dynasty, has a sentence in "Fan Guan Xing": "Go down to the chariot to change clothes and enter the bridal chamber, and all the maids in the bridal chamber burn incense."

The concubine's bedtime in the Qing Dynasty was different from that of other dynasties, and the emperor no longer came to the door in person.The emperors of the Qing Dynasty had their own system.

At dinner every day, decide which concubine will serve the bed that night.Each concubine has a green head card with the concubine's name on it.When preparing dinner, the eunuch in the respect room put more than ten or dozens of green-headed cards on a large silver plate, which is called a meal card.When the emperor's dinner was finished, the eunuch raised his plate and knelt in front of the emperor.If the emperor is not interested, say "go".If you like it, pick out a card and buckle it over, with the back facing up.The eunuch took the card and handed it to another eunuch, who was responsible for carrying the concubine who was about to be blessed to the emperor's dormitory.

Due to the high degree of vigilance of the emperor in the Qing Dynasty, to prevent assassins from appearing on the way, the concubine had to come to the emperor's dormitory naked.The method is that the concubine was taken to a room not far from the emperor's dormitory to undress, and the eunuch wrapped her in a red brocade quilt or coat, carried her on her shoulders, and carried her into the emperor's dormitory.Before going to the emperor's couch, remove the red brocade quilt or coat wrapped around you.

What happened later was recorded by people at the time: "At that time, the emperor will lie down first, and the quilt will not be able to regain his feet. The concubine will climb up from the quilt to meet the emperor. Outside the window, if the time is too long, the chief steward will sing: "It's time. If the emperor doesn't respond, then sing again. If so, three. If the emperor's order comes in, the concubine will be dragged out from behind the emperor's feet. The concubine will still be Wrap it in a cloak and carry it away. After leaving, the chief steward must kneel down and ask for orders. Day: stay or not? The date of the handbook of the pen: On a certain month, on a certain day, on a certain time, the emperor favored a certain concubine. That is why she was conceived.

If the emperor lived in Yuanmingyuan, this method would not be necessary.The method of meal card is still the same.The emperor lived in the Old Summer Palace most of the year, and felt that there was more freedom and that he could not break the ancestral rules in the Forbidden City.The emperor usually returns to the palace at the end of the year, and returns to Yuanmingyuan in January and February.

When the emperor of the Qing Dynasty summoned his concubines, he hung a red light upside down in front of the door as usual, and it was the same in the palace: the maids wore braids when they entered the palace, and once they were summoned and got a title, they had to put their hair up.

These are the poor women in the patriarchal society. They are just playthings to vent their desires and tools for raising children. This has been the case in all dynasties.Although some dynasties have restrictions on the emperor's lustful behavior, in their sexual life, they regard concubines and maids as playthings, insulting and ravaging them, and the emperors of all dynasties are in the same line.

Ancient Chinese Sacrifice System

Sacrifice is an ancient custom.As early as in primitive society, people used to bury the tools, weapons and daily necessities they used with them with the dead.In the slave society, slaves, as talking tools, were also killed or buried alive for martyrdom, and the master let them continue to work for him in the underworld. At that time, slave martyrdom had become an institution.

After entering the class society, women were reduced to playthings and vassals of noble men, and among the martyrs, women accounted for a considerable proportion.There is a record in the inscriptions of the Shang Dynasty that specifically killed female slaves.Of course, not all the martyrs were slaves, but also the wives, concubines and retainers of the tomb owner.

The sacrificial burial system reached its peak in the Yin and Shang Dynasties.From the archaeological excavations of the noble tombs of the Shang Dynasty, a large number of bones of the martyrs were discovered. Among these tombs, there were as few as one or two martyrs, and as many as two to 300.According to statistics in Hu Houxuan's article "Human Martyrdom and Human Sacrifice in Chinese Slave Society", there are nearly 177 people who died in Shang Dynasty tombs that have been excavated.The practice of martyrdom was still prevalent in the Zhou Dynasty. "Mozi Festival Mourning" said: "The son of heaven killed dozens of people, and the number of widows; generals and officials killed dozens of people, and the number of widows." It can be seen that Human sacrifice has become quite institutionalized.When Qin Mugong, one of the "Five Overlords" in the history, died, as many as [-] people were buried. Expresses condolences for the dead and hatred for the tyrant.

At this time, in the various vassal states, the custom of women dying as masters, maidservants and concubines was gradually abandoned.After Chen Ziche, the doctor of Qi, died, his wife and the manager agreed to hire someone to be buried.Zi Kang, Ziche's younger brother, said to them: "If my brother needs someone to serve him in the underworld, there is no one more suitable than his wife and the manager. This matter should be ignored. If you insist, I will use the two of you." I will die for my life." Zi Che's wife and the manager had no choice but to cancel the plan to die for his maidservant and concubine.

After the Spring and Autumn Period, due to the discovery of iron tools, the improvement of farming techniques, and the gradual development of productivity, the value of "human" as a laborer began to be valued. , wooden figurines instead.During the Warring States Period of Qin State, in 384 BC, Duke Xian ordered the abolition of human martyrdom.However, even his descendants did not abide by this prohibition. After Qin unified the six countries in 221 BC, large-scale incidents of life and death occurred again.After the death of Qin Shihuang Yingzheng, the exact number of people buried is still a mystery.In the process of unifying the six countries, Ying Zheng also "unified" the women in the harem of the six countries. The number of women in the harem can be imagined. "Historical Records: The Benji of Qin Shihuang" records: "Second Emperor's Day: 'The first emperor's harem had no sons, so it is not appropriate to go out.' All ordered to die, and there were many dead." Judging from this passage, the women in the harem were probably all buried.It can also be seen from this that the number of people buried there is astonishing.

The peasant war at the end of Qin Dynasty not only overthrew the Qin Dynasty, but also taught the rulers of the Han Dynasty a lesson.In the early years of the Western Han Dynasty, the institutional human sacrifice was officially abolished.After the death of the famous Emperor Wu of the Han Dynasty, although a large number of gold and silver treasures, birds, animals, fish, turtles, cattle, horses, tigers and leopards were buried, thousands of his concubines and court ladies survived.Since then, except for the remote minority areas, the system of forcing women to be buried has basically ceased to exist.During the time of Emperor Xuan of the Han Dynasty, Liu Yuan, king of Zhao Miao, was punished by revoking the feudal state for forcing 16 slaves to be buried.After the death of Emperor Taizong Li Shimin, Ashinadur and Qiheli, the two minority generals who had followed Taizong for many years, felt the kindness of Taizong and asked to be buried. They were forbidden by Emperor Gaozong Li Zhi who had just succeeded him.

However, in the 2000-year-long autocratic monarchy society, the ugly phenomenon of sacrificial burial has not been banned.Tang Wuzong was critically ill, and his favorite Wang Cairen said to Wuzong: "After your Majesty lives long, my concubine will be able to die."

"Song History" also shows that there were also concubines buried in the Song Dynasty.Emperor Gaozong of the Song Dynasty favored talented people Li and Wang. After Gaozong passed away, Xiaozong found out about this situation and forced them to kill them to let them do what they wanted.The phenomenon of human martyrdom in the Yuan Dynasty can also be seen from the Persian historian Jufeni's "History of the Conqueror of the World".The book says:

"Choose forty daughters from the Yimi and Nayan families, dress them up with jewels, jewellery, beautiful robes, and put on expensive clothes. Together with good horses, they are sent to accompany the spirit of Genghis Khan."

After the Han Dynasty, although there are many records of human martyrdom from the court to the common people, they happened sporadically.However, the tragic system of human sacrifice revived in the Ming Dynasty after a thousand years.In the early Ming Dynasty, the system of burial of concubines appeared again.During the Ming Taizu, Chengzu, Renzong, Xuanzong and Jingdi periods, human sacrifice became the practice of the royal family.

In the 28th year of Hongwu in the Ming Dynasty (1395), after the death of the second son of Zhu Yuanzhang, the second son of Emperor Zhu Yuanzhang of the Ming Dynasty, Zhu Yu, the king of Qin, was buried with two concubines.In the 31st year of Hongwu (1398), Ming Taizu Zhu Yuanzhang died, and a total of 40A1 concubines were buried. Except for two who died before Taizu and were finally buried on the east and west sides of Taizu's tomb, the remaining 38 died.In the next 70 years, this barbaric system was imitated by Zhu Yuanzhang's descendants and became a system again, causing a lot of human tragedies.

Afterwards, there are two versions of the number of concubines who were buried for the ancestors. One is 16 in the "Daming Huidian", and the other is more than 30 in the "Records of the Li Dynasty" in North Korea.

Five concubines were buried in Zhu Gaochi's Xianling Mausoleum of Emperor Renzong. Among them, the noble concubine Guo's status is special. Among the officials who were buried with the emperors of the Ming Dynasty, no one with such a high status has been seen.According to Ming Dynasty writer Shen Defu's "Wanli Yehuo Bian", Guo Guifei was buried voluntarily, but it cannot be ruled out that it was the result of court struggle.Renzong reigned for only one year, and before he died, he issued a decree: "Since the imperial court is light, the grace has not been showered on the people, and I can't bear hard work, and the mountain system must be frugal." That's how it was, but five concubines were buried.

In the Jingling Mausoleum of Xuanzong Zhu Zhanji, 10 concubines were buried.Their surnames are recorded in "History of Ming Dynasty: Biography of Concubines". Compared with many concubines who were buried in the same place but did not even keep their surnames, they are somewhat lucky.

As for Emperor Jing, it is only recorded in the history books that "concubines, concubines, Tang family, etc." were buried, and the exact number is unknown. Adding up the five emperors, the total number of buried concubines was about 5.

The concubines who were buried were often helpless and vulnerable groups in the court. Among the 10 concubines who died for Emperor Xuanzong of the Ming Dynasty, there was a palace man named Guo Ai who entered the palace for less than a month. If you haven't seen it, you are forced to be a martyr. "History of Ming Dynasty: Biography of Concubine Concubine" contains: "Concubine Guo, named Ai, styled Shanli, was born in Fengyang. He was virtuous and educated, and died in his [-]th year of office. Knowing the date of his death, he wrote Chu Sheng to mourn himself. Ci date: "There are many shorts, and there are many shortcomings. Life is like a dream, and death is awakened. I return to my parents first, and I am ashamed of my filial piety. The heart can't do it. If it is, then it can be mourned."" Talented Before his death, Guo Ai left a song of Chu to the world, full of blood and tears, lamenting the teasing of fate, denouncing the cannibalistic system of human martyrdom, and removing the hypocritical mask of feudal emperors.

There should be only a few recorded in the official history, probably only involving the princess and some famous women, but the majority are not recorded.At that time, many women were supposed to be buried in the funerals of the kings, but these women were not even qualified to be recorded, and became nameless ghosts accompanying the emperor underground.

The main methods of burial in the Ming Dynasty were to hang oneself, go on a hunger strike, and then put them in a coffin for burial. The specific process is rarely seen in official history.However, the "Records of the Li Dynasty" in North Korea recorded in detail the process of the collective sacrifice of the concubines who were buried for the ancestors.

(End of this chapter)