A Survival Guide to the Qing Harem

Chapter 15
When we read European history, we are often dazzled by their confusing family relationships, such as a person's mother can be his sister at the same time, or an uncle can be an uncle at the same time, and the queen of this country can also be that country. In the end, it was concluded that the entire European royal family was actually somewhat related.This brings up a problem - interpersonal relationships are relatively chaotic, for example, what should we call this person who is both an uncle and an uncle?

You may feel that it is not easy to be born in the European royal family. I really want to make a phone call and ask Nero, the famous tyrant who committed adultery with his mother. When I opened my eyes in the morning and saw the beautiful woman lying beside me, I didn’t know what to say. What about "mother" or "beloved wife"?

If this question bothers you, you might as well turn your attention back to China.In fact, from the beginning of the Three Emperors and Five Emperors, it was a matter of pride to maintain the purity of the blood through close relative marriages. Therefore, relatives of relatives also became relatives, and finally relatives spread more and more widely.In addition to the unscientific consequences of biology, there is also a problem of etiquette, that is, the title.

In the Qing Dynasty, the Manchus ruled the world, and the most etiquette nation could not be sloppy in terms of titles, especially in the harem, where complicated titles interfered with complicated interpersonal relationships, which really made people scratch their heads. But misfortune came from the mouth!In our Qing Dynasty, the professional term is called "failure".

Three aunts, six wives, big sisters, aunts, uncles, and uncles | The title is the most important
In the big family of the harem, everyone is related. In terms of blood relationship, seniority, no matter what, everyone must have an appropriate name.What's more, we are in the harem of the Qing Dynasty, which is the most respectful and etiquette.But because we are an ethnic minority, many names are different from those of the Han people, and in fact we still use the Manchu language.This is not a strange thing, just like if you are from the Northeast, you can speak the Northeast dialect; if you are from Sichuan, you can speak the Sichuan dialect.But if you are a Sichuanese born in the Northeast, it will be different. If no one is around you to create a Sichuanese language environment for you, I believe that people who grew up in the Northeast can still speak Northeast dialect.

I say this to help you clarify a question. Although you are honored to be selected as a show girl, the ethnicity column in the household registration book is naturally written as Manchu or Mongolian, but the Qing Dynasty entered the customs for so many years. Growing up in middle school, it is normal for a Manchu not to be able to write Manchu, maybe even the words are not very clear. very big difference.

You won't say it doesn't matter, but you have to study hard, among other things, you must first learn the address, otherwise it will be more than just making a fool of yourself.

Let's talk about the emperor of the king of the country first.Although he is the son of heaven, he is also a human being, a man's son, a man's husband, and a man's father.What do people around here call him?In fact, it has been introduced earlier that the empress dowager called her son "emperor", and the empress dowagers did the same.People of the same generation, no matter if you are a queen, a concubine, or a court lady, you should all address them as "Emperor", so you are superior.As for the sons and daughters, they are called "Huang Ama", which means father in Manchu.

What about the Queen?Regardless of mother-in-law, husband or sister, they are all called queens.If the relationship with the emperor is good, the emperor may call him by his name in private.However, things in the boudoir are not custom-made, and no one can tell. If it is you, you can let your emperor husband call you by your baby name in the room, it proves that you can indeed be loved by your husband.

What about the child?Anyway, if you are the queen, you will take advantage of the advantages. All the children of the emperor, whether they are born by you or not, have to call you "Emperor Niang". After all, you are the mother of the country.Of course, having so many children may not be a good thing, especially if none of them are your own, then you, a mother, have to show some foresight and wisdom.

So what do you and the other sisters call each other?Those who have a better relationship and walk around more usually can indeed be called sisters and sisters in private.If your two "girlfriends" are present at the same time, then add a word in front, for example, if they are Concubine Rong, they are called "Sister Rong".Of course, this is just an informal occasion. If you are in front of many people, or when you are asking for greetings, you can't be sisters. You have to call people by their titles and status, such as "Xi Guifei" or something. .

In the next generation, the Kangxi Dynasty clearly stipulated that the princes would be called "Emperor × Son" in order after being given names. Of course, this appeared on official documents, or when discussing a certain prince with courtiers. .If you met face to face, then call the other party "elder brother". Of course, you still need to add a sort in front, "third elder brother", "fifth elder brother" or something, pay attention to the fourth sound of the word "A", The word "brother" is pronounced softly.

Elder brother was called very single before he was knighted.Anyway, you don’t have many chances to meet him. If you see him, it is reasonable for him to salute you first (if your rank is high enough), and you just need to nod your head in response. Make a virtuous name for you.

What about the emperor's daughters?In many film and television works about the Qing Dynasty, we often hear the name "Ge Ge", especially this "Han Zhu Ge Ge", which has almost accompanied the growth of the generation born in the 80s.But the name "Gege" is very debatable.

"Gege" is actually a transliteration of Manchu, and the translated meaning is the meaning of Miss and Sister.Before the Qing army entered the customs, the name Gege was very common, but it was only limited to daughters of noble families, and ordinary people could not use it.After Huang Taiji entered the Central Plains, he gradually began to unify the titles in the harem, because the daughters of the emperors in the past were called princesses, so the Qing Dynasty also used the title of princess.

"Drafts of Qing History" has: "Princesses are two: Princess Gulun and Princess Heshuo".In Manchu, "Gu Lun" means the world, and only the daughter of the queen and the emperor is worthy of the word "Gu Lun".The daughters of the other concubines are called "Princess Heshuo".But the so-called Princess Gu Lun and Princess Heshuo are not honored at birth, they have to wait for the emperor's father to confer, and before they are conferred, the princesses are collectively referred to as little princesses.

Well, the relationship between the main characters has been sorted out, you just need to follow along and there will be basically no problems.There are also some people who don't often appear in the harem, but it is also very necessary to know who is who and who is related to whom.

For example, the uncles and brothers who are inextricably linked to the emperor, how many classes are they divided into, and how should they be called when they meet?

After Nurhaci established the Eight Banners system, those nephews were named the banner owners of the Eight Banners, collectively known as Bahe Shuobeile.After Huang Taiji succeeded to the throne, he established the nobility system and divided the titles into five classes.In the Shunzhi Dynasty, the titles were officially established as twelve grades, namely Prince, County King, Baylor, Beizi, Zhen Guogong, Fu Guogong, Zhen Guogong who did not enter Bafen, Fuguo Gong who did not enter Bafen, and Zhenguo Gong. General, General Fuguo, General Fengguo, General Fengen.

Most people don't need to envy this first-class prince. Normally, this position is only reserved for the royal family members, and they are the direct relatives of the royal family. For example, the emperor's brother and younger brother can be named princes, and the emperor's son can also You can directly seal it as a prince.

The sons of the princes are generally named county kings. This is the old rule of "coming down to the first class". This can prevent these kings from growing up and plotting against them. Let us all serve our country.Of course, there are also the kind of fathers who have made great achievements, and the emperor granted the title to be hereditary. This kind of people is commonly known as the "iron hat king", who will never be demoted unless he makes a big mistake.

At the level of Baylor, in addition to the son of the emperor, the sons of other members of the royal family can also be named Baylor.Baylor's son was named Beizi.The rest are not common in the royal family, and you are even rarer in the harem, so just remember those close relatives.

In fact, when Lord Shunzhi established the rank of titles, he also established the rank of "Ge Ge".The princess here does not refer to the princess, but refers to the daughter born to the royal relatives other than the emperor.

Gege is divided into five classes, namely the princess, the county master, the county monarch, the county monarch, and the township monarch.

The princess, also known as Heshuogege, is the daughter of the prince.The daughter of the county king is called Duoluogege, the county owner.Baylor's daughter is the Junjun, and her name is also Duoluogege.Beizi's daughter is the county monarch, called Gushan Gege.The lowest-status township monarchs are generally the daughters of Zhen Guogong and Fu Guogong, and they are directly called Gege.

So, in "Han Zhu Ge Ge", neither Ziwei nor Little Swallow can be called "Ge Ge". From Ziwei's point of view, although her mother is just a commoner, she is a dragon after all. After all, she is also a princess. If the emperor wants to confer the title, she must also be conferred the title of Princess Heshuo, which is worthy of her rank.

If I can marry the "mayor of a municipality directly under the Central Government", you will have no chance | How will the princess mess around?

Throughout the history of China, there are countless virtuous kings, and there are also many stupid lords; there are many virtuous and virtuous concubines, but there are even more cruel women.However, in this harem, there is another type of women who occupy an important position. They do not need to fight wits and bravery with concubines from all walks of life, and of course they cannot become "little lords in the world" to interfere in the world. death" type, this bouquet of flowers is our princess.

But not every princess can accept the life of her daughter, live happily to old age without anger or struggle.Let’s look at Princess Guantao in the Han Dynasty. This typical domineering woman who was spoiled by her mother really didn’t know how to restrain herself when she was old.However, the most successful thing she has done in this life is to force her daughter Gillian to be her sister-in-law Wang Meiren as a daughter-in-law, and then become the emperor's mother-in-law by accident, enjoying countless privileges, Wang Yang lay wantonly in the arms of male favorites from all walks of life, not knowing why.This is also a lucky person.

Then there is Wu Zetian's daughter, Princess Taiping. This is the youngest daughter of Wu Zetian and Tang Gaozong Li Zhi. She is quite loved by her father.But she didn't, probably because she had a relationship with an ambitious and politically talented mother.Princess Taiping imitated her mother everywhere, vowed to be the second female emperor, and she kept thinking about it, waiting for her mother to pass the throne to her without eating well and without sleep.As a result, the motto "If you don't die, you won't die" is vividly confirmed. Princess Taiping may not be able to understand this truth in the end. Even if you have another mother who became an empress, you are not an empress!

In the Qing Dynasty, princesses were almost no longer called princesses, and the management system for princesses has also changed compared with the previous dynasty, but these systems gave birth to a series of miserable lives.

It stands to reason that the status of the princesses in the palace can be described as neither high nor low, because they are not the main "labor force" of the royal family. They can neither bear children for the emperor in place of the concubines, nor can they govern the government in place of the emperor. After all, from the day they were born, they were destined to be rewarded and save face for the emperor.Either reward them to a foreign land in the form of a kinship, or reward them to a certain important minister in a way of winning people's hearts.

From the beginning of the establishment of the Qing Dynasty to the end of the Qing Dynasty, the concubines gave birth to more than 100 princesses for the emperors. Among them, 37 were unmarried. Most of them were in poor health and died before they lived to be adults. , Of course, there are also a few who don't know why they didn't get married, and can only stay in the palace to die.

Those who get married may not be able to have a happy life; those who are not married may not be so miserable.This is the life of a royal woman.

If you don’t believe me, take a look at Mukush, the fourth daughter of Nurhachi. She can be described as the spokesperson of the tragic fate of the princess in the history of the Qing Dynasty. When she was 14 years old, she was pointed out to Bu Zhantai by her father, but it didn’t take long before the marriage drama could not go on. Nurhachi and Bu Zhantai turned against each other, so she was taken home. At this time, she was pregnant With Buzhantai's flesh and blood.

That year, she married E Yidu, who was 33 years older than her. People did not dislike her for marrying and having children. The life of old husband and young wife was still harmonious. Unfortunately, before enjoying a few years of peace, her husband let go Human world abandoned her.The only benefit this marriage brought to her was the birth of a son named Ye Bilong, who was also one of the famous auxiliary ministers in the Kangxi Dynasty. For many years, my son's blessing has not been enjoyed for a single day.

Adjust her mood and recuperate. She is still young and must "fight" again.So at the age of 27, Mukush married her stepson, Turg, the eighth son of her ex-husband Eyidu (isn’t this incest), although she prayed to the gods day and night for a happy life, but obviously the gods didn’t want to talk to her, Even she herself didn't dare to think that her happiness would be ruined by the daughter she had brought up with so much painstaking efforts.

This matter is quite strange to say. This daughter of Mukush was born to her first husband Bu Zhantai. She was still pregnant and was destined to grow up in the tribe of Nurhachi.Although the status is not high, Nurhachi still loves this granddaughter very much. After she became an adult, he married her to his grandson Nikan.The young couple have been childhood sweethearts since they were young, and they really went from love to marriage.But they have been married for more than ten years and have no children.In order to continue the incense, Nikan moved to marry another side Fujin and have children.Coincidentally, at this time, Mukush's daughter announced that she was pregnant and gave birth to a baby girl more than nine months later.

It was a happy event for everyone, but not long after, Nikan's mother discovered that the baby girl was not born to her daughter-in-law at all, but was secretly raised from outside in an attempt to pretend to be Aixinjueluo's blood!This was a bolt from the blue, Huang Taiji was furious, and immediately sentenced the parties involved, and even the relevant personnel were not spared, so Mukush's husband Turg was dismissed from the title of Viscount, and Gu Shan'ezhen was removed from his position. Ye Bilong was also dismissed.The worst thing is Mukush, who is a mother. His own daughter made troubles, and he has to clean up the mess himself.She was also deprived of the title of Princess Heshuo and forced to divorce Turge.At this time, Mukush was 43 years old, and he returned to his tribe in misery, living with his mother and brother.

How old she lived is not recorded in the historical data, maybe in her old age, when the world is in turmoil and the dynasty is changing, no one has time to pay attention to such an ordinary princess who married three men.However, we can see several problems from Mukush's experience.In Nurhaci and its previous era, "marriage between father and wife" was a primitive form of extramarital marriage common in Manchu society, and the phenomenon of "marrying regardless of race, when father died and son married his mother" often occurred.This seems very unreasonable to us today, but at that time, the primitive tribes did not care much in order to develop and expand their population.That's why Mukush married Lao Tzu and then married his son, so he didn't even know what to call him.

After the Later Jin entered the Liaoshen area, it gradually accepted the influence of Han culture. Especially in the era of Huang Taiji, this monarch hated the bad habit of father and wife marriage very much. Marry stepmother, aunt" decree.Therefore, for Mukush's punishment, we have to say that Huang Taiji had ulterior motives. His strategy of killing chickens and monkeys has since eliminated the incest habits left by the Manchus.

(End of this chapter)