This is an old ** from the late Qing Dynasty, taken around 1900. The main character in is a man and his seven beautiful wives. It can be seen from the ** that the seven women are not very old, and their appearance can be called beautiful in that era, the man is obviously old, it can be seen that the family is wealthy, judging from the dress, he should be a scholar. What is the background of this **?Why does this man have seven wives?
What about their stories?
To answer these questions, we need to understand some of the social background and customs and Xi of the late Qing Dynasty. The end of the Qing Dynasty was a turbulent period in Chinese history, with foreign invasion and internal civil uprisings that put the rule of the Qing Dynasty in jeopardy. In such an environment, some rich and powerful people, in order to protect their property and safety, often expand their power and influence by marrying more wives and concubines. At the same time, due to the traditional feudal ideology and the concept of male superiority and inferiority of women, the status of women is very low, and many women are forced to become concubines or maidservants of the rich, without freedom and dignity. This is why there were many wealthy people in the late Qing Dynasty who had multiple wives and concubines.
So, what kind of pair are the men in this ** and his seven wives?According to the information I checked, this man's name is Li Wenbin, and he is a prefect of Baoding Prefecture in Hebei Province. He was born in a scholarly family, was smart and studious since he was a child, was admitted to the Jinshi, and became a **. His first wife was a Manchu, and it was his father who chose a son-in-law for him, and their marriage was a political marriage and there was no affection. His second wife, a Han Chinese, was given to him by a wealthy merchant when he was serving in Jiangnan, and she was the illegitimate daughter of a wealthy merchant with no status. His third to seventh wives were all married by him from local famous or wealthy families when he was in Baoding, and they were all forced to marry him, and they had no choice. Although Li Wenbin has seven wives, he is not a careless person, and he only has to marry more wives and concubines in order to cope with the pressure and expectations of society. He was very respectful and considerate of his seven wives, there was no preference and neglect, and there was no jealousy between them, and they got along very well. Their story, although there is no passion and romance, but there is a kind of blandness and warmth, maybe this is their happiness.
This ** photo was specially taken by Li Wenbin in his last year in Baoding, in order to leave a commemoration. He took his seven wives, dressed in the best clothes, put on the most decent poses, smiled, and looked at the camera, as if to say to us: this is my life, this is my family, I have nothing to regret, I am lucky.