In ancient times, there was a wine banquet culture in the officialdom, and there was a wine and meat culture in the green forest, which had different names. Although the name is different, many of the functions are the same.
Before the Sui and Tang dynasties, there was no imperial examination system, and the people of the scholar class had been officials for generations, and the intellectuals of the people could only go to the homes of the powerful to be diners, and when necessary, they could give advice to their masters, and even lead troops to fight. Diners can only accept the reward if they have made meritorious contributions, otherwise they will not be able to ascend to the throne for the rest of their lives. The powerful can engage in some wine banquet culture, that is, they must drink wine and eat meat when they gather together. No wonder Cao Di in "Cao Di's Polemics" said that the ruling class is a "meat eater", and only the ruling class can eat meat every day. Ordinary people may not be able to eat a meal of meat a year. The elites of the ruling class would gather together, and the purpose of the meeting was not just to eat and drink, but to have a certain relationship. The elites took turns to entertain guests, which could be used for socializing, seeking opportunities for high positions, and making political transactions. Their banquet culture itself is an important social activity, and it is limited to the elite class, which has the meaning of the current elite club, and when the powerful get together, they can gather resources and engage in some redistribution of resources. Moreover, at the banquet, they would praise each other, share resources with each other, invite musicians to play music at the banquet, ask dancers to dance, and give away concubines, slaves and maids, etc., in exchange for political power.
In the Sui and Tang dynasties, there was a imperial examination system, but there was still a wine banquet culture. Although folk scholars can pass the reading examination to get to the top, after taking the position, they have to adapt to the system of officialdom and the banquet culture of officialdom. In addition to giving their superiors some silver during the New Year's holiday, they also worked the wine banquet. The superior came down to inspect, and the subordinate ** should get a good banquet and entertain. According to the regulations, the banquet is relatively simple, and they all wear official uniforms, but these are superficial phenomena, and the real hospitality is in another place. In the evening, the superiors** and subordinates** all wore civilian clothes, entered the most famous restaurant in the area, drank wine and ate meat in it, and invited some singers and dancers to come to help the fun. The subordinate ** gives a silver ticket under the table, and you can get a good chance to get a good position. The banquet itself is indispensable, especially for those who are officials, and they should often set up banquets to entertain their superiors, colleagues, some local people of high moral character, clan elders, etc. They are often drunk, but they can still stick to the office, which is simply a fat gap.
In ancient times, the green forest also had a wine banquet culture, but it should be called a wine and meat culture. The banquets of the magnates had wine and meat, and many other precious dishes, while the heroes of the green forest did not have a woman to cook when they gathered, so they could only cook some meat and wine. So, they got together to "drink wine in big bowls, eat meat in large pieces, and try to live happily for the rest of their lives." "It has a communicative function, but it also has a role in unity. They want to achieve harmony between gangs and gangs, and eating meat and drinking wine together is equivalent to being brothers, instead of derogating each other and reporting each other. They themselves are not ** recognized people, nor are they liked by officialdom. If you want to gain a foothold in the people, you must help each other, cooperate with each other, worship the handle, and make an alliance with blood, so that you can twist into a rope and work against the government. If there is no support of wine and meat culture, it seems that many green forest heroes will be left alone, and they cannot become a member of the team, nor can they become a powerful force.
The heroes of Shuibo Liangshan advocate the culture of wine and meat, in addition to drinking wine and eating meat every day, they are robbing homes and houses, robbing the rich and helping the poor, and doing the right thing for heaven. Their desire to drink wine and eat meat every day is based on the simple needs of agricultural civilization, and many farmers like to eat meat and drink wine. It is not easy for farmers, and after a hard year, they may not be able to eat meat or drink wine in the end. If you raise pigs, you can only kill them at the end of the year. In other words, the family conditions of the people who can eat meat during the New Year are better, and most people cannot eat meat, even during the New Year. When encountering a war and chaos, they will not be able to eat meat, and they will have to be displaced, flee to other places to ask for food, and become a homeless person. They don't read, they can't read, they can't be **, but they can be heroes in the green forest. As long as you mix with the heroes of the green forest, you can "eat fragrant and drink spicy." "Enjoy a lifetime of happiness, instead of hiding all day long**, trembling, unable to meet food and clothing.
Many green forest heroes come from the people, from the common people, rather than being born as green forest heroes. Most of them were "forced to go to Liangshan", and they had no choice but to embark on the road of resistance. If there is a glimmer of hope that they can be good citizens and can survive, they will not dare to become bandits. The people in the green forest are not necessarily bandits, some are boxers, some are political brokers, and some are thieves, dart masters, etc. Usually, they do their own things, and when it comes to the party, they will drink wine and eat meat, get to know each other, divide resources, that is, divide spheres of influence, and manage them in a unified manner. Of course, some green forest rules require the younger brother to pay tribute to the eldest brother, and the younger brother needs to manage some territory separately, which is regarded as a kind of non-governmental organization, not spontaneous, but a group activity. Wine and meat became the main medium of activity. In the past, when I was not a hero in the green forest, I couldn't eat a meal of meat in a year, and when I became a hero in the green forest, I wanted to enjoy happiness, eat meat and drink wine, contact feelings, respond to every call, and do things conveniently. Most of the heroes of the green forest pin their heads to the waistband of their trousers, and they can't tell when they will lose it, if they don't drink wine and eat meat, how can they be worthy of themselves?
As a result, the wine and meat culture has become a part of the green forest culture, and it is the envy of many ordinary farmers. The same is true of officialdom culture, which will be the envy of many peasants, but if peasants cannot enter the officialdom, it will take several generations of efforts to train a scholar, let the scholar take the imperial examination, and then he will have a chance to get ahead. But no matter what, the officialdom prevails in the wine and banquet culture, and the green forest prevails in the wine and meat culture, and the functions are the same, but they have become indispensable. In fact, whether it is ** or a green forest hero, they are inseparable from eating and drinking, and they are also inseparable from the communication based on eating and drinking. To put it bluntly, the wine banquet culture and the wine and meat culture are a utilitarian culture, and it is also a speculative culture that satisfies eating and drinking, which is not advisable, but it is very poisonous, and it can't help but make people think deeply.