The ancients said that the main task of concubines was to reproduce, and another effect is surprising, and people may find it hard to believe it today.
The concubine, who was once at the bottom of the ancient society, is known to have a mission to "perpetuate the incense". However, there is another function hidden behind it, which is surprising, and what kind of function is it, aside, the aforementioned reproductive duties, which may seem unreasonable to modern people.
Who could be a concubine? This phenomenon is common in many costume dramas: the old man is often surrounded by many beautiful women, and his demeanor is frivolous. They used a variety of strategies to please their masters, who were happy to do what they did, often going in and out of the concubines' dwellings. Some concubines, after gaining the favor of their masters, despised the authority of their wives, but such situations were rare in ancient societies. The reason why a wife is a wife is not just because of her beauty or talent, but because the family power she represents behind her is comparable to that of a male family. Therefore, in daily life, the wife is in control of the finances, and the husband also gives her great respect. They represent not only individuals, but also family interests, not to mention that the wife has a strong backer, and the concubine has nothing to rely on. Even if there is a family member, the family is unable to provide substantial support due to differences in status. Therefore, if a daughter was cherished in ancient society, it was not common for her to become a concubine.
The ** of concubines is roughly divided into several categories, some poor families would rather sell their daughters out of the house in order to survive, and those who are beautiful are fortunate to be favored by their masters and occupy the position of concubines. Although her identity is slightly better than that of a maidservant, she is still a role that serves people after all. The other part of the concubines originated from the desire of some people to tie up with their superiors and sacrifice their daughters to high-ranking officials and nobles as concubines, so as to improve their careers.
In ancient times, marrying a wife was extremely solemn, and it was necessary to go through procedures such as "three books and six appointments" and "Ming media is marrying", and the wedding scene was also extremely grand, and "Ten Miles of Red Makeup" was to describe its spectacular scene.
When the newlyweds walk through the main entrance of the wedding site, it signifies that the family welcomes the arrival of a new hostess. The way to enter the concubines was relatively simple, and they were often picked up and dropped off by a small sedan chair, which symbolized their lower status than the main wife, and they had to choose to enter the mansion through the side door. In addition, concubines are not allowed to wear red clothes, which are for the exclusive use of the wife, to show the distinction of rank.
Although the concubines had to obey the orders of the male master and the main wife when they were in the palace, they could not resist the authority of the main wife, who had full control over their lives. If you meet a generous wife, the concubine's life may be relatively comfortable; However, if she meets a strict wife, the concubine has to endure a difficult wait.
Although some concubines were loved by their male hostess, they still needed to be cautious about their life in the palace. Even if they are loved by their husbands, men will not have conflicts with their wives because of them, after all, the reputation of stirring up disputes for a concubine is not good, and the beautiful and excellent concubines in the family have sprung up, and the concubines have no exclusive advantage. Therefore, knowing how to observe the situation and be cautious in words and deeds has become the way for the concubines to survive in the mansion.
As for the question of whether the unfortunate death of the main wife means that the favored concubine is expected to be promoted to the main wife, this is actually not valid in the ancient feudal society. Because the concubine does not have a strong support from her mother, even if the male owner has the intention in his heart, he is unable to achieve it. In a feudal society that advocated a strict system of respect and inferiority, a wife was always a wife, and a concubine could only be a concubine, and the boundary between the two was like a heavenly gully.
If a family straightens out the concubine and becomes the mistress of the family, it will inevitably attract criticism and criticism from all walks of life, because it breaks the traditional concept of dignity and order. Therefore, at all times, the status of the main wife is higher than that of the concubine, which is a matter of principle, and no transcendence is allowed.
Therefore, the man's solution is very simple, that is, to marry another wife, she is also married to the main wife through legal procedures, and the children born to her are the children of the authentic line; Relatively speaking, the status of the offspring of the concubine and the children of the direct line is very different, which was respected in ancient times"Continuation"Phenomenon.
The ancients attached great importance to the development of the family population, and they believed that the more children in the family, the better. However, it is really not enough to rely on the wife alone to bear the burden of reproduction, so most of the reproductive tasks are completed by the concubine. Based on this, concubines mainly played a key role in "reproduction" in ancient times.
Although the children of concubines are called "concubines", they are also part of the master's family. If the wife is infertile for a long time, the host family can also take the child born by the concubine to be raised. However, it should be noted that whether it is a child born to a concubine or a child born to a wife, they cannot call the concubine their mother, only the main wife is their only mother. If his behavior is not in accordance with the norms, the wife has the right to take him out; And as a husband, he is usually silent about such matters, because in their hearts the concubine is more like = a tool for parenting.
In addition, in ancient times, the eunuch family sometimes gave concubines as gifts to friends or superiors to maintain personal relationships.