In Jin Yong 's " The Deer and the Cauldron ", everyone knows that Wei Xiaobao is very lucky and has seven wives: Mu Jianping , Fang Yi , Shuanger , Su Quan , Jianning Princess , Zeng Rou , A Ke . But many people may not know that according to the Qing Dynasty, Wei Xiaobao has indeed violated the " bigamy crime ".
In fact, China has implemented a clear monogamy since ancient times, and has established the "big-ambiguity crime" very early in the legal process, called "marrying more if you have a wife". For example, the "Tang Law Commentary: The House Marriage Law "marrying more if you have a wife" stipulates that "all those who have a wife will be more married for one year, and the daughter's family will be reduced by one level; if you marry for a deception, you will be less than one and a half years, and the daughter's family will not sit down. Each one will be separated."
The spirit of " household marriage law " has been used until the Qing Dynasty. The "Qing Dynasty Law·House Law·Marriage "Disorder of Wife and Concubine" Article stipulates that "all those who regard their wives as concubines will be 100 rods; those who are still married with concubines will be 90 rods and correct them; if there is a wife who marrys them, they will be 90 rods and (who later married later) will be divorced." However, the law no longer distinguishes whether the man conceals the fact that he already has a wife, and sentences all bigamy men to "90 rods" and cancels the bigamy marriage. The so-called "three wives and four concubines" is just a folk saying. It is impossible to have a marriage relationship of "three wives" legally, whether in the Tang and Song dynasties or in the Ming and Qing dynasties.
Jin Yong's book does not seem to explain which wife of Wei Xiaobao is the "big room". Logically speaking, Princess Jianning should be regarded as the main wife. After all, she is the princess of the Qing Dynasty, but Mu Jianping was also the princess of the previous dynasty, and Su Quan was not a vegetarian, and A Ke was still Wei Xiaobao's favorite. I guess Wei Xiaobao was also confused and didn’t know which one should be the wife and which six should be the concubines. But in this way, according to the marriage system of the Qing Dynasty, Wei Xiaobao obviously violated the crime of "marrying even if he has a wife" and was sentenced to "beat ninety".
Speaking of this, you may have questions about "group of wives and concubines" not very common in ancient society? Is this not contrary to the law of "wives and marriages" that "we have more wives and concubines" is very common. Let's not talk about it here for now. Although there was indeed a system of "taking concubines" in ancient times, "concubine" and "wife" are clearly distinguished in law and cannot be confused. Taking a wife as a concubine, or taking a concubine as a wife, both constitute a crime in law.
The main reason why the system of taking concubines appeared in ancient times was that the ancients believed that "there are three kinds of unfilial piety, and no descendants are the greatest". Continuing the incense for ancestors was regarded as a man's greatest responsibility. Therefore, if the wife cannot have children, the husband should be allowed to take a concubine. In other words, in ancient patriarchal society, concubines were only used as tools of childbirth. Of course, men will also take concubines in order to declare their status or be greedy for beauty, but the reason why they can be said with high sound on the surface is the principle of "bringing children".
So to be precise, the ancient Chinese marriage system was not a "polygamy" system, but a "monogamy and multiple concubines".
