"Your kindness cannot be seen, I am not as good as an autumn fan" . Ancient feudal society had high requirements for women. Three Obediences and Four Virtues is a standard set by the ancients for women, which summarizes the entire life of women being oppressed.
Most women in ancient times were always entangled by their three relatives, father, husband and son. Their three identities were tightly entangled. If one of them went wrong, the fate of this woman would take a sharp turn.
Today we are going to share the story of a poor woman and her filial son. The era they lived in was not the peak of feudalism, but the complex junction between the end of the feudal system and the beginning of democracy.
Removed the cloak of "the son does not dislike the mother's ugly" and "the mother is noble by the son". Through this story, let's take a look at the difficulty of women's life under feudal thoughts and ethics, and how a man speaks out for women and fights for dignity.
Official father
Tan Zhonglin was an official in the late Qing Dynasty, a loyal supporter of feudal thought, and a genuine corrupt scholar. The outside world obeys the imperial court's assignments, and the family has many wives and concubines, but they do not give any respect to the women around them.
His career was very smooth throughout his life. He passed the Jinshi exam during the Shunzhi period and entered the officialdom. He was in his thirties when a man was full of energy. With his familiarity with Shaanxi, he was recommended by Zuo Zongtang to serve as the governor of Shaanxi by Zuo Zongtang and soon promoted to nursing governor.
Unlike those officials who "usually talk about their hearts and minds, and repay the king when they are in danger", Tan Zhonglin rectified the academy, encouraged sericulture, mediated ethnic conflicts, and disaster relief to build water conservancy.
But no matter how you do, you can only be an excellent "paper craftsman" of the Qing Dynasty. He did not recognize the situation at that time and the demands of the people. Tan Zhonglin devoted himself to the court and his own " black hat ", but forgot that "the people are the most important, the king is the least".
He can see his nature from two things.
First of all, in terms of the attitude of the Reform of 1898, Tan Zhonglin firmly opposed the change of the "ancestral law" and concluded the reform by "rebellion". He repeatedly criticized him for his Westernization Movement, which only pursued changes in objects. He did nothing and did not change at all.
There was an official who supported the Westernization Movement and learned advanced ideas so much that he lamented: "It's ridiculous and hateful! Why use this disabled person to ruin the two Guangdong people!" shows Tan Zhonglin's ignorance.
But this incident hindered the development of the Chinese nation, but brought the favor of the empress dowager to Tan Zhonglin. He was promoted repeatedly and finally "retired after success". After begging for bones, he also had a posthumous title.
Another thing is to suppress the revolution. Tan Zhonglin's feudal idea of "loyalty to the emperor and protecting the country" was deeply rooted. He could no longer see the skinny people. He only regarded the revolutionaries as a test for him and laid the revolutionaries' heads into a step for promotion and promotion.
Tan Zhonglin suppressed the revolution many times, brutally killed countless revolutionaries, and severely damaged the revolutionary forces in the old society.
Tan Zhonglin's family has many wives and concubines, and they are scattered. On the twelfth lunar month of the fifth year of the Guangxu period, a concubine named Li of Tan Zhonglin gave birth to a boy. He is very precious to this child and even more pampered than the legitimate son.
This is because the night before, Tan Zhonglin dreamed of the dead He Wen'an hiding a dream for him and said that he would live at home for a long time. He Wen'an is a minister that Tan Zhonglin admires, but unfortunately he passed away a few years ago. This dream made him sure that his newly born son was He Wen'an Tosen.
Tan Zhonglin named this son Tan Yankai, whose courtesy name is Zuan, and his name is He Wen'an's name.
Talents have come out of the sky
0 Tan Yankai is very smart. He started studying at the age of three, entered a private school at the age of five, and was good at writing literature and chanting poems. Tan Zhonglin became happier the more he read it. He felt that he had the style of He Wen'an and would definitely be a high-ranking official in the future, with a higher rank than himself.
But Xiao Tan Yankai was not happy. He prefers to stay with his mother than to listen to his bureaucratic father teaching classics, history, and collections. But such happiness is always short-lived, and there are few smiles on my mother's face, and he can't even call her "mother".
Mrs. Li is used to being at the mercy of fate, but she has resisted for her newly born son. Tan Zhonglin wanted to steal her son, but she firmly hugged the cradle, but this is all she could do.
Get up early to wash up. As a concubine, Mrs. Li must get up earlier than the main room, go to greet her and wait for the washing. When eating, her identity is never available to the table. She can only start dining with the servant after the owner has finished eating.
Mrs. Li has no time for her. She is dispatched and assigned by the eldest wife every day, which is no different from calling the girl. Therefore, when Xiao Tan Yankai went to meet her mother, she always had endless work.
What is even more unbearable is the irony and scolding. Mrs. Li cannot speak back. The eldest wife has the right to drive her out at any time. In order to have a meal and vegetable at home, she always silently bows her head to endure it. Tan Yankai sees all these things in his eyes and hurts in his heart.
When he was young, he occasionally stepped forward to refute hard and vented his anger for his mother, but what he received was a sarcastic mockery: "The child born by a concubine doesn't understand the education or rules at all." The mother's tears rolled in her eyes, and he was also severely criticized by her father.
Tan Yankai set a lofty ambition. Although he is a concubine's son, he must work harder and be better than all his brothers and sisters. For his mother's support, he will no longer be bullied by anyone.
supports his mother
In order to support his mother, he studied hard, became a scholar at the age of thirteen, and became a tribute scholar at the age of 24. This was also the last time in the late Qing Dynasty, imperial examination .
At the banquet to congratulate Tan Yankai, he brought his mother to the banquet. Although Mrs. Li covered her face and refused in every way, Tan Yankai must insist on letting her go to the table for dinner. Everyone remained silent, no one stopped him, and his father also acquiesced.
He first toasted his father with a glass of wine, then poured the glass full to his mother, and bowed his head respectfully to toast. This time no one dared to give out sarcastic words. This is a small step taken by Tan Yankai, but it represents a big step forward in society.
Later, Tan Yankai's official career was successful, but unlike his father Tan Zhonglin, he only married one wife in his life and never took a concubine. Tan Yankai actively learned new ideas and even became friends with revolutionary leaders.
In 1916, Tan Yankai's mother died of illness in his hometown. He resolutely returned home to attend the funeral despite his own safety. After returning home, I saw my mother's coffin facing the remote side door.
Tan Yankai cried to his mother, and he worked hard all his life and would never get the dignity he deserved. He insisted on letting his mother's coffin be delivered from the main door.
Many people advised him that this is the rule of ancestors that cannot be broken, and that the concubine must go in and out through the side door.
He put away his tears and lay on the coffin and shouted: I am dead today, the funeral will be held! Everyone hurriedly dragged him off the coffin. Several people stared at each other and stopped stopping them. Finally, they asked the concubine Mrs. Li's coffin to be sent out from the main door.
But Tan Yankai didn't feel relaxed. He just felt that it was not easy to move out his mother's coffin today. How difficult it would be to move away the feudal mountain in people's hearts!
emancipate the mind, The road to equality between men and women is long and long. I hope we can work together to carry the mountains of feudal thought and walk out of a road to heaven.
