1904, Tan Zhonglin's entire mansion was immersed in a festive ocean, and a grand celebration of family banquet was about to begin. A concubine of Tan Zhonglin and Mrs. Li, who had been busy for most of the day, stood by the table and was preparing to set up a meal for everyone as usual. Although she was so tired that her back was sore, she still couldn't hide her inner joy. Her eyebrows and eyes were smiling. She had never been as happy as she was today for 24 years.
Tan Zhonglin, who had just sat down and was already 82 years old, looked at Mrs. Li standing aside and smirked, and raising her voice hard and announced to the whole family:
"Mrs. Li will sit down and have dinner with us in the future!"
After hearing her husband's words, Mrs. Li was flattered and almost fell. A clever servant next to her quickly brought a stool to help her sit down, and quickly served her a bowl of hot soup.
The first time she sat in the main hall for a meal, her heart was mixed, and her irrepressible tears rolled down into the bowl held in her hands, splashing small splashes of water, and instantly disappeared into the soup. For the first time, she felt that the soup with tears was so sweet.
Yes, she endured humiliation and sought after her whole 24 years. Her son Tan Yankai did not disappoint her. In the last imperial examination in the late Qing Dynasty, he won the first place in one fell swoop, namely Huiyuan, breaking the normal state that the entire Hunan had no Huiyuan for more than 200 years in the Qing Dynasty. Before that, although Hunan in the late Qing Dynasty had a series of great figures such as Hu Linji, Zeng Guofan , and Zuo Zongtang , he was not a high-ranking student in the imperial examination. Immediately afterwards, Tan Yankai took the palace examination, and was ranked 35th in the second grade, and was awarded the title of Jinshi, which shocked the entire Hunan.
Some people even say: Tan Yankai was originally named the top scorer. Not only is his article good, but his writing is also vigorous and powerful. But just when the old Buddha was about to write about his name, he suddenly thought of Tan Sitong, a "rebellious traitor" from Hunan who made her hate. When he thought that Tan Yankai's surname was Tan and was also from Hunan, he gently hooked his little finger and changed Liu Chunlin to the top scorer. First, she looked good at Chunlin's calligraphy; second, she looked auspicious to the name "Chunlin", because it happened to be spring and there was a severe drought in the world, so she needed "Chunlin". If he had a difficult fortune, he was demoted to the 35th Jinshi of the second grade.
. Regardless of the truth or falsehood, Tan Yankai was indeed the first tribute scholar in the exam, which was also a miracle among the entire Hunan scholars.
How could her son not be happy to achieve such achievements?
Li's family was born in a low-class family and was poor. Since childhood, he has been doing rough and tiring work that he could not finish any work. Because of his cleverness and a beautiful appearance, he was accused by an old lady of the Tan family by chance and became her personal maid. Since then, Li has been tempered by various feudal rules and survived in the cracks.
文0The maid who served his master in the Qing Dynasty
Li is quick-witted, low-key and cautious, and takes care of Tan Zhonglin's mother meticulously, so he has been serving the old lady in the old lady's room. Tan Zhonglin was very filial to the old lady and often went to the old lady's room to ask about her well-being. After a long time, Tan Zhonglin fell in love with her and asked her mother to take Li as his concubine.
Tan Zhonglin was a Jinshi of Xianfeng and a 2 minister in the late Qing Dynasty. He served as the supervisor of Jiangnan, the magistrate of Hangzhou, the magistrate of Hangzhou, the magistrate of Hangzhou, the magistrate of Henan, the governor of Shaanxi, the governor of nursing, the governor of Zhejiang, the governor of Shaanxi and Gansu, the Minister of Works, the governor of Fujian and Zhejiang, the general of Fujian and Guangxi, and the governor of Guangdong and Guangxi, and the status is rich and prominent.
Before Li was taken to the Tan family, Tan Zhonglin had already had a lot of wives and concubines: he had his original wife, Mrs. Chen, Mrs. Yan, and others, and Mrs. Li was the most inconspicuous one in the side room.
His wife is a lady from the family who is carrying three media and six certificates. carries a sedan chair and carries a lady from a grand family. She wears a phoenix crown and a red wedding dress and walks through the main door. She is legitimate and has blessings from her clan members and relatives and friends.
As for the side room, Li's class is different. The level of her entry is 100,000 miles away from the main room. She entered the door as a slave, and even the wedding was omitted. She walked through the side door under the fingers of the clan members. She had no family status or family status at all, and could not participate in some family sacrificial activities.
The wives and concubines of prominent people in the Qing Dynasty
Li's identity and status are destined to suffer a lot.
Three meals a day. When her "jun" (the concubine cannot call her husband "husband") and her family and other family members have dinner, Li must stand beside her, hand over wet wipes, pour wine, serve rice, soup, pick up dishes, hand over dishes, add vegetables, and add rice, and clean the table at will... The rules are complicated. During the service, she had to swallow her anger and have flexible hands and eyes. If she wanted to survive, she had to endure all kinds of mental stress and physical fatigue with strong perseverance, as well as unreasonable rebukes that came at any time.
After everyone had finished eating, Li went to the designated place where the servants had eaten (miscellaneous hall) and went to work in a hurry.
Shortly after marriage, in 1879, Li became pregnant. In this year, 57-year-old Tan Zhonglin served as the governor of Zhejiang, changed taxes, repaired seawalls, rectified military preparations, and had outstanding political achievements.
After pregnancy, Li felt hope in her life. She hoped that she could give birth to a boy, and hoped that her son would be as concerned and respected as her father, and could help herself get rid of this suffering.
On the evening of January 25, 1880, the pain from her lower abdomen made her realize, "I'm going to give birth!" At this time, her husband Tan Zhonglin had just fallen asleep.
It is said that he had a dream that He Wen'an (Ling Han), the late Qing Dynasty minister, came to pay homage to him. Tan Zhonglin suddenly woke up from his dream and heard the servant come to report good news in a trance: "Mrs. Liu gave birth to a baby boy." Tan Zhonglin was very happy when he was old and could not help but recall the dream and felt a surprise. He thought that this child must have been reincarnated from Tanhua He Linghan , so he used the word "Zu'an" of He Linghan to give the child a auspicious name, also called Wuwei. Later, people respectfully called him "Yugong", and this boy was Tan Yankai.
Tan Yankai's birth brought good luck to Mrs. Li and her father. In 1881, Tan Zhonglin was promoted to the Governor of Shaanxi and Gansu, and established an official charity bureau to relieve the fortune and to relieve the people's poverty.
From then on, Tan Zhonglin no longer asked Mrs. Li to do heavy work, and asked her to serve him and his family and children for dinner, and repeatedly told Li to raise his son well.
Li saw Tan Zhonglin's eyes looking at his son were full of love, hope and expectation. It was a kind of broad family affection. Li decided that his son would devote his life to his son's studies. She carefully taught and cultivated his son's interest in learning. Tan Yankai is smart and sensible. He entered a private school at the age of 5. He has a very high understanding and amazing expression. He often has his own unique views. His teacher likes him very much and always praises him whenever he talks about his student.
His father Tan Zhonglin believed more and more that his son was extraordinary and paid more attention to his studies. He stipulated for Tan Yankai that one article must be written in three days, one poem must be written in five days, and practice writing a few pages, small regular script brush calligraphy.
These tasks are a bit difficult for other children, but for Tan Yankai, he is a piece of cake. He can complete it with quality and quantity every time, and has never disappointed Tan Zhonglin. Such an excellent son is naturally inseparable from her excellent mother.
Later, Li gave birth to two more sons, but Tan Zhonglin did not change her attitude towards her because she gave birth to more sons, and still did not improve her identity in the Tan family. Li often suffered from the eyes and punishments of his wife Chen's wife. Even Mrs. Yan, the wife of the wife, shouted at her, thinking of ways to bully her.
Mrs. Li has too much grievance and can only hold it in her heart.
However, there was one thing that made Tan Yankai, who was young, begin to touch his mother's identity and have the idea of changing his miserable situation.
Once after school, Tan Yankai saw a few children pointing at him and heard them calling him "Little Third". From their sarcastic eyes, he clearly felt that "Little Third Third" was definitely not a good thing, but because he was young, he didn't understand what this title meant, so he came back to complain to his mother.He said:
"Mom, some classmates call me 'little third'. It's so ugly. Why do they call me that? I don't like others calling me that!"
Mrs. Li looked at her son's angry little face, her heart was like a knife cut. She wanted to force a smile to comfort her son, but she couldn't control her sadness, her lips trembled, and big tears rolled down her face, like beads with broken threads.
Tan Yankai saw his mother so sad, and waved his hands repeatedly and said:
"Mom, don't cry, don't cry, I won't ask again in the future."
Mrs. Li hugged her son, and she still burst into tears. Tan Yankai didn't know why her mother, who had always been strong, wanted to cry. She seemed to wash away all the grievances and pains. The smart Tan Yankai felt that her mother had carried too much humiliation and buried too much pain!
Soon Mrs. Li calmed down and looked at her son and said:
"Son, my mother is your father's side room. They call you 'little third' to laugh at you as the son of your wife. I laugh at you as a 'politician'. It's all my fault for giving you a good identity. You brothers must study hard, be good people, do great things in the future, be a big man, and be a big man, and make a sigh for your mother. No matter how much you suffer in the Tan family, it's worth it."
Tan Yankai listened to his mother's words, and seemed to understand why his mother was restless by her side and often cried secretly. After
, Mrs. Li focused more on her son's studies, especially the extremely intelligent Tan Yankai.
Tan Yankai found that whenever he achieved results, his mother would be very happy, and he could see his mother's long-lost smile. Tan Yankai had an invisible force in his heart urging him to be more excited. He wants to achieve what his mother said:
"Try to study hard, be a good person, and do great things."
People with goals and ambitions are indeed amazing. Tan Yankai can learn the literature of Yi (eight-legged essays) at the age of 11, while other children usually start to learn -legged essays at the age of 14 or 15, which is far behind Tan Yankai. Even Emperor Guangxu’s master Weng Tonghe calls Tan Yankai a "wizard". When Tan Yankai was young, his calligraphy was also highly appreciated by Weng Tonghe. In a letter to Tan's father, Weng once praised: "Three men are great tools! The pen is almost capable of carrying a tripod."
1893, Tan Yankai, who was only 13 years old, went to Changsha to participate in the boy test and passed the exam for scholar. Tan's father was old at that time. He was very happy to hear the news and felt that Tan Yankai was reincarnated as a family's hope. He spared no effort to invite famous teachers from all over the country to teach him how to read, learn style, practice calligraphy, etc.
At this time, Mrs. Li was finally able to raise her head and walk, and she also had the strength to speak in the Tan family. However, when facing her true wife, Mrs. Chen, was still timid. After all, the rule of "the legitimate and illegitimate are different, and the elders are orderly" was placed there, and she still did not dare to neglect the sisters in front of her.
Tan Yankai saw that his mother was serving them and her father’s meals as before, and he was still respectful and depressed. Besides, his mother was already tired and had back pain, and often so much pain that she couldn’t straighten her back, but she still endured the pain and the meal service was in place. She felt indescribable sadness and impulse. He secretly made up his mind to work hard for his mother. His mother once said that only when her son succeeds and can become a big shot or a big career can she truly make a name for herself. This is her life experience summarized by her mother with her blood and tears.
In fact, Tan Yankai has not failed to fight for his mother. Under pressure from his tribe, he had to let it go. Moreover, his mother, who has always been low-key, cautious and unstriving, has also stopped him from doing so.
After all, the era in which he was in was a feudal era, and the large family was more hierarchical than ordinary people. This is something that Tan Yankai, who had not yet become a "big figure". Although he felt sorry for his mother, her mother was a concubine who was born into a maid. Compared with other concubines, she had a lower status. Under the shackles of feudal shackles, she could only compromise and do "the things that are part of the slaves."
Tan Yankai kept in mind his mother's teachings and stopped fighting for it when his ability was not allowed. He followed his mother's nature in dealing with people and was humble to his brothers, and respected his mothers.
Those who bullied Li's family saw that Tan Yankai was well-educated and had a bright future, and no longer had to do anything to make Tan Yankai's mother like before.
In the 28th year of the Guangxu period (1902), Tan Yankai passed the imperial examination and more and more people in his family began to please Mrs. Li.
This time, Tan Yankai won the first tribute scholar in one fell swoop. He won the Jinshi in the palace examination and entered the Hanlin area. He was awarded the editorial and returned to Hunan to run a school. He won glory for Hunan, his mother, and also shines the Tan family. He knew that his mother could finally sit and eat in the main hall, and he was very happy.
Every time Tan Yankai returns home, he takes the initiative to sit next to his mother and respects his mother. He personally handes water to his mother, picks up the dishes he likes, and serves the soup his mother likes. What he does is also to everyone:
"Who dares to bully my mother again is to be my enemy!"
On weekdays, Tan Yankai conserves his mother in the morning and evening, and is very respectful to her. He knew that the mother who had been a servant all his life had always been looked down upon. If he did not elevate his mother's status and was not good to his mother, others would look down on his mother even more.
After entering the Republic of China, Tan Yankai had more major tasks to do. He repeatedly told his younger brother Tan Zekai : "When brother is not here, be sure to serve his mother well." No matter how busy Tan Yankai is, he will definitely take time to write a letter to greet him.
After getting married, Tan Yankai specially asked his wife Fang Rongqing to let her stay at home to take care of her mother. For this reason, he said to his wife:
"As long as you take good care of my mother, I will agree to any request you make."
In fact, Tan Yankai is very affectionate to his wife. He has witnessed his mother's suffering due to inequality since he was a child, so he has no machismo in front of his wife, considerate to his wife, and has always been grateful to his wife who is filial to him.
Tan Yankai's second year of marriage, the whole family moved to Guangzhou. His wife Fang Rongqing had irregular menstruation and was unwilling to take medicine. Tan Yankai personally guided the chef to make a rose hen soup for Fang to drink. He first made chicken soup, then added roses, and then added appropriate amount of honey. Tan Yankai did it carefully and carefully. After drinking it a few times, Fang's illness was completely cured. Because "Rose Hen Soup" is full of Tan Yankai's deep affection for his wife, this soup was changed to Rose Lover Soup and entered the big hotel.
Tan Yankai was very respectful and filial to his mother in front of his wife, took good care of his wife, and had a very harmonious family. Therefore, his wife was also filial to Tan's mother from the bottom of her heart.
Tan Yankai obeyed his mother's advice and always discussed with his mother first if he had anything to do. Even a major event like being the governor of Hunan must be approved by his mother before he agreed.
When she was in charge of Hunan for the second time, Mrs. Li's health was getting worse and worse. Her years of work often made her feel unbearable pain, but she was afraid that her son would come over to visit her when she knew about it. In order not to delay her son's future, she did not add burden to her son. She always said, "It's okay, the pain will pass after a while."
1916, Mrs. Li was seriously ill. She refused to let her daughter-in-law Fang Rongqing complain about her condition, for fear of delaying his work. Therefore, when Mrs. Li took her last breath in Shanghai, her favorite son was not by her side, which was also Tan Yankai's lifelong regret.
When his mother held the funeral, Tan Yankai knew that his mother had passed away. He was heartbroken and cried bitterly and wanted to come back no matter what. Someone reminded him: "If you leave Hunan at this time, the throne of Hunan may not be guaranteed!"
Tan Yankai understood that the decision he made meant that he would be kicked off the stage, but in his heart, his mother was the first priority. The last journey of his mother's life he failed to accompany his mother at the end of his life was the greatest unfilial piety. If he didn't even attend his mother's funeral, he would be even more unfilial. He resolutely ran to Shanghai to attend the funeral.
1917, Tan Yankai helped his mother, Mrs. Li's coffin to Changsha and temporarily parked it at the Lotus Pond home.
On the day Mrs. Li was buried, Tan Yankai asked her mother's coffin to leave the gate of the clan temple, but was rejected by the clans.
They were talking a lot, saying that Mrs. Li was just a concubine and that her funeral was not in line with the ancestral system. The clan members also advised Tan Yankai, "If you violate the ancestral system, you may suffer the family!"
Tan Yankai did not listen to their decadent routine at all. Those clan leaders and officials just wanted to use the help of someone in the family to increase their prestige and emphasize their status in the family, and nothing.
On the day of the funeral, when Tan Yankai helped his mother Li's coffin to walk out of the gate, a large group of tribe members actually blocked the gate and shouted that Li was a concubine and could only go to the side door.
Tan Yankai, who is full of filial piety, immediately became angry when he heard this. He clenched his fists and said wide-eyed:
"Today my mother is going to go out of the gate!"
He ordered the lord to say, "Carry the coffin and go out of the gate!" However, several older tribe members directly joined hands, lined up in a row to block the gate, and acted as if they would not give in. They also shouted to the tribe: "A concubine, I want to go out of the gate, but there is no such regulation in the tribe!"
tribes are noisy, as if they were incited by the older tribes, preparing to congestion at the gate.
Tan Yankai immediately said righteously:
"What's wrong with the concubine? In the past, you used this as an excuse to bully her. Now, everyone is equal!"
Tan Yankai saw that these people still refused to let go, and shouted: "My miserable mother, my son is here to accompany you." As he said that, he jumped onto the coffin, lying on his back on the lid of his mother's coffin, and ordered his husband to get up. He shouted:
"I, Tan Yankai, are dead, carry me to the funeral!"
Those tribesmen were stunned, the older ones looked at each other, speechless, and the whole audience was silent. Then, the few who blocked the door quietly retreated, and the ones behind them made way. Tan Yankai and his mother slowly walked out of the door in full view of everyone.
Tan Yankai, who was lying on the lid of the coffin, had tears rolling down his eyes as soon as he left the door, and hot tears fell down his ears on the lid of the coffin. He was glad that he cursed himself, for the last dignity of his mother and for the last responsibility he could fulfill his son, everything was worth it!
He finally breathed a sigh of relief and murmured to his mother:
"Mom, you have walked through the door, we have walked through the door!"
In this way, Li's coffin was funeral at the door, buried in Yuhuating . Later, in order to commemorate his mother, Tan Yankai wrote a volume of "Political Grass in Ciwei's House" for his mother.
As a concubine, Li's suffering has always stimulated Tan Yankai. The humiliation of his mother being a concubine is deeply engraved in Tan Yankai's bones. He secretly vowed:
"I will never take a concubine in this life!"
In 1920, four years after Mrs. Li's death, Tan Yankai's wife Fang Rongqing also died in Shanghai. Tan Yankai, who was busy preparing for the third time in Hunan, was later informed of his death and was heartbroken in the Lingling Army. Fang Rongqing had a total of three sons and three daughters, and she could not let go of the children. Her deathbed will instruct Tan Yankai that after her death, she hoped that he would raise several children well and not marry again. 40-year-old Tan Yankai followed Mrs. Tan's will and vowed not to renew his marriage for life. In order to express his grief for his deceased wife, Tan Yanqiu has always paid attention to food and ate vegetarian dishes in the army for 100 days.
Some people who didn't know that Tan Yankai, who was in his prime, lived alone, couldn't help asking him why. He said, "The old friend has a strong kindness, and I can't bear to fly together." The "kindness" in this sentence means that he can't forget his wife's kindness to have children for him and take care of his mother for him, and even more so that he can't forget the promise he made to his wife: "As long as you help me take good care of my mother, I will agree to any request you."
Tan Yankai, who lost his wife, politely rejected many kind matchmakers, and also politely rejected his old friend Sun Yat-sen. Tan Yankai once tried his best to help Sun Yat-sen when he was in trouble. In order to be grateful to Tan Yankai and to further strengthen their relationship, Sun Yat-sen introduced him to Soong Mei-ling, who had returned from studying in the United States.
Tan Yankai refused on the grounds that "I can't bear my deceased wife and ask for the second wife." In order not to hurt Soong Mei-ling's self-esteem, Tan Yankai came to Song Family with a generous gift and kowtowed to Song's mother and worshiped her godmother. Soong Mei-ling became his godmother. Later, he introduced the sister to Chiang Kai-shek .
Tan Yankai's ability to deal with people in harmony is actually inseparable from the influence of Mrs. Li on him. In his career, Tan Yankai was versatile and easy to do, and some people gave him an image of his nickname: "Tumbler", "Crystal Ball", etc.
It is precisely because of Tan Yankai's struggle and filial piety that his mother changed the trajectory of life, so that she had dignity during her lifetime and faced life with a smile; after death, she had sorrow and glory, and she smiled in the dark. Tan Yankai's actions of filial piety to her mother are worthy of respect, learning, and even surpassing each of us!
