We read all the lead to present a different history.
As we all know, when describing a woman's appearance is beautiful and moving, people often use the appearance of Bixishi to praise it. As for how to describe the ugly appearance of women, many friends may not know. In fact, history books often use the term "seemingly salt-free" to describe it. The word "no salt" refers to the first ugly woman in the Spring and Autumn Period, Zhong Lichun. About Zhong Lichun, there is also a touching love story.
▲Stills of Zhong Lichun
Zhong Lichun, according to legend, was a native of Wuyanyi (present-day Dongping, Shandong) in the State of Qi, so he was called "Zhong Wuyan" by later generations. As a commoner, the reason why Zhong Lichun was able to "leave a name in history" was because her ugly appearance and her legendary deeds formed a very sharp contrast. How ugly is Zhong Lichun's appearance? In Liu Xiang's "Biography of the Daughters of Lie", there is such a record: "(No salt) is extremely ugly and incomparable, the head is deep, the growth is strong, the nose is knotted, the fat neck is less hairy, the waist is bent out of the Huns, and the skin is painted." ”
▲Wax statue of the monarch of the Warring States period
Because of his ugly appearance, Zhong Lichun did not marry until he was forty years old. It should be known that women in ancient times married very early, often before the age of sixteen. Zhong Lichun actually dragged himself to the age of forty, and did not marry himself, which can be described as a strange flower at that time. However, such an "inferior woman" has made unimaginable contributions to the country of Qi. It turned out that although Zhong Lichun was ugly in appearance, he was quite talented and ambitious. At that time, when the monarch of the State of Qi, King Xuan of Qi, reigned, because of his addiction to wine and favoring adultery, the State of Qi was increasingly weakened and backward. At that time, although many people were dissatisfied, but forced by the power of King Qi Xuan, they could only dare to be angry and did not dare to speak.
▲ Qi Xuanwang stills
Under these circumstances, Zhong Lichun risked his life to ask King Xuan of Qi for his life in order to save the country. When King Xuan of Qi heard that an ugly woman wanted to see him, he was also interested for a while, so he accepted Zhong Lichun's request to see him. Unexpectedly, as soon as Zhong Lichun saw King Xuan of Qi, he "raised his hands and knees" and shouted "Dangerous!" Danger! ”。 Zhong Lichun's strange behavior successfully aroused the interest of King Xuan of Qi, who demanded a reasonable explanation from the ugly woman in front of him.
▲Map of the countries of the Warring States period
So Zhong Lichun had the courage to point out the four hidden dangers that existed in the state of Qi. First, the State of Qi was full of internal and external troubles, and both the Western Qin State and the Southern Chu State were eyeing the declining State of Qi, so that the State of Qi would soon leave the country; second, King Xuan of Qi, as the monarch of the country, coveted pleasures, and such a performance was undoubtedly very incompetent; third, there were traitors and villains above the court of the State of Qi, confusing the king's sight and mind, and making the people feel sad; fourth, the foreign state did not cultivate the etiquette of the princes, and the internal did not adhere to the government of the country, and the overall situation in the state of Qi was very grim.
▲Stills of the chancellor during the Warring States period
King Xuan of Qi was deeply shaken after listening to Zhong Lichun's words, and he thought of the difficulty of opening up the territory of his ancestors in the past, and he was very ashamed of his various absurd behaviors in the past. In this way, King Xuan of Qi, under the persuasion of Zhong Lichun, finally made up his mind to reform himself. He not only scattered the harem and expelled the traitors, but also began to be diligent in government affairs and keen on reform. In order to express their gratitude to Zhong Lichun, King Xuan of Qi decreed that Zhong Lichun be crowned queen and regarded him as a mirror of himself, and the couple raised their eyebrows and respected each other as guests. After a period of time, the national strength of the State of Qi gradually increased, and it returned to the previous prosperity.
▲ Embroidered statue of King Xuan of Qi
According to legend, Zhong Lichunxi wore a "towel woman", which was a popular wig at that time, and the legend of her courage to directly advise and save the country of Qi also spread more and more widely, so later generations used "towel woman" to refer to the strange woman who appeared in history. After the Yuan Dynasty, some people adapted the legendary deeds of Zhong Lichun into a miscellaneous drama and added a plot of leading an army to it. In this way, Zhong Lichun is also known to more and more people and has been praised by generations of literati.
Resources:
The Biography of the Daughters of The Column