History is the memory of things that have been said and done. —Carl Baker
"Chong Long Gou" is a habit that has not changed since ancient times, whether it is a common people or a prince or a nobleman, it will be done. Before the Qing Dynasty, people called "Chong Long Gou" Shukou, and after the Qing Dynasty entered the customs, in order to highlight the identity of the emperor Zhenlong Tianzi, they combined the Manchu Chinese characters and changed the gargle to "Chong Long Gou" with "aristocratic temperament".
The emperor's wake-up time was mostly fixed, and there would be special eunuchs to call the emperor to get up, and he could not lie in bed. When the master opens his eyes, he will wait to wash his face and rinse his mouth, and you don't think that there was no habit of brushing your teeth in ancient times. Although they do not have toothpaste toothbrushes, but have long recognized the importance of oral hygiene, the ancients will use water to rinse the mouth, over time, some people found that gargling with salt water, tea is more clean, and tea can also freshen the breath.
During the Yuan Dynasty, the Book of Longevity records:
Where the diet is eaten, gargling with strong tea, the annoyance goes, and the spleen and stomach are harmonious, and the flesh is in the teeth, and the tea is rinsed, and it is not bothered to take off without being picky.
Reading this book, it is recorded that as early as the Yuan Dynasty, people have gargled with strong tea, which can not only go to the greasy and reconcile the spleen and stomach, but also wash out the residue between the teeth.
This tea has also become the reason why the palace women are scrambling to compete for the emperor's "Chong Long Ditch".
why?
It should be said that after the Qing Dynasty entered the customs, the Eight Banners nobles held the wealth of the Central Plains. With money in hand and a bottom in mind, the life of princes and nobles has naturally become luxurious, especially the emperor, and the degree of eating and wearing is the best under the heavens.
Therefore, ordinary people gargled with water, nobles gargled with tea, and emperors "Chong Longgou" used high-quality tea.
Every morning, the palace maid would serve the emperor to dip green salt on his teeth, apply it and gargle his mouth with tea. Gargling tea is also like making tea, the first brew is poured out, the second brew is used to clean the mouth, and then the tea leaves can be thrown away.
But at this time, the palace ladies would secretly put away the best tea leaves to be thrown away and then sell them outside the palace.
You don't underestimate that he is the emperor with the leftovers to throw away, you know, the emperor's tea is not affordable to be drunk by the rich merchants, even if it is the Eight Banners nobles, it may be difficult to get without the emperor's reward.
So these teas, under the banner of the court, were sold very well, and the price was also very impressive. The main thing is that these tea leaves have only been brewed once or twice, the aroma is still strong, and the secondary sale after drying is still very popular.
The silver from the sale of tea became the extra income of the palace women. The palace women in the inner courtyard of the palace are all generations of hard-working women, their lives are not only hard and tiring, their income is still very low, with this "extra money", whether it is to subsidize the family for their parents, or to save a dowry for their future marriage, it is a considerable income.
Therefore, "rushing the dragon ditch" for the emperor has become the most sought-after errand in the palace, and it is also the favorite thing for the palace women to do.
It is a pity that there is a way to make money, but the traffic is blocked, because in order to ensure the personal safety of the emperor, it will not move people at will, and it is specially served. Unless the original person is sick and on leave, it is possible to turn others, this kind of work with few opportunities and great water, naturally everyone is happy and scrambling.