It is a "pastel lotus suction cup" collected in the Hubei Provincial Museum, produced during the Guangxu period of the Qing Dynasty. Its shape is very beautiful, the peduncle is hollow, communicating with the petals, and the role is equivalent to a straw. What is the role of such a beautiful cultural relic? Answer: Ancient literati drank cold drinks in the middle of the summer.
There was no air conditioning in ancient times, but the ancients also had many ways to cool off, and drinking cold drinks was one of them. The Song Dynasty's "Record of Dreams" records: "Just when the three volts are scorching... Destiny Hanlin Division to supply ice and snow... to relieve the heat. "In the streets and alleys of the Song Dynasty, cold drinks can be seen everywhere, what ice and snow cold rounds, lychee paste, fragrant drinks and the like, absolutely do not contain artificial pigments."
But don't think that with cold drinks, the ancients were able to fight against the heat. Historically, both the Song Dynasty and the Qing Dynasty had "heat disasters", and the situation of people dying of heat became the emperor's most worrying thing. Among them, the summer known as "the hottest in history" appeared in the eighth year of Qianlong, that is, in 1743, how hot was it?
It is hard for modern people to imagine that in that year, the beijing hot disaster was rampant, from July 14 to 25, in just 12 days, 11,400 people died of high temperatures in Gyeonggi (according to historical materials and local statistics)! Not only in the north, but also in the south, there have been high temperature disasters.
In that year, there were as many as 48 records of heat disasters in the history books, including Hebei, Shanxi, Shandong, Hubei and other places in addition to the capital, and half of China entered the "barbecue mode", and the reports of local officials about the heat were continuously sent to the desk of the Qianlong Emperor, but the Qianlong Emperor was completely helpless, and finally could only think of some useless methods.
From some historical records and county records of the eight years of Qianlong, we can understand how serious this heat disaster really is. First of all, the heat shocked foreigners who came to China to preach, and a French missionary named Song Junrong, who was traveling in Beijing at the time, witnessed people getting sick and dying from the heat, and wrote it in a report sent back to Paris:
"The old man in Beijing said that he had never seen a high temperature like july this year... From the 13th, the heat was unbearable, and many people died of heat, causing widespread panic. According to Song Junrong, most of the people who died of heat near the capital were very poor, especially the fat people who were intolerant of heat, which was also in line with common sense.
Secondly, local county chronicles have recorded the heat situation in writing, and each paragraph seems to be exaggerated at first reading, but there is no need for these places to string together and lie. For example, the "Tianjin County Chronicle" records: "The soil and stones are scorched, the mast is flowing gold, and many people die of heat..." The "Gaoyi County Chronicle" records: "The walls are heavy and hot like fire, the lead and tin in the middle of the day are sold, and many people die of thirst." ”
Even the metal is not resistant to high temperatures, and it melts directly, which shows how terrible the heat has reached. Modern meteorological experts have calculated that on July 25, 2008, the heat in Beijing reached its peak, and the temperature value was 44.4 ° C, which was quite extreme, and in the five days before that, the temperature value near The temperature value near The capital exceeded 40 ° C.
The people who died of heat in Gyeonggi were only some of the people who died of heat that year. If you add data from other places, the severity of the heat disaster in the current year will be greatly increased. The Qianlong Emperor specially ordered people to distribute medicines in the Beijing Division to reduce heat stroke casualties, but this was also a drop in the bucket, and it was completely unable to prevent the heat disaster from flooding.
The Qianlong Emperor also wrote a poem to record his state of mind in the face of heat: "Ice plate and snow mound, the cold light of the water, the tossing and turning of the bitter heat, the heart is next to Qianli." "This means that although I have ice plates in the palace to eat, and cool mats to sleep in, cool and comfortable, I am anxious just thinking about those who are still suffering from the heat.
Such a disaster, in ancient times, is usually considered to be related to the king, because the emperor is the "son of heaven" and inherits the destiny of heaven, so the heavens send down punishment, and the emperor issues a "sin and self-commandment", expressing deep reflection and hope that the heavens can pity the heavens. The Qianlong Emperor also thought of this and made this decree:
"Since the beginning of May, the weather has been harsh and hot, worse than in previous years. The Ming Dynasty ascended to the heavens to show his appeasement, and the night of the Fallen Sorrow could not be relieved, all because of the loss of the Fallen..." Of course, this holy will did not have any practical effect, and the heat wave was still rolling in, but it was only the method adopted by the Qianlong Emperor to reassure the people.
According to statistics, from the 10th century to the beginning of the 20th century, there were 19 extreme "hot summers" in Chinese history. When the heat disaster occurred in the Song Dynasty, many people could not even afford to buy a cup of water, the spring water dried up, the trees were roasted to death, the heat disaster encountered a drought, and the scene of hunger was unimaginable to us sitting in the air-conditioned room.
The heat wave stretches for thousands of miles, as if there is no end in sight. In the classical masterpiece "Water Margin", Bai Sheng, the day-old rat, sang: "The farmer's heart is like a soup, and the prince and grandson shake the fan", indicating that the fun of the ancient nobles to cool off is completely a luxury for the commoners.
The Qing Dynasty's "Record of Rain and Sunshine" records that on July 26 of that year, it rained lightly in the capital, and the heat was slightly alleviated, but the immediate drought once again made the Qianlong Emperor anxious. It was not until June of the ninth year of Qianlong that heavy rains in North China and the drought were effectively alleviated. Compared with the ancients, we who live in modern society, have air conditioning, wifi and watermelon refrigerator, are much happier.