Preface
In ancient courts, the emperor's personal attendants often became the focus of attention from the outside world. There is a situation that is quite eye-catching, that is, the emperor can obviously choose the palace maid as his personal maid, but he chooses the eunuch instead.
This has caused many people to speculate and question, and it is inevitable that people will think that the emperor may be lacking in heart. In reality, however, there is a profound historical reason behind this.
Thousands of favors are hard to match one person's loyalty, and the reason why eunuchs are deeply valued by the emperor
Let's first take a look at the reason why eunuchs are highly valued by the emperor. The profession of eunuch has always been very special in the ancient Chinese royal family. Most of them were originally children of ordinary families, who were sent to the palace for various reasons, and were deprived of the most important identity symbol of a male child at a very young age.
According to historical records, most of these eunuchs came from the lower strata of society, and their parents could not afford to raise them, so they could only sacrifice them to the court; Some were originally children of official families, but they were exiled to the people due to crimes or family paths, and were later confiscated by the government; There are even ordinary people who are abducted and trafficked into the palace by human traffickers to serve as eunuchs.
In any case, becoming eunuchs meant that they had to leave their families in childhood and go to the deep palace. It's another world for them, and everything is so strange. They were forced to undergo circumcision and lost their dignity as men. This caused great trauma to their psyches, and many eunuchs suffered from depression as a result.
Fortunately, they also had the opportunity to serve the emperor, which became the only comfort in their lives. As a result, the eunuchs poured all their feelings into serving the emperor and regarded it as their own. It can be said that the emperor has become the sustenance of their hearts.
There are many classic examples in history. For example, Wang Zhi, a eunuch in the early Ming Dynasty, grew up with Prince Zhu Di since he was a child, and was later promoted all the way to the eunuch of ceremonies. In the Battle of Jingjing, he scrupulously guarded his duty to protect Emperor Jianwen, who was under house arrest, and made outstanding contributions. Wang Zhi was deeply trusted by Ming Chengzu and became an important confidant.
Another example is the respectful old eunuch during the Longqing period. Emperor Longqing relied heavily on him and regarded him as a confidant. Respecting the eunuchs only cares about the emperor and does not seek any personal gain. He served Emperor Longqing for many years until his death. Long Qing trusted him very much, and even let him participate in political affairs. This is a rarity in the history of eunuchs.
It can be seen that the key reason why the eunuchs are trusted by the emperor is that they are loyal and never seek personal gain. They regard the emperor as their whole and the emperor as their home. Therefore, they will serve the emperor wholeheartedly, meticulously and selflessly. It was this almost insane loyalty that made the emperor trust them.
In contrast, although the palace maids around the emperor are outstanding, they are women after all. Their backgrounds are often unknown, and they often come from well-to-do families. According to the records of "Miscellaneous Records in the Palace", most of these palace maids entered the beauty pageant, and their parents were ordinary people who entered the court by selling women; There were also some who were originally the daughters of servants and were chosen to serve as palace maids. In short, the palace maids are not of high rank, and they are the same as the eunuchs, and they are both lower-level servants in the palace.
Coupled with the meager salary, many palace maids will have delusions, trying to gain glory and wealth by climbing onto the dragon bed. This is not uncommon in the history of the Ming and Qing dynasties. According to the records of the "Zhizhong Zhi", during the Zhengde period of the Ming God Sect, there was a special "word plate" in the palace, and the emperor had an affair with the palace maid, which was recorded on the card as a certificate for promotion. The palace maids would also take the opportunity to ask for gold and silver treasures to satisfy their material desires. It is also mentioned in "Yi Jianzhi" that during the time of Song Renzong, Concubine Wei Xian was reused by flattering the emperor.
Therefore, it is difficult for the emperor to fully trust the palace maids. Their minds are unpredictable and their motives are complex. What's more, the change of palace maids is frequent, and it is rare to serve an emperor for a long time. Every few years, the palace maids will be released out of the palace in batches according to the regulations, and a new batch of palace maids will be selected to enter the palace. The emperor had no way of forming deep feelings, and it was difficult to trust them.
Therefore, as a Ming monarch, the emperor naturally chooses a stable and reliable eunuch, and will not easily trust the unpredictable palace maids. This is also in line with the ancient Chinese value orientation of valuing loyalty and stability. The eunuch can accompany an emperor for a long time, and this kind of perseverance and loyalty makes the emperor feel a lot more at ease. This is in stark contrast to the palace maids who are prone to change.
The palace maids mess with the patriarchal law, and the eunuchs can maintain orthodoxy
The second important difference between court ladies and eunuchs was their influence on royal lineage and orthodoxy. In ancient times, the mainland placed great emphasis on orthodox bloodline, which was related to the legitimacy of imperial power. However, due to their low status, court ladies often became the object of the emperor's favor. The emperor and the court maid fornicated and often caused serious harm to the orthodoxy of the royal family.
Let's take a look at a few typical cases from history. For example, in the early Qing Dynasty, after the death of Emperor Xiaokang, his son Xuanye ascended the throne, which was later Emperor Kangxi.
And Emperor Xiaokang had several palace girls who had children during his lifetime, and these illegitimate children could also be called princes. If power is seized in the future, the legitimacy will become very awkward. So in order to consolidate his position, Emperor Kangxi ordered the killing of these half-brothers. This is the famous "time has passed".
Another example is Emperor Jingtai of the Ming Dynasty. He was a scholar-born emperor, and at the beginning of his reign, he favored the palace maid Shi. Shi soon gave birth to a son, but was soon killed in a palace coup. Jingtai's illegitimate son was also killed at the persecution of political enemies. It can be seen from this that the fornication between the palace maid and the emperor has seriously damaged the orthodox bloodline. This also became the fuse for Shi's change in the future.
In contrast, eunuchs, as eunuchs, will not endanger the orthodoxy of the royal family. Therefore, it was also the general practice of ancient emperors to let eunuchs serve the emperor without any worries.
The eunuch was faithful and could not bear children, making him the ideal attendant. This is also an important reason why they have been trusted by the emperor for a long time. The emperor was relieved to let the eunuchs sway, because they would not pose any threat to orthodoxy and bloodline. This point is incomparable to that of the palace maid.
Pu Yi's tragic life proves the superiority of eunuchs
So, what will be the fate of an emperor who is not accompanied by eunuchs and relies only on the service of palace maids? The answer to this question can be corroborated by what happened to Pu Yi, the last emperor of the Qing Dynasty.
In 1898, Pu Yi succeeded to the throne at the age of three and became the last emperor of China. According to the ancient law, eunuchs should be appointed to serve at this time. However, in the last years of the Qing Dynasty, the Manchu regime was declining. Many of the institutions in the palace have existed in name only, and the emperor's daily life has also been abandoned. According to the "Qing Barnyard Banknotes and Miscellaneous Records in the Palace", the court at this time was already very chaotic, and the eunuchs and eunuchs basically disappeared, and were replaced by new-style guards. Most of these guards are the children of the banner people, and they are misbehaved, harsh and domineering.
As a result, Pu Yi was surrounded by a group of arrogant and lascivious palace maids all day long. These women saw that the emperor was young and even more presumptuous. They seduced the young master, took his head start, and caused him to prematurely deplete his bodily functions. It is rumored that Pu Yi was raped when he was 8 years old, and he began to indulge in lust at the age of 10. So he suffered from sexual dysfunction and impotence and premature ejaculation since he was a child. This also caused great trauma to his psyche, which led to a great change in his temperament in the future.
Since then, the life of this young son of heaven has been overshadowed. He is no longer immersed in reading, but is obsessed with wine and flirts with the palace maid all day long. Fortunately, he quickly abdicated during the Xinhai Revolution.
Later, Pu Yi was forced to abdicate in the third year of Xuantong. In the early years of the Republic of China, he was married many times, but his love life was extremely unsuccessful. His first wife left him; The second wife even hooked up with the guards, causing him great humiliation. Modern medical research has shown that these marital problems were largely due to Pu Yi's excessive exhaustion during his youth. His body was already severely weakened in terms of sexuality, and it was difficult for him to maintain a normal marriage.
It can be seen that a big reason why Pu Yi had a troubled life was that he was not accompanied by eunuchs when he was young, and he could only rely on adulterous palace maids to survive. This also confirms the importance of eunuchs to the emperor from the negative side. If the emperor does not associate with the eunuchs and only relies on the palace maids, the consequences are unimaginable. What happened to Pu Yi has taught us a profound historical lesson.
epilogue
To sum up, the key reason why eunuchs can occupy such an important position in ancient Chinese imperial palaces is that they are loyal and never seek personal gain; They do not endanger the orthodoxy of the royal family, and are the ideal chamberlains. In contrast, it is difficult for the palace maid to stay with each other for a long time, and it may also cause chaos to the orthodoxy of the patriarchy. The tragedy of Pu Yi's life also confirms this.
Therefore, the reason why the Ming monarchs in the history of the mainland would rather choose eunuchs than trust the palace maids easily is not difficult to understand. The eunuchs are loyal, and the palace maids are in trouble; The eunuch has been with him for a long time, and the palace maid is easy to disperse; The eunuchs are orthodox, and the palace maids are mixed-race - these three contrasts fully explain the important reasons why the emperor favored eunuchs.