The ancients called the wives they married when they were poor "wives of the chaff", so much so that until now, many people have understood that the wives who once shared their hardships were also the same.
In fact, "the wife of the chaff" is not the literal meaning we see, but the meaning of describing another aspect of the wife.
Astronomy and geography
As we all know, the difficulty of the questions in the civil service examination requires candidates to know astronomy and geography, and some seemingly simple questions can subvert the three views.
In the past, there was a question in the civil servants, which aspect of the idiom "wife of dregs" was used to describe the wife.
As soon as this question came out, it stumped countless graduate students, and the literal meaning of dregs was to describe the poor people used to satisfy their hunger, such as wine residue, rice bran, and other poor food.
The source of "dregs of chaff" "Xunzi Honor and Disgrace": "Today, people have not tasted the rice and sorghum, but the dregs of the grass are seen, and it is enough to be here."
"Hanshu Food and Goods Chronicles": "The rich of the common people accumulate a lot of money, and the poor eat dregs and chaff." ”
Therefore, the "wife of the dregs of chaff" can also describe the wives who share the hardships during the period of poverty, as the saying goes: "The friends of the poor and the poor should not be forgotten, and the wives of the dregs will not go to court." ”
This means that when you are rich, you should not forget your friends when you were poor, and do not abandon your wife who is suffering together.
If this is understood, this question should choose one of the family backgrounds, and the other options are obviously not related to the chaff, but family background is not the correct answer.
From the origin of this idiom, we can understand the original meaning and earliest meaning of "the wife of the dregs".
derivation
For ordinary people, being able to be called by the emperor as a concubine is simply a blessing from the previous life, and it is estimated that he will wake up with a smile even from a dream.
But there is such a person in history who refused the emperor's marriage for the sake of his wife, this person is Song Hong, the prime minister of the Eastern Han Dynasty, and Song Hong also said a famous saying that has been passed down through the ages when he refused to marry.
"The poor and lowly friends should not be forgotten, and the wife of the dregs will not go to court" This sentence is the original source of the wife of the dregs, which can best reflect Song Hong's noble temperament and do not admire Rongli, he rejected the emperor's proposal, refused to divorce his wife and marry Princess Huyang.
You must know that Huyang Princess Liu Huang is the eldest sister of Emperor Guangwu, it is worth saying that the relationship between the brothers is very deep, unfortunately although Liu Huang is a princess, but her life is not good, she was widowed very early, and her emotional life is not a little.
Emperor Guangwu saw that his sister was depressed because of her love life, so he decided to find a family affair for her, and then he found Song Hong, who was of noble character, and Liu Huang also had a very good impression of Liu Hong.
So the sister and brother hit it off, and they put forward the idea to Song Hong through the banquet, who knows, for the sake of his wife Song Hong is not afraid of the imperial power, and rejected the emperor's proposal.
You must know that accompanying the king is like accompanying the tiger, in the ancient feudal society, the emperor was not only difficult to chase, but also the most authoritative person, and it is no exaggeration to say that he can decide the life of a family.
It is Song Hong's character that is so noble that Fan Ye, the author of the Book of the Later Han Dynasty, is making a biography for him, and once praised him: "Hong is far-reaching, and he never forgets his roots"
It is also from this book that later generations know that the wife of the dregs originally referred to the wife of the family, combined with Song Hong's rejection of the emperor's proposal to marry the princess, two women with disparity in status, Song Hong chose a wife, which gave him the illusion that the wife of the dregs was the status of a woman.
However, this interpretation is one-sided, although the identity and status of the wife and the princess are indeed different, but you must know that the wife of the wife also describes the meaning of the wife, which is also the original couple of men and women who marry for the first time in adulthood.
If Song Hong wants to reject the emperor, he can directly say that he will not abandon his wife, which can not only show that the relationship between the husband and wife is good, but Song Hong did not explain that he said that he was married to a wife, but a wife of dregs, which shows that the meaning of a wife of dregs does not only refer to the relationship between the two, or even if the identity.
However, some netizens thought about how good Song Hong's wife was that made him reject the princess?
At that time, Song Hong was a general under Liu Xiu, unfortunately wounded during the battle with Liu Xiu, when they fled to Raoyang, Song Hong was seriously injured, and he couldn't walk, seeing that the chasing soldiers behind him were tight, Liu Xiu handed Song Hong over to a Zhengzhuang family to recuperate.
The family surnamed Zheng is very kind, and treats Song Hong like a relative, not only helping him to ask a doctor to see a doctor, but also taking care of him with good food and drink, and taking care of him very thoughtfully, especially the daughter of the Zheng family, although she is not beautiful, but treats Song Hong like a relative.
Miss Zheng not only decocted the medicine, but also fed the medicine herself, took care of Song Hong's daily life, asked for warmth, and helped him with the medicine, laundry and so on.
Song Hong was very moved by the thoughtfulness of being taken care of, and he was attracted by the kind little woman who took good care of him.
After a long-term relationship, the two fell in love for a long time, and after Song Hong recovered from his injury, it was convenient for Miss Zheng to become husband and wife.
Later, Song Hong returned to Liu Xiu's side, and his military achievements were impressive, until Liu Xiu won the world and became the emperor, so he wanted to marry his sister Princess Huyang to his right-hand man Song Hong.
However, the upright and upright Song Hong said that he could not forget his wife who was suffering with him, just like he promised his father-in-law and mother-in-law at the beginning, no matter whether he was rich or poor in the future, he could not abandon his wife.
Fortunately, Liu Xiu was deeply moved by Song Hong's character, not only did not blame him, but admired this capable general even more, so he valued him even more.
It can be seen from the origin of "the wife of the chaff" that this word not only shows that Song Hong's wife is the wife who shared the hardships when she was poor, but also describes the hard-won character of the wife who can endure hardships and go all the way with me.
Instead of a wife who looks like chaff as many people misinterpret in our real life, and use "dregs" to describe his wife's appearance.
It is not easy for husband and wife to come together, and it is even more difficult to go through life hand in hand, and the wife of the chaff also reminds many people all the time that in the face of external pressure, difficulties or challenges, husband and wife should go hand in hand, remain loyal and persistent, and understand and support each other.