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In the long course of history, the feudal imperial system has given birth to countless emperors. However, among these emperors who enjoyed the highest honors, very few were able to enjoy a long life. But history always has its exceptions, especially the two emperors Kangxi and Qianlong.
Emperor Kangxi reigned for 61 years, making him the longest reigning emperor in feudal Chinese history, while his grandson, Emperor Qianlong, reigned for 60 years, second only to Kangxi.
So, in ancient times when medical conditions were very limited, the average life expectancy was only about 40 years old, what was the secret of Qianlong and Kangxi's longevity?
The longest-lived emperor in Chinese history
The longest-lived emperor in Chinese history was the Qianlong Emperor of the Qing Dynasty, who served as emperor for 60 years and emperor for 3 years, and finally crushed all Chinese emperors at the age of 89 and became the longest-lived emperor in Chinese history.
The medical conditions in ancient times were very backward, and a small wind and cold could take people's lives, but it was not easy for Qianlong to live to be 89 years old, and many emperors in ancient times tried many methods in order to pursue immortality.
Qin Shi Huang and Emperor Wu of the Han Dynasty in pursuit of longevity, they did not hesitate to spend a lot of money to obtain elixir, but it did not play any role in health preservation, even if Emperor Qianlong reached the age of 80, his body was still strong, he would read and write as usual every day, and even go out hunting.
And Emperor Qianlong still has incredible energy, during his reign of 60 years, not only achieved national unification, but also left nearly 50,000 poems, more than the total of more than 2,200 poets in the "All Tang Poems".
Even when Qianlong was 83 years old, when the British mission visited China, Qianlong still received guests in the Rehe Palace, which can be seen that Emperor Qianlong's health is very good, and his longevity has a lot to do with his Xi habits, living environment and Xi dietary habits.
Qing emperors were notoriously diligent, working more than 10 hours a day was a basic operation, and Qianlong's father, Emperor Yongzheng, even worked 16 hours a day, sometimes even 18 hours regardless of holidays.
Although the Qianlong Emperor did not work as hard as his father, he still managed to work about 10 hours a day, according to historical records, the Qing Dynasty prince got up at 4 a.m. every day to study, and many of the children of the common people were sleeping.
The Qing Dynasty was built on horseback, and knew the importance of culture and mounted archery, so it attached great importance to the education of the princes, and every day the princes had to practice Xi mounted archery on horses in addition to reading and learning Xi.
According to the record of "Records of Gaozong of the Qing Dynasty", Qianlong reigned for more than 60 years, insisted on the routine of work and rest and went to court in the morning every day, and regardless of holidays, he insisted on it for 50 years.
Every day from three to four o'clock in the morning, Emperor Qianlong has to get up, and there will be a special palace maid to serve him to change clothes, and after everything is ready, Qianlong went to the Queen Mother to say goodbye, and then began to read in the morning.
Early reading is a rule left by the ancestors, requiring the Qing emperor to be Xi and learn a lot of cultural knowledge, and after reading early, the Qianlong Emperor began to eat breakfast, and must finish breakfast before six o'clock.
Because after six o'clock to come to the Jinluan Palace, and the ministers to discuss political affairs, some distant ministers, 3 o'clock in the morning to set off from home, before 6 o'clock to the time of the last dynasty, after the end of the early dynasty, Emperor Qianlong will go to the Yangxin Palace to review the folds, it can be said that most of the day is carried out in the work.
In the face of such a huge workload, Emperor Qianlong was still able to stay healthy, which shows how much he attached importance to health preservation.
Reasonable eating Xi
As the longest-lived emperor in Chinese history, Emperor Qianlong summed up a set of four tips for health preservation: "Breathe in the heart, move the muscles and bones, ten constants and four don'ts, and timely nourishment".
That is to say, if you don't sleep in the morning, get up at dawn, go outdoors to breathe and exercise, and the tonic time depends on the change of season, age and health status.
Emperor Kangxi, who reigned for 61 years at the age of 69, stood like an evergreen tree among the ancient emperors, and maintained his quick thinking and strong body even in his old age.
In terms of food, Kangxi also has his own set of opinions, although as an emperor, he can enjoy countless delicacies in the world, but he will not deliberately pursue food, compared to delicious meat, Kangxi prefers fish and shrimp, vegetables and fruits.
A light diet can keep the body light and energetic, Emperor Kangxi's breakfast is usually based on light food, more attention to health and nutrition, his breakfast will not have too much greasy or high-calorie food, usually porridge, side dishes and fruits.
The ingredients for breakfast are all fresh and high-quality ingredients, and the dishes cooked are delicious and delicious dishes.
Most of the ingredients are shark fin, steamed sea bass, abalone, abalone, steamed hairy crab, etc., although these are precious ingredients, but they are all light practices, and every time he eats lunch, Kangxi will drink soup, which is composed of bird's nest, pigeon, pork belly, sea cucumber, etc., and sometimes mung bean soup.
Dinner is mainly to eat some pastries and vegetables, Kangxi especially likes to eat some vegetables, bamboo shoots and other vegetables, but also drink millet porridge and cereals, these nutritious and healthy foods, long-term longevity in Kangxi's body, thus playing a role in prolonging life.
Emperor Qianlong emulated his grandfather in food, and Qianlong, who worshiped Buddhism all his life, would eat light and delicious vegetarian food as a staple food for a long time.
Kang Qian lives a long life, never touch "it"
An important reason why the two emperors Kangxi and Qianlong lived long was because they had good living Xi, first of all, these two emperors did not touch the pill.
In ancient times, many emperors had the idea of immortality, and many emperors took pills to prolong their lives by taking pills with a fluke mentality.
Ming Guangzong Zhu Changluo, who died at the age of 39 because of taking pills, and left the famous "Red Pill Case".
In addition to not taking pills, both emperors never indulged in alcohol, and Emperor Kangxi wrote in the "Maxims of Court Training": "I don't like to drink since I was a child, but I can drink but not drink, and after dinner on weekdays or on the day of the New Year's feast, I will stop drinking a small cup." ”
Although the Qianlong Emperor did not drink alcohol, he would drink some wine to regulate his body, and in his later years, Kangxi became ill because of the deposed prince, and the French missionaries brought him Bordeaux wine, which can resist the cold, clear the blood and improve the physical condition.
Kangxi felt refreshed instantly after tasting, so he drank some wine every day, Kangxi drank wine mainly for the sake of his body, not for the sake of drinking, if it wasn't for the conditioning of his body, he might not even drink wine.
Emperor Qianlong rarely drank alcohol on weekdays, and only symbolically drank on major festivals, and there is a strong evidence that Emperor Qianlong basically did not drink alcohol, that is, among the tens of thousands of poems he wrote, he never wrote poems with wine.
There have been emperors who died because of excessive drinking, Yuan Taizong of the Yuan Dynasty is a typical example, the Mongols are a fierce people, they like to drink very much in their daily life, Yuan Taizong is the son of Genghis Khan, has outstanding political talent, but he has a big problem is that he likes to drink.
Due to long-term indulgence, he was seriously ill, and eventually died of serious illness, in addition to not being able to indulge in alcohol, but also unable to develop the Xi of arrogance and lasciviousness, the Tongzhi Emperor of the Qing Dynasty registered at the age of 6, and personally took charge of the government at the age of 18, but died at the age of 19, largely because of arrogance and lasciviousness.
Stephen Chow's "Jiupin Sesame Official" in the playful emperor is the Tongzhi Emperor, although there are some exaggerated elements, but the Tongzhi Emperor in history is indeed more arrogant and lascivious, he died of illness at a young age, which is related to bad hobbies in weekdays.
hedonism
In addition to the above reasons, Kangxi and Qianlong liked pleasure very much, Kangxi worked hard in his early years, eradicated Aobai politically, and recovered Taiwan, and the people's livelihood was also to reduce taxes and encourage foreign trade.
In his later years, Kangxi thought that his merits were great, so he began to play and enjoy, often go out to play to make himself physically and mentally happy, on Kangxi's 60th birthday, in order to sing and recite the merits of the banquet was held, inviting the elderly over 65 years old to participate in the birthday banquet, a total of thousands of people participated in the birthday banquet.
At the age of 69, in order to celebrate his 70th birthday in advance, he held the second Qiansuo banquet, which was only 12 years old at the time, but Kangxi died shortly after the banquet.
After Qianlong became the emperor, he admired his grandfather Kangxi very much, and imitated his grandfather in everything, and in his later years, he also held two Qiansu banquets, which were the most luxurious and largest banquets in the Qing Dynasty, not only to celebrate the emperor's high birthday, but also to highlight the prosperity of the country and the banquet of the king's excellent political achievements.
Qianlong not only held the Qiansu banquet, but also went down to the south of the Yangtze River six times, four times to the east, and five times to Wutai Mountain, which made him happy, and he also went out hunting from time to time, so as to enhance his physical fitness.
Such "beautiful and shared" things happened one after another, so that the carefree and refreshed Qianlong did not pass away peacefully until he was 89 years old.
end
From the longevity of Kangxi and Qianlong, it can be seen that the concept of maintaining a long life span is to cherish one's body and mind, maintain one's physical and mental balance from all aspects, protect one's physical and mental health, and it is very necessary to relax appropriately, but it is not too indulgent. Modern people are often dominated by life, and in this case, it is even more necessary to maintain the balance of their body and mind.
Resources
Global Network "Don't think it's good to be an emperor, most emperors have a short life!
People's Daily Online "Qing Emperor's Imperial Diet and Health Maintenance: Good Vegetables Complement Each Other and Harmonize Five Flavors"
《Manuscript of Qing History》
https://baijiahao.baidu.com/s?id=1601850195640183583&wfr=spider&for=pc
http://culture.people.com.cn/n/2013/0724/c172318-22308509.html