Preface
In ancient times, when female prisoners were distributed thousands of miles, why did the officials rush to escort them instead of being afraid of hard work? What was the reason for their willingness to undertake this arduous task? What kind of legends and psychological variables were contained in this?
The road to exile was full of twists and turns
In ancient times, once female prisoners were sentenced to exile, it meant that a long road awaited them with many twists and turns. They are leaving their homes and forced to live in exile. On the road, not only do you have to endure the hardships of eating and sleeping in the open, but if you are not careful, you will be humiliated and bullied by officials and other prisoners.
But what can they do? They are not like rich women who have a family to rely on, and they have no power to protect them. Only to silently endure the cruel torture of this fate, let the thorns under their feet scratch their delicate skin.
Where is the end of the road of exile? Maybe it's a vast desert, or maybe it's a deep mountain and old forest. There is no one there, and there they will starve and live out the rest of their lives in isolation.
In order to survive, they had to learn various survival skills, learn to forage in the wilderness, and hunt in the countryside. But how can a woman do this?
They may be forced to take in men from the wilderness and depend on them for their lives. However, in exchange for it, there is often only physical and psychological humiliation.
When the great tide of fate comes, how long will their fragile bodies endure? When they are on the verge of despair, do they choose to give up, or insist on leaving the last ray of life? The ancient and eternal problems of this world are infinitely magnified on the road of exile
The system of exile has existed since ancient times
Exile, as a form of punishment, has long been traced back to its origins. As early as the Zhou Dynasty, exile became an important way to punish prisoners and maintain social stability on the mainland. During the Qin and Han dynasties, many prisoners were sent to remote areas such as Fangling and Shangyong; By the Sui and Tang dynasties, the Western Regions and Monan had also become major places of exile. Throughout history, how many prisoners have been forced to leave their homes and come to these isolated places. The women were many of them, and they became the biggest victims of the exile system.
Not only does the mainland have a law of exile, but many Western countries also widely use this ancient method of punishment. During the Roman Empire, large numbers of political prisoners and rebels were sent to the frontier and sent to the front.
They have to endure the double torment of harsh conditions and the threat of enemies. Countries such as Britain and France also used large-scale exile to send prisoners to the North American colonies, which provided manpower for the expansion of local colonists, and at the same time brought great harm to indigenous civilizations.
It can be seen that the system of exile has always served the interests of the ruling class. Whether the dynasty changes or not, it is always so cruel and so hot that it is imprinted on the bodies of countless prisoners. Those unfortunate women, who were involved, how could they be spared from this fiery pain?
Escorting prisoners is called "fat difference"
However, for those officials who escort prisoners, escorting female prisoners can be said to be the most flexible and corrupt opportunity - this kind of fat difference is really rare. Why does this fat difference make those officials flock to it?
In fact, these officials were just some miscellaneous servants of the local yamen, with low status and meager income. Being able to be a guard for the prisoners is a rare opportunity for them. This errand not only has travel expenses, food and lodging expenses issued by the government, but also coveted bribes from prisoners. For those miscellaneous officials, it was a good errand with multiple birds in one stone.
What's more, they can also take advantage of the escort opportunity to travel to other places and see the customs and customs of various places, which can be described as a public money trip. In addition, this duty of escort also opened the door for them to develop their wealth - powerful prisoners often gave a certain amount of money and resources to ensure that they could reach their exile destination unharmed. Some officials were even "hired" to serve as "bodyguards" for prisoners, serving throughout the process. The profit space in this is self-evident.
And female prisoners are even more popular errands for officials - for officials, female prisoners undoubtedly mean more "space" and "possibility". After all, in that feudal society, women were more vulnerable and easier to bully than men.
Officials take it for granted that they have the right to exploit this weakness in exchange for various advantages. And how can these weak women resist? They can only rely on money to buy the blessings of these officials in order to survive. However, no amount of money can be spent in exchange for their dignity – it is gone long on the moment they are exiled.
The relationship between officials and prisoners, and the disparity between strength and weakness has been infinitely magnified on the road to exile. What this undercurrent of the jungle finally washed away was the remaining dignity and decency of those female prisoners. But what else can they do but bear it silently?
Only the family background can be relied on to survive the dire situation
The hardships of the exile were beyond the imagination of ordinary people. Prisoners from well-to-do families can still use money to resolve this suffering, and with the help of officials, they can enjoy it in peace. However, for the vast majority of female prisoners, they can only be slaughtered by others and at the mercy of fate.
Female prisoners with no background can only cling to rich and powerful exiles if they want to reduce their hardships a little. These women became vassals of powerful criminals, at their mercy, in order to survive on this road of exile. However, they are just jumping from cage to cage, still slaves who have lost their dignity, without the slightest freedom.
What is even more tragic is those women from good families, who have lost their honor in the process. They are justifiably concubines of their husbands, but they still have to endure the suffering of the patriarchal law of wives and concubines. However, what is this bit of suffering compared to the fate of them escaping death? They reluctantly chose humiliation in order to survive. However, they really saved their lives, but they lost everything in their lives that was worth remembering.
The sorrow of feudal society is vividly reflected on the road of exile. The choice between survival and dignity has tormented them. And those women who are in the middle of the road, the fate is even more miserable - the family has no support, they can only silently endure all the mercy of fate until their lives come to the final end. But who cares about their corpses? The dry bones on the side of the exile road, I don't know how many ancient souls have been buried, and only a long loneliness remains.
Gender, power, and family background determine a woman's life and death. In those cold times, all three were indispensable. But how can we criticize their choices? At present, the general trend of unity is driving them to destruction, and who can have the wisdom to fight vigorously? This vast world never tolerates needless struggles. People can only struggle with the waves, even if they are running towards the abyss of fate.
Those women who were unfortunately exiled are crawling forward in the tide of fate. They hold the glimmer of survival in their hands, but they have to pay the price of countless torture and humiliation. This cry of anguish has never been recorded; Their stories have never been known to the world. Perhaps, this barren land once walked through their hasty steps; Now, only the dry and white bones remain, telling a silent wail in the yellow sand.
When it comes to the new day, I know that women are lucky
Fortunately, the fate of women has changed. Today's history has turned a new page, and women have stepped out of the shackles of the family, have more choices, and have dignity. Time has passed, and people have not forgotten those unfortunate souls of the past. These ancient wails have truly reached the softness of people's hearts, warning the women of future generations.
When this sad history is pulled out of the box of that era, it is presented before our eyes. Those unfortunate souls have finally been pitied; Their blood and tears engraved in the long river of history finally have meaning. I wish that in this life I would never repeat such a crime, and that no one would be burdened with such heavy humiliation and pain.
epilogue
The years are like water, and the story of how many unjust souls have flowed. Obviously, we cannot replace the process of history, we can only protect the dignity of life in the present, and prevent any life from being easily trampled on and looted. The meaning of this passage of time may have already been revealed: we remember history, cherish life, and respect the painful tears behind each life.
I only wish that time is quiet and life is healthy. No one, no group, will be tortured and looted in this way. The years are quiet, and life is like this.