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Preface
In ancient Chinese feudal society, imperial power was supreme and the emperor was the supreme ruler of the country. In order to ensure the authority and dignity of the emperor, no men were allowed in the palace, so eunuchs became an indispensable role in the palace.
So they are all also servants, and the eunuchs in the palace need to be castrated, so why don't the officials use them?
The scope of services varies
Eunuchs can serve female members of the royal family full-time, including but not limited to queens, concubines, etc., and their status is special and allows direct contact with harem ladies. However, in the case of ordinary official families, the male servants in the family did not directly serve the female dependents.
Take Dream of Red Mansions as an example, whether it is such as Jia's mother, or such as Daiyu, Baochai, Li Kun and other ladies, they are surrounded by maids and mothers-in-law, and there are few male servants.
Only Wang Xifeng has a special case around him, that is, the little boy Caiming who did not perform the crown ceremony. Although Cai Ming is a boy, because he has not yet reached the crown, social customs are relatively loose about his gender boundaries. Wang Xifeng has the heavy responsibility of being a housekeeper, and needs to check accounts and handle various affairs frequently, and urgently needs an assistant with high cultural literacy, and the knowledge and ability of the maids in the house are difficult to meet this demand. As a result, Cai Ming was able to stay with Wang Xifeng and assist with paperwork.
It should be noted that Wang Xifeng's situation is really special and cannot be regarded as a typical example of the relationship between ordinary officials' families and male servants. First, she is the de facto ruler of Jiafu, and her housekeeping duties force her to cross the conventional gender boundaries with the male servants, and second, she has a fierce and straightforward personality and a unique behavior style, which further narrows the distance between her and the male servants in the family. In fact, as Xing'er said when she told Second Sister You and Third Sister You about the situation in Jiafu, when other male servants in the mansion met Daiyu, Baochai and other female dependents, they still strictly followed the etiquette system, kept a considerable distance, and respectfully avoided it.
The royal family has higher requirements for the blood of future generations
The establishment of the status of the prince is strictly limited to the direct blood inheritance of the emperor, which is an ironclad rule. If the eunuch gets involved in the taboo of court ethics, has an improper relationship with the harem concubine and gives birth to an illegitimate child, then the future heir to the throne will no longer be the orthodox blood of the royal family, causing the Jiangshan Sheji to fall into the hands of a different surname. Such a usurpation of royal blood is not tolerated in the royal system.
Moreover, the uncleansed man in the harem is very likely to lead to chaos in the harem and even endanger the emperor's life. There are many examples in history of court disputes caused by beauty, and even tragedies.
The implementation of the eunuch system can effectively avoid the above risks. Through purification, the eunuch loses the ability to have children, which fundamentally eliminates the possibility of usurpation of power by non-royal bloodlines. At the same time, after castration, the male hormones in the body decreased, and the personality tended to be gentle and submissive, which was more suitable for serving the monarch and concubines and handling various affairs in the court. This not only maintained the stability of the imperial power, but also ensured the order of the court.
Legal Provisions
In the Qing Dynasty, for example, there was a term called eight points. It is the eight privileges, one of which is the eunuch. From the prince to the auxiliary prince, you can enjoy eight privileges such as the use of eunuchs.
Those who do not enter the knighthood of less than eight points are not allowed to enjoy those eight privileges.
It can be seen that eunuchs are neither exclusive to the royal family, nor can they be enjoyed by casual officials, otherwise they are trespassing
In some dynasties, castration of domestic slaves was strictly forbidden, and even the beating and death of domestic slaves was considered a felony, in contrast to the perception that domestic slaves were insignificant cats and dogs that could be disposed of at will. As a member of society, the rights and interests of domestic slaves have been explicitly protected by law in certain historical periods.
Imagine if all the male servants of the official eunuchs were treated to extremes, such as being castrated as eunuchs, then society would face a double dilemma. First of all, the supply of troops will be seriously affected. Male servants may be irregular sergeants, but in a given historical context, they may be conscripted to supplement the military. Once this part of the human resources is destroyed, it will undoubtedly weaken the stability of the national defense force and the ability to respond to emergency war.
Second, agricultural productivity will also suffer. Manservants, many of whom had farming skills, worked on estates or fields, and played an important role in maintaining food production. Mass castration of male servants not only directly reduces the agricultural labor force, but also may lead to a negative attitude towards agricultural labor in society, further exacerbating the demographic imbalance and threatening the country's food security.