The formation of an official prostitute
Ming Taizu set up Fule Temple at Qiandao Bridge and moved the Wuding Bridge with fire. He also used officials and prostitutes everywhere to drink and make trouble, and did everything possible to send prostitutes to Beijing to be admitted to the hospital--Ming Liu Chen's "Deeds of the Beginning of the Country"
As mentioned above, Ming Taizu Zhu Yuanzhang once set up a brothel called "Fule Yuan" at QiandaoQiao, which caught fire and moved to Wuding Bridge. At that time, many generals and officials in various places had prostitutes drinking alcohol and causing trouble, so Zhu Yuanzhang moved prostitutes from all over the country into the "Fuller Courtyard".
At this point, the Ming Dynasty officially had official prostitutes.
Official prostitutes were originally established by Zhu Yuanzhang in order to stimulate domestic demand, promote consumption, and of course, more importantly, increase the revenue of the national treasury. But what does a brothel, even if it comes to the clouds, mean to the country?
Therefore, the business genius Zhu Yuanzhang pondered again: This brothel may not be enough.
Therefore, he ordered the construction of the "Sixteenth Floor of Kyoto" to punish official prostitutes.
On the sixteenth floor, in the city, the person in the city is known as Nanshi North City, in the west outside the Jubao Gate, the guest is known as the guest, the person outside the door is known as the main translator, the person who is in the tile crumb is known as Jixian Lemin, the north of Ximen Middle Street is known as Minghe, the south of West Street Is known as Drunken Immortal, the person in Xiguan South Street is known as Light Smoke and Light Powder, the person in Northwest North Street is known as Liu Cui, the person outside the Shicheng Gate is known as Shicheng Yage, and the person outside the Qingliang Gate is known as Qingjiang Yue Drum Belly. --Ming Zhou Jifu", "Jinling Trivia"
He also changed the church that has existed throughout the ages to the church, and was in charge of "music workers for pleasure, and wives and daughters for a living by receiving customers", which is to put it bluntly, the management agency of the state-run brothel. The instructors were all imperial court officials of the Eight Classics of the Eight Classics, and the ambassadors of the Teaching Fang Were subordinate to wupin. The court, the signing of medals, the honor guard, etc. are readily available, and it can be said that there is no difference between them and the general imperial court. In addition to the official prostitutes directly under the direct jurisdiction, private prostitutes were also managed, taxed, and issued with documents.
After Zhu Dijing succeeded, Emperor Xiti moved the capital to Beijing, and then set up the Beijiaofang Division (known as the Nanjiaofang Division in Nanjing) and set up two courts (also brothels) in Beijing.
At this point, the most core of the "service industry" in the Ming Dynasty, the two squares, the third courtyard and the sixteenth floor of the north and south, were officially announced. And like a spider's web, it quickly spread to all the states and counties of the country, and the Qinglou- an alternative "art institution" sprung up like a mushroom on the territory of Daming.
Ming Taizu Zhu Yuanzhang
2. The current situation and sources of official prostitutes
1. When it comes to the current situation of the life of official prostitutes in the Ming Dynasty, I have to talk about the group of "Happy Households".
The word Lehu first appeared in the Northern Wei Dynasty,
"All robbers who kill people, the first and the first and the most obedient, the wife of the same nationality, is worthy of the happy household, and he does not kill, and the stolen less than five horses, the chief beheading, the slave dies, and the wife is also a happy household." --Wei Shu Penal Chronicle
It continued until the Manchu Qing Dynasty, when Yongzheng ordered the abolition of the "le family" and officially excluded the le hu from the untouchables. However, the humble social status of Lehu did not begin to improve until four or nine years, and until today, it can be called the deformed status of the proud son of heaven.
In the early days, the musicians were only responsible for the song and dance performances, and when the Sui and Tang dynasties were included in the teaching workshop, they played music and song and dance. During the Song and Yuan dynasties, social status improved. The rank of the head of the church reaches three pins at the highest level. By the ming dynasty, its status had fallen sharply, and in addition to the above functions, it had directly become synonymous with brothels. This was not only reflected in the social status of Lehu, but even the official position of the Teaching Workshop Division was disliked by the officials at that time, for fear of being transferred to the Teaching Workshop Division as an official.
"The music household is unified in the teaching department, and the division has an official to the lord, there is a government office, there is a public seat, there is a servit, a staff, a sign, and the like, there is a crown and a belt, but the guest does not dare to arch his ear" - Yu Huai's "Banqiao Miscellaneous"
That is to say, the instructors are no different from other officials in terms of their configuration and official uniforms. When I saw the officials of other departments, I didn't even dare to give up my hands, which showed that the instructors also felt inferior to their official positions.
This is still the case for the head of the department, and the low social status of the official prostitute as a pariah among the untouchables is evident.
Not only that, the discrimination against officials and prostitutes in the Ming Dynasty can be said to be comprehensively reflected in various sound systems. There are rules on what to wear and how to walk:
Men are ordered to wear green scarves, red arms around their waists, and pig-skin boots on their feet, and are not allowed to walk in the streets, stop at the road and walk left and right, or let the craftsmen wear armor. Prostitutes wear soap crowns, soaps, and are not allowed to wear ornate clothes when entering and leaving. --Liu Chen,"Deeds of the Beginning of the Nation"
This was done so that the people could recognize at a glance that they were untouchables and prostitutes as a disgrace.
You think that's the end of it? Not only walking and dressing, but even marriage, Daming's law also arranged clearly for the official prostitutes. The sons of the royal family marry the daughters of lehu, and those who have been knighted must be dismissed from their posts and suspended, the children born of the unsealed titles cannot be registered in the jade (royal household register), and the female musicians who marry must be expelled and distributed to the army.
"In the tenth year of the Wanli Dynasty, it was agreed that if there were adulterous women and undesirable wives in the clan as marriages, and the children born of them were to be matched with wives, etc., and the guests of honor, those who had already been knighted, the title of Lumi was completely abolished, those who were not given names and titles were not allowed to be vaguely presumptuous, and those who were newborns were not allowed to enter the jade to mix the heavens, and their wives were expelled as many as possible, and the music workers and others were asked to send out the border army and fill the army forever."
If it is an official, it is necessary to catch and beat sixty sticks, and it is not enough to be beaten, and it is also necessary to divorce the female musician, and a stick is white, if it is an official with a knighthood, the descendants must be demoted to a lower rank when they inherit the title, and then be assigned to do things in remote areas. The sons and grandsons of officials who marry le women are also punished accordingly.
"Whoever marries a servant to a happy man shall be dissociated with a rod of sixty, and the same is true of the sin of a son of an official who marries a son of an official." On the day of Hou Yin's attack, he was demoted to the first class, and was in the remote area of Yongyong. ”
Although a soldier does not have to divorce a lenu, the son born to a lenu, even if he is the eldest son, cannot inherit his father's hereditary military position (the inheritance of military titles in the Ming Dynasty is preceded by the eldest son).
"A soldier who marries a happy man's daughter as a concubine, and even if he has a son who is the eldest man, he is not allowed to attack, and the military prostitute and the wife who marries the happy man are his wives and concubines, and those who steal the wives of their husbands, they are asked to remove the guards and take the servants to the errands."
All of the above are from the Minghui Canon.
Not only did the imperial relatives and gentry and officials not want them, but even ordinary people were ashamed to marry lehu.
Therefore, the official prostitutes can only find a husband in the music book, the better can find a musician, and the worse can only marry the turtle husband. It is in response to the most poisonous sentence when the Chinese people scold, "Give birth to a son to be a slave for generations, and give birth to a daughter as a prostitute."
There are no human rights, not even basic justice,
But there are those who scold each other with the old households and good people, and they double their questions, and those who are serious are shackled. --"Actual Political Record, Forbidden Music Household"
Whether it is right or wrong, it is a crime plus one, and if the circumstances are serious, it must be shackled.
Life is very sad, and "work" is even more tragic.
When mentioning official prostitutes, do you think of Liu Ruyi, Chen Yuanyuan and other "Qin Huai Eight Yan"? Complete color and art, selling art without selling yourself, and it is difficult to smile?
Can only say... Think too much.
Official prostitutes and municipal prostitutes are also divided into three, six, nine and so on, and the high ones such as Qin Huai Bayan, who are unattainable, are the dream lovers of scholars and celebrities, and the object of pursuit. In addition to not selling themselves easily, the most important thing is that they generally have a high cultural attainment, proficient in piano, chess, calligraphy, painting, blowing, playing and singing, and also have their own strengths, such as Liu Ru is very good at poetry, and also writes a good hand. Compared with the yellow-faced woman in the family, she is not only beautiful, but also can find common topics with scholars and celebrities.
Medium-sized ones, such as the official prostitutes on the sixteenth floor, because officials are forbidden to enter, they receive some merchants and rich households from the south to the north.
Civil and military officials and housekeepers are prohibited, and admission to the hospital is prohibited. Only merchants are allowed to enter and exit the park. --Liu Chen,"Deeds of the Beginning of the Nation"
Although the style is lower, the good service is good, maybe you can still get some silver, and the food and clothing are supplied by the government, and there is not much problem in life.
But those low-ranking officials and prostitutes have a bad time. For example, when the Yongle Emperor Zhu Dijing was in distress, the female relatives of the Jianwen courtiers who opposed him, such as Zhang Shi, the wife of Mao Dafang, died and were to be thrown to the dogs to eat:
"Tie Hyun's wife Yang Clan Chinese New Year's Eve fifth, sent to the Teaching Fang Division, Mao Dafang's wife Zhang Shi Nian Fifty-six, Sent the Teaching Fang Division, Zhang Shi Xuan Died." The Sect Leader An Zheng played at the Fengtian Gate: According to the Holy Will, Shangyuan County was carried out of the door, and the dog ate it. "--Allusions to the Dynasty"
It's not bad, the living are more guilty;
"Yongle 2nd December Teaching Workshop Division Title: Zhuo Jingnu, Yang Nuniu, Jing Liu, He Wuzhao, according to Xie Sheng's wife Han Shi's example, sent Hong Guo Gong to the camp of adultery. On the eleventh day of the eleventh month of the eleventh month of Yongle, the Sect FangSi played at the right shun gate: Qi Tai and her niece and daughter-in-law and Huang Zi Chengmei were guarded by more than twenty men every day and night, and the young ones were pregnant, in addition to giving birth to children, there were three-year-old women, playing the holy will. Bong Chin depends on him. If you don't grow up, you will be an obscene child. Played again: Huang Zicheng's wife gave birth to a small town, and now she is ten years old, and she also worships Qin Yidu by him. ”
Not only will they be sent to the barracks to work for the army, but the children born to them will be a little turtle, and the women will be used as official prostitutes before they grow up.
Ming Dynasty female figure
2. The source of the official prostitute group
Some of them have already been mentioned in the previous article on this topic, and to sum up, one is the old ministers of The Former Yuan and the Mongol Yuan.
The lehu system began in the Northern Wei Dynasty and continued until the Manchu Qing Dynasty, and it was found in all dynasties and dynasties. And when Meng Yuan withdrew from the Central Plains, it was impossible to take these lehu with him, so it was natural that they would be accepted by the new dynasty.
"In the old courtyard of Jinling, there are people who have taken off all their surnames, and after all the Yuan people, they have not entered the church. At the beginning of the Shunzhi Dynasty, Yu was in Jiangning, smelling the Ten Ladies, who was still in his eighties, and yuya in the North of the Wanli Dynasty. --Wang Yuyang,"Chibei Even Talk"
Second, the families of criminal officials and the families of political prisoners, such as:
After the Jing Dynasty, the ministers disobeyed, and their children were mostly in Shanxi. --The First Collection of Imperial Texts
The third is the civilian trade due to poverty or war.
He Xiong, a citizen of Xuyi County, Fengyang Province, had children, seventeen years old and thirteen years old, and was hungry at the age of hunger, and he wanted to take his children as concubines, but in vain, he wanted to return to the Happy Household as prostitutes. --Records of Emperor Myeongseong
Chunniang was twelve years old, plundered by the rebels, and resold in the Yang family of Quanzhou Lehu, and the mother of the bustard loved her like a treasure and changed her name to Yang Yu. --Feng Menglong's Ancient and Modern Novels
We do not know how large the scale of private trade is, but it is already certain that official prostitutes can buy and sell privately like goods.
The Ming Dynasty official prostitutes and lehu groups were generally formed in this way.
Conclusion: Those who are human and women are probably the ones who do not want to cross to the Ming Dynasty. By the way, the Ming Dynasty had a special book of prostitutes- "Qinglou Rhymes".