"The Qing ancestral system: When a prince is born, regardless of whether he is a direct descendant or a concubine, once he falls to the ground, a nanny will carry him out and hand him over to a wet nurse. As usual, a prince had 40 people serving him. There were eight nannies and eight wet nurses. In addition, there were the needlework master, the starch-washing master, the lantern master, and the stove master. After she had stopped nursing, she removed the wet nurse and added a number of eunuchs in the palace to serve as her master's companions. At this time, he had to teach him how to eat, how to talk, how to walk, and how to bow. When he was six years old, he had to prepare a small hat, a small robe, and a small pair of boots to teach him how to follow the adults to stand on duty. To start school, he went to the study room to study. They had to get up at dawn. After washing up and dressing up, they entered Qianqing Gate and stood in front of the Emperor with the princes. Sometimes, the threshold of the hall was too high for the prince to cross, so the young eunuch carried it into the door. Then, he looked around and walked forward with tender steps.
"The prince doesn't meet his birth mother once he's born. There's a fixed time every year for them to meet. Even if they meet, they can't talk too much, and they can't be close to each other like the commoners. By the time the prince was twelve years old, he had learned the Manchu language. When he was fourteen, he had to be taught archery and riding. Princes usually got married at the age of 16 or 18. If their father was still in power, they would live together in a place called the elder brother's residence in the palace. If the emperor was already dead, he would have to take his mother and wife to the mansion that the new emperor had given him. Of course, if she was the first empress of the late emperor, there was no need to be like this. Because her son had inherited the throne, she had also been promoted to the Empress Dowager. Therefore, from the time the prince was swaddled to his marriage, the number of times the mother and son met was only a hundred or so times. How could there be any feelings to speak of?
"The relationship between the princess and her mother is even more distant from the prince. From the time she landed to the time she married, she only had dozens of meetings. What surprised the commoners even more was that every princess was given a mansion as soon as she got married. She did not live with her parents-in-law. If her parents-in-law wanted to see their daughter-in-law, they had to pay a grand visit to the emperor. Moreover, the emperor's son-in-law could only live in the outer room of the residence. If Gege did not summon him, he could not come over and sleep with her. Every time they were summoned, Gege and Ebo would have to go through countless twists and turns before they could meet. The power in this aspect was in the hands of the nanny, or the housekeeper. If Ge Ge did not bribe the nanny, even if she summoned her, the nanny would obstruct her in many ways and even directly reprimand her for being shameless.”
Among all living beings, everyone's blessings were different, but they were definitely not infinite. Enjoying unlimited preferential treatment in this aspect also meant that he had greater shortcomings and regrets in other aspects.
The noble gate was as deep as the sea, and the palace was cold and strict. It was very difficult for these young princes and princesses to get the affection and brotherhood that other children enjoyed. According to the Qing system, the moment a prince was born, he would be handed over to a wet nurse by a nanny. A prince usually had 40 people to serve him, including 8 nannies, 8 wet nurses, as well as the needlework master, the starch-washing master, the lantern master, and the stove master. After the prince was weaned, he removed his wet nurse and added a number of internal supervisors. These eunuchs were in charge of teaching the prince about his daily life, diet, speech, manners, sitting posture, and various royal etiquette. When the prince was six years old, he wore a small hat and boots and began to learn to stand on duty. At the same time, he entered the "study". Like the other princes and ministers, the little prince rose at dawn and entered the Qianqing Gate in neat clothes. He stood in front of the emperor with the other kings. The prince was young and short, and it was difficult for him to cross the threshold of the Palace of Heavenly Purity. He was often carried into the palace by the chamberlain. After entering the door, the little princes were all imposing and graceful, as if they were two different people from the children in his arms just now. The situation was very interesting.
It was very difficult for the prince to get close to his mother after he was born. Every year, the mother and son would meet at a fixed time, and they could not talk much when they met. The prince began to learn Manchu at the age of 12 and practiced archery at the age of 14. Princes usually get married between the ages of 16 to 18. For example, when their father was still in power, the princes lived in the palace, and their residences were commonly known as the " If his father passed away, the prince would take his mother, wife, and children to live in a separate residence. If the mother is the queen, she will still live in the Forbidden City and be regarded as the Empress Dowager. Someone once calculated that from the birth of the prince to his marriage, the mother and son had only seen each other more than a hundred times. The situation of the princess was even worse. From falling to the ground to leaving the pavilion, there were only dozens of faces.
When the princess married, the emperor gave her a special mansion and did not live with her in-laws. When the parents-in-law see their daughter-in-law, they must perform the etiquette of monarch and minister. The son-in-law lived in the house outside the princess's mansion. If the princess did not summon him, the son-in-law could not meet him. Every time they were summoned, the princess and son-in-law had to spend a lot of money to get together. The person in charge of summoning the princess was the nanny who accompanied the princess to her wedding. She was commonly known as the "housekeeper" and had a lot of power. If the princess did not bribe the nanny to please her, even if she was summoned, she would still not be able to see her husband under the heavy obstruction of the nanny. Most of the princesses were weak people. When they entered the palace to see their mother, they did not dare to complain and could not speak. It could be seen that the fate of the Qing Dynasty princesses was very tragic. Most of them died of lovesickness. In the Qing Dynasty, it was rare for princesses to give birth to children, and almost all the children of the son-in-law were born by the side wives. If the princess died earlier than the prince consort, the prince consort would be expelled from the princess's manor, and all the houses and utensils in the princess's manor would be confiscated. The only lucky princess in the Qing Dynasty was Yi's only daughter, Princess Rong 'an. Princess Rong 'an was betrothed to Guaerjia's Gushan Ezhen Fuzhen. However, because she could not get the "care" of the nanny, Princess Rong An and her husband had not seen each other for more than a year. One day when she entered the palace, Princess Rong An knelt in front of her father and asked,"Who will father marry my daughter to?”Emperor Xianfeng said,"Is Fu Zhen not your son-in-law?”"What is the condition of the talisman?" the princess asked. My daughter has been married for a year, but I haven't seen her.”"Why not?" asked the Emperor. "The nurse will not let my daughter see you," said the princess.”"How can the nanny care for you and your wife?" said the Emperor. You can decide for yourself." Princess Rong An received her father's instructions and immediately dismissed the nanny after returning to the residence and summoned Fu Zhen. From then on, the couple lived a loving life and had several children.
Although the status of the prince was higher than that of the princess, loneliness also accompanied their childhood. The princes had a lot of academic work to do, and perhaps this could make them forget about loneliness for a while.
"The princes of the Manchu royal family received the strictest training in education before they were familiar with human affairs. They woke up every morning and were taught by the only Grand Preceptor in the palace. The first lesson was Chinese literature. When these royal students walked into the classroom, the teacher had to stand up from his chair to accept the students '''great treat'. He returned the gesture and sat down. If the homework was memorized, a student would place the book in front of the Grand Preceptor and then return to his seat to memorize it repeatedly. If the homework was not memorized, the Grand Preceptor would ask a eunuch present to bring a pointer and demonstrate it correctly again. Each prince was accompanied by eight students (Ha-ha-chu in Manchu), who had to study the same textbooks as the prince. It was necessary to admonish the latter more strictly. If the prince could not carry it, Haha Zhuzi would have to take the punishment for him. On the other hand, if the prince did as well as the other students, they would also be rewarded. As a last resort, the most rebellious prince would have to be taught a lesson. Even though the Grand Preceptor only said that most of the time, if he really couldn't take it anymore, he would still take him to see the Emperor. At this time, the Qing Emperor would order a eunuch to pinch his face. The Empress Dowager used this method to punish the late Emperor Tongzhi. The Chinese literature class lasted two hours, and then the essay was written in the Manchu Tunguska and Mongolian languages. The teacher's rank was lower than the Grand Preceptor's and was called "Master." He had to greet the students at the door and bow before the class began. He learned Manchu Tunguska and Mongolian, and sometimes he also learned local dialect. The next lesson was to conduct horse, step, archery, and other competitive sports under the guidance of "Nanda"(Manchu, riding and archery coach). Fencing and stone-throwing, the young princes spent the whole day training their brains and physical strength, so they went to bed early. He had a fixed amount of food every day and was not allowed to play cards.”
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