roccoschili Chapter 166 The originator of foot binding
Chapter 166 The originator of foot binding
During the Qing Dynasty, Mr. Lu Tixia from Hangzhou, Zhejiang Province, was highly respected, morally upright, and well-behaved. He only married one wife in his life, and neither took concubines nor went out to visit prostitutes.
Sometimes, when Mr. Lu Tixia went to a party, some actors and prostitutes were invited to persuade them to drink. Mr. Lu Tixia was neither happy nor angry, and socialized casually.
Some people who have committed minor crimes come to ask Mr. Lu Tixia to intercede, and Mr. Lu Tixia always agrees and never refuses.
Those who are in power respect Mr. Lu Tixia and obey his words.
Some people criticized Mr. Lu Tixia for not sticking to trivial matters and damaging his character.
Mr. Lu Tixia said with a disapproving smile: "When you see rice falling on the ground, pick it up and put it on the table to feel at ease. Why do you have to eat it yourself? If people want to set an example of their own character, they are selfish."
I once received the teachings of Tang Qian'an (Tang Bin, the first of the eight great literary masters of the Qing Dynasty) Zhongcheng.
When Tang Zhongcheng was the governor of Jiangsu, there were many prostitutes in Suzhou. Zhongcheng only warned them and hoped that they would behave, but he never banned or arrested them.
Zhongcheng explained to his officials: "There are prostitutes and actors in the world, just like there are monks and nuns in the world." Monks and nuns make a living by deceiving the world; prostitutes and actors make a living by flattering the world, which is not in line with etiquette. However, although Ouyang Xiu wrote the "Basic Treatise" with nearly a thousand words, none of it could be implemented. So how should we deal with the people who complained because they didn't have enough to eat and didn't have warm clothes to wear? '
If we mistreat prostitutes and actors now, it will be the same as destroying ascetics and restoring Buddhist statues during the Northern Wei Dynasty. It is just to let those officials make a fortune. It does not solve the fundamental problem but only solves some of the details. I will not do it! "
One day, when Mr. Lu Tixia was sleeping at home, he had a dream. He dreamed of a servant inviting him with a name card. The name post reads, "Best wishes to Yang Jisheng, younger brother of the Nian family." He is now a native of Rongcheng County, Hebei Province. A famous remonstrator in the mid-Ming Dynasty.).
Mr. Lu Tixia said with a smile: "I was just going to meet Mr. Jiao Shanggong (Yang Jisheng's nickname)!"
After saying that, he followed the guard and left.
After a while, they came to a place and saw a palace in front of them, which was very majestic.
Yang Jisheng, wearing a black gauze hat and a bright red official robe, walked down the steps and came to greet Mr. Lu Tixia.
After the two met with the ceremony, Yang Jisheng said: "Jisheng has received the order of the Jade Emperor. His term here has expired and he will be promoted soon. The position here needs to be filled by Mr."
Mr. Lu Tixia declined and said: "I didn't bother to be an official in the underworld when I was in the human world, so I lived in seclusion. How can I be an official in the underworld now?"
Yang Jisheng said: "Sir, don't be too busy refusing. Can we wait until we know what position we want you to take?"
Mr. Lu Tixia said categorically: "No matter what kind of position it is, I don't want to be an official!"
Yang Jisheng said with a smile: "Sir, what a master! You actually look down on the position of City God and are unwilling to take up the post!"
Before he finished speaking, a judge approached Yang Jisheng, put his mouth close to his ear, and whispered to him softly.
Yang Jisheng frowned and said, "This case is difficult to decide. We need to ask the Jade Emperor to decide the case."
Mr. Lu Tixia asked curiously: "What kind of case is it? It is so difficult for Jiao Shanggong to decide?"
Yang Jisheng said: "It's about the foot-binding case of Empress Li of the Southern Tang Dynasty."
This empress of the Southern Tang Dynasty was Li Yu, who was also a famous person. His song "Poppy Poppy" has been passed down through the ages. In his previous life, he was the monk Jingming of Songshan Mountain, and later he was reincarnated as the leader of the Jiangnan Kingdom (the name of the country was changed by Li Yu himself).
Once, while having fun in the palace, he wrapped his concubine Yaoniang's feet with cloth to look like a crescent moon.
This was just a joke between him and his concubine on a whim. Unexpectedly, it was followed by the people and became a custom of foot binding!
Since then, the people have followed suit, binding girls' feet and wearing bow shoes, kneading and tossing the bodies given by their parents, and not knowing how to cherish them.
So much so that later on, they had to compare whether their feet were bigger or smaller. After the woman's feet were bound, she had difficulty moving, which made her mother-in-law angry and her husband disgusted! Men and women harm each other, are debauched, obscene, and wanton.
Not only do those girls suffer tremendous pain from childhood, but many women hang themselves or take poison as a result.
The Jade Emperor was disgusted with the idea of foot-binding, so he was poisoned by Song Taizong Zhao Guangyi's "drug" before his death. His feet were stretched forward and his head was tilted back. It was more uncomfortable than a woman's foot-binding, and he died after suffering all kinds of pain. .
Now, almost seven hundred years have passed (this time refers to the middle of the Qing Dynasty). Empress Li's period of repentance is almost over and he can return to Songshan to practice Taoism immediately.
Unexpectedly, at this time, hundreds of thousands of women without feet came to Nantianmen to complain, saying: "When Zhang Xianzhong conquered Sichuan, he cut off our feet and piled them up like a hill. He also used the smallest feet to As the top of the mountain.
Although our destiny is to die at that time, why should we behave like this before death and be ridiculed after death? Isn't this the fault of Empress Li, the instigator of foot binding? We beg the Jade Emperor to make the decision for us and severely punish Empress Li, so that we can rest in peace! "
The Jade Emperor felt pity for these women, but he didn't know how to deal with Empress Li. So he sent a message from heaven to the city gods all over the world to discuss what crime to punish Empress Li.
Now that the document has arrived at Yang Jisheng, Yang Jisheng believes that this crime was caused by Zhang Xianzhong. Empress Li could not have foreseen this, so it was not easy to sentence him to a felony. Ask the Jade Emperor to punish Empress Li to weave one million pairs of shoes in the underworld to compensate for the women without feet. Only after he has completed this number can he return to Songshan Mountain.
At this point, Yang Jisheng asked Mr. Lu Tixia: "Although my memorial has been drafted, it has not been discussed with the other city gods. What do you think of my proposal?"
Mr. Lu Tixia did not directly express his opinion, but said: "Customs are difficult to change! Those ignorant and smart people, some burn their parents' remains as filial piety, and some deplore women's foot binding as mercy! The truth of these things is the same."
Yang Jisheng laughed heartily when he heard this.
Mr. Lu Tixia said goodbye and left, and then woke up from her sleep.
From then on, everything was as before, safe and sound. Yang Jisheng did not invite him to become the City God again.
Mr. Lu Tixia lived until the age of eighty and died without any illness.
When he was alive, he often joked with his wife: "Never bind my daughter's feet, lest Empress Li will have to knit an extra pair of shoes in the underworld!"