On the scale recorded by the ancient feudal dynasty, 4,000 banquets have caught up with the Qing Dynasty. It's really fair, two grandchildren, Kangxi and Qianlong, each with two.
In the fifty-second year of Kangxi (A.D. 17 13), in March, Emperor Kangxi, the sage of Qing Dynasty, celebrated his 60th birthday. He believes that since the Qin and Han Dynasties, the emperor's reign has not been longer than his own. Therefore, we decided to hold a grand birthday celebration. To celebrate the 60th birthday of Kangxi, a shed made of silk was built, stretching for 20 miles from Xizhimen to Changchun Garden. The Ministry of Rites specifically stipulates that from the first day of March to the end of March, Beijing officials should wear embroidered robes and makeup robes. In the first month of the sixty-first year of Kangxi (1722), Emperor Kangxi was 69 years old. To celebrate his 70th birthday next year, he held a second grand banquet. At that time 12-year-old Xiao Ganlong attended this grand banquet (and later held a grand banquet like grandpa). This year is the last year of Emperor Kangxi's life.
On the first day of the first month, Emperor Kangxi held a New Year message in his palace, and he was quite satisfied with his 60-year imperial career. He wrote the poem "Sixty-one Spring Lent" to express his literary martial arts since he ascended the throne.
The following focuses on the last feast of Emperor Qianlong, the first year of Jiaqing (1796) and the third day after Qianlong abdicated (the third day of the first month).
Qianlong is the longest-lived and reigning emperor in China. Born in 17 1 1, he lived for 88 years, ascended the throne in 1736, actually reigned for 63 years, and died in 1799. After 60 years of meditation, Qianlong did another great thing. At this time, Ganlong was 86 years old, and he invited old people from all over the country to the Forbidden City for dinner.
At that time, although the people in China were hungry and cold, land annexation was serious, and official corruption was rampant, the society was at the end of its heyday, the environment was relatively stable, and there was no large-scale unrest (a large-scale uprising of An Baili broke out in the southwest immediately after the banquet). In the international environment, the Qing court came to North Korea from all directions on its own. Here, one more thing needs to be said in the history books: When Qianlong 1793 received the British special envoy Ma Gorni, he was arrogant, supercilious and looked down on foreign things. In fact, this is not entirely correct. At that time, Qing and France had already exchanged ambassadors. Qianlong knew about the French Revolution and the British occupation of India and many other colonies. In fact, France wants to conclude a military alliance with the Qing Dynasty, and * * * wants to deal with Britain, but Qianlong doesn't agree. When the French Revolution broke out, Qianlong was really frightened. He immediately recalled the ambassador to France, then blocked the country and prohibited foreigners from contacting the people. He was afraid that the revolution outside would be unstable after the Qing people came into contact with foreigners. Britain wants to come to China, and Qianlong dare not refuse. He is also afraid of going to war with Britain, and he knows the strength of Britain. Later, on the way back to Beijing from Guangdong, the British envoy ordered the envoy and his party to receive 5,200 yuan a day, and also rewarded all convenience. It is said that even the sailors at the bottom of Britain made a lot of money at that time, but because there were so many things sent, the British envoys could not finish them. Many goods of pigs, sheep and chickens were already dead when they were delivered to the ship, stinking and had to be thrown into the river, and the Qing people on the shore scrambled to jump into the river for competition.
When people in their own country don't have enough to eat, they spend so much money on people in other countries. This is the performance that the Qing Dynasty thought it was strong enough to cover up its actual weakness, and Gan Long also secretly went to Yuanmingyuan twice to watch the "strange tricks" brought by the British envoy, which also gave Gan Long a great shock. The policy of closing the country to the outside world was strengthened, and all foreign things were forbidden to enter the Qing Dynasty.
In the sixty years of Qianlong (1795), heavy snow fell in June of 5438+00, which is considered as a good omen. Emperor Qianlong issued a decree and decided to hold a grand banquet in the palace next spring. Gan Long is 86 years old, and a 60-year-old man is 26 years old. Therefore, it is stipulated that the age of the elderly attending the banquet should be changed from 60 to over 70. However, as many as 2,000 eligible elderly people have been reported to the Ministry of Rites in various provinces. Seeing that all the old people attending the banquet were retired officials, Qianlong felt that this could not be "fun with the people". He issued an imperial edict to relax the identity of people attending the banquet and increase the proportion of ordinary people attending the banquet. There are *** 103 1 elderly people from all walks of life, businessmen, health supervisors, vests and ordinary people, totaling more than 3,000 people.
At the beginning of the banquet, the musicians in the palace played cheerful music, and the emperor's father, Gan Long, sat on the throne of the palace. Emperor Jiaqing personally led 3056 elderly people with silver beard and white hair to stumble and tremble. Long live the mountains. Long live the Emperor Tai, long live, long live. Facing the scene of a 70-year-old man's birthday, the emperor's father was very satisfied. He was not allowed to stay in Yongzheng since he was a child, until his grandfather found him while hunting and took him to the palace to teach him personally. Kangxi's great achievement is an example of Qianlong. After he succeeded to the throne, he carried out his grandfather's general plan of governing the country, but denied some policies of Yong Zhengdi.
During the banquet, Gan Long's face was full of warmth, and so was his face. Without the biting when he interrupted the backbone of the literati in the world to launch the literary inquisition, he invited the princes and older elders to the throne at the banquet and personally gave them royal wine. He also ordered his own prince, grandson, great-grandson and great-grandson. Pour wine for princes and ministers in the temple; The palace guards are responsible for pouring wine for the guests outside the hall to show the emperor's support for the elderly.
An interesting centenarian who attended the Millennium Banquet was Guo Zhongyue, the oldest birthday girl in Fujian, who was 104 years old at that time. This Guo Zhongyue story is very inspiring. He is a real "late bloomer". 90 years old, he is still an old scholar. He still insists on taking provincial and municipal examinations in all provinces. When Qianlong heard about it, he gave a royal gift as a juren. He was here at the first banquet.
The second time was in A.D. 1795, when Guo Zhongyue 104 years old, Emperor Qianlong asked him to take the Immortality Sutra. When Guo Zhongyue was 90 years old, he took an exam in Fujian, which shocked Sheng Ting. Emperor Qianlong was greatly moved and made an exception to give him a juror. At the age of 94, Emperor Qianlong made him a scholar. Emperor Qianlong also sent chariots and horses to pick up Guo Zhongyue, which was well received and showed his special status.
In addition, Gan Long presented a poem to Guo Zhongyue to celebrate his birthday. Guo Zhongyue, 104 years old, attended the banquet for the second time, after ten years. The distance between the old people attending the Thousand Banquets in different provinces and the capital is different. The remote Yunnan-Guizhou side is more than 4700 miles away from Beijing, and they have to leave a few months in advance. Guo Zhongyue, Fujian also has more than 1800 kilometers to catch.
Nearly 10,000 people dined at a thousand-person banquet. At that time, * * *, there were 800 tables of banquets, which were divided into two ways, six rows each. The number of banquets in each row ranges from 100 to 22 seats.
Part of a thousand banquet menus:
Bobo's four major products: Lantern, longan, Aiwowo jam, golden cake and two-color water chestnut cake.
Four kinds of pickles: carrot, honey, hot cucumber, osmanthus, kohlrabi and pickled peach kernel.
Seven appetizers: dragon playing with pearls, dried tangerine peel, rabbit meat, strange chicken strips, tianxiang abalone, towel gourd, shrimp, winter bamboo shoots and pepper oil.
The taste of soup: stewed fish lips in pot.
Five royal dishes: prawns with green pipa on the sand boat, tender feelings of dragons and phoenixes, sesame oil, diced meat and cucumber sauce.
Bobo 2: Melaleuca steamed cake assorted flower basket
Five royal dishes: dragon boat, fish, scallop ball sauce, braised quail, oyster sauce, beef tenderloin and duck feet in Sichuan sauce.
Bobo's second product: Fengwei steamed dumplings with colorful wonton.
Five imperial dishes: one product of tofu, three fairy pills, Flammulina velutipes, green vegetables, chicken breast and spicy venison pie.
Bobo 2: Jade Rabbit and Cabbage Four Happy jiaozi.
Barbecue 2: Imperial Roast Chicken Grilled Fish Rice
Game hot pot: with twelve dishes.
Yipin: sliced venison, sliced chicken with roe deer.
Wild boar, wild duck, preserved squid, fresh fish.
Fresh bean sprouts of acanthopanax senticosus.
A product of porridge: lotus leaf porridge
Fruit one product: timely fruit platter.
Farewell to fragrant tea: Yanghe Chun Lv
However, after Qianlong attended the thousand wedding banquet, many old people died one after another, many died on the road, and even countless people fainted at the banquet.
The Thousand Banquets during the Kangxi period were not so terrible, because most of the old people invited at that time lived in the capital and nearby areas, and the time was held on March, which was relatively mild, but the Thousand Banquets in the Qianlong Dynasty were completely different.
During the Qianlong period, a thousand banquets were held in the first month. When the weather in Beijing is extremely cold, the old people themselves can't resist the cold, and the speech time before the banquet is too long to bear.
In the era when there is no effective means of heat preservation and heating, many meals at thousands of banquets quickly get cold. Except hot pot, most dishes are cold, which will have bad consequences for people to eat.
The main reasons for the death of the elderly at the Thousand Banquets are:
First, many old people attending the banquet are poor people who have worked hard all their lives. Thousands of miles away, old people from all over the country came to the party. It's a long way, and they can't stand the fatigue of coming and going. Second, overeating can also cause physical discomfort. The banquet was full of delicious food and wine. These old people will eat if they eat too much, regardless of their mouths. Third, the weather is the first month, and it is also the coldest time in winter. At that time, the thousand banquets were still open-air, and the old man's body could not stand it at all.
Speaking of it, Emperor Kangxi and Emperor Qianlong held a thousand banquets. The actual purpose is to satisfy one's own face and win the hearts of the people. It was a completely reckless face project, and many old people died after attending the meeting. It's better for the local government to send some new year's goods directly to these elderly people, and it's better for these elderly people to feel the favor of the bath emperor. As the saying goes, "People are happy to treat you, and it's killing you to treat them."
Emperor Qianlong has great face. During his ruling career, many major events have proved this point. Six trips to the south of the Yangtze River, for his own selfish desires, exhausted many people's wealth and cream, coupled with frequent foreign wars, and even drained the state treasury. In many wars, face is won and lining is lost.
After Qianlong, the Qing Dynasty declined. The emperor of the Qing dynasty could never hold such a grand event again. Although Daoguang intends to imitate his grandfather, only 15 old ministers attended the grand banquet. In addition, when he reached Daoguang, his financial resources were also empty, and he made many jokes.
From a medical point of view: cold, especially sudden cold, will make people's pituitary-adrenal system in a state of high tension; The cold winter makes more nutrients ingested by the human body turn into heat energy to resist the cold; Low temperature will reduce blood calcium, and will reduce the function of immune system, reduce the resistance to pathogens, leading to upper respiratory tract infection and gastrointestinal inflammation. Therefore, we should take enough protein, fat, carbohydrates, vitamins and minerals in winter. While maintaining food diversification, we should eat more foods that are beneficial to the health of the elderly, such as milk, black beans, mushrooms, soybeans, black fungus, dog meat, perch and so on.
Of course, the proud emperor Qianlong could not really prepare these for the old people who came to attend the big banquet. At that time, many people didn't understand it, and even if doctors knew it, they dared not say it. Can a good-looking emperor Qianlong prepare for the elderly from the perspective of health preservation? Just prepare some delicacies to let the old people open their eyes and sing praises for him.