In this chapter, Brother Zhonghe will talk to you about those incredible behaviors of showing off wealth in Wei and Jin Dynasties.
1
When it comes to showing off wealth, we have to mention Mr. Shi Chong, the richest man in the Western Jin Dynasty.
This stone local tyrant is a real nouveau riche. During his tenure as the secretariat of Jingzhou, he became rich overnight by looting houses.
Usually nouveau riche are a little psychopathic. Of course, Shi Tuhao is no exception.
How abnormal is Shi Tuhao's way of showing off his wealth? Let's witness it with witness Liu Da!
On this day, Liu Lai was a guest at Shi Tuhao's house, and suddenly wanted to go to the toilet, so he borrowed Shi Tuhao's toilet.
Results Liu's adult haven't walked into the toilet, was stunned by the scene before:
I saw a gorgeous presidential suite with a luxurious big bed surrounded by expensive bedspreads. Looking to both sides, there are two beautiful ladies-in-waiting, beautifully dressed and holding sachets, standing on one side. It seems to be ready to provide "manual services" at any time.
As a gentleman, Liu was stunned by the "romantic" scene in front of him. He thought to himself, alas! I shouldn't have broken into Shi Chong's "harem" by mistake, should I?
So he hurried out and found Shi Tuhao and said, "I'm really sorry for accidentally breaking into your bedroom."
Shi Tuhao smiled and replied: "You didn't go wrong. You went to the toilet. "
Liu's adult had to be embarrassed to say that rural people have never seen the world, and you city people really know how to play. ...
2
Speaking of it, Liu's adult experience is just an ordinary "toilet service".
Shi Tuhao's family also has VIP service.
It is said that Shi Tuhao often has more than a dozen beautiful handmaids to serve him when he goes to the toilet, and all of them are beautifully dressed. Not only that, but also the supporting items in the toilet are very complete, such as nail powder and agarwood juice.
Give you a popular science, nail powder is equivalent to hand cream and lipstick now, and it is also a popular cosmetic in the court of Tang Dynasty.
Aquilaria sinensis juice is made of crushed powder of Daphne family and other drugs, which is equivalent to the current perfume.
How about going to the toilet and enjoying "five-star" nursing service, advanced?
Not only that, Shi Tuhao's family also provides dressing services. Guests who come out after using the toilet must be dressed in brand-new clothes by the maid before leaving.
Probably, most of the guests who come to Shi Chong's house are decent people. When they saw this scene of "bright colors and flowers overflowing", they all blushed and fled.
It is estimated that this is also one of Shi Tuhao's daily entertainment projects.
Although most people avoid Shi Tuhao's "nightclub" service, one person enjoys it very much.
He is Wang Dun, General Wang.
Other guests couldn't stand Shi Tuhao's changing clothes, but General Wang played hooligans in front of the maids, stripped himself naked, and then leisurely put on new clothes.
Now the maids are embarrassed. They are embarrassed to look up at Wang Dun and wonder if this guest is a thief.
Hey hey, you really guessed it.
However, General Wang is not a thief who steals women and jade articles, but a thief who tries to steal state apparatus.
three
In fact, General Wang Can accepted the nightclub service so calmly because he had a "criminal record".
He is a royal Xu, so he has experienced the treatment of the princess royal toilet.
At that time, Wang Dungang married the princess. One day, Wang Dun went to the princess's house to go to the toilet, only to find a gorgeous and exquisite lacquer box with dried dates in it to plug her nose. As a result, Wang Dun was happy when he saw it: It's great to have fruit in the toilet!
Then he ate all the dried dates.
That doesn't count. When he came out of the toilet, the maids brought water in a golden bathtub and beans in a glass bowl.
It was originally used to wash hands, but as a result, he poured all the bath beans into the water, stirred them and ate them in his mouth, saying that they were dry rice.
The maids had to cover their mouths and smile, but they didn't dare to let him hear them.
This time, General Wang's true colors of "country bumpkin" can be seen at a glance.
However, after that, when General Wang enjoyed the "nightclub" service, he was much calmer than others.
After all, it is "professional training".
four
As can be seen from the above, local tyrants from the royal family to ordinary families in the Wei and Jin Dynasties were really rich and loved to show off their wealth.
It is estimated that readers will ask: money is money, but these are not showing off wealth, right?
Don't worry, the main event is behind.
If all the above are just rich enough to enjoy themselves, then the following story is a naked and blatant display of wealth.
After Shi Chong remained at the top of the rich list for many years in the Western Jin Dynasty, some people expressed dissatisfaction and challenged Shi Tuhao.
This man is Wang Kai, the uncle of Sima Yan, Emperor Wu of Jin Dynasty.
The wealth value contest between Wang Kai and Shi Chong is the famous "Wang Shidou Fu" in later generations.
The content of fighting for wealth can only be described as incredible. Please be fully prepared and don't be surprised.
Listen to me slowly. The rich contest is divided into three rounds.
In the first round, Wang Kai took the lead in launching an offensive, taking out maltose and dried rice to wash the pot. Not to be outdone, Shi Chong took out a candle as firewood.
Wang Kai used forty miles (20,000m) of purple silk as a walking barrier when he went out, and precious blue silk fabric was used inside. Not to be outdone, Shi Chong immediately took out a five-mile (25,000m) brocade as a barrier.
Shi Chong is decorating his home and painting the walls with pepper paste. When Wang Kai heard about it, he painted the wall with red oil.
Let's look at it one by one.
First, how precious is maltose used to wash pots in ancient Wang Kai? Maltose was called maltose at that time, because it was made of grain, so it was something that only princes and nobles could enjoy, and ordinary people could not afford it. In Europe, where sugar-making technology is underdeveloped, honey can only be used instead. It is said that the will of the European aristocrat at that time would solemnly state that he had several barrels of honey. It can be seen that sugar was precious at that time.
Where are the candles used for firewood in Shi Chong? As we know, ordinary people in ancient times did not use candles for lighting. Ancient candles were made of animal fat, while ordinary people usually used soybean oil for lighting. Some poor students can't even afford to use oil lamps for general lighting, so there are idioms such as "Let a firefly reflect snow" and "Dig the wall and steal light". In the Han dynasty, candles were also presented to the emperor as tributes, and the emperor also presented candles to princes and nobles above the marquis. So candles at that time can be said to be a symbol of status and wealth.
So in the first article, Wang Shi is neck and neck.
Let's look at the second one: Wang Kai used forty miles (20,000m) of purple silk cloth as a walking barrier when he went out, and precious blue silk fabric was used in it. Not to be outdone, Shi Chong immediately took out a five-mile (25,000m) brocade as a barrier.
Walking obstacles are used by nobles to block dust and other people's sight when they travel. It is a symbol of status. Because the textile industry in ancient times was handmade and could not be produced on a large scale, it was needless to say that silk and satin were precious at that time. Plus these two goods, one is 20000 meters and the other is 25000 meters. It is estimated that it is not a problem to apply for Guinness Book of Records.
Therefore, in this round of competition, Shi Chong beat Wang Kai by 5000m.
Look at the third item: Shi Chong is decorating his home and painting the walls with Chili paste. When Wang Kai heard about it, he painted the wall with red oil.
It is estimated that everyone will be a little puzzled when they see pepper.
Zanthoxylum bungeanum was not an ordinary thing in ancient times. There is a cloud in the Book of Songs: "Look at me like a horse, so that I can hold a pepper." It depicts a woman giving pepper to a man as a symbol of love when she confesses to him. Similarly, in the Book of Songs, there is a saying that "the fragrance is rich, which is the light of the country." There are records such as "the fragrance of pepper is better" and "the real chat of pepper is prosperous". It means that Zanthoxylum bungeanum was a sacrifice to the gods at that time, and the fruit of Zanthoxylum bungeanum also represents the meaning of many children and many blessings. The palace painted with pepper mud in Han Dynasty is called Pepper Room Hall, which is the exclusive VIP of the Queen. Therefore, the preciousness of pepper is self-evident.
So what is the halloysite used by Wang Kai? During the Wei and Jin Dynasties, people used Wushi powder, which was similar to today's drugs and had a high content when taking it. Halloysitum rubrum is one of the components of Wushi powder. Wushisan is composed of five precious minerals: Ziyingshi, Bai Shiying, stalactite, halloysitum rubrum and sulfur, which are still valuable today. At that time, taking Wu Shi San was also a symbol of social status, and only nobles and celebrities could afford it.
This round is still a draw.
five
If the first round of "Fighting for the Rich" is like a comedy, then the second round is a bit of a spy film. Because the second round is a story about stealing "secret technology".
The outline of the story is this:
Shi Jia Chong can make a bowl of bean porridge in an instant;
Shi Chong can also eat pickled leeks in winter;
Every time Shi Chong and Wang Kai fight a bullfight, Shi Chong's cows run faster.
Wang Kai was always worried about these three things, so he bribed Shi Chong's servant and learned about Shi Chong's "secret technology".
It turns out that Shi Chong's family used fast food technology when making bean porridge, and both bean flour and porridge were prepared in advance. As soon as the guests arrive, it will be fine to mix bean flour with rice porridge.
Pickling leeks is to mash leeks and add wheat seedlings;
The cow runs fast because the driver leans his center of gravity to one side.
When Wang Kai learned this, he improved his skills and won Shi Chong. And Shi Chong killed the leaker.
I thought Shi Chong was too cruel, but later I found it was not that simple. Emperor Cao Pi of Wei Wendi once said, "Three generations of elders know clothes, and five generations know food. This statement is difficult to understand at first. "
It means that only the three generations of giants can understand the importance of clothing, while the five generations of giants can understand the secret of diet, so clothing and diet are regarded as absolute secrets by the aristocratic family and must not be told to the outside world.
Shi Chong was born in a nouveau riche, not as good as a noble family, so it is estimated that more attention should be paid to these aspects. In this way, the death of these leakers seems inevitable.
On the other hand, although Wang Kai successfully obtained the secret of the Shi Chong family and defeated Shi Chong in this spy war, he won without using force.
So the struggle between the two entered the third round.
six
As their struggle entered the third round, the competition also entered the final stage.
The game will be the winner in this competition.
Who is the winner? Please turn your attention to the game.
On this day, Wang Kai proudly showed off a two-foot coral tree to Shi Chong.
He said to Shi Chong, "See? You haven't seen the unique coral tree of the Great Qin State (Roman Empire), have you? This was specially given to me by the emperor today! "
Shi Chong glanced lightly, without even saying "Oh", grabbed an iron and knocked it on the coral tree. The coral tree was smashed with a bang.
Wang Kai's face is very ugly now. He felt sorry and angry.
Unfortunately, a good coral tree is missing. Angry Shi Chong had the audacity to destroy the royal gift.
So he shouted to Shi Chong, "You are jealous of my coral tree, but how can you! You pay for my coral tree! ! ! "
Shi Chong listened, but his face was faint, as if nothing had happened.
He glanced at Wang Kai and said to him, "Big Brother, what's the big deal? If you are angry, I will pay you. "
Later, Shi Chong said to his servant, "Come, let's move all my coral trees out and show them to Brother Wang."
People are gone. Before long, I saw many coral trees three feet and four feet in front of Wang Kai. All of them are colorful and dazzling, and people can hardly take their eyes off them.
Seeing this, Wang Kai only felt that all the trees were several times stronger than his own coral trees, so he sighed and had to touch his nose and leave.
He knows that his wealth is far less than that of Shi Chong.
At this point, Wang Doufu finally got the result.
seven
In fact, in addition to Wang Shi's striving for wealth, there are other behaviors to show off wealth, and they are even considered to be coming from behind, surpassing Wang Kai and Shi Chong.
On one occasion, Emperor Wu of Jin came to the home of Ji Wang, a minister, and thought there was a kind of steamed meat that was particularly delicious. When asked, it was found that the raw material of pork adopted advanced "human breast feeding technology".
Another time was also related to Ji Wang. Once he was demoted to the foot of Beimang Mountain. Real estate speculation there is particularly high, and it is a villa area and a mountain view room, which villagers can't afford. But Ji Wang is different. He is a man who fought for wealth and defeated Shi Chong. What he needs most is money. He likes riding and shooting, so he strung together money and surrounded a racecourse, which was called "Golden Ditch" at that time.
Right? There is money everywhere!
What, is this a naked show of wealth?
At this point in the story, I believe there is a question in everyone's heart: what is the fundamental reason why people love to show off their wealth in Wei and Jin Dynasties?
Brother Zhonghe will try to analyze it for everyone.
During the Wei and Jin Dynasties, frequent wars, turmoil in the Central Plains and constant regime changes led to the loss of people's values at that time. There is a nihilistic atmosphere in the whole society, which thinks that spirit is illusory and only money is real, so extravagance and waste are the norm, which undoubtedly reflects a kind of spiritual emptiness and confusion in life. On the other hand, is our money worship also a loss of values?
We don't need to over-analyze, and we don't need to criticize the characters in these stories from the moral high ground. Brother Zhonghe wrote these stories just for fun and fun. I also hope this can be a pleasure for you to talk about after dinner.
That's all.