In ancient times, it was normal for a man to have three wives and four concubines. How do * * *' s wives get along?

We know that in ancient times, men's status was respected, while women's status was very low, so men could marry many women in their lives to carry on the family line. It can be said that it was normal for a man to have three wives and four concubines in ancient times. However, it is difficult for us modern people to understand this, especially girls. Judging from the thinking of modern women, it is absolutely impossible to allow others to share a husband with themselves. So there will be problems. In ancient times, how did men get along with three wives and four concubines?

The concubinage of ancient men was bound by law.

We should make it clear that in fact, ancient people were also strictly bound to get married and take concubines, which is not what we thought. Men can marry as many as they want. Accurately speaking, in ancient China, monogamy was practiced, and concubinage was naturally inferior to his wife, so he had to serve her. However, the laws of past dynasties were very strict with concubinage for ordinary people, so it was only the welfare of princes and nobles.

According to the law of the Han Dynasty, normal officials cannot have more than one concubine, that is, only wives and concubines are allowed; There can be more male concubines who have made great contributions, but no more than eight; In principle, most people have no right to concubinage, and they can only live a husband-and-wife life with their wives.

During the Tang Dynasty, the regulations on concubinage for ordinary people were slightly relaxed. If there are no children over forty, in order not to be left out in the cold, they are allowed to marry a concubine and pass on the incense.

In the Ming Dynasty, the system of concubinage changed slightly. If the official is a prince, he is allowed to draft once like an emperor, but only once, and the number of concubines at a time cannot exceed ten. There can be no more than four concubines of officials at the level of prince and county king at a time. For many officials, there is only one chance in life, unless they have no children, they can choose the second time. However, ordinary people are still not allowed to take concubines at will, and they are still restricted by forty years of infertility.

During the Qing Dynasty, the ratio of male to female gradually became normal, but some families could not get married because of poverty, so there was no such thing as three wives and four concubines.

In ancient times, many men had wives because of personal lewdness, just like Wei Xiaobao in Jin Yong's works, but there were also many gentlemen who had wives for their children. In order to breed as many offspring as possible, it is the fundamental reason why monogamy and concubinage were practiced in ancient China for thousands of years.

Did the wives and concubines in ancient times really get along as fiercely as the palace drama?

As for how wives and concubines get along with each other, whether they are intrigued all day like in TV dramas and thinking about how to frame each other, there are mainly three situations:

First of all, in the royal family, what we see now is actually no less than the real harem fight in ancient times, because after all, everyone in the harem wants to be loved by the emperor, and most of the emperor's concubines come from aristocratic families. The harem is intertwined with the power of the previous dynasty, and it is inevitable that Chu Jun will have a harem.

As we all know, Liu Bang, the Emperor Gaozu, loved Mrs. Qi very much in his later years, and even wanted to make his son Liu Ruyi a prince. Lv Zhi, the queen of Liu Bang, the famous Lv Hou, had long been dissatisfied with Mrs. Qi's special favor, but Liu Bang could only bear it. But he felt that Mrs Qi would threaten his son Liu Ying's crown prince status, so he couldn't sit still any longer. He planned in many ways and persuaded Liu Bang to finally keep his son's position as the prince through the power of the former dynasty. After Liu Bang's death, she came to power as the Empress Dowager, killed the sons of Liu Ruyi and Liu Bang, and Mrs. Qi was brutally taken hostage.

Because of the particularity of Lv Hou's identity, this tragic palace fight is clearly recorded in the history books. However, the ancient feudal dynasty in China lasted more than two thousand years and produced hundreds of emperors. Most emperors have a full harem, and countless women are locked in the deep garden of the harem. There are so many right and wrong in the court struggle that Lv Hou is just a drop in the ocean. Moreover, the struggle between emperors' concubines is often related to family interests, that is, to the vital interests of officials of past dynasties. It is far from being jealous, and it is conceivable that the struggle is fierce.

In ordinary official families, except for a few concubines who are favored by officials because of their gorgeous appearance, most of them are wives' maids, so concubines are naturally inferior to their wives, and they have to serve their wives, so there is no struggle between concubines. Moreover, ancient women should obey three virtues and forbid women from being jealous. Otherwise, one in seven is guilty, and the husband can divorce his wife at any time, so even if the husband loves which concubine, he should not be jealous, and he should be a mistress.

As for the concubine room and the concubine room, because of the checks and balances between the third and the fourth, there are few fights. Moreover, ancient women could not leave a door or two, and there were few opportunities to meet each other. Where did such great hatred make them fight with each other?

As for ordinary people, there is only one wife at home, let alone fighting.

So having said so much, that is to say, there are many struggles between the empresses of the emperor, but they are all for the favor of the emperor and the principle of mother-to-child, while the families of ordinary officials are relatively harmonious.