What do you mean by eating?

The original meaning of "eat together" is * * * eat together, and later there are two explanations: the first refers to the so-called homosexuality of women in today's palace (also called lesbians grinding mirrors in ancient times); Those maids who are not favored by the emperor are of the same sex as women because they are not allowed to contact the opposite sex in the deep palace; Second, it also means that maids and eunuchs form a nominal husband and wife. Based on the colorful network language of modern society, eating is also interpreted as "eating face to face" between people. Example: Xiao Ming said: Look, Xiao Wang and Xiao Hao are facing each other.

Extended data:

The explanation of food:

There are many eunuchs and maids in the palace who comfort each other because of loneliness. When people fall in love in private, they just can't share the same bed, just eat relatively and comfort each other's loneliness. This is the so-called "opposite food" or "vegetable households"; Wei Zhongxian, the eunuch of the Ming Dynasty, is said to have had relevant experience. The phenomenon of eating also refers to the object of asexual behavior.

Food etymology:

The word duality originated in the Han Dynasty. "Hanshu" records: "courtiers, Daofang and Zhang abandoned it, so Zhao's imperial envoys include Hakka, Wang Yong and Zang Ai. All of them are called Gong (Cao Gong) knowing his son, and they belonged to Zhonggong before. In order to learn the history of things, they studied the Book of Songs and awarded it to the Queen. The temple (Taoist room) is opposite to the palace (Cao Gong). " Ying Shao pointed out: "Imperial secretaries are jealous of each other because they eat the names of couples." It can be seen that the opposite food originally refers to lesbians. Chen Ajiao, the queen of Emperor Wu of the Han Dynasty, also recorded a similar story: "A witch wears men's clothes and clothes. She lives with the queen and loves her as husband and wife." "After the incident, the Queen of the Chu government abolished the general manager of the palace." However, it is recorded in unofficial history's novels, and its authenticity is doubtful.

The evolution of food opposition:

Later, the word "opposite dishes" became the love affair between eunuchs and maids. The so-called "things in the palace, complaining is boring, quenching thirst, this is the best policy." . There is a saying in "Gong Ci" of Sui, Tang and Five Dynasties: "I don't blame the imperial court for boasting about eating, but most of them are the best clothes." [5] Xu Nai's Biography of Filial Piety: "Guo often has a good reputation, so Xia Guoxiang's food is also castrated."

The opposite food can be the love between eunuch and maid-in-waiting, or the love between maid-in-waiting and maid-in-waiting, but it is mostly short-term contact; Caihu refers to the long-term and stable love relationship between eunuchs and maids, just like husband and wife, which was the most common in Ming and Qing Dynasties.

References:

Baidu encyclopedia-duishi