In ancient times, the status of women was low, which was a well-known thing. As early as the Zhou Dynasty, it was explained in the Book of Poetry: "It is a man who is born, and the zhang of the bearer." It is a woman who gives birth to a tile. "Women are not born with the same status as men, and from the beginning of the agricultural era, when men exerted their innate advantages, the decline in women's status was already doomed.
But despite this, before the Song Dynasty, the treatment of women was not too bad. During the Qin Dynasty, there were Ba widow Qing and Qin Shi Huang who called brothers and brothers; in the Han Dynasty era, there was Lü Hou Wei Zhen Siye; during the Tang Dynasty, wu Zetian also became a generation of emperors. During these periods, there was no mention of a woman participating in politics, nor was there a requirement that women must observe the Festival of Chastity.
Although Confucian thought repeatedly suppressed the status of women, the free pursuit of love between men and women was sought after at that time. The Song Dynasty was about the period when the status of women declined the fastest, although at this time women could remarry, they could divide their property equally with their brothers, and the marriage law at that time also guaranteed the status of women, but with the rise of Zhu Xi's theory, cultured women were soon in a very embarrassing situation.
Along with the "existence of heavenly reason, the destruction of human desires" comes the "three principles and five constants", and the "three from four virtues" for women. The Ming and Qing dynasties were about the darkest period for women, because of the great advocacy of Cheng Zhu's theory, women could only be willing to let their thoughts be eaten by the rulers in order to survive, and they thought that obeying the "three from four virtues" was a really good woman.
Although the Ming Dynasty sage Wang Yangming and the thinker Li Yan repeatedly attacked the saying that "a woman without talent is virtuous", the people who have been deeply poisoned are still happy to do so. What's more, there is also a clear article in the "Minghui Code", saying that as long as the woman insists on not remarrying and keeping the will of the deceased husband, the family can be exempted from military service and can also receive the chastity arch as a commendation.
So, whether it was because of the imprisonment of thought or because of the drive of profit, ancient women were imprisoned in small black houses that never saw the light of day. At the end of the Yuan Dynasty and the beginning of the Ming Dynasty, there was a famous scholar named Xu Bosheng, who was born in a family of Hui merchants. In 1357, the Xu family helped Zhu Yuanzhang revolt, and in 1368, after Zhu Yuanzhang became emperor, the xu family's status also rose.
As the eldest brother in the family, Xu Bosheng was also the head of the Xu family, and he was even more valued by the imperial court. He was an incorruptible official, and the bandits would be discouraged whenever they heard his name. Because of his good deeds to his neighbors, the local people called him Kai Lao Dad. However, there is a high wall in the Xu family's mansion, which is used to imprison a woman.
This woman is the wife of Xu Bosheng's fourth brother Xu Zhou'an, Xu Zhou'an has not been in good health since childhood, but Miss Hu still married him from the order of his parents. Unfortunately, Hu had just become pregnant and Xu Zhou'an had passed away. Xu Bosheng then asked his sister-in-law, "Do you want to remarry or do you want to keep the festival?" Hu replied to her husband to observe the festival.
Xu Bosheng was quite satisfied with his sister-in-law's answer, and in order to give his brother an explanation, he locked up Hu Shi and "helped her keep the festival." In the face of Gao Qiang, who was imprisoning himself, Hu Shi did not resist, but stayed in the mansion for 50 years. In the past 50 years, Hu Shi has not known anything about the outside world, and even if the prisoners in prison have been pardoned, she still obediently stays within the high walls.
Her son was born and named Xu Tianxiang. Xu Tianxiang grew up living in "prison" with his mother, but unlike his mother, he can go in and out of the high wall at will. After that, Xu Tianxiang also became a great talent and became a high official, but he never thought of welcoming his mother out. Hu stayed inside until his death at the age of 72.
After all, Hu Shi voluntarily kept the festival for her husband, and also voluntarily let others close the door of their freedom. A normal person living in a small cage for a long time will struggle and go crazy. But with the imprisonment of thought, women will not only cocoon themselves, but also feel proud of it, about hu's days in the deep courtyard are spent in "pride".
Nowadays, Xu Bosheng's Xu family mansion has become a major scenic spot in Xu Village, Shexian County, Anhui Province, and people flock to it endlessly. However, after admiring the splendor of the Xu family, people may also notice that there is a high wall in a corner of the courtyard, and there was once a woman who lived "decently" in the hut inside for 50 years.