The Ming Dynasty restricted public funds from eating and drinking: Zhu Yuanzhang only served four dishes and one soup for the queen's birthday.

Ancient officials? Is it normal to eat, drink and socialize? What are the official rules? Sometimes you don't even eat, drink or socialize? Can't be an official, can't be in power? Although the wind of eating and drinking is enduring? But there are also many institutional measures to limit the specifications of official catering banquets? If you travel to ancient times to be an official? Be careful not to pack up and leave or even lose your head just because you eat one more dish.

Ancient officials attached importance to welcoming and ostentation in ancient China. On the one hand, the reception of eating and drinking in officialdom has a long history; On the other hand, the authorities have introduced various measures to stop it. In the classic Romance of the Three Kingdoms, after Liu Bei became sworn in Taoyuan, he fought against the Yellow Scarf Army with Guan Yu and Zhang Fei, and fought for more than 30 games, but he was awarded the post of county commandant. On one occasion, Du You passed by this county town, and Liu Bei didn't give him a gift, and even treated him badly. Du You deliberately made things difficult, forcing the county government staff to accuse Liu Bei of bullying the people. Zhang Fei was furious when he learned about it. He took Du You out of the inn and gave him a beating. Liu, Guan and Zhang resigned and went their separate ways. This can be seen from the wind of eating and drinking in ancient officialdom.

In ancient China, officials paid great attention to ostentation and extravagance in reception. In order to win the favor of superior leaders and get promoted, or to make friends with each other out of interests, behind the reception, there were often various forms of corruption. It is said that during the Wei, Jin, Southern and Northern Dynasties, every state and county even set up full-time officials, called "sending away the dead".

The corruption of public funds for eating and drinking in ancient officialdom was fully developed in the Song Dynasty. According to the history of the Song Dynasty, there was a "ten-day banquet" system in the Song Dynasty, and a public banquet was held every ten days. "Wen Tong Kao" said: Now, Pingjiang magistrate, temple officials Fan Zhi Li and Hu often treat guests with public funds. The cost of a glass of wine, the rate is more than 1000. According to the Records of Anecdotes, Xing Xiaoyang, the Taiwei in the early Southern Song Dynasty, bought the second-hand property sold by the late Wang Taiwei's family in Beijing, "only spent 3,000 yuan". It can be seen that the officials at that time were all eating and drinking!

Emperor Xianwen of the Northern Wei Dynasty stipulated that anyone who ate sheep with a mouthful of wine was sentenced to death. Tian Guan said, "Where Wang Zhi eats food, six grains, six livestock, six clear foods, one hundred and twenty products as dishes, eight things as treasures and one hundred and twenty jars as sauces." He made specific regulations on serving, placing, using utensils, singing and dancing during the dinner.

For eating and drinking with public funds, most dynasties regarded it as a serious style problem and introduced various systems to restrain it. As early as the Han Dynasty, the imperial court promulgated a series of rules and regulations on the reception of officials. It can be said that these systems were relatively strict at that time. According to relevant data, it was stipulated in the Han Dynasty that when receiving officials who went out to perform official duties, officials had different levels and different standards. High-level people can have meat and wine, while low-level people have only a little meat and can't drink.

In order to stop officials from eating and drinking with public funds, some dynasties promulgated regulations restricting public funds from eating and drinking. Emperor Jing of the Han Dynasty decreed that any official who received public funds after arriving at the place would be dismissed immediately upon discovery. Later, it was reflected that this punishment was too heavy. Liu Qi accepted the suggestion of Prime Minister Shentu Jia and others, and issued a new edict in July of the lunar calendar in BC 156: All officials who accept meals should take care of themselves and pay as much as they eat, but they will not be dismissed. The most severe case is North Wei Wendi, which ordered officials to patrol places and eat a mouthful of sheep and drink a mouthful of wine. That is, they were sentenced to death, and those who ate and drank at the same table were also accused of coercion.

In the Song Dynasty, officials "went down to the grassroots level" to provide "coupons", and those who exceeded the standard were punished. In the Song Dynasty, when eating and drinking was at its peak or even institutionalized, it became the welfare of officials. It is also the most detailed legislation in past dynasties. People in certain positions can't accept it and when they can't eat it, which is probably directly related to the prevalence of eating and drinking in the Song Dynasty.

Qing Yuan Tiao in Song Dynasty? The duty system door (book 7) and the inspector's patrol calendar list the highly operational regulations. All officials who go on business trips or go out for inspection at the grassroots level have unified dining standards and are equipped with "consumption vouchers". Those who exceed the standard will be punished, and accompanying officials are no exception. If officials accept local meals or spend more than the standard, they will be punished or even prosecuted. This is the so-called "sending the law".

According to the Law of Yuan Tiao in Qing Dynasty, in the Song Dynasty, apart from the stipulation that "all Taoist officials should be servants, and it is not necessary to meet and hold a banquet at an inopportune time, which will hinder their official duties", the court imposed more restrictions on the entertainment of prostitutes when eating and drinking: in addition to "state and county officials passing by waiters who should be officials on business trips", state and county officials "go to Honshu Island for a public holiday unless there is a holy day, with 80 staff members. "Official System" stipulates that officials "hold banquets for prostitutes for two years each, and may not go to bars for 100 instead of drinking and having fun". Liu Zao, who knows Huzhou, was demoted and dismissed from office because he was in charge of the banquet and the state treasury was exhausted. In the fifth year of Avenue, Guo Daren of Xinzhi Xiazhou was dismissed because he was exposed as "engaged in daily affairs and feasting" in Yuanzhou. Cherish the spring for three years, understand the history of Lu you, and be dismissed for "swallowing up"; In the 14th year of Xichun, officials of ancestral halls, such as Wang Xilu, Fan Chengda and Hu, who were in charge of peace, often gathered for banquets. "The price of a glass of wine exceeded 1000 yuan, and Song Xiaozong was very angry. "

"Four dishes and one soup" effectively stopped the "eating and drinking". Although these systems have played a binding role in some nodes and events, they do not help to change the whole official atmosphere. Eat and drink throughout the Song Dynasty until it perished. What's more worth thinking about is that the Ming Dynasty had great restrictions on public funds from the beginning, but the density of public funds for eating, drinking and even welcoming guests was no less than that of the Song Dynasty.

Fengyang, the hometown of Zhu Yuanzhang, still has a ballad of "four dishes and one soup": the emperor treats four dishes and one soup, and the radish and leek are in long-term stability; Onion tofu is clear and white, long live Mao's clean government.

It turned out that Zhu Yuanzhang realized that many people who became high officials through the uprising forgot the past and lived a luxurious life with the power in their hands.

One day in the court, Zhu Yuanzhang said, "Tomorrow is the birthday of the Queen. I will hold a banquet in the palace, and the monarch and his ministers will celebrate the queen's birthday. " All the officials were very happy when they heard this.

When the auspicious day arrived, hundreds of officials competed for favor, so they came to celebrate their birthday with enough gifts. The dishes on the table are simple and clear: fried radish fried leek, two bowls of fried vegetables and a bowl of chopped green onion tofu soup, which is the standard "four dishes and one soup".

Seeing this scene, the civil and military officials who are used to eating "delicacies" are quite puzzled. Therefore, Zhu Yuanzhang patiently explained: "Radish is in the street, and pharmacies have no business", "leeks are green, long-term stability and calm people's hearts", "two bowls of green vegetables are as fragrant as two bowls of green vegetables, and two sleeves are as cool as the prime minister", "green onion tofu, green and white, fair and upright as the sun and the moon". At this time, Zhu Yuanzhang's eyes turned to the table full of gifts, his face suddenly sank and he said, "Zhu Tao!" " "A fat official quickly knelt down and said," I'm coming. " "What is your gift this time? Say! " "I ... I have two jade necklaces, a pair of jade bracelets and eight golden buddhas ..." "What's your salary? Where did this come from? Take it! "The officials saw that the emperor had moved his hand and even his nephew had an operation. They were really furious and trembled with fear.

Zhu Yuanzhang glanced at the official with seven faces and said, "Your business today is free. These gifts are all for relief. Today is the queen's birthday. Start with me, start with small things. No matter what kind of banquet, four dishes and one soup at most. Anyone who violates it will pay a heavy price. This law is promulgated in the world, and anyone who violates it can be informed and rewarded. " Those officials listened to Zhu Yuanzhang's words and understood his intention. They were all afraid and repeatedly said yes. From then on, four dishes and one soup became the law in the early Ming Dynasty, which effectively stopped "eating and drinking".