Near New Year's Eve, after the 23rd day of the twelfth lunar month, the Ministry of Internal Affairs will notify the palace managers to seal up the preparations for the New Year. The Ministry of Internal Affairs will tell the Empress Dowager that after the old rules in the palace are passed down, Fujin, Mingmu and Gege, as well as the daughters of one or two senior officials in the magistrate's office, will enter the palace for the New Year on the 25th of the twelfth lunar month. On 26th and 27th, all the queens, concubines, Fujin and Mingmu who entered the palace for the New Year were required to cut out a dress, even Gege was no exception. Finally, Empress Dowager Cixi will make a quick tour, award the first, second and third prizes, and then give them a reward. On 28th and 9th, Empress Dowager Cixi will play cards or dice with Elder Fujin. It is said that Cixi likes dice very much, and she can win a lot of money every time. But after playing enough, Cixi will also put all the money she won on the ground for everyone to play. So the ladies-in-waiting and servants rushed to grab it desperately, which made Cixi happy. In the next few days, Empress Dowager Cixi will play the game of "throwing money", and everyone will be happy if she has money.
On New Year's Eve, Empress Dowager Cixi will first offer sacrifices to the gods and ancestors, and then hold a "resignation ceremony" in the palace. Under the leadership of the empress, ladies-in-waiting, family members, attendants, etc. Line up in a row according to the level and kowtow to Empress Dowager Cixi. According to Princess De Ling, who used to be a female official around Empress Dowager Cixi in the palace, in her memoir Two Years with Empress Dowager Cixi, Empress Dowager Cixi is very generous at this time of year. After the ceremony, the Empress Dowager Lafayette gave everyone a small embroidered money bag made of red satin, which contained some lucky money.
Empress Dowager Cixi likes Chinese New Year very much, because besides being lively, she can also receive many valuable new year's goods, which later became her funerary objects. Seeing that Empress Dowager Cixi likes to receive gifts, many ministers regard the annual gifts as an excellent opportunity to flatter Empress Dowager Cixi. On one occasion, during the Chinese New Year, Yuan Shikai, governor of Zhili, gave Empress Dowager Cixi a very luxurious yellow satin dress inlaid with diamonds and precious stones of various colors, especially pearls and emeralds on the leaves, which made Empress Dowager Cixi beaming. Empress Dowager Cixi wore it on New Year's Day, but it was too heavy because it was full of diamonds and precious stones. Empress Dowager Cixi had it collected.
During the Chinese New Year, Empress Dowager Cixi likes to throw dice and receive new year gifts. Her favorite activity is the Spring Festival Evening at the Qing Palace. Empress Dowager Cixi likes going to the theatre, especially cheating. According to the book "Female Cixi" written by Xiang Si, an expert in the Forbidden City, An Dehai, a eunuch of the Imperial Palace University, specially built an exquisite theater in Xiyuan for Cixi to watch the play. At the same time, a group of children from Liyuan were specially called to rehearse the drama, especially in cheating, so that Cixi had a good time.
In the historical image, Cixi looks cruel and even vicious, but as an ordinary woman, she became a widow at the age of 27, and it is inevitable that she will have the same emotions and worldly desires as ordinary people. In her spiritual world, it is extremely empty and lonely. As Xin, who used to be a little eunuch in the imperial court, recalled: "If someone asks: Who is Cixi? A: The most painful person between heaven and earth! " It is because of her deep loneliness that she likes scenes of dissolute relationships-especially those between men and women who are ambiguous on the stage for fun. To some extent, this satisfied Cixi's distorted mentality and spiritual needs at that time, so she enjoyed it. For example, Cuiping Mountain, which describes * * * having an affair with a monk for fun, misses Fan and catches rape, and reflects the love between men and women, is a must-see drama for Empress Dowager Cixi in the Spring Festival Evening.
This "Cuiping Mountain" is a traditional play that Empress Dowager Cixi never tires of watching for a long time. Its plot is based on the story of Yang Xiong and Shi Xiu going to Liangshan in the classic Water Margin. Yang Xiong and Shi Xiu became sworn brothers, and Yang Xiong asked Shi Xiu to open a butcher shop. Yang Xiong's wife Pan Qiaoyun had an affair with Pei Ruhai, an adulterous monk. Shi Xiu saw it and told Yang Xiong. Yang Xiong was drunk, and Pan Qiaoyun and her maid Yinger falsely accused Shi Xiu of molesting herself. Yang Xiong didn't investigate, but broke up with Shi Xiu. Shi Xiu left angrily and killed Pei Ruhai on a drunken night, and Yang Xiong was inspired. He planned to cheat Pan Qiaoyun and Yinger to Cuiping Mountain. After inquiring, Yang Xiong killed Qiao Yun.
The story of the opera "Xiang Fan" tells that a little nun has lived in Xiantao Temple for many years and can't bear loneliness. She missed earthly life and fled down the hill. The young monk from Lu Yu came down from Bi Tao Temple, but there was no such thing. They fell in love at first sight. And "Catch a Rape" tells the story of Wu Dalang and Qiao Yun's brother catching a rape in Zishi Street, Qinghe County. Their targets are Ximen Qing and Pan Jinlian. These two dramas are also the enduring "Spring Festival Evening" dramas of the court.
Cixi loves to watch cheating dramas, and Li, the great eunuch who knows her hobby, often finds foreign troupes to perform in the palace all night. One year on New Year's Eve, Cixi was very happy to see the play, and asked her daughter-in-law Queen Arut to come and enjoy it. Unexpectedly, this daughter-in-law, who is familiar with poetry etiquette, blushed for a while and bowed her head when she couldn't stand it. Cixi, who watched with relish, looked at her daughter-in-law so shy and said inexplicably, this play is well played. Why don't you watch it? Arut blushed and whispered, what do you think of the obscenity of this play? The conversation between mother-in-law and daughter-in-law embarrassed the Tongzhi emperor who was watching the play.
Sometimes, the "Spring Festival Evening" on New Year's Eve is not enough, so let those actors continue to sing on New Year's Day. When these plays are sung almost, Empress Dowager Cixi will improvise. At this time, the band composed of eunuchs will play music according to the hobby of Empress Dowager Cixi. Accompanied by the band, Empress Dowager Cixi personally sings several songs every year to get addicted. Sometimes, Empress Dowager Cixi, who sings to her throat, will order the maid-in-waiting eunuchs to sing along. Of course, some eunuchs are usually sung by Empress Dowager Cixi, naturally singing professionally, while others can't sing at all. But who dares to disobey the will of Empress Dowager Cixi? They have to complain. Who knows this will have a dramatic effect, not only will Cixi's face tremble with laughter, but all the people present will laugh their heads off and applaud.