Emperor Qianlong is the world’s best travel expert, do you believe it or not?

Emperor Qianlong was famous for his love of fun. It would not be an exaggeration to say that he was the best travel expert in the world.

Perhaps due to the influence of TV dramas, everyone thinks that the emperor of the Qing Dynasty particularly liked private visits incognito. We must seriously refute rumors: the emperor's trip is a big event. There are so many hostile forces and many people who don't know the truth. If there is an accident on the road, it is no joke. Therefore, the emperors of the Qing Dynasty would never "visit privately".

So what was it like when Qianlong traveled?

Where did Qianlong like to go?

The first time Qianlong went out to play was when he went back to his hometown in Shenyang to worship his ancestors. On the way, we passed through the Mongolian prairie and accepted the kowtows (kowtows) (heads) from the local Mongolian princes. Qianlong felt so beautiful that he went back to his hometown in Northeast China four times, and he was very happy every time.

In fact, there was nothing interesting outside the customs at that time. At that time, it was still a prairie and basically a barren land. Therefore, Qianlong also went to other places. I visited the Buddhist holy land Mount Wutai in Shanxi six times and the Confucius Temple in Qufu, Shandong eight times. Because he went to the Confucius Temple so much, some people even rumored that Qianlong had a lover in the Confucius Temple in Qufu. No wonder he went there so frequently.

But whether it is Northeast, Shanxi or Shandong, Qianlong’s favorite place is still the beautiful Jiangnan. This is also the most famous "Qianlong's six tours to the south of the Yangtze River" (there were only six times because his grandfather Kangxi only visited the south six times)

And in the south of the Yangtze River, he was particularly partial to Suzhou, very, very much. , almost those who stayed there didn’t even leave.

The expenses of Qianlong’s trip

Compared with many of us who travel on a “poor” basis now, they dare to hit the road with just a few hundred yuan. Qianlong's was definitely a "rich tour". He made six trips to the south of the Yangtze River. Each trip took an average of half a year, and he brought with him two to three thousand people. Everyone along the way had to kneel. Everywhere Qianlong went, local officials gave him food and drinks. In addition, they also gave him various gold and silver treasures.

But that’s not all. The local government also rushed to build a seven-star hotel (palace) for him just to let him sleep for one night.

The ostentation was so grand that every time Qianlong went to Jiangnan, he would have spent at least several million taels of silver.

Where does all this expense come from?

Qianlong’s instructions: Don’t touch the money in the treasury, let those businessmen donate it! In the Qing Dynasty, there was a group of salt merchants who lived in the Yangzhou area and were extremely wealthy. Every time Qianlong went out, they sponsored one to two million taels of silver and built an extremely luxurious palace for Qianlong.

Seeing others sending so much money, Qianlong said: They were so enthusiastic that I was embarrassed not to accept it. All the money was finally spent by Qianlong.

What did you eat on the Qianlong Road?

Everywhere Qianlong went, he was given delicacies. As a result, many delicacies are now advertised with Qianlong. After all, there is no need to pay endorsement fees.

These delicacies include all kinds of strange things, such as wheel cakes, Huangwan lotus root, Qianlong big bowl of fish, steam stone pot fish, trouser belt noodles, Lao Ma fish, Aozao noodles, earthen pot soup, Xishi tofu, rice rolls, etc. are really impressive. But did Qianlong really eat it?

The editor went through a lot of effort to find a Qianlong travel package.

After getting up, have a snack: bird's nest stewed with rock sugar.

Breakfast is like this: bird's nest fat chicken pot, roasted chicken and game hot pot, one dish, one dish of silver shredded pork, one dish of shredded mutton, one dish of steamed duck and braised pork, one dish of sunni Efen white cake, one dish of bee One item of cake, one item of bamboo roll steamed buns, one item of side dishes in a silver sunflower box, four items of side dishes on a silver plate, and one item of hot meal with large dishes.

Breakfast alone is terrible, and dinner, not to mention (Qianlong only ate two meals a day), is even more sumptuous than breakfast. In addition, local officials send several carefully cooked dishes, saying that it is The banquet between Manchu and Han Dynasties is similar. The editor will not list them one by one.

If Qianlong was in a good mood and had a midnight snack, at least five or six dishes, including meat and vegetables, would be required. These dishes are almost worlds apart from the inferior food advertised by Qianlong.

In addition, Qianlong was even particular about drinking water. He used dew on lotus leaves to make tea (in fact, dew is even unclean), and he used spring water to drink water. As for what the common people drank, Seed, he felt so filthy that he couldn't swallow it.

You may think that Qianlong was too wasteful for eating and drinking so carefully. However, Qianlong always believed that he was relatively frugal in eating.

What do you like to do on Qianlong Road?

There were no cameras in Qianlong's time, so he couldn't take pictures everywhere. The so-called sightseeing tour is actually a walk around a certain scenic spot.

If you are in the Confucius Temple, pay obeisance to the Confucius tablet. If you live in a garden, recite poems and paint in the garden. If you are in a temple, you will burn incense and worship Buddha, and then ask someone to paint you like Buddha. In addition to these literary and artistic hobbies, Qianlong's favorite thing to do was to write inscriptions. Inscribe a plaque, erect a monument, and ask people to pay tribute to it (like the madman).

Although Qianlong's calligraphy was ugly, it could not restrain his confidence. Therefore, wherever Qianlong went, he could see his inscribed "imperial stele". This kind of imperial stele could appear anywhere. place.

(The originator of barrage)

Why did Qianlong like to go out to play?

When Qianlong traveled, he was busy and spent countless money, which was naturally a waste of people and money. Someone couldn't stand it and reminded him a few words. Qianlong was very angry. Why did he waste money and people? Would you mind telling me about it?

After all, in Qianlong's view, the money spent was all paid by salt merchants, so how could it be "a waste of money and a waste of people". Who dares to say anything after seeing Qianlong being so cruel? Therefore, Qianlong did not feel that he had done anything wrong. He also believed that his two greatest achievements in his life were to pacify the border areas and to go to the south of the Yangtze River.

But why did Qianlong travel around?

To put it bluntly, the Qing Dynasty was so big and there were so many people, not everyone might obey him, and the contradiction between the Manchus and the Han in the Qing Dynasty was also very sharp. Qianlong returned to his hometown to show that he would not forget his ancestors. Qianlong went to the Confucius Temple in Qufu to show that "I am also a scholar who worships Confucius." Qianlong went to Mount Wutai to show that he and the religious community are of one mind.

When going to Jiangnan, one is to use majesty to intimidate those who are unconvinced, the other is to strengthen ties with Jiangnan, and the third is to consolidate the rule of the Qing Dynasty in the wealthy land of Jiangnan. Of course, Qianlong said that he also wanted to control the Yellow River (which he didn't care about at all) and understand the sufferings of the people.

Think about Emperor Qianlong worrying about national affairs every day. In his spare time, he could only hang out in the palace and find some hobbies out of boredom. Whether it was his passion for food or his requirements for quality travel, he was the one who Way to decompress~