During the Qing Dynasty, there was a scholar who made a marriage with the daughter of a wealthy family in his hometown since childhood. As a result, the scholar failed in the first imperial examination. The rich man regretted marrying his daughter to him because he thought he was not promising. So he used a maid to pretend to be his daughter and cheated the scholar into marriage. Later, the scholar passed the imperial examination high school. Since then, his official career has been smooth, and he has become the most important minister of Emperor Daoguang of the Qing Dynasty, and has been the governor of Liangjiang. Then the cheating marriage will definitely let him know how the cheating marriage ended?
The scholar who was cheated was Tao Shu, an important minister and governor of Liangjiang during the Daoguang period of the Qing Dynasty. So what did Tao Shu do after he learned that his father-in-law cheated him with a maid? In fact, the outcome of this matter is very comfortable.
Tao Shu was born in a scholarly family. His family has been a scholar for generations. Although his family has been a scholar for several generations, they are all white Ding. They did not pass the imperial examination and entered the official career. Tao Shu’s father, Tao Biquan, was quite famous in the literary world at that time. His poems and works of Confucianism were very powerful, but he failed repeatedly. Later, as Tao Biquan grew older, he gave up taking the imperial examination and returned to his hometown, Yuelu Academy, Changsha, Hunan Province, to teach.
Therefore, Tao Biquan has devoted all his life to his son Tao Shu. He has devoted all his efforts to educating Tao Shu in order to hope that Tao Shu can complete his wish to pass the imperial examination.
In order to educate Tao Shu, Tao Biquan later returned to his hometown, Anhua County, with Tao Shu. Because Tao Biquan has a reputation in the literary world, the Anhua County government specially hired Tao Biquan to teach at the Anhua School Palace. Tao Biquan also has an iron rice bowl. In addition, Tao Biquan has profound knowledge, and he is deeply respected by the people in Anhua County.
There is a local rich man named Huang Chongbang in Anhua County. The Huang family has been doing business in the local area for generations, and the family is very rich. But the Huang family is only a local rich man, because the Huang family has never been a person who can get a place in school. At that time, he paid more attention to his family background. Huang Chongbang wanted to marry with the official family, but the Huang family’s family background is only a local rich man in the eyes of the official family, although the family is very rich, In his heart, he also looked down on him, so no official family was willing to marry Huang Chongbang.
So Huang Chongbang wants to make a political investment. He can only put his intention to marry with the official family in the second place, and put it on those potential scholars. After all, they will marry with them before they pass the imperial examination. In the future, if they pass the imperial examination and become an official, they will also be married with the official family.
In Anhua, Tao Biquan has the most reputation and profound knowledge. The villagers all admire and respect his knowledge. In addition, Tao Biquan’s education to his son Tao Shu is extremely strict. In the future, Tao Shu is likely to win the gold medal. Therefore, Huang Chongbang thought of marrying Tao Biquan and marrying her daughter to Tao Shu.
So Huang Chongbang asked someone to talk to Tao Biquan about the marriage. Tao Biquan was a cheerful man. He did not have the discrimination and prejudice of the gentry against the businessmen, so he readily agreed to the marriage. Huang Chongbang and Tao Biquan agreed that Tao Shu would return home and marry after going to Beijing for the imperial examination.
Later, Tao Shu gradually grew up and did well in his studies. He passed the examinations at all levels and was qualified to take the imperial examination in Beijing. So Tao Shu, 23, went to Beijing to take the imperial examination.
But when Huang Chongbang heard that Tao Shu had dropped out of the list, he began to hesitate. Huang Chongbang worried that Tao Shu would continue to drop out of the list. After all, their old Tao family had the gene to drop out of the list. His father, Tao Biquan, was so good at learning. No, he still did not pass the imperial examination all his life. He has always been a teacher. If Tao Shu and his father, Tao Biquan, fail in the exam all his life, and finally become a poor teacher, Isn’t it a lifetime of poverty for her daughter to marry.
So after learning that Tao Shu had dropped out of the list, Huang Chongbang had the idea of repenting. But the two families were engaged. At that time, if they repented, it would have a very bad impact on reputation. Huang Chongbang was a businessman who attached great importance to reputation and reputation. He was worried that repentance would affect his business, so he was just hesitating at first.
As a result, another local rich man surnamed Qian also wanted to marry the Huang family. Huang Chongbang wanted to repent and let his daughter marry the Qian family. So Huang Chongbang told his daughter, Miss Huang, about it. He wanted Miss Huang to make her own decision, but she was also an indecisive person. It was all arranged by her father.
At this time, the maid beside Miss Huang saw the dilemma of the master and the young lady, and saw that the master didn’t want to marry the young lady to the Tao family. So she thought to herself, after all, this Tao Shu is a scholar, literate and reasonable, and has a reputation in the body. No matter how hard it is, she can make a living by teaching and never die of hunger, and her own maid is not a long-term plan. It is better to marry Tao Shu for the young lady now, and find a home for herself.
So the maid took the initiative to say to Huang Chongbang that she would marry Tao Shu for the young lady, so Huang Chongbang would not regret the marriage. Huang Chongbang was very happy, so she accepted the maid as a foster daughter and named her Huang Defang.
Huang Chongbang also thought this was a very good way. He had promised to marry a daughter to the Tao family, but he didn’t name the daughter. Besides, the adopted daughter is also a daughter, so it’s not a matter of repentance.
So Tao Shu finally married Huang Defang into the family. The Tao family didn’t know about this at first. It was only when this was the first lady of the Huang family. Huang Defang married to the Tao family and was very virtuous and managed the housework. He didn’t have the delicate physique of the first lady at all. He helped his parents-in-law share a lot of pressure, and actively supported Tao Shu to continue to study and take the imperial examination.
Tao Shu’s happy life after marriage also let him have no worries behind him. He can devote himself wholeheartedly to the imperial examination. Soon in the second year, Emperor Jiaqing Tekai Enke, Tao Shu went to Beijing again with the expectation of his family.
This year was the spring of the seventh year of Jiaqing (1802). Tao Shu did not live up to his expectations and finally passed the imperial examination. At the final imperial palace examination, Tao Shu was named the 55th Jinshi by Emperor Jiaqing. Tao Shu also became the first Jinshi to pass the imperial examination in Anhua County in the history of the Qing Dynasty.
Tao Shu was appointed by the imperial court as the editor of the Imperial Academy after he was admitted as a scholar. His official position is not high, but only a senior official. However, this official position belongs to the secretarial work around the emperor. He often has access to the emperor, and it is easier to be promoted.
In addition, according to the official system of the Qing Dynasty, the wives and mothers of officials with more than six grades can receive the imperial edict, the wives can receive the title of Feng’an people, and the mothers can receive the title of Tai’an people.
So Huang Defang, Tao Shu’s wife, can get the imperial decree after he becomes an editor of the Imperial Academy. The imperial court needs to report the family files of his wife and mother when the imperial decree is issued. At this time, Huang Defang has to be honest with Tao Shu. He is not Huang Chongbang’s biological daughter, but actually Miss Huang’s maid. It was Huang Chongbang who saw Tao Shu fall off the list at the beginning, so he wants to repent, so he has to marry for Miss Huang, Now the court wants to honor Tao Shu’s wife. She was born as a maid and was born in a very humble family. How can she accept the court’s honor.
Huang Defang thought that Tao Shu would be furious and might be kicked out of the house after he had told him the truth. Unexpectedly, Tao Shu just laughed after hearing this. Tao Shu said that since she had married herself, she was her own legitimate wife, and now the court wants to honor her, and since she is her own wife, she should accept the court’s honor, What’s more, I didn’t dislike her humble background at all.
In this way, Huang Defang finally accepted the imperial edict, and Tao Shu did not investigate Huang Chongbang for cheating on his marriage. He still held the ceremony of Zixu to the Huang family.
Since then, Tao Shu has been diligent and conscientious in the officialdom. In the late years of Jiaqing, he won the favor of Jiaqing and was promoted to be the supervisor of the fifth grade of Jiangnan Road. During his tenure as the governor, Tao Shu enforced the law impartially, dared to uphold justice for the people in Jiangnan, dared to correct the corruption in the officialdom after the middle of the Qing Dynasty, and impeached and punished many corrupt officials, Therefore, in his later years, Jiaqing once evaluated Tao Shu as one of the few imperial historians who dare to tell the truth and do practical things.
After the death of Jiaqing, his son Daoguang succeeded to the throne. Daoguang was a very famous industrious and thrifty monarch in history. He had always wanted to start to control the corruption of officialdom. When he was the prince, Daoguang heard that Tao Shu, the governor of Jiangnan Road, was serious and responsible, dared to tell the truth, and had the courage to fight against corrupt officials. After this succession, Daoguang immediately summoned Tao Shu, and he wanted to see for himself whether the upright imperial ruler was as honest and brave as his father Jiaqing had said.
After Daoguang summoned Tao Shu, he talked with him for four hours, and specifically asked Tao Shu to have dinner with him. During the four hours of communication with Daoguang, Tao Shu’s personality and ability completely conquered Daoguang, so Daoguang made an extraordinary promotion of Tao Shu.
Since then, Tao Shu’s official position in the Daoguang Dynasty has soared all the way. First, he was promoted from the Jiangnan Taoist governor to the first grade of Shanxi inspector, and then he was promoted to the second grade of Anhui governor, and then he was promoted to the second grade of Anhui governor and the rank of minister of the official department. At last, Tao Shu was promoted to the governor of Liangjiang and the title of prince Shaobao, and became the first grade senior official. After that, Tao Shu served as the governor of Liangjiang for more than ten years, Until he died of illness in office.
With the continuous promotion of Tao Shu’s official position, Huang Defang’s title has also become higher and higher. After Tao Shu became governor of Liangjiang, Huang Defang has been awarded the title of the highest title of the imperial court, the First Lady of Gaoming.
Huang Defang turned from a maid to the first wife of the imperial court, which was probably something she could not have dreamed of. Of course, it was also something that the rich man Huang Chongbang could not have dreamed of.
Since Tao Shu passed the imperial examination, Huang Chongbang has been very regretful. Although Tao Shu only edited from the sixth grade of calligraphy at the beginning, he worked as a secretary for the emperor. One day his career will take off, so Huang Chongbang was very regretful at that time.
Later, after Tao Shu learned about Huang Defang’s identity, although he did not pursue Huang Chongbang’s cheating, and the local officials in Anhua also treated him with three points of respect for Tao Shu’s face, Huang Chongbang was very depressed. After all, Tao Shu’s official position rose all the way, and Huang Defang’s title and grade also rose all the way. Huang Chongbang looked in the eyes and regretted in the heart. After all, Huang Defang was not his own daughter.
Huang Chongbang’s daughter, Miss Huang, later married the rich man surnamed Qian, but her life was very bad. The rich man was inhumane, and ran through the countryside with his own money. Later, the rich man gathered local ruffians and scoundrels to occupy a good farmland, which triggered an armed fight. The peasants who were occupied were filled with indignation and killed the rich man with a spade and pick, and the Qian family was also ruined.
After the death of the moneylender, the people of his family drove Miss Huang out of the Qian family in order to seize the Qian family’s property. Miss Huang had no choice but to return to her mother’s house. Huang Chongbang watched his own son-in-law was killed, and his daughter, a widow, was also driven out of the family by her husband’s family. The official of Tao Shu over there was getting bigger and bigger, and the title of Huang Defen was getting higher and higher. Huang Chongbang was more and more angry and more regretful. Therefore, Huang Chongbang soon died in depression and regret.
After Huang Chongbang’s death, the Huang family also declined, and Miss Huang’s life was also very poor. After Huang Defang learned this news, she sent people back to her hometown to find Miss Huang, and placed her in the old house of the Tao family in Anhua. At this time, Miss Huang finally had to rely on.
However, it is said that Miss Huang’s ending is not good. There are two versions of Miss Huang’s ending. One is that Tao Shu returned to his hometown after becoming governor of Liangjiang. Miss Huang heard that Tao Shu was going to return to his old house to save her parents. She felt guilty to Tao Shu, so she hanged herself before Tao Shu returned home.
Another story is that Miss Huang heard that Tao Shu had returned to her hometown to save her parents. She felt that she could not face Tao Shu. So before Tao Shu returned to her hometown, Miss Huang ran into a nunnery in the deep mountains to become a nun, and since then she has always been with Qingdeng Ancient Buddha.
The story about Tao Shu’s cheating marriage was recorded in the”Records of the North East Garden” compiled by Liang Gongchen, a writer of the late Qing Dynasty. Although it is not officially recorded, it is relatively reliable.
Because Liang Zhangju, the father of the author Liang Gongchen, served as the political envoy of Jiangsu during the Daoguang period, and Tao Shu served as the governor of Jiangsu at that time, the two were in a superior and subordinate relationship. Because Liang Zhangju and Tao Shu were both very upright officials and concerned about the people, the two had worked together to manage the flood of Hongze Lake, so the relationship between them was very close. The Liang and Tao families also became family friends. Liang Gongchen was the nephew of Tao Shu, and also studied under Tao Shu when they were young, So Liang Gongchen’s record about Tao Shu’s cheating should be more credible.
Tao Shu is a famous scholar official in the Qing Dynasty. He is known as the first person of the Huxiang School of Economic and Social Affairs. He advocates practical use and has a great impact on the political arena of the late Qing Dynasty. Zeng Guofan, Zuo Zongtang, and Hu Linyi, the three heroes of the Hunan army in the late Qing Dynasty, are closely connected with Tao Shu, and all of them have inherited Tao Shu’s ideas.
Zeng Guofan studied at the Yuelu Academy in Changsha when he was a teenager. At that time, Tao Shu would also go to the Yuelu Academy to give lectures when he was an official. Zeng Guofan had heard his lessons before, so he was also a teacher of Zeng Guofan in this respect.
Hu Linyi has been appreciated by Tao Shu since childhood. Tao Shu has made her daughter Tao Xiuzi and Hu Linyi a baby marriage since childhood. After her marriage, Hu Linyi lived in Tao Shu’s Liangjiang Governor’s Office for more than a year. He witnessed Tao Shu’s thought of taking part in politics. Therefore, Tao Shu has a great influence on Hu Linyi later. Hu Linyi also takes his father-in-law Tao Shu as an example.
Zuo Zongtang is also a close friend of Tao Shu. Zuo Zongtang and Hu Linyi, Tao Shu’s son-in-law, became close friends, so he met Tao Shu under the recommendation of Hu Linyi. At that time, Zuo Zongtang was extremely down, while Tao Shu has become the governor of Liangjiang. But after talking with Zuo Zongtang, Tao Shu once encouraged Zuo Zongtang to believe that his future achievements in officialdom must be above his own, so Tao Shu and Zuo Zongtang, 33 years younger, were determined as close friends.
Later, Tao Shu gave birth to an old son, Tao Yan, in his later years. Tao Shu took the initiative to propose to Zuo Zongtang for his younger son, and asked Zuo Zongtang to marry his eldest daughter, Zuo Xiaoyu, to his younger son. You should know that Zuo Zongtang was nothing at that time, but Tao Shu took the initiative to marry him. It can be seen that Tao Shu is very accurate in judging people.
Therefore, Tao Shu has achieved a great deal in the official circles of the Qing Dynasty. His ambition is very ambitious, and his mind is focused on national affairs. Therefore, in Tao Shu’s view, the matter of changing women and cheating on marriage is nothing but a trivial matter. Besides, although Huang Defang was born in a humble family, he is very virtuous and virtuous, and his character is very good. Tao Shu is a person who pays attention to the inner world, and he will not despise Huang Defang’s birth at all.
And Huang Defang has also helped Tao Shu a lot. It is her proper conduct of the family that can make Tao Shu carefree and concentrate on his career. However, Huang Chongbang’s replacement of a female cheater has made Tao Shu’s beautiful marriage, so Tao Shu has not investigated the cheater.
Tao Shu is so broad-minded, so his personal charm and ideas can deeply affect the three famous ministers of the late Qing Dynasty, Hu Linyi, Zeng Guofan and Zuo Zongtang.
Original article,If reprinted, please indicate the source:https://www.todaynews.cc/news/2wZ5neg.html
