How did the ancient emperors enrich the harem from folk beauty contests?

The beauty contest held by the emperor for the harem was called the draft in ancient times, and the previous drafts were similar. For example, in the Han Dynasty, every year, people who were proficient in physiognomy were sent to the people to choose young women for the palace, usually 13 or above and under 20 years old. If these women are lucky after entering the palace, they may become concubines. If you are unlucky, you may be unknown all your life. Some dissolute emperors, such as Sun Hao, the last emperor of Wu, ordered the daughters of civil and military officials not to get married casually, giving priority to young women aged 65,438+05 and 6 to enrich the harem. However, when Dongwu perished, all the beautiful women he chose were cheaper than Sima Yan. The Tang Dynasty basically followed the system of the Han Dynasty, and regularly recruited young women into the palace. In addition to the emperor personally enriching the harem, princes are also allowed to choose concubines from it, so in principle, the requirements are innocent. However, if you are really good-looking or talented, you may be chosen by people from humble origins. For example, in order to enrich the harem, Emperor Xuanzong of the Tang Dynasty sent envoys to various places to select beautiful women every year. These envoys are called "flower and bird messengers", and they can go directly to other people's homes to choose beautiful women. When selecting, appearance and talent are given priority, and birth conditions are basically ignored.

Zhu Yuanzhang of the Ming Dynasty stipulated that the draft should be selected from the people. Therefore, when choosing concubines for the emperor, 5,000 girls aged between 13 and 16 will be selected from the common people, and then eunuchs will screen them according to their appearance, figure, voice and manners. The selected women will also be examined by the old ladies-in-waiting, including their skin, body odor, scars and hidden diseases. , 300 people will be selected. These 300 people will live in the palace for a period of time to observe their behaviors and living habits, and 50 of them will be chosen as concubines. And these 50 people will finally be met by the Queen Mother, who will inspect their piano, chess, calligraphy, painting and conversation, and choose the queen and the imperial concubine from them.

In the Qing Dynasty, the draft was limited to the Eight Banners. The draft is held regularly, and women of the age of eight banners are not allowed to get married privately, but must be reported for the record and registered on the roster. When it comes to the draft, the girls will be sent to the palace and selected by the emperor or the queen mother, and the selected people will stay. After the primary election, this process may be repeated several times, and the screened female practitioners should also stay in the palace for detailed investigation, and finally choose the people the emperor likes.

However, for most women, as soon as they enter the palace, so many beautiful women are concentrated in the palace, and only a few can attract the attention of their own emperors. Most of them can only be maids. If you are lucky, you will be released when you are old. If you are unlucky, you will only die of old age in the palace.