In the Qing Dynasty, the emperor's sons and daughters liked the days when the weather was a little colder than the days when it was too hot, so they spent most of the year in other gardens. Only on this special festival, the Spring Festival, did they return to the palace for the Spring Festival.
Under normal circumstances, the emperor stopped working on the 26th of the twelfth lunar month, and often didn't start writing again until the first day of the first month.
Under normal circumstances, the emperor and the queen's concubines hardly have time to eat together in a year, and only on New Year's Eve will they really have a reunion dinner. In the Qing Dynasty, on the morning of New Year's Eve, the old emperors, queens and concubines usually had yellow rice, cakes and rice cakes for breakfast, with dozens of varieties. Lunch on New Year's Eve is usually at 4 pm, and dinner is the most important meal. The dinner was held in Baohe Hall or Gan Qing Palace, and a table was prepared for the emperor. The table was a "Golden Dragon Banquet Table" surrounded by a golden embroidered table fence.
Needless to say, pork, fat duck, vegetable duck, fat chicken, vegetable chicken, pork elbow and other delicious foods. When everything is ready, take your positions. At this time, the eunuch first made soup for the emperor, and then sent soup to the concubines. The order is wrong, and the weight is completely different. After dinner, the emperor will give ministers all kinds of food, even plates.
In the Qing dynasty, the order of the Spring Festival in the palace was generally like this. On the first day of New Year's Day, at dawn, civil and military officials will gather in the Hall of Supreme Harmony Square to congratulate the emperor's old son on the New Year. At this time, the square is lined with all kinds of etiquette utensils, solemn and lively. At seven o'clock in the morning, the emperor's old son boarded the throne of the Hall of Supreme Harmony, and all the officials took their seats according to their levels and knelt down to worship. At this moment, two college students will read the New Year greetings and the summary of last year. After reading it, the courtiers bowed down again, and then the emperor gave tea to enjoy the seat. After drinking tea, it's almost over to pay a New Year call to the emperor. At this time, the emperor's old son will distribute the prepared money bags to the maids and eunuchs around him.
Sometimes the emperor will write a few big blessings and give them to important officials around him. It is said that Emperor Qianlong went to the temple to worship Buddha every year on the first day of the Lunar New Year, and then returned to the palace to write the word "Fu". The first blessing written by Emperor Qianlong is generally not given to courtiers, but kept forever, which means that the blessing is kept forever. In addition, the Spring Festival couplets in the Forbidden City are the same as those in the folk, such as setting off firecrackers and posting Spring Festival couplets, but unlike the folk, the Spring Festival couplets in ancient palaces are hung up, not posted by the folk. This practice is worth promoting now. Hanging is not only clean, but also can be used many times, so it is not so wasteful.
Compared with the folk flavor of that year, although the ancient palace is rich in food, it lacks the flavor of that year and is full of red tape, dogma and officialdom.