Ten strips of dried meat

The tuition fees Confucius received were ten strips of dried meat. It can be seen from the "Analects of Confucius·Shuerpian": Confucius said: "I have already taught you more than the self-binding." The gimmick is ten strips of dried meat. Confucius said: "As long as anyone comes to see me voluntarily with more than ten dried meats as a gift, I will never fail to teach him." Later, the tuition fees given by students to teachers were called "Shu_".

The gift of gifting was still used in schools in the Tang Dynasty and was clearly stipulated by the state. However, the importance of gifts varied according to the nature of the school. When teachers accept this gift, they must also practice considerable etiquette and give it in a formal manner to show the students' respect for the teacher.

The ancients respected teachers very much and attached great importance to children's education. Therefore, when a child enters school to become a teacher, people usually give the teacher a precious "bundle" as a greeting gift. Tuition is "shu_several strips", and _shu_ is salted pork. Later, it basically meant the apprenticeship fee, which can be understood as tuition.

Confucius’ mobile school is a part-time class. Although you are in charge of food, you are not allowed to do other things. But after the students complete their studies, Confucius can help them find jobs. Once they start working, they will become county-level cadres. We mentioned before that the disciples who were introduced to work in major families were either the head of a large noble family, the chief of a certain town, or the country's diplomat. Therefore, the purpose of Confucius recruiting students was not to obtain more income for himself, but to spread his ideas of governing the country through students so that more people could live happily under benevolent government.

In addition to Confucius mentioning Shu_ in "The Analects", this word is also used in "Jin Shu·Murong_ Zai Ji": "Pingyuan Liu praised Confucianism for its general introduction, and introduced it as a sacrifice for wine in Dongxiang. His crown prince, _, led the country to accept his karma." This prince, named _, led the noble children to seek advice from Liu Zan, and he also brought dried meat to perform the apprenticeship ceremony.

Zhu Xi said: "Stop the thinnest ones." In Zhu Xi's view, 10 pieces of bacon is not a generous gift.

However, the material living standards in ancient times were not high, and meat was considered a luxury product. It was not easy for ordinary people to eat a meal of meat.

Lin Zexu came from a poor family when he was a child. Only on New Year's Eve could a family of more than 10 people eat a large plate of vegetarian fried tofu. It is estimated that "I don't know the taste of meat in March" is the norm. It is impossible for people to live without eating meat for a day like today. Didn't sleep soundly.

During the Warring States Period when Mencius lived, only people over 70 years old could eat meat, and people with status were called carnivores. Combining these two points shows how rare the meat is.

There were no refrigerators or freezers at that time, so preserving meat was a problem. If you can't finish it on the same day, boil the meat thoroughly in water, then spread it evenly with salt, and hang it under the eaves to dry in the shade, like air-dried bacon.

When taking your children to be apprentices, tie the dried meat into a bundle for your husband to enjoy slowly. Just imagine this scene, it will leave you with a lingering fragrance.

Although Confucius set the standards for tuition fees, he also adhered to the principle of equality of "education without distinction". Among the three thousand disciples, Yan Hui, Zi Lu, Bu Shang, Ran Qiu, Zhong Gong, Yuan Xian, Boniu and others were all poor students from poor families. Confucius trained them all into modest gentlemen, not because anyone could not afford it. Be restrained and shut out.