Several sexual innuendos between men and women in ancient times

Sex is common to all human beings, and the main functions of human sexual behavior are nothing more than the needs of happiness, health, and reproduction. In ancient Chinese paintings dating back more than two thousand years, there are many contents related to sexual pleasure, sexual techniques and sexual health for men and women. Although the sex life of the ancients was not as open as it is today, it was also very sophisticated. For example, the "Nine Methods" in the "Su Nu Jing", the "Thirty Methods" in the "Dong Xuan Zi", and the so-called "Nine Shallows and One Deep" are all explorations of sex techniques. While enjoying the pleasure of sex life, ancient people also paid great attention to sexual health. For example, the "Seven Damages and Eight Gains" in "The Greatest Way in the World" are about sexual health.

Li Bai, a great Tang Dynasty poet, was quite straightforward in his use of sexual innuendo, confessing during his relationship with a certain woman: "I got drunk in her arms at the tortoise-shell banquet" (from "Drinking Together"). In other words, I won’t get drunk just by drinking, but if I’m in your arms, I will be drunk even if I’m not drunk. If you make this kind of suggestion to a woman you are not familiar with, you will probably get slapped in the face. But if you are good friends, it is a different story and you will most likely spend the night in the hibiscus tent. Li Bai seemed to understand women's psychology very well. Whenever he interacted with women, every three sentences he said would include sexual innuendos. He wrote a letter to a woman far away, and actually asked her: "Why do you put out the candle and take off your clothes just to see me?" (from "Ji Yuan"). This is obviously a teasing letter, but after reading the letter, the woman would probably suffer from insomnia at night.

It would have been fine if they had just used sexual innuendos to seduce ordinary women, but some men in the Tang Dynasty even did not let female Taoist priests go. According to historical records, the famous poet Meng Jiao had a good friend named Liu Yanshi, who was particularly fond of young female Taoist priests. Even though they had already become despairing monks through their practice, he still used sexual innuendo to tease them. He even wrote a poem saying, "In the past they were as beautiful as bright jade, but now they are hollow like cold ash. I guess King Xiang must be extremely disappointed, and there will be no more clouds or rain on the balcony." (From "Gift to a Young Nun"), which is jaw-dropping to read. There was another poet named Luo Binwang who also had this habit. At that time, there was a female Taoist priest named Wang Lingfei (this name is a bit erotic), who was his good friend. When Luo Binwang said goodbye to her, he said: "It is hard to stay alone in the empty bed at this time, how long will I be away from you today?" He deliberately hinted at the "empty bed" and clearly asked when the other person would come again.

The Tang Dynasty was an open dynasty. Not only did men like sexual innuendo, but women were also good at it. Li Shangyin recorded this phenomenon in a poem "Untitled": "The life of a goddess is just a dream, and the young girl has no husband." The "goddess" and "young girl" here obviously represent the women of that time. They would say to the men they liked that life is just a dream, and I am single now. The implication is: you are welcome to come anytime. This sentence has almost the same meaning as today's "I live alone".

Coincidentally, Emperor Li Houzhu of the Southern Tang Dynasty also used lyrics to vividly record the sexual innuendos used by his sister-in-law, with extremely subtle and detailed psychological portrayal. There is a line in "Bodhisattva Man" that says "It is difficult for a slave to come out", which is equivalent to "It is not easy for me (Xiao Zhou Hou) to come out", implying that the man (her brother-in-law Li Houzhu) must cherish the rare opportunity before him. Unfortunately, Emperor Li Houzhu was a little timid and failed to understand. Concubine Zhou had no choice but to reveal her trump card: "I will let you pity me as you please." When a woman says this, a man would be burned to death even if he is a piece of wood. If you don't undress now, when will you?

There were many people in the Song Dynasty who were good at playing with sexual innuendo. As the saying goes, "From ancient times to the present, there have been few beautiful women and talented men, but few have been able to find a pair of beauties like those in our time." They put a lot of effort into getting these "two beauties." For example, Liu Yong liked to act pitiful in front of women while saying, "I will never be alone in this life." What I mean is, I will never sleep alone in my life. Hint: You have to sleep with me today. There was a poet monk named Hui Hong, who, as a monk, also made sexual innuendos in front of young girls: "There is no way to relieve the idle worries of ordinary people, so try picking up a flower branch and smelling it." (From "Xijiang Yue"), in front of others, he sighed "I am so bored" while picking up a flower and sniffing it, and probably kept muttering: What a nice smell, what a nice smell! It is obvious that the girl smells good and she should be given a "romantic monk" hat to wear.

Women in the Song Dynasty also knew how to use sexual innuendo tricks. Ouyang Xiu wrote a story about a woman. In "Nan Ge Zi", there was a woman who was dating a man. The woman asked with a smile: "How do you write the word "mandarin ducks"? " By asking the man how to write the word "mandarin ducks", she hinted to the man: the two of us can become mandarin ducks. According to the "Ci Lin Wan Xuan" compiled by Ming people, the famous female poet Li Qingzhao had a unique charm in playing with sexual hints. She wrote a line in "Ugly Slave": "I smile and talk to my Tan Lang, the pillow and mat in the gauze kitchen are cool tonight." I don't know if this "Tan Lang" is Zhao Mingcheng. Judging from the meaning of the poem, he is probably not, but another man. The meaning of this sentence is like saying today that a man’s bed is too cold, implying: Aren’t you cold sleeping alone? It must be warm for two people to sleep together. In addition, Li Qingzhao also used her lyrics to describe other women with sexual innuendo. For example, when she wrote about a woman in "Lang Tao Sha", she used both physical innuendo: "Under the shadows of the sparse plum blossoms, she is newly made up at night. She is graceful and elegant, like a wisp of light cloud." She also deliberately dresses up at night and acts coquettishly in front of men; and there is also verbal innuendo: "A deep path of peach blossoms leads to a pond."

When we read "The West Chamber" today, it is not difficult to find many sexual innuendos in it. It is obvious that literary works reflect social phenomena and reveal the profound imprint of the times. For example, when writing about Cui Yingying, "Her embroidered shoes were half taken off, her slender waist was bent, and she was too shy to raise her head, but just leaned against the mandarin duck pillow. Her cloud-like hair seemed to be hung with golden hairpins, and her bun was loose and crooked." Such body language hints are undoubtedly full of temptation for men. If he doesn't go to bed with her, is he still a man? When Zhang Sheng gazed at her lovingly, Cui Yingying said, "What are you looking at so shyly?" which is equivalent to "It's so embarrassing that you're still looking at me." Most men cannot handle such innocence. There are probably not many women like Cui Yingying who are so good at pretending to be innocent nowadays.

I'm afraid there is no other man who hates sexual innuendo the most except Zhang Sheng. Maybe it's because Cui Yingying likes to play with sexual innuendo and she doesn't need Zhang Sheng to play with it anymore. In "The West Chamber", Zhang Sheng has always been straightforward. When he was in love, "he was delighted to meet her with a smile, like Chang'e, descending to the Moon Palace." He praised Cui Yingying as the beautiful Chang'e, and thought that knowing each other was fate, and he was so happy! When the opportunity came, there was no hesitation, "the brave Qiao Cai rushed in". The word "rushed" vividly depicts Zhang Sheng's impatience and his determination to act decisively. Zhang Sheng is a very proactive man, but the one who is most thoughtful is Cui Yingying. She plays sexual hints to seduce Zhang Sheng into bed, and after they do it, she is worried that others will find out, thinking, "She is pretty and talented, but don't tell anyone." The mentality of the little woman is vividly displayed.