Last time, it was said that Zou Jun's one billionth ray of "spiritual thought" attached to "Mama", and when her family moved to the town, she forcibly relied on the "night watchman" just to settle down.

"Uh... well, in that case, I will trust you and give me the gong first." The little old man on the night watch awkwardly took the gong and hammer, first knocked on the bamboo clasp on his waist, and then picked up the gong. The voice shouted: "It's freezing cold - be careful to catch a cold! Dang Dang Dang." After shouting, he turned around and led his mother and her 11 children to their home quickly with a smile.

However, when everyone passed by the watchman's "office", that is, the "Guardian", they had to wait for the watchman to get the key. After all, although the "Guardian" was as small as a security guard box, it was built by people from the government yamen, and there were only In addition to a bed for the watchman to rest after working at night, there are also lanterns, sticks, ropes, gongs, bells, clappers and other items for lighting, anti-theft and telling time.

After leaving the "watch house", everyone followed the watchman back to his house. It turned out to be in the most remote corner of the town, a two-story small building made of wooden boards, several feet square, without a toilet, so it had to be solved outdoors. Internal emergency. Pots, bowls, ladles, basins, water jars, stoves and firewood are placed on the first floor. The second floor is a sleeping room and warehouse without a living room. Because the social status of the "watchman" is too low, most of them are poor and old. Single men basically do not need to socialize, so the government does not spend money to build houses for "watchmen", even though their monthly income is enough to support them in old age.

In fact, when Zou Jun was still a mortal in the lower world, he had watched many costume TV dramas and knew that a special group derived from "watchmen" in ancient times was "watchmen". Due to the particularity of the profession, Generally, some relatively energetic and strong men are required to serve. They may be hired by neighbors who pool money, and they must be paid on time every month.

The history of "watching" can be explored from the tools used by watchmen. It is said that "watching" already existed during the Spring and Autumn Period and the Warring States Period. At that time, the tool used by "watchmen" was a tool called "Dou Dou". " Something. It is recorded in ancient books that "inside and outside the palace gate, the guards fight Diao Dou to spread the word for five nights." The "Diao Dou" here is a special "cooking utensil" used in the army.

There is also a record in "Historical Records" that there is a kind of cooking utensil called "Diao Dou" in the army. During the day, soldiers used it to cook, but at night they used it to "keep watch" to tell the time.

It is conceivable that "dating watch" first appeared in the Warring States Period, and was only popular in the palace and the army. After more than a thousand years of inheritance and evolution, it gradually became popular among the people. However, in the Tang Dynasty, "dating watch" The tools for "watching time" were replaced by "drums and bells". The drum was used as the hour and the bell was used as the minute. It seemed that the time was more accurate and was more respected by the barbarians from all over the world.

In the Song Dynasty, the tools for "watching" were also greatly improved. The heavy "bells and drums" were replaced by "zheng", which is a hand-operated "bell". This can reduce the burden of "watching". "The burden of "watchmen" has made the work of "watchmen" more popular and rational, allowing local government offices to spend less money and do more things when recruiting "watchmen".

Since there was no simple, easy-to-understand and universal "timing tool" widely popularized in ancient times, it was necessary to rely on "clocking" to remind ordinary people of their home schedules. This was mainly because government agencies at all levels considered that they must serve the production of the vast number of civilians. and life, because in the homes of royal nobles and wealthy people, funnels are used to measure time, which ordinary people cannot afford.

When it comes to the function of "clocking", in addition to keeping time, it actually also has the functions of preventing fire, preventing theft and exorcising ghosts. Therefore, in order to do a good job of "watching", it is necessary to select energetic young men to do the job, but the government is reluctant to give up more.

Giving money is a reason for embarrassment. Another reason is that the job requires staying up from midnight to dawn, and only strong men can do it.

As the "time teller" in ancient times, how did the ancient "watchmen" know the time? In fact, they usually used the traditional method of lighting incense as a reference. Generally, one stick of incense can be burned for one hour. Therefore,

, when they set out to do the watch, they would first light a stick of incense, go out for a walk and come back to rest for a while, and then they could set off again to continue the watch.

Over and over again, the "watchman" has to stay up from seven o'clock in the evening to four o'clock in the morning, that is, he has to go out and do a watch every hour, which reminds nearby residents what time it is and what they should pay attention to. The hours of the day in ancient times

It is divided into twelve, and one hour is equivalent to two modern hours. Therefore, the watchman circled the city according to the prescribed route, and two hours was enough.

In the process of working the watchman, in addition to reminding everyone of the current time, the "watchman" also has the role of reminding everyone to prevent fire and theft. In this regard, it is like the government offices patrolling the streets after dark. For example

, those who have watched the TV series "Dream of Red Mansions" will

You will find that there is a plot in which Wu Gui, a domestic slave of Jia's family, died in his bed. However, there are rumors that it was his daughter-in-law who turned into a monster and sucked all his energy and caused his death. Jia was frightened.

The old lady immediately asked people to surround Baoyu's room, and then sent people to patrol and watch.

This example proves that "watching the clock" can also play a wonderful role in patrolling. In ancient times, regardless of the dynasties, or even in modern society, there was a certain degree of "curfew" or "control", which meant that the night

You can no longer go out casually, otherwise you will be disobeying the official.

The decrees promulgated by the government must be enforced. At this time, the role of the "watchman" comes into play, because if the "watchman" discovers that someone violates the "curfew" decree promulgated by the "government", he can "according to law"

He was arrested and questioned by the officials, and if he knew about it and failed to report it, he would also be guilty of the same crime.

Since there was no electricity in ancient times, people used oil lamps for lighting at home, and most of the houses were made of wooden structures. Once a fire broke out, the consequences would be disastrous. Therefore, the "watchman" played a role in reminding "precautions against fire hazards", such as in movies and television

In the play, there are also many scenes where the protagonists will blow out the lights once they hear the watchman's voice of "be careful of the candles".

Because in the middle of the night it is the time when cocks crow and dogs and thefts are rampant. Therefore, the "watchman" also has the responsibility of reminding people to pay attention to theft prevention at home. If the "watchman" discovers a fire or theft at work, he will beat the gongs and drums fiercely.

Remind the neighbors. By then, everyone will

When awakened, they go out to put out fires or catch thieves. Therefore, some people who want to do bad things will also be wary of the "watchman". However, for those evildoers and thieves who are wandering around the world, they will first tell the police before doing bad things.

Stun or kill the husband to prevent him from doing bad things.

Therefore, the ancient "watchman" was a very dangerous occupation, and the cost-effectiveness was completely unequal! In addition, the theory of "exorcism" is more superstitious, but this is also the original origin of "watchman". The ancients believed

After night falls, the Yang Qi fades and the Yin Qi rises. At this time, many lonely ghosts will come to wander on the streets and take the opportunity to absorb the souls of passers-by.

Therefore, people generally believe that the "watchman" beats the gongs and drums after nightfall, actually to drive away lonely souls and wild ghosts so that everyone can sleep peacefully. In fact, judging from the future evolution and development, the "watchman" also means that everyone

A way to find peace of mind. This also proves why watchers need men, because they are masculine and courageous and not afraid of ghosts!

Since the ancients believed in "working at sunrise and resting at sunset", there are things that need to be done at every hour, even the aloof emperor Lao Tzu. For example, when should you go to the morning court? When should you approve memorials? These are all

There are strict rules. However, "watchman"

"It is necessary to both beat the gong and shout during the watch because the propagation range of human voice is limited and is easily blocked by buildings. If it is farther away, people will not be able to hear clearly, but it can be heard by beating the gong at the same time.

Let many people hear it, so the gongs are struck in different ways and represent different times.

For example, the "watchman" starts at 7 o'clock in the evening, and at this time, he beats the gong three times in a row, one slowly and one quickly. At 9 o'clock in the evening, he beats the gong twice in succession at the normal speed;

, one has to beat the gong one slow and two fast; at one o'clock in the morning, one slow and three fast; at three o'clock in the morning, one slow and four fast. In this way, even if people can't hear the watchman's call, they can hear the sound of the drum.

Identify the specific time.

The shouts of "Watchmen" are also different. For example, during Xu Shi, they would shout "It's dry and things are dry, be careful with candles" to remind everyone to put out open flames, because the ancients went to bed earlier and some people would forget to blow out the candles.

Fires may cause fires; at Hai hour, the "watchman" will shout "Close the doors and windows to prevent fire and theft" to remind you again; at midnight, which is the third watch in the middle of the night, the "watchman" will shout "

"Peace and safety" means that everyone can sleep peacefully; when it comes to Chou time, it is already past four in the morning, and the watchman will shout "It's cold and the ground is freezing", asking everyone to be careful not to catch a cold, because after a night of precipitation, the temperature has already

It has dropped a lot; at the fifth watch, after the "watchman" shouted "Go to bed early and get up early, take care of yourself", most people have already gotten up and are ready to start a good day.

Ordinary people would never think that a seemingly simple job actually involves a lot of knowledge. Although the social status of "watchmen" in ancient times was very humble, they had an irreplaceable and huge impact on the world and society.

contribution, because if there were no ancient

If the "clock watch" is used, ordinary people will not be able to know the time. At best, it will delay agricultural work, cause production reduction and famine, and at worst, it may cause social unrest and even dynasty replacement. Therefore, the importance of "watch watch" in ancient times is not

It goes without saying, but the "watchman" treatment is very poor.

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Haha, thank you all book friends for paying attention, collecting, recommending, subscribing and commenting on this book! As an author, I am very happy and honored to provide readers with an "urban supernatural power" and "cultivation fantasy" novel that meets the tastes of the public.

.As the saying goes, "Life is short, but the nib of the pen is long." Therefore, the road to cultivation is long, where can we find immortality? There is no place for troubles, just read the book!

This story is purely fictitious, and any similarities are purely coincidental! Fellow Taoists: Working hard, time is tight, and creation is not easy. Like, favorite, and forward by the way. Want to know the plot? I will break it down next time!
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