Since ancient times, those who were destined to rule as emperors or inherit the throne and protect the country were not just due to their own noble virtues; they largely relied on the help of their relatives. The Xia Dynasty got its start because of the Tu Shan clan, while Jie of Xia fell because of Mo Xi. The Shang Dynasty took off thanks to the Song clan, while the downfall of Zhou of Shang was due to Daji. The Zhou Dynasty rose with the support of Jiang Yuan (King Wen's mother) and Tai Ren (King Wu's mother), while King You of Zhou failed because of his indulgence in Bao Si. Therefore, the Book of Changes explains the fundamentals of heaven and earth, the Book of Songs begins with "Guo Ju," the Book of Documents praises King Wen of Zhou for his marriage, and the Spring and Autumn Annals criticize the lack of attention to proper wedding ceremonies. A good marriage is the foundation of a good family! Wedding rituals were taken very seriously. Everything's connected, you know? Music, the seasons, and the balance of yin and yang govern all things, so how can this not be handled with care? We may try to control our destiny, but fate always has the last word. Alas, love's a gamble, even for kings and emperors. And even if you're lucky enough to find it, having kids and raising them isn't guaranteed. Confucius rarely talked about fate, probably because it's too difficult to explain. If you don't understand how life works, you won't understand life itself.
Sima Qian wrote that the historical records before the Qin Dynasty were relatively rough, and many details could not be recorded. After the establishment of the Han Dynasty, Empress Lü was married to Liu Bang, and her son was made crown prince. As Liu Bang grew older, he lost interest in Lü, and favored Lady Qi, whose son Liu Ruyi almost replaced the crown prince several times. After Liu Bang died, Lü wiped out Lady Qi's family and the Prince of Zhao. Only the low-ranking concubines survived.
Empress Lü's eldest daughter married Zhang Ao, the Marquis of Xuanping, and Zhang Ao's daughter became Empress Xiaohui. Empress Lü wanted her grandson, Wanfang, to inherit the throne, but Wanfang had no sons. So Empress Lü faked a palace child as Wanfang's son. After Emperor Xiaohui's death, with the succession uncertain, Empress Lü promoted her family, installing Lü princes as marquises to control the government. She made Lü Lu's daughter empress to the young emperor, but her scheme ultimately failed. After Empress Lü's death, she was buried with Liu Bang in Changling. Lü Lu, Lü Chan, and the rest, fearing execution, plotted a rebellion. The ministers rose up against them, and with a little help from fate, the Lü clan was wiped out. Only Empress Xiaohui was spared, confined to the Northern Palace. Then Prince Dai, Liu Heng, was enthroned as Emperor, known as Emperor Wen of Han, inheriting the ancestral temples of the Han dynasty. Wasn't that fate? Who else could have done it? Empress Bó's father, a native of Wu, shared her surname. During the Qin dynasty, her mother, close to Wei Lao, a woman of the Wei royal family, gave birth to Bó Ji. Her father later died in Shanyin, where he was buried.
Later, many warlords rebelled against the Qin Dynasty, and Wei Bao was made the King of Wei. The Dowager Wei sent her daughter Bo Ji into the palace of Wei. A fortune teller named Xu Fu had predicted the fate of the Dowager Wei and Bo Ji, saying that Bo Ji would give birth to a future emperor. At that time, Xiang Yu and Liu Bang were fighting in Xingyang, and the land was still in chaos. Wei Bao initially helped Liu Bang in the war against the Chu Kingdom, but upon hearing Xu Fu's prophecy, he secretly rejoiced and switched sides, allying with Chu instead. Liu Bang sent Cao Cen and others to defeat King Wei Bao, turning the land of Wei into counties, and Bo Ji was arranged to work in the weaving room. After King Wei Bao died, Liu Bang entered the weaving room and saw how beautiful Bo Ji was, ordering her to be brought to the harem. However, for more than a year, Liu Bang did not visit her. When Bo Ji was young, she had a good relationship with Lady Guan and Zhao Zier, and the three of them swore an oath: whoever got ahead wouldn't forget the others. Later, Lady Guan and Zhao Zier were favored by Liu Bang first. Once, while sitting in the palace, Liu Bang heard Lady Guan and Zhao Zier mocking Bo Ji for their pact. Liu Bang asked them what was going on, and they laid it all out for him. Liu Bang felt sad and pitied Bo Ji, so he summoned her that night and favored her. Bo Ji said, "Last night I dreamt of a green dragon coiled around my belly." Liu Bang said, "That's a sign you're destined for greatness! I will help you fulfill this prophecy!" After that one night, she gave birth to a son, who later became the King of Dai. Bo Ji hardly ever saw him again after that.
After Liu Bang died, those favored concubines, like Lady Qi, were all confined by Empress Lü Hou and not allowed to leave the palace. However, Empress Dowager Bo, because she rarely received favor, was released and went to the Dai Kingdom with her son, becoming the Queen Dowager of Dai. Empress Dowager Bo's younger brother, Bo Zhao, also went to the Dai Kingdom.
The King of Dai ruled for seventeen years, and Empress Lü Hou died. The ministers discussed the appointment of a new emperor, and everyone felt that the influence of the Lü clan was too strong, while the Bo clan was kind and benevolent. Therefore, they supported the King of Dai to become the emperor, later known as Emperor Xiaowen. Empress Dowager Bo also changed her title to Empress Dowager, and her brother Bo Zhao was appointed as the Marquis of Zhi.
Empress Dowager Bo's mother had died earlier and was buried north of Liyang. Later, Empress Dowager Bo posthumously honored her father as Marquis Lingwen and established a substantial estate encompassing three hundred households in Kuaiji County for her father. The tomb was entrusted to a staff including officials of Chang Cheng and lower rank, and sacrifices were conducted according to prescribed rituals. A matching mausoleum was also established for the Marquise Lingwen's wife (Empress Dowager Bo's mother) north of Liyang, with the same grandeur as the Marquis Lingwen's tomb. Empress Dowager Bo felt that her maternal relatives, descendants of the Wei Queen, had shown great care to her due to the early loss of both her parents. She then brought her Wei relatives back and rewarded them based on their relationship to her. Only one other member of her family achieved the rank of marquis.
Empress Dowager Bo died in the second year of Emperor Han Wen, as Emperor Xiaojing had died two years earlier and was buried in Nanling. Since Empress Lü was buried in Changling, Empress Dowager Bo was buried separately, near Emperor Xiaowen's tomb at Baoling.
Empress Dowager Dou was from Guanjing in Qinghe, Zhao State. When Empress Dowager Lv was in power, Dou Ji was still an ordinary woman living at home, and she entered the palace to serve the Empress Dowager. At that time, the Empress Dowager rewarded palace maids to various princes, with five palace maids for each prince, and Dou Ji was also on the list of those to be rewarded. Dou Ji's family was in Qinghe, and she wanted to be closer to home, so she requested the eunuch in charge of the assignments, "Please make sure to register me in the Zhao contingent." However, the eunuch forgot and mistakenly registered her in the group assigned to Dai State. After the list was submitted, the emperor approved it, and they were about to depart. Dou Ji cried and complained to the eunuch, unwilling to go to Dai State. After a lot of coaxing, she reluctantly agreed. After arriving in Dai State, the Prince of Dai favored Dou Ji, and they had a daughter named Piao, followed by two sons. The Princess of Dai gave birth to four sons before he became emperor, but she passed away. After the Prince of Dai became emperor, they all died one by one. A few months after Emperor Xiaowen took the throne, the ministers requested the establishment of a crown prince, and Dou Ji's eldest son was chosen as the crown prince due to his age. Dou Ji was made empress, and their daughter Piao was named Princess Chang. The following year, her younger son Wu was appointed as the Prince of Dai, later moved to Liang State, becoming Liang Xiaowang. Empress Dowager Dou passed away early and was buried in Guanjing. Empress Dowager Bo ordered the relevant departments to posthumously appoint Empress Dowager Dou's father as the Marquis of Ancheng and her mother as the Lady of Ancheng. In Qinghe, a garden of two hundred households was established for them, overseen by the estate manager, just like the Marquis Lingwen's estate.
Empress Dowager Dou's elder brother is called Dou Zhangjun, and her younger brother is called Dou Guangguo, with the courtesy name Shaojun. When Shaojun was just four or five years old, the family was dirt poor. He was sold off, and his family had no idea where he had gone. He was trafficked to more than ten different households and eventually ended up in Yiyang, where he was forced to work burning charcoal for his master. One night, he and over a hundred others were sleeping by the riverbank when a landslide occurred, killing everyone except him; he was the sole survivor.
He had a hunch he'd become a marquis in the future, so he ran away to Chang'an to find his family. Hearing that Empress Dowager Dou had just been named empress and that her family was from Guanjin with the surname Dou, Shaojun, despite being young, remembered the county name, surname, and the events of his childhood when he picked mulberry leaves with his sister. These memories became clues for him to identify himself, so he wrote a letter to claim kinship.
Empress Dowager Dou told Emperor Wen, who summoned Shaojun. He laid it all out, and it turned out to be true! When asked for further evidence, Shaojun mentioned, "When my sister left me, she washed my hair and fed me at the post station before leaving." Upon hearing this, Empress Dow sobbed, clutching Shaojun, while the palace maids and eunuchs knelt beside her, crying. Emperor Wen rewarded them with land, houses, and wealth, ennobling Shaojun and his brother as marquises and allowing them to settle in Chang'an.
Marquis Jiang and General Guan said, "Here we are, still alive, yet how are these two so fortunate? They come from humble beginnings, so we must find them good teachers and friends to prevent them from getting above themselves." Consequently, they selected respectable folks to guide and educate the brothers. As a result, Dou Zhangjun and Shaojun stayed grounded, not allowing their newfound wealth and power to make them arrogant.
Later, Empress Dou got sick and went blind. Emperor Wen also took up with Lady Shen from Handan and Lady Yin, but they did not bear sons. After Emperor Xiaowen's death, Emperor Xiaojing succeeded to the throne and made Dou Guangguo the Marquis of Zhangwu. Dou Changjun had passed away earlier, and his son Pengzu was made the Marquis of Nanpi. During the Wu-Chu rebellion, Empress Dou leaned on her nephew Dou Ying, a real stand-up guy, who later quelled the rebellion and was made the Marquis of Weiqi due to his military achievements. In the Dou family, three marquises emerged all at once.
Empress Dou was very fond of the teachings of the Yellow Emperor and Laozi, so the emperor, crown prince, and members of the Dou family all had to study the "Yellow Emperor's Classic of Medicine" and the "Tao Te Ching," living by their ideas.
Empress Dou passed away when Emperor Xiaojing was six years old and was buried together in Baling. Before she died, she left instructions to give all the gold and silver treasures in the Eastern Palace to Princess Piao.
Wang the Dowager Queen was from Huaili, and her mother was named Zang'er. Zang'er was the granddaughter of the former Yan King Zangtu. Zang'er married Wang Zhong of Huaili and had a son named Xin and two daughters. After Wang Zhong passed away, Zang'er married Tian of Changling and had two sons named Fen and Sheng. Zang'er’s eldest daughter married a grandson of the King of Jin and had a daughter. Later, Zang'er consulted a fortune teller, who said that both of her daughters would become very noble. So Zang'er wanted both of her daughters to live a good life and decided to reclaim her eldest daughter from the Jin. The Jin were furious and refused to let her go, so Zang'er sent her daughter to the prince's palace. The Crown Prince liked her very much and had three daughters and one son with her. While this son was still in her womb, Wang dreamt that the sun fell into her arms. She told the Crown Prince, who said, "This means she'll be important!" Earlier, Zang'er had also sent her other daughter, Xu, into the palace, and Xu gave birth to four sons. Upon becoming Emperor Jingdi, Jingdi married Empress Bo as a concubine. After Jingdi ascended the throne, he made Bo his empress. But she never had kids and the Emperor didn't care for her. Later, Bo died, and Jingdi deposed Empress Bo.
Emperor Jing's eldest son was named Rong, his mother was Consort Li, who was from the state of Qi. Emperor Jing made Rong his crown prince. Princess Piao wanted to get her daughter a spot as one of the crown prince's concubines. Consort Li was green with envy. All the Emperor's other concubines were Princess Piao's connections, so they were way more favored than she was. Consort Li was furious and flat-out refused. So, Princess Piao tried to marry her daughter off to Lady Wang's son—the crown prince's half-brother—and Lady Wang was all for it. Princess Piao became even angrier and spoke ill of Consort Li to Emperor Jing every day, saying, "Consort Li's in cahoots with those other concubines. She even makes her maids spit on her back and uses witchcraft to hex the Emperor!" As a result, Emperor Jing became increasingly dissatisfied with Consort Li.
One time when Emperor Jing was feeling unwell and in a bad mood, he instructed Consort Li, "After I am gone, you must take good care of my sons." Consort Li was very angry and replied rudely, even saying disrespectful words. Emperor Jing was fuming, but he didn't show it.
Princess Piao always praised Lady Wang's son for being handsome, and Emperor Jing also thought the child was good. He'd also had some weird dreams, so he was still undecided about the next crown prince. Knowing the Emperor still harbored feelings for Consort Li, Lady Wang, furious, secretly pushed the ministers to make Consort Li Empress. After the ministers reported, they said, "A son's standing depends on his mother, and vice versa. The crown prince's mother's still untitled! She should be Empress!" Emperor Jing exploded, "What the hell are you saying?!" He had the minister executed on the spot and stripped the crown prince of his title, making him the Prince of Linjiang. Consort Li was heartbroken and devastated, never seeing the Emperor again. She died of a broken heart. In the end, Emperor Jing appointed Lady Wang as the Empress, her son became the Crown Prince, and her brother was titled as the Marquis of Gai.
After Emperor Jing's death, his son took the throne. The new emperor made his grandmother, Zang Er, the Lady Pingyuan. He also granted Tian Fei the title of Marquis of Wuan and Sheng the title of Marquis of Zhouyang. Emperor Jing had thirteen sons in total. Only one became emperor, the other twelve became princes. He also had a daughter named Erxi, who died young, leaving behind four sons who all became princes. The Empress Dowager's eldest daughter was named Princess Pingyang, the second Princess Nangong, and the third Princess Linlu.
Gaihou Xin was a man who loved his drink. Tian Fei and Sheng were real sharks, smooth talkers, and masters of the game. Wang Zhong died early, was buried in Huaili, and posthumously given the title of Gonghou. He also got a fiefdom of 200 households. When Lady Pingyuan died, she was buried in Changling with the Tian clan, her fiefdom was about the same size as Gonghou's. The Empress Dowager, sixteen years older than the Emperor, died in the fourth year of Yuanshuo and was buried alongside the Emperor in Yangling. Her family produced three marquises in total.
Wei Zifu came from a humble background. Her family lived in the fief of the Marquis of Pingyang and her surname was Wei. She started out as just a singer at Princess Pingyang's place. In the early years of the Emperor's reign, he had no children. So, Princess Pingyang sent a dozen beautiful girls, all dolled up, to the palace. When the Emperor got back from the sacrifice at Baxiang, he dropped by Princess Pingyang's place. The princess paraded all these beauties before him, but he wasn't interested in a single one. During the feast, Wei Zifu sang a song and caught the Emperor's eye. That night, the Emperor went to change his clothes and Wei Zifu served him in the dressing room, and the Emperor slept with her. He was so pleased that he gifted Princess Pingyang a thousand catties of gold. The princess quickly sent Wei Zifu to the palace. As Wei Zifu climbed into the carriage, Princess Pingyang patted her back, saying, "Go on, now. Eat your fill, and don't forget about me when you're all famous and fancy!"
Wei Zifu entered the palace for over a year, but the emperor never showed her any favor again. Later, Emperor Wu got rid of a bunch of palace ladies who weren't getting any action. Wei Zifu also went to see the emperor, crying and begging to leave the palace. The emperor felt sorry for her, gave her another chance, and boom – she was pregnant, which led to her rising status. The emperor also summoned Wei Zifu's brothers Wei Changjun and Wei Qing to work in the palace. Wei Zifu later became very favored, giving birth to three daughters and a son named Liu Ju.
Back when Emperor Wu was still a prince, he married the princess's daughter as his concubine. After Emperor Wu ascended the throne, this concubine from the Chen family became the empress, but they had no children. Emperor Wu ascended to the throne with the help of Princess Chang, so Empress Chen was very proud and arrogant. When she heard that Wei Zifu was favored, she was so mad, she nearly croaked a few times. Emperor Wu became increasingly angry as well. Empress Chen tried to please the emperor by playing dirty, but her actions were exposed. As a result, Empress Chen was deposed and Wei Zifu was made empress.
Empress Chen's mother was Princess Chang, the sister of Emperor Jing. She kept nagging at Emperor Wu's sister, Princess Pingyang, saying, "If it weren't for me, he wouldn't be Emperor! And now he's ditching my daughter? The nerve!" Princess Pingyang replied, "No son, no throne." In order to have a child, Empress Chen blew nine million on doctors, but still did not have a child.
After Wei Zifu became empress, her brother Wei Changjun passed away, and her brother Wei Qing became a successful general and was made Marquis of Changping. Wei Qing's three sons were made marquises as babies. Wei Zifu's sister's son, Huo Qubing, became the Champion Marquis and General of the Cavalry due to his military achievements. Wei Qing was appointed as the Grand General. Wei Zifu's son, Liu Ju, was named the crown prince. The Wei family, thanks to their military success, became incredibly wealthy, with five of them becoming marquises.
Empress Wei was aging, so the Zhao consort gained the Emperor's favor, gave birth to a son, and later became the King of Qi.
The Queen of Zhao died young. Later, Lady Li from Zhongshan was highly favored, gave birth to a son, and was titled the King of Changyi.
Lady Li also died young, and her brother Li Yannian gained the Emperor's favor for his singing skills and was titled the Xie Lv. This Xie Lv was essentially a singer. The Li siblings committed crimes, and their clan was wiped out. At that time, Lady Li's elder brother Li Guangli was the Second Division General, went to fight against Dawan, but before he could be executed, he returned from battle only to find that the Emperor had already wiped out the Li family. Later, the Emperor took pity on their family and titled Li Guangli's son as the Marquis of Haixi.
Other concubines had two sons who became the Kings of Yan and Guangling, respectively. Their mother wasn't favored, died of sorrow, and passed away.
After Lady Li's death, some women like Lady Yin received the Emperor's favor. However, they were from singing families, not daughters of noble families, and weren't good enough for the Emperor.
Mr. Chu said: Back when I was in office, I asked Zhong Lisheng, who studies the history of the Han Dynasty. Zhong Lisheng said: Queen Wang had a daughter out of wedlock, her father being King Jin Sun. King Jin Sun was dead, and after Emperor Jing's death, Emperor Wu ascended the throne, leaving Queen Wang to live alone. The Han princess, Yan, was highly favored by Emperor Wu. She privately told him that the Queen Mother had a daughter in Changling. Emperor Wu said, "Why didn't you say something sooner?" So he sent someone to Changling to investigate, and indeed found her at her home.
Emperor Wu personally went to meet her. He cleared a path and sent out a cavalry escort with fluttering banners from the Hengcheng Gate, riding the imperial carriage to Changling. When they reached a lane on the west side of a small market, the alley was gated. Emperor Wu ordered them to burst through, and the imperial carriage entered the lane, stopping only at the entrance to the Jin family's house. He ordered the guards to surround the Jin family's house to prevent her from escaping, but he himself did not find her. So he ordered the officials to go in and call out for her. The Jin family was terrified, and her daughter was hiding under the bed. The family helped her out and let her go to meet Emperor Wu. He got off the carriage and cried, saying, "Geez, sis, why were you hiding so deep?" He had her placed in a carriage and then sped back to the palace, directly entering the Changle Palace. He ordered the palace gates to be opened and had the news relayed all the way until he saw the Empress Dowager. The Empress Dowager asked, "Your Majesty, are you tired? Why did you come back so late?" Emperor Wu said, "I just brought back my sister from Changling." He pointed at her and said, "Let her come and meet you!" The Empress Dowager asked, "Is it you?" She said, "Yes." The Empress Dowager cried, and the woman also fell to the ground crying. Emperor Wu toasted and rewarded her with ten million coins, three hundred servants, one hundred hectares of public land, and a luxurious mansion. The Empress Dowager declined, saying, "You've put Your Majesty to too much trouble." So, Emperor Wu summoned Princess Pingyang, Princess Nangong, and Princess Linluo to come and meet this sister, and created her the Lady Xiu Cheng. Lady Xiu Cheng had a son and a daughter. The son was named Xiu Cheng Zi Zhong, and the daughter married the son of a prince of the realm and became queen. These two children were not of the Liu clan, so the Empress Dowager loved them very much. However, Xiu Cheng Zi Zhong was arrogant and oppressive, and he was deeply unpopular.
After Wei Zifu ascended to the position of Empress, her younger brother Wei Qing, styled as Zhongqing, was made Grand General and Marquis of Changping. Wei Qing had four sons, with his eldest, Wei Kang, set to inherit the marquis title. He was often in the Emperor's good graces, serving by his side. Wei Qing's other three sons were also bestowed marquis titles, each overseeing 1300 households. They were known as the Marquis of Yin'an, Marquis of Fagan, and Marquis of Yichun, and their prominence was felt throughout the land. At that time, a popular saying went: "Having sons is nothing to celebrate, having daughters is nothing to worry about—haven't you seen how the Wei family's taken over?"
Princess Pingyang, then a widow, needed a marquis for a husband. She consulted with her entourage about which marquis in Chang'an could be her husband, and everyone suggested Grand General Wei Qing. The princess laughed and said, "Wei Qing is my own family. He used to accompany me on horseback everywhere I went. How can I make him my husband?" Her servants replied, "Now that the Grand General's sister is the Empress and his three sons are marquises, their family is incredibly powerful and wealthy, their influence felt throughout the empire. Princess, do you have any reason to refuse?" The princess then agreed. This matter was reported to the Empress, who then informed Emperor Hanwu. The emperor ordered General Wei Qing to marry Princess Pingyang.
As Chu put it: "Wei Qing has truly soared like a dragon! Once a snake, always a snake; once a nobody, always a nobody." Now that Wei Qing is wealthy and prominent, all his past hardships have disappeared, truly honoring his ancestors. So what if he was poor before?
During Emperor Hanwu's reign, he greatly favored Consort Yin and Consort Xing. Everyone referred to Consort Xing as "Xing'e", and some also called her "Xinghe." Xinghe's rank was equivalent to a 2000-bushel official, similar to the rank of Ronghua, while Jieyu's rank was equivalent to a marquis. Consort Xing eventually rose from the position of Jieyu to become Empress.
Lady Yin and Lady Xing were both favored, but Emperor Wu ordered them not to meet. Lady Yin asked to see the Emperor herself, hoping to meet Lady Xing. The Emperor agreed. He had other concubines dress her up, accompanied by dozens of guards, to make her look like Lady Xing and sent her to Lady Xing. After seeing her, Lady Yin said, "This is not Lady Xing." The Emperor asked, "How do you know?" Lady Yin replied, "From her appearance and demeanor, she is not fit to be the empress." So the Emperor ordered Lady Xing to wear her old clothes and come alone to see Lady Yin. When Lady Yin saw her, she said, "This is her." Then she lowered her head and cried, feeling sad for her inferiority. They say, "When a beauty enters the door, an ugly woman becomes an enemy."
Mr. Chu, a scholar, said: You don't have to bathe in rivers and seas; the important thing is to be clean. Horses don't have to be a thousand-mile horse; the important thing is to run fast. Scholars don't have to be the wise men of the world; the important thing is to have knowledge. Women don't have to be noble ladies; the important thing is to be virtuous and beautiful. The ancient books say: "Regardless of beauty or ugliness, women will provoke jealousy when they enter the door; regardless of wisdom or foolishness, scholars will provoke envy when they enter the court." Beauties are enemies of ugly women. Isn't it true?
Lady Gouyi, surnamed Zhao, was from Hejian. She received Emperor Wu's favor and gave birth to a son, who became Emperor Zhao. Emperor Zhao was born when Wu was seventy years old. He ascended the throne at the age of five. At that time, the Crown Prince of Wei had been deposed, and a new Crown Prince had not yet been established. Prince Dan of Yan wrote to request to return to his fiefdom and serve the Emperor in the palace. Wu was furious and had his envoy killed right there under the North Gate.
Emperor Wu resided in Ganquan Palace and summoned a painter to depict the scene of Duke of Zhou carrying King Cheng. This made it clear to the ministers in the palace that he intended to establish his youngest son as the crown prince. After a few days, he berated Lady Gouyi. She removed her hairpin and earrings, kowtowing in apology. He said, "Get her out of here! To the Yeting Prison with her!" Lady Gouyi glanced back, and he added, "Hurry, you won't survive!" She died in Yunyang Palace. At that time, there was a storm, and the people were very sad. In the evening, they buried her and marked the grave.
Later, when he was relaxing, he asked those around him, "What's the buzz?" The attendants replied, "Everyone is talking about wanting to make Emperor Zhao the emperor, so why did they kill his mother?" He said, "Indeed. This ain't rocket science. In ancient times, the reason countries fell into chaos was that the emperor was young and his mother held too much power. The empress dowager ran the whole show, was a total tyrant, and no one could control her. Haven't you heard of Empress Lü's story?" Therefore, all women who bore children for him, regardless of gender, were put to death. Doesn't that make him a wise ruler? He was a visionary, looking out for the next generation, not something that shallow and ignorant Confucian scholars could compare to! So 'Wu' wasn't just a name!
