How did ancient women get on the emperor's bed?

How did women in ancient times marry emperors? This is probably something that many people are curious about. As a common woman, it is undoubtedly difficult to marry an emperor. So, how can you capture the heart of the emperor? Today, the editor will reveal to you how the emperor married his wife from ancient culture! Interested friends may wish to take a look together!

This time was undoubtedly of historical significance for Wei Zifu. From then on, she not only entered the palace and gave birth to children, but also quickly defeated Chen Ajiao, the "secret concubine" of Emperor Wu of Han, entered the political power center of the Han Dynasty, and became the second empress of Emperor Wu of Han. What does this kind of rapid rise to fame rely on? Needless to say, one is the natural beauty, and the other is the means of gorgeous packaging.

In fact, Wei Zifu was originally a card used by Princess Pingyang to please Emperor Wu of Han. After Emperor Wu of Han ascended the throne, court struggles were very fierce. In order to consolidate her position, Princess Pingyang "sought more than ten girls from good families and decorated them to stay in her home. The emperor performed a purification ceremony on Ba Shang and returned to Princess Pingyang. The princess saw the beauties he had coveted, but the emperor was not pleased. After drinking, the singers came in, and the emperor only talked about Zi Fu." That is to say, Princess Pingyang bought girls from good families, raised them in her mansion, and taught them singing and dancing skills, so that they could be selected to enter the palace as concubines. It happened that Emperor Wu of Han came to the home of Marquis Pingyang after paying homage to the emperor at Bashang. Princess Pingyang dressed up these beauties and offered them to Emperor Wu of Han to choose from. But after seeing them, Emperor Wu of Han was not satisfied.

When Emperor Wu of Han was drinking with Princess Pingyang, he asked singing girls to dance to liven up the atmosphere. Emperor Wu of Han took a liking to Wei Zifu at first sight. It is not difficult to see that if Princess Pingyang had not carefully and gorgeously packaged Wei Zifu, even if Wei Zifu was naturally beautiful and stunningly stunning, it would have been difficult for her to be favored by Emperor Wu of Han, who had seen countless women.

That is to say, gorgeous packaging is undoubtedly the best pass for a woman to the emperor's bed.

Gorgeous packaging is more important than natural beauty

In addition to Wei Zifu, another dancer who entered the emperor's harem was Zhao Feiyan during the reign of Emperor Cheng of Han. The famous Zhao Feiyan in history, like Wei Zifu, was originally a gorgeously packaged dancer in the mansion of Princess Yang'a, the sister of Emperor Cheng of Han Liu Ao. It was also because of her stunning appearance and outstanding singing and dancing talents that she was summoned into the harem by Emperor Cheng of Han and named a concubine.

As soon as Zhao Feiyan entered the palace, she tied Emperor Cheng of Han to her side with her beauty and dancing skills. But Zhao Feiyan understood that Emperor Cheng of Han was obsessed with lust, and his desire for new and beautiful women was as strong as his desire for power.

No matter how beautiful you are, your beauty and charm will fade eventually. So the position of concubine is not her ideal destination. She wants to move to the top position of women - queen. Only then will he be able to control and control the Emperor, and only then will he be able to calmly do whatever he wants.

Zhao Feiyan entered the palace and became a favorite concubine on the dragon bed, not only because of the gorgeous packaging tailored for her by Princess Yang'e, but also because of her own timely self-packaging. Zhao Feiyan had a graceful dancing posture, but people cannot dance forever. She consciously restored her dance movements to her daily life steps and turned art into reality, which added a layer of charm to her figure and charm.

In addition, she also learned to make eye contact. Her big watery eyes often showed tenderness and sweetness. Whenever she looked at Emperor Cheng of Han with tears in her eyes and a smile on her face, Emperor Cheng of Han would be intoxicated and unable to control himself.

With her beautiful appearance and gorgeous appearance, Zhao Feiyan quickly fascinated and conquered Emperor Cheng of Han.

From then on, Zhao Feiyan won the exclusive favor of the emperor.

Wei Zifu and Zhao Feiyan successfully entered the harem with gorgeous packaging and became the emperor's favorite concubines on the dragon bed. It can be seen that gorgeous packaging is more important than natural beauty. If we ignore this point and rely on our natural beauty and think that "good wine needs no bush", the consequences will be unimaginable.

Packaging is important

Wang Zhaojun can be said to be a peerless beauty in history, but because no one packaged her, she was even vilified, and as a result, she was far away from the emperor's dragon bed.

Although she was in the harem, only one step away from the dragon bed, this one step became an insurmountable gap for her, and finally she had to marry the Huns.

In fact, Wang Zhaojun had already been selected as a concubine to be summoned to the harem of Emperor Yuan of Han, Liu Shi. However, Emperor Yuan of Han had many concubines. In order to make it easier to choose one when he summoned her, he asked painters to draw the appearance of each concubine in an album.

In order to be summoned by Emperor Yuan of Han as soon as possible, most of the concubines bribed a painter named Mao Yanshou with large sums of money, asking him to package them and paint them more beautifully. Mao Yanshou also took the opportunity to extort money from the concubines in the palace.

Only Wang Zhaojun refused to do so, so Mao Yanshou hated Wang Zhaojun so much that he deliberately painted Wang Zhaojun, who was naturally beautiful and graceful, as old and ugly.

Emperor Yuan of Han only looked at the image and not the person. As a result, Wang Zhaojun was selected into the harem for many years but never got to meet Emperor Yuan of Han. This is how the romantic story of the Xiongnu Chanyu Huhanye coming to the Han Dynasty to ask for marriage and Wang Zhaojun volunteering to marry the Xiongnu happened.

Of course, when Emperor Yuan of Han handed Wang Zhaojun over to Huhanye Chanyu and saw Wang Zhaojun, he discovered that Wang Zhaojun was actually the most beautiful woman in the harem and deeply regretted it. But the reason why he did not summon Wang Zhaojun before was precisely because he did not know how beautiful Wang Zhaojun was.

This tragic story, full of twists and turns and touching stories, undoubtedly proves from another perspective that gorgeous packaging is the most effective and most important pass to enter the harem and ascend to the emperor's throne.

From the above ancient culture, it is not difficult to see that the emperor is also a man, and the emperor will also be more inclined to choose beautiful and lovely women.

How the Emperor Married

The harem is filled with beauties, all owned by the emperor, including the first wife, the second wife, and countless other beauties who do not even have the status of wives but can be possessed, played with, and abandoned at any time. Where do so many women come from? Judging from the ways in which emperors select concubines and palace maids, there are formal and standardized courteous appointments and selections, as well as non-procedural confiscation, tribute, and robbery and plunder.

1. Recruitment and Selection

This is the basic source of women in the harem and is also the right way.

Caixuan, also known as beautification, mainly involves selecting beautiful and well-educated women from the public to enter the palace.

The selection system with special laws was established in the Eastern Han Dynasty. "Book of the Later Han Dynasty: Records of the Empresses":

According to Han law, in August, the emperor would send the senior officials, the eunuchs and the physiognomists to the countryside of Luoyang to select girls from good families, aged between thirteen and twenty, with beautiful appearance and meeting the legal physiognomy. Those who met the legal physiognomy would be brought back to the harem and selected to see if they were suitable before being used as concubines.

2. Robbery

The so-called robbery refers to the rulers using violence or their supreme power to seize and possess women like treasures and goods by unreasonable and illegal means. If they are plundered through war, then women are equivalent to trophies for lust.

When the Qin Dynasty conquered the six kingdoms, the Western Jin Dynasty conquered the Wu Kingdom, the Sui Dynasty conquered the Chen Kingdom, and when dynasties changed in later generations, the victors often took the women in the harem of the loser as trophies, and the number of women in the harem would swell in an instant.

During non-war periods, the emperor could also use his power to seize the woman he liked, even his father's concubine or his son's wife or concubine.

Cao Cao defeated Yuan Shao's sons Yuan Xi and Yuan Shang. Cao Pi fell in love with Yuan Xi's wife and took her for himself. This was Empress Zhen, who was later associated with the Goddess of Luo River.

Bai Juyi wrote in "Song of Everlasting Sorrow": "The Yang family has a daughter who has just grown up, but she is kept in the boudoir and unknown to the world. She is born with natural beauty and it is hard to give up, so one day she will be chosen to be by the side of the king." It seems that Yang Yuhuan entered the palace through selection or courtesy.

3. Confiscation

The so-called confiscation of property means that when a family member is convicted, the criminal's family members and children will be implicated and confiscated into the palace. Most of them will be forced to do labor for the rest of their lives, while some will be taken by the emperor and become his concubines.

During the Eastern Wu period, Mrs. Pan's father was executed by law, and she and her sister were confiscated and sent to the weaving room. When Sun Quan saw Pan, he favored her. Later, she gave birth to Crown Prince Sun Liang and was named queen.

Zhu, the wife of Emperor Xuan of Northern Zhou, was also crowned queen in this way.

4. Offering

Most of the time, women were presented to the emperor on their own initiative out of considerations of profit. There were gifts from neighboring countries, recommendations and contributions from subjects, and facilitation from the emperor's relatives.

King Jie of Xia attacked Youshi, and Youshi presented the beautiful woman Mei Xi to him. King Zhou of Shang attacked Yousu, and Yousu offered Daji as an offering. After the defeat of the Yue King Gou, he sent the beautiful Xi Shi to the Wu King Fu Chai. This is often the strategy adopted by the losing country to quell the war.

"Wu Yue Chunqiu": In the twelfth year of King Gou Jian of Yue, "he sent his ministers to the country and found Xi Shi and Zheng Dan, daughters of firewood sellers in Zhuluo Mountain... and presented them to Wu."

In order to please the emperor and seek personal advancement, officials would often recommend talented and beautiful women to the emperor, and sometimes they would even directly recommend their own relatives.

Conclusion: The above are several ways for emperors to marry wives. Some people may say that women in ancient times had no right to choose their own marital happiness? In fact, in ancient times, few women could have their own unique ideas. Marriage was determined by their parents, and this was the fate of most ancient women. And if one day, you gain the emperor's favor, it may be a great honor for the whole family!