In the late Ming Dynasty, a very domineering woman appeared in the harem, she was neither an empress, nor was she an empress, but she dominated the harem, and actually dared to dispose of the emperor's concubines without authorization, which was simply more powerful than the empress and the empress dowager. This person was Keshi, a peasant woman from a humble background, who later entered the palace and became the nursing mother of the emperor's grandson. However, it is such a person who can not only specialize in the harem, but even interfere in the politics of the dynasty, why is this?
Keshi was a native of Dingxing County, Hebei Province, and married Hou Er in the early years, and the two also had a son named Hou Guoxing. Dingxing County is not far from Beijing, many people go to the capital to make a living, and Keshi entered the imperial palace of the Ming Dynasty by chance at the age of eighteen, becoming the nursing mother of Zhu Youxiao, the eldest grandson of the Wanli Emperor. In ancient China, those concubines did not have to take the children personally after giving birth, and there would be a nursing mother in the palace, who was specifically responsible for raising the crown prince and the imperial grandson.
In this case, the nursing mother and the crown prince spend far more time together than the birth mother, so the prince and the imperial grandson are closer to the nursing mother, and even emotionally regard them as mothers. Zhu Youxiao's birth mother, Wang Xuanxuan, was too busy competing for favors to take care of her son. Later, Wang Xuanshi fell ill and died, and Zhu Youshi was raised by Li Xuanshi. Of course, this kind of raising is only nominal, and it is Keshi who really takes care of Zhu You's school life every day.
In July 1620, Emperor Mingshenzong fell ill and died, and more than a month later, Emperor Mingguangzong fell ill and died, and The Mountains of Daming suddenly fell on the shoulders of Zhu You, who was Emperor Mingxi! After Emperor Mingxi ascended the throne, he immediately crowned his own wet mother Keshi as Lady Fengsheng, and Hou Guoxing, the son of Keshi, was made the commander of Jinyiwei, and was also given twenty acres of land. Some sensitive officials discovered the problem and feared that the Ming Dynasty would interfere in the government of the nursing mother, so they wrote a letter opposing it.
After Emperor Mingxi married, under the pressure of officials, Keshi was once forced to leave the palace. However, there was no Keshi around him, and Emperor Mingxi was uneasy about sleeping, and he said to the cabinet assistants: "The empress is young, Lai Mi protects, and the emperor's ancestors are buried and discussed." In this way, Keshi returned to the palace and lived in the Xian'an Palace. Every day in the palace, the Keshi "took a small car, and the internal officials were responsible", and even in front of the Qianqing Palace, there was no need to get off the car, "the grandeur of the temple and the attendants is far greater than the holy car".
So what did Keshi do? First of all, she and Wei Zhongxian married a "food pair", and the two established a relationship similar to that of husband and wife. In the process of Wei Zhongxian's dictatorship, Keshi's role was very great, and when Wei Zhongxian was impeached, she stood up and defended Wei Zhongxian in front of Emperor Mingxi, but the two were said to be in cahoots! Secondly, Keshi colluded with Wei Zhongxian to mutilate the crown prince. Emperor Mingxi had three princes successively, but all of them died prematurely, all of which were related to keshi!
In addition, Keshi and Wei Zhongxian specialized in the harem and oppressed concubines. It is reasonable to say that these two men were slaves, but they dared to oppress the emperor's concubines. Yufei Zhang was imprisoned for offending the Ke clan and Wei Zhongxian, and because she had no food, she eventually starved to death. Emperor Mingxi's Feng Guiren was also framed by the two men and given to death by the Edict. Even The concubines of Emperor Mingguangzong were not spared, "Emperor Guangzong chose to serve the Zhao clan, and did not cooperate with Ke and Wei, and corrected the will to die."
In 1627, Emperor Mingxi died of illness, and the end of Wei Zhongxian and Keshi also arrived. After the Chongzhen Emperor ascended the throne, he ordered the Keshi to be expelled from the palace. Not long after, Keshi was escorted to the Huan Clothing Bureau, and Zhao Benzheng, the steward of the Qianqing Palace, was interrogated and beaten to death. At the same time, Ke's family property was confiscated, and her son Hou Guoxing and Wei Zhongxian's nephew Wei Liangqing were beheaded for public display.
References: 1. "Ming Ji Beiluo"; 2. "Ming History"; 3. "Ming History Chronicle"