Empress Wu of the Song Dynasty, Emperor Gaozong of Song, was a native of Kaifeng. When Wu was fourteen years old, he entered the imperial palace to serve Zhao Shuo, the King of Kang, and after Zhao Shuo inherited the throne, he even made Wu The Lady of Yi county. Later, Wu was successively promoted to the title of Cairen, Wanyi, and Noble Concubine. Eventually, in 1143, Wu was made empress.
Wu's life, through the four emperors of the Song Dynasty, also lasted for fifty-five years, is one of the longest reigning empresses in history. Moreover, Wu was also a high-lived empress, who did not die until the age of 83, and her courtesy name was Empress Xiansheng Cilie, who was buried in Yongsi Ling.
It is said that when Wu Shi was not yet born, her father Wu Jin had a strange dream: he dreamed of a pavilion with a horizontal plaque on it, on which were written two large characters "Shi Kang", which were written very vigorously and powerfully. The surrounding area of the pavilion was also covered with peony flowers, but only one of them was in full bloom, and under the peony flower lay an aries sheep.
After Wu Jin woke up, he felt very surprised and couldn't understand this dream. Later, it didn't take long for Wu's mother to give birth to Wu, and according to legend, a red light appeared from the room that night. Later, when Wu was fourteen years old, he was elected to serve Zhao Shuo in the imperial palace, and at that time, Zhao Shuo was only King Kang. At this time, Wu's father, Wu Jin, understood the meaning of his dream.
Later generations called Wu an empress sent from heaven, but in fact, this is not the world's nonsense, but it has a certain basis. According to historical records, Emperor Gaozong of Song was born in Kaifeng, Tokyo, and at that time, there were red lights shining throughout the palace. This coincides with the scene at the time of Wu's birth, which is the act of Providence.
As the saying goes, if a person wants to succeed, he must pay attention to the time, place, and people, Wu not only occupies the time, place, and people, she is also very motivated to learn. Although Wu Shi is only a woman, she has loved to read poetry since she was a child, and she is also very intelligent.
At this time, the Song Dynasty, internal and external troubles, external jin soldiers chased, there are often mutinies inside, Wu shi wore military uniforms, followed around Song Gaozong, quite bold.
Once, when Wu was following Song Gaozong to Siming, the guards in the palace suddenly mutinied, and the soldiers who broke into the palace asked Wu, "Where is Song Gaozong?" Wu said, "Emperor Gaozong of Song should now rest in the study." After saying that, she also pointed out a wrong path for the soldier. After the soldier left, Wu immediately sent someone to arrest him.
Looking at this story now, either Song Gaozong was dressed too plainly, or this soldier was too stupid. However, it can also be seen from this that Wu Shi is indeed a bold woman.
Later, Emperor Gaozong of Song made Wu the Lady of Yijun, which was also the first step for Wu to become empress.
Jin Bing marched south, and Song Gaozong had no choice but to take a boat into the sea, and Wu served him. While on the move, a white fish suddenly jumped onto the boat. Wu Shi hurriedly said, "Your Majesty, this is an auspicious omen for the Zhou people's white fish." Song Gaozong was very happy to hear this. At that time, just after the fall of the Northern Song Dynasty, the Jin soldiers marched south, and Emperor Gaozong of Song was very panicked and helpless, which also led to the monarch having to take a boat into the sea. At that time, they had been drifting along the coast of Wenzhou for more than Four months.
However, the auspicious omen of what Wu called the "Zhou people white fish" was a sign given to them by heaven: the Golden Soldiers were about to retire, and they would soon be able to return to their own country. Whether this matter was true or not, at least, when frustrated and disappointed, Wu Shi gave them a glimmer of hope and gave her a reassuring pill.
Later, after returning to Yuedi, Wu was awarded the title of Talented Man by Jin.
Emperor Gaozong of Song had only one child in his lifetime, named Zhao Xu. However, at the age of three, he died. Because Emperor Gaozong of Song was frightened and suffered from infertility when he fled, there was no one in the harem to bear children for him.
Later, Princess Zhang Xianfei adopted Zhao Boqun of the clan as her adopted son, and Wu also adopted Zhao Xuan of the clan as her adopted son.
As the saying goes, life is alive, the world is unpredictable, with the death of Zhao Boqun's adoptive mother Zhang Xianfei, Zhao Boqun was also handed over to Wu to raise. Although a child is raised for a long time and a child is raised for a short time, wu treats them equally, never has any partiality, and regards them as if they were their own.
Because Zhao Boqun was very intelligent and had a very diligent personality, the emperor and the Wu clan liked him very much, so they named him the king of Pu'an County. By the time she was crown prince, Wu had become an empress of the Song Dynasty, and she also strongly recommended Zhao Boqun. When Emperor Gaozong of Song found out, he made up his mind to make Bo Qun the crown prince and renamed him Zhao Shen.
In June of the thirty-second year of Shaoxing (1162), after being emperor for thirty-six years, Emperor Gaozong of Song passed the throne to his adopted son Zhao Shen on the grounds of "tiredness" and wanting to recuperate more.
Wu is not only clever and witty, but also very talented. The Wu clan, who has been reading a lot of books since childhood, has also helped Song Gaozong tremendously, and the Wu clan, who has been serving Song Gaozong's side, has increased a lot of insight, and is not only cautious, but also very decisive.
After Emperor Gaozong of Song's birth mother, Princess Wei Xian, was welcomed back, he learned that his Empress Xing had died, and at that time, the empress's position had been vacant for sixteen years. Although Emperor Gaozong of Song did not have much love for the people, as a husband, he was still very devoted to his Empress Xing and to his wife.
In the face of such an obsessive Song Gaozong, Wu Shi not only did not jealous, but was very open-minded. She was very filial to the returning Empress Wei, personally serving the empress dowager's living quarters and scrupulously adhering to the duty of a daughter-in-law. To this end, Empress Wei was also very satisfied with her daughter-in-law, and often praised Wu in front of Emperor Gaozong of Song, saying that she was "doing things safely and has the style of motherhood." ”
Later, the ministers of the Song Dynasty proposed: "The position of the lord of the harem has been vacant for too long, and the so-called harem cannot be left without a master for a day, and it is time to choose a virtuous and virtuous harem lord to manage all the affairs of the harem." ”
As the saying goes, people's hearts are all flesh, and in the face of such a well-behaved and sensible daughter-in-law, Empress Wei is very willing to become an empress of the Wu clan. Moreover, in the harem of Emperor Gaozong of Song, whether it was virtue or virtuousness, Wu was the best candidate. Eventually, under the persuasion of Empress Wei, Emperor Gaozong of Song officially crowned Wu as empress in 1143.
Moreover, Emperor Gaozong of Song "pursued the king for three generations, and his relatives were thirty-five officials" to the Wu family. In 1183 (the tenth year of Chunxi), because of the seventieth birthday of Empress Wu Taishang, Emperor Xiaozong "had a bad favor" with Empress Wu Taishang's relatives. It was not until October 1197 (the third year of Qingyuan) that Empress Dowager Wu died of illness.
From the beginning of Wu's marriage to Zhao Shuo in 1128 to the death of Zhao Shuo in 1187, Wu and Zhao Shuo walked together for fifty-nine years, and fifty years was considered a "golden marriage", which was a miracle in the history of marriage in the Chinese royal family.
Resources:
[History of Song", "History of Song, Benji", "On Song Xiaozong"]