Wei Zifu, a native of Pingyang, Hedong, was the second empress of Emperor Wu of the Han Dynasty, known historically as Empress Xiaowuwei, and the first empress in China's history to have an independent title.
During the reign of the Han Jing Emperor, Wei Zifu was born in a family that was not very good, and his mother Wei Mi was unknown. She was the third oldest in the family, with two older sisters and one older brother. Later, the mother gave birth to three younger brothers, namely Wei Qing, Wei Bu, and Wei Guang, which made it more difficult for the family that was not rich. When he was young, Wei Zifu was sent to the home of Princess Pingyang to teach song and dance. Here, she met Emperor Wu of Han, changing the fate of her and her family.
In March of the second year of the reign of Emperor Wu of Han, the eighteen-year-old Emperor Wu of Han went to Bashang to worship his ancestors, pray for blessings and disasters, and when he returned to the palace, he stopped by to visit his eldest sister Princess Pingyang. Emperor Wu of Han and Empress Chen had been married for many years and had no heirs, so Princess Pingyang followed the example of Her Aunt Guantao and selected some good family women to present to Tianzi. As soon as Emperor Wu of Han arrived at the Marquis of Pingyang, Princess Pingyang asked more than a dozen well-dressed women to come out to pick up the car. But Emperor Wu of Han did not look at any of them, and Princess Pingyang had to let them back down, and ordered the maid to put a banquet for a feast. During the banquet, the singers of the Hou Mansion came to sing, and Wei Zifu was also among them. Emperor Wu of Han, who was short of interest, glanced at the singers and girls, and at a glance, he caught Wei Zifu.
Subsequently, Emperor Wu of Han got up to change his clothes, and Wei Zifu went to serve him, so he was favored. Emperor Wu of Han was very happy when he returned, and rewarded Princess Pingyang with thousands of gold. Knowing her brother Mo Ruojie, Princess Pingyang asked Tianzi to send Wei Zifu to the palace, and Emperor Wu of Han gladly agreed.
For more than a year after Wei Zifu entered the palace, he was not summoned. In the third year of Jianyuan, Emperor Wudi of Han once again let the elderly and infirm and other useless palace people in the palace out of the palace, and Wei Zifu saw Emperor Wudi of Han again and cried and begged Emperor Wudi of Han for permission to return home. The beauty cried with pear blossoms and rain, and Emperor Wudi of Han felt pity in his heart and once again blessed Wei Zifu. She also became pregnant, and Emperor Wu of Han's favor for Wei Zifu was better than a day.
Wei Zifu was blessed with grace and became pregnant, and was jealous of Empress Chen. His mother, Liu Yan, sent someone to arrest Wei Qing, who was on an errand in Jianzhang at the time, in order to threaten and intimidate Wei Zifu. Fortunately, Wei Qing's friend Gongsun Ao led a group of brave men to rescue him in time, saving him from death. When Emperor Wu of Han learned of this, he appointed Wei Qing as the jianzhang supervisor and added him to the rank of servant, and Wei Zifu's brother was also rewarded. Within a few days, Emperor Wu of Han rewarded the Wei family with thousands of gold.
After Wei Zifu gave birth to three daughters and a man, the status of the Wei clan rose. Empress Chen's use of flattery to invite favors was exposed, and Emperor Wu of Han deposed Empress Chen for the crime of great rebellion. After that, after the ministers wrote to the emperor to set up a wei zifu, Emperor Wu of Han gladly approved it. In this way, Wei Zifu became the second empress of Emperor Wu of Han.
No one has a thousand days, and no flowers have a hundred days of red. Wei Zifu's countenance was aging day by day, and young and beautiful women such as Lady Wang also appeared around Emperor Wudi of Han, and Emperor Wudi of Han's favor for Wei Zifu for fifteen years began to gradually shift. Although he is no longer favored, Wei Zifu has always scrupulously kept his duty and did not do anything transgressive.
After the "Battle of Mo Nan", Emperor Wu of Han rewarded Wei Qing with thousands of gold. A man named Ning Cheng persuaded Wei Qing: "The reason why the great general can become noble is entirely because of Empress Wei. Now the emperor loves Lady Wang, she has just been favored, the family is not yet rich, it is better that you give her thousands of gold to show kindness. Wei Qing felt that he and his nephew Huo had made a lot of meritorious contributions to the Han Dynasty, but Ning Cheng's words also had some truth. Therefore, Wei Qing gave the thousand gold in half to his sister's love enemy. Lady Wang received the five hundred gold sent by Wei Qing and turned her head to inform Emperor Wu of Han of the matter. Emperor Wu of Han immediately summoned Wei Qing and inquired about the matter, but he was not angry, and he also transferred Ning Cheng, who had come up with the idea, to the position of Lieutenant of the East China Sea and transferred him out of Chang'an.
Wei Zifu was able to receive courtesy and respect from Emperor Wu of Han, and in addition to the merits of Wei Qing and Huo Fuyi, she herself also had good virtues and could not be insulted. Otherwise, after Wei Qing and Huo Fu died one after another, Wei Zifu's status would definitely plummet, but this was not the case.