The legend about her has never been interrupted for more than a thousand years, and she has been traced in history books, documents, biographies, novels, miscellaneous talks and even wild histories.
Regarding her personality, some praised her as "a literary person who has a literary word and learns to be a bureaucrat", and is a versatile female talent who is involved in the history of the scriptures and has studied exquisite writing; some fear her as a reward and punishment judge who "holds the throne of Chenhan" and "weighs the world"; some even despise her as a wall-headed grass with eight exquisite faces and swaying left and right; and even call her a traitorous villain who commits adultery in the palace and interferes in the affairs of the dynasty.
So who is she? Why are there different reviews?
She was in the Tang Dynasty, only 14 years old, she was appreciated by Wu Zetian, and during the period of Wu Zetian and Tang Zhongzong Li Xian, she held the imperial office for more than 30 years, and twice became the "personal secretary" of the emperor's side.
Shangguan Wan'er was born into a family of official eunuchs. His grandfather, Shangguan Yi, was killed for drafting an edict deposing Wu Zetian. The Shangguan family was destroyed, so there was a tragic ending in which Shangguan Wan'er and her mother entered the palace as a maid, and the culprit who caused the tragedy of the Shangguan family was Wu Zetian.
The unfortunate encounter of the Shangguan family not only did not have any impact on Shangguan Wan'er's political future, but on the contrary, it made this talented woman. What surprised Shangguan Wan'er even more was that when the wrongdoers met, Wu Zetian not only did not discriminate against and guard against her, but on the contrary, he was very fond of the descendants of the Shangguan family, handed over the power to her with confidence, and entrusted her with heavy responsibilities, and promoted and reused Shangguan Wan'er.
She was able to gain the appreciation of Wu Zetian and Emperor Zhongzong of Tang, Li Xian, who was brilliant, good at writing articles, and "learned to be a bureaucrat", and after being discovered by Wu Zetian, she could not leave her side and became Wu Zetian's right-hand man; after her rich political experience and skillful handling skills were discovered by Li Xian, she became Li Xian's harem Zhaorong.
Shangguan Wan'er read through Wu Zetian's personality and preferences, and knew exactly what kind of management methods and communication methods Wu Zetian liked. In line with this, Shangguan Wan'er can not only fully grasp the opportunity, but also be good at improvisation. This was the result of her long-term practice of following Wu Zetian and developing a pair of discerning eyes. At that time, Xu Jingye rebelled in Yangzhou because of his opposition to Wu Zetian's claim to the dynasty, and Wu Zetian asked what to do, and Shangguan Wan'er did not hesitate to propose to immediately send troops to suppress it, which won Wu Zetian's heart, and the two coincided.
In the first year of Tang Shenlong (705), Wu Zetian was forced to abdicate, and Emperor Zhongzong of Tang succeeded li xian. Shangguan Wan'er not only did not withdraw from the political arena, but was reused, gained Li Xian's favor, and was in charge of the matter of life. Her foresight, governing philosophy, and deeds were recognized by Li Xian, and like Wu Zetian, she confidently and boldly entrusted her with political power.
Most historians believe that Shangguan Wan'er was a sleek and cunning speculator, and her character may not be so noble. She has always been centered on personal interests, not only can constantly adjust the political trend in the rapidly changing situation, but also according to the balance of power between the various forces, left and right between the major political forces in the court. In fact, if she did not adopt a sleek and fickle approach, she would not be able to survive the cruel and complex political struggle.
In the face of Wu Zetian, who was suspicious and suspicious and had a strong desire to control power, Shangguan Wan'er, as a political enemy, wanted to survive in such an environment, and there was no other way but to suppress Tang Yangwu in the grass edict to please the master. Under the discipline and edification of Wu Zetian over the years, she gradually became a loyal courtier and a trustworthy person around Wu Zetian. Emperor Zhongzong of Tang, Li Xian, not only took charge of the edict as an imperial concubine, rehabilitated and posthumously sealed the slain family members, and the power was tilted to the opposition, but also set up a house outside the palace and freely entered and exited the palace, so that it was convenient for her to communicate with the bureaucrats of the foreign dynasty and collude inside and outside, at this time, her power was not limited to the palace, and the infiltration and expansion of the political forces of the concubines in the palace also became a major feature of the politics of the Zhongzong Dynasty.
In the second year of Shenlong (706), Wu Sansi, with the support of Wei Hou and Princess Anle, designed to kill Zhang Kamzhi, Huan Yanfan, Jinghui and others, and Wei Hou surrendered his favor to his lover Wu Sansi to Shangguan Wan'er, and from then on, Shangguan Wan'er turned to Wu Sansi, who was in power and opposition, and threw herself into the arms of the Wei clique and suppressed the imperial family. After Emperor Zhongzong of Tang ascended the throne, Princess Taiping became a newly rising political upstart, and Shangguan Wan'er recommended her new lover Cui Xiang to Princess Taiping.
In the first year of Longyuan (710), Li Longji the Prince of Linzi, the third son of Li Dan the Prince of Xiang, and Princess Taiping launched a palace coup in Chang'an. Shangguan Wan'er was also ready to defect to the newly rising political upstart Li Longji, but was killed because of his lack of loyalty.
From her tragic life and the way she vacillates in the world, we can glimpse the complex relationship between gender and politics and economy, especially the difficulty and helplessness of a woman who is in the vortex of power and cannot extricate herself. She grew up in an unpredictable environment, was fascinated by the complexity and cruelty of the court's political struggles, and in order to survive in a brutal environment, she always did her best to please every political force, swaying between the trade-offs, and constantly choosing to surrender to the new master in the twilight of the dynasty.
The root cause may stem from the fact that everything is centered on personal interests, and people lack a minimum moral bottom line, and it is difficult to win the trust of others.