Shangguan Wan'er was a well-known talented woman during the Tang Dynasty (618-907 AD) and one of the outstanding women in Chinese history. Shangguan Wan'er (664 – July 21, 710 AD) was born into a family of eunuchs, Shangguan Wan'er's grandfather Shangguan Yi (608 – 665 AD) was the chancellor of the Tang Dynasty, and her father Shangguan Tingzhi (626 – 664 CE) was also a court official of the Tang Dynasty. Between 664 and 665 (the first year of Lin De, the era name of Emperor Gaozong of Tang), the two were imprisoned for opposing Wu Zetian's accession to power and politics, and died in prison.
▲Shangguan Wan'er
Shangguan Wan'er's mother, Zheng Shi (Lady Peiguo), when she was pregnant with Shangguan Wan'er, once dreamed while sleeping, and dreamed that a giant was holding a large scale in his hand, as if measuring the world. Later, after giving birth to Shangguan Wan'er, he teased her: "In the future, could it be that you, the ugly girl, will weigh the world?" Shangguan Wan'er, who had just turned a full moon, immediately responded to her with "Ya Ya". Shangguan Wan'er was born on the same day that her grandfather Shangguan Yi and father Shangguan Tingzhi were framed and imprisoned.
The affected Zheng clan was punished by Wu Zetian as a concubine (harem concubine living in the back room), and Shangguan Wan'er, who was still in infancy, was also brought into the palace.
13 years later, under the careful cultivation of her mother Zheng, Shangguan Wan'er, who came out of nowhere, was not only sweet-looking, but also talented and intelligent. Every time you learn a poem, you can recite it immediately, and it is deeply loved by everyone in the palace. Shangguan Wan'er is not only proficient in poetry and song, piano, chess, calligraphy and painting, singing and dancing. At a young age, he can make otherworldly verses.
This matter quickly reached Wu Zetian's ears, and then she passed on the edict to Shangguan Wan'er to see her. Shangguan Wan'er was properly courteous and not humble. Wu Zetian asked Fang Ling what books he usually read and what kind of talents he would have. Wan Er answered correctly one by one.
▲Shangguan Wan'er stills
Wu Zetian saw that this Shangguan Wan'er was born beautiful and well-behaved, with a calm attitude, a polite and elegant conversation, and a joy in his heart. Finally, he came up with a question to test her, and asked her to write a five-law poem on the theme of cutting ribbon flowers. After Shangguan Wan'er pondered for a moment, she wrote it out in her hand and presented it to Wu Zetian for review. Wu Zetian picked up the poem manuscript, only to see juanxiu's verse written on the white poem:
The leaves are cut and vomited, and the new flowers are soothed one by one.
Although the climbing strip is not false, the picking is false.
Spring solstice has come and gone, and autumn has not yet been neglected.
Borrowing tao will be Li, how chaotic is it.
——Shangguan Wan'er, "Fenghe Sacred System Li Spring Day Waiter Banquet Inner Temple Out of the Colored Flowers Should Be Made"
After Wu Zetian finished reading it, he praised it one after another. After pondering for a moment, he asked Shangguan Wan'er, "These last two sentences: Borrowing Tao General Li, how chaotic is it?" What does that mean? Shangguan Wan'er replied, "Your Majesty the Queen of Heaven, there is no fixed explanation for the slave to hear the poem, but depends on the state of mind of the person who reads the poem." If Her Majesty the Queen of Heaven said that the slave maid was insinuating, the slave maid did not dare to argue. ”
As soon as Shangguan Wan'er said this, everyone at the scene was frightened and stunned, believing that Shangguan Wan'er had run into a big disaster. Who knew that Wu Zetian immediately took the case and said happily: "Well said, I like your personality!" Wu Zetian was touched and told the story of how she was summoned to the palace by Emperor Taizong (626-649 AD) when she was fourteen years old and tamed a lion (a fierce horse).
And Wu Zetian also saw the shadow of himself in Shangguan Wan'er, so he left this wise and stubborn woman who had hatred with himself to supervise and spur himself. At the moment, Shangguan Wan'er was named a "talented person" (with duties similar to that of a current secretary) and put her in charge of the edicts in the palace.
According to the New Book of Tang, "Taste the will, be damned, and then regret its talents, and stop the qíng without killing it." Translated into the vernacular: "Shangguan Wan'er said something rebellious to the emperor, and he should have asked her, but Wu Tianhou cherished her talent and punished her with a plum blossom in her forehead." ”
Shangguan Wan'er was grateful for Wu Zetian's non-killing feelings and had always been politically loyal to Wu Zetian. Later, after Wu Zetian ascended the throne as emperor, he taught her to handle the song chapter. Later, he even delegated the power to let Shangguan Wan'er handle the chapters of the civil and military officials on her behalf and participate in government affairs, and Shangguan Wan'er's power grew stronger and stronger!
Later, wu Zetian (624 AD – December 16, 705 AD) died and Tang Zhongzong (李 Xian, 656 AD – 710 AD) ascended the throne, and Shangguan Wan'er was given the title of Zhaorong, and as a tang imperial concubine, he was in charge of the inner court and the outer court.
At that time, Shangguan Wan'er was amazingly talented, unparalleled in the world, and you were an imperial concubine, which can be described as the peak of her life. But no one in the world is perfect. Shangguan Wan'er's perfect life, but there is a fatal point, the private life is extremely unruly!
When it comes to Shangguan Wan'er's emotional problems, the first and only object of pure love is Wu Zetian's second son, Li Xian (January 29, 655 – March 13, 684). At that time, when she was still serving at Wu Zetian's side, Shangguan Wan'er could often see Li Xian (Prince Zhang Huai) who entered the palace to meet, and the young girl was ignorant of her heart, and she had a long relationship with Li Xian. Unfortunately, after Li Xian was deposed as crown prince by Wu Zetian, he was demoted to Bazhou. Later, when Shangguan Wan'er went to Bazhou to visit Li Xian, she learned that Li Xian had died. He built a pavilion on the "Sunning Stone" that Li Xian used to often turn over and dry the scriptures, and wrote a poem inscribed on the pavilion to remember Li Xian. At this point, Shangguan Wan'er's first love is completely over!
Later, Shangguan Wan'er became a concubine of Emperor Zhongzong of Tang and was crowned Zhaoyi (one of the concubines' titles). However, Shangguan Wan'er was also mixed up with Wu Sansi (649 – August 7, 707 AD, Wu Zhou Zai Chancellor, Wu Zetian's nephew), and it was also an open "secret" in the harem. In this regard, the main history clearly records it as "the point of indiscretion in private life". (Those 2 words can not appear on the platform, interested officials to find their own)
At the time of the Shenlong Coup (705 AD), Shangguan Wan'er and Princess Taiping (c. 665 AD – August 1, 713 AD) secretly communicated with each other. After Wu Zetian stepped down, he continued to be used by the Li Tang imperial family and became Emperor Zhongzong of Tang and Empress Wei (?) – Confidant of July 21, 710 AD. Later, in order to win over Wu Sansi's father and son, Emperor Zhongzong of Tang remarried Shangguan Wan'er to Wu Sansi, and from then on Shangguan Wan'er was tied to the ship of Emperor Zhongzong of Tang's Li Xian.
In the third year of shenlong (707 AD), Li Xian's crown prince Li Chongjun (?) - In 707, the birth mother is unknown) and Li Duozuo (the general of the right Lin general, in charge of the forbidden army), Li Chengquan (the grandson of Li Linggui of the Tang Dynasty), dugu Yizhi (the general of Zuo Yulin), and others launched a mutiny, killing Wu Sansi and Wu Chongxun. At that time, Shangguan Wan'er did not escape death in the palace.
However, the crown prince Li Chongjun led an army to continue to attack the imperial city, intending to kill Shangguan Wan'er and then quickly. Although the coup failed, it was undoubtedly a blow to Shangguan Wan'er, and the crown prince Li Chongjun was defeated and killed, and Shangguan Wan'er was also one of the murderers.
Another protagonist of the Tang Long coup (July 21, 710 CE), Li Longji, the third son of Emperor Ruizong of Tang (662-716 AD), although he had no friendship with Shangguan Wan'er, he had already seen That Shangguan Wan'er as unpleasant. Moreover, the cake (power) was about to be divided, and Tang Xuanzong Li Longji (September 8, 685 – May 3, 762 AD) would not continue to let Shangguan Wan'er continue to live, which would only make his opponent Princess Taiping more powerful.
Therefore, when Liu Youqiu (655-715 AD, Tang Dynasty chancellor) took evidence of Princess Taiping's conspiracy with Shangguan Wan'er to intercede for Shangguan Wan'er, Li Longji did not agree and immediately beheaded Shangguan Wan'er. At that time, the generals thought that Li Longji had killed the red eye, but in fact, this was Li Longji's very wise choice. The once pure girl Shangguan Wan'er has now transformed into a demon of the country.
▲Shangguan Wan'er epitaph
In September 2013, Shangguan Wan'er's tomb was found in Xi'an, along with a 1,000-word epitaph unearthed. The history books about Shangguan Wan'er's death read like this: "In 710, Li Longji, who was the king of Linzi at the time, joined forces with Princess Taiping to kill Wei Hou and Princess Anle (Li Shu'er, 684 AD – July 21, 710 AD) and others. Shangguan Wan'er was killed by the rebels at the age of 46. However, in the epitaph unearthed with The Tomb of Shangguan Wan'er, there is no mention of her cause of death.