What is history: it is the echo of the past to the future, the reflection of the future on the past. - Hugo
Song Renzong (stills)
In the second year of Tiansheng (1024), Song Renzong, who had been emperor for more than two years, was 15 years old and reached the age of marriage. Empress Dowager Liu'e began to handle marriage affairs for Song Renzong, preparing to select and marry an empress for Song Renzong.
In the fourth year of the founding of the Song Dynasty, that is, in the early years of Song Taizu Qiande (963), Song Taizu once used the "cup of wine to release military power" to induce the leading military subjects to surrender military power. One day in this year, after the "late dynasty" dispersed, Song Taizu left Shi Shouxin and other brothers, former comrades-in-arms, and colleagues to drink and drink until they were happy, and Song Taizu said to Shi Shouxin and others: "I can't get to where I am today without you." But now that I am the Son of Heaven, I am far less happy than when I am a festival, and I can't sleep peacefully all night. Shi Shouxin waited for a moment, stood up from the table, prostrated his head to Song Taizu, and asked: "Today's fate has been decided, who dares to have a different heart, why did Your Majesty say this?" Song Taizu said, "Whoever doesn't want to be rich, once someone puts a yellow robe on you, although you don't want to be an emperor, can you?" Shi Shouxin and others quickly apologized: "The ministers and others are ignorant, they did not expect this matter, but only asked His Majesty to be pitiful and show us the clear way." Song Taizu said: "Life is just like a white colt crossing the gap, you might as well accumulate more wealth, buy fields and houses for your children and grandchildren, buy singers and dancers, listen to music and dance, and enjoy the days and years with joy." And the marriage with the Qing dynasty, the world is harmonious, the upper and lower levels are at peace, and there is no suspicion between the monarchs and the courtiers, isn't it also very good? Shi Shouxin and others immediately praised him, and the next day they all resigned from the military and went to the local area to become rich men who did not participate in political affairs.
Song Taizu did what he said, and in the fourth year of Kaibao (971), he married his second daughter, Princess Yanqing, to Shi Baoji, the second son of Shi Shouxin. Since then, the political marriage with the rich and noble family of the chancellor has become an "ancestral system" of the Song Dynasty.
Before the establishment of the Song Dynasty, Emperor Taizong of Song had married two wives, the first being the daughter of Yin Tingxun of Chuzhou and the sister of Yin Chongke, the envoy of baoxin junjie, but Yin died very early, and the sixth daughter of Fu Yanqing, the king of Later Zhou Wei, also died of illness in the eighth year of Kaibao (975). Soon, Song Taizu took the initiative and married the second daughter of the founding general Li Chuyun for him.
When Song Taizu died, Emperor Taizong of Song succeeded him, continuing his brother's practice of marrying the eighth daughter of the founding general Pan Mei for his son Song Zhenzong. Pan died in May of the second year of Duangong (989), and in the fourth year of Chunhua (993), Emperor Taizong of Song married the second daughter of Guo Shouwen, the founding general and head of Xuanhui Nanyuan, for Emperor Zhenzong of Song.
According to the "ancestral system", Liu E promulgated the "Yi Will", selected women of the right age in the homes of officials in the dprk and various places, entered the palace to "choose" the empress of Song Renzong, and the relevant departments of the inner palace conducted a physical examination of the girls to check whether there was a "hidden disease" and whether she was a virgin, examined her physical appearance and moral character, selected the qualified ones, and "re-selected" by herself and Song Renzong to decide which girl became song Renzong's wife and the empress of the "mother's world".
Liu E
After layers of "sea selection", in the end, the daughter of Wang Mengzheng, a wealthy businessman in Sichuan who bought an official position, the granddaughter of the founding general Guo Chong, and the granddaughter of the founding general Zhang Mei entered the "three choices" and "finals".
Wang Mengzheng's daughter is the most beautiful of the three women, "posture and color crown world". Song Renzong chose her first.
However, This choice of Song Renzong was immediately rejected by Empress Dowager Liu E. Liu E told The Wang daughter that "at first sight she thought that the charm was too great, I was afraid that it would not be conducive to the young lord", and asked Song Renzong to choose again.
Song Renzong was the second to choose Zhang Mei's granddaughter.
However, this choice was still rejected by Liu E. Liu E believed that the appearance and moral character of the Guo women were stronger than those of the Zhang clan women, and insisted on choosing the Guo women, but only agreed, while making the Guo women empresses of Renzong, to include the Zhang women in the palace and become the concubines of Renzong.com.
Song Renzong had no choice but to obey the arrangement of the "mother queen" and marry the guo daughter who he did not like. Later that year, Song Renzong married Guo's daughter, and the 13-year-old Guo's daughter became the "Empress of Zhenggong".
Empress Dowager Guo of Song
However, Song Renzong, who thought he could not marry the woman he liked, suffered another blow: Liu E, after preventing him from marrying Wang Mengzheng's daughter, married the first daughter of the Wang clan to liu congde( a "wish") of her "brother" Liu Mei.
Liu E established her authority with an iron fist and a sharp and gentle power above the court, and by twice vetoing Song Renzong's choice of wife, she more bluntly declared her authority in front of Song Renzong, who was already very much in awe of her.
However, Liu E's approach seriously hurt the self-esteem of Song Renzong, who was in adolescence, hurt Song Renzong's young heart, and caused the pain and misfortune of Song Renzong's married life throughout his life.