In the harem of the emperors of the Qing Dynasty, the harem of the Jiaqing Emperor was the most stable, however, somehow, the harem of the Jiaqing Emperor was also very messy, why? Because the concubine often changed the title, for example, the one I want to talk about today, she changed the title three times, and she was the concubine of the Jiaqing harem.
When it comes to Concubine Zhuang, the first thing that comes to everyone's mind is that it must be Empress Xiaozhuang, and it is true that empress Xiaozhuang's title when she was a concubine was indeed Princess Zhuang, but somehow, more than a hundred years later, another Concubine Zhuang appeared in the Jiaqing Harem. This concubine, whose original surname was Wang, was later changed to Wang Jia, and was a dressed woman from the Ministry of Internal Affairs, and her father, Iribu, was just a literary person, so the Wang clan needed to participate in the palace women's draft held by the Ministry of Internal Affairs.
Around the end of Qianlong's life, the Wang clan stood out in the palace women's draft, but Qianlong did not keep it with him, but rewarded the Wang clan to the fifteen brothers Yongyan, and thus the Wang clan became a servant by Yongyan's side. At that time, this kind of maid was generally called a handmaiden, and if the maid was lucky enough to be favored by the crown prince, then it would be renamed Gege.
Perhaps affected by the family environment, although the Wang family was born low, but had a certain cultural accomplishment, coupled with her beautiful appearance, smart and well-behaved, she was deeply loved by Yong yan, and it did not take long for the Wang family to become Yong Yan's concubine.
In the first year of Jiaqing, Yongyan took over the jade seal symbolizing the highest power in the hands of his father Qianlong and began the rule of the Jiaqing Dynasty. At the same time, the wives and concubines of Jiaqing Qiandi all became imperial concubines of the Qing Dynasty, and the Wang clan was given the title of Chun Chang zai. Although the initial seal of the Wang clan was only a permanent presence, in the subsequent canonizations, the Wang clan did not fall once, Jiaqing three years to seal the spring nobleman, Jiaqing six years jin ji concubine.
In April of the thirteenth year of Jiaqing, Jiaqing's second son Mianning (Daoguang) Xitian's eldest son (Emperor Sun Yiwei), Jiaqing Emperor Longyan Dayue, unified the concubines of the harem, and Wang shi was promoted to ji concubine, and for some reason, a few days later, he changed his title and changed it to Concubine Zhuang. As a result, the Wang clan underwent changes from Chun Changzai, Chun Guiren, Ji Concubine, Ji Concubine and Zhuang Concubine, and there were three titles, which is very rare in the history of the Qing Dynasty.
On February 15, 16006, just three years after Wang shi was promoted to concubine, she regrettably passed away and died in the Yuanmingyuan, and then the Jiaqing Emperor ordered that Wang's golden coffin be temporarily parked in the West Garden.
However, after that, two very strange things happened, first, the Jiaqing Emperor twice came to the coffin of Concubine Zhuang in the West Garden to pay homage. Second, at the subsequent funeral, Empress Xiaoherui of the Middle Palace actually attended, so why did Empress Tangtang Daqing attend the funeral of a concubine? It can only be said that this is Jiaqing's arrangement, so why did Jiaqing arrange for the empress to attend the funeral of Princess Zhuang?
All this shows that Princess Zhuang is an unusual woman who is deeply loved by Jiaqing. Some people may have to say, why didn't Jiaqing posthumously honor wang as a noble concubine? This is actually a good explanation, Jiaqing is a more rule-abiding emperor, everything will be in accordance with the rules of the ancestors, even if he loves a woman, he will not violate the family law or the ancestral system, and can only make up for the Wang clan through other means.
In addition, there is another reason, that is, Princess Zhuang was unable to bear children for the Jiaqing Emperor, and if she was fortunate enough to give birth to a prince or princess, perhaps Jiaqing would also posthumously honor her. However, the Low-born Wang Clan actually won such a great love from the Great Qing Tianzi, presumably she would be very satisfied underground.
References: Archives of the Qing Palace, Records of Emperor Renzong of the Qing Dynasty, Draft History of the Qing Dynasty