In terms of the number of concubines, Kangxi was the largest of the Qing emperors, with only 55 recorded. Among these 55 concubines, there are about ten or so Han concubines, what is a Han concubine? That is, the Qing Dynasty's civil Han women who were not in the flag, they were not qualified to participate in the draft, generally by foreign officials to the imperial court, the Kangxi harem of the Han concubine, more famous is Shunyi Secret Concubine, that is, the birth mother of Prince Zhuang Ke Yinlu, Shunyi Secret Concubine gave birth to Kangxi three children, in addition, Kangxi in his later years there was a Han concubine who gave birth to three children, she is Xiang Concubine.
Xiang Concubine Gao was born in the twenty-first year of Kangxi, 28 years younger than Kangxi, and there is no record in the historical records of when Gao entered the palace, but from the perspective of Gao's birth, it should be around the forty years of Kangxi. So, what about Gao's family lineage?
Gao's father was named Gao Tingxiu, a member of the Gao family in Beixiang, Yuyao, Zhejiang, who was a very famous calligrapher, and the Yuyao LiucangZhi said that Gao Tingxiu was "a scholar of bells and kings, and a gentleman who was seen in the middle of the decency", and was once awarded the confucian title of Libu by the imperial court. It can be seen that the Gao family was born in the Shuxiang Mendi family, and it is likely that they have a certain talent and the beauty of a Han woman, and it is not surprising that such a woman was favored by Kangxi.
According to historical records, on the fifth day of September in the 41st year of kangxi, Concubine Gao gave birth to the nineteenth son of the emperor Yin Chan, the nineteenth daughter of the emperor on February 14 of the 42nd year of the Kangxi Dynasty, and the twentieth son of the emperor Yin Yi on July 25 of the 45th year of the Kangxi Dynasty.
There is a problem here, from the birth of the nineteenth son of the Emperor Yin Chan to the birth of the Nineteenth Daughter of the Emperor, there are only five months in between, which is obviously contrary to the law of fertility, and there are two possibilities: First, one of the Nineteenth Son of the Emperor Yin Chan and the Nineteenth Daughter of the Emperor is not born of the Gao clan. Second, there was an error in the birth time record.
Being able to give birth to three children for Kangxi in just four years proves that in those years, Gao was very favored, but even so, Kangxi did not give Gao a reasonable name, and Gao was always a concubine. Of course, this must be related to the Origin of the Gao Clan, on the one hand, it is a low birth, on the other hand, if it is openly canonized, the Emperor of the Qing Dynasty will elect a Nahan woman to the palace as a concubine, which is not good for the reputation of the imperial family.
Of the three children born to Gao, the first two, the nineteenth son of the Emperor, Yin Chan, and the Nineteenth Daughter of the Emperor, died at the age of three. Only the last of the twenty sons of the emperor, Yin Yi, survived, and Yin Yi was promoted to the title of Belle in the eighth year of Yongzheng, and was later demoted to the rank of Duke of Fuguo for his own sake. However, after Qianlong succeeded to the throne, he also made this imperial uncle, who was only five years older than himself, a baylor, and Yin Yi died of illness in the twentieth year of Qianlong at the age of 55, giving him the title of "Jian Jing".
As for Gao himself, because she gave birth to three children for Kangxi and had the emperor's twenty-son Yin Yi survived, and Yin Yi was too young to participate in Kangxi's struggle for concubines in his later years, he was able to die after Yongzheng succeeded to the throne. After Yongzheng succeeded to the throne, he made Gao Shizun an imperial nobleman, and in the harem of the Qing Dynasty, only concubines above the concubines could have titles, so at this time, Gao clan did not have a title.
After Qianlong succeeded to the throne, Gao shi once again received the honorific title of Imperial Concubine. Concubine Gao died about the eleventh year of Qianlong at the age of about 65, relatively speaking, it belongs to a relatively long life.
References: Draft History of the Qing Dynasty, Records of the Ancestors of the Qing Dynasty, Manuscript of the Concubines of the Qing Dynasty