Friends who have seen the Qing Palace drama must be no stranger to the role of "Ling Concubine". She is gentle and virtuous in "Huan Zhu Ge Ge", she has a deep heart in "Yanxi Raiders", and she is sinister and cunning in "Ruyi Zhuan". However, no matter which version of the Concubine Ling, she was deeply favored by Qianlong, not only gave birth to the most children for Qianlong, but also managed the harem for more than ten years. Even the Jiaqing Emperor, who later succeeded to the throne, was her own son. Concubine Ling worked hard and achieved great feats, and the position of empress was vacant for many years, so why did Qianlong delay in straightening her out? Let's talk about this topic today.
Empress Fucha
During Qianlong's reign, there were two empresses, the first of which was the "White Moonlight" Fucha clan in his heart. Empress Fucha was born into a famous family, her father was Li Rongbao, the governor of Chahar, and her uncle was Ma Qi, the elder of the Three Dynasties of the Qing Dynasty, who received a good family education from an early age, was skilled in etiquette, and understood great righteousness. Therefore, in the fifth year of Yongzheng, he was given marriage by the Yongzheng Emperor to the fourth prince Hongli, the later Qianlong Emperor. In the eighth year of Yongzheng, Empress Fucha gave birth to a second son for Qianlong, and Yongzheng personally named him "Yonglian".
In Qianlong's view, the word "琏" has the meaning of inheriting the throne in the future, so the status of Empress Fucha in Qianlong's mind is even more important. In the first year of Qianlong, Qianlong, who had just succeeded to the throne, secretly made Yonglian the "Crown Prince". Because he hopes to have the eldest son inherit the throne in his own generation. Who would have thought that Yong Lian, who was highly valued, would actually die at the age of 9. Empress Fucha was devastated, and Qianlong was also embellished for five days. Later, Empress Fucha gave birth to the emperor's seventh son, Yong chun, and Qianlong once again made Yong Chunei the heir. However, Yong Chun also died when he was less than two years old.
Qianlong
After repeated blows, Empress Fucha died at the age of 36. After empress Fucha's death, Qianlong was instructed by the empress dowager to make the noble concubine Nala the imperial concubine and the regent of the sixth palace. In the fifteenth year of Qianlong, the Nala clan, who ruled the harem for two years, was made empress by Qianlong. For the Empress Nala clan, Qianlong did not like it, but he did not hate it. Since the empress dowager liked her, Qianlong made her empress.
Originally, the two could still get along harmoniously, but during Qianlong's fourth southern tour, the Nala clan "broke their hair" in front of Qianlong. In Manchu etiquette, hair cutting is a very serious act. Hair cannot be cut easily unless there is a national mourning. Therefore, Qianlong was furious and deposed the empress of the Nala clan, and thereafter promoted Concubine Ling to imperial concubine, and she commanded the harem.
Narasimha
The Nara clan was straightened out after two years of commanding the harem, so why did the noble concubines manage it for 10 years and not become empress until her death? The main reason is her origin. The ancient royal family attached great importance to birth, and if the mother's status was low, the child was not eligible to inherit the throne. For example, in that year, Kangxi once rebuked the eighth prince Yin Yu, saying that his mother's status was lowly, and what qualifications did he have to inherit the throne?
Concubine
And Concubine Ling's origin was equally unbearable. Concubine Ling's original surname was Wei, and her ancestors were wrapped in the Manchurian Zhenghuang Banner. It was not until she entered the harem and was favored by Qianlong that the family was carried into Manchuria with a yellow flag and renamed "Wei Jia". And the empress was not just the empress of Qianlong alone, but the empress of the whole world. This must be done with the consent of all ministers. With the origin of Concubine Ling, it was obvious that she was not qualified to become an empress. Therefore, Qianlong has been dragging her feet and not turning her right. Later, Jiaqing was made crown prince, and Qianlong posthumously honored Concubine Ling as Empress Xiaoyichun.