Preface
In the long river of history, the duty of being the queen in charge of the harem has been vividly interpreted by two women - Ruyi and Fucha. However, the difference between the two when they are in charge of the harem is obvious, and one can't help but wonder how these two queens present a completely different harem style.
Today, let's take a closer look at the similarities and differences between the two queens, Ruyi and Fucha, when they were in power, and reveal their styles and techniques in the court. It's a story about court politics, female intelligence, and history, a subtle moment in how harem nuances can affect an entire dynasty. Follow us through time and feel the ancient world full of power and elegance.
At the beginning of the new dynasty, the treasury was cleared and the rich and the poor were cleared, and the queen went all out to curry favor with Qianlong
In 1735, Hongli, who was only 24 years old, ascended the throne as Emperor Qianlong. At that time, he had just stabilized his country, facing enemies on all sides, the treasury was empty, and the political situation had yet to be consolidated. In order to gain the support of his subjects, Qianlong made up his mind to be a wise monarch. At that time, Fucha was already his favorite concubine, the 25-year-old Fucha was beautiful and intelligent, Qianlong admired her talent and ambition, and planned to make her a follower.
In 1736, Fucha got her wish and became empress. She has a strong personality and is more vicious than men. In order to fundamentally consolidate her position and curry favor with Qianlong, she was determined to promote a hard and simple lifestyle in the harem, and work with the emperor to reduce the burden on the treasury and establish her own image.
Empress Fucha's frugal policy was cruel and ruthless
From the very beginning of his tenure, Fucha advocated extreme thrift measures in the harem. She cut the daily expenses of the harem concubines and simplified their food, clothing, housing and transportation to an unimaginable extent. She stopped giving most of the concubines' pocket money, forcing everyone to live the most humble life. There is no regard for their status. Those concubines who had no worries about food and clothing instantly became commoners who could barely make ends meet. This made the harem full of complaints.
What's more, when the harsh winter in the north came, Fucha also reduced the number of charcoal used for heating the harem. All the concubines could only tremble and hide in the cold palace to starve and freeze. It was hell for them.
However, Empress Fucha, who caused all this, herself lived a pure-hearted life with few desires. There are almost no luxuries to be seen in her extremely simple Changchun Palace, and all she uses are the most ordinary daily necessities. This made everyone no longer find a reason to oppose her, so they could only swallow their anger.
Zhen Huan stopped Queen Fucha's crossing of the branch
Under the cruel policy, many concubines have become unsustainable. Finally, on a cold winter night, Zhen Huan, who had witnessed the tragic death of her parents, couldn't stand it anymore. She decided to stand up and scold Fucha for being unkind and unjust in front of everyone.
Fucha was reprimanded by the agitated Zhen Huan and was embarrassed. The rest of the concubines also expressed strong dissatisfaction and almost rebelled. Only then did Fucha realize that his policy was too extreme, and he had to immediately cancel those harsh measures and restore the original clothing, food, housing and transportation of the concubines.
This incident also made Fucha realize that his majesty alone was not enough to suppress everyone. In order to consolidate her position, she softened her means and slightly lightened the control of her concubines, so that they could live more comfortably. The concubines did not dare to openly oppose the queen anymore, and could only secretly endure the cruelty and hypocrisy of Fucha.
The kind and friendly Empress Ruyi brought warmth to everyone
In 1765, the Qianlong Empire, which had been on the throne for 30 years, was growing in strength and had a rich treasury. He named the gentle and intelligent Ruyi as the queen. Ruyi is empathetic, and immediately after she took office, she restored the original clothing, food, housing and transportation of the concubines, and turned the harem into a luxurious and warm paradise.
Ruyi's dormitory, Changchun Palace, is resplendent with gold, and the walls are full of priceless calligraphy, paintings and gold treasures. This is in sharp contrast to the extreme simplicity of Empress Fucha back then. Ruyi never made things difficult for the concubines, gave them sufficient living expenses, and let them have no worries about food and clothing.
Empress Ruyi's kindness and kindness are like a mother, and she often takes care of sick palace maids and concubines herself. Her easy-going personality and gentle attitude made her popular in the harem and loved by the emperor and concubines. Many concubines were sincerely loyal to her.
Empress Ruyi's excessive trust led to a split in the palace
However, Ruyi's weakness and kindness also caused her trouble. She gave her concubines too much freedom, and as a result, there were many factions in the harem. The ambitious concubines began to fight in secret.
Ruyi treated them well, but they were ungrateful and openly confronted the queen. Ruyi didn't have any harsh means to discipline them, so she could only let these brutal people do evil. Emperor Qianlong was also helpless about this, so he could only let them go.
The death of Empress Ruyi left thousands of people grief-stricken
In 1777, Ruyi died of illness at the age of 48. Her sudden death made the entire harem excited, and countless concubines and palace maids wept bitterly. The grief of that true emotion is all moving. This is in stark contrast to the hypocritical condolences that people had for Fucha back then.
Ruyi has hardly been harsh on others in her life, and her innocent and kind character makes all the concubines love and respect her from the bottom of their hearts. They mourned Ruyi's death. This is the power of the queen, which can make tens of thousands of people sincerely obey her and love her.
The atmosphere of the harem changes dramatically with the change of queens. Fucha and Ruyi represent two extremes respectively, the harshness of the former and the kindness of the latter make two completely different worlds appear in the harem. How much power the queen has, and how many people's fates they can change, it is all self-evident.
epilogue
As the main mother of the harem, the queen holds the power of life and death of tens of thousands of concubines, and her eyes and smiles can determine the fate of an ordinary woman. Fucha and Ruyi, two queens with very different personalities, have caused earth-shattering changes in the entire harem.
Fucha's extremely harsh style not only made the concubines live in dire straits, but also made them more in awe of the queen than in love. That kind of loyalty, which is based on fear, will quickly collapse once the queen falls.
But Ruyi used her gentle and loving attitude to sincerely influence every concubine and gain their heartfelt followers. Even if Ruyi is gone, the concubines' thoughts about her will always remain in their hearts.
History is always strikingly similar. The power in the hands of each queen comes from the trust and favor of the emperor. They either forced their subjects to submit by harsh means, or they moved everyone with sincere love. These two completely different styles of work have changed the atmosphere of the whole country. The so-called queen has the absolute power to rewrite the fate of others. How they use this power will determine the rise and fall of a dynasty.