vrcanaries Chapter 41 Consort Wan
Chapter 41 Consort Wan
Lin Ke gulped down a large bottle of water, her eyes shining with an indescribable light that inexplicably excited people!
If they knew what a "CP" (couple pairing) was, they would definitely know what kind of expression Lin Ke had.
"Next, we'll discuss one of the more controversial figures during Zhu Jianshen's reign—Wan Zhen'er."
"It is well known that the Zhu family produced many devoted lovers, such as Zhu Yuanzhang and Empress Ma, Zhu Di and Empress Xu, Zhu Youcheng and Empress Zhang, etc. Among them, the relationship between Emperor Chenghua and Wan Zhen'er is the most controversial."
Zhu Baba of the Ming Dynasty: My old Zhu and my sister are a match made in heaven!
……
"This brings us back to Emperor Chenghua's father, Zhu Qizhen. Because he went to study in the Oirat Mongols, Zhu Jianshen was made crown prince, and Empress Dowager Sun sent the palace maid Wan Zhen'er to take care of his daily life."
"In the third year of the Jingtai reign, the power struggle between Zhu Qiyu and the court officials made Zhu Jianshen's position increasingly awkward. The palace maids and eunuchs around him dared not approach him, and there were also those who fawned on the powerful and bullied the weak. However, Wan Zhen'er, who was 17 years older than him, was like a ray of light shining in his dark years."
"In the eighth year of the Tianshun reign, Zhu Jianshen ascended the throne. Due to Wan Zhen'er's lowly status, she could only be made a concubine."
"Seventeen-year-old Wu was chosen as empress. Too young, she disliked Wan Zhen'er and, using her authority over the six palaces, had Wan Zhen'er flogged. When Emperor Chenghua learned of this, he was furious, deposed Wu, and made Wang the empress instead."
"This time, Empress Wang is much smarter. Knowing that Wan Zhen'er is favored, she doesn't compete with her for favor."
"In the second year of the Chenghua reign, Wan Zhen'er gave birth to the eldest son of the emperor and was promoted to the rank of Consort, and later to Imperial Noble Consort."
"Unfortunately, the eldest prince died ten months later. Historical records are scarce regarding his death, so the cause remains unknown."
Chenghua 2nd year
After Zhu Jianru learned that his eldest son would die young, he and Zhen'er stayed by his side to watch over him.
Wan Zhen'er cried uncontrollably, unable to understand how a healthy child could die prematurely.
He has no idea what the world is like!
He hasn't called me "mother" yet!
Wan Zhen'er wiped away her tears, her heart resolute. This child is still alive. From today onwards, I will stay by this child's side, even if he eventually dies. I will accept it!
Seeing Wan Zhen'er in such a state, Zhu Jianru was deeply saddened. He decided to ask Miss Lin for help later to see if he could save the child's fate.
……
"At that time, a group of Yao ethnic minority boys were brought into the palace as eunuchs. Wang Zhi, who was only 6 years old, was assigned to work under Consort Wan. He was intelligent and quick-witted, and was deeply favored by Consort Wan."
"Perhaps Consort Wan's grief over the loss of her son was gradually soothed by the arrival of young Wang Zhi."
"The Chenghua Emperor, out of affection for Wang Zhi, promoted him to Grand Eunuch of the Imperial Horse Administration, giving him control over the inner court's finances."
"In addition, Lady Ji, the birth mother of Emperor Xiaozong of Ming (Zhu Youcheng), was also selected to serve as a lady-in-waiting in the palace. By chance, she was favored by Emperor Chenghua and gave birth to a child the following year."
"In the Ming History compiled during the Qing Dynasty, Consort Wan was consistently portrayed as a heinous woman who could not tolerate the birth of other children, and thus persecuted concubines who were pregnant."
"The description of Consort Wan's fondness for abortion in the Ming History compiled by the Qing Dynasty comes from Mao Qiling's The Lost Records of the Ming Dynasty. Mao Qiling saw it in Yu Shenxing's Gushan Notes during the Wanli period of the Ming Dynasty, and Yu Shenxing heard it from an old eunuch in the palace."
Lin Ke: Goodness, one inside another!
"How did this old eunuch know this, and is he reliable? It remains to be investigated, after all, the Wanli era was almost a hundred years after the Chenghua era."
According to records, when Zhu Youcheng's birth mother, Lady Ji, was newly pregnant, Consort Wan was very unhappy. Emperor Chenghua did not want Consort Wan to be sad, so he placed Lady Ji in Anle Hall on the pretext of her illness and sent people to take care of her.
"Later, when Consort Wan found out, she welcomed her into the palace with generous gifts (from Yin Zhi's 'Jianzhai Suozhuilu')."
"As the most powerful Consort Wan in the deep palace, she actually wielded the power of an empress. She was ruthless in the harem. If she were to harm every child she saw, wouldn't the scholars in the court be furious with her?"
"In addition, when Emperor Chenghua was about thirty years old and Consort Wan was about 47 years old, he knew that Consort Wan had no hope of having children, so he began to extend his favor to the concubines in the palace, and 11 children were born one after another."
"After seeing this record, the Qianlong Emperor of the Qing Dynasty angrily wrote an article specifically refuting the claim that Consort Wan had aborted her child (refuting the claim that all the concubines of the Ming Dynasty were forced to abort their pregnancies by Consort Wan)."
"Therefore, the record that Consort Wan killed Emperor Chenghua's children is inaccurate."
"I think it's possible that some scholars deliberately smeared Consort Wan when compiling this history. In addition, Emperor Chenghua's relationship with civil officials wasn't very good, so he was also a target of slander."
"Emperor Xiaozong of Ming was the opposite; he was most respectful to scholars and officials."
"Perhaps it was to highlight the legendary life of Emperor Xiaozong of Ming."
"In the first month of the twenty-third year of the Chenghua reign (1487), Imperial Noble Consort Wan Zhen'er passed away at the age of fifty-eight."
Upon receiving the news, Zhu Jianru burst into tears, lamenting, "With Zhen'er gone, my own life is nearing its end." He presided over Consort Wan's funeral and buried her with the rites due to an empress, suspending court for seven days.
"In August of the same year, the depressed Emperor Ming Xianzong Zhu Jianshen passed away at the age of forty-one."