Empress Wei Zifu - Family Background and Early Years

Family Background and Early Years

Wei Zifu was born from humble means, as an illegitimate child. She therefore took the family name of her mother's husband, who was a low-level servant at the household of Princess Pingyang (平陽公主), Emperor Wu's sister. Her brother Wei Qing was also an illegitimate child, of a different father. When Wei Zifu was still young, she became a singing dancer at the princess' estate, where she learned music, calligraphy, chess and painting.

Emperor Wu initially loved his newlywed first wife, Empress Chen Jiao, who was his older cousin from a politically arranged marriage. However after Empress Chen was unable to bear him a child after years of marriage, she began to lose favor. This tension further deteriorated after the young Emperor Wu, whose political survival at the time relied heavily on support from his aunt/mother-in-law Princess Liu Piao (劉嫖) after the defeat of his ambitious reform in 139 BC, was forced to submit to the jealous and spoiled Empress Chen.

After attending a ceremonial ritual, Emperor Wu took the opportunity to pay a visit to his sister, who had prepared a collection of young women to offer for his concubinage in order to establish herself political leverage (girls from lowly background, such as Wei Zifu, were not included). However, the plan did not work — all the candidates failed to impress the Emperor. Realizing her brother was bored, the Princess called in the dancers for entertainment. This time, Emperor Wu set his eyes on Wei and had immediately fallen for her beauty. Taking the opportunity of visiting the restroom, the young emperor took advantage on the young singer, whom the Princess ordered to follow in and serve as a handmaid. Princess Pingyang observed the incident and immediately offered Wei to Emperor Wu to become part of his concubinage.

However, what Wei Zifu would experience later on was far from a lovely cinderella story. Upon hearing the arrival of the new girl, Empress Chen made sure Emperor Wu abandon his idea of making Wei his concubine. Wei Zifu was then demoted to an insignificant palace maid and was largely forgotten by the Emperor. More than a year later, feeling hopeless with her life inside the palaces, Wei blended into a queue of palace maids waiting to be expelled (normally those who were too aged or incompetent in palace services) in the hope of getting out. Coincidentally, Emperor Wu happened to be there inspecting the expulsion process, and love soon re-flamed when he saw the tearful Wei pleading to go home.

Wei was made to stay and fell pregnant very shortly later. This was exciting news for Emperor Wu, who was upset over being partially blamed for Empress Chen's infertility. At the time, Emperor Wu's throne was under threat due to his previous political clash with his grandmother Grand Empress Dowager Dou during the failed 139 BC reform, and many royal nobles supported the idea of deposing him under the excuse of being incapable of fathering children, and making his uncle Liu An the successor. Wei Zifu's pregnancy cleared Emperor Wu's name, and ensured her becoming favored over Empress Chen.

Empress Chen became exceedingly jealous of Wei Zifu, and her mother Princess Piao tried to take vengeance by attempting to kidnap and murder Wei's younger brother Wei Qing, who was then a servant at a marquess' household. However, Wei Qing was rescued from the princess' estate by his friends, a group of palace guards led by Gongsun Ao (公孫敖). In response to the incident and as a sign of annoyance towards Empress Chen and Princess Piao, Emperor Wu made Wei Zifu a Consort, a concubine position lower only to the Empress. Wei Qing was appointed the head of the household at Jianzhang Palace, away from where the princess might be able to harm him. While being an imperial concubine, Consort Wei almost monopolized the Emperor's love and bore him three daughters.

In 130 BC, Empress Chen was discovered to have retained witches to use witchcraft in the attempt to restore her husband's love to her and to curse other concubines, aiming at Consort Wei in particular. She was then deposed for this misconduct against imperial moral standards. In 128 BC, Wei Zifu finally bore Emperor Wu his first son, Liu Ju, and she was created Empress later that year. Her son was created Crown Prince in 122 BC.