Empress Zhang (Suzong) - As Princely Consort

As Princely Consort

During Emperor Xuanzong's Tianbao era (742-756), the future Empress Zhang was selected to be a concubine for Emperor Xuanzong's son and crown prince Li Heng, and she carried the title of Liangdi, the highest rank for the Crown Prince's concubines. It was said that after he was forced to divorce his wife Crown Princess Wei in 746, she became his favorite consort. She was said to be intelligent and well-spoken, and she knew how to please him.

In 755, the general An Lushan launched a major rebellion against Emperor Xuanzong's rule, and in 756 was approaching the capital Chang'an, forcing Emperor Xuanzong and Li Heng to flee. On the way to Jiannan Circuit (劍南, roughly modern Sichuan and Chongqing), however, Li Heng left Emperor Xuanzong's train and instead, following the suggestion of his son Li Tan the Prince of Jianning, decided to head for important border military outpost Lingwu to gather troops there to prepare for counterattack. On the way there, he had very few guards, and at night, Consort Zhang would always sleep to the outside of the Crown Prince. When Li Heng told her, "It is not a woman's responsibility to fight the bandits," she responded, "I am afraid that sudden disaster would occur. If it does, I can use my body to shield you, and Your Royal Highness can get away." Once they got to Lingwu, she gave birth to a child, but immediately got up just three days after birth to sew clothes for soldiers. When Li Heng asked her to rest, she responded, "This is no time for me to be idle." He thereafter favored her even more. She would eventually bear two sons for him, Li Shao (李佋) and Li Tong (李侗).