Consort Shen - Before The Anshi Rebellion

Before The Anshi Rebellion

It is not known when the future Consort Shen was born, but it is known that her family was from Wuxing (吳興, in modern Huzhou, Zhejiang) and that her clan was a prominent clan in the area. Her father Shen Yizhi (沈易直) had, at one point, served in the imperial government as Mishu Jian (秘書監), the director of the archival bureau (秘書省). Toward of the end of Emperor Xuanzong's Kaiyuan era (713-741), she, as the daughter of a reputable household, was selected for the palace of Emperor Xuanzong's son and crown prince Li Heng, but was from there further given to Li Heng's oldest son, Li Chu the Prince of Guangping. She was not designated Li Chu's wife—and neither was any other consort of his, including the most prominent one, a Consort Cui whose mother was the Lady of Han, a highly honored woman at court due to her status as the sister of Emperor Xuanzong's favorite concubine Consort Yang Yuhuan. She gave birth to Li Chu's oldest son, Li Kuo, in 742.