After Removal As Empress
Empress Xu was presumably still given the proper supplies as a former empress, but obviously she was distressed about the loss of her status and her freedom. Circa 10 BC, she would make an attempt to better her situation. At that time, her sister Xu Mi (her name is not part of Unicode), after the death of her husband Han Bao (韓寶) the Marquess of Long'e, carried on an affair with Emperor Cheng's powerful cousin Chunyu Zhang, who was well-trusted by Emperor Cheng and considered a possible successor to their uncle Wang Gen as the commander of the armed forces. Empress Xu asked her sister to ask Chunyu to intercede on her behalf, and she gave Chunyu many gifts. Her intent was to regain her freedom and again become an imperial consort—she was initially not hopeful of regaining her empress status. Chunyu, in order to continue to get gifts from her, deceived her and told her that he would try to have her made "left empress" —i.e., returned to empress status in an inferior role to Empress Zhao—. Chunyu had no actual intentions to help her, however.
Chunyu himself was in trouble, however, in 8 BC. Wang Gen was ill at the time, and there was speculation that Chunyu would succeed him. Wang Gen's nephew Wang Mang, who also wanted to succeed Wang Gen, obtained information about Chunyu's corruption and reported the information to Wang Gen and Empress Dowager Wang, who became so angry that she had Emperor Cheng expel Chunyu from the imperial court and be returned to his march. Chunyu, before he left the capital, gave his horses and luxurious carts to his cousin Wang Rong (王融)—the son of his uncle Wang Li (王立), with whom he had a running feud—. Wang Li, happy with Chunyu's gift, submitted a petition requesting that Chunyu be allowed to remain at the capital—which drew Emperor Cheng's suspicion because he knew of the feud between Wang Li and Chunyu. He ordered Wang Rong be arrested, and Wang Li, in his panic, ordered his son to commit suicide—which in turn caused Emperor Cheng to become even more suspicious. He therefore had Chunyu arrested and interrogated. Chunyu admitted to how he had deceived Empress Xu and received bribes from her, and he was executed. In the aftermaths, Emperor Cheng forced Empress Xu to commit suicide.
| Chinese royalty | ||
|---|---|---|
| Preceded by Empress Wang Zhengjun |
Empress of Western Han Dynasty 31 BC – 18 BC |
Succeeded by Empress Zhao Feiyan |
Read more about this topic: Empress Xu (Cheng)
Famous quotes containing the words removal and/or empress:
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