Dou, the wife of Li Yuan, Emperor Gaozu of the Tang Dynasty. Her father is Dou Yi, the Great Sima of the Northern Zhou Dynasty, and her mother is Princess Xiangyang, the sister of Emperor Wu of the Northern Zhou Dynasty, Yu Wenyong, and Emperor Wu of the Northern Zhou Dynasty is her uncle.
It is said that Mr. Dou was born extraordinary. When he was born, his hair grew to his neck. When he was three years old, his hair was as long as his height. Emperor Wu of Zhou liked her very much as his niece and kept her in the palace since she was a child.
Dou loved reading very much. When he was very young, he read biographies such as "Nv's Commandments" and "Lienv", and knew all the books he read by heart. Maybe it’s because I read a lot of books since I was a child and have a high level of political awareness.
The relationship between his uncle Emperor Zhou Wu and the queen (a Turkic princess) was not very good after their marriage, so he no longer wanted to pamper the queen. Dou, who was only six or seven years old, told her uncle that the Turks are now very powerful and if you treat your aunt badly, you will definitely anger the Turks. My uncle should be nicer to my aunt. Only by joining forces with the Turks can we stabilize our power in the Northern Zhou Dynasty.
Dou said such words at such a young age, which shocked everyone. Seeing that what she said was reasonable, my uncle accepted her opinion.
When Yang Jian replaced the Northern Zhou Dynasty and established the Sui Dynasty, Dou cried loudly and said: I really hate that I am not a man and can't save my uncle in danger. Father Dou Yi quickly covered her mouth and said: If you say that again, it will bring death to us! Dou Yi and his wife felt that Dou's talent and appearance were amazing and they could not just marry any man. They must find a man with both talent and appearance for their daughter.
Mrs. Dou has reached the age of marriage, and everyone who comes to her house to propose marriage has crossed the threshold. Although the threshold has been broken, no suitable person has appeared. The way the Dou family chooses a bride is to place a screen with a peacock painted on it in the middle of the room. Anyone who proposes marriage must shoot the peacock with an arrow. Many people came in one after another, but none of them were hit.
One day, Li Yuan also came. He shot two arrows, one hitting the peacock's left eye and the other hitting the peacock's right eye. The father and daughter were so happy that Li Yuan was shot that they opened their mouths from ear to ear, and decided that it was him. This is also where the idiom "squeezed on the screen" comes from.
After Dou and Li Yuan got together, they had a good relationship as a couple. She is also very kind to Li Yuan's family and is very filial to her mother-in-law. Li Yuan's mother has been bedridden and has a bad temper. She curses people when she is unhappy. The other sisters-in-law in the family were afraid of being scolded and did not dare to take care of her mother-in-law. Only Mrs. Dou stayed by her mother-in-law's bed and took care of her every step of the way. Later, her mother-in-law, who had always been very picky, was also moved by her and often praised her in front of Li Yuan.
Dou grew up in the imperial palace. He was familiar with politics, loved reading history books, and was also good at calligraphy. The couple have nothing to do and like to write and write in the study. Mr. Dou likes to imitate Li Yuan's handwriting very much, and it can be so fake that most people can tell which handwriting is Dou's and which is Li Yuan's.
After marriage, Dou gave birth to four sons and one daughter to Li Yuan. The four sons were Li Jiancheng, Li Shimin, Li Xuanba, and Li Yuanji. The daughter was Princess Pingyang Li Xiuning.
Mrs. Dou was familiar with politics when she was very young. After Li Yuan got together with her, she helped Li Yuan a lot. After Yang Guang came to power, he liked fine horses very much. Li Yuan got some good horses and kept them himself. When Dou knew about it, he advised Li Yuan to donate these good horses to Yang Guang. Li Yuan was reluctant to part with these fine horses and never dedicated them to Yang Guang. Later, Yang Guang found out and was demoted.
After that, Li Yuan saw that the political affairs of the dynasty were in chaos, and ministers often lost their heads. In order to protect himself, Li Yuan searched everywhere for a good horse to offer to Yang Guang. After Yang Guang got the horse, he was really happy and promoted Li Yuan to general. Li Yuan sobbed and said to the children: If I had listened to your mother, I would have become a general long ago, why would I have to suffer so much!
At the end of the Sui Dynasty, Li Yuan continued to fight abroad. Dou had to take care of his family and was always worried about Li Yuan's safety. He died of illness at the age of forty-five due to overwork.
After the establishment of the Tang Dynasty, Li Yuan posthumously named the Dou family Queen Mu. In the 9th year of Zhenguan, her son Li Shimin honored her as Empress Taimu. The knowledgeable, kind and virtuous Ms. Dou ultimately did not wait until her husband achieved great success, but her beautiful qualities are an example for future generations to learn from.