The real Empress Xiao in history was virtuous and intelligent, and was deeply respected by everyone.
She has a beautiful appearance, a quiet personality, and a lot of troubles in her life. She has been a noble person for many generations and has outstanding literary talent, but she is infamous for all kinds of injustices left by her husband Yang Guang.
Mr. Xiao, the empress of Emperor Yang of Sui Dynasty. According to official history, Empress Xiao was deeply respected by all the kings, but in unofficial history, this legendary woman had the reputation of sleeping with several emperors. History is a long river, vast clouds, and the comments of future generations are true and false, false and true. Who is the legendary Empress Xiao? How is your character? As the place where she and Yang Guang were buried together appeared in Yangzhou, her life experience and fate also became the focus of everyone's attention. Who is Queen Xiao?
In the storytelling "The Romance of the Sui and Tang Dynasties", the title of Empress Xiao is as poetic as the beauty of Jiangnan - Xiao Meiniang.
Volume 36 of "Book of Sui" records Empress Xiao's life experience: the great-granddaughter of Xiao Tong, Prince Zhaoming of the Liang Dynasty, and the daughter of Xiao Kui, Emperor Xiaoming of the Western Liang Dynasty. She was born into the royal family, but due to the custom in the south of the Yangtze River, those born in February are unlucky. , was adopted by his adoptive father Xiao Qian since he was a child. Soon he was sent to his uncle Zhang Ke's house to live under the fence and work by himself. It is a pity that after searching historical books such as "History of the North" and "Biography of the Concubines", there is no record of the name of Empress Xiao. Even randomly fabricated unofficial histories do not make a fuss about the name of Empress Xiao. There are very few written records of Empress Xiao in historical documents, and her name, birth year and other information are not accurately shown. This may be related to her "poor" situation in her childhood. Gu Feng, a researcher at the Municipal Cultural Relics Bureau, said that the record in "Northern History" that Xiao Hou was born in Tianbao five years ago was actually deduced from the sudden age of his adoptive father Xiao Qian.
How to marry Yang Guang?
In the first year of Emperor Kaihuang's reign, Yang Guang was appointed King of Jin by Emperor Wen of Sui Dynasty. At this time, Yang Jian began to worry about his son's marriage. Empress Xiao became the wife of King Jin, and her experience was full of ups and downs.
Back then, Yang Guang had five options for choosing a concubine: the Yuan family of the Northern Wei Dynasty, the Liu family of the Southern Qi Dynasty, the Chen family of the Southern Chen family, the Cui family of the Liang Dynasty, and the Xiao family of the Liang Dynasty. For political reasons, the Xiao family was eventually locked up. For Xiliang, who was already declining, he was extremely nervous when faced with the sudden opportunity to make friends with the royal family. When the news came, the royal family of Xiliang submitted the complete list of princesses in the family to the important ministers sent by the Sui Dynasty to propose marriage. However, because Empress Xiao was sent out of the palace to be fostered by her mother, Concubine Zhang, as soon as she was born, and because it was a custom in Jiangnan at that time that people born in February were unlucky, she was not included in the list.
World events are unpredictable, but it happened that Yang Guang was destined to be a woman born in February, so the forgotten princesses of Queen Xiao were remembered again, and she was successfully promoted to the princess. Where does the favor come from?
When Yang Guang was young, he could be called a literary youth. "Book of Sui Dynasty" records that Yang Guang was studious, good at literature, profound and serious, and optimistic about government and public affairs. The foundation of learning he laid down when he was young has made Yang Guang's surviving poems and articles recognized by future generations as having extraordinary literary talent.
After Empress Xiao married Yang Guang, the couple fell in love with each other. The reason for this is closely related to Empress Xiao's outstanding literary talent. Western Liang was the continuation of Qi and Liang in the Southern Dynasties. Although its territory was small and it became a vassal of Western Wei, Northern Zhou and Sui, Western Liang became a highly cultural country because it inherited the culture of Southern Liang.
In terms of traditional literature in the Southern Dynasties, no royal nobles or common people can compare with the Xiao family. Xiao Daocheng, the founding monarch of Qi Dynasty, was a famous calligrapher. Xiao Yan, Emperor Wu of Liang Dynasty, was famous for his literary works, and many poems and articles were handed down from generation to generation. The name of Xiao Yan's eldest son Xiao Tong is one that everyone looks up to in the history of Chinese literature. Xiao Tong's third son Xiao and grandson Xiao Kui are both famous for their literature. Influenced by such a family culture, Empress Xiao was good at literature, especially the study of Zhouyi, and was good at divination, which laid a solid emotional foundation for her and Yang Guang's life. Empress Xiao grew from a princess to a queen, and Yang Guang treated her with kindness and respect. Empress Xiao became the last person who stayed with Yang Guang when everyone betrayed her relatives and left. What's the point?
Emperor Wen of the Sui Dynasty deposed the prince Yang Yong and established Yang Guang, but Yang Guang eventually became the emperor, and Empress Xiao was indispensable. "Book of the Sui Dynasty" records: The queen is docile in nature, intelligent, eager to learn and understand the text, and knows how to predict the future. The emperor was very kind to him, and he was greatly favored and respected by the emperor. When it came to the throne of the emperor, the edict said: "I only inherit Pi Xu. In the past, my love was built in Changqiu, and I used it to recommend it." The concubine Xiao, who has been trained for a long time and cultivates women's morals, should be in the position of Xuanwei and promote the gentle teaching, so she can be established as a queen.'
It is not difficult to see from this that Empress Xiao's intelligence and gentleness were not only recognized by Emperor Wen of the Sui Dynasty and the powerful Empress Dugu, but also gained the incomparable deep respect of Yang Guang.
In the deep palace, a woman can deal with her parents-in-law who are the emperor and queen, can avoid the plots of the prince gang, and can always help Yang Guang earn points in the emperor's eyes. Empress Xiao's kindness and forbearance are evident. Where is the wisdom?
After Yang Guang proclaimed himself emperor, he carried out extensive construction projects, lavished beautiful women, levied excessive taxes on the people, and indulged in extravagance and lust. Empress Xiao knew that she was immoral and tyrannical, but she did not dare to speak out because of fear, so she made "Shu Zhi Fu" tactfully exhorts. The poem says: In order to celebrate the good deeds accumulated, prepare a dustpan and broom in the imperial court. I'm afraid that if I don't cultivate my reputation, I will be a burden to the ancestors... I was originally determined to be respectful and frugal, but I was secretly concerned about admonishment. Who is more interested in knowing, and I have no hope of abuse of reputation... If Yang Guang can still maintain the status of a literary youth at this time Original color, this article with soft tones, beautiful words and profound meaning may make him think deeply. However, Yang Guang felt too good about himself at this time, and Empress Xiao's insinuations were of no avail.
In the fourteenth year of Daye, Yu Wenhua and others plotted a mutiny. The palace officials reported it to Empress Xiao, who ordered him to submit a memorial. Emperor Yang was furious when he heard the memorial and actually beheaded the palace officials who submitted the memorial. Reporting the news of the mutiny to the Queen again, Queen Xiao sighed: Once the world has reached this point, it is irreversible. Reporting it will only increase the troubles. After that, no one mentioned it again until the Sui Dynasty was overthrown and destroyed. Where does the slander come from?
In the unofficial history of later dynasties, there is a rumor that Empress Xiao actually served the Five Emperors (or even the Sixth and Seventh Emperors). Where did this statement come from?
According to the literature, after Yu Wenhua and Emperor Yang of the Sui Dynasty were killed, Empress Xiao was taken captive by her side and went north with the army until she was welcomed back to Chang'an by Emperor Taizong of the Tang Dynasty. The experience of living under the rule for more than ten years. And this became an excellent subject full of imagination for later generations of unofficial history writers.
The unofficial claim that Empress Xiao had 'one female attendant to many emperors' is extremely ridiculous, completely ignoring the ancients' respect for the royal family, and is purely malicious slander. Gu Feng said that because Emperor Yang of the Sui Dynasty was severely demonized in novels of the Ming and Qing Dynasties, Empress Xiao who followed him and caused disasters was also called a beauty and a disaster. This statement is inconsistent with history. He introduced that after Dou Jiande defeated Liaocheng and captured Yu Wenhua, he mourned Emperor Yang in plain clothes, paid a visit to Empress Xiao, and killed the rebels. In the same year, Li Yuan proclaimed himself emperor, established the Tang Dynasty, and granted Xiao Rong, the eighth brother of Empress Xiao, the Imperial Order of Internal History.
In the second year of Wude in the Tang Dynasty, Princess Yicheng of the Sui Dynasty, who married into the Turks, heard that Empress Xiao and other remaining members of the Sui Dynasty clan were staying at Dou Jiande. Luo Khan of the Turks sent someone to take Empress Xiao and her party to the Turks. They were also treated with courtesy and stayed there. The desert lasted for 10 years. In the fourth year of Zhenguan, the Tang Dynasty defeated the Turks. Emperor Taizong of the Tang Dynasty respectfully welcomed Empress Xiao back to Chang'an and treated her well. Emperor Taizong of the Tang Dynasty was in his early 30s, and Empress Xiao was his mother-in-law, who was already in her 60s at the time. Is it absurd to say that the two were related? People with a little common sense can make their own judgment. Gu Feng said. What does the posthumous title mean?
In the 22nd year of Zhenguan, Empress Xiao died of illness after spending 18 years of stable life in the Central Plains of Chang'an Palace. According to "Zi Zhi Tong Jian·Tang Ji", Emperor Taizong of the Tang Dynasty issued an edict to restore his title, posthumously naming him Min, and sent him to be buried with Emperor Yang of Jiangdu.
In Chinese characters, 捍 means pity and pity, which shows Tang Taizong's attitude towards this legendary woman who had many twists and turns.
In fact, the just-announced tomb of Empress Xiao also confirms the historical data: the tomb was built with great care, with a huge phoenix crown carefully placed on the sides of the remains, and exquisite glazed decoration scattered on the crown. 200 phoenix crowns were also unearthed from the tomb. The remaining funerary objects include sets of 16 bells and 20 chimes, which are rare in China.
So, why did the late empress of the former dynasty receive such a ceremony and be buried with her husband, Emperor Yang of Sui Dynasty, with the posthumous title Min? From a political perspective, Li Yuan, the emperor of the Tang Dynasty, was an old minister of the Sui Dynasty. Emperor Yang of the Sui Dynasty once promoted him to stay in Taiyuan, and the righteousness of the emperor and his ministers came first. It can be said that the funeral ceremony is reasonable and adds points to the image of a benevolent king.
Wei Minghua, a scholar from Yangzhou, lamented that Empress Xiao experienced ups and downs such as losing her legitimate son, subjugating her country, and losing her husband, but she was still able to gain vitality in the war. She never gave up after being displaced, and finally returned to the Central Plains and lived a long life, which is worthy of admiration. (Reporters Wang Peng and Zhao Tian)