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67-648: As a place name, 'Xiangxiang' dates back to BCE 3 in the Eastern Han dynasty when Emperor Ai of Han ( 刘欣 ) bestowed it upon Changsha Prince Liu Chang ( 刘昌 ). In the years leading up to 1952, Xiangxiang's territory included present day Shaoshan , Shuangfeng County and Loudi . There are numerous township-level divisions in Xiangxiang. This Hunan location article is a stub . You can help Misplaced Pages by expanding it . Emperor Ai of Han Emperor Ai of Han , personal name Liu Xin (劉欣; 25 BC – 15 August 1 BC),

134-561: A long line of emperors, all married of course, with male companions listed in their official histories. Ai bestowed honors on Dong at a rate which alarmed the court. Dong and his wife moved into the palace, and Dong's sister became an imperial consort. Dong's father was made an acting marquess (關內侯). Emperor Ai also ordered that a residence as luxurious as an imperial palace be built for Dong. All who opposed these honors for Dong were severely punished. In 3 BC, against opposition by his prime minister Wang Jia (王嘉), Emperor Ai created Dong

201-545: A bear which had broken loose. Princess Dowager Feng, realizing that Empress Dowager Fu was behind the investigation, went back to her palace and died by suicide. In total, 17 members of the Feng clan died as a result of the investigations. This was immediately viewed as a political case, and officials and the people all became disappointed in Emperor Ai. In 5 BC, Empress Dowager Fu would finally get what she wanted. Emperor Ai removed

268-446: A eunuch, Shi Li (史立), to serve as investigator, and Shi tortured a good number of Princess Dowager Feng's relations (including her sister Feng Xi (馮習) and her sister-in-law Junzhi (君之)), some to death, but still could not build a solid case against Princess Dowager Feng. Shi Li decided to show Princess Dowager Feng who was actually behind the investigation, by referring to an incident in which then-Consort Feng defended Emperor Yuan against

335-456: A eunuch, Shi Li (史立), to serve as investigator, and Shi tortured a good number of Princess Dowager Feng's relations (including her sister Feng Xi (馮習) and her sister-in-law Junzhi (君之), some to death, but still could not build a solid case against Princess Dowager Feng. Shi Li decided to show Princess Dowager Feng who was actually behind the investigation, by referring to the wild bear incident. Princess Dowager Feng, realizing that Empress Dowager Fu

402-551: A grandmother of the future Emperor Ping —resulted in Consort Feng being falsely accused of witchcraft and subsequently being forced to die by suicide. During Emperor Ai's reign, he also stripped the Wang clan (Empress Wang's clan), which had been powerful during Emperor Cheng's reign, of much of their power, and substituted members of the Fu and Ding clans in their stead (which, ironically, caused

469-457: A major controversy. Initially, Grand Empress Dowager Wang decreed that Princess Dowager Fu and Consort Ding see him periodically, every 10 days. However, Princess Dowager Fu quickly began to visit her grandson everyday, and she insisted that two things be done: that she receive an empress dowager title, and that her relatives be granted titles, like the Wangs. Grand Empress Dowager Wang, sympathetic of

536-550: A similar posthumous demotion to "Consort Ding"). Against Grand Empress Dowager Wang's initial sentiment of stopping the punitive actions at this point, Wang Mang went further. In 5, he persuaded Grand Empress Dowager Wang to allow him to disinter Consorts Fu and Ding's caskets and strip their bodies of jade burial shells, and then returned to Dingtao to be buried there. Their tombs were then completely flattened and surrounded with thorns. According to legend, when their tombs were opened up, great fires started, damaging their bodies and

603-411: A succession struggle would erupt. As Crown Prince Ao grew older, Emperor Yuan became increasingly unhappy with his fitness as imperial heir and impressed with Consort Fu's son, Prince Kang. Several incidents led to this situation. One happened in 35 BC, when Emperor Yuan's youngest brother Prince Liu Jing of Zhongshan (中山王劉竟) died, Emperor Yuan became angry when he felt that the teenage Crown Prince Ao

670-486: A variation of the grand empress dowager title ( ditaitaihou (帝太太后), compared to Grand Empress Dowager Wang's title taihuangtaihou (太皇太后)) and his mother a variation of the empress dowager title ( ditaihou (帝太后), compared to Empress Dowager Zhao's title huangtaihou (皇太后)), and there were therefore now four official empresses dowager in the capital, each with a full budget. Grand Empress Dowager Fu died in February 2 BC, and

737-621: Is done for his birth father. Emperor Cheng's desire to have Prince Xin act as only his son extended to the arena of Prince Xin's relationship with his grandmother Consort Fu and his mother Consort Ding. Emperor Cheng decreed that Consort Fu (now princess dowager of Dingtao) and Consort Ding be required to remain in Dingtao and not be allowed to come to Chang'an to visit Prince Xin. Some time later, Emperor Cheng's mother Empress Dowager Wang , not wanting to continue these harsh regulations, decreed that Princess Dowager Fu be allowed to see Prince Xin, under

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804-520: Is known that it happened during his years as crown prince – but after his eventual wife Empress Wang became a consort of his. She and Consort Feng Yuan became his favorite concubines , and each of them bore him a son. Consort Fu's son was Liu Kang (劉康), who later was created the Prince of Jiyang in April or May 41 BC, then Prince of Shanyang in 34 BC, then Prince of Dingtao in 27 BC. Having her husband's love, she

871-499: The Marquess of Gao'an. The following year, the prime minister submitted a report to Emperor Ai, in which he urged that the honors bestowed on Dong be curbed. This report was carefully worded to appear to be looking out for Dong. It warned that Dong might suffer the same fate of Emperor Wen 's favorite Deng Tong (鄧通), who starved to death after his assets were confiscated by Emperor Wen's heir, or of Emperor Wu 's favorite Han Yan (韓嫣), who

938-479: The Wang clan and eventually the desecration of her tomb after her death. Consort Fu's father was from the Commandery of Henei (roughly modern Handan , Hebei ) and died early. Her mother remarried a man named Zheng (鄭) after her father's death. When Consort Fu was young, she was a lady-in-waiting for Grand Empress Dowager Shangguan . It is not known when exactly Consort Fu became a consort to Emperor Yuan, but it

1005-484: The Wangs. Grand Empress Dowager Wang, sympathetic of the bind that Emperor Ai was in, first granted Prince Kang the unusual title of "Emperor Gong of Dingtao" (定陶共皇) and then, under the rationale of that title, granted Princess Dowager Fu the title "Empress Dowager Gong of Dingtao" (定陶共皇太后) and Consort Ding the title "Empress Gong of Dingtao" (定陶共皇后). Several members of the Fu and Ding clans were created marquesses. Grand Empress Dowager Wang also ordered her nephew Wang Mang ,

1072-608: The administration. Several members of the Dong clan became important officials as well, displacing the Fus and the Dings after Grand Empress Dowager Fu died in February 2 BC. Emperor Ai died in August 1 BC. It is not clear what the exact cause of death was, but he appeared to succumb to illnesses from which he had always suffered. On his deathbed, Ai ordered that his throne be passed on to Dong Xian, but this

1139-432: The bind that Emperor Ai was in, first granted Prince Kang the unusual title of "Emperor Gong of Dingtao" (定陶共皇) and then, under the rationale of that title, granted Princess Dowager Fu the title "Empress Dowager Gong of Dingtao" (定陶共皇太后) and Consort Ding the title "Empress Gong of Dingtao" (定陶共皇后). Several members of the Fu and Ding clans were created marquesses. Grand Empress Dowager Wang also ordered her nephew Wang Mang ,

1206-667: The brothers did not see each other again alive, as Prince Kang died in September or October 23 BC and was succeeded by his son Prince Xin. Princess Dowager Fu continued to carry her title after her son's death (as Han Dynasty did not appear to have a title such as "grand princess dowager"), and she maintained a strong grip on her grandson, the person now that she wants to eventually become emperor. As Emperor Cheng continued to be sonless, in 9 BC, he considered making either his younger brother Prince Liu Xing of Zhongshan or his nephew Prince Xin his heir. Emperor Cheng became convinced that Prince Xin

1273-437: The capital, each with a full budget. That year, the new Empress Dowager Ding died on 9 July. During these years, other than the palatial infighting, what plagued Emperor Ai's administration (not unlike how it plagued his uncle Emperor Cheng's administration) was the general situation where good proposals would be made to Emperor Ai, and then he would approve of them personally but not take any actual actions on them. Further, he

1340-443: The commander of the armed forces, to resign and transfer power to the Fus and the Dings. Emperor Ai declined and begged Wang Mang to stay in his administration. Several months later, however, Wang Mang would come into direct confrontation with now-Empress Dowager Fu. At a major imperial banquet, the official in charge of seating placed Empress Dowager Fu's seat next to Grand Empress Dowager Wang's. When Wang Mang saw this, he rebuked

1407-453: The commander of the armed forces, to resign and transfer power to the Fus and the Dings. Emperor Ai declined and begged Wang Mang to stay in his administration. Several months later, however, there would be another direct confrontation between Wang Mang and now-Empress Dowager Fu. At a major imperial banquet, the official in charge of seating placed Empress Dowager Fu's seat next to Grand Empress Dowager Wang's. When Wang Mang saw this, he rebuked

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1474-458: The daughter of his grandmother Princess Dowager Fu's cousin Fu Yan (傅晏), empress. Emperor Ai, aged 20 at his ascension, quickly ended Emperor Cheng's practice of delegating imperial authorities to his uncles and cousins of the Wang clan and appeared diligent in his rule. He also reduced spending greatly. Both the officials and the people thought that after the reigns of the indecisive Emperor Yuan and

1541-446: The demoralization of the people towards the government and the acquisition of power by Wang Mang , in a backlash, after Ai died in 1 BC. Emperor Ai was also famous for being the most effusive homosexual emperor of the Han dynasty. Traditional historians characterized the relationship between Emperor Ai and Dong Xian as one between homosexual lovers and referred to their relationship as "

1608-459: The domineering Consort Fu , and not by his mother. Prince Kang died in September or October 23 BC, and the two-year-old Prince Xin became the Prince of Dingtao. In 9 BC, the then-18-year-old Prince Xin impressed his uncle Emperor Cheng when on an official visit to the capital Chang'an , when he brought three key officials of his principality—his teacher, his prime minister, and the commander of his capital's defense forces—to accompany him and cited

1675-440: The fact that he was also constantly ill, although the nature of the illness is not known. Circa 4 BC, Emperor Ai began to favor the minor official Dong Xian , and historians largely believe that they had a homosexual relationship. Both men were married, but that would not have been seen as conflicting with a homosexual love affair, as it was typical for Chinese men of the time to have multiple sexual relationships. Ai came from

1742-437: The honor of living at the crown prince's palace, stating that he was only at the capital to serve Emperor Cheng until Emperor Cheng would produce an heir and that he should stay at the Dingtao mission in the capital. Whether Emperor Cheng was formally adopting Prince Xin would quickly become a major controversy. Emperor Cheng viewed his recognition of Prince Xin as crown prince as formal adoption, and he believed that Prince Xin

1809-403: The impulsive and lavish spending Emperor Cheng, there would finally be a capable emperor. In 7 BC, under Emperor Ai's auspices, a major proposal to reduce involuntary servitude was made by several officials—princes would be limited to 200 servants (it was as many as they like before), marquesses and princesses to 100 servants (it was 200 before), and other nobility and commoners to 30 servants (it

1876-547: The intercession of Shi Dan – who risked his life by stepping onto the carpet of the imperial bed chamber, an act that only the empress was allowed to do, at the pain of death – led Emperor Yuan to cease those thoughts. When Emperor Yuan died in July 33 BC, Crown Prince Ao ascended the throne (as Emperor Cheng). While both Consorts Fu and Feng were imperial consorts, an incident occurred that would cause Consort Feng to be greatly praised, at Consort Fu's embarrassment. In 38 BC, Emperor Yuan

1943-525: The issue of the roles of Princess Dowager Fu and Consort Ding (and what honour, if any, to posthumously bestow on Emperor Ai's father Prince Kang) would quickly erupt into a major controversy. Initially, Grand Empress Dowager Wang decreed that Princess Dowager Fu and Consort Ding see him periodically, every 10 days. However, Princess Dowager Fu quickly began to visit her grandson everyday, and she insisted that two things be done: that she receive an Empress Dowager title, and that her relatives be granted titles, like

2010-497: The more proper heir. The majority, perhaps seeing that Emperor Cheng was leaning toward Prince Xin, recommended him, citing the general rule of succession that when one lacked an heir, he should adopt a brother's child to be his own son and heir; one official recommended Prince Xing under the rationale that he was closer in bloodline with the emperor. Emperor Cheng, whose mind was fairly made up, created him Crown Prince Xin . In an act praised one as showing humility, Prince Xin declined

2077-420: The new Emperor Ping – the former Prince Jizi of Zhongshan. Wang Mang, bearing grudges against Grand Empress Dowager Fu and Emperor Ai, would immediately undertake several punitive actions against her posthumously. He had her title stripped, and further stripped her of her original title as princess dowager – and had her referred merely as "the mother of Prince Gong of Dingtao" (while her daughter-in-law suffered

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2144-442: The official and ordered that Empress Dowager Fu's seat be moved to the side, which drew great ire from Empress Dowager Fu, who refused to attend the banquet. To soothe her anger, Wang Mang resigned, and Emperor Ai approved his resignation. After Wang Mang's resignation, the Wangs gradually and inexorably began to lose their power. At Empress Dowager Fu's behest, the Fus and the Dings were installed in their place. Empress Dowager Fu

2211-439: The official and ordered that Empress Dowager Fu's seat be moved to the side, which drew great ire from Empress Dowager Fu, who refused to attend the banquet. To soothe her anger, Wang Mang resigned, and Emperor Ai approved his resignation. After Wang Mang's resignation, the Wangs gradually and inexorably began to lose their power. At Empress Dowager Fu's behest, the Fus and the Dings were installed in their place. Empress Dowager Fu

2278-415: The passion of the cut sleeve " (斷袖之癖) after a story that one afternoon after falling asleep for a nap on the same bed, Emperor Ai cut off his sleeve rather than disturb the sleeping Dong Xian when he had to get out of bed. Dong was noted for his relative simplicity contrasted with the highly ornamented court, and was given progressively higher and higher posts as part of the relationship, eventually becoming

2345-451: The people and the officials to yearn for the return of the Wangs. Consorts: Consort Fu (Yuan) Consort Fu (傅昭儀, personal name unknown) (died 21 February 2 BC ) was an imperial consort during the Han dynasty of China. She was a consort and a favourite of Emperor Yuan . She was known to be a domineering woman who wanted her son on the throne, and, failing that, wanted (and eventually

2412-431: The people, who were not enamored with the Wangs initially, to long for their return to power as they associated the departure of the Wangs from power with Emperor Ai's incompetence in administration). In an unpopular act, Emperor Ai had his prime minister Wang Jia (王嘉, unrelated to the Wang clan mentioned above) put to death for criticizing him, an act that made him appear tyrannical. Emperor Ai's shortcomings quickly led to

2479-424: The people. Furthermore, Emperor Ai was highly controlled by his grandmother Consort Fu (consort of his grandfather and his predecessor's father Emperor Yuan ), who demanded the title of Grand Empress Dowager —even though she had never been an empress previously and therefore did not properly hold that title, and this led to the unprecedented and unrepeated situation of four women possessing empress dowager titles at

2546-560: The proper legal regulations that, in his opinion, required and allowed him to bring them with him (even though it was customary that princes would bring only their teachers). He also showed clear understanding of the Confucian classic Shi Jing , further impressing Emperor Cheng. At that time, the sonless Emperor Cheng was beginning to consider making either his younger brother Liu Xing, Prince of Zhongshan (中山王劉興) or his nephew Prince Xin his heir. Emperor Cheng became convinced that Prince Xin

2613-480: The qualification "of Dingtao" from his father's posthumous title (thus making him simply "Emperor Gong"), and then gave his grandmother a variation of the grand empress dowager title ( ditaitaihou (帝太太后), compared to Grand Empress Dowager Wang's title taihuangtaihou (太皇太后)) and his mother a variation of the empress dowager title ( ditaihou (帝太后), compared to Empress Dowager Zhao's title huangtaihou (皇太后)), and there were therefore now four official empresses dowager in

2680-567: The rationale that she, having raised him, was merely in the role of a wet nurse . Consort Ding, however, would continue to not be allowed to see Prince Xin. Emperor Cheng died suddenly in April 7 BC, apparently from a stroke (although historians also report the possibility of an overdose of aphrodisiacs given to him by Consort Zhao Hede). Crown Prince Xin ascended the throne as Emperor Ai. Empress Dowager Wang, as his step-grandmother (and "legal" grandmother) became grand empress dowager, and Empress Zhao became empress dowager. He created Consort Fu ,

2747-410: The same time—Empress Wang Zhengjun (Emperor Cheng's mother and Emperor Yuan's wife), Empress Zhao Feiyan (Emperor Cheng's wife), Consort Fu, and Consort Ding (Emperor Ai's mother). Consort Fu's control of the political scene extended until her death in February 2 BC, including an episode where her jealousy of Consort Feng Yuan —another consort of Emperor Yuan's (and therefore her romantic rival) and

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2814-704: The seed of dissatisfaction was sown. As the princes further grew, several things further led to an endearment between Emperor Yuan and Prince Kang. They shared affection and skills in music – particularly in the playing of drums. Prince Kang also showed high intelligence and diligence, while Crown Prince Ao was known for drinking and womanizing. When Emperor Yuan grew ill circa 35 BC – an illness that he would not recover from – Consort Fu and Prince Kang were often summoned to his sickbed to attend to him, while Empress Wang and Crown Prince Ao rarely were. In his illness, apparently encouraged by Consort Fu, Emperor Yuan reconsidered whether he should make Prince Kang his heir instead. Only

2881-425: The supreme commander of the armed forces by the time of Emperor Ai's death. Dong was afterward forced to die by suicide . Emperor Ai was born to Liu Kang (劉康), Prince of Dingtao, a brother of then-reigning Emperor Cheng and son of Emperor Yuan, and his concubine Consort Ding, in 25 BC, presumably at Prince Kang's principality (roughly modern Heze , Shandong ). From birth, he was raised by his paternal grandmother,

2948-459: Was 100 before, and that servants would be set free after a service of three years. However, after the proposal was leaked, many slave owners pushed to have the proposal tabled, and Emperor Ai only issued a limited version of the proposal—freeing servants over age 50. The issue of the roles of Princess Dowager Fu and Consort Ding (and what honor, if any, to posthumously bestow on Emperor Ai's father Prince Kang), however, would quickly again erupt into

3015-445: Was able to see) her grandson on the throne as Emperor Ai . During Emperor Ai's reign, she exerted heavy and frequent influence on his reign, that made her powerful and dominant and forcibly extracted grand empress dowager titles that she should not have properly possessed (since she was never an empress or empress dowager – and Emperor Cheng's wife, Grand Empress Dowager Wang Zhengjun was still alive) – which would bring her hatred from

3082-455: Was afraid that the bear would attack the emperor, she was willing to sacrifice herself. Consort Fu became greatly jealous of the praise that Consort Feng received for this incident. After Emperor Cheng's death, Prince Kang went to his Principality of Shanyang. Consort Fu received the title of princess dowager. She was not content with this status, however, and continued to wish for her son to become emperor. In 27 BC, Prince Kang's principality

3149-441: Was an emperor of China's Han dynasty . He ascended the throne when he was 20, having been made heir by his childless uncle Emperor Cheng , and he reigned from 7 to 1 BC. The people and the officials were initially excited about his ascension, as he was viewed by them (as well as Emperor Cheng) to be intelligent, articulate, and capable. However, under Emperor Ai, corruption became even more prevalent and heavy taxes were levied on

3216-492: Was behind the investigation, went back to her palace and committed suicide. In total, 17 members of the Feng clan died as a result of the investigations. This was immediately viewed as a political case, and officials and the people all became disappointed in Emperor Ai. In 5 BC, Empress Dowager Fu would finally get what she wanted. Emperor Ai removed the qualification "of Dingtao" from his father's posthumous title (thus making him simply "Emperor Gong"), and then gave his grandmother

3283-564: Was buried with Emperor Yuan – an act that drew even greater hatred from the Wangs, because now there would be no place for Grand Empress Dowager Wang, Emperor Yuan's wife, to be buried after her death. Further, Emperor Ai granted her a posthumous empress title, which was viewed to be inappropriate and disrespectful to Grand Empress Dowager Wang. After Emperor Ai died in August 1 BC, Grand Empress Dowager Wang quickly seized power from Emperor Ai's male favourite and probable lover Dong Xian , and summoned Wang Mang back to Chang'an to serve as regent to

3350-413: Was executed by Empress Dowager Wang after being accused of improperly assuming imperial style. Later in 2 BC, when Wang Jia opposed the expansion of Dong's march , Emperor Ai had him accused falsely of crimes and forced him to die by suicide through fasting. On January 1 BC, Dong was made the commander of the armed forces—at age 22 (by East Asian reckoning) —and effectively the most powerful official in

3417-457: Was harsh in his punishments of officials who disagreed with him—including, but not limited to, the issue of his grandmother and mother's titles. He would often backtrack in these punishments as well after some time, which also made him appear indecisive. He would also quickly promote officials that he saw as capable and honest and then, as soon as that capability or honesty offended him in some way, demote them. His temper might have been related to

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3484-580: Was himself afflicted with a psychiatric condition (probably bipolar disorder ), and when he got to Zhongshan, he suddenly, in a rage, left there and returned to Chang'an. Once he did and was ordered to explain his conduct, he made up a false reason—that he had discovered that Princess Dowager Feng was using witchcraft to curse Emperor Ai and Empress Dowager Fu. Empress Dowager Fu and Princess Dowager Feng were romantic rivals when they were both consorts to Emperor Yuan, and Empress Dowager Fu decided to use this opportunity to strike at Princess Dowager Feng. She sent

3551-577: Was himself afflicted with a psychiatric condition (probably bipolar disorder), and when he got to Zhongshan, he suddenly, in a rage, left there and returned to Chang'an. Once he did and was ordered to explain his conduct, he made up a false reason – that he had discovered that Princess Dowager Feng was using witchcraft to curse Emperor Ai and Empress Dowager Fu. Empress Dowager Fu and Princess Dowager Feng were romantic rivals when they were both consorts to Emperor Yuan, and Empress Dowager Fu decided to use this opportunity to strike at Princess Dowager Feng. She sent

3618-488: Was ignored by imperial counselors. The Grand Empress Dowager acted quickly to seize his seal and to take power back from Dong Xian, reinstating Wang Mang as the regent. Dong Xian and his wife died by suicide. Emperor Ai would officially be succeeded by his cousin, Prince Jizi, as Emperor Ping , but this was merely a pretext for Wang Mang to seize the throne nine years later. Emperor Ai's abuse of power, first influenced by his grandmother and then by his love for Dong, caused

3685-427: Was insufficiently grieving – particularly because Princes Ao and Jing were of similar age and grew up together as playmates – and showing insufficient respect to Prince Jing. Prince Ao's head of household Shi Dan (史丹), a relative of Emperor Yuan's grandmother and a senior official respected by Emperor Yuan, managed to convince Emperor Yuan that Crown Prince Ao was trying to stop Emperor Yuan himself from over-grieving, but

3752-533: Was more capable, and at the same time, Prince Xin's grandmother Consort Fu was endearing herself to Emperor Cheng's wife Empress Zhao Feiyan , her sister and Emperor Cheng's favorite Consort Zhao Hede , and Emperor Cheng's uncle Wang Gen with lavish gifts, and so the Zhaos and Wang Gen both praised Prince Xin as well. Emperor Cheng therefore seriously considered making Prince Xin his heir. In 8 BC, Emperor Cheng summoned several key officials to discuss with him who would be

3819-466: Was more capable, and at the same time, Princess Dowager Fu was endearing herself to Emperor Cheng's wife Empress Zhao Feiyan , her sister and favourite of Emperor Cheng Consort Zhao Hede , and Emperor Cheng's uncle Wang Gen with lavish gifts, and so the Zhaos and Wang Gen both praised Prince Xin as well. Emperor Cheng made Prince Xin crown prince in March 8 BC. Emperor Cheng, under the rationale that Prince Xin

3886-416: Was moved to Dingtao , and Princess Dowager Fu went with him. When Prince Kang's consort Consort Ding gave birth to his son Liu Xin , it was Princess Dowager Fu – not Consort Ding – who raised him, nurturing him to be particularly close to her and dominated by her. The fraternal relationship between Emperor Cheng and Prince Kang was quite affectionate, notwithstanding the succession struggle, and Prince Kang

3953-578: Was not satisfied with what she saw was her inferior title (as only empress dowager, not grand empress dowager, and with the qualifier "of Dingtao"). Several key officials who opposed her move were reduced to commoner status without any other fault—including the prime minister Kong Guang (孔光) and the prime inspector Shi Dan (師丹)—two of the top three officials of the administration. The third one, Empress Dowager Fu's cousin Fu Xi (傅喜), who also opposed Empress Dowager Fu's actions notwithstanding his relationship with her,

4020-532: Was not satisfied with what she saw was her inferior title (as only empress dowager, not grand empress dowager, and with the qualifier "of Dingtao"). Several key officials who opposed her move were reduced to commoner status without any other fault – including the prime minister Kong Guang (孔光) and the prime inspector Shi Dan (師丹) – two of the top three officials of the administration. The third one, Empress Dowager Fu's cousin Fu Xi (傅喜), who also opposed Empress Dowager Fu's actions notwithstanding his relationship with her,

4087-408: Was now his adopted son and no longer Prince Kang's son, refused to allow Princess Dowager Fu and her daughter-in-law Consort Ding to see Prince Xin, but the more lenient Empress Dowager Wang allowed Princess Dowager Fu to see her grandson under the rationale that she was like a wet nurse . Emperor Cheng died suddenly in April 7 BC, and Prince Xin ascended the throne as Emperor Ai. Almost immediately,

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4154-400: Was now his son, no longer Prince Kang's. When he created a cousin to be the new Prince of Dingtao to serve as Prince Kang's heir in c. December 8 BC, Prince Xin, grateful that his father would continue to be worshipped as an ancestor, submitted a formal note of thanksgiving—at which Emperor Cheng was highly offended, believing that Prince Xin should not be grateful any more for whatever

4221-426: Was often summoned to the capital Chang'an to accompany Emperor Cheng, who was sonless. Prince Kang was viewed by many as the potential heir – a status that was greatly despised by Emperor Cheng's uncles from the Wang clan. Consort Fu was happy to see this situation develop. In 24 BC, however, under pressure from his uncles, Emperor Cheng was forced to send Prince Kang back to his principality, and it would appear that

4288-416: Was promoted to the new high rank of Zhaoyi (Lady of Bright Deportment), below the empress and above all other women, whether inside or outside the palace. As Consort Fu's position was inferior to that of Empress Wang, and her son younger than Empress Wang's son Liu Ao (later Emperor Cheng ), Prince Ao was created crown prince. However, Consort Fu was not content for her son merely to be an imperial prince, and

4355-706: Was removed from his position and sent back to his march . In 6 BCE, Empress Dowager Fu would further display her power and at the same time cause the people to be even more disappointed in Emperor Ai. Emperor Ai's cousin Liu Jizi (劉箕子), the Prince of Zhongshan (Prince Xing's son), had a congenital heart disorder, and his grandmother Feng Yuan, the princess dowager, cared for his treatment and often worshipped gods to pray for his healing. Emperor Ai, up on hearing his cousin's illness, sent imperial physicians along with his attendant Zhang You (張由) to go to Zhongshan (roughly modern Baoding , Hebei ) to treat Prince Jizi. Zhang, however,

4422-699: Was removed from his position and sent back to his march. In 6 BC, Empress Dowager Fu would further display her power and at the same time cause the people to be even more disappointed in Emperor Ai. Emperor Ai's cousin Liu Jizi (劉箕子), the Prince of Zhongshan (Prince Xing's son), had a congenital heart disorder, and his grandmother Feng Yuan , the princess dowager, cared for his treatment and often worshipped gods to pray for his healing. Emperor Ai, up on hearing his cousin's illness, sent imperial physicians along with his attendant Zhang You (張由) to go to Zhongshan (roughly modern Baoding, Hebei) to treat Prince Jizi. Zhang, however,

4489-570: Was watching a fight between wild animals, accompanied by a number of his concubines (but apparently not by Empress Wang). A wild bear broke loose and tried to get out of the cage. All of the noble men and women who accompanied Emperor Yuan, including Consort Fu, fled, but Consort Feng stepped towards the wild bear, which, however, was killed at the last moment by imperial guards. Emperor Yuan asked her why she did so. Consort Feng replied that she had heard that bears, once they had caught one person, would attack just that person and no one else; because she

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