As for Empress Xiao of Emperor Yang of Sui Dynasty, she is particularly famous for the legend that she "has been favored by six emperors forever". As for whether Queen Xiao really served the emperors of the Six Dynasties, who can tell? After all, even unofficial historians have never reported such vivid stories, so why can a novelist speak so conclusively. And what is so special about Empress Xiao that she can still remain "favored" after "experienced the Six Emperors"?
At first glance, it seems that there are not only many problems, but also no solutions. But don’t worry, even if we can’t travel back to that era to find out, we can still get a glimpse of the truth from existing historical materials.
The legendary Empress Xiao passed through six emperors: Emperor Yang of the Sui Dynasty, Yu Wenhuaji, Dou Jianzhang, the Turkic Chuluo Khan brothers Jieli Khan and Emperor Taizong of the Tang Dynasty, so the time span is 48 Year. To be able to remain favored for 48 years, Empress Xiao must be a master of beauty. Why, you ask? Well, let's first take a look at Queen Xiao's year of birth.
Historical books do not clearly and directly record the year when Empress Xiao was born, but as long as you are careful, you can still deduce the approximate age of Empress Xiao from the clues in the existing historical materials.
"Northern History·The Chronicles of Emperor Yang of the Sui Dynasty" once mentioned: "Emperor Yang's Empress Xiao was the daughter of Emperor Ming of Liang Dynasty. According to the custom in the south of the Yangtze River, those who give birth to children in February are not allowed to give birth. Later, February will be used Ji's father adopted him when he was still young. When he and his wife died, they were adopted by his uncle Zhang Ke."
We can get two pieces of information from this passage:
1. Queen Xiao was born in February.
2. The niece died less than a year after Xiao Qian and his wife adopted her.
So when did Xiao Qian die?
"The Biography of the Liang Xiao Family in the Northern History": "Ji, the sixth son of Qing. He was naturally harmonious, and he was ranked as Shizhong and General of the Central Guard. He died in the fifth year of Qi. He was given to Sikong, and his posthumous title was Xiao. ."
It can be seen that Xiao Qi passed away in the fifth year after Xiao Kui ascended the throne, that is, 566. In this way, Queen Xiao had to be born in February of the lunar calendar in 566 at the latest to meet the actual situation. In other words, Emperor Sui Yang was not yet born when Queen Xiao was born. You ask why again? So let’s take a look at when Emperor Sui Yang was born.
Unlike Empress Xiao, the "Book of Sui" records the birth year of Emperor Yang of the Sui Dynasty very clearly: "In the first year of Kaihuang, (Yang Guang) was established as the king of Jin, and he worshiped Zhu Guo and the general manager of Bingzhou. Year Thirteen. "
The first year of the founding of the Emperor was 581. Emperor Sui Yang was 13 years old at this time, but people in ancient times preferred to count virtual years instead of full years, so the actual birth year of Emperor Sui Yang was It should be 569 years. According to the records of "Northern History Liang Xiao Family": "In the second year of the founding of the Emperor, Emperor Wen of the Sui Dynasty prepared a gift to accept his daughter as the Princess of Jin." It can be seen that Emperor Yang of the Sui Dynasty was only thirteen years old when he married Empress Xiao, and Empress Xiao She is at least sixteen years old, and she is obviously a "female junior girl holding gold bricks" combination. The age gap between the two people coincides with what is said in the "Xiao Family Genealogy" that Queen Xiao is three years older than Emperor Yang of Sui Dynasty.
When she officially married Emperor Sui Yang in the second year of Emperor Kaihuang's reign, Queen Xiao's life was completely on the road of no return. Although Empress Xiao in the novel is suspected of being a demon queen, official history still gives a pretty good evaluation of Empress Xiao.
"Book of the Sui Dynasty: Biography of the Concubines": "The queen was docile in nature, intelligent, eager to learn and understand the literature, and knew how to predict the future. The emperor was very kind to her, and the emperor loved and respected her. As for the emperor's succession, he issued an imperial edict. Said: "I only inherit Pi Xu, the charter was in the past, and the relationship was established in the long autumn. I use it to recommend it. Concubine Xiao, who has been trained for a long time and cultivates women's morals, should be in the Xuanwei position and promote the soft teaching, so she can be established as a queen. "Every time the emperor was lucky, he always followed him. When he saw that the emperor had lost his virtue, he knew it was wrong and did not dare to say anything, because "Shu Zhi Fu" was sent to himself."
Not only "Sui Shu" , "Northern History" also said that Queen Xiao had a good temperament. She was fostered in her uncle's house when she was a child, and she even worked herself because of poverty. It's a pity that he married an unkind person and ended up with a prodigal son like Emperor Sui Yang. Not only did he end up with death and the destruction of his country, but his wife also fell into the hands of thieves.
After Yu Wenhuaji killed Emperor Sui Yang, he took all the people in Emperor Sui Yang's harem as his own, including Queen Xiao. "Book of Sui · Yu Wenhua and Biography": "Hua Ji then entered the Sixth Palace and took care of himself, just like the story of Emperor Yang."
After that, Empress Xiao followed Yu Wenhua and fled to Liaocheng, waiting for After Dou Jianzhang captured Liaocheng, he was taken away by Dou Jianzhang. Unexpectedly, Dou Jianzhang's wife was a jealous woman and could not tolerate the beauties of Emperor Sui Yang, so she placed them in Wuqiang County. Soon the Turkic Chuluo Khan sent someone to welcome Empress Xiao and her grandson Yang Zhengdao. Unfortunately, Chuluo Khan was not a long-term master and died not long after. After his younger brother Jieli Khan came to power, he naturally accepted Empress Xiao and others.
"Northern History: Biography of the Concubines": "During the chaos of Jiyu Culture and Concubines, he followed the army to Liaocheng. He was defeated by Dou Jiande. Jiande's wife, Cao, was jealous and fierce, so she flirted with the emperor's concubines and made her a monk. , and was later placed in Wuqiang County. At that time, the Luo Khan of the Turks was in power, and Kehe Dun was the princess of Yicheng in the Sui Dynasty. Jiande did not dare to stay, so he took his grandson Zhengdao and his daughters into captivity. Court."
So the novel says that Queen Xiao "experienced the Six Emperors" is an exaggeration, but it may not be without facts. The official history is relatively reserved about this episode of Empress Xiao, probably because Empress Xiao's clan members, such as her younger brother Xiao Yu, were important ministers in the Tang Dynasty, so those historians were merciful.
But the historians let Empress Xiao go, but the novelist failed to let this poor woman go. Instead, they continued to imagine that Empress Xiao ended up living in the harem of Emperor Taizong of the Tang Dynasty, and even got away with it. A handsome appearance. In this way, since Empress Xiao can finally form a sister-brother relationship with Emperor Taizong of Tang Dynasty, it is natural for us to understand the age gap between her and Emperor Taizong of Tang Dynasty and whether it is possible. Do you know when Emperor Taizong’s father, Li Yuan, was born?
"Cefu Yuangui ○ Volume 2 ◎ Emperor Department·Birth Saint": "After Emperor Gaozu of the Tang Dynasty, Zhou Tianhe and Ding You were born in Chang'an in November of the first year of the year." Translated into vernacular, it is: 566 AD on the lunar calendar In November, Li Yuan was born in Chang'an.
Do you still remember when Queen Xiao was born? According to our previous inference, Queen Xiao must have been born in February of the lunar calendar in 566 at the latest. In other words, Empress Xiao is at least 9 months older than Li Yuan, and at least 33 years older than Emperor Taizong of the Tang Dynasty! It turns out that Queen Xiao’s love affair was not between sister and brother, but love at dusk! Because when Empress Xiao returned to the Tang Dynasty in the fourth year of Zhenguan (630), Li Shimin was 32 years old, which was the time when he was in his prime and high spirits, and Empress Xiao was at least 65 years old.
You must know that Queen Xiao was at least 53 years old when she was accepted by Yu Wenhuaji, because it is said in "The Book of Sui Dynasty: The Benji of Emperor Yangdi": "Shang died in the greenhouse at the age of fifty." If we say When Queen Xiao was in her fifties, she could still be considered a milf and her charm was still there. So now, Queen Xiao, who is in her sixties and has gone through a lot of hardships, no matter how good her looks are, she still cannot escape the erosion of time. . And do you think that facing such an old lady who was even older than his father, what charming thoughts could Tang Taizong have towards her?
As for whether Empress Xiao ended up living in the harem of Emperor Taizong of the Tang Dynasty, "Northern History: Biography of the Concubines" gave a clear answer: "In the fourth year of Zhenguan in the Tang Dynasty, the Turks were defeated. With courtesy, he returned to the capital and was given a residence in Xingdaoli. In the 21st year, he was ordered to be buried together in Yangzhou's mausoleum. "
See, in the official history. It couldn't be clearer. After Empress Xiao returned to the Tang Dynasty from the Turks, Emperor Taizong of the Tang Dynasty placed her in Xingdaoli, the first square to the east outside the Zhuque Gate of Chang'an City.
So looking at the life of Empress Xiao, regardless of those novels, it is basically the wandering life of a poor woman. Not only did they suffer humiliation during their lifetime, but they also suffered unscrupulous sexual intercourse after death. Queen Xiao is so innocent!