Yang Guifei is a very regrettable historical figure. As an unparalleled beauty, she was deeply loved by Emperor Xuanzong of Tang. However, the final outcome was not very good, even tragic. It is very surprising that she ended up in such a situation despite being loved by the emperor. And why was she not posthumously awarded this film.
Bai Juyi’s “Song of Everlasting Sorrow” vividly describes the situation of Tang Ming Emperor’s love for Yang Guifei: During Yang Guifei’s lifetime, there were poems such as “The spring night is bitter and the day rises high, and the king does not go to court early from then on. There is no leisure for entertaining banquets, and spring is spent on spring outings at night. There are three thousand beauties in the harem, and three thousand loves are all in one”; After Yang Guifei was executed, she wrote poems such as “I wish to be a pair of winged birds in heaven and a pair of branches in the earth. The eternal love will last forever, and this hatred will last forever. It can be seen that Emperor Tang Ming’s love for Yang Guifei was very profound.
This raises a question: Since Tang Xuanzong loved Yang Guifei so much, why didn’t he enthrone her as his empress?
favorite concubine of emperor Minghuang
Yang Guifei was adopted as a concubine by Emperor Xuanzong of Tang in the 24th year of the Kaiyuan era (736) and was soon favored by a special wife. She was registered as a Noble Consort in the early years of the Tianbao era. In the fifteenth year of the Tianbao era (756), Yang Guifei was executed at a temple by the roadside on Mawei Slope at the age of 38. By calculation, Yang Yuhuan spent over twenty years as the consort of Emperor Xuanzong of Tang and about fifteen years as the noble consort. It can be affirmed that if Emperor Xuanzong of Tang wanted to enthrone Yang Guifei as his empress, he had ample time for operation.
More importantly, after Emperor Xuanzong of Tang deposed the empress dowager Wang as a commoner, the position of empress remained vacant. Queen Wang asked her brother Wang Shouyi to seek help from a monk in order to compete with Empress Wu for favor. After the monk Mingwu led him to offer sacrifices to the Big Dipper Star, he “took Thunderbolt woodcut inscriptions of heaven and earth and imperial taboos and put them together,” saying that this way he could have children and be as noble as Empress Wu Zetian.
In the twelfth year of Kaiyuan, the matter was leaked, and Empress Wang was deposed as a commoner and soon died of depression. After the death of Empress Wang, Emperor Xuanzong of Tang wanted to appoint Empress Wu Guifei as his empress. However, it was strongly opposed by the imperial censor Pan Haoli. The main reason for opposition is that Wu Sansi and Wu Yanxiu, who once caused chaos in the Li Tang Dynasty, were distant uncles of Empress Wu Guifei, and Emperor Xuanzong of Tang had an irreconcilable grudge against them.
Moreover, at that time, the Crown Prince was not born to Empress Wu, and Empress Wu herself also had a son. Once Empress Wu Guifei is crowned as the queen, it is inevitable that she will compete for the crown prince. As a result, Empress Wu Guifei was never appointed as the empress. Only after she passed away in her forties did she receive the title of empress. In fact, when Yang Yuhuan became Yang Guifei, Wu Guifei had already died.
There seems to be no record in historical documents that Emperor Xuanzong wanted to appoint Yang Guifei as his empress.
There may be several reasons why Li Longji did not appoint Yang Yuhuan as empress:
Tang Xuanzong
1、 Li Longji had concerns about the fact that Yang Guifei was once his son, Princess Shou. The reason why Yang Yuhuan transformed from Princess Shou to Empress Xuanzong was that after the death of Empress Wu Guifei, none of the thousands of beauties in the harem could meet Li Longji’s wishes. In order to make Emperor Xuanzong happy, the courtiers recommended Yang Yuhuan, who had already become Princess Shou. Although Yang Guifei pretended to be a nun for a while in order to “adapt”, the history of being a “daughter-in-law” cannot be changed.
2、 The combination of Li Longji and Yang Yuhuan is mainly due to their shared interests in literature and art, and there is no intention for her to be a “mother of the world”. Li Longji is a very enthusiastic lover of literature and art. He not only enjoys appreciating literary performances, but also excels in various forms of literature and art. He is knowledgeable in music and is skilled in composing and playing the flute. He even had hundreds of palace maids form a royal women’s band called Liyuan, which lived in the northern courtyard of Yichun. Yang Guifei, who is good at singing and dancing and has a deep understanding of music, often goes to the pear orchard to play her signature pipa, which is very popular among everyone. The “princes and nobles” compete to worship her as a teacher and learn to play the pipa. The reason why Emperor Xuanzong always brought Yang Guifei with him during banquets and hot spring baths was mainly because they had the same artistic hobbies and considerable artistic achievements. In terms of art, they shared a common language and could be regarded as kindred spirits or harmonious musicians.
3、 Although Yang Guifei is intelligent and clever, she can always cater to the emperor’s wishes. However, Li Longji was clearly dissatisfied with her. In the fifth and ninth year of the Tianbao era, Yang Guifei was expelled from the palace twice by Li Longji. The reason for expulsion is not explicitly stated in historical records and cannot be explained in detail. Of course, shortly after expelling Yang Guifei, the passionate and devoted Li Longji would regret and miss her endlessly. Soon, Gao Lishi would bring her back to the palace, treating her with the same respect and loving her as before. It can be said that Yang Guifei was a woman who made Li Longji happy and worried. Such a woman is only suitable for being a noble consort in love, not suitable for being a queen in marriage.
4、 Yang Guifei is clearly a woman with a romantic temperament, and she does not have much desire for power. On the one hand, she is satisfied with Li Longji’s favor, and on the other hand, she has a love for literature and art, and her life is very fulfilling. Furthermore, the presence or absence of the title of empress does not have a significant impact on her.
5、 Although Emperor Xuanzong of Tang was somewhat indulged in male and female love, indulging in sensual entertainment in his later years, he was still a relatively clear headed emperor. Not to mention anything else, at least he wouldn’t treat his official position as something that can be given to others indiscriminately. His son-in-law and hero Zhang Shuo’s son Zhang Yong really wanted to get the position of prime minister, but Li Longji did not easily appoint him as prime minister. Once, an artist performed exceptionally well in a performance and won the favor of Emperor Xuanzong. But when he tried to persuade Gao Lishi to get a small position, Li Longji not only did not let him succeed, but also killed him. It can be inferred that he still attaches great importance to the title of empress; For Yang Guifei, he did not love her to the extent that he was dizzy and allowed her to take anything.
