#Empress Xiaogongzhang

[venicepearl]

Empress Xiaogongzhang (孝恭章皇后; c. 1399 – 26 September 1462), of the Sun clan, was a Chinese empress consort of the Ming dynasty, married to the fifth Ming emperor, the Xuande Emperor. She was mother of Zhu Qizhen, Emperor Yingzong.

[shangyangjunzhu]

Empress of the Ming/ Ming Dynasty

I closely followed this drama since it began and all I can say is that it is one of the best shows I have ever watched. Most people have found the amount of politics and the lack of harem intrigue and romance rather boring yet I think it does perfect justice to the protagonist and the struggle of the era. 

I have always wanted to see a strong female character beyond the harem intrigue in historical fiction and this drama is perfection. I must admit I was a little sad that I didn’t get to see too much of the lead characters together but hey... a drama can not be too perfect (except for Minglan, that is what you call PERFECTION). The drama basically follows the journey of Ruowei, a daughter of an Imperial physician whose family is purged as the Yongle Emperor comes to the throne. You get to see her as a rebel, an imperial consort, an Empress and then regent. Though she is smart and talented, she values relationships immensely which the people around her often forget to see. She is a character you can relate to most of the time and someone you will constantly root for.

Let’s get to the main cast of the show.

Sun Ruowei (Empress Xiaogongzhang)

Daughter of a royal doctor, she spent her early childhood being loved by her parents and loved her younger sister dearly. However, her mother and father are killed and she is separated from her parents. She is adopted by Sun Zhong, and becomes a part of a cult who are mostly orphans from the purging. She is talented however she is manipulated by the cult to take revenge by entering the palace. She has deep feelings for Xu Bin, another member of the cult, who distances himself from her knowing how dangerous the world is. During some of her escapades, she meets the Imperial Grandson Zhu Zhanji, who eventually falls in love with her. After her adoptive father passes away, she becomes Zhanji’s concubine to honor her father’s last wish and in an attempt to legitimize the runaway orphans. When she enters the palace, she is reunited with her long-lost younger sister who becomes Zhanji’s wife. During her time in the mansion of the Crown Prince, she becomes familiar with military and court affairs winning the admiration of influential members of the court. When her underage son ascends to the throne, she becomes co-regent and rules over the land. Ruowei, despite her keen intelligence, values relationships a lot. Her younger sister, the Empress, often gets herself into trouble which Ruowei covers up for and attempts to protect her. Even the Crown Prince, Zhanji’s father, receives her care even though she is aware that his family killed hers. People see her as a rather cold and strict woman yet her love for her son, sister, and husband is immense and you get to see the inner struggle in her. I love Ruowei yet sometimes I wish she is less kind and forgiving towards people who don’t deserve it. Rating: 9/10

Zhu Zhanji (Xuande Emperor)

Imperial Grandson; the eldest child of the Crown Prince (Hongxi Emperor) and Crown Princess. He is a mix of his father and grandfather; he had his grandfather’s ambition, intelligence, and pride but also has his father’s, good heart. His encounters with Ruowei cause him to fall in love with her despite his knowledge of her love for Xu Bin. However, he is forced to marry Hu Shanxiang, a woman recommended by his uncle, and takes in Ruowei as a concubine. Nevertheless, it is clear that Shanxiang is nothing but a burden for him and the only woman in his heart is Ruowei. When he joins his grandfather on an expedition against the Oirat, he finds out his father’s health is going downhill and that his grandfather plans on replacing his father. To save his family, he conceals his grandfather’s plans and helps his father ascend to the throne. However, as the Hongxi Emperor dies and his uncles rebel, Zhanji is forced to the battlefield as soon as he ascends to the throne. After the birth of his children, he finds out Shanxiang helped his uncles escape the city and was his spy, his mental health goes downhill and dies. A passionate man yet he is a faithful lover for the most part. Rating: 7/10 

Hu Shanxiang (Empress Gongrangzhang)

The younger daughter of a royal doctor, she lost her parents at a very young age and is saved by the Crown prince and the Imperial grandson. She is raised by a palace official Hu Shangxi who adopts her as her niece. Under her tutelage, Shanxiang becomes aware of all of the inner machinations of the palace and she herself wishes to gain power. Since her childhood, she has wished to pay back the favor of saving her life and therefore makes an attempt to become Zhanji’s wife. To do so, she allies herself with Prince Han, the uncle of Zhanji, and marries Zhanji as his legitimate wife. Though initially she is overjoyed to reunite with her sister Ruowei, she soon realizes that she is the standing block between her and Zhanji which brings upon a certain distance. She is highly skeptical of everyone around her which causes her to distrust the only person who helps her out in the palace. Her identity is revealed and Zhanji demotes her to a nun. She eventually earns the position of Dowager Imperial Consort when her son ascends to the throne (historically inaccurate). Yet, she isn’t satisfied as she sees Ruowei as a constant reminder of Zhanji’s treatment towards her and wishes to become Empress Dowager and that her son remains on the throne. Her greed pushes her daughter-in-law and grandson to die, resulting in the relationship with her son to deteriorate. Rating: 2/10

Zhu Qizhen (Emperor Yingzong)

Son of Ruowei and Zhanji. A kid born with developmental issues is carefully nurtured by his mom to return to normal. However, his surroundings do not help with his upbringing and his grandmother’s pampering causes him to become a rather insolent and spoiled child. He always thinks that his mother is out for his power and sees her as his biggest obstacle. In an attempt to prove himself a capable leader, he goes out to war and is taken as a hostage by the Oirat Mongols. It is here that he begins to understand the hardships of life and the hard work his mom has put in. He also falls in love with the sister of the Khan and has a kid with her while being held in hostage. When he is finally allowed to return as a retired Emperor, his half-brother makes his life miserable and even kills his wife. This brings upon a paradigm change in him which leads to him eventually taking back the throne and finally ruling on his own. However, his relationship with his mom is irreparable and he is unable to come to terms with it. Rating: 4/10

Zhu Qiyu (Jingtai Emperor)

Son of Shanxiang and Zhanji. He is raised to be skeptical of everyone and to be patient enough to grab power by his mother. When he is initially raised to the throne, he listens to Ruwei’s counsel and does remarkably well. However his mother’s machinations and greed lead to him developing a desire to sit on the throne forever. When his wife and son die, he loses his mind and blames it on Ruowei and Qizhen and tries to make their lives miserable. Qizhen eventually takes over the throne and Qiyu is killed by him. Rating: 1/10

Xu Bin

Another orphan who grew up with Ruowei, wishing to bring justice to all of the orphans hiding for their life. He too is in love with Ruowei however he persuades her to marry Zhanji for the greater good, knowing that she has the power to bring upon a change in their lives. Zhanji knows about their love and he is extremely jealous of him (their conversations are so funny!) however he gives Xu Bin a chance to go on a sea voyage thus separating both of them. Later on, when Ruowei becomes Empress Dowager, Xu Bin returns and helps her reunite with her son. At the very end when she wishes to escape it all, he renews his offer to take her all around the world just like he did when they were younger. Sigh, I would have liked him a lot more if I could bring myself to dislike Zhanji. Rating: 7/10

Overall Rating:

There is keen detail paid to every historical fact in the drama with the exception of some harem details. You get to learn a lot about the Yongle period and especially see what Ming Dynasty looked like. You also get to see an epic romance where you are quite literally dying to see them together however you don’t get to see it too often, sigh! And most importantly you get to see a competent woman being praised for being competent while getting flake for obstructing the power of the men. It’s not only Ruowei but also her mother-in-law Empress Dowager Zhang who was historically the main regent during the time Qizhen was still a kid, which the drama does justice to. I admit there isn’t enough of the harem drama or romance and most of the drama is political issues and Ruowei’s rule. I will promise you though that you will see more romance here than you will in Nirvana in Fire which is worth considering. There aren’t enough reviews about this show online, however, it is a gem and it is definitely worth your time if you don’t mind learning a little bit of history.

Rating: 8/10