Consort Mei (), born Jiang Caipin (), is a fictional imperial consort of

Emperor Xuanzong of Tang Emperor Xuanzong of Tang (; 8 September 685 – 3 May 762), personal name Li Longji, was the seventh emperor of the Tang dynasty in China, reigning from 712 to 756 CE. His reign of 44 years was the longest during the Tang dynasty. In the early ...

. Her name is not found in any

official history An official history is a work of history which is sponsored, authorised or endorsed by its subject. The term is most commonly used for histories which are produced for a government. The term also applies to commissions from non-state bodies includin ...

book and only in "Biography of Consort Mei" (), preserved in a Yuan dynasty anthology and attributed to the Tang dynasty writer Cao Ye (). In 1927, Lu Xun determined that the work was a Song dynasty forgery and should be considered no more than fiction. Later researchers have pointed out that her purported hometown, in the present-day coastal city of

Putian Putian or Putien (, Putian dialect: ''Pó-chéng''), also known as Puyang (莆阳) and Puxian (莆仙), historically known as Xinghua or Hing Hwa (), is a prefecture-level city in eastern Fujian province, China. It borders Fuzhou City to the nor ...

, was actually under water during Emperor Xuanzong's time.

Story

She was one of Emperor Xuanzong's favorite concubine, often known as Mei fei (with ''fei'' being a standard rank for imperial consorts during her lifetime). As her actual name was Jiang Caipin, she was originally called Consort Jiang. After being told by her that she greatly favored Plum-Blossom flowers (the flower is pronounced as ''mei'' in Chinese), Emperor Xuanzong began to fondly address her as Consort Mei. Consort Mei was initially selected by Gao Lishi, a eunuch official of Emperor Xuanzong, to become one of Emperor Xuanzong's concubines in his harem. As Consort Mei was the most literate and talented concubines, she soon obtained Xuanzong's favors. To express the favors towards Consort Mei, Xuanzong commanded servants to plant Plum-Blossom trees all around her palace to please her interest. Xuanzong even lovingly complimented her beauty as more adorable than

Zhao Feiyan Zhao Feiyan (, ? – 1 BC),Peterson, Barbara Bennett & He Hong Fei & Han Tie & Wang Jiyu & Zhang Guangyu. (1999) ''Notable Women of China'' "M.E. Sharpe". pp. 87–90. . formally Empress Xiaocheng (孝成皇后), was an empress during the Han Dy ...

, and swore that he would never change his heart for her. However, in 737, after the death of Consort Wu, another favorite concubine of Xuanzong, Xuanzong was deeply depressed until Gao Lishi convinced him to try looking at

Yang Yuhuan Yang Yuhuan (; 26 June, 719 – 15 July 756Volume 218 of ''Zizhi Tongjian'' recorded that Yang was killed on the ''bingshen'' day of the 6th month of the 1st year of the Zhide era of Tang Suzong's reign. This date corresponds to 15 Jul 756 on t ...

- the wife of prince

Li Mao Li Qing (8th century–775), known as Li Mao (李瑁) from 725 and honored title Prince of Shou (壽王) was a prince of the Tang Dynasty. He was the 18th son of Emperor Xuanzong and his favorite concubine Consort Wu. Family *Father: Emperor ...

, Xuanzong's son with Consort Wu since her beauty was described as the most "irresistible". Being curious, Xuanzong ordered Yang Yuhuan to come and subsequently fell in love with her beauty. Since Yuhuan was still literally his daughter-in-law (as she was

's wife), emperor Xuanzong then stealthily arranged Yuhuan to become a Taoist nun, after a brief moment, Xuanzong eventually offered Yuhuan honorable title as Yang Guifei (with ''Guifei'' being the highest rank for imperial consorts) after bestowing his son Li Mao a new wife. Yuhuan became Xuanzong's most beloved consort as Xuanzong soon forgot about Consort Wu's death. His favors towards Consort Mei also waned. In 755, An Lushan began to create a rebellion (known as An Lushan Rebellion) in the palace. Emperor Xuanzong decided to bring Yang Guifei and his cortege along to flee from the capital Chang'an to

Chengdu Chengdu (, ; Simplified Chinese characters, simplified Chinese: 成都; pinyin: ''Chéngdū''; Sichuanese dialects, Sichuanese pronunciation: , Standard Chinese pronunciation: ), Chinese postal romanization, alternatively Romanization of Chi ...

. Consort Mei was left behind then murdered during the rebellion.

In popular culture

* ''Portrayed in

The Legend of Lady Yang ''The Legend of Lady Yang'' is a Hong Kong television series based on the romance between Emperor Xuanzong of the Tang dynasty and his consort Yang Yuhuan. The series was produced by TVB and it stars Anne Heung, Kwong Wa, Melissa Ng, Florence Kw ...

by Melissa Ng. ''(2000) * ''Portrayed in The Legend of Yang Guifei by Chi Huaqiong.''(2010)

References

{{reflist Fictional characters from Fujian Fictional characters introduced in the 12th century