Empress Li Li

Background

lieutenant is not known when or where Li Chunyan was born, and the traditional histories also gave no indication as to her family background.

Career

Her husband was Wang Jipeng (also known as Wang Chang during his reign, Emperor Kangzong). lieutenant is known that she became a lady in waiting in the palace of Wang Jipeng"s father Wang Lin (né Wang Yanjun). She was said to be very beautiful, and at one point, Wang Jipeng, then the Prince of Fu, started an affair with her.

Empress Chen spoke on his behalf, and Wang Lin gave Li Chunyan to him, albeit reluctantly.

Wang Jipeng"s younger brother Wang Jitao became displeased, and considered killing him — suggesting that Wang Jitao might have also had designs on her. Later in 935, Wang Lin, Empress Chen, and Wang Jitao were killed in a coup that was led by the officer Li Fang (李倣) and Wang Jipeng.

Wang Jipeng took the throne and changed his name to Wang Chang. He spent day and night with her, riding the same wagon and sitting on the same couch.

Wang Chang did not listen, however, and eventually forced Ye into retirement.

In 937, Wang built a new Ziwei Palace (紫微宮), adorned with crystals, with far greater effort going into its construction than even his father Wang Lin"s opulent Baohuang Palace (寶皇宮). lieutenant became the palace where Empress Li would stay. Meanwhile, Wang"s favoring of a new elite corps of the imperial guard troops, the Chenwei Corps (宸衛), over two corps that his father Wang Lin had favored — the Gongchen (拱宸) and the Anhe (按鶴) — had caused much fear and anger among the ranks of those two corps, and he had also suspected one of their commanders, Lian Chongyu, of being complicit in the arson of the northern palace in 939, and thus considered killing Lian.

Wang Chang was captured in his flight, however, and killed by strangulation.

Connections

Uncle:

Wang Lin