Background
Her father Wang Su served as a military officer in Wei and held the title "Marquis of Lanling" (蘭陵侯). Once, when she was nine, her mother fell sick so she remained by her mother"s side all the time to take care of her.
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Wang Yuanji
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She was posthumously honoured as "Empress Wenming" (lit "civil and understanding empress") after her death. Wang Yuanji was from Tan County (郯縣), Donghai Commandery (東海郡), in present-day Tancheng County, Shandong province. When Wang Yuanji was eight years old, she already had a good memory and could recite the Confucian classics fluently.
Her grandfather Wang Language doted on her and felt that she was extraordinary.
He said, "This girl will bring glory to our family. Her father respected her even more after that incident and felt that she was indeed very special.
She cried her heart out again when her father died. When Sima Zhao became the regent of Wei, he recognised Zhong Hui"s talent and promoted the latter to higher appointments.
He"s likely to cause trouble if he"s overly indulged and favoured.
Later that year, Sima Yan forced the last Wei ruler, Cao Huan, to abdicate in his favour, thereby ending the Wei regime and establishing the Jin dynasty. After ascending the throne, Sima Yan instated his mother as the empress dowager and gave her Chonghua Palace (崇化宮) as her residence. Even after becoming the empress dowager, Wang Yuanji continued to live a humble and frugal life.
There were no expensive furniture and decorations in her room.
She kept her meals simple and wore old clothes again after washing them. She also personally did weaving work and managed the imperial harem well, resulting in harmony among the emperor"s concubines.
Wang Yuanji died in 268 at the age of 52 (by East Asian age reckoning). Sima Yan personally wrote a eulogy praising his mother"s moral character and ordered a court historian to have it published.
