Why are the descendants of high-ranking officials and nobles in the Tang Dynasty unwilling to marry princesses as consorts?

As for the emperor's daughter, she is a golden child. If she marries her, she will not only have a lovely wife to accompany her, but also be able to honor her ancestors. So basically throughout the dynasties, people have been flocking to and coveting the position of "consort". But there is one exception, and that is the Tang Dynasty. Men in the Tang Dynasty really avoided the position of "consort". This is mainly because few princes-in-law in the Tang Dynasty had a good ending. Let’s give a few examples.

Princess Gaoyang’s consort? Fang Yiai

Fang Yiai was the second son of Fang Xuanling, an important official in the Tang Dynasty. He was handsome and powerful, but he seemed to have no real talent or learning. , being able to become the Prince Consort is actually due to his father’s contribution. His wife was Princess Gaoyang, the seventeenth daughter of Emperor Taizong Li Shimin of the Tang Dynasty. She was very favored, so she also developed an arrogant personality. The two were in love for a while after they got married, but the good times didn't last long.

Princess Gaoyang began to dislike Fang Yiai for being unlearned and ignorant. She only knew how to ride a horse and hunt, wield a knife and a gun, and did not understand her daughter's family's concerns. By chance, Princess Gaoyang met an eminent monk named Bianji. The two fell in love and they immediately became passionate. But Bianji is a monk and values ??"self-suffering." However, Princess Gaoyang couldn't stand it, so she gave Bianji her "Golden Treasure Pillow." First, Princess Gaoyang can sleep more comfortably when the two of them are together; second, it allows Bianji to see things and think about people.

But surprisingly, the pillow was stolen by the thief. Moreover, the thief was caught, and the government officials followed the clues to investigate and discovered the affair between Princess Gaoyang and Bianji. Li Shimin was furious and ordered Monk Bianji to be beheaded. Although Princess Gaoyang begged, she could not change the outcome.

At this point, the cuckold on Fang Yiai’s head was taken off. There is no worst, only worse. In the Tang Dynasty, a prince-in-law lost his life because he married a princess.

Princess Taiping’s consort? A descendant of an aristocratic family. He married his cousin Princess Taiping. Princess Taiping is the youngest daughter of Wu Zetian and Li Zhi, and she is very loved by her parents. The two men are talented and beautiful, and they match each other very well.

Their wedding was also very luxurious and cost a lot of money. According to records, the torches used during weddings scorched the trees on the roadside. In order to allow the luxury wedding cars to pass smoothly, the walls of the Wannian County Hall where the wedding was held were demolished. The two seemed to live happily after marriage, but this marriage also brought misfortune to Xue Shao and the Xue family.

Because Princess Taiping was deeply favored by Wu Zetian, Wu Zetian believed that her precious daughter had been wronged for marrying off. She felt that Xue Shao's sisters-in-law, Xiao and Cheng, were of low origin and had humiliated her daughter, so she wanted to force the Xue family to divorce their wives and marry another one. Later, a minister tried to dissuade Wu Zetian by saying that the Xiao family was a descendant of the Xiao family in Lanling, so she was allowed to stop. The Lanling Xiao family is a very famous top family. It rose in the Western Han Dynasty and was also very powerful in the Tang Dynasty. It did not gradually decline until the Five Dynasties and Ten Kingdoms. As for Xue Shao's sister-in-law, as a descendant of the Xiao family, Wu Zetian couldn't find anything picky about her background. After that, Xue Shao, the prince-in-law, could not escape the murderous hand.

Xue Shao's brother Xue Yi participated in the rebellion, but failed and was suppressed. But in fact, Xue Shao was not involved in this incident. But Princess Taiping's mother, Wu Zetian, felt that Xue Shao's family were all guilty and unworthy of her daughter. So he ordered Xue Shao to be punished with a hundred sticks and thrown into prison. In fact, it was nothing. At most, he would suffer a little pain and suffer a little punishment. But Wu Zetian was indeed a cruel person. She starved her son-in-law Xue Shao to death in prison. It can be seen that the prince-in-law of the Tang Dynasty was at risk, and his own life was accidentally involved.

There are several reasons why men in the Tang Dynasty did not like to be consorts

It is not easy to be a son-in-law who comes to the house

The title consort may seem to be very prestigious, but to put it bluntly, it means The emperor's son-in-law. If you eat other people's food and receive their salary, you will lose in terms of status.

Most of the princesses born to emperors were spoiled, arrogant and domineering, and naturally they would not take their husband's family seriously. According to records, after Li Shimin's daughter, Princess Nanping, got married, instead of paying homage to her parents-in-law, she instead asked her parents-in-law to pay homage to her as a king and a minister. In ancient times, this was completely against family tradition. But there is nothing we can do about it. Who gives people a high status?

Most of the princesses in the Tang Dynasty were very romantic

It may be because the social atmosphere of the Tang Dynasty was relatively open, and Wu Zetian became emperor, which led to the increase in the status of women. Therefore, most of the princesses in the Tang Dynasty were romantic. For example, Princess Taiping mentioned above, not only did she raise many male pets, but she also gave them to her mother Wu Zetian. This is more embarrassing. People can't accept it anymore. Princess Anle, the daughter of Tang Zhongzong Li Xian, was also a romantic figure. She married Wu Chongxun, the son of Wu Sansi, but she got together with Wu Chongxun's cousin Wu Yanxiu, which was very absurd. Therefore, in order to avoid being cuckolded, men in the Tang Dynasty had to work hard to stay away from the princess.

The Prince Consort himself has no hope of promotion

The "Consort Prince Consort" in the Tang Dynasty was not just a title, it was also an official title, and the rank was not low, belonging to the third-grade official. But this official title is outside the official establishment. It is just a virtual title and has no rights. And after becoming the prince-in-law, it basically stopped there, and there was no hope of promotion. It's not impossible if the emperor is willing to give you a promotion, but according to records, of the more than two hundred princes-in-law in the Tang Dynasty, few were promoted. At that time, all people could think about was benefiting the people, and it would be even better if they could get promoted and make a fortune. The position of Prince Consort has no real power, cannot benefit the people, and cannot continue to be promoted, so naturally he is not popular with people.

The prince-in-law of the Tang Dynasty looked glamorous, but in fact it was very risky. It's no wonder that no one in the Tang Dynasty seemed willing to be a prince-in-law.