A Fateful Encounter in the Jin Court

The Shishuo Xinyu, a celebrated collection of anecdotes from China’s Wei-Jin period (220–420 CE), preserves a striking moment of personal drama:

> Jia Chong’s former wife was the daughter of Li Feng. After Li Feng’s execution, Jia divorced her and she was exiled to the frontier. Later pardoned, she returned to Luoyang, only to find Jia remarried to Guo Pei’s daughter. Emperor Wu of Jin permitted Jia to maintain “left and right wives”—a rare dual consort arrangement. Yet Lady Li refused to re-enter Jia’s household.

> When Lady Guo proposed visiting her, Jia warned: “She is principled and formidable. Your going may do more harm than good.” Undeterred, Lady Guo arrived with great pomp, attended by maids. Upon entering, Lady Li rose to greet her—whereupon Lady Guo’s knees buckled involuntarily, and she knelt in reverence.

> Returning home, Lady Guo recounted the incident. Jia sighed: “Did I not tell you?”

This vignette reveals more than marital tension—it encapsulates the cultural and political fault lines of third-century China.

The Turbulent Backdrop: Factions and Betrayals

### The Rise and Fall of Li Feng

Li Feng (style name Anguo) epitomized the scholar-official ideal. Described in Shishuo Xinyu as “a jade mountain on the verge of collapse”—a phrase also used for the legendary Ji Kang—Li combined physical frailty with moral stature. As a minister under the Cao Wei regime, he navigated the deadly rivalry between regent Sima Yi and general Cao Shuang through strategic absences, feigning illness to avoid taking sides.

When Sima Yi seized power in 249 (the Gaoping Tomb Coup), Li Feng’s neutrality became untenable. Appointed Central Secretary by Sima Yi’s heir Sima Shi, Li secretly conspired with Emperor Cao Fang to eliminate the Sima clan. The plot failed spectacularly in 254. Facing Sima Shi’s interrogation, the ailing Li delivered a blistering denunciation: “Your family’s treachery will topple the state! Were I stronger, I would destroy you myself!” He was bludgeoned to death with sword hilts—a martyrdom that triggered rebellions across Huainan.

### Jia Chong’s Calculated Loyalty

Jia Chong’s father, Jia Kui, had been a Cao Wei loyalist celebrated for saving General Cao Xiu during the 228 Battle of Shiting. Yet Jia Chong chose pragmatism over paternal legacy. His divorce from Li Feng’s daughter marked his allegiance to the Sima faction. This alignment proved decisive in 260 when Emperor Cao Mao attempted a coup against Sima Zhao. As Central Protector, Jia ordered the emperor’s assassination—an act immortalized in the Chronicles of the Three Kingdoms as “the blade exiting through [Cao Mao’s] back.”

Though some demanded Jia’s execution, Sima Zhao shielded him, cementing his status as a Jin dynasty architect. When Sima Yan (Emperor Wu) founded the Jin in 265, Jia became a chief minister—yet his past haunted him.

The Clash of Wives: Power vs. Principle

### The “Two Consorts” Dilemma

Emperor Wu’s unprecedented decree allowing dual principal wives reflected Jin’s unstable aristocracy. The returning Lady Li—now mother to Jia’s daughter (married to Prince Sima You)—represented old intellectual elites. Lady Guo, daughter of general Guo Pei, embodied military clans.

Historical accounts diverge:
– Shishuo Xinyu emphasizes Lady Li’s voluntary exile, her moral authority humbling Lady Guo.
– Book of Jin claims Jia refused the dual-wife privilege to avoid scandal, isolating Lady Li.

### The Psychology of the Kneeling Incident

Why would the formidable Lady Guo—infamous for murdering wet nurses over imagined affairs—submit so abruptly? Three factors explain this:

1. Cultural Capital: The Lis belonged to the qingtan (pure conversation) elite who disdained “mere” military families like the Jias and Guos.
2. Political Optics: With her daughter as Prince You’s consort, Lady Li retained indirect court influence.
3. Moral Theater: In an era valuing fengliu (refined eccentricity), Lady Li’s principled exile amplified her dignity.

Scholar Liu Xiaobiao doubted the anecdote, noting Lady Guo’s political acumen. Yet as historian Chen Yinke observed, Wei-Jin social hierarchies often overrode individual capability.

Legacy: When Personal Drama Shapes History

### The Daughters’ Revolt

Lady Li’s daughters—especially Jia Quan, Princess of Qi—publicly shamed their father, demanding Lady Li’s reinstatement. At state ceremonies, Jia Quan would kowtow until bleeding, forcing officials to flee the awkward spectacle. This familial strife mirrored the Sima court’s tensions between Emperor Wu and Prince You.

### The Irony of Succession

Lady Guo’s daughter Jia Nanfeng later married Crown Prince Sima Zhong (the future Emperor Hui), seemingly securing victory. Yet Nanfeng’s tyranny during the War of the Eight Princes (291–306) helped unravel the Jin—a poetic justice for Jia Chong’s moral compromises.

Why This Story Endures

This episode transcends gossip, illustrating:
– The Wei-Jin Power Transition: How intellectual prestige (Li) yielded to military pragmatism (Jia/Guo).
– Gender Agency: Elite women leveraging kinship networks for influence.
– Historiographical Layers: Competing versions in Shishuo Xinyu vs. official histories reveal how anecdotes become political tools.

Today, the tale resonates as a study of integrity versus ambition—and a reminder that even in politics, unspoken hierarchies can determine who kneels, and who stands tall.