The Emperor’s first wife is always the most important wife out of the many other ones the emperor would’ve married. She gives orders to the other wives and tells them what to do.
Photo 1 shows all the different wives of an Ancient Chinese Emperor. It shows us what clothes the wives wore and the difference between higher and lower ranks of the social hierarchy.
Even if the Emperor’s wife was a peasant before they got married (even though it is very unlikely to marry a peasant), they would upgrade in class on the social hierarchy. The family still needs to pay the dowry to the Emperor, enough to ‘win his heart’.
Photo 2 of an Emperors wife’s family. It depends sometimes if they are higher or lower on the social hierarchy. This photo shows a wife’s family who comes from a relatively wealthy family.
The Emperor’s wife always had their feet bound, as they were wealthy. To have your feet bound is a sign of being wealthy and the smaller the feet, the prettier you are. If the wife didn’t have her feet bound, it is a sign of being slack.
Photo 3 is of a ladies feet that have been bound. This shows how small ladies feet were back then and how small the shoes were. The foot structure has been deformed into a heeled shape and the toes have been curled inwards towards the sole of the foot and onto the other side. It hurt ladies very much to walk so the richest got their servants to carry them around.