Chen Jiao

Empress Chen of Wu (孝武陳皇后) was empress of the Han dynasty and the first wife of Emperor Wu of Han (Liu Che). She was also known as Chen Jiao (simplified Chinese: 陈娇; traditional Chinese: 陳嬌; pinyin: Chén Jiāo; Wade–Giles: Ch'en Chiao) or as her milk name Chen A'Jiao (陈阿娇). She was born to Chen Wu (father) and Princess Guantao (mother), also making her Liu Che's older cousin. Her given name Jiao (嬌 / 娇) means talented and beautiful and features in various Chinese poems and idioms. Princess Guantao Liu Piao once held a young Liu Che in her arms and asked him whether he wanted to marry her daughter Chen Jiao. The young prince boasted that he would "build a golden house for her" if they were married. Thus, there was an arranged marriage between Liu Che and Chen Jiao, and Chen Jiao became the first empress of China during Liu Che's reign. Empress Chen's story inspired the Chinese idiom "Putting Jiao in a golden house" (金屋藏嬌), recorded in Ban Gu's Hanwu Stories (汉武故事). The poet Sima Xiangru wrote a song The Ode of Long Gate (長門賦 Changmenfu) describing the love between Empress Chen Jiao and Emperor Liu Che.