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In ancient China, no matter which dynasty, the harem was forbidden to interfere in politics. Although there are exceptions, such as Empress Dowager Cixi in the late Qing Dynasty, Empress Liu E of Song Zhenzong in the Song Dynasty, and even Empress Wu Zetian who became emperor herself, in most cases, emperors and courtiers strongly oppose harem interference in politics. However, during the Eastern Han Dynasty, harems were very frequent. Why? There are three reasons: first, since the founding of the Eastern Han Dynasty, extended families and aristocratic families have occupied most positions in the imperial court and harem; Second, some emperors in the Eastern Han Dynasty didn't live very long. When the new emperor ascended the throne, he needed the Empress Dowager to assist in government affairs. Third, in order to prevent other members of the royal family from having too much power, they shifted their minds to the throne and chose the Queen Mother to assist in government affairs. Liu Xiu, the founding emperor of the Eastern Han Dynasty, was able to establish the Eastern Han Dynasty by the landlord class and extended families. Therefore, after Liu Xiu became emperor, it is natural to reward these big families who helped him. These big families have more and more influence. In ancient times, marriage paid attention to the right family, and the emperor's enrichment of the harem naturally depended on women's family background, so women of large families entered the harem, were favored by family background, and supported the family by grace at the same time, thus laying the groundwork for later intervention. However, even if the queen mother has family support, if the emperor can manage state affairs by himself, it is naturally not the queen mother's turn to intervene. The emperors of the Eastern Han Dynasty didn't live very long, so it became a matter of course for the Queen Mother to listen to politics after the new emperor who couldn't manage state affairs ascended the throne. The new emperor was young, but he was afraid that Wang Mang would usurp the Han Dynasty for the second time. He would rather choose the harem to be in charge of government affairs than let courtiers or royal princes assist in government affairs. Why not choose the older imperial clan prince to assist in government affairs? In fact, there have been cases in history in which the prince rebelled and seized the throne. The advantage of the queen mother's assistance in government affairs is that even if the queen mother has great power, she will not overshadow her children. Of course, Wu Zetian is an exception, so the Eastern Han Dynasty will choose the Empress Dowager to assist in government affairs, regardless of the rule that the harem cannot intervene in government affairs.