Consort Zhen

Zhenfei, of the Dong’e clan, birth and death dates unknown, approximately early 17th century to February 5, 1661. She was the daughter of the Qingshu Wei Badu, belonging to the same clan as Empress Xiaoxian, within the Four Banner clans. She was a consort of Emperor Shunzhi.

During Emperor Shunzhi’s reign, records document Zhenfei’s relationships and status within the imperial harem. When Shunzhi died, Zhenfei was buried along with him; she died in 1661 at around twenty years of age. Her initial burial site was outside the Feng Shui Wall on the western gate of the Eastern Qing Tombs. In the fifty-seventh year of Kangxi (1718), she was reinterred in the Eastern Tomb of Empress Xiaohui Zhang, belonging to Empress Xiaohui Zhang. According to the Draft History of Qing, she was posthumously bestowed the title "Imperial Mother Zhenfei" in line with the practice of mourning consorts.

In historical records, Zhenfei is regarded as the only consort of Emperor Shunzhi to die by accompanying him in mausoleum burial. There are different accounts regarding the reasons for her joint burial, with the most widely circulated theory linking it to events involving Dong Efei and Empress Dowager Xiaozhuang’s attitude toward the Dong’e family, suggesting that her burial was meant to ease familial conflicts. Some unofficial histories and literary works have proposed alternative theories, but no definitive evidence has been established. Academically, this issue remains subject to debate.

Regarding kinship and family relations, the "Ba Qi Manzhou Clan Genealogy" states that Empress Xiaoxian and Zhenfei’s great-grandfathers were both third-class officers of the Plain White Banner, but their bloodlines had diverged by the fourth generation. Such records serve to illustrate familial ties but do not confirm direct blood relations.

Chronologically, Emperor Shunzhi died at about 22 years old, and Zhenfei died around 20. Starting from the twelfth year of Kangxi (1673), the Qing court officially banned the custom of burying servants along with their masters, effectively ending the practice of live burial. Based on this, Zhenfei is regarded as the last consort of the Qing Dynasty to be buried alive with her husband.