Gaozong had several concubines of his own, as well as his chief wife Empress Wang, a woman of a good family with strong ministerial backing. Unfortunately for her, she lacked one essential quality for imperial well-being – she had failed to provide the throne with a male heir. Since it was the duty of the top-ranking wife to provide an heir, she was forced to assume the shaky expedient of adopting one of the new emperor's four sons by other women.
