Which is the most terrifying bedroom elixir in Chinese history?

Since ancient times, in the harems of Chinese dynasties, aphrodisiacs have become a powerful assistant for kings in the bedroom. In particular, the Ming Dynasty is considered one of the dynasties where aphrodisiacs developed at their peak.

Among the incidents related to aphrodisiacs in Chinese history, we must mention the event of the Ming emperor who died less than a month after ascending the throne.

Red ginseng

During the reign of Emperor Ming Shizong , Dao Trong Van was just a little-known warehouse official, but thanks to his contribution to the  "hong dien hoan" medicine, he was favored by Emperor Ming Shizong.

When offering this secret medicine to the king, Dao Trong Van described : "Drinking this "aphrodisiac" will make you younger, your blood will circulate better, your health will be stronger, and especially you will be extremely strong, resilient in the bedroom, and immortal."

According to legend, the Dao family's secret medicine is extremely strange. Accordingly, the number one ingredient to make "Hong Dien Hoan" is a woman's first menstrual period (hong dien) contained in metal containers, then night dew and apricot are added, then boiled seven times. After boiling seven times, those ingredients are added with agarwood, cinnabar, pine resin, etc., then refined with fire, and finally condensed into pills for use.

To make this strange "aphrodisiac" , Emperor Minh The Tong organized many recruitment campaigns for beautiful women aged only 11-16 to get "ingredients".

According to the book "Minh Thuc Luc" it is recorded: From 1547 to 1564, the Ming Dynasty Emperor selected more than 1,000 young women to enter the palace. Specifically: In the 26th year of Jiajing, or 1547, 300 young women aged 11-14 were selected to enter the palace. In the 31st year of Jiajing, or 1552, 300 more were selected. In September of the 34th year, or 1555, 160 girls under 10 years old were selected. In November of the same year, 20 more young women were selected from the Huguang region (Hunan and Hubei of China today). In January of the 43rd year of Jiajing, or 1564, 300 palace maids were selected.

Painting of Emperor Ming Shizong.

Because many girls were captured at such a young age, they cried day and night because they missed their parents, and many families were in a state of panic because their daughters were taken away. Unable to bear the pressure, many people decided to rebel. Duong Kim Anh was the palace maid who led the rebellion. Then, more than ten palace maids rushed forward at the same time, using ropes to strangle Emperor The Tong, intending to kill him. Although the rebellion was unsuccessful, it still scared the most lustful Emperor of the Ming Dynasty.

Escaping that great disaster did not mean that the net of heaven would let him go. Only 9 years after using this "aphrodisiac" , Minh The Tong died of poisoning at the age of 59.

The tyrant Emperor Ming Shizong died, but girls in puberty were still not left in peace. The successor to the throne, Muzong, also followed his father's example and used this strange "aphrodisiac" and he also died from poisoning from this "red pill" when he was not yet 36 years old.

Passed away less than a month after ascending the throne

Two murders occurred due to the frequent use of "hong dien hoan" but the next successor, Chu Thuong Lac, continued to follow his father's example and believed in using it. Therefore, Crown Prince Chu Thuong Lac, son of King Than Tong and nephew of Muc Tong, died unexpectedly from the aphrodisiac before ascending the throne. History books call this the famous "Hong dien hoan case" in the history of Chinese politics.

Red ginseng is not good at all, even harmful to health. (Illustration photo).

Chu Thuong Lac did not receive a proper education when he was young. When he became Emperor, he began to indulge his lust. Concubine Trinh wanted the Emperor to appoint her as Empress Dowager, so she prepared some jewels and eight beauties for the Emperor. Chu Thuong Lac was immersed in lust day and night, and so he was exhausted and fell ill repeatedly.

One night, one of the eight beauties presented by Imperial Noble Consort Zheng came to serve the emperor. Zhu Changluo drank a Hongdian pill and suddenly became unusually excited, almost crazy. Seeing the emperor's unusual appearance, the next morning, Wu Zan had to go find a royal physician. Cui Wensheng thought that the emperor had internal heat, so he prescribed Wu Zan a series of antipyretic and laxative medicines. After the emperor drank it, he immediately had diarrhea, up to dozens of times a day.

While Chang Le's illness was getting worse, Li Ke Zhuo of Hong Lu claimed that he had a magical medicine that could cure all diseases and wanted to present it to the Emperor. The medicine Li Ke Zhuo presented was a red pill that was said to be Hong Dien Hoan. After taking the medicine, the Emperor's breathing began to return to normal. Everyone breathed a sigh of relief. Even the Emperor repeatedly praised Li Ke Zhuo as a loyal subject and ordered him to be given a generous reward.

That night, while the ministers were on duty outside the Emperor's palace, a eunuch suddenly rushed over and ordered Li Ke Zhuo to present another pill. After taking the second pill, the Emperor's breathing seemed to have recovered. Fang Yi Zhe followed the Emperor's orders and ordered Li Ke Zhuo to be rewarded with 50 taels of silver. As soon as the order was delivered, the Emperor suddenly screamed loudly, clutched his chest with both hands, rolled his eyes, and thrashed around. A moment later, he died.

Chu Thuong Lac died after only 30 days on the throne, becoming one of the kings with the shortest reign in Chinese history.

Painting of Chu Thuong Lac.

Regarding the ingredient "hong dien" , Li Shizhen - a famous pharmacist of the late Ming Dynasty - frankly rejected it. In the book "Compendium of Materia Medica" , he wrote: "Menstruation is an unclean thing, sorcerers use evil magic to embellish it, considering it a secret elixir. Many ignorant people believe in such baseless things and put this dirty thing into their bodies, causing damage to the yin and yang qi and blood, causing all kinds of diseases. not knowing that it is something that gentlemen should stay away from".

Later studies have also confirmed that " hong dien" as well as women's menstrual blood do not contain substances that have rejuvenating effects or special substances that have healing effects. Therefore, in modern oriental medicine books, "hong dien" is no longer mentioned.