Ah-Duo

Ah-Duo has purple clear eyes and long purple hair. Although a woman and by far the oldest among the high consorts, her appearance is akin to that of a very handsome young man. She bears a striking resemblance to her biological son, Jinshi, including a "celestial" and androgynous beauty which makes her rather popular among women. She usually avoids wearing flashy dresses and prefers hunting uniforms, and often wears a red forehead huadian.

Due to her similar facial features and build to Jinshi, Ah-Duo sometimes poses as his veiled alter-ego, the "Imperial Brother".

Ah-Duo possesses a rather tomboyish personality, having always had a desire to be free from the Imperial Palace and travel around the world as a merchant. In fact, her childhood dream was to become a court official, a position illegal for Linese women to hold. Nevertheless, she is a very confident and caring woman with strong maternal instincts, especially towards younger women. She only became a consort because the Emperor desired to remain by her side.

Intelligence: Ah-Duo is noted to be very clever and practical, but in contrast, her emotional intelligence is somewhat lacking.

With her outstanding beauty and personality, Ah-Duo has a similar natural charm to Jinshi as she is able to captivate the hearts of many, particularly women. Her ladies-in-waiting were extremely loyal to her — particularly her head lady-in-waiting Fengming — and were willing to die for her, a testament to her character.

As the Emperor's childhood friend and love, Ah-Duo held much power within the Inner and Outer Courts as the Pure Consort. However, she was ultimately forced out of her position as a high consort by the Prime Minister, Shishou, due to her inability to produce heirs. Even after losing her official position, she still has certain influence in politics as an unofficial advisor and confidant to the Emperor.

Ah‑Duo, daughter of Suiren — former lady‑in‑waiting to Dowager Empress Anshi and the Emperor’s wet nurse — was close to the Emperor as milk siblings. He promised to make her his only wife; she joked he should make her empress dowager. She was his sole consort for over ten years and bore a son, Jinshi.

Jinshi’s birth was difficult, coinciding with his uncle’s (the Imperial Brother). Denied proper care as lower priority than Anshi, Ah‑Duo and her baby were saved by physician Luomen, who removed her womb — saving them but leaving her infertile. To protect Jinshi, she swapped him with the Imperial Brother (with Anshi’s consent), so he was raised as his father’s younger brother. This saved his life when Fengming accidentally killed the switched brother with honey; Luomen was blamed and banished.

Later, Ah‑Duo protected Lishu, forced by her father Uryuu to serve the Former Emperor, a pedophile who feared adult women. Ah‑Duo and the Crown Prince grew to care for Lishu like a daughter. After the Emperor’s accession, Ah‑Duo and Lishu became the Pure and Virtuous Consorts (in title only) and remained close. Ah‑Duo also bonded with Jinshi, who posed as a eunuch to avoid princely duties.

Five years into the reign, Shishou forced Ah‑Duo out, replacing her with his daughter Loulan. The Emperor gave her the Southern Imperial Villa. At Jinshi’s request, she became protector for those needing to “disappear” — including Suirei and the Shi Clan children. When Uryuu sent Lishu and her sister Yakou to the Western Capital as prospects for the Imperial Brother’s wife, Ah‑Duo and Suirei left to protect Lishu on her journey.

Her name, Ah-Duo, in Chinese is considered an uneducated name, consistent with the fact that she is the daughter of a wet nurse. "A" (Ah) is a common diminutive prefix for names, often used by people from a lower social class. Similar to a -y ending in English names. "Duo" means "many", which might refer to the wealth, fertility and prosperity in general. Like Lishu, her name lacks femininity, reflecting her character. Ah-Duo is symbolized by the dendrobium orchid, representing refinement and candidness, and her cardinal color is black, associated with the North.[citation needed] Suiren still has some of Ah-Duo's old dresses, one of which she lent to Maomao. Ah-Duo enjoys drinking alcoholic drinks and possesses a higher alcohol tolerance than Jinshi.