Before China adopted the communist ideology back in 1949, it was an imperial monarchy for centuries, and throughout imperial Chinese history, concubinage was still one of the accepted norms, and concubines still play a large part in pre-modern Chinese culture. Concubines are, in a nutshell, mistresses, and in ancient China, polygamy was considered normal, especially for the rich. While not all Chinese people can have concubines, it was the norm for any successful man to at least have one concubine in their household. However, as with many other things in ancient China, there is an unbreakable hierarchy: the status of the concubines will never be higher than any official wives. In the royal family, concubines are only recognized as sexual partners of the king and are expected to bear children, but will never ascend the throne as an Empress as long as the Empress still lives.
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