A Wife Is Not Furniture
It’s known that Puyi didn’t consummate his marriage with Wanrong that evening. Many historians strongly believe they may have never gotten together, ever. Puyi may not have been interested in women, even though he took on several other concubines. While this is all speculation, we do know that Puyi and Wanrong’s relationship ended up being very strained.
Puyi and his wife were dethroned for good in 1924. While Puyi tried to regain power, Wanrong developed an opium addiction and the couple continued to drift apart. It seems it wasn’t the fault of either of them – they were just terribly mismatched. Puyi was known to be awkward and distant, while Wanrong was personable, cultured, and social. Puyi never showed much affection for her, calling her “furniture” or one of his “victims.”