The Jiajing Emperor of the Ming Dynasty had four Empresses. Yet, each of them suffered under his abuse and met a tragic end. One of them was Empress Zhang Qijie. Zhang Qijie was his second Empress and the only Empress that the Jiajing Emperor deposed. She reigned alongside him as Empress of China for six years. When she interceded for someone he greatly disliked, he beat her and deposed her. Empress Zhang Qijie’s story is truly tragic because she suffered from her abusive husband.