Who dated Empress Dowager Hu (Northern Qi)?

Empress Hu (胡皇后, personal name unknown; died after 581) was an empress consort and empress dowager of the Chinese Northern Qi dynasty. Her husband was Emperor Wucheng (Gao Zhan). She was the empress dowager during the reign of her son Gao Wei. Hu was known to be debauched and promiscuous, having multiple love affairs even with eunuchs. Even after the Northern Qi was overthrown by the Northern Zhou, she continued to have affairs with the new emperors until she died during the Sui dynasty.

Following the death of her husband, Emperor Wucheng, in 569, she also enjoyed significant authority and influence in the political arena for several years. However, after the execution of her powerful lover, the chancellor He Shikai, and her subsequent disgrace in 571 due to the exposure of her sexual misconduct, her standing at court sharply declined. She lost the trust of her son, who placed her under house arrest and prohibited her from receiving outside visitors. Her reputation within the court deteriorated to such an extent that Zu Ting even proposed deposing her in favor of the imperial nurse Lu Lingxuan. Although she was not formally deposed, her authority was effectively seized by Lu Lingxuan.

He Shikai (Chinese: 和士開) (524 – 30 August 571), courtesy name Yantong (彥通), was an official of the Northern Qi dynasty of China. He was a close associate of the Emperor Wucheng (Gao Zhan) prior to the latter's accession to the throne, and he became a powerful official (and lover to Emperor Wucheng's wife Empress Hu) during Emperor Wucheng's reign. He was criticized in traditional histories as a corrupt and incompetent official. After Emperor Wucheng's death, Emperor Wucheng's son Gao Yan, the Prince of Langya, was displeased with the authority that He Shikai was still wielding, and killed him in a coup in 571, but subsequently was himself killed.