Traditional Chinese classical "four beautiful women" - Xi Shi, Wang Zhaojun, Diaochan and Yang Yuhuan – are the most popular among the people for two reasons:
One is that it has a special political background. Xi Shi sacrificed his life to help Wu Yue die, Zhaojun went out of the fortress to "make peace with relatives", Diaochan divided Dong Lu with color, and the jade ring caused the "An Shi Rebellion";
The second is that, in the voice of regret and sympathy from the world, all kinds of literary works about them are endless through the ages, and "sinking fish and falling geese, closing the moon and shying flowers" naturally become synonymous with classical beautiful women.
Therefore, the classical "four beautiful women" carry more of a humanistic load!
In fact, the prototype of "Chen Yu" is not Xishi, and Mao Qiang, who was contemporaneous with Xishi, should be more perfect than her.
Wang Zhaojun should be just a beautiful woman in the Han Palace, unlikely to stand out in the palace and be ignored by the emperor.
Diaochan has no one, just a fictitious literary image.
Yang Yuhuan is an ancient song and dance artist, and his appearance is probably in line with the aesthetics of the Li and Tang people of northern descent.
The real "four beautiful women" in ancient China should be someone else, or it can be used as an alternative list.
Who are the real "four beautiful women" in Ancient China?
The alternative list of classical "four beautiful women" I provide is: Mao Qiang, Xia Ji, Li Zu'e, Zhang Lihua.
I secretly thought that Mao Qiang in the late Spring and Autumn Period should be the "first beautiful woman" in ancient China, at least in the pre-Qin period of Seguan.
There is no special record of Mao Qiang in the history books. We only know that she was the Aiji of the overlord Yue Wang Goujian in the late spring and autumn, roughly the same age as Xi Shi and Zheng Dan. But we can still know from the praise of her later generations that she is the embodiment and symbol of beauty in the eyes of the original people.
Mao Qiang is the prototype of Chen Yu. "Chen Yu Falling Goose" originated from "Mao Qiang and Li Ji, the beauty of people, the depth of fish seeing, the flying of birds seeing, and the sudden decision of elk seeing."
Zhuang Zhou's original intention is that whether it is a beautiful woman recognized as Mao Qiang and Li Ji, fish and birds do not know how to appreciate, in the face of beautiful girls, they still sink to the bottom of the water and swim by themselves, or fly high. Zhuang Zhou used this to illustrate that all things in heaven and earth are one.
Later, the Tang Dynasty poet Song Zhiwen had a poem: "Birds are amazing, pine dill, fish are afraid of sinking lotus flowers." Therefore, the world used "sinking fish and falling geese" to describe the beauty of women.