The Baiyi custom of monogamy

The Baiyi custom of monogamy is presented as a social practice that shaped marriage within the ruling House of Duan: Dao Baifeng, a Baiyi headman’s daughter, was unwilling to accept Duan Zhengchun taking another wife. The custom therefore illuminates a tension between the political purpose of her marriage and the different expectations she brought to it.

Political Marriage and Baiyi Support

Dao Baifeng was the daughter of a powerful Baiyi headman in Yunnan. The House of Duan married one of its sons to her to secure Baiyi support and strengthen its rule in Dali. The account explains that Han people were relatively few in Yunnan, making Baiyi backing important to the stability of the Duan throne. Her marriage thus joined personal life to the political ties on which the ruling family depended.

Monogamy and Marital Conflict

The Baiyi are described as practicing monogamy. Dao Baifeng had been highly regarded since childhood and was especially unwilling for Duan Zhengchun to take a second wife. The contrast was sharp: as a prince, Duan Zhengchun had relationships with several women, while Dao Baifeng’s inherited expectations did not accommodate his taking another wife. His continuing romantic relationships angered her, and she entered religious life as a Taoist priestess.

Consequences for the Family

Duan Zhengchun’s relationship with Ruan Xingzhu led to the birth of A'Zhu and, a year later, A'Zi. He was already married, and he and Ruan Xingzhu were not husband and wife. When Duan Zhengchun wished to return to Dali, Ruan Xingzhu tried to prevent him; their conflict ended in separation. Concerned that her strict father might kill her if he learned of the relationship, Ruan Xingzhu sent both daughters to be raised by other families. She arranged for each to carry a red Duan character on her shoulder so they might one day recognize their parentage.

Significance

The custom is more than background: it clarifies how distinct social and political obligations shaped the family’s choices. Dao Baifeng’s marriage served the House of Duan’s need for Baiyi support, while her commitment to monogamy brought her into conflict with Duan Zhengchun’s other relationships. In a separate relationship, Duan Zhengchun’s existing marriage and the danger Ruan Xingzhu faced from her own family contributed to the daughters’ separation and concealed parentage. The account does not make monogamy the sole cause of that separation; it places the custom within a wider tangle of marriage, political alliance, and family authority.