The ending :
I wondered if a widower who becomes Emperor, can after his coronation bestow the title of Empress to his late wife.
Normally No. Because, for a title to be bestowed, the recipient must accept the decree read by the eunuch. Thus, if there is no wife, then there is no title.
The answer is : Historically, the only posthumous title that can be bestowed is the title of Dowager. This title is bestowed by the new Emperor ( often the son of the late Emperor ).
So, a newly crowned widower can never bestow a title of Empress to his late wife. However, as a viewer pointed out , writers can do whatever they want in dramas, therefore a deceased Empress who cannot manage the Royale Household and thus the Royal Harem can exist in dramaland.
However, in "Kill Me Love Me" , the maids servants spoke about the late wife of the Emperor as the Empress. And the Emperor did not keep a harem. So historically, that situation would be accurate.
I was trying to understand the ending of a drama. Those directors are making the endings, more and more complex to let everybody free to believe whatever they want to. And often, that leads are dead. Because they LOVE sad endings. I wanted to know if the heroine survived.
Yes, she survived. But a lot of people think she died. *SMH*
Whereas she survived several years and it's a type of Happy Ending.
Mei Lin was alive after MRJH's coronation.