Of humble origin, Zhang Lihua was a beauty with a good memory. She became a maidservant at the age of ten. Seeing that she was so beautiful, the crown prince Chen Shubao called her in and slept with her. They bore the imperial grandson-heir Chen Shen. In the fourteenth year of Taijian, Chen Shubao mounted the throne and became emperor. He designated Zhang Lihua as Imperial Honored Consort and favored her best. When the emperor and Honored Consort Zhang held banquet, they would invite other palace women and frivolous men to sing or play music. Their performances were all decadent music or tunes presaging the fallen state. When officials had something to report, the emperor would hold Zhang Lihua on his knees while handling country matter. In the second year of Zhenming, the front-line troops made an emergency request for help. Indulged in merry-making, the emperor even forgot to open the letter. The Sui troops captured Chen’s capital the following year. Zhang Lihua was killed in Green Brook at the age of thirty.