Chinese

Verb

御宇

1. (archaic) to rule over an empire; to sit on the throne
   • 806: Bai Juyi, Song of Everlasting Regret

     漢皇重色思傾國，御宇多年求不得。
     汉皇重色思倾国，御宇多年求不得。

     A certain emperor of the Han dynasty^[1] placed a premium on his dalliances, and longed for a beauty who could lay low an empire. He ruled his empire for many years without finding such a beauty.

1. ↑ A reference to the Emperor Xuanzong of Tang, whose relationship to Yang Guifei brought to mind the Emperor Wu of Han's relationship to his concubine, Consort Li. Bai Juyi would have considered it unpoetic to refer to his subject directly.