Xu Pingjun was born into a family that had some minor privileges but had also suffered under the reign of Emperor Wu.

Her father Xu Guanghan (許廣漢) was an assistant to the Prince of Changyi when young, and later became an imperial attendant.

Later, while accompanying Emperor Wu on a trip, he accidentally took the saddle of another attendant and was charged with theft; his sentence was castration.

Zhang, instead, invited Xu Guanghan, a subordinate to him, to dinner and persuaded him to marry his daughter, Pingjun.

Emperor Xuan did not explicitly reject this proposal, but issued an order to seek out the sword that he owned as a commoner.

Getting the hint, the officials recommended Consort Xu as empress, and she was created as such on 31 December 74 BC.

Huo Guang's wife, Lady Xian, would not be denied her wish of making her daughter an empress.