History of the Five Dynasties and Ten Kingdoms

Chapter 1037 Zhenzong ascends the throne
【Zhenzong ascended the throne】

The eldest son went crazy, the second son died, so was it the third son's turn? It seemed natural, but in fact it was an absolute taboo topic at the time, and no one dared to mention the issue of appointing a crown prince.

Zhao Guangyi was very sensitive about the selection of the crown prince. His explanation for this is what was mentioned above. First, he was worried that he would be sidelined and abandoned. Second, he intensified the inspection of the princes and expanded the candidate pool, not ruling out the possibility of selecting the most virtuous instead of the eldest. In fact, people are more willing to believe the meaning he did not say - the inherent bug of the "Golden Casket Alliance".

In order to stop people from saying that he was "the candle shadow and the axe sound", he brought out the "Golden Casket Alliance". However, the "Golden Casket Alliance" has the attribute of succession from brother to younger brother.

Moreover, according to the agreement of the "Golden Casket Alliance", after the death of the last brother Zhao Tingmei, the throne should be passed to Zhao Kuangyin's son, and the cycle would repeat, with the older clan members taking on the responsibility of governing the country. Although Zhao Guangyi took great pains to send Zhao Tingmei and Zhao Kuangyin's two sons away, Zhao Kuangyin still had grandsons (Zhao Dezhao had 5 sons).

Help these five grandchildren...leave us too soon?

As long as Zhao Guangyi designated his own son as the heir, it would be a violation of the "Golden Casket Alliance" and a slap in his own face; and overthrowing the "Golden Casket Alliance" would be tantamount to admitting to killing his brother to seize power...

The best way is to delay. He can be crowned as a crown prince, for example, he can be given the title of king, or he can be appointed as the minister of the Secretariat, or the prefect of Kaifeng, but he cannot be crowned as a crown prince in name only, and he cannot be officially appointed as a crown prince.

The old man dies the young man. In the more than a year after the death of the second son Zhao Yuanxi, Zhao Guangyi's health also deteriorated. In September 994, Zhao Guangyi, who felt that he did not have much time left, finally discussed the issue of establishing a crown prince with Kou Jun in private.

Kou Jun had been banished to Qingzhou for offending Emperor Taizong, but when Emperor Taizong came to his senses, he regretted it and recalled him. The story begins with this meeting.

When Kou Jun came to the court, Zhao Guangyi took off his pants without saying anything and said, "Look."

Because Zhao Guangyi was shot in the leg by an arrow in the Battle of Gaoliang River, the wound recurred every year, especially in his later years. When Kou Jun came to the court, Zhao Guangyi's leg injury was getting worse, so he lifted up his pants to show him, meaning that he was dying.

Zhao Guangyi looked at Kou Jun lovingly and said coquettishly, "You bastard, you still remember to come? (Why are you so slow?)"

Kou Jun replied, "I cannot come to the capital without being summoned."

I'm talking about feelings with you, you're playing tricks on me, you're putting poison in the pancakes - don't play that with me. Zhao Guangyi simply stopped beating around the bush and pretending, I'm laying it bare:
"Who among the princes do you think can be made crown prince?"

This was a life-threatening question for the ministers. Kou Jun used the standard answer from the college entrance examination:

"Your Majesty, you are choosing a successor for the whole country. You cannot discuss this matter with the harem, the eunuchs, or your close ministers. Your Majesty can only make the decision yourself. Only Your Majesty can choose the next generation of wise and holy rulers."

"Nima..." Zhao Guangyi lowered his head and did not speak for a long time. After a long silence, Zhao Guangyi sent away all the palace maids and eunuchs, leaving only him and Kou Jun in the hall. Then, Zhao Guangyi lowered his voice and further pointed out, "You look at the third brother Zhao Yuankan, okay?"

Kou Jun's answer remained the same:

"That is not something I know of."

This is not something I dare to listen to, I won't listen, I won't discuss, I won't care. Your son is your world, your grassland is your horse, you can do whatever you want with it.

Zhao Guangyi understood what was going on. "Well, since you strongly agree, then it's settled."

Immediately afterwards, the third son of the emperor, Zhao Yuankan, was appointed as the prefect of Kaifeng, renamed Prince Shou, changed his name to Zhao Heng, and was officially named the crown prince, becoming the legal heir.

It is generally believed that Kou Jun did help Zhao Heng with the issue of succession. Although he kept silent about the issue, he suggested that Zhao Heng be appointed as the prefect of Kaifeng, thereby indirectly expressing his support for Zhao Heng.

Since the end of the Tang Dynasty, the Central Plains no longer had the ceremony of appointing a crown prince, which had a history of a hundred years. Therefore, Taizong's ceremony of appointing a crown prince became the most grand celebration at that time. The capital Bianzhou was deserted, eager to see the crown prince. When Zhao Heng returned to the palace from the Taimiao, the people lined the streets to welcome him, and couldn't help but praise him as "a true master of the country."

Soon, this sentence reached Zhao Guangyi's ears.

It's over. The flattery hit the horse's balls again. Zhao Guangyi was instantly furious.

"Hey - he is the real emperor, then what am I? Am I just occupying the toilet without doing anything? Then why don't I move out and make room for him? This old Kou!"

In a rage, Zhao Guangyi summoned Kou Jun and said, "Now people in the world only know the prince, but not me. People's hearts are about to belong to the prince. I want to ask you, where do you want to put me?" Should I take the initiative to abdicate and let others take over, or should you help me die with dignity? You tell me, tell me, tell me!
Kou Jun stood up and bowed again, "Your Majesty has chosen a leader for the world, and he has chosen a leader for the country. This is a blessing for the world! Congratulations!"

Do you hope your son will be like Yao, Shun, Jie or Zhou? Zhao Guangyi calmed down in an instant, turned his anger into joy, and turned back to relay Kou Jun's words to the harem. The queen led all the concubines in the harem to congratulate Zhao Guangyi. On the one hand, they congratulated the country for its long-term prosperity, and on the other hand, they congratulated His Majesty for getting a famous minister - Kou Jun.

Zhao Guangyi then hurried back to the front hall and said, "Lao Xier, please leave. Stay for lunch and drink with me."

That day, Kou Jun returned home drunk.

After being appointed as the crown prince, Zhao Heng became even more cautious, fearing that he would irritate the suspicious Zhao Guangyi. According to convention, the crown prince's position should be above the prime minister during court sessions, and the crown prince's subordinates in the East Palace should pay him homage, but Zhao Heng refused. When he saw his teachers (the crown prince's guests) Li Zhi and Li Hang, Zhao Heng would rush to greet them first and personally escort them to the steps outside the palace gate.

Even so, Zhao Heng almost lost his position as crown prince.

In the spring of 996, there was a severe drought in the Central Plains. Zhao Heng, then the prefect of Kaifeng, exempted 17 counties under his jurisdiction from taxes, reducing the burden on the people, and the people praised him. However, someone took advantage of the situation and reported to Zhao Guangyi that Zhao Heng exaggerated the disaster and used tax exemption to win the hearts of the people.

Zhao Guangyi was furious when he heard this, and immediately set up a "Kaifeng Disaster Investigation Working Group" headed by Imperial Commissioner Wang Qinruo, which went down to the grassroots level to conduct an in-depth investigation of the disaster.

Wang Qinruo quickly submitted a research report, saying that the disaster was far more serious than imagined, and that the rent and tax reductions imposed by Kaifeng Prefecture were still too conservative and that the tax reductions should be increased.

Zhao Guangyi was very pleased and dispelled his suspicions, and Zhao Heng escaped the disaster safely.

By the way, Wang Qinruo was favored by Zhao Heng because of this incident, and rose rapidly in the reign of Emperor Zhenzong, becoming the prime minister. However, he was eventually recorded in the history books as a treacherous minister. Later generations listed him as one of the "Five Ghosts of Emperor Zhenzong", and his successor Emperor Renzong of Song personally commented that he was "truly treacherous and evil". This is a later story.

In February 997, Zhao Guangyi fell ill, and his condition worsened in early March, and he "did not attend court."

If nothing unexpected happened, Crown Prince Zhao Heng would have been the regent, waiting for the emperor to leave us prematurely, and then ascend the throne in front of the coffin. But the charm of the game of power is that nothing unexpected happened, and Zhao Heng's real disaster came at this time.

Zhao Guangyi's trusted eunuch Wang Jie'en and several important officials - Vice-Chancellor Li Changling, Chief Imperial Edicts Hu Dan and others conspired to establish the mentally ill emperor's eldest son Zhao Yuanzuo as the emperor. Another theory is that they conspired to establish Taizu's eldest grandson Zhao Weizhi as the emperor. In short, they wanted to overthrow the crown prince Zhao Heng.

Wang Jie'en even brought Queen Li into the group.

The father of this Empress Li was Li Chuyun, one of the main actors in the "Chenqiao Mutiny". Empress Li gave birth to Zhao Yuanyi, but unfortunately he died young. In other words, neither Zhao Yuanzuo nor Zhao Heng was her biological son, so it didn't matter who was enthroned. It is estimated that Wang Jie'en would use the harm of "abolishing the eldest and enthroning the youngest" as the main selling point.

However, Zhao Heng had already been appointed as the crown prince and was the legal heir, so how could he be deposed without any fault? Empress Li was undecided, so she asked Wang Jie'en to call Prime Minister Lu Duan to discuss the matter together.

History is really naughty. When Emperor Taizu passed away, Empress Song asked Wang Jie'en to summon Zhao Defang into the palace, but Wang Jie'en brought Zhao Guangyi instead. Now that Zhao Guangyi has passed away, Empress Li asked him to summon Lu Duan, but he suffered the same loss.

Wang Jie'en called Lu Duan into the palace, saying that he had important matters to discuss and the situation was urgent and could not be delayed!

Even a fool knows what the "important matter" at this critical moment is. While Wang Jie'en was not paying attention, Lu Duan quickly wrote the words "Da Jian" on the tablet and secretly gave it to his confidant, "Show it to Zhao Heng and ask him to come to the palace quickly, quickly!"

Things had come to this point, so he had no choice but to go all out. Lu Duan took the risk and ordered his servants to subdue Wang Jie'en. Then he went into the palace alone to confront Queen Li.

Lü Duan was courageous and knowledgeable, and showed amazing courage at critical moments. His family members appear many times in this book. His brother is Lü Yuqing, his father is Lü Qi, and his grandfather is Lü Gun. Lü Gun was the staff of Liu Shouwen in Cangzhou. Later, Liu Shouguang killed his brothers, killed Liu Shouwen, seized Cangzhou, and executed Lü Gun's entire family. At that time, Lü Qi, who was only 15 years old, was rescued by his father's friend Zhao Yu at the risk of his life. Zhao Yu carried Lü Qi on his back and begged along the streets to escape to Hedong.

Lu Duan argued with reason and finally convinced Queen Li to let Zhao Heng inherit the throne.

But Lü Duan was still worried. When the ministers paid homage to Zhao Heng, they had to "draw the curtain" as usual. However, Lü Duan stood instead of kneeling. He insisted on lifting the curtain and "verifying the identity". When he walked up the steps and lifted the curtain, and saw that it was Zhao Heng himself, he stepped down and led the ministers to kneel and shout "Long live Zhao Heng".

At this point, Zhao Heng finally succeeded in ascending the throne of emperor, namely "Emperor Zhenzong of Song".

Regarding this failed coup, some details are slightly different. For example, Queen Li was excluded from the coup participants, saying that Wang Jie'en and others had conspired long ago. When Emperor Taizong was critically ill, Lü Duan went to the palace to visit and found that Zhao Heng was not in the palace. So he suspected that someone was going to do something, so he wrote "Da Jian" on the tablet, sent his confidant to give it to Zhao Heng, and urged him to enter the palace quickly. After Emperor Taizong passed away, Wang Jie'en came to Lü Duan and said that Queen Li wanted to see him. Lü Duan knew that it was Wang Jie'en who was playing tricks, so he lied to Wang Jie'en and said that the emperor had written a suicide note (ink edict) a long time ago, and it was in the edict cabinet. I dare not touch it, please ask Wang Gonggong to bring out the ink edict. Wang Jie'en believed it, but as soon as he entered the archives room, Lü Duan closed the door behind him, locked it with a "clatter-bang", and then ran to Queen Li to argue.

In response to Lu Duan's questioning, Queen Li frankly said that since ancient times, the eldest son has been appointed as the heir, so what's wrong with making the eldest son Zhao Yuanzuo the heir?
Lu Duan said, "Didn't the late emperor establish the crown prince just for today? Can you translate for me what the crown prince is?"
Queen Li remained silent.

(End of this chapter)