History of the Five Dynasties and Ten Kingdoms

Chapter 163: The Eunuch's Fury

[Eunuch's Wrath]

In August of the fifth year of the Qianning reign of the Tang Dynasty (898), Emperor Zhaozong set out from Huazhou and returned to the capital Chang'an. He changed the reign title to Guanghua and issued a general amnesty.

This year, Zhaozong had already worked diligently as an emperor for ten years. After ten years of hard work, the two mountains - eunuchs and vassal states - still stood tall, while his resistance power was drastically weakened. The Tang Empire was in decline.

The energy of his two magic weapons - the civil service group and the princes' military - was also exhausted in the ten years of struggle. After the "Sixteen Houses Massacre", the princes were physically eliminated, completely cutting off the idea of ​​"princes in charge of the military"; the civil service power also changed under the combined force of internal and external forces.

There were two major inherent defects within the civil service power. First, Emperor Zhaozong was very ruthless in selecting people, which led to the congenital deformity of the civil service group, with varying talents and even more mixed character. Second, the civil service group was also powerless in the face of interests, and constantly staged factional struggles for fame and fortune.

External factors also restricted the healthy development of the civil service group, mainly reflected in the brutal interference of local vassal states in central affairs. For example, Zhu Wen secretly colluded with Prime Minister Cui Yin and forced Emperor Zhaozong to appoint Cui Yin as Prime Minister; Han Jian carried out a political purge in Huazhou without restraint; not to mention Li Maozhen, who directly forced the dissident prime minister to death.

The two major internal and external factors turned the civil service group into a double-edged sword coated with poison. Zhaozong wanted to use it but did not dare to use it, and he had to use it even though he did not know how to use it.

Eunuchs were still arrogant, vassal states were still fighting, princes were being slaughtered, civil officials were unreliable... How could they relieve their worries? Only Du Kang. Wine is the father, vegetables are the mother, and drinking to death is better than being shot. Emperor Zhaozong finally developed the bad habit of alcoholism and drank to relieve his worries.

When Zhaozong "indulged himself", danger was quietly approaching.

The danger comes from the eunuchs' fear.

Since ascending the throne, Zhaozong has successively eliminated the two powerful eunuchs Tian Lingzi and Yang Fugong. Judging from the power grabbing from the eunuchs alone, Zhaozong did achieve certain results. He greatly deterred the eunuchs' power and unearthed several upright people who were loyal to the emperor, such as Ximen Daguanren (Ximen Junsui) and other eunuchs.

The good times did not last long. Li Maozhen of Fengxiang led his troops to invade the capital. Ximen Daguanren and other clear-minded people in the muddy stream, together with the truly clear-minded prime minister Du Rangneng, became scapegoats and died unjustly.

Later, Luo Quanguan and Liu Jingxuan became the "top eunuchs". They witnessed the strength of the Guanxi Group and the loss of the dignity of the royal family, so they actively colluded with the Guanxi Group, colluded with both inside and outside, and oppressed Emperor Zhaozong. The eunuch world, which had just improved, returned to its original state.

Under the combined effect of this evil wind, the "Three Towns Invading the Palace" was soon catalyzed. Later, under the interference of the Hedong forces, the Guanxi Group had to sacrifice the eunuchs in order to protect itself, and eunuchs such as Luo Quanguan and Liu Jingxuan became scapegoats.

As a result, eunuchs such as Song Daobi and Jing Wuxiu became the leaders of the new generation of eunuch group.

During these few short years, the eunuchs who held real power (the Left and Right Shen Ce Army; the Privy Council) changed like a revolving lantern, but the weakness and incompetence of the court had been fully demonstrated, and the eunuchs' awe of the imperial power had long since disappeared. The arrogance and domineering of eunuchs such as Song Daobi and Jing Wuxiu did not restrain at all.

Prime Minister Cui Yin used these two eunuchs as a breakthrough point and actively encouraged Emperor Zhaozong to kill the eunuchs. The reason why he made such a proposal was not to find a way out for the country, but to seek fame and fortune for himself.

First of all, it is out of consideration for one's own safety.

As we all know, Zhaozong's two biggest concerns were eunuchs and vassal states, and Zhaozong was considering whether to take the left foot or the right foot first. Cui Yin's backing was the power of the vassal states, so Zhaozong had to take the eunuch's foot first.

Secondly, he can enjoy the exclusive benefits of cracking down on eunuchs.

The biggest gain from fighting against eunuchs is the military power of the imperial guards. Now, the princes have been slaughtered by Han Jian, leaving only the civil officials to take over the military power of the imperial guards. Therefore, Cui Yin, who strongly advocated suppressing eunuchs, is of course a "trustworthy" comrade who can be entrusted with military power.

Suppressing the eunuchs would kill two birds with one stone. Therefore, Cui Yin strongly advocated that Emperor Zhaozong take up the butcher knife against the eunuchs.

The emperors of all previous dynasties had fought against the eunuchs, but all of them ended in failure without exception, and some paid a heavy price, such as the famous "Ganlu Incident" during the reign of Emperor Wenzong. Emperor Zhaozong was hesitant about Cui Yin's proposal to kill the eunuchs, so he consulted other prime ministers for their opinions.

Prime Minister Wang Tuan strongly opposed it, and his reasons were very pertinent. The eunuchs were arrogant and domineering, and everyone in the world knew it, but it was difficult to reverse the situation, and it would not be quelled overnight, let alone solved by killing a few eunuchs. From Tian Lingzi to Yang Fugong, isn't it enough to illustrate the problem? Besides, the news that the emperor wanted to kill the eunuchs had leaked out, and the court was abuzz with rumors. The eunuchs held military power and everyone was in danger. This was an extremely dangerous sign! The correct approach should be to appease and maintain stability, and then make plans later.

Everything Wang Tuan said made sense, which made Emperor Zhaozong even more suspicious. Cui Yin then slandered Wang Tuan in front of Emperor Zhaozong, accusing him of being bribed by eunuchs such as Song Daobi and others, and therefore protecting eunuchs; Wang Tuan then exposed Cui Yin's previous scandal of licking Cui Zhaowei and colluding with the Guanxi Group.

The debate on national policy turned into naked personal attacks and mutual smear campaigns. There was no evidence to support the claim that Wang Tuan was colluding with the eunuchs, but there was solid evidence that Cui Yin was clinging to the Guanxi Group. Another prime minister, Xu Yanruo, also stood on Wang Tuan's side and jointly exposed Cui Yin's shameful past of colluding with the Guanxi Group.

As a result, Wang Tuan and Xu Yanruo won a brief victory in this small-scale political struggle. Cui Yin was dismissed from the position of prime minister by Emperor Zhaozong, expelled from the central government, and sent to the Guangdong and Guangxi regions (Guangzhou Qingyuan Jiedushi).

Cui Yin was unwilling to admit defeat, so he secretly contacted Zhu Wen and revealed and distorted the words of Prime Minister Wang Tuan, saying that Wang Tuan advised Zhaozong to focus on reducing the power of the princes.

Zhu Wen immediately submitted a memorial accusing Wang Tuan of colluding with eunuchs, framing loyal officials, and bringing disaster to the country and the people. He strongly requested that Emperor Zhaozong reconsider the personnel deployment issue.

Under pressure from Zhu Wen who led his troops to Chang'an to appeal for his grievances, Emperor Zhaozong had to recall Cui Yin and let him serve as prime minister again. At the same time, Wang Tuan was demoted again and again, first dismissed from his position as prime minister, then demoted to Hunan (prefect of Xizhou), and then demoted to Hainan Island (official secretary of Yazhou). At the same time, two eunuchs, Song Daobi and Jing Wuxiu, were also demoted from the court and sent to local areas to serve as military supervisors.

However, these three people did not have to endure the pain of a long journey, because the imperial edict of death was delivered on the same day. As soon as the three people left Chang'an City, they changed their route to the underworld.

Another prime minister, Xu Yanruo, saw the situation clearly and surrendered hastily. He resolutely resigned from his post and asked to be transferred to another place. He was eventually appointed to Guangzhou and avoided the troubled Chang'an.

At this point, Cui Yin, with the support of local vassal forces, controlled the court and even more unscrupulously implemented his call to kill all eunuchs.

This situation is very similar to the situation during the late Han Dynasty and the Three Kingdoms period when General He Jin planned to kill the "Ten Eunuchs".

It is not that eunuchs cannot be killed. But Cui Yin and Zhaozong made the same mistake as He Jin. Such a major secret had been spread widely, but they were reluctant to take action, creating a terrifying atmosphere that was extremely unfavorable to them.

Cui Yin's advocacy of "killing all eunuchs" was one of the sources of fear among the eunuchs.

The second source of fear was that Zhaozong often got drunk. Political failure and the "Sixteen Houses Massacre" severely damaged Zhaozong's psychology. He had no place to vent his anger, so he had to drink to relieve his sorrow. Zhaozong finally got into the bad habit of alcoholism, and every time he got drunk, he would become moody, which made the eunuchs and palace maids who served him closely tremble with fear.

The third source of fear was that Zhaozong became increasingly distrustful of eunuchs, and became increasingly close to witch doctors, musicians, monks, Taoist priests, and quacks, because these people were the few forces besides the civil service group that could be used by the emperor.

When a prince fell ill, the eunuch Liu Jishu led two imperial doctors, Che Rang and Xie Yun, into the palace to treat him. After a long time, the two doctors did not come out. The eunuch Liu Jishu and others told Emperor Zhaozong that according to the rules of conduct in the palace, outsiders were not allowed to stay for a long time. Emperor Zhaozong ignored them and not only did he not release the two doctors, he also issued an edict that from now on, witch doctors and Taoist priests were not allowed to enter the palace.

The eunuch Liu Jishou was the "number one eunuch" after Song Daobi and Jing Wuxiu. He was the commander-in-chief of the Zuo Shence Army (lieutenant of the Left Army). When Yang Fugong deposed the eldest and enthroned the youngest to enthrone Emperor Zhaozong, Liu Jishou was the young eunuch responsible for welcoming Emperor Zhaozong into the court.

Now, high-ranking eunuchs like Liu Jishou were living in unprecedented fear and were in a state of panic all day long. In particular, their fear of Prime Minister Cui Yin had reached an unprecedented level. All the eunuchs in the palace dared not look him in the eye, and dared not even breathe, for fear that a word, an expression, or a look would anger him and bring about their own death.

The deaths of Song Daobi and Jing Wuxiu greatly stimulated eunuchs such as Liu Jishou and became the fuse for a shocking change.

This time, the "Ten Eunuchs" were not going to kill "He Jin", they wanted to have something more exciting.

Several important eunuch leaders, including Liu Jishou, Wang Zhongxian, Wang Yanfan, and Xue Qiwei, held a secret meeting and reached a unanimous consensus: they could not sit and wait for death, but must strike first, depose Emperor Zhaozong, and establish Crown Prince Li Yu as the new emperor, so as to control the government by virtue of their support for the emperor. At the local level, they would unite with the Guanxi Group in order to hold the emperor hostage to control the princes.

Unlike Zhaozong and Cui Yin who were indecisive, these eunuchs acted decisively and did what they said.

A conspiracy was quietly unfolding.

Thanks to old friends "最爱一笑" and "纯正lsp" for their recommendation votes and support!
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(End of this chapter)