History of the Five Dynasties and Ten Kingdoms

Chapter 164: Shaoyangyuan Coup

【coup】

In early November of the third year of Guanghua in the Tang Dynasty (900), Emperor Zhaozong went out of the city to hunt. He drank heavily at night and became drunk.

The next day, the palace gate was not opened on time.

The eunuch Liu Jishou ran to the prime minister's office and found Cui Yin, saying that the palace gates were still not opened at this time, and something must have happened. As the commander of the imperial guards, I have the obligation to enter the palace to check. In order to avoid suspicion, I ask the prime minister to accompany me in person, supervise and guide my work, and prove my innocence.

Afterwards, the eunuch Liu Jishou led a thousand imperial guards, accompanied by Cui Yin, cut open the palace gate and broke into the palace.

After a brief investigation, it was found that a sensational case had indeed occurred in the palace last night: the emperor killed several personal eunuchs and palace maids after getting drunk.

Cui Yin was stunned.

The eunuch Liu Jishu pulled him aside and said, "How can the emperor, with such virtue, rule the country? It has always been the case that the emperor replaced the foolish and established the wise. After all, this is for the sake of the country. What do you think?"

Just a few words, but concise and to the point.

Cui Yin had just heard the thunderbolt from the blue sky, and then he was struck by five thunderbolts. He was completely unprepared and felt dizzy, his eyes went dark, his steps staggered, and he almost collapsed.

The imperial guards nearby hurried forward to support him.

Cui Yin finally came to his senses, and saw a thousand fully armed imperial guards surrounding him, holding swords and guns, staring at him fiercely. Cui Yin could only agree with them.

Therefore, the eunuch Liu Jishu summoned the imperial guards to the Jinluan Palace and called all civil and military officials to an emergency meeting. At the meeting, the eunuch Liu Jishu announced the shocking case of Emperor Zhaozong killing someone after drinking, and forged an order from Empress He, saying that the imperial doctors Che Rang and Xie Yun instigated the emperor to kill. Now that the emperor was mentally ill, the only option was to let the crown prince take charge of the country.

Then he drafted a memorial requesting the crown prince to act as regent, and had it circulated among all officials for their signatures.

Under the threat of force, Cui Yin and all the civil and military officials signed the memorial in order of their official rank.

The eunuch Liu Jishou had experience in supporting new monarchs. As early as last night, he had arranged for his smart and capable confidants to "escort" Crown Prince Li Yu into the palace. When the soldiers of the Shence Army saw the crown prince, they shouted "Long live the crown prince".

Afterwards, Liu Jishou and Wang Zhongxian led the imperial guards to rush into the Xuanhua Gate and enter the Sizheng Hall, killing anyone they saw. Most of the victims were palace maids.

At that time, Emperor Zhaozong was sobering up in the Qiqiao Tower when he suddenly saw rebel soldiers rushing in with swords in hand. He was so frightened that he fell off the bed (falling under the bed in shock), then got up and ran away.

Liu Jishou and Wang Zhongxian rushed forward, grabbed Zhaozong's arms, and forced him down on the bed, forcing him to sit still.

A maid rushed to report to Empress He. Empress He did not have time to wash and dress, but ran over, kneeling down to the two eunuchs without regard for etiquette, and begged: "Don't frighten the emperor, the two generals, please tell me if you have any instructions."

Liu Jishu took out a joint memorial from his bosom and said, "Your Majesty is tired of the throne, and all the civil and military officials unanimously request that the crown prince be regent. Your Majesty is invited to the Eastern Palace to spend the rest of his life."

Zhaozong was puzzled and said, "Yesterday I was drinking and chatting with you guys and we had a lot of fun. What happened today?"

Empress He quickly stopped Emperor Zhaozong and said, "Your Majesty, just listen to them."

Liu Jishu winked at the young eunuch and said, "Drag him out!"

The young eunuch dragged Zhaozong out of the Sizheng Hall.

Empress He shouted from behind: "The Marshal is devoted to assisting the government, so please let Your Majesty rest and recuperate!"

Zhaozong was also completely sober and hurriedly called out, "Yes, yes, yes, I am sick and have been sick for a long time. I can't continue to work. Let the prince govern the country." So Empress He hurried to get the imperial seal.

Liu Jishu nodded, ordered the eunuch to put Zhaozong down, then walked to the frightened Zhaozong with his hands behind his back, pointed at the tip of Zhaozong's nose with the whisk he carried with him, and severely rebuked Zhaozong for his mistakes:

"At a certain time and on a certain matter, you didn't listen to me, and you did this and that, your crime is the same." Every time a crime was listed, a line would be drawn on the ground in front of Zhaozong with a whisk.

The emperor of the Tang Dynasty was scolded by a eunuch who pointed at his nose and stamped his feet, and "he scolded dozens of times". He could almost play Go in front of Emperor Zhaozong. This was the greatest humiliation that the emperor of the Tang Dynasty had not experienced in more than 200 years since Emperor Gaozu and Emperor Taizong. It was not until Empress He came with the imperial seal that she knelt down to Liu Jishu and asked him not to scare the emperor and said that she would follow his orders in everything. Liu Jishu then stopped scolding Emperor Zhaozong, took the imperial seal, and ordered the eunuch to help Emperor Zhaozong and Empress He onto a small cart. The other dozen or so personal attendants walked to Shaoyang Courtyard (Eastern Palace) together.

Liu Jishou locked the door himself and ordered people to melt iron into molten iron and pour it into the keyhole. He then sent his confidant Li Shiqian to lead the Shence Army to surround Shaoyang Courtyard tightly. Zhaozong's every move inside had to be reported in time. As for the emperor's food, some said it was delivered through a small hole in the window, while others said it was delivered by digging a dog hole in the wall... The attendants who delivered food and messages also had to be searched from all sides.

As for other items, not to mention weapons, even scissors and embroidery needles were absolutely not allowed to be sent in; Zhaozong wanted some money and silk to reward his attendants, but was refused; Zhaozong wanted pen, ink, paper and inkstone to write and paint to pass the time, but was also ruthlessly rejected because Zhaozong could use them to write secret edicts.

When Zhaozong was imprisoned in Shaoyang Court, he had no spare clothes to bring with him, and supplies such as clothes and bedding were not allowed to be brought in, because Liu Jishou was worried that Zhaozong would bite his fingers, tear his clothes, or write a blood letter or a secret edict on his clothes.

Emperor Zhaozong and his concubines and princesses could only "wear clothes during the day and wash them at night". They washed clothes naked in the cold wind in the middle of the night, and wrapped them around their bodies while they were still wet. It was the eleventh month of the lunar calendar, and the twelfth month was about to begin. The political prisoners in Shaoyang Court were so cold that they howled and cried, and their cries could be heard from a long distance away.

Afterwards, Zhaozong recalled this humiliating past and could not help but feel sad. According to his own words:

"Whenever I asked for something, I refused to provide it. If I asked for paper and pen, I was afraid that I would write an imperial edict. If I asked for an awl or knife, I was worried that it might be a sharp weapon. I was humiliated in every way and searched for it. The clothes I wore during the day and washed at night were unbearable in the freezing cold... I could not get a hundred strings of money, and silk was hard to find... If I were to talk about the crimes, I would write countless words..." - "Old Book of Tang·Biography of Emperor Zhaozong"

Liu Jishou falsely conveyed the imperial edict, ordering Crown Prince Li Yu (only 8 years old) to inherit the throne, changing his name to Li Zhen, making Emperor Zhaozong the retired emperor and Empress He the retired empress; and changing Shaoyang Courtyard to Wen'an Palace.

Afterwards, Liu Jishou used both kindness and force to consolidate his new regime.

【Liu Ji's New Policies】

The eunuch Liu Jishou launched a palace coup through conspiracy and intrigue, and supported the 8-year-old puppet prince to ascend the throne and become emperor. He was eager to gain recognition from both inside and outside the court, so Liu Jishou's series of dazzling measures can be sorted out into two aspects: central and local.

First, at the central level, the eunuch Liu Jishou adopted the old tactic of combining kindness with severity.

Liu Jishou lavishly rewarded civil and military officials, promoting them to higher positions, increasing their salaries, and rewarding the imperial guards a lot. He used bribery to "flatter everyone" in order to gain their support.

This is his "kindness", but as for his "power", it is extremely cruel and bloody.

After the coup, there was a political purge, and Liu Jishu's target was naturally "those who were close to Emperor Zhaozong", such as the emperor's trusted attendants, palace maids, witch doctors, monks, Taoist priests, and alchemists... all of whom were beaten to death. Usually, the execution took place at night, and at dawn the next day, ten corpse transporters would transport the bodies out of the palace.

In the first few days, there were indeed ten trucks filled with corpses. Later, the number of casualties decreased, and sometimes there were only one or two corpses in a truck. However, Liu Jishu still used ten trucks to pull them out. His purpose was to use this shocking sensory stimulation to create a terrifying atmosphere.

Among the victims, the most famous one was the only surviving prince, Li Yi. He was the eighth son of Emperor Yizong and the younger brother of Emperor Xizong and Emperor Zhaozong. In the 872th year of Xiantong, he was given the title of Prince Mu. Historical records show that the eunuch Liu Jishu killed Prince Mu Li Yi after the coup, but among the princes killed in Shidi Valley during the "Sixteen Houses Massacre" created by Han Jian, there was one "Prince Mu". Therefore, after Li Yi was given the title of Prince Mu in the th year of Xiantong (), his title should have been changed. Later, after Emperor Zhaozong rehabilitated his brother Li Yi, he posthumously gave him the title of "Prince Gong'ai".

Of course, the person Liu Jishu wanted to kill the most was Prime Minister Cui Yin, but he didn't dare to do so because Cui Yin's backer was Zhu Wen of Bianzhou. So he could only deprive him of his real power and marginalize him.

In local areas, Liu Jishou could only use "favor" but not "power".

The Guanxi Group was an old ally of Liu Jishu's eunuch party. After the "Three Garrisons Invading the Palace", the eunuchs became the court spokespersons of the Guanxi Group. Especially after Emperor Zhaozong visited Huazhou, the eunuchs became an extension of the Guanxi Group (Han Jian, the guardian of the country). Han Jian treated Liu Jishu as his own son.

So when the coup happened, Li Yu, a candidate who was going to Beijing to take the imperial examination, happened to pass by Huazhou. He wrote a letter to Han Jian, the governor of Huazhou, explaining the righteousness between the monarch and his subjects and urging him to serve the king and eliminate the traitors. However, Han Jian only rewarded Li Yu generously, but did not send a single soldier to serve the king and eliminate the traitors. This is a portrayal of the collusion between the Guanxi Group and the eunuchs.

The scholar Li Yu only knew benevolence, righteousness, propriety, wisdom and trustworthiness, but he did not understand politics.

In addition to the Guanxi Group, Liu Jishu was most afraid of the most powerful vassal in the Central Plains, Zhu Wen of Bianzhou. In order to win over Zhu Wen, Liu Jishu sent his adopted son Liu Xidu and his personal attendant Li Fengben to meet Zhu Wen and make a brotherly pact with him. He even lied to him that he was willing to hand over the Tang Dynasty to him just to get his support. Liu Jishu also asked Li Fengben to forge an imperial edict from Emperor Zhaozong, and coaxed Zhu Wen into supporting the new emperor.

With the protection of the Kansai Group at home and the support of the powerful Kanto vassal states abroad, this was Liu Jishu's wishful thinking for his external policy.

Liu Jishou's next plan was to "kill all officials, murder the emperor, and hold the crown prince hostage to rule the world." Note that it was not "hold the emperor hostage" but "hold the crown prince hostage."

Will he get what he wants? I'm afraid that depends on the attitude of Zhu Wen, the most powerful vassal in the Central Plains.

Thanks to my old friend “Bedroom King” for his recommendation and support!


(End of this chapter)