History of the Five Dynasties and Ten Kingdoms

Chapter 271 The Founding of the Later Tang Dynasty 2 The Last Eunuch
【Establishing the Later Tang Dynasty 2: The Last Eunuch】

The Tang and Ming dynasties were dynasties that suffered greatly from the evils of eunuchs, especially the Tang dynasty, where powerful eunuchs dominated the government and brought chaos to the court, and even supported and deposed the emperor, such as Tian Lingzi, Yang Fugong, Liu Jishu, and Han Quanhui, who were highlighted in the previous chapters of this book.

Ironically, the two eunuchs, Yang Fuguang and Zhang Chengye, were the most loyal to the Tang Dynasty, and they made many hypocrites who claimed to be real men feel ashamed.

Zhang Chengye's original surname was Kang. He entered the palace as a castrated child at a young age and was adopted by the eunuch Zhang Tai, so he assumed the surname Zhang. Because he had been sent to Hedong many times, he was appointed as the eunuch supervising the army in Hedong, and from then on he stayed with Li Keyong. At that time, the Tang Dynasty placed its hopes for the revival of the Tang Dynasty on Li Keyong, and Li Keyong often regarded himself as a loyal minister of the Tang Dynasty, so Zhang Chengye assisted him wholeheartedly.

Li Keyong respected Zhang Chengye's character and ability very much, so when he was dying, he entrusted Zhang Chengye to an important minister and asked him to continue to assist his son Li Cunxu.

Zhang Chengye was a powerful but cautious person. He never bullied others or sold official positions. He was honest and upright, and had high moral character. Even when facing Li Cunxu, he was neither humble nor arrogant. He was both a servant and an elder of the Li family. When Li Cunxu made mistakes, he would always speak out and advise him, just like an elder teaching a younger generation.

Although Li Cunxu respected him very much, he would occasionally make mistakes.

Once, Li Cunxu held a banquet outside the treasury. During the banquet, Li Cunxu ordered his son Li Jiji to dance for Zhang Chengye. According to etiquette, Zhang Chengye stood up to thank him and gave Li Jiji a BMW, a jade belt and other gifts. Li Cunxu said to Zhang Chengye: "You are too stingy. How much is this broken horse worth? My son is a little short of money recently--" Then he pointed to the pile of money in the treasury and said, "There is plenty of money here. It would be great if you could give him a few piles." Then he pointed at Zhang Chengye and said to Li Jiji: "When you are short of money in the future, ask him for it."

Zhang Chengye’s main job was equivalent to that of the Hedong Group’s financial director, in charge of fiscal taxation and expenditure, and was Li Cunxu’s purse.

Zhang Chengye quickly refuted, saying that the gift I gave him was paid for with my own salary, and these were public funds from the national treasury, how could they be used at will?

Li Cunxu was very unhappy. "What belongs to the government is mine. I told you to give it to me. Do you dare not listen?"

Zhang Chengye was very straightforward and confronted him directly, "Public funds are for public use. How dare I embezzle public funds to do favors for myself?"

Li Cunxu was furious and, taking advantage of his drunkenness, cursed Zhang Chengye.

Zhang Chengye was also furious and said, "I am just an old eunuch with no descendants. What do I want? I am only thinking about the Hedong Group with all my heart and soul, and assisting the king in achieving great things. Otherwise, you can squander the money here, drain the country's strength, and drive people away. Just close the business!"

Li Cunxu was really anxious. He turned around and shouted to Yuan Xingqin to take his sword. He wanted to chop the old eunuch with his own hands.

Zhang Chengye stood up, grabbed Li Cunxu's clothes, and cried, "I was entrusted by the late king and swore to eliminate the Zhu thief for the country. If I die in your hands today because of my love for public funds, I will see the late king in the underworld, and I will have a clear conscience. Please act quickly!"

Yan Bao rushed over, scolded Zhang Chengye for being rude, and then tried to pry Zhang Chengye's hands apart.

Zhang Chengye was furious. He knocked Yan Bao to the ground with one punch and cursed him, "Yan Bao, you are a member of Zhu's party. You just surrendered to Hedong. The king spared your life and gave you important positions. Not only do you not think about repaying, but you are only trying to flatter and curry favor. What you are doing will only lead Hedong into the abyss. What do you want to do?"

Yan Bao sat on the ground with his face covered, not daring to say a word.

An attendant relayed the news to Li Cunxu's mother, Cao, who immediately sent someone to summon Li Cunxu.

"Li Cunxu, your mother wants you to come over."

Li Cunxu was the most filial. When he heard that his mother knew about his bad behavior and invited him to have tea, he sobered up and changed his attitude. He knelt down and kowtowed to Zhang Chengye very sincerely, begging: "Seventh Brother (a respectful title for Zhang Chengye), I was wrong! I was drunk just now, offended you, and also alarmed the lady...Seventh Brother, please, drink this glass of wine (to show the reconciliation between the two)."

Li Cunxu poured the wine himself, held the wine glass in his hand, and knelt down to toast Zhang Chengye, "Drink it first as a sign of respect!" Li Cunxu drank four glasses in a row.

Zhang Chengye turned around, slapped Li Cunxu on the back of his head, and didn't drink a sip.

Li Cunxu went to his mother anxiously. Later, Madam Cao sent someone to tell Zhang Chengye, "The rebellious son was disrespectful and offended you. I have already whipped him."

The next day, Madam Cao brought Li Cunxu and the mother and son to Zhang Chengye's home to apologize in person.

This is Zhang Chengye’s position in the Hedong Group.

A few days later, Li Cunxu, in the name of the Tang emperor (the incident happened in 917; Li Cunxu accepted the "Shangshu Ling" in 914, set up a mobile office, and began to issue orders in the name of the Tang emperor), granted Zhang Chengye the following titles: Kaifu Yitong Sansi, Zuowei General, and the title of Duke of Yan.

Zhang Chengye resolutely declined. Zhang Chengye sincerely supported the Tang Dynasty and supported the Tang Dynasty, so he only used the official title given to him before the fall of the Tang Dynasty until his death.

He is devoted to his duties at work and impeccable in his life. He can be said to be impartial and just.

Zhang Chengye is not only incorruptible himself, but also strict with his family members.

Once, one of his nephews had a dispute with a cattle dealer and impulsively killed the dealer. Zhang Chengye immediately beheaded his nephew for the sake of justice. At the same time, Li Cunxu also heard about the case and hurriedly sent someone to mediate and spare the life of the nephew. When Li Cunxu's messenger arrived, Zhang Chengye had already executed his nephew.

Another nephew was appointed as the governor of Linzhou. Before he took office, Zhang Chengye personally warned him, saying: "You were just a commoner. You were a bandit with Liu Zhijun, and you committed murder and arson. You have a long history of bad deeds! If you can't change your ways and become a new man, I will make you a ghost!" After the nephew took office, he really didn't dare to break the law and became an outstanding cadre in Hedong...

There was a comrade named Lu Zhi in the Hedong Group. He loved to drink and act crazy when drunk. He was often rude and disrespectful after drinking. He called Li Cunxu's brothers "pigs and dogs" many times, which made Li Cunxu very angry.

Zhang Chengye was worried that Li Cunxu would kill Lu Zhi in a fit of rage, so he found an opportunity and said to Li Cunxu, "Lu Zhi is too presumptuous and always offends the king. How about I kill him for you to relieve your anger?"

"No," Li Cunxu objected immediately, "Now we are trying to recruit talents from all over the world to fight against tyranny and complete the great cause of supporting the Tang Dynasty. Lu Zhi was just drunk and lost his temper, and his crime is not punishable by death. If you kill him for this, who else in the world will come to Hedong and work for us? Seventh brother, how can you say such a thing?"

Zhang Chengye was overjoyed, and immediately stood up and bowed again, congratulating him: "Your Majesty, if you can be so broad-minded, why should you worry about not achieving your great cause?"

Li Cunxu then realized that Zhang Chengye was deliberately saying the opposite to persuade him. So he was very happy to have such a person by his side. Lu Zhi no longer had to worry about his life, and from then on Li Cunxu forgave him for his unruly love of drinking.

Later generations gave Zhang Chengye a very high evaluation:
"Old History of the Five Dynasties": He inherited the throne and was grateful for the great favor of Emperor Wu, and assisted Emperor Zhuangzong in his revival. He was both righteous and loyal.

"New History of the Five Dynasties": The troubles caused by eunuchs and women did not occur overnight... The theory of inheriting the industry alone is great and lovely.

"Zizhi Tongjian": Yang Fuguang's fight against bandits... Zhang Chengye's loyalty, are there no talented people among them?
Emperor Shunzhi of the Qing Dynasty: Lü Qiang of the Han Dynasty and Zhang Chengye of the Tang Dynasty can also be considered virtuous.

Emperor Qianlong of the Qing Dynasty: Since ancient times, many eunuchs have brought disaster to the country... I alone will inherit this legacy and serve the Tang Dynasty with my loyalty and sincerity for my entire life...

Regarding Zhang Chengye's death, some historical records say that he died of illness, saying that Zhang Chengye was filled with grief and anger after learning that Li Cunxu was going to become emperor, and he fell ill and died soon after; another said that he died of starvation after returning to Taiyuan from Weizhou. This book adopts the second statement, which is more logical and makes the character more tragic.

After Zhang Chengye's death, Li Cunxu, like Li Shimin after the loss of Wei Zheng, was so sad that he didn't eat for several days. Li Cunxu's mother, Lady Cao, went to Zhang Chengye's home in person to pay tribute and wore mourning clothes according to the etiquette for sons and nephews.

After the death of Zhang Chengye, who enjoyed a very high reputation within the Hedong Group, there was no longer any power that could stop Li Cunxu from becoming emperor.

(End of this chapter)