History of the Five Dynasties and Ten Kingdoms

Chapter 343 Mingzong Enters Luoyang 4
【Mingzong enters Luoyang 4】

Those who are loyal are usually butchers, and those who are unfaithful are usually scholars.

Li Yanqing, He Fujin, Wang Quanbin and others came to rescue the emperor. When they saw Li Cunxu's body, they threw away their weapons, knelt on the ground and cried bitterly, and then led their troops away.
After learning of Li Cunxu's death, Empress Liu packed up her gold and silver valuables, put them into a brocade bag, tied it to her saddle, set fire to the Jiaqing Palace, and then fled with her brother Li Cunwu, Yuan Xingqin and others, leading 700 cavalrymen; Li Cunque, Li Cunji and others fled into the mountains south of Luoyang;

Zhu Shouyin rushed into the city and broke into the palace, robbing more than 30 palace maids who had no time to escape. He also robbed some treasures in the palace and sent them back to his home.

The troops outside the city waiting to advance eastward to Sishui also rushed into the city and plundered it wantonly;
Only the eunuch Shanyou collected some musical instruments, piled them on Li Cunxu's body, and set it on fire, using Li Cunxu's favorite instruments to send him off for the last time.

Li Siyuan had already advanced to Poppy Valley. He heard about the changes in Luoyang and the news of Li Cunxu's death. He burst into tears and said to the generals around him: "The emperor is usually loved by the officers and soldiers, but he was bewitched by a group of treacherous villains. I didn't expect this to happen. Alas! I have no way to defend myself now, and I can't clear myself even if I jump into the Yellow River!"

The next day, Zhu Shouyin sent an envoy to inform Li Siyuan: "The capital is in chaos, soldiers from all directions are burning, killing and looting. Please come to the capital as soon as possible to save the people from the dire situation!"

On the third day (April 4), Li Siyuan entered Luoyang.

After Li Siyuan entered Luoyang, he did not live directly in the palace, but lived in his own home in Luoyang. He first sent troops to maintain order in the city and prohibit officers and soldiers from looting and rioting; he sent people to pick out Li Cunxu's remains from the ashes, and put them into a coffin together with the ashes for temporary storage.

When Li Siyuan was first forced into Weizhou, his subordinate Hou Yi fled back to Luoyang. Li Cunxu once stroked his back and cried bitterly. Now that Li Siyuan was in Luoyang, Hou Yi tied his hands and took the initiative to ask for forgiveness. Li Siyuan said to him: "As a subject, you are fulfilling your duties. What mistakes have you made?" He comforted him with kind words and ordered him to be reinstated.

Li Cunxu's death put Li Siyuan in a very passive position politically. Regardless of whether Li Siyuan had ever really wanted to rebel, Li Cunxu's death confirmed Li Siyuan's "rebellion", and the charge of forcing the emperor to death could not be washed away in any way.

Li Siyuan's top priority was to clear his name. So he said to Zhu Shouyin: "You are responsible for maintaining order inside and outside the palace, and waiting for Li Jiji's arrival. Concubine Shu and Concubine De are still in the palace, and their food supply must be doubled and rich, and there must be no sloppiness! After I bury the late emperor, the country will have its own master. After the crown prince Li Jiji ascends the throne, I will return to my fiefdom and continue to resist the Khitan in the north."

Listen to the sound of speaking, and listen to the sound of gongs and drums.

Li Siyuan's words were those of a loyal minister, which were high-sounding and touching, enough to show that he had no intention of rebelling, but was only willing to be a loyal minister of the empire and defend its territory. But what about a deeper analysis?
"Don't forget, there is also Li Jiji. He is the legal successor. How can I be the emperor with him around?"

As for how to interpret it, that is up to Li Siyuan's confidants to decide for themselves.

On the same day, Prime Minister Dou Luge led all the civil and military officials to jointly petition Li Siyuan to ascend the throne and become emperor. The country cannot be without a king for a day. You are the will of heaven and the people's expectation. Don't refuse and take charge of the work.

Li Siyuan patiently explained to them, "I was following the emperor's orders to fight the rebels, but I encountered a mutiny and the troops I led were scattered. So I planned to return to Beijing to explain to the emperor in person, but was blocked by Yuan Xingqin. It was a misunderstanding, who would have thought that things would develop to this point? I am afraid that you all persuaded me to ascend the throne because of this misunderstanding. I really have no other intentions, please don't mention this matter again." The civil and military officials repeatedly persuaded Li Siyuan to ascend the throne, but Li Siyuan refused. It was standard procedure.

Yuan Xingqin planned to flee to Hezhong and seek refuge with Li Cunba, the governor of the Hezhong National Defense Army. His troops were getting smaller and smaller, and just as he approached the border of Hezhong (Pinglu County), he was left with only a few cavalrymen. He was captured by the common people and sent to the county magistrate Pei Jin, who handed him over to Shi Tan, the governor of Guozhou. Shi Tan cut off Yuan Xingqin's feet, put him in a prisoner cart, and sent him to Luoyang to report his merits and receive rewards.

When Li Siyuan saw Yuan Xingqin, he angrily accused him of sowing discord and stirring up trouble. He was particularly upset about Yuan Xingqin's killing of innocent people and his eldest son Li Congshen, so he asked, "How has my son wronged you?"

Yuan Xingqin glared at him and retorted, "How did the late emperor fail you?"

In the end, Li Siyuan beheaded Yuan Xingqin in public.

With the death of Yuan Xingqin, we can finally take a breath and look back at this "Xiao Qiang disaster". From the Beizhou mutiny to the death of Li Cunxu, there were only less than two months, which was also the process of Li Siyuan's transformation from a minister to an emperor. Although this process lasted for a short time, it was full of mystery and there were too many incredible beginnings. Like all coups, many clues were destroyed, many stories were modified, and many truths were buried.

Unfortunately, only these revised ones have been circulated in the world. Even if some parts are obviously unreasonable or self-contradictory, we can only speculate and it is difficult to confirm or falsify them.

Was Li Siyuan really forced to rebel?

He had the potential to be forced to rebel. His achievements were so great that they frightened the emperor, and he was the first of Li Cunxu's "four major concerns" (Li Siyuan, Guo Chongtao, Zhu Youqian, and Kang Yanxiao). Because of his loyalty and uprightness, he offended the eunuchs, who constantly slandered him and harmed him... This is the mainstream history - that is, the revised history.

At that time, Li Siyuan went to the court to meet the emperor and was placed under house arrest in the capital. As long as Li Cunxu gave him a look, Li Siyuan's body would be torn apart in a minute. Guo Chongtao also strongly suggested Li Cunxu to do so before entering Sichuan. However, Li Cunxu did not harm them. On the contrary, what happened to Guo Chongtao and Zhu Youqian? Was it because Li Cunxu cared about the brotherhood? How to explain the death of Li Cunyi? A brother killed him, but a brother-in-law could not bear to harm him?
It is not convincing to say that Li Cunxu did not suspect Li Siyuan, so... there is another explanation: Li Siyuan was not so upright and honest, and his relationship with eunuchs, actors, Empress Liu and other forces might not be so disharmonious.

The biggest question is about Yuan Xingqin. From "Mingzong's entry into Wei" to "Mingzong's entry into Luoyang", Yuan Xingqin's actions are truly a wonder of human confusing behavior. It seems that Yuan Xingqin forced Li Siyuan to rebel by himself.

In response to this, Li Siyuan's followers explained that Yuan Xingqin was ordered to suppress the Weizhou rebels such as Zhao Zaili, but fought for a long time without success. After Li Siyuan was replaced as the commander, Yuan Xingqin falsely accused Li Siyuan to reduce his own responsibility for the defeat.

After the misunderstanding, Yuan Xingqin cut off the contact between Li Siyuan and the court, and even went so far as to kill Li Siyuan's eldest son Li Congshen in order to force Li Cunxu to fight to the end and never compromise.

Even when Li Cunxu clearly stated that he believed Li Siyuan would not rebel and made sure to let Li Siyuan know that he believed he would not rebel, Yuan Xingqin still ignored the imperial edict and was determined to make things difficult for Li Siyuan.

What hatred, what resentment?
(End of this chapter)