History of the Five Dynasties and Ten Kingdoms

Chapter 467 Who is the successor?
[Who is the successor? ]

In the political struggle, what is right and wrong? There is only a difference in political stance. If you stand on the wrong side, you will be doomed. This is what is meant by "the winner is the king and the loser is the bandit".

Facing Feng Dao and others' arguments, Zhu Hongzhao was at a loss for words and had no choice but to speak the truth: "If Li Congrong succeeded, the 'thieves' being liquidated today would be you and me. Who else would not be exterminated? If we help them to get away with it, what if we are accused of shielding them and are also classified as 'Li Congrong's followers'?"

Gao Nian was a well-deserved "Li Congrong's henchman". He was proficient in writing poems and was willing to be Li Congrong's lackey, actively giving advice to Li Congrong. Before this, General Kang Zhixun had conspired with other generals to get rid of Li Congrong, but the news leaked out and was known by Li Congrong. So Gao Nian advised Li Congrong to take the initiative with the "Hongmen Banquet" and kill Kang Zhixun.

At that time, Li Congrong was still young and worried that killing a high-ranking general would bring disaster. Gao Nian advised him, "If a son uses his father's army, he should be punished by beating his ears. Otherwise, it will be too late to regret it!"

Li Congrong was indecisive and ultimately failed to carry out the "Hongmen Banquet".

Li Congrong was defeated at Tianjin Bridge, and Gao Nian fled in a panic. He escaped to a farmer's house, and hurriedly gave himself a haircut and a shave, shaved his head and became a monk, hoping to get away with it. However, he was captured by the pursuers because of his suspicious behavior.

After all, Gao Nian was well-read, and he clasped his hands together, chanted "Amitabha", and recited Buddhist scriptures fluently. Kang Zhixun saw that the "monk" in front of him was somewhat similar to Gao Nian, so he did not dare to do anything rash, so he asked someone to bring a set of official uniforms and put them on him.

After the cross-dressing show, Kang Zhixun laughed and said, "Stop pretending. Yes, it's you!"

Gao Nian knew that he could not escape his fate, so he stopped trying to argue and calmly chanted, "Even if I take off my red robe, I can't escape the sword." He was calm and composed, and faced the fate's verdict with great composure, and was beheaded by Kang Zhixun.

In the end, Liu Zan, Wang Jumin and others were either exiled indefinitely or demoted and exiled. Surprisingly, there was no large-scale bloody purge.

From Emperor Yizong of the late Tang Dynasty to Emperor Mingzong of the Later Tang Dynasty today, the "Li Congrong coup" was the most lenient one in the later period. Raising troops to rebel and attacking the palace with armed forces, such a serious and vicious case, the number of people implicated and the weak punishment are rare in the world.

And behind this kindness, is it really the argument of Feng Dao, Feng Yun and others?
Li Siyuan's performance before and after the "Li Congrong coup" also shows from the side his powerlessness in the political whirlpool. Although it is difficult for us to uncover this dark curtain, one thing is obvious, that is, Li Siyuan absolutely did not have the dominant power.

The most notable example is the killing of Li Congrong's youngest son. As the emperor, Li Siyuan had clearly stated that he would pardon him and spare his life, but the "ministers" insisted on killing him completely, and Li Siyuan had to accept it with tears.

Just six days after Li Congrong launched the coup, on November 11, Li Siyuan finally closed his eyes forever in the Yonghe Hall.

The ministers discussed the posthumous title, and Feng Dao finally decided on the title of "Emperor Shengdehewuqinxiao", with the temple name "Mingzong".

Li Siyuan was the son of a martyr, with a good family background. His father was Li Guochang's favorite general, who had made great contributions. When his father died, Li Siyuan was only 13 years old, but he was skilled in riding and shooting, and had unparalleled martial arts. Li Guochang praised him, saying: "You are as heroic as your father, you can serve me." Later, Li Siyuan was assigned to Li Keyong.

Later, Li Keyong encountered the "Shangyuanyi Incident" in Bianzhou. At that time, Li Siyuan was only 17 years old. He braved the hail of bullets to escort Li Keyong over the wall to escape. Later, he was adopted by Li Keyong and named Li Siyuan.

During the development of the Hedong Group, Li Siyuan repeatedly emerged and made great contributions, becoming an important general of the Hedong Group. After Li Keyong's death, Li Siyuan continued to be loyal to Li Cunxu.

Li Cunxu was suspicious of his old heroes and constantly suppressed them, eventually forcing them to rebel, allowing Li Siyuan to ascend the throne at the age of 60.

Li Siyuan was the emperor for seven years and pretended to be a grandson for seven years. This emperor of the empire, the ruler of ten thousand chariots, compromised and endured for seven years, holding the belief that "a real man can bend and stretch", and he was bent all his life. His story tells people not to be obsessed with the pot, which is just a bigger tragedy. The evaluation of Emperor Mingzong has been mentioned in the previous article, so I will not repeat it here.

We just want to understand the basic logic of this political struggle in the last years of Emperor Mingzong's reign.

According to historical records, Li Conghou seemed to have gained sufficient popularity and support from all the officials. However, Li Conghou was easily overthrown after only five months in office.

This can't help but remind us of Zhu Wen, Zhu Yougui and Zhu Youzhen. The so-called popular and popular King of Song, Li Conghou, is very similar to Zhu Yougui. He is merely a transition, or a power struggle among various forces, and a tacit understanding of the big guys' "half-time break".

Generally speaking, people who are used as transitional pawns need to have a basic element - being alone and weak, so that they can be easily controlled and avoid the tragedy of pretending to be a pig and eating the tiger. There are many examples of failures in ancient and modern times, such as Emperor Xuanzong of Tang, who was long regarded as mentally retarded and the object of ridicule by princes and nobles. Therefore, when many forces competed and gambled without any results, they unanimously helped him to the throne, waiting for everyone to secretly decide the winner and then depose and enthrone him. As a result, he failed.

At the end of Emperor Mingzong's reign, Li Conghou was unfortunately chosen by a certain interest group as a political pawn. His only value was to counter Li Congrong.

In other words, the reason why the "ministers" supported Li Conghou was because they did not support Li Congrong.

Then the question is, who is supporting Li Congrong? Or, who must do his utmost to oppose Li Congrong?

It is undeniable that history is written by the victors, and many truths are hidden and tampered with. Even if it is fabricated or tampered with, it should be well-documented and realistic. However, there are always some records that are fragmentary, incomplete, or even self-contradictory, which brings great trouble to future research.

For example, in this political turmoil, the position of one person is difficult to grasp accurately, but this person's energy cannot be ignored, and he can even play a key role. This person is Concubine Wang Defei.

Did Concubine Wang De support Li Congrong?

The reason for the confusion is that there are contradictions in the authoritative historical materials about the two people. On the one hand, it is said that Concubine Wang De had always treated Li Congrong well; on the other hand, it is said that Concubine Wang De played an important role in the process of killing Li Congrong.

Since Concubine Wang De made great efforts to get rid of Li Congrong, theoretically she was supporting Li Conghou's achievements. However, after Li Conghou ascended the throne, he not only did not thank Concubine Wang De, but also almost drove her away. Fortunately, with the protection of Empress Dowager Cao, he was able to stay in the palace.

This is interesting. If Concubine Wang De opposed Li Congrong and did not support Li Conghou at the same time, then... was she supporting Li Congyi?
Although Li Congyi was not Wang Defei's biological son, he was "adopted" by Wang Defei since birth, and Li Siyuan had long since declared that this was the only child born in the palace, and he loved him very much.

If Li Congyi could sit on the throne, then Concubine Wang De would be able to gain status through her son, and maybe she could be promoted from "concubine" to "empress", because there was a precedent of reversing the status of legitimate and illegitimate children in the Later Tang Dynasty.

Moreover, Li Congyi was still young. If he succeeded to the throne, Concubine Wang De would inevitably rule the country from behind the scenes. There was a precedent for this, as it happened in the neighboring Khitan country.

I would like to make a special statement that this is just one person's opinion and personal view. It is terrifying when you think about it carefully. I will not be responsible for anything. Whether it is similar to others or not is pure nonsense.

(End of this chapter)