History of the Five Dynasties and Ten Kingdoms

Chapter 59: Chengdu Mutiny
【Chengdu Mutiny】

When Emperor Xizong of the Tang Dynasty first arrived in Chengdu, he showed his honorable guest style and rewarded each of the officers and soldiers of Xichuan with three strings of money as a greeting gift from the guest to the host. The soldiers of Xichuan were all excited and bathed in the great grace of the emperor.

However, tributes from all directions continued to arrive in Chengdu, but the officials and soldiers of Xichuan never received any rewards.

The times are difficult and the circumstances are special, so it is understandable that people are reluctant to give rewards.

It is said that what people worry about is not the scarcity of wealth but the inequality of wealth. In Tian Lingzi's distribution plan, the officers and soldiers of the "Chang'an Gang" can still enjoy a lot of rewards, while the officers and soldiers of the "indigenous gang" of Xichuan can only stare blankly.

The officers and soldiers of Xichuan had always had a lot of dissatisfaction with the officers and soldiers of the "Chang'an Gang". In fact, the whole world had a lot of dissatisfaction with them, just because the salary of the imperial guards was three times that of the local army, and the daily rewards were more generous. They lived a life of luxury in peacetime, but once the bandits invaded the capital, they retreated without a fight and handed Chang'an over to them.

You can raise soldiers for a thousand days and use them for a single moment. What's the point of raising them?

Since they had fled to Xichuan, they should at least be treated equally, at least on an equal footing with these useless people. However, the imperial court still showed them great favor and directly ignored the existence of Xichuan officers and soldiers.

The huge contrast made the officers and soldiers in Xichuan extremely unbalanced psychologically and caused them to feel very resentful.

Half a year after the Tang government-in-exile moved into Chengdu, this resentment finally erupted at a banquet hosted by Tian Lingzi.

The wine glasses used at the banquet were all made of gold and were very valuable. Tian Lingzi was enjoying his drink and ordered to give these golden wine glasses to the generals present. The generals knelt down and kowtowed to express their gratitude. Only one general of the Yellow Head Army refused to accept them and refused to kneel down and kowtow.

The smile on Tian Lingzi's face gradually froze, "Why, do you think it's too little?"

Everyone held their breath, hardly daring to breathe, and turned their heads to look at this general who was not aware of his own life or death.

The general stood up and said, "I dare not. The monthly salary and supplies from you generals are enough for us to support our families. We are always grateful for this and are afraid that we cannot repay the emperor's grace. How dare we be greedy and ask for a generous reward without reason? It's just that..."

"Go on." Tian Lingzi's face turned pale and his tone was stern.

"The soldiers of Xichuan, like the soldiers of the Imperial Guard, are also responsible for the royal guard work, but they are paid differently for the same work. This makes us very disappointed. I am afraid that if the resentment is not alleviated, what if a mutiny occurs one day..."

This sentence shocked everyone, and his colleagues were also worried for him. Brother, you are threatening the central government! Just based on this sentence, it would be a light punishment to dismiss you from your post and investigate you. It might even cost you your life! What's more, the person in front of him is the powerful eunuch Tian Lingzi.

This gentleman was also outspoken, and he probably regretted what he said, so he changed his tone and continued, "I hope that Commander-in-Chief Tian can reduce the rewards for the imperial guards and distribute them equally to us Xichuan soldiers, so that we can feel that the central government and the local government are as close as one family, which will benefit both the army and the country."

Tian Lingzi looked him up and down and asked coldly, "Which unit are you from?"

"Yellow Head Army."

Tian Lingzi was even more displeased. The Yellow Head Army was founded by Cui Anqian, who was a thorn in Tian Lingzi's side and did not give him face, so he was expelled from the court. There are masters who do not want to be treated with respect, and there are servants who do not know what is good for them.

"who are you?"

"Guo Qi."

"What contribution have you made?" Tian Lingzi's soul asked three times in a row.

At this point, Guo Qi gave up and answered calmly: "I grew up in Shandong (east of Mount Xiao), stationed on the border of the empire for a long time, fought against the Tanguts 17 times, fought against the Khitans more than 10 times, and my body is covered with scars. When I was fighting against Tuyuhun, my ribs were injured and my stomach was torn and my intestines were spilling out. I stuffed my intestines back in, sewed up the wound with thread, and continued to fight!"

In short, I have been wounded for the Empire. A war hero.

Tian Lingzi had nothing to say, so he used another wine jug to pour Guo Qi a glass of wine himself, "Thank you for your hard work. Here, drink it."

This is a poisoned cup.

Guo Qi knew that the wine was poisonous, but he could not refuse. He kowtowed to express his gratitude, tilted his head back, and drank the poisoned wine in one gulp.

After the banquet, Guo Qi rushed home, killed a maid, and drank her blood to detoxify.

At that time, it was widely rumored that virgin blood had miraculous effects, such as clearing away heat and detoxification, prolonging life, nourishing yin and replenishing yang... It was touted as if it were a health product in an advertisement. Many powerful people had a hobby of sucking the blood of maids, such as Yelü Bei (a Khitan, the eldest son of Liao Taizu Yelü Abaoji), who often sucked the blood of concubines.

The origin of "vampires" in the West may be closely related to this rumor.

After drinking the blood, Guo Qi vomited several liters of black liquid.

I'll do it once and for all. I've already drunk the poisoned wine, will Tian Lingzi spare me? I'm going to die anyway, so I might as well rebel!

The next day, Guo Qi led his troops in a mutiny, smashing, looting and burning in Chengdu City.

The number of troops involved in the mutiny was not large, but they were the Yellow Head Army, the elite of the Xichuan Army, so their combat effectiveness should not be underestimated.

The mutiny shook the emperor's palace. Under the protection of Tian Lingzi, Emperor Xizong of Tang temporarily fled to the East City, hid in the tower, and closed the city gate.

Guo Qi's original intention of launching the mutiny was to vent his anger and express his dissatisfaction. Judging from his previous heroic deeds, he had no intention of assassinating the emperor at this time. Emperor Xizong of Tang was not Guo Qi's main target.

We can try to guess the inner struggles of Guo Qi. As a hero who shed blood for his country, Guo Qi was forced to death by treacherous villains. How similar is he to Lin Chong who went to Liangshan on a snowy night? It's so hard to be a good person!

He didn't want to kill the emperor, he only wanted to kill one person, Tian Lingzi, just like Lin Chong only wanted to kill Gao Qiu.

He rebelled, and he just wanted to vent his anger and give the court a warning. The troops began to gather to suppress the rebellion, and Guo Qi broke out at night.

The troops around Guo Qi became fewer and fewer, and when they reached the river, only one assistant was left.

The two stopped to rest.

Guo Qi said to his assistant, "Chen Jingxuan knows that I am innocent and can fully understand our demands. It's just that I made too much noise and alarmed the emperor. If he doesn't punish me, it won't be enough to convince the public. You are loyal to me, and I should repay you."

As he spoke, Guo Qi took off his sword and seal - two tokens that were enough to prove his military officer status. "Take them and go back to see Commander Chen. Tell him that when you were chasing me, I fell into the river and drowned. My body was washed away and only my sword and seal were seized. By then, Commander Chen will definitely believe your report and hang the seal and sword on the streets and post notices to calm the people. You will be rewarded handsomely, and my family will no longer be implicated. I plan to go to Huainan to seek refuge with my old commander Gao Pian. After a while, you can secretly tell my family the truth to reassure them."

The two parted in tears.

As Guo Qi expected, Chen Jingxuan rewarded the assistant handsomely, posted a notice to reassure the people, and pardoned Guo Qi's entire family.

Guo Qi also disappeared in the long river of history from then on, and no one knew what happened to him later.

Although the Chengdu mutiny ended safely, the conflict between the "Chang'an Gang" and the "Native Gang" was not alleviated.

Tian Lingzi's exclusion and suppression of the "indigenous gang" also became more logical, and he no longer had to go to great lengths to plot. He could take advantage of the mutiny to carry out a systematic purge of the Xichuan Army.

The public conflict between the "Chang'an Gang" and the "Aboriginal Gang" caused the "Aboriginal Gang" to be completely trampled under the feet of the "Chang'an Gang" and lose the last bit of dignity.

Guo Qi was once a loyal and brave warrior, and now he is a passionate man. When his life was threatened, he stood up to resist, hoping to use his actual actions to warn the authorities. This warning is not just to ask for clear rewards and punishments, but to hope that the authorities can seriously reflect on themselves.

The Chengdu mutiny, the hero's integrity was lost in his later years. This was Guo Qi's sorrow, and even more so the sorrow of the Tang Dynasty. In this era, in addition to resistance, he had two other choices: one was to go along with the eunuchs, like most people; the other was to die to show his determination, like Yue Fei in later generations.

Guo Qi despaired of the future and the country. His integrity did not allow him to collude with treacherous officials and villains, and his strong character would not tolerate him dying unjustly.

He will explode in silence, he will let out his cry!
The country, the foundation of our ancestors, the three hundred years of national prosperity... Now, a group of hooligans and ruffians who smuggled salt have easily occupied Chang'an and usurped the title of emperor. Even we, the ministers, feel sad and regretful about this. How can you, who hold the sacred weapon, not reflect on yourselves?

I, Guo Qi, will not charge into the palace to kill the emperor and cause chaos in the country, but who can guarantee that all the soldiers in the world are like me, Guo Qi? What if there are those who want to usurp the throne? In the past, there were An Lushan and Zhu Ci, and now there are Pang Xun and Huang Chao... Your Majesty, can you really guarantee that every time there will be no danger?

Tian Lingzi, you have brought disaster to the country and the people, and have done all kinds of evil. I, Guo Qi, am powerless to kill you, but don't you think about it yourself? If the Tang Dynasty is destroyed, will you still be able to abuse your power? Will Huang Chao also call you "father" and serve you like the young emperor Xizong? If not for others, even for yourself, you should do something beneficial for the Tang Dynasty!
This may be his inner monologue.

Guo Qi was alone, hiding his identity and drifting down the river.

He was disappointed and heartbroken, but he was unwilling to accept it. He wanted to use his own way to shout out to Tian Lingzi's followers and to the Tang Dynasty.

Emperor Xizong of Tang was indeed shocked and discussed the situation with important people, of course the eunuch group headed by Tian Lingzi.

It is conceivable that the final conclusion of this mutiny is, of course, that the soldiers had evil intentions and took advantage of the country's weak situation to rob, which is truly hateful.

"Eunuch Tian is right." The eunuchs said in unison.

So how should we prevent it in the future?
Unify thoughts and hand over military power to comrades who are trustworthy, such as Comrade Tian Lingzi.

"Eunuch Tian is right." The eunuchs praised unanimously.

The purge of Xichuan officers and soldiers became a natural thing.

After the mutiny, Meng Zhaotu, the Left Censor, made a direct appeal, saying that when you fled Chang'an, you did not inform the civil and military officials, causing a large number of senior officials loyal to the empire to be massacred by bandits. When the mutiny occurred in Chengdu a few days ago, you only took Tian Lingzi, Chen Jingxuan and a group of eunuchs to hide in the city tower, closed the city gates, and once again abandoned the civil and military officials to the hands of the chaotic soldiers outside the city. Fortunately, Guo Qi did not act recklessly, and the officials were able to save their lives...

As a censor, Meng Zhaotu severely criticized Emperor Xizong of Tang for various inappropriate behaviors and advised him to be close to virtuous ministers and stay away from villains, so that there is still hope for the revival of the empire.

Meng Zhaotu pointed the finger at Tian Lingzi without any hesitation, and even shouted that the Tang Empire was the empire of Emperor Gaozu Li Yuan and Emperor Taizong Li Shimin, not the empire of eunuchs; the emperor was the emperor of the four seas and nine states, not the emperor of eunuchs.

Meng Zhaotu knew that Emperor Xizong of Tang was not Emperor Taizong of Tang, and he was not Wei Zheng. He also knew that Tian Lingzi controlled the government and the court.

What he didn't know was the extent of Tian Lingzi's control.

What the emperor can see is what Tian Lingzi wants him to see; what the emperor can hear is what Tian Lingzi wants him to hear. All memorials must first pass through Tian Lingzi and be screened before they can be passed on to the emperor.

Of course, Tian Lingzi withheld Meng Zhaotu's memorial, and the emperor never saw it.

The next day, Tian Lingzi falsely passed on the imperial edict and demoted Meng Zhaotu to the post of Jiazhou Sihu. He also sent people to throw him into the Ma Yi Jin on the way and drowned him alive.

From then on, no one dared to challenge Tian Lingzi's position.

Meng Zhaotu knew that he would be murdered, so he assigned a task to a loyal servant: "Collect my body and don't let me die without a burial place." When he was drowned by the eunuchs, the servant, with tears in his eyes, went through untold hardships and finally salvaged Meng Zhaotu's body and buried it properly.

Whether it was the Chengdu mutiny launched by Guo Qi or Meng Zhaotu's death-defying remonstrance, they were easily suppressed by Tian Lingzi's party, and they took advantage of the situation to carry out a major political purge.

Perhaps in Tian Lingzi's view, Shu is the only place in the world that is as solid as a rock.

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(End of this chapter)