History of the Five Dynasties and Ten Kingdoms

Chapter 661 Before the Storm
1. Beheading “people with connections”

Empress Dowager Li had an old friend who wanted to arrange for her son to join the imperial guards. Of course, this was also Empress Dowager Li's own idea. At that time, Shi Hongzhao was in charge of the imperial guards. Shi Hongzhao's action was jaw-dropping: he directly beheaded this "relative".

2. Suppressing the “uncle clan”

Liu Zhiyuan arranged for Li Ye, the younger brother of Empress Dowager Li, to work in the palace, and Liu Chengyou also trusted his uncle very much. As it happened, the post of Xuanhui Envoy was vacant, and Li Ye wanted to get this position.

Xuanhuishi, this position appears frequently in the TV series. It was established in the middle of the Tang Dynasty (under Emperor Xianzong of Tang), and was initially held by eunuchs, who were responsible for the personnel dispatch of palace staff, as well as the preparation of court meetings, sacrifices, state banquets, etc., and also for inspecting the tributes from various princes, vassal states, and foreign countries.

It may be similar to the "Eunuch Chief Eunuch" that we often joke about. In short, it is a typical "simple job but high position" good job, and it is also a lucrative job, because he is in charge of personnel, so bribes are endless; he is also responsible for checking tributes and can take advantage of others; his rank is high, and he is on par with the prime minister and the privy councilor; he can be close to the emperor and is deeply trusted by the emperor.

Therefore, since the end of the Tang Dynasty, the Xuanhui Envoy has often appeared together with the Privy Envoy on the list of masterminds of major palace coups.

Starting from the Later Liang Dynasty, the positions of Privy Councilor and Imperial Envoy were no longer exclusive to eunuchs, but were instead held by the emperor's direct descendants.

Li Ye wanted to be the Xuanhui Envoy, and he received strong support from Emperor Liu Chengyou and Empress Dowager Li. Liu Chengyou and Empress Dowager Li gave hints to the prime minister, but Su Fengji was very smart and thought, "You don't need to give hints, I want to recommend you, we are comrades in the same boat." So, Su Fengji and other civil servants also unanimously recommended Comrade Li Ye.

However, Shi Hongzhao and Yang Bin strongly opposed it, saying that the promotion of officials should be strictly in accordance with relevant systems and should be gradual. Even royal relatives could not be promoted by leaps and bounds. After the "Li Tao case", Yang Bin was above the prime minister and had a veto over the appointment and removal of officials, so Li Ye did not get what he wanted.

Li Ye gnashed his teeth in hatred, but the Emperor and Empress Dowager Li could only hide behind the scenes and were not convenient to come forward directly, so they could only sulk.

3. Suppressing the “small groups”

As Shi Hongzhao and Yang Bin said, according to the rules and regulations, the person who should be promoted to Xuanhui Envoy should be Kesheng Envoy Yan Jinqing, but he was suppressed by Shi Hongzhao and Yang Bin and was not promoted for a long time.

Privy Councilor Nie Wenjin, Flying Dragon Envoy Hou Zan, Imperial Academy Tea and Wine Envoy Guo Yunming, etc., were also deeply trusted by Liu Chengyou, but they were all suppressed without exception and could not be promoted for a long time;

Liu Zhu, the former governor of Qingzhou, was corrupt and violent while in office. The imperial court wanted to transfer him to the central government by taking advantage of the "great shift" after pacifying the three towns, but was afraid that he would refuse the imperial edict and not be replaced. It happened that the Southern Tang was causing trouble on the southeastern border, and the imperial court sent Guo Qiong to lead the imperial army to station in Qingzhou, claiming that it was to support the front lines of Yizhou and Mizhou. Liu Zhu was very frightened, so he set out for Bianzhou.

After Liu Zhu came to Beijing, he should have been given a position in the imperial guards, but Shi Hongzhao and Yang Bin selectively forgot about it and never gave him a position. Liu Zhu went from being a deputy provincial-level cadre to a migrant worker in Beijing and an unemployed vagrant.

These people were full of resentment towards those in power, such as Shi Hongzhao and Yang Bin, especially Liu Zhu, who often cursed the two behind their backs.

4. Tipping is prohibited

In the third year of Qianyou (950), Liu Chengyou ended his three-year mourning period and began to listen to music and watch singing and dancing. The Royal Opera Troupe, which had been closed for three years, finally opened for business and performed very hard. Liu Chengyou was very happy and rewarded the actors and actresses with many brocade robes and jade belts on the spot.

The actors and actresses were very sensible. After thanking Liu Chengyou, they also went to thank Shi Hongzhao. Unexpectedly, Shi Hongzhao flew into a rage and scolded: "The soldiers fought bloody battles on the frontier and risked their lives, but they didn't get any rewards. What merits have you made to deserve these rewards?" Then he took away all the rewards and returned them to the treasury.

Shi Hongzhao's move was a blatant provocation to the imperial power, which was equivalent to announcing to the people: The emperor's words are useless to me! In other words, the emperor's orders are just waste paper to me.

The actors and actresses were very disappointed, and Liu Chengyou was very angry.

5. A Rage for a Beauty
Liu Chengyou had a favorite concubine, Geng, and he planned to make her the queen. Yang Bin refused, saying that it was not appropriate to make her the queen when you had just taken off your mourning clothes. Aren't you afraid that people all over the world would laugh at you and scold you?
It is not known whether it was related to the rejection of her request to be made queen, but within a few days, Geng died of illness. Liu Chengyou was very sad and wanted to bury her with the specifications of a queen.

Yang Bin jumped out to object again, arguing that since she was not the queen, she could not be buried with the rites of a queen, otherwise it would be an act of usurpation!

Liu Chengyou was very angry again.

6. "Shut up!"

One day, Shi Hongzhao and Yang Bin discussed state affairs in front of Liu Chengyou.

Shi Hongzhao and Yang Bin were the main people in the discussion, and Liu Chengyou was just a background person, with no chance to speak. Shi Hongzhao and Yang Bin were talking so much that they finally got tired and drank some tea and took a breath. At this time, Liu Chengyou forced himself to speak on the microphone, to show his presence, cleared his throat, and said a universal leader's phrase: "Ahem... I think this matter should be taken seriously..."

Yang Bin immediately shouted and interrupted rudely, his eyes flashing with ferocity, and he scolded Liu Chengyou: "Why do you want to interrupt the adults? We are here, just shut up and listen."

Afterwards, Shi Hongzhao and Yang Bin took over the discussion, and Liu Chengyou dared not say a word. Whether he was angry or afraid, Liu Chengyou was shaking all over in the second half.

Liu Chengyou was angry again.

7. The sound of hammers at midnight
Under the strong suppression of Shi Hongzhao and Yang Bin, Liu Chengyou, the emperor, dared not speak. Suddenly one night, a "ding-dong-dong" sound came from the palace's arsenal, and it was obvious that someone was forging iron tools.

Liu Chengyou was so scared that he couldn't sleep all night, worried that someone was plotting a coup. And this voice kept ringing for several days, and Liu Chengyou stayed up all night for several days, exhausted both physically and mentally.

Liu Chengyou was not just angry, but afraid. Anger and fear can make people lose their minds, and of course, love.

When Liu Chengyou suffered from insomnia for several days and was dominated by the fear of a "coup", Su Fengji realized that the opportunity had come.

After the "Li Tao case", Su Fengji became much smarter. He dared not show his face, but continued to hide behind the scenes, and the "uncle clan was small" became his vanguard. This move was very clever, because the real backers of the "uncle clan was small" were Empress Dowager Li and Liu Chengyou. Even if they made trouble, Empress Dowager Li and Liu Chengyou would not deal with them like they dealt with Li Tao. They would be fine, and Su Fengji who secretly instigated them would be even finer.

(End of this chapter)