History of the Five Dynasties and Ten Kingdoms

Chapter 931 Who Killed Li Jingsui
【Who killed Li Jingsui】

The first question is, did Li Jing really love, trust, and even want to pass the throne to his younger brother Li Jingsui?
Li Jingsui served as the crown prince for thirteen years. During this period, he was extremely cautious and almost closed his door to visitors, stopped socializing and traveled, and only discussed scriptures and laws with monks, Taoists and scholars, and recited poems in response to questions. He looked like he was not interested in competing with the world and was determined not to have any connection with the circle of power. This is an essential quality for a crown prince.

Li Jingsui had a counselor named Zhang Yi beside him. This person not only had a high level of cultural attainments, but was also proficient in the ways of the world and had an upright and loyal character. He soon became Li Jingsui's most trusted personal adviser. As expected, Zhang Yi became a thorn in Li Jing's side.

Li Jing first sent Zhang Yi to the Khitan, deliberately arranging a dangerous route with an accident mortality rate of over 50%. Li Jingsui pleaded for him, which further strengthened Li Jing's determination to kill with a borrowed knife. Man proposes, God disposes. Comrade Zhang Yi returned safely, so Li Jing transferred Zhang Yi from his job and arranged him to the central court, taking him away from Li Jingsui.

Does Li Jingsui really have no political ambitions and is unwilling to be emperor?

Looking at the time when Li Jingsui went to Hongzhou, it was in early 958 AD, just before the end of the "Three Expeditions to Huainan". Why did Li Jingsui choose to leave at this time instead of earlier or later?

This is a big move by Li Jingsui.

At that time, the Later Zhou Dynasty had already reached the north bank of the Yangtze River, and the natural barrier of the Yangtze River was the last barrier for the Southern Tang Dynasty. Between war and peace, the two sides basically reached a consensus that war would lead to both sides losing, while peace would lead to both sides winning. Peace talks were the general trend, and the two sides would then compete with each other at the negotiation table.

In addition to the conventional bargaining chips such as the entire territory of Jiangbei, war reparations, and the orthodox dynasty, there is also a hidden bargaining chip, which is the "throne" of Southern Tang.

If the Later Zhou Dynasty adopted an offensive negotiation approach, such as demanding the "hawkish" leader and "Huai hegemon" Li Jing to abdicate, and appointing a "dove" or "pro-Zhou element" who loves peace, is determined to promote friendship between the two countries, and is inclined towards unification to rule the Southern Tang Dynasty, it would be like the Khitan appointing the emperors and prime ministers of the Later Jin Dynasty and the Northern Han Dynasty, creating a puppet regime in the south of the Yangtze River that serves the Central Plains. In other words, the Later Zhou Dynasty might interfere in the internal affairs of the Southern Tang Dynasty, force Li Jing to abdicate, and let Li Jingsui become the official, and then appoint a group of "pro-Zhou elements" to serve as civil and military officials, thereby achieving control over the Southern Tang Dynasty.

Li Jing responded by making a countermeasure. Without waiting for the Later Zhou to launch an attack, he took the initiative to appoint Li Hongji, the eldest son of the emperor who was a hero in the war, a backbone of the anti-Zhou movement, and a "hawkish" emperor, as the crown prince. He also took the initiative to request abdication, saying that he would pass the throne to Li Hongji. This was a preemptive move for Chai Rong.

If the Later Zhou agreed, not only would it be accused by the Central Plains powers of interfering in and manipulating the internal affairs of the Southern Tang, but it would also be unable to profit from it, because Li Hongji became famous in the "Battle of Changzhou" and was a well-known "hawk" in the Southern Tang. If the Later Zhou did not agree, it would be tantamount to recognizing the legitimacy of Li Jing's rule, and it would no longer be able to force Li Jing to abdicate and control the Southern Tang.

Later Zhou finally chose the latter, rejected Li Jing's request to abdicate, and consoled him with kind words.

Did Li Jingsui's dream come to nothing? No. For Li Jingsui, he still has his own offensive way to seize power.

This war caused the international status of Southern Tang to plummet, and Li Jing's personal charm and political reputation were also greatly impacted and questioned. Although Li Jing blamed the "Four Evils and Five Demons" and wiped them out, he could not save his reputation from plummeting. More and more people began to lean towards "establishing a virtuous person". If Li Jingsui raised his arms in Hongzhou at this time, then...

Back to the previous question, it is very interesting that Li Jingsui chose to leave Shengzhou and Li Jing at the last moment of the war and the most critical moment of the negotiations.

Li Jingsui could have taken the initiative to contact the Later Zhou, expressing his political inclination of upholding unification, gaining the trust of the Later Zhou by portraying a "pro-Zhou element" who loved peace and maintained regional stability, privately signing a humiliating and traitorous treaty, serving as a territorial officer for the Later Zhou, and with the support of the Later Zhou, replacing Li Jing and becoming the agent of the Central Plains in Jiangnan. If that failed, he could have launched a rebellion and called on the people to overthrow the tyrant. Even if he could not replace Li Jing, he could have created "two Southern Tangs, one rising and one rising", and look at the neighboring Southern Chu and Min Kingdom. They had never eaten pork, but they had seen pigs run.

When Li Jingsui asked for a return to his fiefdom, Li Jing readily agreed and even arranged a deputy for him, Li Zhenggu, the deputy envoy of the Privy Council and one of the core members of the "Four Evils and Five Demons".

Obviously, Li Jing never relaxed his guard against Li Jingsui from beginning to end. For more than ten years, Li Jing had been guarding against his brothers as if they were thieves, and he did not dare to relax for a moment.

Li Jingsui was poisoned to death the same year he went to govern Hongzhou. Was Li Hongji really the murderer?
Before answering this question, let’s think about the second big question first - is Li Jing going to pass the throne to his son Li Hongji?
Li Hongji was the eldest son of Li Jing. He was first granted the title of Duke of Dongping, then Prince of Nanchang, and later Prince of Yan after being stationed in Runzhou. Li Hongji really stepped onto the historical stage in the "Battle of Changzhou" during the "Three Expeditions to Huainan".

At that time, Wuyue State, under the order of Chai Rong, opened up the eastern battlefield, attacked Changzhou, and threatened Runzhou. Li Jing was worried that Li Hongji was in danger, so he urgently ordered him to return to defend the high ground and advance to Shengzhou. Li Hongji followed the advice of his general Zhao E and refused to be a coward. He replied that the country was in danger, and the prince should rush to the front line to defend the country and set an example for the soldiers and civilians. He was willing to die for his country!

Li Jing was deeply touched and highly praised Li Hongji's spirit of not fearing strong enemies and daring to fight. He sent Chai Kehong, the son of the former meritorious general Chai Zaiyong, to lead troops to rescue Changzhou. However, Li Zhenggu, a key member of the "Four Evils and Five Demons" and the deputy envoy of the Privy Council, hindered Chai Kehong in every way. The soldiers assigned to him were all old, weak, sick, disabled and pregnant, and the weapons and armors they distributed were all rotten and unusable garbage. Not satisfied with this, he wanted to replace Chai Kehong with his own man Zhu Kuangye.

It was at this time that Li Hongji displayed his extraordinary courage and determination. As the eldest son of the emperor, he once again "disobeyed the emperor's order" and took all the consequences on himself. He told Chai Kehong, "You just need to command the battle, and I will mediate other matters."

It was precisely because of Li Hongji's strong support that Chai Kehong had enough courage to kill the messenger sent by Li Zhenggu in public, and threatened that even if Li Zhenggu himself came, he would still be killed.

With the perfect cooperation of Li Hongji and Chai Kehong, the Southern Tang army won a great victory in Changzhou, defeated the Wuyue army, and finally achieved a comprehensive victory on the eastern battlefield. The "Battle of Changzhou" also became the only victorious battle of the Southern Tang in the "Three Expeditions to Huainan".

When the frontline troops brought thousands of prisoners back to Runzhou, Li Hongji ordered them all to be beheaded. Killing prisoners without authorization was a big taboo, and as expected, Li Jing was furious about this (he had been unhappy about killing prisoners for a long time). However, this brutal approach won great praise from the army, and "everyone admired his ability to make decisions."

Afterwards, Li Jingsui requested to be exiled and returned to his fiefdom, and Grand Marshal Li Jingda collapsed completely. Only Li Hongji had military merits, so he was named Crown Prince by Li Jing, and began to participate in military and political decision-making, entering the core power circle.

Through the Battle of Changzhou, Li Hongji showed his edge. He was courageous, bold and responsible. He treated his comrades like spring, and guaranteed his subordinates with his own life; he treated his enemies as coldly and ruthlessly as winter. After entering the court, Li Hongji also showed his courage. At that time, the court was in a mess because of the "Four Evils and Five Ghosts" group. Li Hongji had already challenged Li Zhenggu in the "Battle of Changzhou". Now that he came to the court, he struck hard and hit the "Four Evils and Five Ghosts" group with thunder and lightning. During this period, Li Hongji either killed first and reported later, or simply killed without reporting.

Historical records show that Li Hongji "used firmness and decisiveness to save the country" and rectified the government. He quickly changed the political atmosphere in the Southern Tang Dynasty, cracked down on the arrogance of the "Four Evils and Five Demons" group, and won unanimous praise from civil and military officials.

Li Hongji was so domineering that he won praise from the army and the court officials. His reputation and word of mouth soared, and people seemed to see a young hero rising...

Don't forget that the "Four Evils and Five Ghosts" were Li Jing's trumpets and tools. Li Hongji's confrontation with the "Four Evils and Five Ghosts" was actually a warning to Li Jing. Li Jing became alert, and he was already afraid that he would be sidelined and forced to abdicate.

Soon, Li Jing accused Li Hongji of usurping power and exceeding his authority, and accused him of disrespecting the imperial power. "I'm not dead yet, and you haven't been promoted yet. What's wrong? Can't wait? What do you want to do?" One day, Li Jing took a polo club and beat Li Hongji severely. He scolded him while beating him, and he became angrier and angrier. Finally, he said, "I will call your third uncle (Li Jingsui) back and pass the throne to him!"

Li Hongji reached his peak just as he debuted, but Li Jing's suspicion of Li Hongji grew day by day.

The third big question goes back to the central question - who killed Li Jingsui?

Historical records left a small clue: After Li Jingsui went to the town, he planned to find trouble and kill Li Zhenggu, the spy arranged by Li Jing, but was persuaded by his staff. Killing Li Zhenggu at this time was undoubtedly a signal of rebellion to Li Jing. Li Jingsui held back and did not kill Li Zhenggu, but killed Yuan Gan, the chief of Hongzhou, because he believed in slander. Yuan Gan's father was Yuan Congfan, the envoy of Zhaoqing Palace. Li Hongji sent someone to give Yuan Congfan a packet of poison and instigated him to avenge his son. One day, Li Jingsui was thirsty after playing a game of football, so Yuan Congfan arranged for someone to pass on the poisoned drink, and Li Jingsui was poisoned to death.

When the bad news came, Li Jing first expressed his disbelief. How could he die suddenly at the young age of 38? His attendants reported that Li Jingsui had a strange disease when he arrived in Hongzhou. During the illness, he told his attendants that the Jade Emperor asked him to go to the Heavenly Palace to replace Xu Xun. Xu Xun was a Taoist figure in the Jin Dynasty and a legendary immortal.

Li Jing was relieved. After a while, it was found that Li Jingsui died of poisoning, and the real culprit was Crown Prince Li Hongji, so the crown prince was deposed, and Li Hongji also died suddenly shortly afterwards. It was said that he saw the wronged ghost of Li Jingsui and died of fear.

The historical books clearly state that it was Li Hongji who poisoned Li Jingsui.

Just imagine, why would Li Jingsui believe the so-called slander and kill Yuan Gan? Did Yuan Congfan really have the courage to poison his younger brother and the crown prince? In such a short time, how could the poisoned drink be delivered to Li Jingsui without being discovered?
Let's summarize the characters' background: Yuan Congfan was the envoy of Zhaoqing Palace, which meant he was Li Jing's confidant; his son Yuan Gan was the chief of Hongzhou, in charge of the Hongzhou guards, which meant he controlled Li Jingsui's personal armed forces, and together with Li Zhenggu, one civil and one military, they monitored and intimidated Li Jingsui... Isn't it terrifying when you think about it?

Let's look at it from another angle: Li Jingsui was surrounded by Li Jing's spies, such as Li Zhenggu, Yuan Gan and others, so... if Li Jing wanted to kill Li Jingsui, wouldn't all the problems be solved? Think about Li Jing's suspicion of Li Jingsui and the potential threat of Li Jingsui's "two Southern Tangs, one Sheng and one Hong". Li Jing actually had a greater motive and ability to commit the crime than Li Hongji.

Perhaps Li Jing was the real mastermind behind the poisoning of Li Jingsui, while Li Hongji was just a scapegoat and was soon silenced.

Then the last question comes. If he doesn't pass the throne to his younger brother or his son, what exactly is Li Jing trying to do?
In fact, there is a small misunderstanding here, a concept that is easily confused and ignored. Killing and passing on the throne are two different things and should not be confused.

Throughout history, emperors have always been the most ruthless and cold-blooded. In their dictionaries, there is no such thing as family affection. Scandals of brothers killing each other and fathers killing their sons are common. No matter if it is brothers or fathers and sons, whoever threatens the emperor's rule will be put on the death list.

Li Jingsui had carefully disguised himself for thirteen years, and now he finally exposed his political ambitions by requesting to return to his fiefdom, so he must die; Li Hongji had won the support of the army and civil and military officials, and acted boldly and decisively. His behavior of being authoritarian and killing people directly stimulated Li Jing's most sensitive nerves. Li Hongji was only one step away from killing his father and seizing power, so he must die.

Li Jing never thought of passing the throne to his younger brother Li Jingsui, nor did he want to pass the throne to his son Li Hongji too early. "Crown Prince" and "Crown Prince" were just political needs of Li Jing at different times. However, Li Jing did not have the third eye, and he did not know that he would leave us too early at a young age (46).

Although the historians have helped us hide enough clues, enough for us to deduce the truth, they still deliberately emphasize the "truth": Crown Prince Li Hongji was not up to the task, Li Jing decided to depose the crown prince and pass the throne to his younger brother, and the crown prince killed his younger brother and then suddenly fell ill and died...

Were the editors of the History Museum confused for a moment, or did they have ulterior motives?

Of course it is the latter, because they were really forced to do so. The reason is very simple, here are some key words: In the Song Dynasty, the younger brother succeeded the elder brother.

Combining with some of the separatist regimes mentioned above, have you discovered a characteristic: anyone who succeeds his brother to his younger brother is highly praised, such as Gao Baorong of Jingnan, who passed the throne to his younger brother Gao Baoxu instead of his son Gao Jichong; anyone who is succeeded by his son after the death of his father is basically a negative example, such as Liu Hongxi of Southern Han who killed all his younger brothers in order to pass the throne to his son. The historians criticized him so much that he was completely destroyed, knocked to the ground, and then stepped on by thousands of feet, so that he would never be able to turn over and would be nailed to history's pillar of shame forever.

In the early years of the Northern Song Dynasty, the succession from elder brother to younger brother was politically correct and a political red line that no one dared to cross.

This is why the historians of the Song Dynasty had to discredit Li Hongji and insisted that Li Jing wanted to depose the crown prince and pass on the throne to his younger brother. However, the historians were honest and took great pains to hide the truth between the lines, revealing clues here and there, waiting for Nanwu Choudan, who would never follow the crowd, to unravel the truth and let it see the light of day.

There should be applause here, please pause for three seconds.

(End of this chapter)