History of the Five Dynasties and Ten Kingdoms

Chapter 974 Qian Yuanguan succeeds to the throne

【Qian Yuanguan succeeded to the throne】

The enthronement without "Science Approaches" would be soulless.

1. Jade Sheep and Noble Son

When Qian Yuanguan was still in his mother's womb, one day, a high monk from India presented Qian Liu with a jade sheep, "several inches in size and with extraordinary brilliance", and told him that "if you get this, you will have a son". Qian Liu did not take it seriously at first, after all, there were many "monks" who would just give you a low-quality bracelet of Buddhist beads, say a few flattering words, and then ask for some alms.

However, not long after, Qian Yuanguan was born on November 887, 11, the third year of the Guangqi reign of the Tang Dynasty, the Year of the Goat. Qian Liu suddenly realized that Qian Yuanguan was a perfect match for a noble son, as he looked at the jade goat ornament.

2. Looks like Emperor Yizong of Tang
In the Battle of Guangde Town, Qian Yuanguan killed more than 200 people with his own hands and shocked the people of Jianghuai.

It is said that a "master" who was good at fortune-telling, after witnessing the bloody scene, said to Qian Yuanguan: "You have killed a hundred people with your own hands, and you will be very rich."

There was a monastery in the city, called Guangde Mountain Monastery. There was an old monk in the monastery, whose Buddhist name was "Zi Xin". Monk Zi Xin was very unique and always wore a monk's robe made of paper. When Qian Yuanguan was killing people everywhere and came to the mountain monastery, all the monks fled, and only Monk Zi Xin sat there.

"Everyone else is running, why don't you run?" a soldier came forward and asked.

"There are soldiers everywhere, front, back, left, and right. It doesn't matter where I run. This is it."

Qian Yuanguan was quite surprised when he heard this, so he moved closer. Unexpectedly, when Monk Zixin saw Qian Yuanguan, he was stunned at first, then he bowed to Qian Yuanguan respectfully, and then had a long conversation with him. Qian Yuanguan sent away the idle people, and no one knew what they talked about, but they only knew that the two talked for a long time. When Qian Yuanguan left, he also took Monk Zixin with him.

Later, when Qian Yuanguan succeeded to the throne, he could not help but ask Monk Zixin, "When you first saw me, how did you know that I would be where I am today? I have always wondered."

"Amitabha - I do not have the ability to predict the future, I just took a closer look at you among the crowd. Your bone structure is unique among the crowd, and is quite similar to the portrait of Emperor Xiantong." Emperor Xiantong is Emperor Yizong of Tang.

1. Plastic surgery in dreams

Before he succeeded to the throne, Qian Yuanguan had a strange dream. In the dream, he saw a divine man holding a skull in his hand, who performed a skull replacement surgery on Qian Yuanguan.

It seemed that there was no anesthesia. Qian Yuanguan screamed in pain and woke up from his dream. After waking up, he still felt a buzzing in his head, "still a little painful."

Obviously, the above story can only be used as gossip after dinner. How Qian Yuanguan rose to the pinnacle of power has been described in detail in the previous article. It was a battle on the battlefield with real swords and guns and he paid with his life.

The internal situation of Wuyue was turbulent, but one of the major reasons why Qian Yuanguan remained strong for ten years was the relatively ideal external environment. In short, although Qian Yuanguan had internal troubles, he had no external troubles. Qian Liu died in March of the third year of Changxing (932) of the Later Tang Dynasty. At that time, the Central Plains was full of vitality like a blowout:
Because the Dangxiang people in Xiazhou blocked the tribute route, Emperor Mingzong Li Siyuan ordered an army to suppress them; and Meng Zhixiang of Xichuan also successfully annexed Dong Zhang of Dongchuan and unified Shu.

The Tanguts were at most a mosquito bite, but Meng Zhixiang of Xichuan was Mingzong's biggest worry, and the powerful minister An Zhonghui actively promoted military action against Xichuan. Therefore, other regions must be stable. The Mingzong Dynasty of the Later Tang Dynasty recognized the legitimacy of Qian Yuanguan, and the power transfer of Wuyue Kingdom did not encounter any resistance from the outside world. Of course, the Later Tang Dynasty had ulterior motives to confer Qian Yuanguan the title of "King of Wu", but not "King of Wuyue".

In 902, Emperor Zhaozong of Tang, who was trapped in Fengxiang, named Yang Xingmi of Huainan as "King of Wu". Later (905), Yang Wo was named "Prince of Hongnong". However, this title was given to Yang Wo by Li Yan, the central government's envoy who was stranded in Huainan, under the coercion of Xu Wen and others. The legal basis was far-fetched and it was basically for self-entertainment. In 912, Xu Wen and others persuaded Yang Wei to ascend the throne and named themselves "King of Wu". In 920, Xu Wen welcomed Yang Pu as "King of Wu". In other words, since the death of Yang Xingmi, the title of "King of Wu" in the Huainan regime no longer had the official (central court) endorsement, but was usurped and self-proclaimed.

The central court (Later Tang) named Qian Yuanguan the "King of Wu" in 933. The reason was the same as Zhu Wen's appointment of Qian Liu as the King of Wu and the Jiedushi of Huainan. It was to stir up conflicts between the two heroes of Jianghuai and let them consume each other, using the old routine of riding a tiger to drive away a wolf.

There is a small episode when talking about the reward of the Later Tang Dynasty. The Later Tang Dynasty sent Zhang Wenbao, the assistant minister of the Ministry of Personnel, as an envoy to announce the imperial edict, and sailed across the sea, because Huainan occupied Qianzhou at that time, which blocked the land transportation line between Wuyue Kingdom and the Central Plains. They hid in Huainan, but encountered a strong wind at sea, the sails were blown away, and the ship drifted and drifted to the territory of Huainan.

Yang Pu warmly entertained Zhang Wenbao and his entourage, "You are going there? Good, good, oh, you want to make him the 'King of Wu'? What a coincidence, I am also the 'King of Wu'..." After a passionate exchange of food and drink, Yang Pu took out a huge sum of money to reward Zhang Wenbao's envoys (and tens of thousands of money and silk for his followers). Zhang Wenbao adhered to the bottom line and refused to take a penny. Later, Yang Pu generously sent Zhang Wenbao and his entourage to Hangzhou.

Let's look back at that time node, 933. In November of that year, Li Siyuan passed away. On November 11, Li Conghou came to the capital and ascended the throne in front of Li Siyuan's coffin on December 11. The weak Li Conghou urgently needed to stabilize the four directions, so he conferred Qian Yuanguan the title of "King of Wuyue";
More than 934 days later, in April 4, Li Congke overthrew Li Conghou and declared himself emperor. As a usurper, Li Congke also needed recognition and support from all parties. In June, he also conferred the title of "King of Wuyue" on Qian Yuanguan, and in January 6, he sent an envoy to deliver the golden seal of the King of Wuyue.
In the same year (936), in the intercalary November, Shi Jingtang was enthroned as emperor by the Khitans. Li Congke was defeated and burned himself to death. Shi Jingtang established the Later Jin Dynasty. Compared with the usurper Li Congke, Shi Jingtang was a traitor and a puppet of the Khitans, who was condemned by thousands of people. He needed more support from all parties. In the next month (December) after he was enthroned, he appointed Qian Yuanguan as "Deputy Marshal of the Army of the World".
In April 937, Shi Jingtang promoted Qian Yuanguan to the title of "King of Wuyue" and allowed him to establish a state. "Everything went smoothly," and the central court's trust and favor towards the Qian family group returned to the period when Li Cunxu treated Qian Liu.

In November 938, the imperial court sent the Wuyue King's Jade Book and other sacred objects;

In October 939, Shi Jingtang removed the word "deputy" from Qian Yuanguan's title and promoted him to "Marshal of the Army of the World";
In March 940, Shi Jingtang awarded Qian Yuanguan the title of "Marshal of the Army of the World";
In March 941, Shi Jingtang appointed Qian Yuanguan as the Minister of the Chancellery.

Of course, "Wuyue Beishi" only records the reward given to Qian Yuanguan by the Central Plains dynasty, intending to show the legitimate and noble political status of Wuyue. But would such generous favor be a free lunch? The central court was not a bootlicker, and Wuyue was not so reserved, so "Ten Kingdoms Spring and Autumn" helped it fill in some small details that it deliberately forgot.

For example, when Li Congke appointed Qian Yuanguan as the King of Wuyue, Qian Yuanguan sent a small gift to the court, "presenting 5,000 ingots of Tang white gold and 5,000 pieces of silk", and in the name of his four younger brothers, "tributing 7,000 ingots of Tang white gold and 7,000 pieces of silk", and the following year, "tributing 500 pieces of Tang cotton and silk, 2,000 taels of gold-flowered food utensils, and 200 pieces of gold-edged secret-color porcelain".
When Shi Jingtang conferred the title of King of Wuyue on Qian Yuanguan, he presented "a large square dragon-shaped gold belt and thirteen imperial garments" as tribute to Shi Jingtang. Tianhe Festival was Shi Jingtang's birthday, so this little gift was a birthday gift to Shi Jingtang and had nothing to do with "King of Wuyue". So in the second year, Qian Yuanguan expressed his gratitude to Shi Jingtang by presenting "500 taels of gold vessels from Jin, 10,000 taels of platinum, 8,000 pieces of Wuyue silk with different patterns, 3,000 pieces of gold gauze, 20,000 pieces of silk, 90,000 taels of cotton, and 24,000 kilograms of Dachao Tea Source Tea". He was very generous and rich, but how could this little gift express my gratitude to Your Majesty? So, "I also presented a large square rhinoceros-shaped belt with auspicious elephants".

This is logical.

Neither "offering" nor "tribute" fits the temperament of "Wu Yue Bei Shi".

Thanks to the competition among the various powers in the Central Plains, Qian Yuanguan enjoyed a decade of political dividends. Although things were going smoothly externally, the internal troubles within the group made Qian Yuanguan feel uneasy during these ten years.

Thanks to my old friend "Yang Kui" for his monthly ticket support, and thanks to my old friend "Chu Liu Fu Feng" for his generous 8 monthly tickets! I wish all book friends a happy double festival!



(End of this chapter)