【Tian Lingzi's conspiracy】
In the 14th year of Xiantong in the Tang Dynasty, in AD 873, 41-year-old Tang Yizong died, and 12-year-old Li Yan succeeded him.
Strictly speaking, "12 years old" is just a false age. Li Yan was only 11 years old at the time. Of course, an 11-year-old child cannot preside over national military and political affairs, so since he ascended the throne, the real power was in the hands of courtiers and eunuchs. Many policies at that time were the result of the mutual competition between the two major groups of civil servants and eunuchs. For example, treat Nanzhao and Caojun.
Of course, the two major groups are also divided into different factions and have competing interests, which are intertwined and the struggle is fierce. Anyway, the water is deep.
Here, the eunuch group has a unique advantage, that is, it is deeply favored by the emperor and is often regarded by the emperor as "one of his own".
Among the eunuch factions, Tian Lingzi was the leader and a popular figure around Xizong of Tang Dynasty. Because Tian Lingzi had been by Li Yan's side since before Li Yan ascended the throne, taking care of Li Yan's daily life, coaxing the children to play, and keeping him happy. The two even slept together in the same bed, with Li Yan nestled in his arms. Tian Lingzi was sleeping in his arms.
Therefore, Li Yan trusted Tian Lingzi from the bottom of his heart and recognized him as his godfather.
Tian Lingzi had read a book and had some education. Anyway, it would not be a problem to coax a ten-year-old child. In the eyes of the young emperor Li Yan, the "godfather" was knowledgeable and omniscient, and a trustworthy person. He was very willing to let Tian Lingzi intervene in military and national affairs.
In the little emperor's heart, he was the incompetent Liu Adou, while Tian Lingzi was Zhuge Liang.
Tian Lingzi also shouldered the important task of teaching the little emperor. Under his careful training, the little emperor quickly became proficient in goose fighting, polo, music, go, gambling... and enjoyed it, often lingering over it. In short, in addition to major political affairs, , he has a strong interest in it.
The little emperor loved goose fighting, and often had goose fights with the princes and nobles for entertainment. Those who were good at the top would be bad at the bottom. Goose fighting has become the most popular sport at the moment, and the price of geese has also been sky-high, reaching as high as fifty. Just in case!
The entertainment project that Xizong was most proficient in was playing ball. Once, he boasted to Shi Yezhu, the acting official next to him, that if playing basketball was included in the imperial examination, then I would definitely be able to get into the "Sportsmanship Division" and get the top prize.
Shi Yezhu smiled slightly, shook his head and said, "Not necessarily. If Yao or Shun had been the examiners, Your Majesty would have failed."
Ling Guan, a member of the Royal Folk Troupe and a royal comedian. Their main job is to perform musical ditties, etc., or make jokes to liven up the atmosphere. Generally speaking, they specialize in pleasing others, so in the feudal period, the status of acting officials was very humble, very similar to the "clown" in the Western court. Precisely because "making jokes" is one of their duties, they sometimes dared to admonish the emperor in the form of jokes.
The stone wild boar used Yao and Shun to remind Tang Xizong, "Look at Yao, Shun, and Yu, and then look at you! You are shameless!"
Although the little emperor is playful, he is not stupid. Faced with the "swearing" from the actor, he just smiled bitterly.
Ling Guan can say this, what if it were someone else?
At the same time, Menxiasheng Zuo Shihou Changye went to Shangshu to persuade the emperor to stop being playful and to be diligent in political affairs. Tang Xizong summoned Hou Changye and ordered him to commit suicide.
The crime Xizong of Tang Dynasty charged Hou Changye with was: Dare you scold me? kill you!
The great eunuch Tian Lingzi covered the sky with one hand, sold his official position and held titles, arbitrarily exercised power, and deliberately cultivated his own party members. He is a smart man and knows that if he wants to maintain his glory and wealth, he cannot rely solely on the "emperor" as his backer. He must have his own trusted followers inside and outside the court.
For example, the former prime minister Lu Xie, and the current prime ministers Douluo and Cui Hang, have become good babies who specialize in flattering Tian Lingzi, but Tian Lingzi follows suit.
Tian Lingzi's original surname was Chen. Later, he recognized a eunuch named Tian as his godfather and followed him into the palace, so he changed his surname to Tian. Tian Lingzi has an elder brother named Chen Jingxuan. When a person attains the Tao, a chicken or a dog ascends to heaven. After Tian Lingzi gained power, he naturally could not forget his elder brother.
As early as when Cui Anqian was still the Zhongwu Jiedushi, Tian Lingzi wanted to insert Chen Jingxuan into the Zhongwu Army, but Cui Anqian refused.
After failing to join the Zhongwu Army, Chen Jingxuan was assigned to the Central Forbidden Army (Zuo Shence Army). In just a few years, he was promoted to the high position of general after being promoted without success.
Before and after Wang Huangcao's army separated, it wreaked havoc in Henan, but it dared not invade the Zhongwu Army where Cui Anqian was stationed. The then prime minister Zheng Tian tried his best to recommend Cui Anqian and suggested that Cui Anqian play a greater role in the anti-bandit campaign.
Even though Zheng Tian argued hard and even went to the point of resigning, Tang Xizong did not agree to his request. Instead of re-employing Cui Anqian, he sent him to Chengdu and made him the military governor of Xichuan, replacing Gao Pian.
Cui An sneaked into the front line of the fight against grass thieves and was transferred to the distant Chengdu Prefecture. Later, he was ostracized, demoted, and had to wear shoes everywhere for his merits in governing Shu. In the end, he was deprived of all real power, and all of this was related to Tian Lingzi. Just to retaliate against Cui Anqian for rejecting Chen Jingxuan from joining the Zhongwu Army.
With the increasing erosion of Huangchao's grass army, Tian Lingzi keenly felt that the Central Plains area was about to be in danger, so he quietly began his layout.
【Battling bet on Mikawa】
The road to Shu is difficult, and it is difficult to reach the blue sky.
The objective geographical conditions determined that the Bashu region became a royal refuge. During the "Anshi Rebellion", Emperor Xuanzong of the Tang Dynasty Li Longji visited Shu.
In times of peace, Chang'an is the imperial court; in times of war, Shu is the imperial court. Tian Lingzi knew this.
He recommended his brother Chen Jingxuan and three other confidants: Yang Shili, Niu Xu, and Luo Yuangao to go out to control Sanchuan (Dongchuan, Xichuan, and Shannan West Road) respectively to control Shu.
Faced with the appointment of a feudal official, Tang Xizong's absurd approach was even more jaw-dropping. He created an unprecedented move in ancient and modern times: betting on three rivers in batting.
Emperor Xizong of the Tang Dynasty took the Jiedu Yue of the "Sanchuan" Jiedu Envoy as a prize and asked the four candidates nominated by Tian Lingzi to be contestants. They played a ball game and were awarded official positions in the order of winning.
In the end, Tian Lingzi's brother Chen Jingxuan won the first place and was awarded Xichuan, the best among the "Three Rivers", as the Xichuan Jiedushi, replacing Cui Anqian, the current Xichuan Jiedushi.
As for Cui Anqian, it's easy to say that Tian Lingzi made up a few charges at random, demoted Cui Anqian to the emperor's guest, took away all the real power, and threw him into Luoyang, the eastern capital, to retire.
After "Betting on Three Rivers", the Bashu area became Tian Lingzi's private back garden, so when Huang Chao crossed the Huaihe River north, Tian Lingzi strongly advocated fleeing to the Bashu area for refuge.
Xizong of the Tang Dynasty is 18 years old this year. He is playful, he neglects government affairs, and he is "stupid" ("New Book of Tang"). However, he is also the legitimate emperor of the Tang Empire. He is an 18-year-old young man with a strong spirit. .
Since the founding of Emperor Gaozu and Emperor Taizong, the country has continued to expand. How can our ancestors' three-hundred-year foundation be destroyed by my hands? Chang'an is where the emperor's aura resides, where the late emperor's mausoleum is located, and where the ancestral temple resides. How can we easily abandon it and join the thieves? After a hundred years, how will I see my ancestors under the Nine Springs again?
No, I will never be the king of subjugation!
I won’t leave, I will fight the Cao army decisively!
Tian Lingzi warned him, "Young people should not be too arrogant."
Emperor Xizong of the Tang Dynasty retorted: "Why don't you call yourself a young man if you are too angry?"
Now Tian Lingzi did not dare to openly threaten the emperor, so he could only accept the order and organize the defense battle of Tongguan.
Just when the central court was urgently deploying the Tongguan defense line, a battle report came from Luoyang, the eastern capital: Luoyang had fallen!
Due to the internal strife between the Guangyao Army and the Zhongwu Army, the Anshui defense line collapsed without attack. The gate of Luoyang, the eastern capital, was opened and directly exposed to the guns of the Cao Army, almost becoming an undefended city.
Luoyang's civil and military officials, led by the left-behind officer Liu Yunzhang, welcomed Huang Chao into the city and surrendered to the Cao army. Huang Chao took over the eastern capital of the empire without any effort.
Huang Chao continued to package himself, creating a persona of being generous and caring for the people, and strictly ordered the grass army not to harass the people, and to strictly prohibit burning, killing and looting. After entering the city, the grassroots army posted an announcement to calm the people, and the rural streets and markets were festive and peaceful.
Huang Chao was in high spirits. He climbed to the city and looked west, watching the red sun slowly setting in the west. "Chang'an, how far is it?"
"Go back to the general. Going west is Tongguan. After passing Tongguan is Chang'an. It's not far, not far."
"Well -" Huang Chao nodded and whispered: "Not far, not far."
