[The bird is gone and the bow is hidden]
Every upheaval is a redistribution of wealth and power. In the dangerous political game, various forces take turns to compete with each other, with each gaining and losing. Only one person remains behind the scenes. Compared with him, all the characters in front of the stage are puppets, and he is the only real person who does not show his face.
The big boss behind the scenes is the eunuch Tian Lingzi.
Tian Lingzi had unique political advantages. He was the emperor's most favored eunuch, and he was the emperor's godfather. Tang Xizong was his vest and trumpet in this political game.
Before and after the recapture of the capital, Tian Lingzi constantly turned a deaf ear to Tang Xizong and praised his achievements, such as persuading Tang Xizong to be lucky in Shu and safely transferring the late emperor's spiritual throne...
Emperor Xizong of Tang Dynasty recognized Tian Lingzi's contribution and rewarded him accordingly. But no matter how much he quibbles, Tian Lingzi can at most have contributed to the defense, and the credit for the recovery of Chang'an cannot fall on Tian Lingzi anyway.
So what about the success of recovery? Commander-in-Chief Wang Duo, Deputy Commander-in-Chief Cui Anqian, Chief Military Eunuch Yang Fuguang, and generals from various vassal towns.
After weighing the pros and cons, Tian Lingzi believed that it was better for the eunuch group to be credited than the civil servant group, so he strongly advocated Yang Fuguang's contributions and belittled Wang Duo and others.
As soon as Chang'an was recaptured, commander-in-chief Wang Duo, deputy commander-in-chief Cui Anqian and others were dismissed on the grounds that "the pursuit of thieves was futile."
After recapturing Chang'an and driving away Huang Chao, the commander-in-chief "challenged the thieves to no avail". Kang Chengxun, who said "what's your merit?" should have a knowing smile.
Tian Lingzi has his reasonable explanation for this. Chang'an was recaptured by Li Keyong. Li Keyong had the merit of recovering, while Yang Fuguang had the merit of recommendation.
Therefore, there was Yang Fuguang's victory memorial. The two eunuchs Yang Fuguang and Tian Lingzi sang in harmony, one outside and one inside, and packaged Li Keyong into the great hero who liberated Chang'an.
In fact, within the eunuch forces, Tian Lingzi and Yang Fuguang had conflicts of interest. The battle between the "Tian faction" and the "Yang faction" has been going on for a long time and will continue for a long time in the future.
In order to maximize his own interests, Tian Lingzi did not hesitate to take the initiative to please Yang Fuguang and form a united front of eunuchs with him. He can be regarded as a shameless man with a long-term vision and overall thinking.
And in terms of rewards, Tian Lingzi also worked hard. Although he "ranked first in Fuguang's merits", he "rewarded poorly". The rewards Yang Fuguang received were: opening the three divisions of Yitong in the government, setting up envoys in Tonghua, and granting The Duke of Hongnong County was awarded the title "Zi Zhonghui, Wu Kuang, the hero of the country's peace". Almost all of them are honorary titles such as "Outstanding Class Cadre", "March 8th Red Flag Bearer", Model Worker... etc.
Before overthrowing Prime Minister Wang Duo, Tian Lingzi had already overthrown Prime Minister Zheng Tian and Prime Minister Zheng Congdan.
The merits of Zheng Tian and Zheng Congtan are clearly recorded in the "Old Book of Tang": "Guang Ming was the first to sing a song of righteousness, cut off the heads and tails of thieves, and the rebels were named 'Two Zhengs'. The restoration of the country's prestige is also due to the contribution of the two Confucian commanders."
This is the coffin-closing conclusion: "The restoration of national prestige is the result of two Confucian and general commanders." However, what happened to these two people is equally sad.
"New Book of Tang" also clearly points out that without Zheng Ti, Xizong would have died long ago (Wei Ti, the emperor is almost in danger). Emperor Xizong also lamented after the "Victory at Longweipo", saying, "Foolishness has limited my imagination (I know that I am endless, Confucian scholars are brave)!"
Zheng Tian was selfless and enforced the law impartially, and was regarded as a thorn in Tian Lingzi's side.
Tian Lingzi planned to insert one of his minions into the court while escorting him back to Luan, but Zheng Tian refused. Li Changyan, who launched the "Fengxiang Mutiny" to expel Zheng Di, was also worried that Zheng Di would settle the score. Therefore, Tian Lingzi secretly instigated Li Changyan to threaten the imperial court, forcing the imperial court to remove Zheng Tian, release him, and order him to retire.
Xizong was in a dilemma.
Zheng Tian knew the general situation and knew how to advance and retreat. He took the initiative to find Xizong and expressed his willingness to resign voluntarily to avoid intensifying the conflict between the imperial court and the Kansai warlords.
As a result, Zheng Tian surrendered all his real power, retired, and died of illness soon after at the age of 63.
I have a bold guess: Maybe Tian Lingzi was behind the "Fengxiang Mutiny" from the beginning. Even if Tian Lingzi was not the mastermind, Li Changyan's mutiny to expel Zheng Tian was in Tian Lingzi's interests, and Tian Lingzi took the initiative to wipe Li Changyan's butt afterward.
Zheng Congchen's tragic experience is even more closely related to Tian Lingzi.
Zheng Congdan went out to control Hedong, quelled the rebellion of Li Guochang and Li Keyong in Shatuo, drove them into the northern Tatar tribe in one fell swoop, and stabilized the Hedong area, which was a remarkable achievement.
However, Tian Lingzi found fault with it and found out Zheng Congdan's two major "crimes" - establishing a "small court" and unclear law enforcement.
When Zheng Congchen came to town, he was given the privilege of "recruiting his own generals", which meant that he was allowed to recruit his own team to cope with the ever-changing battle situation. This is reasonable and not an exception. For example, Zheng Tian also had the privilege of "acting expediently", and Wang Duo also had this privilege when he took command to regain Chang'an.
The staff group formed by Zheng Congchen was full of talents, including Liu Chonggui and Liu Chonglu, the seventh descendants of Liu Zhenghui, the founder of the Tang Dynasty.
Tian Lingzi ordered his men to create public opinion, praise Zheng Congchan for his death, and praised Zheng Congchan's team as the "little imperial court". On the surface, they are praising them for their ability and crouching tigers, hidden dragons, but in fact they are leading them into ditches, which is sinister and vicious.
Everything in the world is not the king's land, and the shores of the land are not the king's ministers. Under the rule of the Emperor of the Tang Dynasty, how could a "small court" be tolerated?
In addition, the former Hedong Jiedu envoy Kang Chuangui died in a mutiny, and Zheng Congdan not only pardoned Zhang Yanqiu, a general who participated in the mutiny, but also reused him.
Facts have proved that Zheng Congchen was right. Zhang Yanqiu was brave and resourceful, a rare general, and he did not launch the mutiny out of his original intention. Zhang Yanqiu was grateful to Zheng Congchen for his kindness in not killing him. From then on, he devoted his loyalty and wisdom to Zheng Congchen and made many military exploits.
Of course Tian Lingzi would take it out of context.
Furthermore, Zheng Congchen can barely be considered as a remnant of the "Niu Party". Because the former prime minister Linghu Xu was a protégé of his father Zheng Han, Linghu Xu also promoted Zheng Congdan many times. Linghu Fu has been introduced many times in the previous article, and he and his father Linghu Chu are both leaders of the "Niu Party".
Look, the remnants of the "Niu Dang", re-employing the traitor generals who killed the Jiedushi, and forming a "small court"... are playing power games with Tian Lingzi, and you, Zheng Congchen, are a scumbag.
Subsequently, Zheng Congdan was assigned military power and asked him to allocate part of the Hedong troops to Zhuge Shuang, and Zhuge Shuang led him to go south to fight.
Therefore, the main force in Hedong followed Zhuge Shuang southward. Li Keyong also seized this opportunity, took advantage of the opportunity and plundered Hedong under the banner of "Following the imperial edict to punish thieves". This is the "Suspicious Cloud in Hedong" mentioned before, and Li Keyong went south to go to the south for the first time.
After Chang'an was recovered, Tian Lingzi appointed Li Keyong as the governor of Hedong with ulterior motives to succeed Zheng Congdan.
Li Keyong's hands were stained with the blood of the people of Hedong, and he had a deep hatred with Zheng Congdan (large-scale armed conflicts broke out twice), but he chose to let Li Keyong go to control Hedong. It is estimated that Tian Lingzi wanted to see a dog-eat-dog fight.
As mentioned before, Li Zheng and Li Zheng have a clear distinction between public and private affairs, especially Zheng Congchen who understands justice well. The two old rivals have long since settled their differences. Li Keyong went to Hedong, and he and Zheng Congchen were heroes, cherished each other, reminisced about the past, successfully completed the transfer of power, and parted with tears.
Li Keyong's generosity disappointed Tian Lingzi, but it did not prevent Tian Lingzi from continuing to use his political skills.
Tian Lingzi promoted Zheng Congfan openly and secretly, giving Sikong and Situ empty titles but depriving them of their real power. A few years later, Zheng Congfan retired as the crown prince and Taibao, and died of illness soon after.
Tian Lingzi single-handedly killed almost all the heroes of the "anti-pornography and mowing" campaign within the civil service group.
The imperial court likes to disappoint people; when they use you, the high-ranking officials reward you generously; when they don't use you, they treat you like broken shoes (throw them away like worn-out shoes); rabbits die when dogs are cooked, and birds use up their bows to hide...
In the process of fighting for power, Tian Lingzi looked too ugly, seriously distorting the world's values, disintegrating the spiritual pillar of the Zhongxing of the Tang Dynasty, overthrowing the powerful leader of the "main war faction", and clearing the way for Huang Chao's comeback.
Outside the imperial court, the actual situation in local feudal towns also had a strong impact on Huang Chao.
[There are no strong enemies in the north or south]
Since the Huangchao Rebellion, the vast land south of the Yellow River has been severely affected, with numerous civil unrest and mutinies. in:
Wang Xu, a butcher who killed pigs in Shouzhou, and his brother-in-law Liu Xingquan (you can tell from the name that he is a ruthless character, Meteor Fist) led 500 local ruffians to attack Shouzhou first, and then fell into Guangzhou, forming a separate kingdom. Wang Xu reused the three Wang Chao brothers (Wang Shengui and Wang Shenzhi). A few years later, the three Wang brothers separated themselves from the Fujian area and established the Min Kingdom, which became an integral part of the "Ten Kingdoms" in the "Five Dynasties and Ten Kingdoms";
Du Xiong, a mutiny from Linhai, captured Taizhou;
Zhu Bao, the soldiers and civilians of Yongjia, captured Wenzhou;
Suichang rebelled against Lu Yue and captured Chuzhou;
When Min Xu, the general of Jiangxi Province, passed through Tanzhou, he expelled the observers and claimed to stay behind;
Wuling Man Lei Man separatized Langzhou and plundered Jingnan;
Zhou Yue, a native of Zuoxi, separatized Hengzhou;
Zhong Chuan, a native of Gao'an, established a separate regime in Fuzhou and Hongzhou, and was later appointed by the imperial court as an observer to Jiangxi. After Zhong Chuan left, he became a member of the Wei Quanxi and Wei Zai brothers and established a separate regime in Fuzhou and Xinzhou;
During the military chaos in Jingnan, the eunuch Zhu Jingmei killed the military envoy Duan Yanmo;
E-Yue Road mutiny, general Du Hong expelled the governor of Yuezhou and called himself the governor;
The military chaos in Guizhou led to the expulsion of Zhang Congxun, the military envoy;
During the Pinglu Rebellion, General Wang Jingwu expelled Jiedu envoy An Shiru and claimed to be the queen;
During Zhaoyi's military chaos, Meng Fangli took over the throne, and Li Keyong used troops for years to fight for the land of the three states (Xing, Ming, and Ci) under Zhaoyi's jurisdiction;
Han Jian, the military envoy of Wei Bojun, had no central purpose and expanded territory. He brazenly launched a war of annexation of vassal towns and attacked the Tianping army. Cao Quanhu, the military commander of the Tianping Army, was killed in battle. Cao Quanzhu fought hard against Huang Chao's grass army, but did not die on the frontal battlefield against Huang Chao, but died in the feudal war;
Qin Yan, the governor of Hezhou, expelled the observers of Xuanshe Road and established a separate state...
The real highlight is still in the Huainan and Zhejiang regions:
First, Wang Ying rebelled, and then Cao Shixiong (a general from Huang Chao's tribe) attacked and harassed them. The imperial court had no choice but to allow local organizations to organize regiment training and local regiments to recruit troops for self-defense. Therefore, Zhou Bao, the military governor of Zhenhai, recruited the "Eight Capitals of Hangzhou" on his own. Among them, the commander of "Shijingdu" is Dong Chang, and his deputy is Qian Liu.
Although the "Hangzhou Badu" are not regular troops in the strict sense, they are local indigenous residents and shoulder the important task of protecting the territory and the people. Therefore, they are determined, brave in combat, and have repeatedly made military exploits. Among them, the most outstanding one is "Stone Mirror Capital".
Gao Pian, the military envoy of Huainan, planned to trap and kill Zhou Bao, the military envoy of Zhenhai, in the name of King Qin of Beijing, but failed; then, he took the medicine according to the prescription and deceived Dong Chang, the "Stone Mirror Capital". Dong Chang was very stupid and naive, and almost got tricked. , thanks to the timely reminder of his deputy Qian Liu, he escaped the disaster and occupied Hangzhou halfway, claiming to be the governor.
Liu Hanhong, the Eastern Zhejiang Observation Envoy, was originally a general in Jingnan and was stationed in Jiangling. Before Huang Chao arrived, he personally sacked Jiangling City. He was appointed governor of Suzhou and promoted to observer of eastern Zhejiang.
Now, Liu Hanhong's ambitions expanded again and he planned to unify the two Zhejiang regions in one fell swoop, so he sent a large army to attack Hangzhou. From then on, the war to unify the two Zhejiang provinces began.
During this period, Hangzhou general Qian Liu seized a batch of letters of appointment to promote Liu Hanhong, which were issued by the Huang Qi regime. This proved that Liu Hanhong's group had secretly surrendered to Huang Chao.
By the time of the "Three Hundred Days in Chenzhou", the two Zhejiang regions were still in a fierce tug-of-war.
Huainan is even more lively. Huainan Jiedushi Gao Pian is a complete bastard. He is used by evil villains, alienates his generals, and is ignored by villains.
Gao Pian favored the traitor and was not only suspicious of his past achievements, but even went so far as to kill his nephew Gao Lin.
Luzhou under his rule launched a mutiny, and general Yang Xingmi claimed to be the governor of Luzhou.
In short, Gao Pian and Liu Hanhong made great contributions to the chaotic separatist regime in the south of the Yellow River and the Jianghuai area. The imperial court almost lost its jurisdiction south of the Yellow River, which also became one of the opportunities for Huang Chao to make a comeback.
At this point, we can see that Huang Chao still has a chance to make a comeback after withdrawing from Chang'an.
The Chengdu government-in-exile of the Tang Dynasty was in turmoil, the imperial court had castrated Tian Lingzi, the Fengguo army Qin Zongquan openly surrendered the thieves, Liu Hanhong secretly surrendered the thieves, and countless mutinies and civil uprisings in various places provided opportunities for Huang Chao's comeback. machine.
Unfortunately, history cannot be assumed, let alone repeated.
Huang Chao chose to fight against Chen Zhou and lost nearly a year of precious time. Finally, they were defeated in the "Battle of Wangmandu" and finally defeated in Langhu Valley.
The words are divided into two parts.
But it was said that Li Keyong personally led the Shatuo cavalry, biting Huang Chao and chasing him all the way, but lost the target at the last moment, and he was at the end of his battle, so he retreated angrily and returned to Bianzhou to suspend his troops and reorganize.
In the "Battle of Wangmandu", Li Keyong took action at a critical moment and rescued Zhu Wen of Bianzhou, giving Bianzhou the grace to be reborn. Therefore, Li Keyong regarded himself as the savior of Bianzhou and entered the boundary of Xuanwu Army arrogantly, "Tell Zhu Wen that I am coming."
Zhu Wen should indeed thank Li Keyong.
Li Keyong did not just save Bianzhou from danger. In the "Battle of Wangmandu", the grass army generals Li Tangbin, Huo Cun, Ge Congzhou, Zhang Guiba, Zhang Guihou, Zhang Guibian and others led their troops to surrender to Zhu Wen, these people are all rare talents and will become Zhu Wen's capital for future hegemony. Their stories will be presented one by one below.
Zhu Wen prepared good wine and food to serve his friend, benefactor, and comrade-in-arms Li Keyong and fulfill his duties as a landlord.
