After the vassal towns in the world received the edict to kill the eunuchs who oversaw the army, most of them strictly implemented it, but four people did not implement it. They were Li Keyong of Hedong, Liu Rengong of Youzhou, Yang Xingmi of Huainan, and Wang Jian of Xichuan. They all hid their own supervisory eunuchs and found other death row prisoners with similar looks to execute them to deal with the Central Inspection Corps.
Zhang Chengye, the eunuch of the Hedong Supervisory Army, entered the palace at an early age and was adopted as an adopted son by the eunuch Zhang Tai, so he assumed the surname Zhang (originally Kang). This man was well-educated, intelligent, wise, and loyal, and was highly valued by Li Keyong. When Li Keyong died, Zhang Chengye was one of the important ministers, which shows Li Keyong's affirmation and trust in him. Zhang Chengye devoted his loyalty and wisdom to assisting Li Keyong and his son for two generations, which is comparable to what Zhuge Liang did to Liu Bei and his son, leaving a glorious page in history.
The story of Zhang Chengye will be detailed later.
There is another eunuch worth mentioning, he is Wu Kefan (complex surname Wu). After the eunuch Han Quanjie and others were executed, four eunuchs including the fifth Kefan took over and became the lieutenants and privy envoys of the left and right Shence Army respectively. A few days later, Zhaozong returned to Chang'an, and Wu Kefan and others were massacred. Even Emperor Zhaozong felt that their deaths were unjust and he personally wrote memorial tributes to them.
Killing all the eunuchs has been Cui Yin's political slogan and action plan. However, "killing all the eunuchs" was only his means, not his goal. His ultimate goal was to take back the power controlled by the eunuchs. Cui Yin wanted to combine the power of the Nanya and Northern Divisions into one body and wield power over the government and the opposition.
With the support of Zhu Wen, Cui Yin went to Zhaozong to present facts and reason, saying that since the founding of the Tang Dynasty, the world has been peaceful and eunuchs have never controlled the army. However, after Xuanzong Li Longji, the power of eunuchs gradually rose, and Gradually taking control of the central imperial army, the eunuchs began to interfere in politics. Therefore, we must eradicate the roots, completely eradicate the eunuchs, and return their power to the court.
When it is returned to the imperial court, who can represent the imperial court? Of course it’s Choi Yinwa.
Therefore, after Wu Kefan and other eunuchs were executed, the military power of the Central Forbidden Army was naturally handed over to Cui Yin.
The fat job of sentencing the Third Division, which had been taken away by eunuchs, also returned to Cui Yin.
Through the massacre of the eunuchs, Cui Yin achieved an initial victory in the struggle for power (military power) and profit (sentencing the third division). In order to achieve a comprehensive victory that dominates the government and the public, it is not enough to simply eliminate the eunuchs. Next, Cui Yin will extend his clutches to the civil servant group.
For Cui Yin, who has rich experience in political struggles, this kind of cannibalism scene is easy to come by. He quietly pushed Zhaozong to the front row, using "bringing order to chaos" as a smoke bomb and the "Fengxiang Gang" as an entry point. At this point, a major purge was quietly launched.
Zhaozong issued an edict: all personnel appointments previously announced in Fengxiang are invalid!
There is no doubt that the "Fengxiang Government in Exile" was controlled by the eunuch forces and the Kansai Group. Zhaozong was completely ignored. Almost all the edicts issued during this period were the corrections of the Kansai-eunuch reactionary forces. It is reasonable to abolish it now.
Cui Yin cleverly used this "reasonableness" to expand the scope of the struggle and kill people with a borrowed knife.
Prime Ministers Su Jian and Lu Guangqi were ordered to commit suicide because they were appointed by the "Fengxiang Government in Exile" and belonged to the party members of Li Maozhen and Han Quanhui.
Among the officials who followed Zhaozong to Fengxiang, more than 30 were demoted and exiled. In the name of purging the "Fengxiang Gang", Cui Yin practiced the principle of uniting the party and defeating different people, doing whatever he wanted without any scruples, and rewards and punishments were based on his personal likes and dislikes. The court officials were very afraid of Cui Yin and did not dare to breathe in front of him.
Senior officials need to be purged, and grassroots minions must not be spared either. Song Rou and other 11 palace maids were used as spies by the eunuch Han Quanhui and others to leak Cui Yin's memorial. They, together with more than 20 monks and Taoists who had close contacts with the eunuchs, were all beaten to death with sticks.
In addition, Prime Minister Lu Min was demoted to Prince Yi Fu (teacher of Prince Yi Wang), and was assigned to the Eastern Capital (the office of Luoyang, the Eastern Capital), and was kicked out of the political arena; Prime Minister Wang Pu was demoted to the title of guest of the crown prince, and was assigned to the position of Prince Yi. Si Dongdu.
Only Pei Zhi was "isolated and controllable" and was able to serve as prime minister and place vases with Cui Yin.
Zhaozong planned to promote Han Xie to prime minister. Han Xie politely declined and recommended his teacher, the imperial censor Zhao Chong (Han Xie's Jinshi and examiner at that time), and Wang Zan, the Minister of War, to replace him as prime minister.
Zhaozong fully affirmed Han Xi's noble and upright spirit and planned to accept Han Xi's recommendation.
Cui Yin immediately informed his backer, Zhu Wen, suggesting that the fruits of the revolution would be stolen by Han Xie, Zhao Chong, Wang Zan and others.
So Zhu Wen told Zhaozong that Zhao Chong was a frivolous person and Wang Zan was incompetent. How could Han Xie recommend them as prime ministers? What's going on?
This time, Zhu Wen changed his style of crying and bursting into tears, with an angry look on his face and a fierce look on his face.
Zhaozong did not dare to go against Zhu Wen's will, so he could only temporarily shelve his appointment as prime minister, and demoted Han Xie from the court to Sima Puzhou.
In return, Zhu Wen wrote a letter to Li Maozhen on behalf of Zhaozong, ordering Li Maozhen to send Princess Pingyuan back. Li Maozhen did not dare to disobey her orders and obediently sent back Princess Pingyuan who had temporarily kept Fengxiang. Note that this move was not Zhu Wen's simple "repayment of the emperor's favor", but his deliberate laying of mines in the Kansai region as a foreshadowing, which will be discussed later.
Cui Yin suggested that a prince should be selected as the Grand Marshal of the World's Arms and Horses (Marshal of the Arms and Horses of All Paths), with Prime Minister Pei Shu serving as the Deputy Marshal. Pei Shu was also attached to Zhu Wen, so he and Cui Yin were comrades in the trenches.
Zhaozong naturally planned to let Li Yu, the eldest son of the emperor, serve as the general marshal. However, Cui Yin insisted on letting the younger King Hui Li Zuo serve as the general marshal. Li Yu is the oldest among the princes, only 11 years old, but Cui Yin adheres to Zhu Wen's secret order and must use the younger and more stupid Li Zuo, so that he can be easily controlled (Li Zuo is younger, Please ask for it). The history books do not clarify Li Zuo's age. In short, he must be less than 10 years old. frenzied!
Later, they played football and entertained in the Baoning Hall. Comrade Zhu Wen won the MVP of the game, so he gave Zhu Wen a fine wine award and awarded Zhu Wen the deputy marshal of the world's soldiers and horses.
Someone reported Cui Yin's domineering situation to Li Keyong. Li Keyong smiled contemptuously and said: "Cui Yin is a human minister, but he is attached to the local vassal town and turns to coerce his own king. Military power. The higher the position and the more powerful people are, the more people will hate him; and once his power is close to that of his backer (Zhu Wen), it is time for Zhu Wen to kill the donkey (the more powerful he is, the more resentment he will have, and the more powerful he will be). Then there will be quarrels). Keep an eye on it, your family will be destroyed, and your family will be destroyed, right before your eyes."
A vicious eye, sharp comments, and accurate predictions are Li Keyong's political wisdom.
If the cross-comment "when there is weight, there will be more grievances, when there is power, there will be provocations" can reach Zhu Wen's ears, Zhu Wen will definitely sigh, "My parents are the ones who gave birth to me, and Li Keyong is the one who knows me."
【Strange bedfellows】
Even Li Keyong, an outsider in Taiyuan Prefecture, Hedong, can see through the bustle of Chang'an. Are Cui Yin and Zhu Wen really obsessed with the authorities? of course not. Everyone is indifferent to each other.
Compared with Cui Yin's blatant behavior, Zhu Wen appeared relatively mild. Apart from blocking Zhao Chong and Wang Zan from becoming prime ministers, he hardly had any say in the central government. He only helped his cronies to obtain some local official positions, such as the eldest son Zhu Youyu. The nephew Zhu Youning was the military governor of the Ningyuan Army in Huazhou Town (Guangxi), and Li Jizhao was the military governor of Qinzhou Tianxiong Army (also in name only), and he was deceived by the way. It's just an empty title of "Deputy Marshal of the World's Soldiers and Horses".
This is not Zhu Wen's conscience discovery, nor is it out of concern. He is setting up a bigger chess game and using Cui Yin as a chess piece to play a big game.
To put it simply, Cui Yin is regarded as a "dual puppet". Since monopolizing power is Cui Yin's political ambition, Zhu Wen allowed him to use his powers to fulfill his dream. It was precisely because of Zhu Wen's support and acquiescence that Cui Yin was able to complete the high concentration of central power in just over a month.
On the surface, Zhaozong and the central government of the Tang Dynasty became Cui Yin's puppets. In fact, Zhu Wen wanted to turn Cui Yin into his own puppet, thereby achieving indirect control over the central court. Like a Russian matryoshka doll.
The advantage of this is that Cui Yin will bear all the accusations and infamy for Zhu Wen. From the emperor to the people of Li, everyone hates Cui Yin for his domineering disobedience.
If Cui Yin continues to obey Zhu Wen, he will be tired of the never-ending political purges, which will cause greater resentment and abuse, such as fighting fires with salary, and eventually he will not escape the fate of self-immolation; and if Cui Yin attempts to get rid of Zhu Wen's control , then Zhu Wen will comply with the will of heaven and the hearts of the people, eliminate thieves for the country and eliminate harm for the people, remove Cui Yin, and become the hero of the Qing Dynasty. Regardless of the outcome, Zhu Wen will have the advantage of monopolizing power and enjoy the reputation of a hero of the country, truly gaining both fame and fortune.
Li Keyong understood, Zhu Wen understood, and Cui Yin also understood.
What Cui Yin has to do is to become full-fledged before becoming an abandoned son, and get rid of Zhu Wen's control just like Liu Rengong got rid of Li Keyong.
The status of Zhu Wen and Cui Yin can be perfectly explained by a popular Internet illustration. Two people wearing smiling masks shook hands with each other to show their goodwill, and their upper bodies were slightly tilted in a humble and friendly gesture, but they both held a sharp knife behind their backs.
Let us wait and see who will have the last laugh among these two partners who have their own secrets.
Zhu Wen left behind 10,000 elite infantry and cavalry, stationed in the original left and right Shence Army barracks; appointed his nephew Zhu Youlun as the commander-in-chief of the Imperial Palace Guards; appointed his close confidant Zhang Tingfan as the Imperial Garden Manager (Palace Envoy), and Wang Yin As the imperial city administrator (imperial city envoy), Jiang Xuanhui served as the street administrator (street envoy).
At first glance, it seems that only Zhu Youlun holds the formidable military power, but don’t ignore the three “envoys” at the end. Don’t take their words literally and think that they are the head of the Garden Bureau, the captain of the urban management brigade, and the director of the neighborhood committee. In fact, they are The authority of official positions is much greater than this. Their actual authority should be understood as today's public security director, armed police special police captain, militiamen and more pervasive spy intelligence chiefs. All strong departments.
As a result, Zhu Wen's party members were spread all over Chang'an City and outside, closely monitoring every move of the central court.
Later, in order to "avoid suspicion", Zhu Wen said goodbye to Zhaozong and led the main force back to Bianzhou.
Emperor Zhaozong first held a farewell banquet in Shouchun Hall, and then held a farewell banquet in Yanxi Tower to express his reluctance to part with the great hero. When Zhu Wen officially left, Zhaozong climbed onto the high platform, said goodbye with tears, and ordered Zhu Wen to mount his horse in front of the building instead of walking out of the palace gate before mounting his horse. This was the highest courtesy Zhaozong could give.
not enough.
Zhaozong also wrote poems for Zhu Wen himself, including five "Yangliu Ci" poems praising his merits; Zhu Wen also composed poems to present them. This is still a "rule" left by the ancestors. In fact, these clichéd poems have been written in advance by Hanlin scholars. The two protagonists memorized their lines in advance, and then "personally" composed the poems at the right time to sing their aspirations.
Afterwards, all civil and military officials lined up at Changle Station in the east of Chang'an City to see off Zhu Wen back to town. Prime Minister Cui Yin, on the other hand, made the pavilion longer and shorter. He sent Zhu Wenyuan to Baqiao alone, held another banquet, and held a small stove for the master's farewell party. He drank until midnight (second watch) before returning to Chang'an.
Zhaozong didn't even fall asleep. He waited patiently for Cui Yin to come back, and then immediately summoned Cui Yin into the palace to greet Zhu Wen. After getting a positive answer, they immediately set aside wine and watched the singing and dancing, and did not leave the table until the fourth watch. This is the highest level of courtesy to show respect and concern for Zhu Wen. Likewise, they are still the rules left by our ancestors.
However, I prefer to believe that Zhaozong was humming the tune of "Send Off the God of Plague" silently in his heart.
Before Zhu Wen left, he completed the control of Chang'an City through a series of deployments, laying the groundwork for future "big events". At the same time, he also did two things for Zhaozong. One was to get the "hostage" Princess Pingyuan back, and the other was to entrust Zhaozong to write a mediation letter to Li Keyong of Hedong.
Zhu Wen reported to Zhaozong that there was no deep hatred between him and Li Keyong, but it was just a small misunderstanding, and he was young, immature, and ignorant at the time. He asked your Majesty to send senior officials to Hedong. Help me to send a message to Comrade Li Keyong. It is better to reconcile enemies than to make enemies. I am willing to meet him and forget the grudges with a smile, so that we can put an end to the past.
Of course Zhaozong was happy with what he had achieved, and immediately sent a special mediator to Taiyuan Mansion with generous gifts to express condolences to Li Keyong and convey Zhu Wen's intention to reconcile with him.
Facing Zhu Wen's active kindness, Li Keyong just smiled coldly and said: "This grandson just plans to attack Qingzhou, and he is afraid that I will attack him from behind."
