Zhu Shouyin was Li Cunxu's domestic slave earlier. He was cunning, strong and brave. Li Cunxu organized his slaves into a "Changzhi Army", led by Zhu Shouyin. Zhu Shouyin liked spy work the most, specializing in investigating various secrets of generals and then reporting them to Li Cunxu, so he was regarded as a confidant by Li Cunxu.
Later, Li Cunxu ordered Zhu Shouyin to garrison the important stronghold - Desheng Jiacheng. As a result, Wang Yanzhang "defeated the enemy in three days."
After the war, Li Siyuan secretly reported to Li Cunxu, demanding that Zhu Shouyin be held accountable for his defeat and executed. Li Cunxu not only failed to punish Zhu Shouyin, but promoted him and rewarded him.
This led to enmity between Zhu Shouyin and Li Siyuan. That's why Li Cunxu asked Zhu Shouyin to monitor Li Siyuan.
However, Zhu Shouyin leaked the secret to Li Siyuan, saying that he had a high position and great achievements, and was in a very dangerous situation. It was best to find a way to return to the town quickly and not stay in the capital.
Li Siyuan looked upright and replied that he was not afraid of slanting shadows if he was upright.
According to this, many historical materials say that Zhu Shouyin had a close relationship with Li Siyuan, so he warned him to get out of the tiger's mouth. In fact, this is completely wrong.
When Zhu Shouyin lost the city of Desheng, Li Siyuan secretly reported to Li Cunxu, demanding that Zhu Shouyin be killed. This happened just two years ago. Li Cunxu showed this secret report to Zhu Shouyin to further incite Zhu Shouyin's hatred towards Li Siyuan, and then arranged for him to "serve Li Siyuan's daily life". In name, he was to be Li Siyuan's personal servant 24 hours a day, but in reality he was under strict supervision 24 hours a day. Because Zhu Shouyin hated Li Siyuan, Li Cunxu didn't have to worry about Zhu Shouyin being incited to rebel by Li Siyuan.
Then why did Zhu Shouyin leak the secret to Li Siyuan again?
The reason is simple: asking for a bribe.
As Li Cunxu's confidant, Zhu Shouyin was favored and arrogant. Like the actor Jing Jin and others, he became a key target of bribery. There are many loyal people who have been framed for the sake of power and gain, and the following article will slowly expand on this.
He wanted to take advantage of his position to extort money from Li Siyuan and ask for bribes. Please read carefully what he said to Li Siyuan: "Those who are in high positions and ministers are in danger, and those who have made great contributions to the world will not be rewarded. It can be said that the public is in a high position and has made great achievements." . It is better to return to the feudal vassal by oneself, and there is no chance of misfortune!"
A common tactic for asking for bribes is to first scare you, "You are in danger!" and then tactfully give you a clear path, "But it can still be remedied." How to remedy it? I’ll leave it to you to think about this. Do you still need to think about it? Your savior is before you.
"It is advisable to return to the vassal by oneself", this sentence is the most important. The premise is that we must first understand the general background at that time, such as actors, eunuchs, Xiao Liu, celebrities in front of the emperor (such as Zhu Shouyin), etc. It was common to ask for bribes, no matter you No matter how much trouble you encounter, as long as they put in a few kind words for you, you can turn the danger into good. Even Yuan Xiangxian and Duan Ning can turn the danger into safety, not to mention you, Li Siyuan.
Therefore, those who say that Zhu Shouyin and Li Siyuan are close only stay on the surface of the text and only scratch the surface, which is too superficial.
Li Siyuan was not alone in the court. The eunuch Li Shaohong was his good friend. When others framed Li Siyuan, Li Shaohong would always actively defend him.
In addition to his suspicion of Li Jianji and Li Siyuan, there are three other small things that can reveal Li Cunxu's true attitude towards his meritorious generals:
1. In the second year of Zhengming (916), Wang Tan of the Later Liang Dynasty raided Taiyuan. Zhang Chengye and veteran general An Jinquan and others boarded the city and refused to defend, resisting desperately. Li Sizhao sent elite reinforcements to help, and finally defeated Wang Tan and saved Taiyuan. However, after the incident, none of the participants received awards because Li Cunxu was on the front line of Heshuo and did not participate in the entire "Taiyuan Defense Battle".
2. In March of the third year of Tongguang (925), Li Cunxu set out from Weizhou for sightseeing tours of former battlefields such as Desheng Jiacheng and Yangcun. At the site of this bloody battle, Li Cunxu was in high spirits, giving instructions to his followers and bragging about his invincible bravery and unparalleled achievements.
"When I was a child, I crossed the river with the ancestors, but now I have forgotten it. In the spring, the peach blossoms are full of water. I think about it. Who followed me?"
Do you have a sense of déjà vu like, “Brother, I was in England?”
Whether it was Sanchuigang or the Yellow River Peach Garden, Li Cunxu was subtly conveying this signal to his tribe.
The poor bones by the Wuding River are like those in a spring boudoir's dream. On this land, many loyal and brave soldiers shed their blood and sacrificed their lives for Li Cunxu. However, Li Cunxu did not express any condolences, nor did he mention the achievements of other soldiers. If Li Cunxu was asked to edit the "History of the War of the Later Tang Dynasty", I am afraid that the entire article would be about Li Cunxu's highlight moments.
The sightseeing tour of the Deshengdu ruins chilled countless soldiers.
3. When Gao Jichang and other local vassal towns in Jingnan came to Beijing to meet the saint, Li Cunxu would continue to brag about his achievements at the banquet, stretch out his hands to let everyone admire the hands stained with the blood of the Later Liang soldiers, and say in person: "I am Use these ten fingers to destroy the back beam!"
I, Li Cunxu, destroyed Houliang alone, and all the other generals are scum!
So when these envoys and vassal towns returned, they all came to the same conclusion: Li Cunxu was complacent, arrogant, ignored his meritorious officials, and was self-willed, and his days were numbered!
【Withered cypress and heavy bloom】
In addition to eunuchs and court officials, Li Cunxu also doted on Taoist priests. Because Taoist priests always like to say things they like to hear.
In December of the first year of Tongguang (923), a Taoist priest from the Taiqing Palace in Bozhou said: The withered cypress in front of the Holy Ancestor Hall has been withered for a long time. Regenerate one branch to make progress in the painting.
According to historical records, this ancient tree withered and bloomed in the second year of Wude, Emperor Gaozu of the Tang Dynasty. After the "Anshi Rebellion" broke out, it withered and withered. When Xuanzong Li Longji returned to Beijing from Shu, its branches and leaves flourished again. After that, the country's fortunes declined, and the tree withered again. . Now, Li Cunxu came to Luoyang and revived the Tang Dynasty, so the tree revived again and grew new branches two feet long.
This flattery is well-founded, tactful and subtle.
Li Cunxu was very happy and ordered the historian to record the incident in the annals of history. Li Cunxu personally commented and forwarded it, saying that the regeneration of withered cypress trees corresponds to the period of royal reconstruction. "Same as the willow trees in the forest, the auspicious leaves were announced in the Han Dynasty; the auspiciousness is more than the glory of the Nandun Jiahe."
In his brief edict, Li Cunxu used two famous allusions:
1. Liu Xun, Emperor Xuan of the Han Dynasty, initiated the "Xiaoxuan ZTE". The dead willow trees in Shanglin Garden came back to life.
2. Liu Xiu, Emperor Guangwu of the Han Dynasty, initiated the "Guangwu Zhongxing". It is said that when he was born, the room was filled with red light, and a nine-tassel Jiahe Rui seedling was found in the county. This is also the origin of his name "Xiu".
Since the emperor is willing to listen, the Taoist priests are no longer idle.
Just one month later, in the first month of the second year of Tongguang (924), just before Li Cunxu went to heaven, Zhang Chongxu, a Taoist priest from Huaqing Palace in Zhaoying County, Chang'an, said: The withered cypress trees in Tianzun Court are reborn.
There is no need to over-interpret this kind of thing. Whether a dead tree is reborn or there are many ears of harvest, although it is strange, it is in accordance with the laws of nature. It is much more believable than a dragon appearing in the field, a unicorn soaring in the sky, or a thousand-year-old white deer.
The Taoist priests won the favor of Li Cunxu and gained a certain amount of favor. They also joined the ranks of those who took bribes and interfered in government affairs.
【Concubines in groups】
The size of Li Cunxu's harem is a huge number. There are 18 people included in "Family Biography" alone, and the actual number of his concubines is far more than that. It’s empty talk, but it’s proven by history:
"At the time of Zhuangzong, the number of harems was particularly large, including Zhaorong, Zhaoyi, Zhaoyuan, Chushi, Yuzheng, Shizhen, Yicai, Xianyi, Yaofang, Yide, Xuanyi, etc. The other names were not allowed. Record of victory." - "New History of the Five Dynasties"
The above lists are only the names of concubines, that is, their levels. There is usually more than one quota under each title. Different historical periods have different names and quota regulations. The popular name "Three Thousand Beauties" is just an exaggeration.
According to Zhou rites, the emperor's first wife is called "Queen", and there is only one person, namely the empress; followed by the third wife, the ninth concubine, the twenty-seventh wife, and the eighty-one imperial wife.
Since the Zhou Dynasty, improvements have been made in all dynasties, but no matter how they are changed, there are two basic rules that remain unchanged forever: the queen is the head of the harem, and there is only one person; there can be more than one person below the other names, and the names can be based on the emperor Customized according to your preference.
There are 11 names below the above-mentioned "Zhaorong". The word "wai" tells us that there are more than 11 names alone.
There is another record that says that after Li Cunxu was killed, the concubines fled in all directions. When Zhu Shouyin entered the harem to clean up the mess, he found more than 30 concubines who had not had time to escape.
There are other records saying that Li Cunxu had hundreds of concubines. Combining multiple indirect records, "hundreds" should be closer to the truth and not an exaggeration.
For example, the previous article cited a large-scale incident of collecting court ladies. In the Heshuo area alone, the actor Jing Jin and the eunuchs brought back more than 3,000 women for Li Cunxu.
When Li Cunxu entered Bianzhou, he forcibly took in the concubines of Houliang. At that time, the surviving concubines of the Houliang royal family were kneeling on the roadside, sobbing and worshiping the troops of the Later Tang Dynasty. Li Cunxu picked them one by one as if they were visiting a club. He first took a fancy to Zhu Youyong's wife, Shi, and proposed to be his successor. She was a chaste and martyr woman, so he scolded her loudly, and Li Cunxu killed her in anger. Later, Li Cunxu fell in love with Zhu Youzhen's second concubine Zhang. Having learned from the past, Zhang "feared and obeyed orders."
This Mrs. Zhang was Zhu Youzhen's second concubine and the daughter of Zhang Guihou; Zhu Youzhen's first wife, Ms. Zhang, was the daughter of Zhang Guiba. She did not have time to be canonized as a queen and died unfortunately on the day she was canonized as a virtuous concubine.
Zhu Youzhen has been the emperor for 11 years, and only these two sisters are the only ones. Li Cunxu only served as emperor for three years and had hundreds of harems. It is obvious to all who is the debauched and lustful person, so the Later Tang Dynasty tried its best to discredit Hou Liang and could only put the word "promiscuous" on Zhu Wen. It was too embarrassing to impose it on Zhu Youzhen.
[To have power is to be willful]
This man who stands at the pinnacle of power, Li Cunxu, vents his emotions arbitrarily. Can he do whatever he wants with power?
Sorry, you can really do whatever you want with the power.
Li Cunxu once wrestled with Li Cunxian. Li Cunxian deliberately let go, but Li Cunxu found out. Li Cunxu was very unhappy, so he told Li Cunxian that as long as you can defeat me, I will reward you with a military governor!
As a result, Li Cunxian finally tried his best and was slightly better in the end.
In the second year of Tongguang (924), Li Cunshen, the military governor of Youzhou Lulong Army, died of illness. Li Cunxu followed the previous agreement and appointed Li Cunxian as the military governor of Youzhou Lulong Army.
Wrestling and betting on Jiedu are no better than Tang Xizong's hitting and betting on Sanchuan. Jiedushi, the local military and political leader, and an important town in Youzhou, how could he be such a child's play?
I don’t care, I’m just so willful.
The second thing was to execute Yelu Lage.
For this capricious political prisoner, the best solution should be to send him home with courtesy and return this hot potato to the Khitan.
This has two advantages: first, it shows a generous mind (in vain); second, it creates chaos within the Khitan (real benefit).
Yelu Lage was the younger brother of Yelu Abaoji and participated in three rebellions against Yelu Abaoji. Sending him back to Khitan would create a big and difficult problem for Yelu Abaoji, and Yelu Abaoji could only suffer the loss of being dumb. He cursed his mother in his heart but had to thank Hou Tang in his mouth.
But Li Cunxu killed his entire family. In this way, Yelu Abaoji can breathe a sigh of relief and thank Li Cunxu for helping him clean up his family. At the same time, he also has a legitimate reason to invade south: avenge my brother!
We can compare the stories of Li Kuangwei and Li Kuangchou.
Li Cunxu pursued a moment of gratification, but he made a huge political mistake.
I don't care. If he doesn't like it, of course I'll kill him. I'm just so willful.
At the beginning of the third year of Tongguang (925), the king of the Yiwu Army Jiedu in Dingzhou came to the central government to meet him. In order to welcome him, Li Cunxu planned to build a square in Weizhou.
Zhang Xian, who stayed in Weizhou, reported that the square in front of the palace gate was too small and should be expanded. However, the year before last, His Majesty built a high platform there to enthrone and proclaim himself emperor. That high platform cannot be demolished, so I suggested that it be rebuilt on the open space to the west of the palace. .
It was a massive project that was still not completed after several days.
Li Cunxu is famous, why not use it if you have it ready? Isn’t it just a useless high platform? Tear it down for me!
Zhang Xian did not dare challenge Li Cunxu's majesty, so he went to Guo Chongtao and said, "This high platform is the altar where your Majesty worships God and accepts destiny. It is of great significance. How can it be demolished so easily?"
Guo Chongtao deeply believed this, so he carefully advised Li Cunxu while he was in a good mood.
After hearing this, Li Cunxu smiled coldly, "Is it because of that high platform? Haha, let's do something neat." He immediately ordered the personal guards to transform into a demolition team, "Demolish it for me now!"
Zhang Xian said to Guo Chongtao in private: "Forgetting the grace of the gods and abandoning the foundation of the empire is the most ominous sign!"
The two sighed at each other and shook their heads silently.
I personally demolished the platform on which I ascended the throne. I am so willful.
Seemingly in response to Zhang Xian's statement, this year there has been a severe drought since the beginning of spring, and in June, the weather is extremely hot. Li Cunxu wanted to find a place to escape the summer heat, but he couldn't satisfy him even though he traveled all over the palace.
At this time, the considerate eunuchs began to use the past to ridicule the present again, "In the past, when Chang'an was in its heyday, there were hundreds of palaces and palaces. Today, the emperor does not even have a place to escape the summer heat. Your Majesty." The size of the palaces is not comparable to the private residences of the ministers back then."
So Li Cunxu ordered a new high-rise building to be built to escape the heat.
The eunuchs also reminded Li Cunxu that Guo Chongtao would most likely dissuade him because of insufficient funds. Your Majesty should think of the right answer in advance.
Sure enough, after Guo Chongtao got the news, he advised Shangshu to cherish the national power and cherish the people's wealth and anointing, blah blah... the words of a loyal minister from the bottom of his heart.
Li Cunxu replied: This time it is from my private pocket and does not cost a penny of public money.
Everyone knows that this is self-deception. Li Cunxu also felt that his explanation was too shameless, so he sent eunuchs to further communicate, saying that I was not a person who was greedy for pleasure and ease. When we confronted the Houliang army along the river, the garrison was low-lying and extremely humid, but I could still sit on it. War horses, wearing heavy armor, galloping freely and horizontally, do not feel the heat and can still endure it; but now the climate is extremely hot, like fire, which is indeed unbearable.
Guo Chongtao replied: "That's because before, the powerful enemy was right in front of you. Your Majesty was bent on revenge and avenging shame. No matter how hot the weather was, Your Majesty could forget about it. However, now that the powerful enemy has been eradicated and everyone in the four seas has surrendered, so even if there is Your Majesty still feels bored by the gorgeous palaces and comfortable balconies. If your Majesty can not forget your original intention, the summer heat will disappear."
You have fallen, Your Majesty!
Li Cunxu felt bored and speechless. However, the real estate project has not come to a standstill. More than 10,000 people are involved in the construction every day, and the cost is measured in hundreds of millions.
Guo Chongtao went to the meeting again and said that the current fiscal deficit was so serious that even military food and salaries were a problem. If His Majesty insisted on building a building, it would be best to wait until after the autumn harvest to let the finances turn around first.
Li Cunxu also made no reply. The project continues.
I don’t care whether there is a fiscal deficit or not, I am just so willful.
