Zi Zhi Tong Jian

Chapter 64 The Later Zhou Dynasty: The Simple Emperor (2)
【Translation】

In the third year of Guangshun (953 A.D.), Wang Jun insisted on requesting to take over the feudal town concurrently. Later Zhou Taizu had no choice but to let Wang Jun concurrently serve as the envoy of Pinglu.

Privy envoy, Pinglu Jiedu envoy, and Tongping Zhangshi Wang Jun became more arrogant and irritable in their later years. They asked to appoint Yan Yu, a scholar of Duanming Palace, and Chen Guan, a privy direct scholar, to replace Fan Zhi and Li Gu as prime ministers. Zhou Taizu said: "Appoint and dismiss the prime minister, you can't act hastily, let me think about it carefully." Wang Jun tried his best to state his views, and his words became more and more disrespectful.The sun was already close to the middle of the sky, but Taizu hadn't eaten yet. Wang Jun argued endlessly. Taizu said: "Now is the cold food festival. When everyone's vacation is over, I will follow Aiqing's performance list." Only then did Wang Jun retreat disgruntled.

On February [-]th, Emperor Taizu of the Later Zhou Dynasty urgently summoned the prime minister and privy envoys to enter the court, and imprisoned Wang Jun in another place.When Taizu saw Feng Dao and others, he cried bitterly and said: "Wang Jun bullied me too much, trying to expel all the ministers and get rid of my right and left arm. I only have one son, but Wang Jun deliberately blocked it, and I let him enter temporarily. When Beijing entered the court, Wang Jun was filled with resentment when he learned about it. Besides, there is no reason why he presides over the Privy Council and also serves as the prime minister, and also asks for the remote control of important feudal towns! Looking at his ambitions, he has never been satisfied. There is no king so far, no one can bear him like this!" On the [-]th, the imperial edict relegated Wang Jun to Sima of Shangzhou, and the book roughly said: "Treat all the officials as the board of directors. Think of me as a child of how old I am." Taizu thought that Yedu would feel uneasy if he stayed behind at Wang Yin, so he ordered Wang Yin's son Shang Shi to send Wang Chenghui to Wang Yin's residence and tell him the truth about the situation. The circumstances of Wang Jun's conviction.After Wang Jun arrived in Shangzhou, he suffered from diarrhea. Taizu still took pity on him and asked his wife to visit him. Wang Jun died not long after.

[Comment and Analysis]

Later Zhou Taizu Guo Wei was an approachable, generous and benevolent emperor. He was tolerant and courteous to his ministers.Wang Jun is frivolous and impatient, good at calculating, greedy for power, likes others to flatter him, and is so conceited that he thinks that only he can take on the important task of governing the world.Even so, Zhou Taizu forgave him.But in the end, he even intensified, not only presiding over the Privy Council, but also serving as the prime minister, and also asked to lead important feudal towns from afar.Later Zhou Taizu couldn't bear it anymore, so he was exiled to Shangzhou.

deserved
[Original text]

Later Zhou Shizong Ruiwu Xiaowen Emperor Xiande five years
In the early days, Tang Taifu and Zhongshu ordered Chu Gong and Song Qiqiu to cultivate many cliques, wanting to monopolize the power of the court, and impetuous people competed to attach them, and praised them as the elders of the country.Chen Jue, the privy envoy, and Li Zhenggu, the deputy envoy, relied on the power of Qiqiu, and they were especially arrogant.And Xu Wenzhen and others were defeated in Zijin Mountain. Jue, Qiqiu and Jingda escaped from Haozhou, and the people of the country were frightened.The Tang Lord sighed and said: "My country has come here in one dynasty!" Because of weeping.Zheng Gu said: "Your Majesty should organize the army to defend the enemy. What's the point of weeping and weeping! How can it be evil to drink too much and keep the nursing mother from being evil?" Tang Zhu's face changed, but Zheng Gu behaved calmly.Huisi Tianzuo: "There are changes in the astronomy, and the owner should avoid disasters." Tang Zhunai said: "Fang Yin is in trouble, and I want to get rid of all opportunities, and live in peace. Who can trust the country?" Zheng Gu said : "Duke Song is the hand that builds the country. Your majesty is tired of all kinds of opportunities, so why don't you give it to the whole country!" Jue said: "Your Majesty lives in the forbidden zone, and all state affairs are entrusted to Duke Song. He goes first and then hears about it. The ministers wait for the time to serve, talk about interpretation, I'm just old." Tang Zhu felt annoyed, and immediately ordered Chen Qiao, the scholar in Yuzhang, to do it.Qiao came to see him in fear, and said, "Your Majesty has issued this edict, and I will never see you again!" Because he said it was impossible.Tang Zhu said with a smile: "You also know that it is not evil?"Because the king of Jin came out of the town, he took Zhenggu as his deputy, and he felt that he had returned from Zhou Dynasty, and he was dismissed from his recent post.

【Translation】

The fifth year of Emperor Shizong Xiande of the Later Zhou Dynasty (958 AD)
At first, the Taifu and Zhongshu of the Southern Tang Dynasty ordered Chu Gong and Song Qiqiu to form cliques for personal gain and cultivate cliques in an attempt to monopolize the power of the government.All of a sudden, impetuous and aggressive people rushed to cling to him, admiring and praising Song Qiqiu as the patriarch of the country.The privy envoy Chen Jue and deputy envoy Li Zhenggu relied on Song Qiqiu's power, especially appearing arrogant and arrogant.Later, after Xu Wenzhen and others were defeated in Zijin Mountain, Chen Jue, Song Qiqiu, and Li Jingda fled back from Haozhou all the way, and the people of the country were very frightened.The Lord of the Southern Tang Dynasty once said with emotion: "My country has fallen to such a state in the blink of an eye!" He shed tears while speaking.Li Zhenggu said: "Your Majesty should reorganize the army to resist the enemy. What's the use of crying and shedding tears! Did you drink too much, or maybe the nanny hasn't arrived yet?" Zheng Gu's speech and demeanor are still calm.At that time, it was just in time for Si Tian to report: "There is a change in the sky, your majesty, please take refuge in order to pray for disaster relief." The Lord of the Southern Tang Dynasty took the opportunity to say: "Disasters and disasters are happening frequently, and I want to give up my throne to get rid of cumbersome government affairs. So that the mind can be indifferent and peaceful, who do you think you can entrust the country to?" Li Zhenggu said: "Song Gong is the best candidate to rule the country, if your majesty is really tired of government affairs, why don't you entrust the country to Where is he going to govern?" Chen Jue also took the opportunity to say: "In this way, His Majesty can live in the palace and entrust all important affairs of the country to Song Gong, and we will deal with it first and then report it. We often enter the palace to serve I just want to talk to you about Sakyamuni and Lao Tzu.” The Southern Tang ruler was very angry, and immediately ordered Chen Qiao, a native of Yuzhang, from Zhongshushe, to draft an edict and implement it.Chen Qiao anxiously asked for an audience, saying: "Once Your Majesty issues this edict, I will never see Your Majesty again." So she tried her best to state the reasons why this should not be done.The Lord of the Southern Tang Dynasty smiled and said, "Do you also know that is not possible?" So he had to give up, so he took advantage of the opportunity of King Jin to serve as a feudal town and let Li Zhenggu be his deputy. After Chen Jue returned from the Later Zhou Dynasty, he was also dismissed The official position of the court minister.

[Original text]

Zhong Mosu and Li Deming were kind, and blamed Qiqiu for Deming's death.When he was sent back to the Tang Dynasty, he said to the Tang Lord: "Qiqiu took advantage of the danger of the country and conspired to usurp it. Chen Jue and Li Zhenggu were his wings. It is unreasonable." Said: "I heard that Jiangnan's refusal of life for several years is the conspiracy of the prime minister's strict continuation. I should kill it for me."Zhong Mo please reply to Zhou.Tang Lord Yin Mo returned his order and said: "If you refuse the king's teacher for a long time, all the ministers are foolish and confused. It is not a crime to continue." When the emperor heard about it, he was shocked and said: "If the trial is like this, then the continued is a loyal minister. I am the lord of the world. How can I teach others? Kill loyal ministers!" Mo Huan, as the Lord of the Tang Dynasty.The Tang Lord wanted to punish Qiqiu and others, so he sent Mo back to the emperor.As a minister of a foreign country, the emperor has nothing to deny.In Jihai, the Lord of the Tang Dynasty ordered Yin Chongyi of the Privy Council to violently punish Qiqiu, Jue, and conquer the ancients. He heard that Qiqiu returned to the old hermit of Jiuhua Mountain, and the officials and nobles were all the same; Give himself to commit suicide; neither the party nor the party asks.Send envoys to report to Zhou.

In the sixth year of Xiande, from Qiqiu to Mount Jiuhua in the Tang and Song Dynasties, the Lord of the Tang Dynasty ordered him to lock the house, and the hole wall was used for food and drink.Qiqiu sighed and said: "I used to offer a plan to let the emperor's family live in Taizhou, it is better than this!" He died by hanging.His posthumous title is Chou Miao.

【Translation】

Zhong Mo had always had a good relationship with Li Deming, but later he began to resent Song Qiqiu because of Li Deming's death; when he returned to the Southern Tang Dynasty after he was sent as an envoy, he said to the Southern Tang ruler: "Song Qiqiu took advantage of the country's crisis Chen Jue and Li Zhenggu are his accomplices, and the behavior of these people cannot be tolerated." Chen Jue returned from the Later Zhou Dynasty, pretending to be an order from Emperor Shizong of the Later Zhou Dynasty, and said to the Southern Tang ruler: "I heard that Jiangnan It was Prime Minister Yan Xu’s idea to resist the imperial edict for many years, and he should be executed for me.” The Southern Tang Dynasty ruler knew that Chen Juesu had always had conflicts with Yan Xu, so he did not believe his words.At this time, Zhong Mo asked to go to Houzhou for verification, so the Southern Tang Dynasty Lord replied to the order through Zhong Mo, saying: "For a long time, resisting the king's order is all due to my ignorance and ignorance, not Yan Xu's crime." After hearing this, Emperor Shizong of the Later Zhou Dynasty was very surprised and said: "If this is the case, then Yan Xu is a loyal minister of the country. As the lord of the world, can I instigate people to kill loyal ministers!" The specific situation was truthfully reported to the ruler of the Southern Tang Dynasty.The ruler of the Southern Tang Dynasty prepared to kill Song Qiqiu and others, and then sent Zhong Mo to Hou Zhou to report to Emperor Shizong of Hou Zhou.Sejong did not raise any objections because the people who were executed were ministers from other countries. On the 23rd, the Lord of the Southern Tang Dynasty ordered Yin Chongyi of the Privy Council to draft an edict declaring the crimes of Song Qiqiu, Chen Jue, and Li Zhenggu, and allowing Song Qiqiu to return to the old hermitage of Mount Jiuhua, with the same official title as before; Chen Jue was relegated to Doctor Guozi , sent to Xuanzhou for resettlement; Li Zhenggu was dismissed from his official title and ordered to commit suicide; their party members will not be held accountable.And sent an envoy to report the relevant decision to the next week.

In the sixth year of Xiande (AD 959), Qiqiu arrived at Mount Jiuhua in the Southern Tang Dynasty. The Lord of the Southern Tang Dynasty ordered all the doors and windows of the mansion where he lived to be locked, and then holes were dug in the wall to provide food.Song Qiqiu sighed: "I have offered a plan to imprison the Wu Rang emperor's family in Taizhou, so now I should end up like this!" Then he hanged himself.After his death, he was posthumously named Chou Miao.

[Comment and Analysis]

In the Southern Tang and Song Dynasties, Qiqiu wanted to form gangs and cultivate party members in order to monopolize the power of the court, and was suspected by the Southern Tang monarch.The ruler of the Southern Tang Dynasty planned to kill Song Qiqiu and others, and sent Zhong Mo to report to Emperor Shizong of the Later Zhou Dynasty.Because Zhou Shizong was a courtier of another country, he did not raise any objections.The Lord of the Southern Tang Dynasty ordered Yin Chongyi of the Privy Council to draft an edict announcing the crimes committed by Song Qiqiu, Chen Jue, and Li Zhenggu, and allowing Song Qiqiu to return to the former hermitage of Mount Jiuhua.There, Song Qiqiu began to feel ashamed of his evil past, and finally hanged himself because he couldn't bear the huge contrast between the present and the past.Such a result is entirely due to Song Qiqiu's greed for wealth and power, not fulfilling his duties as a minister, and trying to seek power and usurp the throne. He is purely taking the blame and deserves it.

(End of this chapter)