Anecdote of the Fifth Queen Mother

Chapter 15 Empress Wu (3)
Queen Wang had no children, and Gaozong had four sons when he came to the throne, all of which were born to other concubines.The eldest son Li Zhong was born to the Liu family in the harem; the second son Li Xiao was born to the Zheng family in the harem; the third son Li Shangjin was born to the Yang family in the harem; the fourth son Li Sujie was born to Concubine Xiao Shu.In the feudal society where "mother is more expensive than children", this is very unfavorable to the queen, but she also has many advantages.First, Empress Wang was born in a famous family. Her parents were both in-laws of the Li Tang royal family.Second, Empress Wang has been a concubine since Gaozong was the king of Jin, and was later registered as the crown prince and concubine, and even the empress. She and Li Zhi have been together for a long time, and there is a relatively solid emotional foundation between the two.Third, Queen Wang has the support of many courtiers such as Changsun Wuji and Chu Suiliang.Before Tang Taizong died, he personally entrusted the "beautiful son and wife" between Gaozong and the Queen to the ministers such as Changsun Wuji and Chu Suiliang, so all the ministers followed Taizong's will and wholeheartedly supported the Queen.

Wu Zetian's advantage is that she is deeply favored by Gaozong, especially she has given birth to four sons for Gaozong.According to Guo Moruo, "Empress Wu had four sons, namely Li Hong, Li Xian, Li Zhe, and Li Lun. According to historical data, the eldest son and the second son should have lived together in Yonghui for three years. Empress Wu was still a bhikkhuni in Ganye Temple. time." ① There are some inconsistencies between this statement and the historical records.According to the "Old Tang Book·Yan Wangzhong Biography": "In the year (the sixth year of Yonghui, 655 AD), the queen was deposed,
①Guo Moruo: "Wu Zetian" (Script) Appendix, "How I Write Wu Zetian", People's Literature Publishing House, published in 1979.Wu Zhaoyi's son, Hongnian, was three years old. According to this calculation, the eldest son Li Hong should be born in the fourth year of Yonghui (AD 653). According to "Tang Huiyao" Volume 653 "Pursuing the Posthumous Emperor Gate": "Filial piety to the emperor Taboo Hong (that is, Hong), Gao Zongdi The five sons were named kings in the first month of the fourth year of Yonghui. "It can be seen that the eldest son Li Hongshi was born in the first month of the fourth year of Yonghui (AD 654). The birthday of the second son Li Xian is clearly written in history: "(Yonghui five years) December Wuwu, sent the capital to visit Zhaoling, on the road The second son Li Xianshi was born in December of the fifth year of Yonghui (AD 652). It can be proved that Li Hong and Li Xian were not born at the same time in the third year of Yonghui ([-] AD).

Soon after Wu Zetian entered the palace for the second time, Queen Wang found out that she was pregnant.Once a concubine in the palace gives birth to a child, her worth will be multiplied immediately.Therefore, the news of Wu Zetian's pregnancy is undoubtedly a thunderbolt to the queen, and it will definitely threaten the status of the queen in the future.In order to deal with this imminent situation, Liu Shuang, the uncle of the Empress Wang, joined forces with Taiwei Zhangsun Wuji, Shangshu Zuopushe Yu Zhining, Shangshu Youpushe Chu Suiliang, Shizhong Han Yuan and other courtiers, and couldn't wait to join the courtiers. Ask Gao Zonggu to make his eldest son Yan Wangzhong the crown prince.The strategy was carefully calculated.Yan Wangzhong's biological mother Liu's status is low, and it will not affect the status of the queen in the future; since the queen has no children, it is logical to establish a head.In doing so, it can not only make up for the lack of children of the queen, but also prevent other young heirs from coveting the ambition of the crown prince.Tang Gaozong did not know what to do, and in July of the third year of Yonghui (AD 652) (four months before the birth of Wu Zetian's first son Li Hong), he formally issued an edict to make his eldest son Yan Wangzhong the crown prince.Queen Wang whipped first and won the first round.

In the feudal court where "mother is more valuable than children", the fate of concubines and their children is closely related.When the mother ascends the throne of the queen, the son can inherit the throne; and when the son ascends the throne of the emperor, the mother becomes the mother of the country.On the contrary, it is inevitable that the mother and child will be decapitated.Therefore, the struggle between Wu Zetian, the queen and concubine Xiao Shu who had a son was inevitable. They attacked each other in front of Tang Gaozong, and it became more and more fierce.Queen Wang also gradually changed her original strategy of uniting Wu Zetian to deal with Concubine Xiao Shu, but began to unite with Concubine Xiao Shu to deal with the increasingly favored Wu Zetian.

Although Tang Gaozong was partial to Wu Zetian at this time, he had not yet developed the heart to abolish the king and queen and replace Wu Zetian.The Empress Wang is Gaozong's original partner, she was born in a family of royal relatives, and there is no serious fault on weekdays. In addition, the ministers firmly support it. Therefore, it is really not an easy task to get rid of the Empress Wang. The cowardly Emperor Gaozong The emperor could not easily make up his mind.Wu Zetian deeply understood this point. She knew that she could not achieve her goal without taking extraordinary measures. In order to separate the relationship between Tang Gaozong and the queen, she did not hesitate to kill her eldest daughter who was born not long ago. Volume [-] of "Zizhi Tongjian" records this story: "Although the favor of the empress (the queen) declined, the emperor (Gaozong) did not intend to abolish it. Hui Zhaoyi (Wu Zetian) gave birth to a daughter, and she pityed her , After going out, Zhaoyi strangled her latently, and covered her with a quilt. At the top, Zhaoyi Yang laughed happily, and when her hair was watched, she cried out in shock. Asking the left and right, they all said, "The queen is coming here." On the Great Wrath Day: "I will kill my daughter!" Zhaoyi cried and counted his crimes. The latter has no self-evident, and Shangyou has the ambition to abolish the establishment." Wu Zetian's unexpectedly ruthless chess finally defeated Tang Gaozong and Wang Huanghuang in one fell swoop. A thick wedge was hit between the relationship between the two, and the foundation of the relationship between the two collapsed.

In order to further disintegrate the foundation of the queen and cut off the support of the queen, Wu Zetian first attacked the queen's uncle Zhongshuling Liuxi.In June of the fifth year of Yonghui (654 A.D.), Liu Xun had no choice but to apply for dismissal and was demoted to Minister of the Ministry of Officials.In June of the sixth year of Yonghui (AD 655), Wu Zetian falsely accused the Queen and her mother, Mrs. Liu of the State of Wei, of practicing the art of disgusting victory, and Liu was banned from entering the palace.In July, Liu Xun was implicated in this matter and demoted Liu Xun to be the governor of Suizhou.When Liu Shuang went to Fufeng, Yu Chengsu, the governor of Qizhou, followed Wu Zetian's will and falsely accused Liu Shuang of leaking the secrets of the court, so Liu Shuang was relegated to the governor of Rongzhou again.The relegation and expulsion of the late uncle Liu Shi from Beijing was a harbinger of the abolition of the queen.

To abolish Wang Liwu, it is essential to obtain the minister's praise.For this reason, Tang Gaozong and Wu Zetian himself had repeatedly mobilized the elder Sun Wuji, a veteran and important minister, in the hope of gaining his support.Tang Gaozong and Wu Zhaoyi personally went to Changsun Wuji's home, gave him more than ten chariots of treasures and brocades, and promoted Changsun Wuji's three sons to be Chaosan doctors. Although Changsun Wuji accepted the gift, he did not Do not support Wu Zetian as the queen.Wu Zetian's mother Yang and Wei Weiqing Xu Jingzong went to Changsun Wuji's house to intercede, but they were all firmly rejected by Changsun Wuji.Changsun Wuji is the core figure of the Guanlong military aristocratic group, the chief minister in the court, and Gaozong's uncle. His actions are bound to affect most of the courtiers. Empress Wu Zetian was obviously a big hit.

In July of the sixth year of Yonghui (AD 655), while demoting Liu Shi from Chang'an, Wu Zetian also attempted to obtain a special title-Concubine Chen, but due to the opposition of Han Yuan and other ministers, it failed.According to "Zizhi Tongjian" Volume [-]: "Due to the Sui system in the Tang Dynasty, there were noble concubines, concubines Shu, concubines De, and virtuous concubines in the harem who were all regarded as first-class. Shang (Tang Gaozong) wanted to set up a special concubine, and Wu Zhaoyi was the one. , Han Yuan, came to help and remonstrate, thinking that the story has nothing to do, so let's stop."

Lobbying Changsun Wuji and concubine Chen to no avail, this made Wu Zetian feel that if he wanted to ascend to the post, he must find a group of cronies who were loyal to him.Coincidentally, when Wu Zetian's concubine's proposal was blocked, Li Yifu, a member of Zhongshushe, was also demoted to Bizhou Sima because he offended his eldest grandson Wuji.Seeing that the imperial edict was about to be issued after one more procedure, Li Yifu was anxious like an ant on a hot pot. He went to visit Xu Jingzong's nephew and colleague Wang Dejian, known as the "brain tank" overnight, and begged him for an idea.Wang Dejian said to him: "The current emperor likes Wu Zhaoyi the most. He wants to make her queen, but he is afraid that the ministers will object. If you can write a letter suggesting that Wu Zhaoyi be made queen, it will not only turn disaster into blessing, but also increase officials from officials to officials!" "The words made Li Yi's mansion wake up like a dream. He was on duty that night instead of Wang Dejian. He made a watch overnight and asked Wu Zhaoyi to be the queen.After Tang Gaozong read the watch, he summoned him immediately and gave Li Yifu a bucket of pearls to restore him to his original post.

Afterwards, Li Yifu contacted Cui Yixuan, the doctor of imperial history, Yuan Gongyu of Zhongcheng, Xu Jingzong of Wei Weiqing, Wang Dejian of Zhongshusheren, and others to form a group supporting Wu Zetian.With this group of confidantes, Wu Zetian is no longer alone, and her steps in seeking succession have been greatly accelerated.At that time, Chang'an ordered Pei Xingjian to disapprove when he heard that Wu Zetian was going to be made queen. He discussed the matter with Changsun Wuji, Chu Suiliang and others in private, thinking that the disaster in the Tang Dynasty would definitely start from here.After Yuan Gongyu learned of this, he secretly informed Wu Zhaoyi's mother, Yang Shi, and passed it on to Wu Zetian through Yang Shi.Wu Zetian killed the chicken and showed it to the monkey, and she immediately demoted Pei Xingjian to be the governor of Xizhou through Gaozong.Then, Wu Zetian urged Gaozong to promote Li Yifu, who was attached to him, to Zhongshu Shilang, and Wei Weiqing Xu Jingzong to be Minister of Rites to further expand his power.Li Yifu and others also cooperated closely with Wu Zetian and stepped up to create public opinion for Wu Zetian's empress. Xu Jingzong once publicized in the court: "The farmer received ten more dendrobium wheat, and he still wanted to change his wife; And it’s unreasonable to raise objections!" (Volume [-] of "Zi Zhi Tong Jian")

In September of the sixth year of Yonghui (AD 655), Wu Zetian felt that the time was ripe, so he encouraged Gaozong to discuss with his courtiers the issue of his successor, and a fierce battle of words and guns broke out in the court.As usual, Changsun Wuji and other veterans and important officials resolutely opposed, among them, Chu Suiliang's attitude was the most fierce, quite desperate.Once, after Emperor Gaozong withdrew from the court, he summoned grandson Wuji, Li Jie, Yu Zhining, Chu Suiliang and others to discuss matters in the inner hall.Everyone felt that it must be a matter of discussing and establishing Wu Zetian as the queen.Chu Suiliang said to everyone: "Now the emperor has decided to make Wu Zhaoyi the queen. If he opposes it, he may be killed. The grandson Wuji Taiwei is the emperor's uncle, and Sikong Li Ji is the founding hero. Don't say too much, so as not to make the emperor I left behind the notoriety of killing Uncle Yuan and heroes. I was born as a commoner, I have no merit, I am in a high position, and I was ordered by Emperor Taizong. If I don’t fight to the death, how can I go underground to meet the late emperor?" Li Jitui said. Sick, slipped away in a hurry, only Changsun Wuji, Yu Zhining and Chu Suiliang entered the inner hall.

After entering the palace, "Shang Gu said Wuji Day: 'The empress has no children, but Wu Zhaoyi has a son. Now I want to make Zhaoyi the empress, what should I do?" Your majesty said to the minister: "I am a beautiful woman, and I will pay you today. What your majesty has heard is still in my ears. The queen has never heard of it, so how can I ignore it! I dare not obey your majesty and violate the order of the late emperor!" Let it go if you are not happy. Tomorrow, I will say it again, and it will be good to say: "Your Majesty must want to change the empress. Please choose the family of the world. Why bother with the Wu family. Wu's scriptures are known to the emperor before him, and the eyes and ears of the world can be hidden." After all generations, what do you call your Majesty? I wish you to think twice.'" ("Zi Zhi Tong Jian" Volume [-]) Chu Suiliang said, then untied his turban, and put the wat board in his hand on the steps of the palace .He kowtowed and bled, and said loudly, "Return your Majesty's wat board, let me go home and farm!" Tang Gaozong was very angry and ordered Chu Suiliang to be driven out. Lie!" Changsun Wuji tried his best to protect Chu Suiliang, but Yu Zhining didn't dare to express his opinion, so the dispute broke up unhappily.

In addition to Changsun Wuji and Chu Suiliang, who tried their best to dissuade Wu Zhaoyi from being the latter, there were also ministers such as Han Yuan and Lai Ji.According to the "New Book of Tang Han Yuan Biography": "When Emperor Gaozong wanted to depose the king and queen, Yuan wept and remonstrated: "The queen was married by the first emperor when your majesty was in the vassal mansion. There is no fault today. If you want to depose, people from all over the world, Who is not vigilant. And the country has repeatedly abolished and established, which is not a long-term strategy. May your majesty be the master plan for the country, and there is no one who is foolish and does not look down. The emperor does not accept. Tomorrow, Yuan will remonstrate, and weeping cannot be overcome. Anger, prompting to draw out." "New Book of Tang Laiji Biography" also contains: "The emperor will use the Wu family as his queen, and he will admonish him on the day: 'When the king stands up, he will inherit the ancestral temple and the mother of the world. It is appropriate to choose a famous family, Those who are virtuous and virtuous, are respected by the whole world, and they are called gods. Therefore, King Wen Xingsi, Guan Sui was transformed, and he was surrounded by the people, and his blessings were like that; Such is the misfortune. Only His Majesty will investigate carefully.'”

The resolute opposition of many ministers made it difficult for the cowardly Tang Gaozong to make a decision.But Wu Zetian's urging by his pillow every day made him want to stop.For this reason, he secretly interviewed Li Ji, the founding father who said he was ill and had not yet gone to court, and said to Li Ji: "I plan to make Wu Zhaoyi the queen, but all the ministers of Gu Ming do not agree, so this matter has to be forgotten." But Li Jie replied: "Your Majesty's family affairs, you don't need to ask outsiders." ("New Book of Tang Li Ji Biography") Li Ji can be described as a scheming man. He knew that the courtiers opposed the abolition of the king and Liwu, so he didn't want to make the public angry, and deliberately claimed that he was not sick. However, he also knew that Tang Gaozong must establish the Wu family and then quickly, and accompanying the emperor is like accompanying a tiger, he must plan for his own wealth and life, so when Gaozong visited him, he did it. The above implicit answer.The ten-word answer seems to be an understatement, but it is actually quite important.These ten short words dispelled Tang Gaozong's many worries and relieved his ideological burden.After Tang Gaozong received Li Ji's support, he no longer hesitated.Since the talents of the first emperor can be accepted as Zhaoyi, why can't the talents of the first emperor be the queen?It's just the difference between fifty steps and a hundred steps.What's more, this is the emperor's family affairs, how can the courtiers interfere?At this point, Tang Gaozong's determination had been made. He tried his best to resist all opinions and insisted on going his own way. He must make Wu Zhaoyi the queen.

On October 655th, the sixth year of Yonghui in the Tang Dynasty (AD [-]), Emperor Gaozong of the Tang Dynasty officially announced that Wu Zetian was the queen.On the first day of November, presided over by Sikong and Li Ji, a grand ceremony for the canonization of the queen was held, and an exception was made for all officials to pay homage to the new queen at Suyimen.Prior to this, on the third day of September, Chu Suiliang, who was firmly opposed to Empress Wu Zetian, was demoted to the governor of Tanzhou;

A sharp contest for the queen is over, the winner wears the queen's crown, and the loser becomes a prisoner.Wu Zetian's goal of entering the palace for the second time was finally realized. This year, Tang Gaozong was 28 years old and Wu Zetian was 32 years old.

In the feudal society, a woman became the empress and the mother of the country, and had climbed to the highest position. Ordinarily, Wu Zetian should be satisfied, but she was not.

She stood on the new starting line again...

Five, solo song Wu Meiniang①

On a starless and moonless night, there were only two palace lanterns appearing and disappearing, passing through the winding corridors, and came to the "Huixinyuan".The guard eunuch was about to step forward to interrogate, only to see that the visitor took off his coat, revealing the dragon robe and jade belt. It turned out that Tang Gaozong came to visit the imprisoned Queen Wang and Concubine Xiao Shu.Gao Zong couldn't help feeling sad when he saw that the house was locked tightly, leaving only a hole for delivering food.He called softly: "Where are the Queen and Concubine Shu?" After a while, he saw Queen Wang and Concubine Xiao Shu in the cold cell with their hair disheveled, hugging each other and crying.They both complained to Emperor Gaozong
① "Wu Mei Niang" is a popular song when Wu Zetian was in power.According to "New Book of Tang Concubine Biography", "In the past, when the emperor Gaozu, the world sang "Peach and Plum", when Emperor Taizong sang "The King of Qin Breaks the Battle", Gaozong sang "Tangtang", when the Empress (Wu Zetian) was born, the song "Wu Mei Niang"." Plead, I hope Gaozong can remember the old love and let the two of them see each other again.Gaozong couldn't bear to see this, and nodded in agreement again and again, and the three of them parted with tears.

The news that Emperor Gaozong went to visit the Queen and Concubine Xiao Shu, who had been deposed as common people, could not be hidden from Wu Zetian, who had many eyes and ears.Wu Zetian, who had just become empress for only one month, immediately felt the seriousness of the problem: If these two people are not eliminated, they will eventually become future troubles, and they must be eradicated.So she immediately sent someone to chop Wang's and Xiao's one hundred sticks each, chop off their limbs, and stuff them into the wine jar.Seeing the tragic state of the two before they died, Wu Zetian laughed endlessly: "Let your bones go to the bar!" She began to taste the taste of power, she fully enjoyed the pleasure of revenge, and her viciousness finally showed. And the longer you stay in power, the harsher the methods.

Queen Wang and Concubine Xiao Shu died a few days later, and Concubine Xiao Shu cursed fiercely before dying: "Awu is so cunning, to the point of this! May he make me a cat, and Awu a rat, so that he can strangle his throat forever." ( "Zi Zhi Tong Jian" Volume 20) After hearing this, Wu Zetian was also a little scared, and she ordered that cats are not allowed in the palace from now on.After that, Wu Zetian often saw the tragic death of Wang and Xiao in his dreams, and couldn't sleep at night.She didn't want to live in the old palace. She first moved to Daming Palace in the east, and then lived in Luoyang, the eastern capital for a long time. From October to three years (AD 701), I lived outside Chang'an for two years in October, and lived in Luoyang for the rest of the time." (Niu Zhigong: "Wu Zetian and Luoyang", "Humanities Magazine", Issue 703, 1986.)
After killing Queen Wang and Concubine Xiao Shu, Wu Zetian got rid of her serious troubles, but she was not intoxicated by her brilliant victory.She was soberly aware that in order to consolidate her established empress status, there were still two important matters to be done urgently. One was to deal with Gaozong's four eldest sons who were not descended from the direct line, and the other was to deal with those courtiers who had opposed her.She did both of these things in an orderly and meticulous manner.

Tang Gaozong had eight princes in total. In addition to the four sons born to Wu Zetian, there were Yan Wang Zhong, Yuan Wang Xiao, Ze Wang Shangjin, and Xu Wang Sujie.These four sons were all older than the four sons born to Wu Zetian, so they were also not tolerated by Wu Zetian.The eldest son, Li Zhong, was established as the crown prince in the third year of Yonghui (AD 652).This is a preventive measure taken by Queen Wang to deal with Wu Zetian who is about to give birth. How can Wu Zetian ignore it.Therefore, after Wu Zetian became a queen, she first took Prince Zhong as a knife.In the first month of the first year of Xianqing (656 A.D.), that is, only three months after Wu Zetian ascended the throne, he ordered Xu Jingzong to go to Shu, abolished Prince Zhong as King of Liang, and made her eldest son Wang Hong the crown prince.In the fifth year of Xianqing (660 A.D.), Liang Wangzhong was deposed as a commoner, exiled to Qianzhou, and imprisoned in the former residence of the former prince Chengqian.In the first year of Linde (664 A.D.), he falsely accused the common people of loyalty and rebellion, and gave him to die in exile.When Li Zhong died, he was only 22 years old.

(End of this chapter)