How frustrated did Li Dan’s emperor feel The time to truly wield real power is only two years

For those who are very interested in Tang Ruizong, the History Encyclopedia editor brings detailed articles for your reference.
The Tang Dynasty was the most powerful dynasty in Chinese history, plagued by bloody palace struggles throughout its nearly three hundred years of establishment. Therefore, even as an emperor, sometimes it was difficult to protect oneself. In the Tang Dynasty, there was an emperor who ascended the throne twice and abdicated for eight years, but only held power for two years. This person can be said to be the most aggrieved emperor of the Tang Dynasty.
Li Dan was the fourth son of Emperor Gaozong of Tang, Li Zhi, and Empress Wu Zetian. He did not have the opportunity to ascend to the throne, but he had a very powerful mother, Empress Wu Zetian, the only female emperor in Chinese history. Wu Zetian killed Li Dan’s two sons, Emperor Xiaojing Li Hong and Prince Zhanghuai Li Xian, in order to seize the throne. Eventually, the position of crown prince fell to her third brother, Emperor Zhongzong Li Xian.
After the death of Emperor Gaozong of Tang, Li Xian ascended to the throne. However, Li Xian’s position as emperor was abolished by Wu Zetian after only three months, and Li Dan was re established as emperor. After seeing his brother’s fate, Li Dan dared not disobey his mother’s will and obediently became an emperor to Wu Zetian. He held the position of puppet emperor for six years and was eventually forced to abdicate in favor of Empress Wu Zetian, requesting her to bestow upon him the surname Wu.
After Empress Wu Zetian ascended to the throne, she demoted Li Dan to the imperial heir and gave him the surname Wu. She moved to the Eastern Palace and all etiquette was in accordance with the standards of the Crown Prince. Prince Li Chengqi was demoted to Crown Prince. As a result, Li Dan became a target of attack by the kings of the Wu family and cruel officials, and thus spent fifteen years under the constant bullying of the kings of the Wu family.
In the first year of the Shenlong era, Empress Wu Zetian fell seriously ill. Prime Minister Zhang Jianzhi, together with other ministers, launched a coup and re established Li Xian as emperor. During this process, Li Dan made great contributions and was promoted to the rank of Taiwei and Tongfengge Luantai. He participated in national politics as prime minister and was given the title of Anguo Xiangwang. Perhaps due to being bullied by various martial arts in his early years, Emperor Zhongzong Li Xian attached great importance to his younger brother and even wanted to confer upon him the title of Crown Prince. But after years of experience, Li Dan did not accept his brother’s proposal and soon resigned from his official position in the court to become his own prince.
During Emperor Zhongzong’s five-year reign, his wife Empress Wei, who wanted to become the second Empress Wu Zetian, conspired with her daughter Princess Anle to poison Tang Zhongzong. Li Zhongzong’s eldest son, Li Chongmao, became emperor and was renamed Tang Long. Empress Wei united with Wu Sansi to gather forces and prepare to seize power, while Li Dan, the younger brother of Emperor Zhongzong, and Princess Taiping became the biggest obstacles for Empress Wei to seize the throne.
In this situation, Li Dan’s third son Li Longji, together with his aunt Princess Taiping, launched the Tang Long coup, killing Empress Wei, Princess Anle, and Wu Sansi, and forcing Li Chongmao to give way to his uncle Li Dan. After twenty years, Li Dan returned to the throne as emperor.
I should have been very fortunate to be able to return to the throne, but I didn’t expect to find it difficult to be the emperor myself. His sister, Princess Taiping, and son, Li Longji, were the biggest contributors to this coup and had high prestige. However, his eldest son, Li Chengqi, did not make significant contributions. In order to avoid becoming the second Li Jiancheng, he gave up his position as crown prince to Li Longji. This move was opposed by Princess Taiping. Originally, Li Longji’s reputation was already very high, but now he has obtained the position of crown prince, which can be said to be a case of overwhelming power. So Princess Taiping suggested to Tang Ruizong Li Dan to depose Li Longji, but unexpectedly faced opposition from ministers led by Song Jing.
The behavior of Princess Taiping stimulated the faction of Li Longji, so Li Longji decided to emulate his great grandfather, Emperor Taizong of Tang, Li Shimin, and invite his father to become the Supreme Emperor. In the second year of Jingyun, Prime Ministers Yao Chong, Song Jing, and Zhang Shuo submitted a letter requesting Tang Ruizong Li Dan to have Crown Prince Li Longji oversee the country, just like Tang Taizong did back then. Li Dan was a smart person who didn’t want the Xuanwu Gate Incident to happen again. So he agreed to their request and let Crown Prince Li Longji oversee the country, while he slowly stepped back. A few months later, he followed the example of Tang Gaozu and abdicated to make his son Li Longji the Grand Emperor.
Tang Ruizong ascended the throne twice and abdicated twice, ruling for eight years. But it was only during the two years when he ascended the throne for the second time that he truly gained power, making him arguably the most oppressed emperor of the Tang Dynasty.