When it comes to Li Chen, what does everyone think of? Below, the History Encyclopedia editor will introduce relevant historical events to you.
In ancient times, being born into the royal family was undoubtedly a noble birth and a lifetime of worry about food and clothing, but at the same time, it was also constantly facing danger, and a single mistake could lead to irreparable harm. Therefore, Li Chen (originally named Li Yi), who came from a humble background, chose to play dumb to save his life. As a result, he not only successfully passed through the four dynasties, but also caused eunuchs and ministers to mistakenly believe that he had excellent control, and was eventually crowned emperor. After ascending to the throne, Li Chen changed his foolish appearance and not only created the “Great and Medium Governance” with his own hands, but also was praised as the “Little Taizong”.
In the second year of Yuanhe (807 AD), Li Qi, the military governor of Zhenhai, rebelled. At that time, someone skilled in physiognomy told Li Qi that Zheng, who was born in Danyang County, Runzhou, would inevitably give birth to an emperor in the future. Li Qi was overjoyed and took Zheng as his concubine. After Li Qi’s rebellion failed and he was killed, Zheng Shi, who was his concubine, was also exiled to the palace as a member of the rebel’s family and became a palace maid beside Guo Guifei, the favored concubine of Emperor Xianzong of Tang.
At that time, Consort Guo favored the Six Palaces and was often favored by Emperor Xianzong of Tang. As a palace maid by her side, Zheng was able to see Emperor Xianzong frequently, and later received the favor of Emperor Xianzong, giving birth to his thirteenth son Li Chen. Although Li Chen was considered a prince, due to his background, he was not favored among the princes, and the Zheng family did not have the status of a “mother with a son” and their status was not elevated.
As recorded in the “Annals of Emperor Xuanzong of Tang” in the “Old Book of Tang”, “the emperor was dull on the outside but bright on the inside, severely reticent, and had a peculiar vision. When he was young, he was considered unwise in the palace”. Perhaps it was due to his awkward identity that Li Chen, as a child, remained silent in the palace, leaving a dull impression on people. The epitaph of Guo Hongyu also records this.
When Li Chen was in his teens, he suffered from a serious illness. As his condition worsened, a sudden radiance shone upon him. Li Chen immediately jumped up, straightened his body, bowed with his hands, and treated his subjects as if they were his own. After seeing him, Emperor Muzong of Tang comforted him and said, “This is an excellent item in my family. Afterwards, Li Chen often dreamed of riding on a dragon to ascend to heaven, while his mother Zheng advised him not to be too ostentatious for the safety of her son. Her mother’s advice may have been another factor in Li Chen’s long-term feigned foolishness.
With the skill of keeping a low profile, Li Chen not only survived the four dynasties of Emperor Mu of Tang, Emperor Jing of Tang, Emperor Wen of Tang, and Emperor Wu of Tang, but also witnessed the internal struggles and turbulence in the court. Although Li Chen was the uncle of Emperor Wenzong and Emperor Wuzong of Tang, he was looked down upon by them due to his background and personality. He not only often forced him to speak in front of his ministers for entertainment (Li Chen may have stuttered a bit), but Emperor Wuzong also showed him no respect. Li Chen was even ridiculed as “Uncle Guang” (Li Chen was granted the title of King Guang), but he paid no attention to it.
In March of the sixth year of Huichang (846 AD), Tang Wuzong was critically ill. Although he had five sons, all of whom were relatively young, and Li Chen was already in his thirties, eunuchs such as Ma Yuanzhi still believed that Li Chen was relatively easier to control. Therefore, they pretended to be ordered by Tang Wuzong and appointed him as the imperial uncle, becoming the heir to the throne. Tang Wuzong passed away on the same day, and Li Chen ascended to the throne as Emperor Xuanzong.
After becoming Emperor Taishu, Li Chen began to engage in military and political affairs. It was not until then that the civil, military, and powerful officials of the Manchu Dynasty realized that Li Chen’s actions were not simple. However, it was too late to say anything at this time.
After Li Chen ascended the throne, in order to regain power in the court, he dismissed the disliked prime minister Li Deyu from the position of prime minister the next day and appointed him as the military governor of Jingnan. He was also appointed as a censor and a censor. It is said that a new official will have three fires when he takes office, but no one expected that the first fire would be ignited by Li Deyu, who has been in power for many years and has a high position and achievements, causing fear in the court and even Li Deyu’s political enemy Niu Sengru was caught off guard.
At the same time as Li Deyu was demoted, Li Rangyi and others who were also members of the “Li Party” were also demoted. As the “Li Party” lost power, the “Niu Party” was greatly promoted by Li Chen, and the famous member of the “Niu Party” and cousin of Bai Juyi, Bai Minzhong, was immediately promoted to prime minister. Most of the officials who died in the “Ganlu Incident” were also exonerated. With the balance between the two sides disrupted, the “Niu Li Party dispute” came to an end.
Afterwards, under the manipulation of Bai Minzhong, members of the “Li Party” were repeatedly demoted. For example, in September of the same year, Li Deyu was demoted to the position of Dongdu Left behind and Dongji Rudu Defense Commissioner. The following year, he was demoted to the position of Crown Prince Shaobao and Deputy Director of Dongdu Affairs, and then demoted to the position of Chaozhou Sima. As a result, just as he arrived in Chaozhou, he was demoted to the position of Yazhou Sihu and enlisted in the army. He eventually passed away in Yazhou in December of the third year of Dazhong (January 850) at the age of 63.
At the same time, Li Chen also imposed great restrictions on the power of eunuchs, greatly preventing their interaction with officials from outside the court. For example, the eunuch Ma Yuanzhi, who had the merit of following the dragon, was greatly favored by Li Chen and was once given a precious belt. Later, due to the close relationship between the prime minister Ma Zhi and him, Ma Yuanzhi transferred the belt to Ma Zhi, but was recognized by Li Chen. Therefore, the next day, an edict was issued to dismiss Ma Zhi from his position as prime minister.
During his reign, Li Chen changed his foolish appearance. Although he only reigned for thirteen years, he strengthened imperial power and greatly improved the atmosphere of the court by rectifying officials, restricting the royal family and eunuchs. At the same time, he defeated Tubo, recovered Hehuang, stabilized the northern part of the country, and pacified Annam. In addition, Li Chen was observant and obedient to advice, respectful and frugal, and loved the people’s goods, which made the country relatively stable and prosperous, and the people lived and worked in peace and contentment. Li Chen was also known as the “Little Taizong”, and even until the fall of the Tang Dynasty, the people still admired him greatly.
