After the An Lushan Rebellion, Tang Xuanzong was like a drowned chicken. The rebels attacked, but he was unable to resist them and could only follow Yang Guozhong’s advice to flee to Sichuan. But what they didn’t expect was that when they fled to the place of Mawei Post, soldiers staged a mutiny and forced him to kill Yang Guozhong and Yang Guifei. Next, the editor of the History Encyclopedia will bring you the truth about history. Let’s take a look together!
For a time, Emperor Xuanzong of Tang not only lost a large piece of land, but also lost his love. However, what he did not expect was that his son Li Heng later took away his last remaining throne. So as the Crown Prince, Li Heng was a legitimate heir, and at that time, Emperor Xuanzong of Tang was already old, so the kingdom would eventually belong to him. Why did he seek to seize the throne instead of waiting for Emperor Xuanzong’s death to inherit it?
When Li Heng was the crown prince, it was actually a very difficult situation because the position of crown prince was originally not up to him. At that time, the crown prince was Li Ying. Empress Wu Huifei framed Li Ying and the other two princes in order to make her son Shouwang the crown prince. Later, Emperor Xuanzong of Tang executed Li Ying and the other two sons for treason. From this incident, Li Heng knew very well his situation. His father, the emperor, was a ruthless person, after all, he was an old martial artist who had experienced so many political struggles, so all he could do was endure.
Emperor Xuanzong of Tang, in order to prevent the power of the Crown Prince from growing stronger, allowed the current prime minister Li Linfu to bully him. At that time, Li Heng really endured humiliation and made a living. In order to preserve the position of the Crown Prince, he did not hesitate to depose two of his concubines. After Li Linfu’s death, he thought his life would be better. Unexpectedly, another Yang Guozhong came later, who also made things difficult for him. All he could do was endure.
After the outbreak of the An Lushan Rebellion, he finally held back and his opportunity came. Because at that time, his father Emperor Tang Xuanzong was infatuated with Yang Yuhuan, favored treacherous ministers, and caused chaos in the court. Many ministers were already very dissatisfied with Emperor Tang Xuanzong. In addition, after the An Lushan Rebellion broke out, Emperor Tang Xuanzong did not have any good choices and only focused on running away, so he was not a responsible king.
If Li Heng can step forward and take on this responsibility at this time, then the ministers and soldiers below will definitely strongly support him, and his prestige will be greatly enhanced. And at this point, his chances of winning are still very high, and he doesn’t have to live like before anymore.
When he was at Mawei Post, he chose to cooperate with Chen Xuanli and jointly forced the deaths of Yang Guozhong and Yang Guifei. Therefore, Li Heng’s purpose was very obvious. He did this to oppose Emperor Xuanzong of Tang. However, what he did not expect was that Chen Xuanli was the same as the Crown Prince in executing Yang Guozhong and Yang Guifei, but he was still loyal to Emperor Xuanzong of Tang. Therefore, Li Heng decided not to go to Sichuan with his father at that time.
If he went to Sichuan with his father, he wouldn’t have a good ending either. Sichuan is Yang Guozhong’s territory, and he just killed Yang Guozhong. Where would they let him go? So he has no way out and can only move forward.
Actually, Li Heng’s choice this time is completely correct. If two important figures of the Tang Dynasty had chosen to escape that time, the rebels like An Lushan would have been even more arrogant. By doing so, Li Heng not only stabilized the army, but also cultivated his own power. This is also an opportunity for him to prove to his father and the people of the world that he has strength.
So in the end, accompanied by Du Hongjian and others, he arrived at Lingwu, the headquarters of the Shuofang Army. After some planning, they finally proclaimed themselves emperor in Lingwu and honored Emperor Xuanzong of Tang as the Supreme Emperor.
You see, Li Heng has always been a weak and incompetent person. He has always lived under the control of Emperor Xuanzong of Tang. Emperor Xuanzong was a person with weak family ties, and he would rather trust some petty people around him than his own son. Otherwise, he would not let Li Linfu suppress the Crown Prince. So we say that the royal family has no kinship, and in the face of power, they can do anything. It is the most normal thing for Li Heng to seek the throne.
