Wu Zetian entered the palace when Li Shimin was the emperor and worked as a talented person for more than ten years. Wu Zetian’s status did not improve much and she was not favored by Li Shimin. Next, the editor of the History Encyclopedia will bring you the truth about history. Let’s take a look together!
However, Wu Zetian and Li Zhi shared their innermost feelings during this process. After Li Shimin’s death, according to tradition, he went to Chang’an Ganye Temple with some childless concubines as nuns.
After Li Zhi ascended to the throne, he used various means to bring Wu Zetian back from the Gan Ye Temple. From then on, Wu Zetian gradually became involved in political affairs and intervened in the emperor’s affairs step by step.
When it comes to Empress Wu Zetian, our first impression is that she is ruthless in her methods and is willing to kill her own children in order to achieve her goals. So for outsiders, Wu Zetian has no mercy at all.
Especially for those who oppose him, as well as the Li family, there will be no mercy at all.
So why did Wu Zetian kill all the founding heroes and dare not touch Cheng Yaojin alone. What exactly is it because of
Cheng Yaojin was from Wagang Village and later surrendered to the Tang Dynasty. Following Li Shimin’s southern and northern expeditions, he made great contributions. In the Xuanwu Gate Incident, Cheng Yaojin participated and gained the trust of Li Shimin even more. At the same time, Cheng Yaojin was also one of the twenty-four meritorious officials of Lingyan Pavilion. Not only that, Cheng Yaojin and Li Shimin were also in laws.
Firstly, we need to clarify that Wu Zetian was ruthless and had a very cruel heart. But she didn’t just kill for the sake of killing. The reason for resorting to any means is actually due to her political motives behind it.
Wu Zetian’s killing of meritorious officials was not a hobby. This is actually the same purpose as some founding emperors.
Wu Zetian was unwilling to be just a woman in the harem. She wanted to be the empress, or even the emperor. In this process, not only those old ministers, but also the Li clan were her opponents.
In other words, as long as she is not supported, she can only be cleared.
Cheng Yaojin was a veteran of the Three Dynasties, and naturally could not escape the ravages of time. In the second year of Wu Zetian and Li Zhi’s reign, Cheng Yaojin died.
In addition, although Cheng Yaojin was a veteran of the Three Dynasties, in the late period, he defeated Ashina Helu and was dismissed from office. Later, he was appointed as the Governor of Qizhou, but soon retired due to old age.
So whether in terms of time or official position, although Cheng Yaojin still had prestige at that time, he posed no threat to Wu Zetian at all.
Although Wu Zetian had been frequently involved in political affairs before, she had not yet reached the point of doing whatever she wanted.
The events of Wu Zetian’s murder that we are familiar with in history were mostly during her reign, even after she became emperor.
