Changes of Xuanwu Gate

However, after Tang Gaozu unified the whole country, there was a fierce political struggle within the royal family. The opponents of this political struggle are Prince Li and King Qin. The purpose of political struggle is to inherit the throne, and the climax of political struggle is the nine-year coup in Wude-the change of Xuanwumen.

Tang Gaozu has 22 sons. Emperor Gaozu's sinus gave birth to four sons: the eldest son became a prince, the second son became a king of Qin, the third son Xuanba died young, and the fourth son Yuanji became a king of Qi. Jiancheng, Shimin and Yuanji are all talents. But since Taiyuan, only Shimin has participated in the planning. After the incident, Shimin made the greatest contribution in the war for heroes, but Shimin was not the eldest son. According to traditional custom, the throne should be inherited by the eldest son. Therefore, after Tang Gaozu acceded to the throne, he was established as the Crown Prince.

Li Shimin became an important leader of Tang Jun because he was used to war and had wisdom and courage. Four years later, Wu De invited Wang Shichong and Dou Jiande to appoint Shimin as a "general", ranking above the kings, and also serving as the suggestion and minister of Stuart and Shaanxi. There are officials in the Qin Palace, and Shimin opens a literature museum in the house, which attracts literary scholars from all over the world and is well received. Fang, Du Ruhui, Yu Shinan, Kong, Chu Liang, Yao Silian, Li Xuandao, Yu Zhining, Xue Shou, Lu Deming, Li Shousu, Cai Yungong, Yan, Xu, Xue, Gaiwenda, Xie Su. In addition, Shimin went to the Western Ocean and recruited many brave warriors in the government, such as Li Shiji, Wei Yunjingde, Qin, Cheng Rujie and Duan Zhijie in the early Tang Dynasty.

With so many counselors and brave generals, Wang Shimin of Qin naturally formed a powerful political group at that time, which directly threatened the establishment of the Prince. Under an authoritarian regime, political power is exclusive. In order to consolidate the position of the prince and ensure the succession of the throne in the future, the prince will inevitably compete with the people of Qin Wang, hoping to reduce the power of the people.

When the prince was built, he was not incompetent. Because he is located in Chu Jun, he can't get close to the battlefield, so his military achievements are not as outstanding as those of the people. In the fifth year of Wude, Liu Heita led the Turkic invasion, and Tang Gaozu built a prince to make a crusade, aiming at building a prince and making military achievements. Yuan Jicai, the king of Qi, was careless and lewd, colluding with Prince Cheng Jian to * * * deal with Shimin, the king of Qin. Yuan Zhen once said to Cheng Jian, "The king of Qin is getting better and better and is favored by the Lord. Although his royal highness is a prince, he is restless and has not taken precautions, but he is still in trouble. Please kill him for your highness. Yuanji wants to kill the people, but he doesn't really care about the completion. Yuanji once said to his Xue Bao, "Except for the King of Qin, it is like the back of his hand." Therefore, Yuanji has another plot to help complete.

Prince Cheng Jian adopted three strategies to strengthen himself and weaken the influence of the people. The first strategy is to contact Tang Gaozu's concubine and Yi Qu and ask them to help him. Gaozu raised many domestic pets in his later years, among which Zhang Jieyu and Yin Defai were the most beloved, and Prince Cheng Jian also made friends with them. At that time, soldiers were still used everywhere. Qin Shimin often sends soldiers outside, and his concubines rarely see Shimin. After Luoyang was pacified, Gaozu sent concubines to Luoyang to see Sui's harem. These concubines saw a lot of treasures of Luoyang officials, wanted to take them for themselves, and also sought official positions for their brothers, but Qin Shimin, who was in charge of Luoyang affairs, said Sui stayed.

Therefore, concubines are extremely dissatisfied with the people. At this time, Shimin, the king of Qin, was appointed to preside over Shaanxi, and Gaozu allowed Shimin to decide everything within his jurisdiction. Shimin gave a field within his jurisdiction to Wang Wei Li Shentong, who has made outstanding achievements in military service. It happened that Zhang Jieyu also sought this land for his father, and Gaozu issued a letter and gave it to Zhang Jieyu's father. However, Li Shentong said that Qin Wang Shimin had given him the land first and refused to hand it over. Zhang Jieyu distorted the facts and said to Gaozu, "The emperor gave my father a field and the king of Qin took it away." 」

Emperor gaozu was furious and called the king of Qin Shimin to be an official. He rebuked him and said, "Is my imperial edict not as good as what you said? A few days later, Gao Zu said to Pei Ji, "The king of Qin has been a soldier for a long time, but the Confucian scholars made a mistake. He is no longer my son. On another occasion, Qin Yufu's bachelor rode the road across Yin Defa's father's house, and Yin Fu saw that it was a disaster. He asked Yin Defai to falsely accuse Qin Wang about beating Yin Fu in front of Gaozu, who was furious and asked Qin Wang Shimin, "Isn't it worse for the people if you dare to insult my concubine?" "Qin Wang Shimin hurriedly explained, but the high-impedance ignored it. Under the influence of concubines, Gaozu gradually alienated from the people. Gaozu once invited the king to a banquet. At the banquet, Shimin, the king of Qin, thought that his mother (Queen Dou) had died before she could see the world was stable, and she was so sad that she shed tears. Gaozu was very unhappy to see what Shimin had done, so his concubines took the opportunity to slander Shimin and lobbied for it. They said, "Now that the world is at peace, Your Majesty should enjoy himself to the fullest, but the King of Qin wept bitterly. He has a grudge. "If your majesty died unfortunately and the king of Qin came to power, we were all killed by him. We think the prince is kind and he will take care of us. The cry of the concubines touched my grandfather, who didn't like it very much. After lobbying by concubines, he gradually changed his view on the completion, and the status of the completed prince was consolidated.

The second strategy established by the prince is to strengthen his military strength. After the capital was established, he secretly recruited 2,000 able-bodied men to serve as the guards of the East Palace, stationed at Changlinmen in the East Palace, and was known as the "Changlinbing" in history. In addition, he colluded with Yang Wengan, the general manager of Guangzhou (now Qingyang, Gansu), and ordered Wen Gan to recruit and send him to Beijing to prepare for the coup. After the completion of the project, Du Duer and a captain Joe were sent to deliver weapons to Wen Gan, who was asked to send troops to Beijing. Second-class people are afraid, but they turn themselves in, saying that Wen gan wants to rebel, and they echo both inside and outside. Gaozu urgently called Wen Gan, and Wen Gan saw that the matter was exposed, so he led the troops to revolt. Gaozu knew that Wen Yang's rebellion was planned by the prince, so he called it finished, and the official was finished, kowtowing to Gaozu and confessing. Gaozu went to prison in anger. Soon, Yang Wengan captured Ningzhou (now Ningxian County, Gansu Province), and the high-impedance Qin Wang Shimin crusaded against Wengan, who was killed by his men in July of the seventh year of Wude. After the chaos was solved, Gaozu accused Cheng Jian of being incompatible with Shimin brothers, but he didn't punish them. Only Wang Jue and Zhang Ting, the advisers around the prince, and Cao, a soldier, were banished to far away places, but the contradiction between Cheng and the people was more acute.

The third strategy established by the prince is to buy off the people of Qin Wang Shimin. Veteran Wei Yunjingde sent a secret letter to the people, saying that he would fight for it, and gave him a car full of gold and silver utensils. Jingdezhen was unmoved. Duan, another brave general, also failed in establishing and luring people's gold and silk. Since we can't buy it, we will take the method of crowding out and build it to persuade Gaozu. Appoint a veteran from a famous family to be the secretariat of Kangzhou, and expel Shimin's counselor Fang and She Ruhui from Qin to cut off Shimin's power.

Under the three strategies, the king of Qin Shimin was indeed threatened. Therefore, Shimin intends to run Luoyang as a base, so he sent Qin general Sean to Luoyang, led more than 1000 people, and secretly married Shandong heroes. Yuan Ji, the king of Qi, told Sean that he was up to no good, and Gao Zu ordered Sean to be arrested to trace the truth. As a result, no evidence of guilt was found and Sean was released.

One night, Prince Cheng Jian invited Qin Wang Shimin to drink and poisoned the wine. After drinking it, Shimin immediately felt heartache and vomited several liters of blood. The divine power of King Huai 'an helped the people to return to their official positions. Hearing this, Gaozu hurried to see Shimin, and then said to Cheng Jian, "Qin Wangsu can't drink, and he can't drink at night." Gaozu also said to Shimin: "The first great plan was established, and the sea was leveled, which is all your credit. I want you to be the heir, you resign, and I have been the heir for a long time. I can't bear to take it away. " It seems that you two brothers can't get along, and there will be disputes about living in Beijing. When you were left behind, you still lived in Luoyang. You were the owner from eastern Shaanxi, and you were still ordered to set up the banner of the son of heaven, such as the filial piety story of King Han Liang. "High-impedance of this instruction, would be tantamount to the Tang empire in two, that is, the people have east and west. For the people of the world, the prince built in the capital has great influence and is difficult to confront. It is a feasible way to seek development eastward. So Shimin promised to go to Luoyang. When Shimin was ready to leave, Cheng Jian and Yuanji discussed: "If the king of Qin arrives in Luoyang and has land and armor, he can't copy it. It is better to stay in Chang 'an, where everyone can get it easily. "So, several people were ordered to report to Gaozu:" The King of Qin is around Luoyang, and everyone likes to jump. Seeing his interest, he was afraid that he would never come again. "Also let high-impedance close minister advised high-impedance, so high-impedance changed his mind, don't let the people go to luoyang.

Cheng Jian, Yuanji and the Empress's concubines spoke ill of Shimin in Gaozu's ear day and night. Gaozu gradually became convinced that he would punish the people. Chen admonished Gao Zu and said, "The King of Qin has made great contributions to the world and cannot be punished. Moreover, the king of Qin has a strong will. If it is suppressed, I am afraid it will be very sad. If anything happens, your majesty will regret it too late. " Gaozu gave up. Yuan Zhenmi wanted to kill Shimin, and Gao Zu said, "Shimin has the right to decide the world. Why don't you leave without saying goodbye?" Yuan Ji said, "The king of Qin leveled the eastern capital at first, but he didn't give it back, although he was worried. He went against his orders by giving money and silk to help himself. What if he doesn't? But it should be killed quickly, and there is no end. " Gaozu refused to agree.

In June of the ninth year of Wude, the situation was very unfavorable to the people. Qin Wangfu's family is very worried. Fang, Du Ruhui and Wuji all advised Shimin to launch a coup, which enabled it to be completed and Yuan Ji to be built. Shimin hesitated. At this time, tens of thousands of Turks rode into the DPRK, supervised the construction of Yuanji Northern Expedition on behalf of Shimin, followed by Gaozu, and ordered Yuanji to supervise the right general Li Yi and others to go out. Yuanji invited several brave generals Qin to accompany him, such as Wei Yunjingde, Duan and Qin. Cheng Geng secretly told people: "The prince told the King of Qi that now you have the best soldiers of the King of Qin, with tens of thousands of people. I bid farewell to the king of Qin in Kunming Pool, ordered a strong man to kill him, and then told the emperor that the king of Qin had an acute illness and died. The emperor may not believe it. " Shimin told Sun Chang Wuji and others about Wang Yun's words, and Sun Chang Wuji and others were all anxious, so they should take the initiative. In fact, Shimin also knows his own danger, and there is really no way but to launch a coup.

On June 3rd, Shimin told Gao Zumi, the post-Yuan official, that he was a prostitute and said, "I am a brother, and I am not responsible for anything. Now (when I built it), I want to kill the minister, as if to avenge (the king) Shi Chong (Dou) Jiande. Today, I died in vain, and my soul will go underground forever. It's a shame to see a thief. Gaozu was very surprised and replied, "You can come to the Senate early when you investigate this matter tomorrow." On June 4th, they led Sun Chang, Wuji and others to ambush in Xuanwu Gate. At this time, Zhang Jiefeng has told the people about it and called Yuanji to discuss it. Yuanji advocated not entering the DPRK when he was building it, and strictly prepared soldiers when he was building it. The defenders of Xuanwu Gate are his old subordinates, so it should be quite safe to enter Xuanwu Gate. So it was built, and Yuanji entered Xuanwu Gate. Xuanwu Gate is the north gate of Chang 'an Taiji Guancheng. It is the seat of the headquarters of the Imperial Guard. It has strong fortifications and a strong army. If you control the Xuanwu Gate, you can control the whole palace and even the capital, so the position of Xuanwu Gate is very important. Chang Heyuan, commander-in-chief of Xuanwu Gate, was a subordinate, so he thought Xuanwu Gate was his sphere of influence. Unexpectedly, Chang Heyuan was secretly bought by Shi, so Chang Heyuan allowed Shimin and others to sneak into the ambush, but he knew nothing about it. When Yuanji arrived at the lake temple, they found a change. Their guards are all outside Xuanwu Gate. They immediately fled back on horseback, and Shimin came from behind. Yuanji and Shimin both shot each other with bows and arrows. When it was built, it was killed by Shimin first. Wei Chijingde led 70 cavalry to come, and Yuanji fell off his horse. At this time, Shimin's horse ran into the Woods, Shimin was hooked by tree skills, and Yuanji came. Two thousand elite soldiers of the East Palace and the State of Qi, led by the family patriarch He, attacked the Xuanwu Gate guarded by soldiers. General Jing, who was guarding Xuanwu Gate, and General Lu, a corps commander, were both killed in battle, but the troops of Dongguan and Qi failed to enter Xuanwu Gate in the end, and showed the head of He Yuanji. The soldiers of Dongguan and Qi fled in all directions, so the victory was attributed to the people. This coup is called "the change of Xuanwu Gate".

After Yuanji was killed, Shimin sent Wei Yun Jingde to stay with Gaozu. At this time, Gaozu was boating in the lake in Guanzi. He was stunned when he saw Wei Yun Jingde coming at full speed. Jingdezhen reported to Gaozu: "The king of Qin rebelled with the prince and the king of Qi, and sent troops to punish him, lest he disturb your majesty and send his ministers with him." Gaozu asked how to deal with the recent minister. Xiao Yu and Chen thought that nothing would happen as long as the state affairs were handed over to the people. Gaozu said: "This is my sincere regret." So he ordered the internal and external armies to be under the command of the king of Qin, and sent Pei Ju, assistant minister of Huangmen, to tell the Dongguan soldiers, and the Dongguan soldiers dispersed. Then everyone went to see Gaozu, and the number was very long. High rents and imperial edicts to the country are handled by the king. Three days later, Gao Zuli Shimin was the Crown Prince, and all military affairs were carried out by the Prince. In August, Gao Zu was born in Shimin, Shizi and Tai Shang Huang. Shimin acceded to the throne for Emperor Taizong.

The victory of the Battle of Xuanwu Gate was held in weak Li Shimin. The key is that the people controlled Xuanwu Gate, and the army built in Hejian could not attack Xuanwu Gate. Shimin took control of Xuanwu Gate, and then took control of the palace, that is, the central government. Before Xuanzong of the Tang Dynasty, there were four central political revolutions (or coups) in the Tang Dynasty. On June 4th, the Xuanwu Gate was changed, the first time was Wude, the second time was in the first year of Shenlong (AD 705), the third time was in the first year of Jinglong (AD 707), and the fourth time was in the fourth year of Jinglong (AD 707).

The change of Xuanwu Gate had a very bad influence on the politics of the Tang Dynasty, that is, the position of the prince in the Tang Dynasty was unstable. In the imperial court, infighting often occurs about the succession of the throne, and those who are made princes may not be able to inherit the throne safely. The unstable status of the prince in the Tang Dynasty caused fierce competition for the right to inherit the throne, which affected the distribution of courtiers and eunuchs. Therefore, although the change of Xuanwu Gate soon ended, the descendants of the Tang family had a far-reaching influence.