In ancient China, there are many examples of noble sons from the cold door, but on the whole, people born in poverty have a much lower probability of success than famous and prestigious families, which sounds very heartfelt, but it is an indisputable fact. The reason why Tang Gaozu Li Yuan was able to stand out in the chaotic world was that in addition to his outstanding personal ability, the civilian and military generals around him were powerful, and several sons were relatively excellent, and there was another reason that was quite important, that is, his excellent background.
Li Yuan, a longxi Chengji person, whose ancestors were nobles of Northern Zhou, was an enviable status. At the age of seven, Li Yuan inherited the title of Duke of Tang, because his mother and Yang Jian's wife were sisters, after northern Zhou was replaced by the Sui Dynasty, the Li family was still standing, and more prominent than before, Yang Jian successively served as the assassin and taishou, and was promoted to Taiyuan in the thirteenth year of Daye, a veritable feudal official, with a high position of authority.
If he lived in a dynasty of song and dance, Li Yuan would not have a different heart, and if he stayed behind in Taiyuan, he would enjoy endless glory and wealth. However, his cousin Yang Guang did not let people worry about it, excavated the Grand Canal, spent huge manpower, financial and material resources, the people complained about it, and they were exhausted, and they conquered Goryeo three times in succession, personally conquering Tuguhun, resulting in great chaos in the world. As the saying goes, the wall fell down and everyone pushed, seeing that the Sui Dynasty was about to die, although he and Yang Guang were cousins, Li Yuan couldn't take care of so much and decided to share a piece of the pie.
Soon after being appointed as the defender of Taiyuan, Li Yuan raised an army in Jinyang, opened his bow and did not turn back, from this moment on, he could only go one way to the end, and there were only two endings waiting for him, one was the tragic death of the soldiers, and the other was to ascend to the throne. The reason for Li Yuan's rebellion has been controversial, the Old Book of Tang Gaozu Benji: "Emperor Taizong and Jinyang ordered Liu Wenjing to plot to persuade the volunteers. That is to say, under the strong persuasion of his son Li Shimin, Li Yuan decided to raise an army, and Li Shimin played the greatest role.
The records of the New Book of Tang, like the Old Book of Tang, are also recognized by historical books such as the Zizhi Tongjian. However, some historians were skeptical, after all, Li Shimin was only eighteen years old at the time, even if he had courage and strategy, he was still too young, and Li Yuan should dominate such an important matter as starting an army. And not to worry about whether Li Yuan passively raised an army or prepared for a long time does not affect the historical development.
Historical data tells the world that it is very difficult to replace a dynasty and establish a new one. It took Liu Bang seven years to fight the world, and Zhu Yuanzhang took even longer, from defecting to the rebel army to establishing the Ming Dynasty, a total of sixteen years. Looking at Li Yuan again, he simply refreshed the three views, conquered Chang'an City in only four months, and ascended the throne the following year as emperor. The ancients often said that "more children are more blessed", but for the emperor, more sons is not necessarily a good thing, Li Yuan has a deep understanding.
The first four sons were all born to Empress Dou, the eldest son Li Jiancheng was made crown prince, the second son Li Shimin was made the King of Qin, the third son Li Xuanba died very early, and the fourth son Li Yuanji was made the King of Qi. As a father, Li Yuan hoped that his sons would get along harmoniously, but it backfired, and the prince and the King of Qi hugged each other and fought with the King of Qin, and Li Yuan saw it in his eyes and remembered it in his heart. In 626 AD, one thing that changed the history of the Tang Dynasty occurred, that is, the famous Xuanwumen Change.
Since the defeat of King Chengcheng in ancient times, the prince and the king of Qi were killed, and Li Shimin, the king of Qin, became the victor, and then let his confidant generals control the palace. Hearing the news that his sons were killing each other, Li Yuan's heart was like a knife, and the thing that worried him the most happened, he was much older in an instant, and he did not have the heart to deal with the government, and moreover, the military generals of the civil servants basically sided with their son Li Shimin, so Li Yuan announced the appointment of Li Shimin as the crown prince.
Not only that, Li Yuan also issued an edict: "From now on, military and state affairs, no matter how big or small, appoint the crown prince to execute, and then play the emperor." That is to say, at this time, Li Yuan was only the nominal emperor, and the crown prince was responsible for handling all the affairs of the imperial court. More than two months later, li yuan abdicated at the age of 60, and then served as emperor for nine years, and died in the ninth year of Zhenguan. After li yuan ascended the throne, how was his life in his later years?
For Li Yuan's life after retiring to the second line, the New Book of Tang has been mentioned
"In the third year of Zhenguan, Emperor Taishang moved to Da'an Palace. In May of the ninth year, he collapsed in the arched front hall at the age of seventy-one. Dawu (谥曰大武), temple number Gaozu. ”
However, looking through other historical documents, it is not difficult to find that Li Yuan was not happy, and it can even be said that he was relatively sad, living in a not very large place, not much freedom, and the group of ministers were not allowed to visit, in fact, he was under house arrest.
In order to secure the throne, Tang Taizong was always wary of his father Li Yuan, and later moved him from Taiji Palace to Da'an Palace. Unless Tang Taizong invited his father Li Yuan to a banquet, Li Yuan could not even go out of the Da'an Palace, and even the palace women who served Li Yuan were also cut down by Tang Taizong for a reason. In addition, some measures taken during Li Yuan's reign were only negated and even blamed
"The government of martial virtue, occasionally loose disorder." ”
As Li Yuan's former favorite, Pei Huan was dismissed from his official post and exiled to Jingzhou, thousands of miles away, which was equivalent to punching Li Yuan in the face. I have to say that Li Yuan's life after his abdication is too bleak, and it is not as comfortable as ordinary people. In addition, among the founding emperors in history, Li Yuan can be called one of the emperors with the least sense of existence, is he really as mediocre as recorded in the history books?
The Cambridge History of China's Sui and Tang Dynasties
It is no exaggeration to say that Tang Gaozu was the most despised monarch in all Chinese history books. The rule of wude, measured by any realistic standard, is a remarkable achievement; as a result, the Tang dynasty has laid a solid administrative, economic, and military foundation. ”
In your opinion, what is Li Yuan's ability? If it was a perfect score of 10, how many points would you give him?
References: New Book of Tang, Old Book of Tang, Cambridge History of The Sui and Tang Dynasties of China