After the death of Ding Guifei, the old mother of Xiao Tong, the Prince of Zhaoming, Emperor Wu of Liang wept bitterly and chose a piece of feng shui treasure to bury his wife thickly. Who knew that one day, a Jianghu Daoist priest came to the prince's door, saying that the prince's mother's grave was obscure, which was not conducive to the future of the prince, and he should find something to dispel the evil qi. Xiao Tong could not sit still, so he concealed himself from Emperor Wu of Liang and followed the advice of the Taoist priests, and buried a wax goose (a goose-shaped object made of beeswax) in his mother's cemetery to drive away evil spirits.
It was such a small matter that later became the "evidence" of Xiao Tong's conspiracy to rebel, and became the "scourge of witchcraft" of the Liang Dynasty. What caused the incident was a small eunuch under Xiao Tong's command who did not look amazing.
As the saying goes, it is better to offend a gentleman than a villain. At that time, there was a eunuch named Bao Miaozhi in the womb, who was shrewd and strong, very pleasing to the prince, and was a hot red man under the prince. After the death of the prince's mother, the prince was required to make a taboo for his mother (the birthday of the deceased person before his death) and asked each eunuch to stay overnight. Once, when the crown prince put Bao Miaozhi on duty, Bao Miaozhi actually left his post without permission, and mixed with the palace women, and happened to be bumped by Xiao Tong. Although Xiao Tong was very angry, he did not cure Bao Miaozhi of his sins, but from then on, he was very distant from him. Seeing that the master no longer spoiled himself, Bao Miaozhi held a grudge in his heart. When he learned that Xiao Tong had buried the wax goose in his mother's grave, his eyes lit up, and the opportunity for revenge came, so he ran to Emperor Liangwu and secretly reported that the prince had cursed the emperor with wax goose and plotted against him.
When Emperor Wu of Liang heard this, he was furious and thought to himself: Good you Xiao Tong, I see you very benevolent and filial on weekdays, I didn't expect to have such wolf ambitions, planning to rob the class and seize power and curse me to death! Although Emperor Wu of Liang did not fully believe the eunuch Bao Miaozhi's words, he immediately sent his men to dig the cemetery, and sure enough, the wax goose was dug. With both human and physical evidence, Emperor Wu of Liang was furious and ordered his men to arrest the crown prince for interrogation. If it were not for the desperate death of several ministers to remind Emperor Liangwu not to forget the lesson of the "curse of witchcraft" during emperor Wu of Han, I am afraid that Emperor Liangwu would have forced his son to a dead end. In the end, the "Bodhisattva Emperor" was still wise, and only killed the Daoist who looked at the feng shui demon and confused the people.
However, after the Wax Goose Incident, Emperor Wu of Liang had a grudge against Prince Xiao Tong of Renxiao and began to be lukewarm.
Although Xiao Tong was lucky enough to pass this pass, he spent every day in terror after that, even if his father six relatives did not recognize himself, he would kill himself. Over time, Xiao Tong, who had been depressed for a long time, finally fell ill, and a generation of erudite princes soon died, only 31 years old, with a nickname of Zhaoming. At that time, the scribes of the Liang Dynasty wept bitterly when they heard this news, and lamented the loss of a confidant. As for Bao Miaozhi, after Xiao Gang, another son of Emperor Wu of Liang, became crown prince, the first thing he did was to kill Bao Miaozhi'an, who was chewing his tongue, and he could also be regarded as avenging his eldest brother.
On the surface, the wax goose is Xiao Tong's aphrodisiac, but in fact, it is still the power thing that is at work. Born in the imperial family, seemingly unlimited scenery, in fact, there are mines everywhere, every day has to walk on thin ice, if you are not careful, you may be crushed to pieces, and family affection has become the best decoration for embellishing power. In the whirlpool of bloody power struggle, it is impossible to be alone, either to become a victim of power, or to seize the highest power by any means and seek the best self-preservation, and there is no other choice. The tragicomedy of power staged throughout the ages has shed the veil of warmth and affection, leaving only a naked feast of power composed of hypocrisy and cunning.