Comrade | Guevara
In the later years of Emperor Taizong of Tang, the crown prince Li Chengqian was deposed for plotting rebellion, and according to the situation at that time, Li Tai, the most favored king of Wei, was generally favored by the emperor and was once infinitely close to the throne. But what people did not expect was that Tang Taizong not only did not appoint Li Tai as crown prince, but also demoted and deposed him, resulting in Li Tai's final depression. So, what kind of consideration did Tang Taizong make this surprising decision?
Stills of Emperor Gaozong of Tang's Li Yuan
Li Taizi Hui, small character Qingque, is the fourth son of Tang Taizong, but also the second son, since childhood is extremely intelligent, talented, coupled with a sweet mouth, can perform, so it is deeply loved by the elders. During Tang Gaozu's reign, because he was particularly fond of this grandson, he was made the Prince of Wei (tang Taizong changed his title to king of Wei after he ascended the throne), in order to inherit the title of his late uncle Li Xuanba (Tang Gaozu's younger son, that is, Li Yuanba in yanyi), and his rank was equal to that of his father Li Shimin (both princes of Zheng Yipin), which shows how favored he was.
As for Tang Taizong himself, he was even more doting on this precious son. According to the zhengshi records, Tang Taizong often took Li Tai around to travel luckily, and if he was not with him one day, he sent a white bird named "General" to deliver a letter, and the white bird often had to go back and forth several times in a day. At the same time, considering that Li Tai was obese and had limited mobility, Tang Taizong specially allowed him to ride on a small palanquin to the court, which was a special gift that had never been seen in previous dynasties.
Li Tai and Tang Taizong
If it was only a special treatment in etiquette, Tang Taizong, out of his doting on Li Tai, even allowed his son to set up a literary museum in the Wei palace and let him invite scholars, and the world-famous talents Xiao Deyan, Gu Yin, Jiang Yaqing, Xie Yan and others all served Li Tai. It should be known that when Tang Taizong recruited talents in the name of the Literary Museum to help him plot to seize the throne, and now Li Tai has also gained the right to open the museum and recruit talents, whether it is the crown prince Li Chengqian or the ministers, it is inevitable that they will suspect that the emperor has the idea of Yi Chu.
These doubts are not without cause. Although Li Chengqian was a vice-admiral of the empire, he had a well-behaved temperament, indulged in female sex, and suffered from a disability in his legs, so his personal image was relatively poor, which made Tang Taizong very dissatisfied. And Li Tai, because of his father's various doting, inevitably will gradually think of the position of the reserve, and openly and secretly exclude and frame his brother, which can really be described as "Sima Zhao's heart is well known to everyone".
Li Chengqian stills
The so-called "no family affection under the imperial power.". Although Li Chengqian and Li Tai are brothers of the same mother, the great temptation of the throne still makes them turn against each other, and eventually become enemies of your life and death. Li Chengqian, who had experienced the "change of Xuanwu Gate", and when he thought of what his father had done to his uncle Li Jiancheng, his uncle Li Yuanji, and ten cousins, he often felt a great fear from the depths of his soul. Although Tang Taizong did not publicly express Yi Chu's ideas, the extremely dangerous situation required Li Chengqian to take the initiative, so as not to follow in the footsteps of his uncle and uncle.
In fact, under the circumstance that Li Tai was deeply doted on and his position was stable, there were very few plans for Li Chengqian to take, and the plan he adopted after careful consideration was to send assassins to assassinate Li Tai. To say that the Li family is fierce and fierce, it is really not wrong at all. However, the assassination plan ended in failure. At this time, Li Chengqian, who had become completely mad, decided to take a desperate risk, colluding with Li Yuanchang, the King of Han, The Marquis Junji of Bingbu Shangshu, Du He, and others, planning to launch another "Xuanwumen Rebellion", killing Li Tai and forcing Tang Taizong to abdicate.
Stills of Tang Taizong
However, just as Li Chengqian and others were plotting, the killer who had previously attempted to assassinate Li Tai, Qigan Chengji, was deeply afraid that he would be exterminated after the failure of the coup, so he ran to the palace late at night to report the rebellion, which made the coup plot "stillborn". Subsequently, Emperor Taizong of Tang ordered Li Chengqian to be deposed as a Shuren and exiled to Qianzhou, while Li Yuanchang, Hou Junji, Du He, and others were all killed in the seventeenth year of Zhenguan (643).
After Li Chengqian was deposed, most of the courtiers supported Li Tai as crown prince, and Li Tai also threw himself into the arms of his father, vowing that he would kill his own son after a hundred years, and then pass the throne to his younger brother Li Zhi. Tang Taizong was deceived by Li Tai's oath and agreed to make him crown prince as soon as his heart softened. However, after receiving the news, the chancellor Chu Suiliang rushed to dissuade the emperor and expose Li Tai's sinister intentions.
Chu Suiliang advised Emperor Taizong of Tang not to appoint Li Tai
In Chu Suiliang's view, Li Tai's oath to kill his son and pass on his brother was too hypocritical, and there was no possibility of fulfillment at all, and he said this only to deceive the throne. Chu Suiliang then analyzed that the reason why Li Chengqian plotted rebellion was to a large extent because he was persecuted and threatened by Li Tai, and if he passed the throne to such a sinister figure, Li Zhi would not only be unable to become a prince, but his life would inevitably be in danger. Therefore, for the sake of imperial stability and royal harmony, Li Tai must not be made crown prince.
Tang Taizong calmly listened to Chu Suiliang's analysis and thought that it was very reasonable, so he terminated the idea of making Li Tai a reserve and made Li Zhi the crown prince instead. Soon, Emperor Taizong demoted Li Tai to the title of King of Donglai Commandery and settled in the desolate and remote town of Junzhou, and in his edict he denounced Li Tai's exclusion of his brother and plotted to seize the throne. However, although Emperor Taizong of Tang deposed Li Tai, out of father-son affection, he was still very concerned and cared for him, and soon he was crowned the King of Pu, and repeatedly expressed his unavoidable grievances in the edict.
Stills of Emperor Gaozong of Tang
After Emperor Gaozong of Tang ascended the throne, he also gave Li Tai great preferential treatment, not only allowing him to open a palace and set up officials, but also the carriages, horses, diets, and services used by the Pu Dynasty Palace were all special configurations, far surpassing other kings. However, for Li Tai, who is full of infinite desire for the throne, even the most generous treatment cannot make up for the huge psychological trauma caused by the shattering of his dreams. In this way, with deep regret and remorse, Li Tai died in December of the third year of Yonghui (652), at the age of 32.
Bibliography: Old Book of Tang, New Book of Tang, Zizhi Tongjian.