Preface
In the history of the Tang Dynasty, there is a legendary figure, he is Tian Chenghe. As the first person in the Tang Dynasty to divide the town, Tian Chengsi was regarded as a generation of heroes comparable to Cao Cao at that time for his deep resourcefulness and great achievements.
Tian Chengsi was not only a military strategist, but also a politician and strategist. He was good at seizing the opportunity, flexibly using diplomatic means, and skillfully balancing the forces of all parties, so that his power continued to grow and became an important role in the political arena of the Tang Dynasty.
So, how did this hero rise to prominence in the troubled times of the Tang Dynasty? How did he become the founder of the division of feudal towns? What twists and turns and legends did he have in his life experience? Let us explore the story of this legendary figure together.
Tian Chengsi is showing his edge
At the beginning of the Anshi Rebellion, Tian Chengsi was just a small forward soldier. However, with his prowess and ability to fight, he soon became the best of the rebels. In the cold winter of heavy snowfall, when An Lushan was inspecting the army, he happened to come to Tian Chenghe's camp.
To his surprise, the camp was silent, and there was no sound at all. But when he flipped through the roll call, the soldiers immediately put on their armor and lined up, and there were many of them. An Lushan was impressed by Tian Chenghe's strict management of the army, and since then he has taken it seriously.
Tian Chengsi was born in a family of Zhao people, and was proficient in mounted archery since he was a child, and was quite famous in the army. So when An Lushan launched a rebellion, he naturally became the best choice for the rebel striker.
In the following campaigns, Tian Chengsi repeatedly performed miraculous feats, entered Luoyang, broke Nanyang, entered Xiangyang, swept up and down the river non-stop, and became the most outstanding general in the rebels. His military talent and fighting courage impressed An Lushan, which can be said to be the first to emerge, laying the foundation for his later rise.
Rebel opportunists
However, Tian Chenghe's personality is despicable and shameless. After An Lushan was killed, he saw the wind and the rudder, raised the flag and surrendered. As soon as he heard that Shi Siming had made a comeback, he raised the anti-flag again and rejoined the rebels. When Shi Siming was also killed, he surrendered again and handed over the city of Mozhou to Fugu Huai'en.
In order to survive, Tian Chengsi tricked Shi Chaoyi into breaking through and escaping, but after he left, he tied up more than 100 members of the Shi family, and begged for surrender from Fugu Huai'en. In order to take Mozhou, Fugu Huaien had to agree to Tian Chenghe's request, named him the king of Yanmen County, occupied the six states of Weibo in Fujia Hebei, and had 100,000 soldiers.
In this way, this opportunistic element who rebelled from time to time, by virtue of cunning methods, became the most powerful feudal town in Hebei. From then on, his ambition and greed began to spread wildly. He is not only outstanding in military affairs, but also outstanding in political means, and can be described as a real "fox".
Jumping off the beam messes up the first person
Tian Chenghe's thirst for power is never-ending. In 773, in order to curry favor with the soldiers, he actually built an ancestral hall for An Lushan and his son, and respected him as the "Four Sages". In order to win his heart, Tang Dynasty Zong had to upgrade Weizhou to the Metropolitan Governor's Mansion, worship him as a senior official such as the left servant of the school, and marry the princess to his son.
However, none of this could satisfy Tian Chenghe's ambitions. In 775, he lured the Zhaoyi army to make Pei Zhiqing expel Xue Wei, and then captured Xiangzhou on the grounds of rescue. The Tang court issued an edict to crusade, but he refused to obey the edict, but instead sent generals to capture Zhaozhou and Weizhou, inducing Weizhou to surrender, and slaughtered his family after being refused.
Soon, Tian Chenghei occupied the land of the four states of Xiangwei, appointed himself as an official, and did not pay tribute. The Tang Dynasty had no choice but to send troops to levy, but Tian Chengsi was as cunning as a fox, and even set up a plan to "tell the stone" and deceive Li Baochen and other Jiedu envoys to resist passively. In the end, the Tang court had to make an exception and grant him permission not to enter the Hajj, becoming the first person to divide the feudal town.
Tian Chenghe's actions can be described as jumping off the beam and causing the Tang Dynasty to fall into unprecedented turmoil. He not only disregarded the majesty of the imperial court, but also openly challenged the imperial power, which can be described as a generation of heroes, and truly created a precedent for the division of feudal towns.
Wise heirloom arrangement
Tian Chenghei, who was already old, realized that in order to maintain the dynasty, it was necessary to have a wise successor. Although he has eleven sons under his knees, they are all rich and rich, arrogant and lascivious, and none of them can do it.
In contrast, his nephew Tian Yue is more promising. Tian Yue lost his father since he was a child, lived in the rivers and lakes, and experienced a difficult life at the bottom. By the time Tian Chengsi visited him, he was already thirteen years old, but with his extraordinary courage and simple and frugal style, he was already well-known in the army.
Tian Chenghei had a discerning eye and took a fancy to Tian Yue's potential, and decided to pass on the family business to him in the future. He hopes that Tian Yue can learn the wisdom of survival from the bottom life and avoid the fate of the family's annihilation. In this way, not only can the continuation of the Wei Bo clan be ensured, but also internal strife can be avoided and the rule of the Tian family can be maintained.
It's a pity that all this was opposed and jealous by Tian Chenghe's sons. One dark night, the sixth son Tian Xu led people to sneak in and killed Tian Yue in his sleep with his own hands, causing a "sibling tragedy".
This is undoubtedly a huge loss, and it also indicates that the internal contradictions of the Tian family are intensifying. Although he ultimately failed to complete his succession arrangement, he at least continued the rule of the Tian family and laid the groundwork for the later division of the feudal town.
A man of political wisdom
Tian Chengsi is not only brave in martial arts, but also has outstanding political wisdom. He made careful arrangements and successively fooled Li Baochen, Li Zhengji and other envoys, so that they did not dare to enter Wei Bo easily.
At that time, the Tang Dynasty launched a large-scale crusade, mobilizing eight soldiers and horses from Chengde, Ziqing, and Hedong to come to conquer. But Tian Chengsi showed the fox's stubbornness. He first pretended to be a grandson and begged to "tie himself into the court". Then he set up a plan of "Confession Stone" to trick Li Baochen into believing that he would help him achieve the imperial cause, so that Li Baochen would resist passively.
It was even easier to deal with Li Zhengji, and Tian Chengji skillfully used his greed and favorability to make him dare not act rashly. In this way, Tian Chengsi dissolved the main force of the Tang army one by one, and finally escaped the encirclement and suppression again and again.
More crucially, he set a precedent that the feudal towns did not have to enter the Hajj. Previously, the envoys of Jiedu had to return to Chang'an regularly to report on their work, and were monitored and constrained by the imperial court. However, Tian Chenghe's approach set an example for other Jiedu envoys, and since then, the situation of separating feudal towns has become more and more intense, accelerating the decline of the Tang Dynasty.
It can be said that in terms of martial arts and cunning, political wisdom, among the heroes of the troubled times of the Tang Dynasty, no one can compare with Tian Chenghe. He was a true hero of a generation who played a key role in the fall of the Tang Dynasty. Not only can he win on the battlefield, but he is also good at manipulating others in political struggles, and he can be described as a supreme master of military talent and political wisdom.
epilogue
Tian Chenghe's life is legendary, he used deceit to rise from humble to overlord, creating a precedent for the division of feudal towns. His story vividly illustrates the hardships and twists of turbulent times, as well as the cruelty and ruthlessness of power play.
This tyrant of the troubled times of the Tang Dynasty had both heroic spirit and fox-like cunning, both military talent and political wisdom, and was able to establish his own feudal kingdom without escaping the doom of family infighting.
His life can be described as ups and downs, and it is breathtaking. Such a character is really a microcosm of the troubled times of the Tang Dynasty and a microcosm of historical development.