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Text: Carry the lantern forward
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(Source: All content stated in this article is based on reliable sources, and is repeated at the end of the article)
Since Tang Gaozong ascended the throne, Wu Zetian began to gradually grasp the power of the court, and even called the "two saints" with Gaozong, and then Wu Zetian became the emperor himself and established Wu Zhou.
However, in only 15 years, Wu Zetian began to come to an end and further launched the Tanglong coup, which can't help but make people wonder, how did Li Longji turn defeat into victory?
Development process
Tang Taizong created the "rule of Zhenguan", both internal and external, and the people lived and worked in peace and contentment, but when Tang Gaozong Li ruled the period, this scene no longer existed.
Because of Wu Zetian's intervention, the Tang Dynasty regime fundamentally began to be divided, and Wu Zetian was gradually favored by Tang Gaozong after clearing all obstacles in the palace.
However, Wu Zetian was eager for power to ascend to the throne, and when there were no obstacles, he set his sights on the position of empress, and in 655, Wu Zetian used a series of means to further abolish the empress of Tang Gaozong and ascend to this position.
In 660, as Wu Zetian's power grew, coupled with Tang Gaozong's illness, the power gradually fell into the hands of Wu Zetian.
After Wu Zetian got power, he vigorously cultivated his own henchmen, and even began to suppress ministers who were dissatisfied with her, and waited until 683, when Tang Zhongzong ascended the throne, Wu Zetian came to the dynasty to claim the system.
On the surface, major state affairs were discussed between Tang Zhongzong and the ministers, but in fact, when a decision was made, it had to be agreed by Wu Zetian.
Therefore, Tang Zhongzong also became a nominal emperor, but Tang Zhongzong was abolished by Wu Zetian after only one year of reign, and then Li Dan and Tang Ruizong became emperors.
But Li Dan was weak by nature, and Wu Zetian had a lot of power in the court, so he couldn't make up his mind, and still let Wu Zetian come to the court to be in charge.
However, as time passed, more and more people were inclined to Wu Zetian, and at this time, everyone asked Wu Zetian to be the emperor.
Wu Zetian also had this idea, but after experiencing the enemy's mutiny, she felt that the time had come, so she proclaimed herself emperor in 690 and established Wu Zhou.
During his reign of 15 years, Wu Zetian appointed talents through the examination system, reduced taxes, and made the social economy grow, but Wu Zetian suppressed the Li clan by appointing his relatives.
This made some ministers in the DPRK and China a little dissatisfied with Wu Zetian, but Wu Zetian held power tightly at that time, so that the ministers had no choice but to sit and wait for the opportunity.
In addition, Wu Zetian favored Zhang Yizhi and Zhang Changzong, which gradually increased the power of the two, which accelerated the coup d'état.
In 705, Zhang Cambodia and other ministers took advantage of Wu Zetian's illness to start a coup d'état, and at the same time asked Li Duozuo and other generals to inform Li Xian of the plan.
After Wu Zetian ascended the throne, he began to consider the issue of heirs, and he couldn't make up his mind about the Wu family and the Li family, but at Di Renjie's suggestion, Wu Zetian re-established Li Xian as the son of heaven.
But because of Erzhang's intervention, Li Xian's position as the son of heaven was shaken, and after the ministers launched a coup d'état, they also told Li Xian the news as soon as possible, wanting him to prepare.
Li Xian had already been imprisoned by Wu Zetian, and he had no hope for power, but when he saw Li Duozuo and others coming to him, how could he not be afraid.
In order to ensure that his life was worry-free, Li Xian did not meet with these people, but asked his subordinates to pass the word, and later under the explanation of Wang Tongjiao and others, Li Xian understood what was going on.
Because Zhang Cambodia and other ministers who were inclined to the Tang clan wanted to launch a coup d'état, because the stakes were so high, Li Xian had to think about it, because he understood that once he failed, the result could be imagined.
Something happens
Li Xian couldn't take a risk for something with a low winning rate, so when he heard the general's explanation, Li Xian would politely refuse at the first time.
But Li Chen and other generals have already received orders, if Li Xian does not go, there may be no chance in the future, after all, time is urgent, and there is no delay.
After repeated dissuasion from the generals, Li Xian had to accept it, and at the same time, Zhang Cambodia and other ministers disposed of the two together with the generals, but they did not give up, because the matter was not over yet.
Then he came directly to Wu Zetian's side, and while explaining the disposal task, he forced him to abdicate, seeing that the matter was irreparable, Wu Zetian had no choice but to abdicate to Li Xian.
Although the power returned to Li Tang, there was still no improvement, and the situation of the dictatorship of foreign relatives appeared, because Tang Zhongzong not only made Wei empress, but also agreed to his intervention in the government.
You must understand that Empress Wei and Wu Zetian have the same ambitions, so she and Wu Sansi began to generate their own forces in the court, so that Li Xian gradually lost the trusted ministers around him.
At this time, the power fell, and even Li Xian was helpless, but unlike Empress Wei, because since Wu Zetian's abdication, the Wu family was appointed by Tang Zhongzong again, which made the crown prince Li Chongjun dissatisfied.
In 707, Li Chongjun took the lead in leading the army to deal with Wu Sansi and others, and just when the plan was about to succeed, Li Chongjun's rebellion failed because of a change in the soldiers.
Without Wu Sansi, the power naturally came into the hands of Empress Wei, and after tasting the sweetness of power, Empress Wei began to reuse her family, and once squeezed out the ministers of the DPRK and China.
In 710, Empress Wei appointed Li Chongmao as emperor, and this idea naturally did not satisfy the ministers of the court, especially the forces of Li Dan and Princess Taiping.
However, because the power was concentrated in the hands of Empress Wei, she began to follow Wu Zetian's reign and dispose of Princess Taiping and others.
But he never thought that the news would soon be leaked out, and Cui Riyong, the squire of the military department, discussed with everyone and wanted Li Longji to participate in it.
As the negotiation was reached, everyone wanted to let Li Dan participate in the plan, but Li Longji did not do so, on the one hand, he was afraid that the plan would fail, and on the other hand, he did not want Li Dan to be in danger.
After making preparations, Li Longji and others began to win over other ministers, including Princess Taiping, although the two had a gap, but because of the same interests, they finally reached an agreement.
In 710, Li Longji, Ge Fushun and others staged a coup d'état, and without the attention of Empress Wei's henchmen, they preempted the strike, and Wei Bo and others were finally disposed of.
After that, Li Longji asked Ge Fushun and Li Xianqi and others to divide their troops, and there were already people in the palace who were dissatisfied with Empress Wei's autocratic power, so they joined in one after another as soon as they heard about the uprising.
At the same time, Empress Wei did not know about Li Longji's coup d'état, and did not understand everything until the enemy army came in, and then fled to the flying cavalry camp and was disposed of.
Shangguan Wan'er also participated in Empress Wei's dictatorship, but after the incident, Shangguan Wan'er realized that something was wrong, and in order to save her life, she wanted to make friends with Li Longji.
But Li Longji felt that Shangguan Wan'er was a party of Empress Wei and should have been dealt with on the spot, even if Liu Youqiu and others pleaded, it was useless.
After the war subsided, Li Longji welcomed back Li Dan and united with Princess Taiping and others to make Li Dan the emperor.
End Result
When the crown prince was established, Tang Ruizong began to discuss with the ministers, after all, since ancient times, the eldest son has been the crown prince, but the ministers all think that Li Longji is very suitable to be the prince.
At the same time, Li Chengqi, the eldest son of the concubine, also knew that Li Longji had made a lot of contributions to himself, so under the consultation of everyone, Li Longji was finally made the crown prince.
However, as time goes by, the relationship between Princess Taiping and Li Longji gets worse and worse, and both of them have their own ideas.
In 712, because Princess Taiping wanted Li Longji to lose the crown prince, Tang Ruizong was of course very afraid, and in order to avoid political instability, he decisively passed the throne to Li Longji.
The following year, after seeing Princess Taiping's actions, Li Longji once again preemptively sent troops to encircle and suppress Princess Taiping's henchmen, and waited until Princess Taiping's forces were completely wiped out.
Li Dan's heart softened, after all, he was a relative, and he wanted Li Longji to let Princess Taiping go, but Li Longji did not agree, he thought that as long as Princess Taiping was alive, he would definitely threaten his regime.
From Wu Zetian's reign to Tang Long's coup d'état, Li Longji became the ultimate winner, and the key to this result is that Li Longji can see the situation clearly.
In the dictatorship of Empress Wei, he began to accumulate strength and find the opportunity to annihilate in one fell swoop.
Author's point of view
The Tanglong coup d'état was a major event in the history of the Tang Dynasty, and it was precisely because Li Longji judged the situation that he was able to turn the tide from danger and turn defeat into victory.
And under the rule of Li Longji, the prosperous era of Kaiyuan also began to come.
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Reference: Huang Chengyun, Tanglong Coup Studies, 2014
Zhou Ying, The Secret Shadow of the Taoist Priest in the Tanglong Coup, 2022
Meng Xianshi, Tanglong Coup: King Linzi in Action, 2017