Preface
A vicissitudes of rise and fall, a brutal change of power, and a tragedy of the murder of loyal ministers...... This chilling historical plot makes us ask: What kind of reason and logic pushed an important minister who assisted the imperial power into an irreversible abyss?
How great is the temptation of power to induce a minister who has always been considered loyal and reliable to betray his original intentions? When an ambitious female controller meets a loyal minister, and in the end it is the winner of the palace power struggle who devours the former promoter behind the scenes, what kind of human truth is implied?
Let's trace this magnificent history together to solve all the mysteries of Pei Yan becoming the "first hero" on the road to Wu Zetian's ascension to the throne, but finally falling victim to him.
Tang Gaozong's deathbed edict: the prelude to the struggle for power
In 683 AD, as a pillar of the empire, Tang Gaozong faced a thorny question at his last moments: whether the crown prince Li Xian, whom he supported, could shoulder the heavy responsibility when the throne was about to be replaced?
The emperor, who reigned for 44 years, once defended the position of the Tang Dynasty in the Anshi Rebellion, creating a short-lived period of prosperity. But now, in the face of the upcoming change of a new generation of monarchs, he is inevitably uneasy.
After all, the crown prince Li Xian had just entered the East Palace, and he had not yet been tempered, and he lacked sufficient leadership and decision-making ability in major national affairs. And the old ministers who have always been good at assisting, such as Prime Minister Pei Yan, Squire Liu Qixian, and Guo Zhengyi, are already experienced ministers.
Gaozong knew that if he made a mistake in making a decision at this critical moment, it would inevitably cause turmoil in the government and the opposition, which would directly bring great pressure to the new monarch at the beginning of his establishment.
Therefore, on his deathbed, he solemnly formulated an edict: Pei Yan, Liu Qixian, and Guo Zheng jointly assisted the prince in governing the government, and if major military affairs could not be decided, he could ask the Empress Dowager Wu Zetian's opinion.
On the one hand, Gaozong arranged this because he had full confidence in the talents and loyalty of these three ministers; On the other hand, it also implies that there is still a certain recognition of Wu Zetian, who was once a virtuous queen. He hoped that this would allow for a smooth transition of power when the new king ascended the throne and avoid causing great upheaval.
Such an edict immediately aroused widespread praise from both the government and the opposition. Pei Yan and others are not only senior ministers, but also personally entrusted by the emperor, so they should be responsible and play an important role. And Wu Zetian, as a former virtuous queen, is naturally qualified to express opinions and propositions at critical moments.
Who would have thought that this would be the prelude to a protracted and contentious political rivalry?
Pei Yan strongly recommends "Wu Zetian hangs the curtain to listen to politics"
On the third day after the death of Tang Gaozong, the crown prince Li Xian ascended the throne as Tang Zhongzong. At this critical moment, Prime Minister Pei Yan made a shocking suggestion.
The core content of the so-called "Pei Yanjuan" is to ask Wu Zetian to "listen to the government", that is, to hand over all the power of the government to the Empress Dowager Wu Zetian.
This is undoubtedly a naked deprivation of the power of the new monarch and the complete entrustment of the supreme ruling power to Wu Zetian. What are the reasons why Pei Yan has such a suggestion?
In fact, Pei Yan did not make this decision entirely out of selfishness. At that time, the background was that the crown prince Li Xian was still young and lacked experience in governance, and it was difficult to cope with the situation that was full of obstacles. And the experienced and steady Wu Zetian can take on this important task in the short term.
Pei Yan believes that when the new monarch has just ascended the throne, he needs a transitional figure who is familiar with the government to maintain the overall situation. After all, Gaozong's edict has also been made clear, and Wu Zetian will participate in assisting the government, and his suggestion does not seem to be contrary to the will of the first emperor.
It's just that, in hindsight, Pei Yan's judgment may be too simplistic. Perhaps he himself did not expect that this seemingly move would become a key step in Wu Zetian's authority.
The reason why Pei Yan made this suggestion, even if it was out of consideration for maintaining the stability of the overall situation, finally opened a road to power for Wu Zetian. First, she gained the supreme position, and secondly, she accumulated many supporters among the courtiers.
Wu Zetian's unique personality charm
So, what was the force behind such a proposal? A large part of the reason lies in Wu Zetian's unique personality charm. As a virtuous and famous prince, Wu Zetian has always enjoyed a high reputation among the scholar class.
She is alert by nature, knowledgeable, and accomplished in literature and poetry, and has written many well-known masterpieces, so she also has a large number of followers among the literati.
In addition, she personally stopped the vicious transformation of the government and government twice, thus winning the love of the people. This unique personality charm has made Wu Zetian accumulate a lot of strength in the government and opposition class.
Perhaps it was this strong momentum that made many people support Pei Yan's suggestion. After all, at present, handing over the government to Wu Zetian's temporary care also seems to be a transitional expedient measure.
In the face of Pei Yan's words, the only thing the government and the opposition can do is to go with the flow. With the support of such people and power, Wu Zetian was finally officially established as the supreme ruler in charge of the government.
Since then, she has personally presided over the imperial and political ceremonies, in charge of the core institutions such as the six Shangshu, and all major military affairs are also decided by her alone. For Emperor Li Xian, this was undoubtedly a heavy blow. When he was only a prince, he admired his father's edict and did not dare to disobey him.
However, now, most of the power has been taken away by his mother, and he can only be controlled by others, and he can't help but feel ashamed. For Wu Zetian, this is clearly a godsend. With Pei Yan's note, she easily obtained full ruling power, and since then has opened the door to higher power.
Wu Zetian ascended the throne: from "listening to the government" to usurping the throne
With the support of Pei Yan and others, Wu Zetian gradually expanded the scope of his power. Since then, she has personally presided over the important affairs of the court, and has cultivated many cronies and descendants in the court.
It can be said that Pei Yan's performance undoubtedly laid the first stepping stone for Wu Zetian's final achievement of a generation of empresses. For this hard-won opportunity, Wu Zetian can be said to cherish it very much. She knew that once she was in power, she would never let go easily.
Therefore, in the following process, Wu Zetian's methods and decisiveness have taken a leap, and the whole person has gradually become more cunning and insidious. From promoting his cronies and ministers, to supporting Li Dan, the king of Yu, to becoming emperor, to framing Pei Yan and others for rebellion and killing, Wu Zetian showed a strong desire for power and ambition throughout the process.
Once she tasted power, she could no longer let go of the power in her hands. As a result, a protracted political struggle began, in which many innocent people were implicated and tragically suffered.
Not long after Li Dan ascended the throne, Wu Zetian used military force to force the new emperor Chan to give up the holy throne, which was tantamount to openly seizing the emperor's throne. Since then, she has eliminated all dissident forces one by one through false accusations and purges in the DPRK and China, and has monopolized power. This change of power, which can be said to be unprecedented, is shocking.
It can be said that Wu Zetian alone cannot achieve such great power, so she must constantly win over scattered bureaucrats and crack down on dissidents in order to seize the supreme dominance step by step. This made Wu Zetian cruel and ruthless to dissidents after taking power, not only executing Tang Zhongzong and his descendants, but also recklessly attacking his ministers.
Pei Yan was framed for Xu Jingye's mutiny
Among the many powerful ministers, Pei Yan can be said to be the first to fall under Wu Zetian's hands. In 684 AD, the British Duke Xu Jingye raised troops in Yangzhou to rebel, and the momentum was huge. As soon as this incident came out, Wu Zetian immediately asked Yu Pei Yan.
It stands to reason that as the prime minister of the DPRK and China, he should make suggestions for dealing with the rebels at this time. However, Pei Yan did not propose any suppression strategy, but used this momentum to coerce Wu Zetian to return to the emperor. What he meant was that as long as Wu Zetian returned to power, the rebels would automatically quit.
Wu Zetian naturally would not accept Pei Yan's suggestion. Instead, she quickly dispatched her troops and eventually succeeded in suppressing the rebellion in Yangzhou. But shortly thereafter, Pei Yan was accused of "having a different heart" by Yu Shi Cui Jing and was put on death row.
The reason for this seems to be very simple: Pei Yan did not propose any repressive measures when Xu Jingye mutinied, but wanted to use this opportunity to force Wu Zetian to return to power, which was undoubtedly a great threat to her.
And Wu Zetian was naturally wary of this. She needs to strike before Pei Yan does anything wrong and completely eradicate this potential threat. So less than 20 days after Xu Jingye raised his army, Pei Yan was branded with the crime of rebellion and was finally sentenced to death. Before Pei Yan was executed, the ministers of the DPRK and China pleaded for him, but Wu Zetian insisted on punishing him.
Under the pleading of the courtiers, Pei Yan also wanted to plead softly, but he finally insisted: "How can a prime minister get out of prison when he is imprisoned?" This sentence undoubtedly highlights his loyalty and righteousness. In the face of such a famous minister, why did Wu Zetian take a risk? What is the logic and reason for this?
From "support" to "death": why did Pei Yan become a victim?
To answer this question, we need to deeply analyze the intricate relationship between Pei Yan and Wu Zetian. During the Tang Gaozong period, Pei Yan was indeed Wu Zetian's right-hand man. He not only helped Wu Zetian convict Li Xian of rebellion, but also teamed up with her to depose Tang Zhongzong Li Xian. This kind of cooperation can be described as leaky, and the relationship is harmonious to the extreme.
But when Wu Zetian returned to the court and wanted to directly control the power, the situation changed. From a queen mother to a controller of imperial power who is about to become emperor, Wu Zetian's position and goals have also made a leap.
At this time, Pei Yan, for this ambitious woman, is no longer the well-behaved assistant she was at the beginning. On the contrary, he became the main obstacle to restraining and opposing Wu Zetian.
When Xu Jingye mutinied, Pei Yan obviously wanted to take advantage of this opportunity to force Wu Zetian to return to the emperor. This undoubtedly offended Wu Zetian's sore spot, because she was already ambitious and could not return power easily.
So, when Pei Yan made this request, Wu Zetian naturally raised the alarm bell and equated it with rebellion. In his view, now is a critical moment to consolidate power, how can he tolerate the existence of a minister who checks and balances himself?
As a result, Pei Yan, who once cooperated with Wu Zetian, eventually fell victim to her power expansion. From "support" to "death", his fate took a sharp turn, and the ruthlessness and gore implied in it are undoubtedly regrettable.
Pei Yan's experience undoubtedly reveals a chilling truth for us: how powerful is the temptation of power to bewitch a loyal servant and eventually devour him completely. The fate of this former hero, who has now fallen victim to death, is truly terrifying and embarrassing.
epilogue
History is often cruel, but it also often contains indelible truths. Pei Yan's tragedy outlines a palpitating historical picture, which makes us think deeply about the nature of power and the sinister face of human nature.
This is undoubtedly a story worth pondering. In the face of the temptation of power, whether to fall or persist often tests everyone's bottom line. Pei Yan's experience makes us ask: In the face of power, how should we choose?