Tang Xuanzong Li Chen was the sixteenth emperor of the Tang Dynasty, and during his thirteen-year reign, he was diligent in political affairs, actively reformed, rectified the administration of officials internally, weakened the feudal towns, actively used troops externally, and recovered many lost lands. During the reign of Tang Xuanzong, the Tang Dynasty appeared relatively prosperous, known as the "Rule of the Great Middle", and Tang Xuanzong himself was also known as "Little Taizong". But Tang Xuanzong made a serious mistake in his later years, and eventually pushed the Tang Dynasty into a place of no return! What's going on here?
Tang Xuanzong inherited the throne as the emperor's uncle, so he attached great importance to the issue of imperial succession. In October of the fifth year of the middle school, a minister proposed that "there is nothing to do in the whole country now, except for the unappointed crown prince, which is the most worrying thing for the subordinates." The crown prince is the foundation of the country, but Tang Xuanzong did not comment on this and did not clearly express his position. It turned out that Emperor Xuanzong of Tang had 12 sons, two of whom could become crown princes.
One was the eldest son, Li Wen, the Prince of Yun, and the other was Li Zi, the fourth son. According to the ancestral family law, Li Wen, as the eldest son, was the best candidate for the throne, but Tang Xuanzong found that although the eldest son was "thick in instruments and magnificent in appearance", he was not the best candidate for the emperor. In Tang Xuanzong's view, the fourth son Li Zi was very similar to himself, so he was very fond of him and wanted to make the fourth son the crown prince. However, if he did so, he would abolish Chang Li Andyo, so Tang Xuanzong was wandering.
In the tenth year of the middle school, when the chancellor Pei Xiu and Tang Xuanzong were discussing the government, they once again proposed the establishment of a prince, but Xuanzong did not expect that xuanzong would say: "If you build a prince, you will become an idle person", and from then on, no one dared to mention the matter of establishing a prince again. However, Tang Xuanzong's physical condition deteriorated, and he was poisoned by taking Dan medicine, "gangrene on the back".
In August of the thirteenth year of Da Zhong, Tang Xuanzong, who was terminally ill, issued a final decree, in which he entrusted Li Zi the Prince of Kui to the Privy Councillor Wang Guichang, Ma Gongru, and Wang Jufang, the envoy of Xuanhui Nanyuan, and asked these three eunuchs to support him as emperor. However, at this time, "neither the prime minister nor the courtiers could see it", so the news that Tang Xuanzong had established Li Zi was known only to the three eunuchs. All three were tang xuanzong's cronies, but at this time another eunuch changed history.
Wang Zongshi, who served as a lieutenant in Zuo Shence's army, controlled the forbidden army of the court, and he led the army to meet Li Wen, the king of Yun, and proclaimed him emperor for Tang Yizong. Later, Wang Zongshi executed Wang Guichang, Ma Gongru, and Wang Jufang for the crime of forging the Holy Will. Since then, the eunuch clique, which had been suppressed by Tang Xuanzong, had once again become arrogant because of its meritorious service.
Facts have proved that Tang Yizong was not the best candidate for the throne, and during his reign, he feasted excessively and indulged in wine, which led to the corruption of the government, and the "rule of the great middle" that Tang Xuanzong had painstakingly pioneered was in vain, and the Tang Dynasty fell back into a situation of turmoil. However, the "culprit" who caused this situation was Tang Xuanzong himself! "If the Great Scripture of the Establishment of the Imperial Treasure is not resolved first, and after his death, he holds the power of the eunuch and regards the artifact as an exclusive thing, but what about the wise?"
Tang Xuanzong's wandering on the issue of Li Chu led to chaos after his death, and the eunuch clique re-emerged, pushing the Tang Dynasty into the abyss of destruction. Just as the so-called "when the judgment is continuous, it is against the chaos" is precisely the historical lesson of Tang Xuanzong on the issue of li reserves. A generation of ming lords because of a wrong decision, ruined the entire dynasty!
References: 1. Old Book of Tang; 2. New Book of Tang; 3. Zizhi Tongjian