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Tang Ruizong had already been made crown prince during his reign, and Li Longji was only the third son of a concubine, so why did Tang Ruizong pass the throne to him?

author:Master D says history

History is alive, and behind every story is full of struggles, a vivid animation of inevitable and accidental interconnection. Li Longji was able to stand out from the turbulent and strange situation in the late Wu Zetian period, that is, to become emperor, which is the luck of history and the luck of China; during his reign, he created a prosperous period in Chinese history--- a prosperous era, so that the originally open Tang Dynasty continued to go to the world with an open attitude. However, if you carefully study the tortuous life of Tang Ruizong Li Dan, there are many fleeting moments revealed, and if you deviate from the track, the subsequent history may be different.

Tang Ruizong had already been made crown prince during his reign, and Li Longji was only the third son of a concubine, so why did Tang Ruizong pass the throne to him?

Li Longji's ascension to the throne was not a gift from heaven, but his personal struggle, as well as the assistance of a group of people around him, especially Li Chengqi (later renamed Li Xian), who had already been crown prince, achieved a prosperous world and wrote a good story.

As the son of Wu Zetian, Tang Ruizong had a total of six sons, and he himself was emperor twice, especially the second time he was able to ascend to the throne, Li Longji and Princess Taiping were the most powerful, without them, it would not be his turn to reinstate. Li Longji still has a long way to go to become the crown prince, at least from the perspective of the environment at that time, he still has many competitors.

The Tang Dynasty began with Li Shimin's xuanwumen rebellion until Li Dan was restored to the throne again, and it can be said that behind every new emperor's ascension to the throne was a coup d'état of greater or smaller magnitude.

Before Li Dan was restored to the throne, his brother Li Xian, --- Emperor Zhongzong, was poisoned by Wei Hou in 710. Wei Hou's purpose was simple, to use violence to seize control of the emperor and absolute control of power. She always had a goal in her heart, what if she could become the second wu zetian? But for the few people in power who have just restored Li Tang's position, who has the patience to give up the power and position in hand? For this reason, Princess Taiping, as the daughter-in-law of the martial family, has always been a firm supporter of the orthodoxy of the Li family. To this end, after she and her nephew Li Longji killed Wei, she once again ensured the security of Li Tang's orthodox status.

Tang Ruizong had already been made crown prince during his reign, and Li Longji was only the third son of a concubine, so why did Tang Ruizong pass the throne to him?

In fact, after Emperor Ruizong was restored to the throne, he had already established a crown prince, and the crown prince was Li Chengqi, the eldest son of Emperor Ruizong, no matter from which aspect, as long as there were no accidents, the future emperor would be Li Chengqi.

Li Xian, formerly known as Li Chengqi, was the eldest son of Li Dan of Tang Ruizong. Talented as a teenager, he was made the King of the County as early as emperor Gaozong, and in 684 he became a prince, and he was an expert in music, and according to historical records, he studied the music imported from Guizi.

But the situation at that time was unbeatable. Li Longji made great contributions when he assisted Li Dan in his coup d'état, which was a good thing from the perspective of the stability of the Li Tang Dynasty; from the perspective of Guiwei's crown prince, this can be called a factor of instability. If you don't pay attention to it, I am afraid that there will be a change in XuanwuMen, which is definitely not a good thing for Li Tang, who has a slightly stable situation. Although Tang Ruizong had also hesitated for this reason, whether to change Li Longji, who had made great merit, to be crown prince, he never made a final decision.

Li Longji has made great achievements, one is the eldest son of the concubine, the candidate for the crown prince, both of whom are eligible. Gradually, Li Dan also had the idea of establishing another prince.

Perhaps it was the political circle's deception that made him afraid of this position, and Li Chengqi, who knew this well, took the initiative to show that he was willing to give up the position of prince to his younger brother Li Longji, "The country's security is the first to be long, and the country's crisis is the first to have merit" This is the reality, in today's words, the first thing is to open up the situation with a person who holds great merit, not a king who keeps the success. In this way, Emperor Ruizong made Li Longji crown prince, and he was one step closer to the throne.

Li Longji, who became emperor, maintained a close relationship with his low-key brother until 742, when the most promising person to ascend the throne passed away, and in order to show his respect and remembrance for his brother, Li Xian was posthumously awarded the title of Emperor Rang. This was the highest honor that Emperor Xuanzong could give to his brother, and that was how the emperor's name came from.

Tang Ruizong had already been made crown prince during his reign, and Li Longji was only the third son of a concubine, so why did Tang Ruizong pass the throne to him?

Li Longji, who was crown prince, was not stable in his position as crown prince. The former "comrade-in-arms", one of the few relatives of the Li-Tang Dynasty--- Princess Taiping, has always been a huge threat to him. To say that Princess Taiping, as a female stream, can become a powerful figure, this is to find the most real answer from her growth experience.

Princess Taiping has always been deeply spoiled by her parents and brothers. In 665, as the youngest daughter of Empress Wu Zetian, she was born in ZiweiCheng, Luoyang. It is said that women during the Tang Dynasty were beautiful because of obesity, and Princess Taiping was no exception. Her body is plump and fat, and from the appearance of wu Zetian, she has become the object of favor of her parents and brothers, especially the favor of Wu Zetian.

In order not to let her marry Tubo far away, he also became a monk. There is a small story related to her, Tubo once sent a courtship emissary to Chang'an to ask for relatives, and named Princess Taiping to marry Tubo as a princess of peace. In order to keep this youngest daughter by his side, Emperor Gaozong of Tang had no choice but to adopt a roundabout strategy to refuse Tubo's request for peace, and he built a Taoist temple called Taipingguan for the little princess, making her a nun and using this excuse to avoid peace, which is also the origin of the title of Princess Taiping.

The two marriages that Princess Taiping experienced were the empress's love for her. The 16-year-old Princess Taiping married Xue Shao, the son of Emperor Gaozong's nephew and Princess Chengyang, The sister of Emperor Gaozong, and this marriage was not out of political necessity or marriage, but a horse chosen by Princess Taiping herself, which showed That Emperor Gaozong favored him. Later, because the Xue family was involved in a rebellion, in order to protect her daughter Wu Zetian, he made an exception to break the limit of the service seal for her, and married her to Wu Youji, and Princess Taiping, as the daughter-in-law of the Wu family, escaped danger again and again.

Princess Taiping, who had experienced two marriages, wrote about her parents' love for her, Wu Zetian, in order to show his love for this daughter, even let her participate in the government secretly, and Princess Taiping did not hide her enthusiasm for political affairs and her fascination with power.

Tang Ruizong had already been made crown prince during his reign, and Li Longji was only the third son of a concubine, so why did Tang Ruizong pass the throne to him?

How could such a princess Taiping, who had been favored since childhood and had a passion for power, easily give up her fame and fortune to Li Longji. What's more, after Li Longji became crown prince, as a prince who also had the pursuit and persistent attachment to power, how could he not become the main opponent and obstacle for Princess Taiping to interfere in her brother's government affairs in the open or covert?

In order to maintain her power, Princess Taiping thought of replacing the crown prince again, and directly targeted Li Longji. Her method of action was simple, that is, to spread rumors in the government and the public, claiming that Li Longji was not the eldest son of his brother at all, and that according to the etiquette, he could not be made crown prince. In the face of power and the stability of the country, Li Dan, no matter how much he loved Princess Taiping, took the way of personally issuing an edict to calm the rumors of slander against Li Longji, and Princess Taiping's plan fell through.

She was not satisfied with this and adopted a two-pronged strategy. In order to grasp Li Longji's whereabouts, she arranged for her eyes and ears to monitor her nephew's daily activities, and also formed an alliance with Dou Huaizhen and other ministers in the court to try to harm Li Longji, and her plan to join forces with Song Jing to persuade the emperor to change the crown prince did not work. As a result, the contradictions between the two sides have gradually become open, and it is only a matter of time before conflicts break out.

Tang Ruizong had already been made crown prince during his reign, and Li Longji was only the third son of a concubine, so why did Tang Ruizong pass the throne to him?

In 712, Li Long genetically appeared as a comet and took over the throne from Li Dan. However, at this time, Li Longji was only an emperor with the title of emperor, and the right to appoint officials above the three pins and the power to adjudicate major criminal cases were still in Li Dan's hands; Princess Taiping relied on the trust of Emperor Ruizong and still had a certain amount of power in the dynasty, five of the seven prime ministers had been her protégés, and most of the civil and military officials also stood with her. At this time, Li Longji had the name of emperor.

713 became a key year for Li Longji to regain the emperor's real power. He adopted a pre-emptive strategy and adopted a "surprise attack" method, killing Dou Huaizhen, Xiao Zhizhong, Cen Xi, etc., eliminating the main henchmen of Princess Taiping, forcing Princess Taiping to commit suicide. Forced by the situation, Li Dan had no choice but to announce the crimes of Dou Huaizhen and others, formally returned power to Li Longji, and from then on withdrew from the stage of power and officially passed the throne to Li Longji.

At this point, Li Longji became an emperor with real power in his hands, and the young man, with the assistance of Yao Chong, Song Jing, and other sages, gradually brought the Tang Dynasty on the right track, created a good situation of "Kaiyuan Prosperous Era", and brought a period of peaceful years to the people who eagerly hoped to live and work in peace and contentment, leaving a wonderful mark in history.

References: Old Book of Tang, History

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