Chapter 15 14. The Heyin Tragedy

The mysterious death of Emperor Xiaoming marked the complete loss of imperial power in the Northern Wei Dynasty.After that, the so-called emperors of the Northern Wei Dynasty and the Eastern and Western Wei Dynasty were at most just "competing" who would be the puppet for a longer time. Regarding the death of Emperor Xiaoming, various historical books believe that his death was poisoned, but the narrations are not completely consistent. In summary, there are two main theories: 1. The theory of Zheng Yan's conspiracy; Zheng Yan, Xu He and Queen Mother Hu).Today's point of view seems to emphasize the main responsibility of Queen Mother Hu alone, but it is suspected of being slightly biased.

Killing her own son was not the best choice for Queen Mother Hu.If she wants to maintain the legitimacy of the Linchao system, she must safeguard the throne of Emperor Xiaoming.Emperor Xiaoming had no biological heirs, once he died, there would be big troubles in the succession of the throne, and the situation might get out of control.She was worried that Emperor Xiaoming would seize her power, but the people who were more worried were obviously Zheng Yan and Xu He, who were hated by Emperor Xiaoming.Because if the seizure of power is successful, the lives of Zheng Yan and Xu He will not be guaranteed, and as long as Emperor Xiaoming is still alive, as a biological mother, her fate will not be so bad.At least from Queen Mother Hu's point of view, she should not be the only main culprit.

Wei Shou's "Wei Shu" tends to Zheng Yan's conspiracy theory. "Wei Shu·Queen's Biography" said: "The collapse of Emperor Suzong happened in a hurry, and it was time to talk about Zheng Yan and Xu He's plan." "Zheng Yan's Biography" also holds this point of view. "Tianxiang Zhi" further said: "Zheng Yan and others were afraid, so they called the Queen Mother the Emperor." The word "Shuo" emphasized the leading role of Zheng Yan and others, making people feel that the Queen Mother Hu was the gunman. "Book of Wei" deliberately set off Gao Huan's brilliant knowledge (Wei Shou was an important minister in the Northern Qi Dynasty). When Gao Huan proposed "the Qing emperor's side" before, he pointed out that the culprits were Zheng Yan and Xu He.

But if this is the case, it is difficult to explain the series of events before and after Emperor Xiaoming's death.One month before Emperor Xiaoming's death, his beloved Concubine Pan gave birth to a princess, but the palace reported to the outside world that a prince was born and gave amnesty to change Yuan.This couldn't be what Emperor Xiao Ming meant, nor could it be an unintentional mistake.The only possibility is that the Empress Dowager Hu and her two favorite ministers conspired and compromised with each other, and took the birth of the princess as an opportunity to plan a big conspiracy.Therefore, "Northern History" and the three-person conspiracy theory it supports are more logical and factual.

The solution acceptable to all three is to kill Emperor Xiaoming first, then establish a false prince, control the power in the court, and finally make a smooth transition, not only get rid of the threat of Emperor Xiaoming, but also continue to govern and order the Quartet. They overestimated their ability to clean up the mess, and underestimated the influence of Emperor Xiaoming's death.The conspiracy carried out while hiding in the Luoyang Palace is far inferior to the means of playing with the world in the palm of one's hands. Empress Dowager Hu gave birth to a one-month-old little princess (some say this is the first female emperor in Chinese history), and found that the reaction of the court was relatively calm. Emperor is the only son, not even a nephew), chose three-year-old Yuan Zhao to replace the little princess, and then announced to the world.

Er Zhurong, who was stationed in Shangdang, learned of the accident, how could he give up?He immediately became angry, and said to Yuan Tianmu, the governor of Bingzhou: "The lord, Yan Jia, is only nineteen years old, and everyone in the world still calls him a young prince; let alone a child who cannot speak is now enthroned, how can it be possible to have long-term peace and order?" What? I want to lead cavalry to mourn the late emperor, cut off traitors, and install an older emperor, what do you think?" Yuan Tianmu exclaimed: "That's really Yi Yin and Huo Guang reappearing in this world!"

Yuan Tianmu belonged to the imperial family. Although he was not related to the royal family, he had a very close relationship with Er Zhurong. His statement greatly encouraged Er Zhurong.The two then discussed the matter of supporting the new king.Yuan Tianmu believed that Pengcheng Wang Yuanxie was very popular when he was alive, and his son Changle Wang Yuanziyou had the demeanor and prestige of his father, so it is better to send someone to Luoyang City to secretly contact him and ask him to be emperor. Er Zhurong strongly agreed, and he sent his nephew Er Zhu Tianguang to sneak into Luoyang with his cronies.Er Zhurong's cousin Er Zhu Shilong served as the general of Zhige in the court. Er Zhu Tianguang met Er Zhu Shilong, and he introduced Yuan Ziyou.

After all, the emperor's throne is not something that everyone can encounter, Yuan Ziyou was very happy.The king of Changle had a very simple idea. First, he hated Queen Mother Hu's behavior deeply, and only hated being powerless. Second, he decided that to settle Queen Mother Hu, he could only rely on Er Zhurong's strength.Er Zhurong has behaved quite well so far and is a great loyal minister. Therefore, he expressed his willingness to cooperate, and asked Er Zhu Tianguang to reply to Er Zhu Rong first, while he and Er Zhu Shilong prepared to stop, and took his elder brother Pengcheng Wang Yuanshao and younger brother Bacheng Gong Zizheng to leave Luoyang and go north to see Er Zhu Rong .

Er Zhurong was not at ease in the Shangdang. He was afraid that he had made a wrong choice, so he organized another ceremony, ordering people to cast small bronze statues of the descendants of Emperor Xiaowen, in order to confirm who was the destiny. The hand-cast bronze statues, as well as the hand-cast gold figures often performed before the traditional canonization ceremony in the Northern Wei Dynasty, are a form of divination, which may have originated from the sacrificial activities of nomadic peoples.According to the practice of the Northern Wei Dynasty, every time a queen is canonized, a golden statue of the queen must be cast first. If it succeeds, it will be erected, and if it fails, it will not be erected.The metal casting industry in the Northern Wei Dynasty was quite developed (today we can still see many exquisite and beautiful gold and bronze Buddha statues in the Northern Wei Dynasty, which is evidence). It is the caster who decides the role, and there are countless interests involved behind it.It looks like divination, but it's actually a trick, designed to deceive superstitious guys like Er Zhurong.

As expected, according to the divination of the bronze statue, only Yuan Ziyou's statue was cast.Er Zhurong was relieved, so he went up to resist the order, questioned the culprits, and mobilized his troops to march towards Luoyang. In April of the first year of Wutai (528 A.D.), Er Zhurong's army met with Yuan Ziyou's brothers in Heyang (now Mengjin, Henan, on the north bank of the Yellow River).Yuan Ziyou crossed the Yellow River with the army and ascended the throne on the spot. He was Emperor Jingzong Xiaozhuang of the Northern Wei Dynasty. Emperor Xiaozhuang appointed Er Zhurong as his servant, governor of Chinese and foreign military forces, and general.With the spiritual banner of the emperor, Er Zhurong can have no scruples.He sent his troops southward and arrived at Luoyang.

The Queen Mother Hu and a group of people in the city panicked, and hurriedly appointed several generals to lead the resistance.Before the army was fully in place, Zheng Jiming and Zheng Xianhu, who guarded the city, heard that Yuan Ziyou had become emperor, so they opened the city gate to Er Zhurong's army. Er Zhurong passed on the imperial edict of Emperor Xiaozhuang, ordering civil and military officials to meet the new emperor at Heqiao (southwest of Mengjin, Henan today).The poor Empress Dowager Hu looked around, Zheng Yan and Xu He had fled, the generals defected, and she became a veritable loner.She had nothing to do, so she shaved her head and led the harem concubines to the Yongning Temple in the city to become a monk. Even a monk could not escape death, so Er Zhurong sent cavalry to rush into Yongning Temple, found the Queen Mother Hu who was dressed as a nun, and sent them to Heyin (the south bank of the Yellow River in present-day Mengjin) along with the young emperor Yuanzhao.Empress Dowager Hu still has to argue, bringing out her tricks to deal with the little boy.Although Er Zhurong was also fair-skinned, he was not a fair-faced boy. When he saw the Empress Dowager Hu, who was an old lady, he felt annoyed. (When Empress Dowager Hu was strong, she killed Empress Dowager Gao who was forced to become a nun. Who would have thought that she would get the present reward so soon.) Luoyang officials who went out of the city to welcome the holy driver gathered near Heyin.Fei Mu, Er Zhurong's subordinate, was very perverted. He said that now that the army is invincible, if the power is seized without a battle, the officials will not obey.If you don't take the opportunity to kill people to build your prestige, I am afraid that civil strife will come sooner or later. Er Zhurong took this vicious idea quite seriously. He asked another confidant Murong Shaozong: "People in Luoyang are arrogant and extravagant. They don't use swords and axes. It's hard to control them. I plan to welcome them with a hundred officials. Kill them all, what do you think?" Murong Shaozong was a descendant of the former Yan Murong Ke, who was related to Er Zhurong and was very intelligent (although Murong died, there were still many talented people in the late Southern and Northern Dynasties).He immediately expressed his objection: "The empress dowager is licentious and unjust, causing disasters to the world, so Minggong launched an army to crusade. Killing innocent people without reason, regardless of loyalty and traitors, I am afraid that the world will lose the hope of the world, it is definitely not a long-term solution!" Er Zhurong refused to listen to the advice, and asked Emperor Xiaozhuang to meet all the officials outside Taozhu's palace.As soon as the officials arrived, Er Zhurong's cavalry hula la surrounded him tightly.Er Zhurong reprimanded them for being greedy for pleasure and not thinking of serving the country, and that they were the chief culprit for the chaos in the world and the death of the emperor. With an order, thousands of officials, from princes to ordinary ministers, were all cut to the ground by sabers.In an instant, wailing filled the sky by the Yellow River, corpses were everywhere, and the scene was horrifying.This is the famous Heyin tragedy, also known as the Heyin change. Brother Xiaozhuang heard the shouts in the palace, so they went out of the tent to watch.Er Zhurong arranged for the guards on the left and right to rush forward, embrace Emperor Xiaozhuang and send him back to the tent.Emperor Xiaozhuang turned pale with shock, and when he turned around to look again, the two brothers were already decapitated.He himself was placed under house arrest. Emperor Xiaozhuang hated and was angry. He only blamed himself for mistaking a traitor as a pillar. He sent someone to send a message to Er Zhurong, saying: "Emperors change, ups and downs are unpredictable. Generals rise up with righteousness and easily put down chaos. This is God's will, not manpower. I have come to join you only to protect the common people in the world, am I trying to seek the throne? General, why do you push people too much? If there is destiny, then choose a day to ascend the throne. If the general still wants to save my Great Wei Sheji, then please choose another Gentleman, I can assist you together." Er Zhurong's arrogance reached its peak, he really wanted to proclaim himself emperor.Inside and outside the army tent, Erzhurong's soldiers repeatedly shouted: "The Yuan family is destroyed, and the Erzhu family will prosper!" He asked for the opinions of his subordinates while looking for someone to draft the Zen imperial edict. Opinions in the army were not unified, and they were clearly divided into two factions: Gao Huan and others tried their best to persuade Er Zhurong to become a great treasure as soon as possible; Having made great achievements, but have such a plan, this is the way to invite disaster." At this time, the tit-for-tat confrontation happened to be the two forces that eventually split the Northern Wei Dynasty: Gao Huan's Huaishuo faction and Yuwentai's Wuchuan faction (although Yuwentai had not yet joined Er Zhurong's account, he had a close relationship with the Heba brothers. , the interests are basically the same).On the surface, the two factions were looking for Er Zhurong's interests. Gao Huan seemed to be very enthusiastic in pushing Er Zhurong to be emperor, and He Bayue persuaded Er Zhurong not to act too hastily, as if he was sober.In essence, everyone is planning the best route for maximizing their own interests.Gao Huan took an evil path, and Er Zhurong's timing for proclaiming himself emperor was of course immature. It's the right way, don't make the situation too confusing, use Er Zhurong's position to sweep away other forces, and then wait for the aftermath. Er Zhurong was caught in the middle, hesitant, superstitious, he decided to use cast divination again to make a choice.He cast a golden statue for himself, and cast it four times without success.He also summoned Liu Lingzhu, a meritorious fortune teller who joined the army, and asked about the good or bad luck of becoming emperor.Liu Lingzhu shook his head and said, "The time and personnel are not suitable." Er Zhurong said, "If I can't do it, what about Li Yuan Tianmu?" Liu Lingzhu also said: "Yuan Tianmu can't do it either, only the king of Changle (Yuan Ziyou) has the destiny." The desperate Er Zhurong was in a trance, speechless for a long time.Afterwards, he expressed deep remorse, and personally went to Emperor Xiaozhuang's tent to make amends in the middle of the night, and repeatedly stated that he was willing to serve the court with his death. He Bayue asked Er Zhurong to kill Gao Huan to thank the world.Gao Huan's gang of brothers said a lot of good things, and emphasized that when employing people, the general should not be killed first.Gao Huan escaped unharmed. (The first battle between the two factions ended with a small victory for the Wuchuan faction.) Emperor Xiaozhuang was escorted by Er Zhurong and entered Luoyang, so he naturally had no power.Er Zhurong was the king of Taiyuan, and he had a lot of cronies, and he planted his forces everywhere in the court.Anyway, I just killed a lot, and there are countless vacant seats. Because his soldiers killed too many courtiers, Er Zhurong didn't want to stay in Luoyang forever.He plans to move the capital to Jinyang, which is not only convenient for him to sit in command, but also equivalent to moving the palace to his doorstep, so he doesn't have to worry about accidents.There were too many people who had no choice but to oppose, and the official Shangshu Yuanchen even fought to the death, Er Zhurong just gave up. In order to consolidate the achievements of entering Luo, Er Zhurong asked Emperor Xiaozhuang to make his daughter the queen (Empress Erzhu was a concubine in Emperor Xiaoming's palace before, and Er Zhurong couldn't control the rules. But this trick was for him It laid the groundwork for future downfall).He stayed in Luoyang for half a month, and then returned to Jinyang. Er Zhurong has his plan.He wanted to wipe out all the insurgents first, especially the forces of Ge Rong who had just annexed Du Luozhou in Hebei, and then forced Emperor Xiaozhuang to abdicate when the time was right.