The most depressing thing is that Li Cunxiao actually brought three subordinate figures, namely Li Siyuan, the big Taibao who was also one of the thirteen Taibao under Li Keyong like him, Li Cunxuan, the third Taibao, and Shi Jingsi, the eleventh Taibao.

However, fortunately, the position where these three people were implanted was in the confrontation with Cao Cao under Dolgon's men in the north, and they did not abuse Fusu with Li Cunxiao.

Li Siyuan is a tribesman of the Shatuo tribe without a surname, named Miao Jilie, good at riding and shooting, calm and quiet, and acting respectfully. At the age of thirteen, he served in the army of Li Guochang, the leader of the Shatuo tribe, and was later adopted by his son Li Keyong and given his name.

In the fourth year of Zhonghe (884). Li Keyong was besieged by Xuanwu Jiedu Zhu Wen in Shangyuanyi in Bianzhou (now Kaifeng, Henan), and his generals died countless battles, which is known as the Shangyuanyi Incident in history. Li Siyuan was seventeen years old at the time, desperately protecting Li Keyong and rescuing him from the chaos of soldiers, so he was highly used and was able to command his own soldiers. Later, Li Siyuan was appointed as Li Cunxin's deputy general, and he fought with him, and won many great victories.

In the third year of Qianning (896), Zhu Wen, Zhu Xuan, and Zhu Jin brothers fought for the Shandong region, and sent troops to attack Yanzhou and Yunzhou (now Dongping, Shandong). The Zhu brothers asked Li Keyong for help, and Li Ke ordered Li Cunxin to lead 30,000 soldiers and horses to the rescue. Li Cunxin stationed troops in Shen County and ordered Li Siyuan to lead 300 cavalry to aid Yanzhou. Li Siyuan defeated the Liang army at Rencheng (now Jining, Shandong) and lifted the siege of Yanzhou. Soon, Wei Bojiedu made Luo Hongxin attack Shen County and defeat Li Cunxin. Li Siyuan personally returned to the palace to cover Li Cunxin's retreat. In order to reward Li Siyuan, Li Keyong named the 500 cavalry under his command Hengchongdu. Since then, the Lianghe region has called Li Siyuan Li Hengchong.

In the first year of Guanghua (898), Li Sizhao sent troops to Qingshankou to attack Xingzhou (now Xingtai, Hebei) and Zhaozhou (now Yongnian, Hebei), but was defeated by Liang general Ge Congzhou. Li Siyuan led his troops to arrive, set up a position on a high place, and shouted: "I will only kill Ge Congzhou, and the rest of the soldiers should not act rashly." He galloped into the Liang army and fought in and out. Li Sizhao then attacked, and finally turned defeat into victory, repelling the Liang army. In this battle, Li Siyuan was hit by four arrows in his body, and his fame moved the world.

In the first year of Tianfu (901), Liang General Shucong led an army of 50,000 to besiege Taiyuan and occupy many prefectures and counties in Hedong. Li Keyong was trapped in Taiyuan City. At that time, the heavy rain continued, the city wall was mostly decayed, and Taiyuan was in danger. Li Siyuan and Li Sizhao divided their troops into four directions, and from time to time they attacked the Liang army camp. The Liang army repeatedly failed to break Taiyuan, coupled with the lack of food and grass, and finally had to retreat. Li Siyuan led the army in pursuit and successively recovered the lost prefectures and counties.

In the second year of Tianfu (902), Shi Shucong defeated Li Sizhao and Zhou Dewei in Pu County, led the army to chase to the Jin Temple, and besieged Taiyuan again. Li Keyong personally went to the city to command the defense, and later saw that the situation was critical, and planned to abandon the city and flee to Yunzhou (now Datong, Shanxi). He convened the generals to discuss, but was resolutely opposed by Li Siyuan and others, so he had to give up. Soon, the Jin army gradually returned to Taiyuan. Li Siyuan personally led the brave men to go out of the city day and night to raid the Liang army, and captured the Liang army's general You Kunlun. The Liang army was exhausted and had to burn the camp and retreat.

In the fifth year of Tianyou (908), Li Keyong died of illness, and his son Li Cunqiao was appointed as the envoy of Hedong Jiedu and the king of Jin. In May of the same year, Li Cunqiao personally rescued Luzhou (now Changzhi, Shanxi), and ordered Li Siyuan and Zhou Dewei to divide their troops into two ways and attack the city built by the Liang army. Li Siyuan commanded his soldiers to cut down the antler array arranged by the Liang army, filled the trenches with firewood and grass, and attacked the city from the northeast corner. Zhou Dewei then also broke through the northwest corner of the city. Li Cunmiao took the opportunity to launch a general attack, and finally broke through the Liang army, won a great victory in the city, and completely lifted the siege of Luzhou. In this battle, Li Siyuan took the lead in attacking Jiacheng and ranked first.

In the eighth year of Tianyou (911), Li Siyuan participated in the Battle of Baixiang with Li Cunqing. Seeing that the Liang army was strong, Li Cunmiao was worried that the Jin army would be cowardly, so he deliberately provoked Li Siyuan to fight to boost morale. He gave wine to Li Siyuan and said, "Have you seen the white horse capital and red horse capital of the Liang army?" It's terrifying. Li Siyuan laughed, thinking that Liang Jun had a false appearance. He drank the wine in the cup, then stood up and rode his horse, leading his troops straight to the white horse capital of the Liang army, and captured two cavalry schools. The morale of the Jin army was greatly boosted, and they all moved forward bravely, fighting from Chen Shi to Wei Shi, and finally defeated the Liang army and won a great victory in Baixiang. In this battle, Li Siyuan rushed back and forth in the Liang army formation, won a lot, and was promoted to the Daizhou assassin for his merits.

In the tenth year of Tianyou (913), Zhou Dewei conquered Liu Shouguang, the king of Yan, and ordered Li Siyuan to divide his troops to capture the Eighth Army of Shanhou (in the northern part of the military capital of Taihang Mountain in present-day Hebei Province). Li Siyuan fought with the Yan general Yuan Xingqin in the Guangbian Army (south of present-day Chicheng, Hebei), and although he was shot by Yuan Xingqin seven times, he was finally shot in the thigh by Yuan Xingqin. Yuan Xingqin finally refused to surrender, and was adopted as an adopted son by Li Siyuan, and was later asked by Li Cunqiao to be under his command.

In the thirteenth year of Tianyou (916), Li Cunqiao and the Liang general Liu Cheng fought in the ancient Yuancheng (in the east of present-day Wei County, Hebei). Li Siyuan led 3,000 cavalry to fight hard, and attacked with Li Cunqiao inside and outside, defeating the Liang army. He then captured Cizhou (now Cixian County, Hebei), Weizhou, Xiangzhou (now Anyang, Henan) and other places to which Later Liang belonged, and was reappointed as the Assassin of Xiangzhou. In September, Mao Zhang, the defender of Cangzhou, surrendered to the Jin army. Li Siyuan was ordered to go to Cangzhou to appease Mao Zhang, and soon he was appointed as the envoy of the An** Festival and went out of Xingzhou.

In the fourteenth year of Tianyou (917), the Khitan besieged Youzhou (now Beijing), and the defender Zhou Dewei sent an envoy to report the emergency. Li Siyuan advocated the rescue and asked to lead 5,000 cavalry as the vanguard. Li Cunqiao asked him to join Fu Cunshen and Yan Bao in Yizhou (now Yixian County, Hebei) to rescue Youzhou together. Li Siyuan analyzed the situation of the enemy and us, adopted the tactic of "sneaking into the stream and attacking it unprepared", and led his army to cross the Dafang Ridge (west of Zhoukoudian in present-day Beijing) and march east along the mountain stream.

He fought desperately with his adopted son Li Congke, repelled many interceptions by the Khitan army, and reached sixty miles outside Youzhou City. At that time, the Khitan cavalry suddenly arrived. Li Siyuan rushed into the enemy formation on horseback, fought hard with a mallet, was invincible, and captured the Khitan team commander alive. The Jin army then attacked, and finally defeated the Khitan and lifted the siege of Youzhou. In September, Li Siyuan's class teacher went to inspect the Taibao.

In the eighteenth year of Tianyou (921), Li Siyuan united Zhu Youqian, Zhu Youqian, Zhaoyi, Fu Cunxian, Fu Cunxian, Dingzhou, Yan Bao, Li Cunzhang, Wang Cunzhang, Xinzhou, Wang Yu, Li Cunjin, and Zhu Lingde, respectively, and asked Li Cunqiao to be called emperor, and each offered hundreds of thousands of dollars as the cost of his ascension to the country, but Li Cunqiao refused. In October of the same year, Li Siyuan broke the Liang general Dai Siyuan in Qicheng (in present-day Puyang, Henan), beheaded 20,000 people, promoted to the deputy head of the internal and external horse steps of the Fan Han Dynasty, and was awarded the title of Tongping Zhang.

In the first year of Tongguang in the Later Tang Dynasty (923), Li Siyuan was transferred to the Henghai Naval Festival. In April, Li Cunqiao proclaimed himself emperor in Yedu (northeast of present-day Daming, Hebei) and established the Later Tang Dynasty, which was the Later Tang Dynasty Zhuangzong. Li Siyuan went to inspect the school master and served as a waiter. At that time, the main forces of the Liang and Tang armies confronted each other along the Yellow River, and the Liang army was rushing to attack Zezhou (now Jincheng, Shanxi), and then Li Jitao, the defender of Luzhou in Tang, rebelled against Later Liang. Tang Zhuangzong discussed with Li Siyuan and wanted to send troops to attack Yunzhou to cut off the right flank of the Liang army. Li Siyuan personally led 5,000 cavalry across Jishui, took advantage of the Liang army's unpreparedness to attack Yunzhou, and was worshiped as the envoy of the Tianping Army.

In September of the same year, Liang general Wang Yanzhang led his army into Yunzhou. Li Siyuan ordered Li Congke to lead the cavalry to meet the battle, defeated the advance of the Liang army in Difang Town, captured 300 people including Liang general Ren Zhao, and forced Wang Yanzhang to retreat to Zhongdu (now Wenshang, Shandong). In October, Tang Zhuangzong crossed the river from Yang Liu (in present-day Dong'abei, Shandong) and arrived in Yunzhou, where he broke through the central capital and captured Wang Yanzhang with Li Siyuan as the vanguard. At that time, all the generals of the Tang army believed that they should first capture Qingzhou, Qizhou (now Jinan, Shandong), Xuzhou, Yanzhou and other places, and then take the opportunity to move.

Li Siyuan tried his best to override public opinion and suggested that he attack Bianzhou and capture the capital of Later Liang. He led the former army to double the journey, arrived in Bianzhou on the ninth day of the first month, and then waved his army to attack the city. Emperor Zhu Youzhen of Liang committed suicide, and Liang surrendered Wang Zan Kaifeng Qiumen, and Later Liang officially perished. Soon, Tang Zhuangzong moved his capital to Luoyang and promoted Li Siyuan to Zhongshu Ling.

In the second year of Tongguang (924), Tang Zhuangzong sacrificed to heaven in the southern suburbs and gave Li Siyuan iron coupons. Soon, Li Siyuan quelled the rebellion in Luzhou, captured the rebel Yang Li, and was transferred to the Xuanwu Army as the envoy of the Jiedu, and concurrently served as the head of the Mabu Army inside and outside the Fan and Han Dynasty. In December of the same year, the Khitan invaded south. Li Siyuan led his army to the north and defeated the Khitan in Zhuozhou.

In the third year of Tongguang (925), Li Siyuan was transferred to the Chengde Army and moved to Zhenzhou (now Zhengding, Hebei). At this time, Tang Zhuangzong had already neglected government affairs, connived at eunuchs and servants to disrupt government, and killed Guo Chongtao, Zhu Youqian and other heroes without guilt. Because of his high position, Li Siyuan was also suspicious of Zhuang Zong.

In December, Li Si entered the court from Zhenzhou, and Zhuang Zong actually asked all the troops and horses to wait for Zhu Shouyin to monitor him. Zhu Shouyin secretly warned Li Siyuan, saying that he had reached the point where "those who are virtuous and revitalize the master are in danger, and those who have made great achievements in the world will not be rewarded", so let him make plans early. But he was unmoved. At that time, Li Siyuan was often slandered by rumors, but fortunately, Li Shaohong, a privy counselor, exonerated him and saved him from being killed.

In February of the fourth year of Tongguang (926), Wei Boshu mutinied in Beizhou (now Qinghe, Hebei), pushed Zhao Zaili as the leader, and invaded Yedu. Tang Zhuangzong initially ordered Yuan Xingqin to conquer, but he failed again and again, so he had to use Li Siyuan to let him lead from Ma Zhi (the emperor's personal army number) to the north and meet Yuan Xingqin to quell the rebellion. In March, Li Siyuan arrived in Yedu, stationed in the southwest of the city, and set a date for the siege. From Ma Zhi mutinied on the eve of the siege, kidnapped Li Siyuan, claiming to join forces with the Yedu rebels and support him as Emperor Hebei.

Zhao Zaili led the generals out of the city to greet them, and welcomed Li Siyuan into Yedu, but the rebel army was not allowed to enter the city. Under the pretext of appeasing the stragglers, Li Siyuan escaped from Yedu and arrived in Wei County. [24] He ordered Zhang Qianzhao to go to the camp of Yuanxing Qin and summoned him to come and quell the rebellion together. Yuan Xingqin suspected that he was cheating, and led 10,000 cavalry to retreat to Weizhou (now Weihui, Henan), falsely accusing Li Siyuan of conspiring with the rebels to rebel.

When Li Siyuan first arrived in Wei County, his subordinates were less than 100 people, and after summoning Huo Yanwei's 5,000 Zhenzhou army, he recovered some troops slightly. He wanted to return to the town of Chengde and wait for the emperor to condemn him. However, Huo Yanwei and An Chongzhi were both opposed, and suggested that he return to the imperial court and defend himself to the emperor in person. Li Siyuan then led the army to return to the south, and appealed several times, showing his heart to Tang Zhuangzong, but was stopped by Yuan Xingqin and failed to reach.

At that time, Li Siyuan's eldest son, Li Congjing, was serving in the Luoyang Forbidden Army, and was ordered by Zhuangzong to appease Li Siyuan, but he was also detained by Yuan Xingqin in Weizhou. Li Siyuan was suspicious and uneasy, but he adopted the advice of his son-in-law Shi Jingjiao and decided to attack Bianzhou and seek self-reliance. Wang Yanqiu, the defense envoy of Qizhou, Fang Zhiwen, the assassin of Beizhou, and the Ma Jun of the right wing of Beijing, all commanded An Xiantong, and Fu Xi, the envoy of Pinglu Jiedu, all supported Li Siyuan and led his troops to join him. Li Siyuan's troops increased greatly.

Tang Zhuangzong personally led the army to the east, wanting to sit in Bianzhou to command the counterinsurgency. He ordered Long Xiang to command Yao Yanwen to lead an army of 800 horses as the vanguard, and ordered Pan Huan to lead the army to guard the grain and grass. Yao Yanwen and Pan Huan both surrendered to Li Siyuan. At this time, Li Siyuan had already preemptively occupied Bianzhou. Knowing that the situation was irreparable, Zhuang Zong marched to Wansheng Town (northwest of present-day Zhongmu, Henan) and ordered to return to Luoyang in a hurry. More than half of the soldiers fled along the way.

He decided to go to Bishui Pass (northwest of present-day Xingyang, Henan), join the army of Shu under the command of his eldest son Li Jiqi, and then join forces to attack Li Siyuan. From Ma Zhi's command, Guo Congqian suddenly launched a rebellion and led his troops to attack Xingjiaomen. Zhuang Zongqin led the guards to fight, but died in the middle of the arrow. At that time, Luoyang was in turmoil, and the kings of the clan such as King Tong Li Cunqo and King Ya Li Cunji fled away. Zhu Shouyin sent an envoy to Li Siyuan's army and asked him to enter the capital as soon as possible to stabilize the situation.

In April of the same year, Li Siyuan led his army into Luoyang and ordered the generals to quell the chaos in Beijing. He asked the hundred officials to settle down and wait for Li Jiqi to return to Beijing to succeed to the throne, and said that he would return to Chengde after burying Zhuangzong. Prime Minister Dou Luge and Wei Shuo and privy envoys Li Shaohong and Zhang Juhan led hundreds of officials to persuade them, but they were all refused, and Li Siyuan was asked to supervise the country instead. Li Siyuan then entered the Great Inner Xingsheng Palace and accepted the worship of hundreds of officials in the name of the prison state.

He appointed Shi Jingjiao as the queen of Shaanzhou to guard against the army of Shu, and at the same time ordered various places to visit the kings. An Chongzhi secretly sent people to kill Li Cunqo and Li Cunji. Li Cunwu, the king of Shen, and Li Cunba, the king of Yong, were killed by the rebellious army, and Li Cunli, the king of Xue, the prince Li Jisong, Li Jitong, Li Jichan, and Li Jiyao were all missing. Soon, the Wei king Li Jiqi hanged himself in Weinan, and the army of Shu was attached to Li Siyuan under the leadership of Ren Yuan. The obstacles to Li Siyuan's claim to be emperor were all cleared.

On April 20 of the first year of Tiancheng (926), Li Siyuan proclaimed himself emperor in the West Palace. He wore a garment of decay, that is, in front of Li Cunqiao's corpse, to signify that he was a legitimate heir, not a usurper.

At that time, Li Siyuan was 60 years old and entrusted the government to the privy envoy An Chongzhi and the prime minister Ren Yuan. Ren Yuan also served as the third envoy, in charge of the country's finances. He selected virtuous people, put an end to private doors, worried about the country like a family, and made "the treasury full, the military and the people were sufficient, and the court was rude". Heavy teaching is Li Siyuan's meritorious hero, although he is loyal to his duties, but he is pampered and good at prestige. He and Ren Yuanzheng disagreed, and they often acted in a high-spirited manner when discussing politics, and even scolded each other.

In the first year of Changxing (930 Tiancheng two years (927), Ren Yuan was deposed as the crown prince Shaobao, and asked Zhishi to retire to Cizhou. In October of the same year, Li Siyuan wanted to visit Bianzhou. At that time, rumors arose in the government and the opposition, some said that the emperor was preparing to conquer Huainan in the east, and some said that the emperor was going to destroy the warlords of the feudal towns.

The Xuanwu army made Zhu Shouyin feel uncomfortable, and took the opportunity to launch a rebellion in Bianzhou, but was pacified by Fan Yanguang and his army. An Chongzhi took the opportunity to frame Ren Yuan for rebellion, saying that he was colluding with Zhu Shouyin, and gave Ren Yuan death. Li Siyuan knew that Ren Yuan died unjustly, but he did not pursue it. Since then, An Chongzhi has been even more powerful, and even the princes Li Congrong and Li Conghou have been very respectful to him, but they are afraid of Li Congke. He fabricated an edict and instigated Hezhongya to expel Yang Yanwen from Li Congke.

In the first year of Changxing (930), Li Congke went out of the city to inspect the war horses. Yang Yanwen took the opportunity to close the city gate, did not allow Li Congke to enter the city, and forced him to return to Luoyang. Li Siyuan recalled Li Congke back to the court, and at the same time ordered Yao Yanchou to lead the army to pacify Yang Yanwen. An Zhongzhi also instigated the prime minister to discuss and investigate Li Congke's crime, wanting to take the opportunity to get rid of Li Congke. Li Siyuan rejected the prime minister's proposal, and only ordered Li Congke to stay at home.

Later, the generals of the forbidden army, Li Xingde and Zhang Jian, impeached An for reinstructing private equity soldiers, preparing weapons, and plotting against him. Although Li Siyuan sentenced Li Xingde and Zhang Jian for the crime of false accusation, he also became suspicious of An Chongzhi and ordered Fan Yanguang to serve as a privy envoy at the same time to disperse An Chongzhi's power.

In the second year of Changxing (931), An Chongzhi was relieved of his position as a privy envoy and was released as an envoy to the river festival, and then he was appointed as the prince and the prince. Later, Li Siyuan suspected that An Chongzhu had different aspirations, and appointed Li Congzhang as the envoy of the Hezhong Festival, let him supervise An Chongxue, and let the infantry army command Yao Yanchou lead the army to the river. Li Congzhang led a soldier to surround An Chongxue's mansion and killed An Chongzhi and his wife with iron. Li Siyuan issued another edict to convict An Chongzhu.

In the fourth year of Changxing (933), Li Siyuan wanted to annex the Dingyan Army of Xiazhou (now Jingbian, Shaanxi) by "changing towns", but was resisted by Li Yichao after staying in Dingnan. He transferred troops to attack Xiazhou, but he couldn't attack it for a long time, so he had to compromise and grant Li Yichao as the envoy of the difficult festival. At that time, the imperial court had not used soldiers for a long time, and once it sent troops but returned in vain, rumors spread in the army. Li Siyuan ordered the soldiers to be rewarded, but there was no valid reason. The soldiers were even more arrogant from then on.

When Li Siyuan ascended the throne, his eldest son Li Congjing had been killed by Yuan Xingqin. He named his second son Li Congrong as the king of Qin, and appointed him as the Yin of Henan and sentenced the guards of the Sixth Army. Li Congrong was already the de facto eldest son at that time, in charge of the affairs of the Beijing Division, and he held military power, and was able to compete with the prime minister, all signs indicate that Li Siyuan had plans to take him as his heir.

But when the servant Shaoqing He Ze wrote to ask Li Congrong to be the crown prince, Li Siyuan was very unhappy and said: "The ministers please make the prince, it seems that I should go back to Hedong to retire." In the end, Li Congrong was only worshiped as the generalissimo of the world's soldiers and horses, and failed to become the prince. He was extremely uneasy and worried that he would not be able to inherit the throne.

In November of the fourth year of Changxing (933), Li Siyuan was seriously ill. Li Congrong entered the palace to visit, saw that Li Siyuan could no longer raise his head, and when he left the palace, he heard endless cries in the palace. He mistakenly thought that Li Siyuan had died, and the next day he said that he was ill and would not return to the court, and conspired with his cronies in the palace to seize the throne. On the 20th, Li Congrong led 1,000 Ya soldiers to line up at Tianjin Bridge, preparing to enter the Xingsheng Palace by force.

The privy envoys Feng Yun and Zhu Hongzhao and the Xuanhui envoy Meng Hanqiong claimed that Li Congrong had rebelled and closed the end gate of the imperial city, and ordered Li Chongji to lead his subordinates to control the crane forbidden army to guard the palace gate. Kang Yicheng, the commander of the guards, was originally Li Congrong's internal response agreed in advance, but he was also blocked in the palace at this time, and it was difficult to receive Li Congrong. Meng Hanqiong summoned Zhu Hongshi, the commander of the Ma army, and asked him to lead 500 cavalry to attack Li Congrong. Li Congrong fled back to the mansion and was chased and killed by An Congyi, the envoy of the imperial city.

Li Siyuan was inexplicably sad and his condition worsened. He posthumously deposed Li Congrong as a concubine, and recalled Li Conghou, the king of Song, from Yedu. On the 26th of the same month, Li Siyuan died in the Great Inner Yonghe Hall at the age of 67. Li Conghou rushed to Luoyang, mourned for Li Siyuan, and took the throne in front of the coffin.

In April of the first year of the Qing Dynasty (934), Li Siyuan was proclaimed as Emperor Shengde and Emperor Wuqinxiao, and the temple name was Mingzong, and he was buried in Huiling.

(End of chapter)