The Key to the Shift from Prosperity to Decline

The train raced along.

Cheng Yaojin, Zhangsun Wuji, and the others kept their eyes fixed on the window, feeling they could watch the scenery all day without growing tired.

At noon, several maids brought up cooked dishes, along with plenty of appetizers for drinking.

Li Shimin opened a bottle of Maotai, and everyone began to drink.

"Master, this trip of ours will probably take until around six or seven in the evening to reach the destination. How about you tell us the later history of the Great Tang? We can chat while we drink." Li Shimin poured a cup of wine for Qin Ning and spoke.

Qin Ning nodded. "Alright, what do you want to hear?"

"Just continue from where we left off last time," Li Shimin said.

"Where did we stop last time?"

Empress Zhangsun spoke up. "Empress Wu ascended the throne, and the Li Tang became Zhou."

Hearing this, Li Shimin felt a tightness in his chest and couldn't help but seethe with anger.

"Oh? Empress Wu ascended the throne?"

Qin Shi Huang, sitting nearby, showed interest, his face filled with surprise. "Master, from the sound of it, does that mean an empress became emperor?"

"Hah, yeah, Brother Zheng."

Zhu Yuanzhang spoke. "Old Li's reign era is now Zhenguan. After Zhenguan comes Yonghui, which is the era of his son Li Zhi. And this Empress Wu is the empress of his son Li Zhi, later known as Wu Zetian."

"Later, when Emperor Gaozong Li Zhi fell ill, Wu Zetian often helped to review and approve memorials. Over time, this led to a situation of 'Two Sages Ruling Together,' and thus Wu Zetian effectively held the reins of state power."

"After Emperor Gaozong died, she deposed her two sons in succession, Emperor Zhongzong and Emperor Ruizong, and then ruled as regent empress dowager, making the realm accustomed to her issuing orders."

"Later, to legitimately ascend to the emperor's throne, she prepared two strategies: first, she suppressed the opposition, employed harsh officials, and severely cracked down on Li Tang clan members and defiant ministers, eliminating potential rebel forces."

"Second, she manufactured a narrative of heavenly mandate, having a stone inscribed with 'The Holy Mother Comes Among Men' unearthed in the Luo River, and used the Buddhist Great Cloud Sutra to claim she was the reincarnation of Maitreya Buddha, proving that a woman becoming emperor was heaven's will."

"Once everything was ready, she smoothly took the throne, ascended at Luoyang, changed the dynasty name to 'Zhou,' and styled herself 'Holy and Divine Emperor.'"

Listening to Zhu Yuanzhang's explanation, Li Shimin gritted his teeth in anger.

Though he had learned of this matter from Qin Ning before, it was nowhere near as detailed as what Zhu Yuanzhang was now saying.

"From what I hear, this Wu Zetian seems to have been quite skilled," Qin Shi Huang remarked.

"Heh."

Zhu Yuanzhang chuckled and continued, "In terms of internal struggles, she certainly could be called quite skilled. But regarding external affairs..."

"During her reign, Wu Zetian suffered successive defeats in foreign campaigns, causing the Great Tang to lose half its territory. Due to wars, natural disasters, the collapse of the equal-field system, heavy corvée and taxes, and corrupt governance, millions of people became refugees."

"If Old Li and his son Li Zhi hadn't laid a solid foundation for the Great Tang, it would probably have been completely ruined by her."

"However, if we were to mention her achievements, she did have some. She broke the monopoly of powerful clans, reformed the official selection system, vigorously promoted the imperial examinations, pioneered the palace examination and military examinations, allowed self-nomination and trial appointments, and broke the centuries-long monopoly of the Guanlong aristocracy on officialdom. Commoner scholars gained entry into the court, laying the foundation for the Kaiyuan era when 'no one was appointed chancellor without passing the imperial examinations.'"

"But that's about it. Strictly speaking, among the many emperors in history, by the measure of achievements, she might not rank in the top hundred. What made her so famous was simply that she was female, and historically, the only female emperor."

"Moreover, Wu Zetian actually had another identity," Zhu Yuanzhang suddenly said.

Qin Shi Huang was taken aback. "Oh? What is it?"

"Old Li's concubine of the fifth rank."

"What is a concubine of the fifth rank?" Qin Shi Huang asked, puzzled.

Zhu Yuanzhang said, "A type of imperial consort."

"Damn!"

Upon hearing this, Qin Shi Huang felt he had stumbled on a huge piece of gossip. He looked at Li Shimin and consoled him, "Old Li, take it in stride."

"I've already moved on; this matter will never happen anyway."

Li Shimin spoke, then turned to Qin Ning. "Master, last time you mentioned the Shenlong Coup. What happened after that? Who became emperor?"

"In the first month of 705, Wu Zetian abdicated, Li Xian formally ascended the throne, the Wu Zhou regime ended, the Great Tang was officially restored, and the era name continued as 'Shenlong.'"

Qin Ning continued. "This was Li Xian's second time as emperor. Earlier, he had been deposed as Prince of Luling."

"Historical comments mostly consider him not a tyrannical or dim-witted ruler, but rather weak-willed and lacking political vision. His achievements were largely the result of inheriting the outcomes of the Shenlong Coup and institutional inertia, rather than proactive actions."

"After Li Xian's death, his son Li Chongmao nominally succeeded him, but in reality, his younger brother Li Dan formally inherited the throne. Li Dan's main achievement was rectifying errors and restoring order. Moreover, the most correct thing he did was to abdicate in favor of Emperor Xuanzong, thereby ushering in the Kaiyuan Era of Prosperity."

"Oh? The Kaiyuan Era of Prosperity?" Hearing this, Li Shimin's mood finally improved a bit.

In history, there were only a few eras that could be called a golden age.

After his own Zhenguan era and his son Li Zhi's Yonghui era, the Great Tang was restored and another golden age was created—how could he not be delighted?

Thinking this way, Li Shimin continued, "It seems this Emperor Xuanzong must have done very well."

Qin Ning said, "He revitalized the state with great effort and created a golden age. After ascending the throne, he first suppressed Princess Taiping's coup to take full power, appointed wise chancellors like Yao Chong, Song Jing, and Zhang Jiuling, and implemented reforms such as streamlining the bureaucracy, cutting superfluous officials, inspecting land and households, reforming the military system, reducing taxes and corvée, and promoting cultural prosperity. This was historically known as the 'Kaiyuan Era of Prosperity,' pushing the Tang dynasty's territory and national power to its peak."

"But then..."

Li Shimin was listening with pleasure, but his expression froze. He frowned, sensing something ominous. "Master, but what?"

"Are you familiar with Emperor Wu of Han?" Qin Ning asked in return.

Li Shimin replied, "Of course. Qin Shi Huang and Emperor Wu of Han—these are among the rare emperors in history who can be compared with me, heh. Master, why do you suddenly mention Emperor Wu of Han?"

Fang Xuanling nearby suddenly said, "Is it the Rebellion of the Crown Prince? Could it be that this Emperor Xuanzong also ended up like Emperor Wu of Han in his later years?"

"Exactly."

Qin Ning nodded and continued, "During the Tianbao era, Emperor Xuanzong grew lax in governance and doted on sycophants, planting seeds of disaster. He indulged in pleasure, favored Yang Guifei, heavily trusted the honey-tongued but sword-backed Li Linfu and Yang Guozhong, and ostracized loyal officials. To control the border regions, he set up military governors (Jiedushi) and delegated power, allowing An Lushan to concurrently hold three military governor positions, commanding nearly 200,000 troops, creating a military situation of 'strong outer forces, weak inner forces.'"

"This eventually led to the An Lushan Rebellion, the crucial turning point for the Tang dynasty's decline from prosperity, and planted the seed for the eventual downfall of the Li Tang."