Chapter 30 The Tragedy of Seven Years
The official history of the Great Zhou Dynasty records the following regarding this palace coup:
"On the 12th day of the 8th month of the 7th year of Jiaping, the Emperor personally led an expedition to Weizhou, with the Empress Dowager acting as regent. On the 16th, Weizhou fell, and the Emperor was struck by a stray arrow. On the 18th, the Empress Dowager's birthday was celebrated, and all officials paid homage. The King of Han plotted a rebellion, imprisoned the Empress Dowager, burned the palace, and installed the King of Zhao."
Because this palace coup occurred in August, which is also known as the "Osmanthus Month," it is historically referred to as the "Osmanthus Month Palace Coup."
In the early hours of the 19th, King Han's troops finally took complete control of the palace and the capital. The Empress Dowager, concubines, and other female relatives were all herded into the main hall of Cining Palace and imprisoned. The ministers who had discussed state affairs with the Empress Dowager were imprisoned in Xuanming Hall.
At noon, the fire in the palace was extinguished. The Qin Zheng Hall was completely destroyed and the Chui Gong Hall was partially destroyed. A total of 27 people were burned to death, including 15 eunuchs, 9 palace maids, and 3 officials.
At noon, King Han summoned officials of the fifth rank and above in the Xuanming Hall. Wiping away tears and stamping his feet, he announced that the Emperor had passed away, and the Empress Dowager was concealing the truth, intending to emulate Empress Lü and Empress Wu Zetian and rule as regent. As a descendant of the Chai family, he could not stand by and watch the Great Zhou dynasty fall into the hands of a woman of a different surname. Therefore, he was willing to defy the world and raise an army in rebellion. He hoped that all the officials would prioritize the well-being of the nation, support King Zhao, promote the Chai family, glorify Mingrong, and jointly resist the Northern Rong.
He had barely finished speaking when an old minister stepped forward from the crowd, pointed at his nose, and shouted, "Chai Jue, 'His Majesty was clearly only hit by a stray arrow in Weizhou, his life is not in danger, yet you cursed the Emperor with your bare hands; your heart is wicked. You launched a palace coup, imprisoned the Empress Dowager, and burned down the palace; your actions deserve to be executed by dismemberment…'"
King Han gave a signal, and a guard stepped forward, slashing with his sword. Blood splattered, a head fell to the ground, and the stench of blood filled the air. The timid officials trembled, while the bold ones turned deathly pale. King Han looked at Chancellor Chen, who stood at the front with his head bowed, and asked in a sinister tone, "Chancellor Chen, you are the head of all officials. Where do you intend to go? Everyone is waiting for your word."
Shen Xiang looked up at him for a moment, then said calmly, "When the emperor passes away and a new emperor is enthroned, there is a set of ancestral rules and regulations. When you see His Majesty's coffin, you should do what you should do. Why do I need to give the order?"
King Han narrowed his eyes, forced to admit that Shen Zan was a cunning old fox, his words shrewd and watertight. He was the Prime Minister of the Great Zhou, and all official documents between the state and local governments had to be signed by him; he couldn't be killed immediately.
"Prime Minister Shen is truly brilliant, a pillar of the Great Zhou. In these extraordinary times, we hope that Prime Minister Shen will remain at the helm of the Strategy Hall day and night." With that, he waved his hand, and two guards stepped forward, took Prime Minister Shen away.
After Prime Minister Chen left, King Han surveyed the entire hall.
In less than the time it takes for an incense stick to burn, he killed one minister and imprisoned another. The other ministers who harbored disloyalty all lowered their heads, not daring to meet his gaze. Then, the civil and military officials who were in cahoots with him all expressed their unwavering loyalty and used the most flattering words possible. Thus, the matter was barely accomplished amidst the clamor of a group of scoundrels.
After the civil and military officials had left, King Han sat on his dragon-carved throne, touching the golden dragon armrests, and looked ahead with great ambition. Establishing King Zhao was merely a temporary measure; who would willingly do the work for someone else's benefit?
When the time is right, he will naturally depose him.
A moment later, Lin Xingzhong, the commander of the Shenyong Battalion, came in, cupped his hands, and said, "Your Highness, the entire palace has been searched, and heads have been counted. Ruan Wu is not there."
The King of Han said doubtfully, "How could that be? She was clearly in the palace."
“We’ve even checked all the bodies, and there’s definitely no one there.”
"That's strange. Could it be that he ran away from the palace?"
The tutor of the Prince's mansion, who was standing to one side, shook his head and said, "Last night we stationed people on all the main streets of the capital. The Prince of Jin's mansion and the Ruan mansion in western Beijing were surrounded. Where could a weak woman like her go if she ran out of the palace? The city gates were closed at dusk last night and have not been opened since. There is no way she could have left the city."
King Han paused for a moment and then said, "Xingzhong, immediately lead men to search the entire city."
The commander, thinking that the King of Han was attracted to Ruan Wu's beauty, frowned and said, "Your Highness, she is just a woman. It is very inappropriate to make such a fuss."
The Grand Tutor of the Prince's Palace said, "Brother Xingzhong, you may not know this, but this woman is a rare commodity. The Prince of Jin massacred 100,000 elite soldiers of the Northern Rong, and they hate him to the bone. They heard that Ruan Wu was the woman he favored, and they are determined to abduct her to the Northern Rong. Dunluye promised the Prince that if this woman is offered to the Northern Rong, he will give the Prince 10,000 fine horses."
The commander suddenly realized what was happening, cupped his hands in greeting, and said, "I understand. I will send men to search immediately."
After searching for three days straight, almost scraping the ground clean, they still couldn't find Ruan Bi. King Han was secretly amazed, but there was nothing he could do. Little did he know that Ruan Bi had left the city through the south water gate that very night—the one who dared to secretly open the water gate for her in the middle of the night was naturally a trusted confidant left in the capital by King Jin.
On August 21st, the emperor at the front lines in Luzhou learned of the Prince of Han's rebellion and the fall of the capital to him. He coughed up blood three times. Already suffering from weakness and anemia, he had never fully recovered. The arrow wound he had sustained aggravated after being struck by the arrow, and coupled with excessive worry, he was beset by internal and external troubles. Overnight, half of his hair turned white. He became increasingly exhausted, spending most of his days in bed, sleeping more than waking.
The Vice Minister of War suggested retreating to Guanzhong, relying on the natural defenses of Tongguan Pass, and awaiting the return of the Prince of Jin and reinforcements from other regions. The Emperor adopted this suggestion, and on August 25th, escorted by 50,000 imperial guards, the army withdrew into Guanzhong, stationing itself at Weinan. He urgently ordered the garrison commanders of Lunan Prefecture to mobilize all soldiers and civilians to come to the aid of the Emperor. With the Northern Rong enemy forces still blocked at Luzhou and unable to pursue them, the Emperor finally had a chance to catch his breath, resumed his official duties, issued edicts to the garrison commanders of various prefectures to come to the aid of the Emperor, and simultaneously issued a proclamation denouncing the Prince of Han.
When the soldiers at the Luzhou front saw the yellow dragon flag being withdrawn, they knew the emperor had left. They never imagined he was retreating to Guanzhong to prepare for a counterattack; they only thought he was cowardly and had fled. Already suffering a defeat and with low morale, they were now even more desperate. Many soldiers deserted overnight, and five out of ten were lost.
At the end of August, Luzhou fell, the army was scattered and routed. The remnants retreated to Mengzhou and Weizhou, leaving only 80,000 imperial guards and 20,000 Hedong troops.
When a wall falls, everyone pushes it down. Seeing the Great Zhou in trouble, the small border states also took advantage of the situation to plunder. The Tibetan Maowei, the two vassal states, and Goryeo all provoked on the border, plundering property and massacring civilians. For a time, border troubles broke out everywhere, and war reports came frequently. Many prefectures were still unaware that the capital had fallen into the hands of the King of Han, as war reports had already been sent back to the capital.
The emperor's proclamation denouncing Han was sent back to the capital by a special envoy and loudly read aloud at the city gates. Only then did the many imperial guards guarding the gates realize the emperor was still alive, causing unrest and commotion. That night, a riot broke out in the capital, with the imperial guards supporting the emperor fighting fiercely with Han's men. At dawn, someone opened the south water gate and the city gates, and Ruan Chi led a thousand elite troops, along with the Empress Dowager, Consort Xie, and other concubines, hastily boarding a ship and sailing out of the capital through the south water gate, heading straight for Shengzhou (Nanjing). Many high-ranking officials and ordinary people also took the opportunity to flee the city with their families.
The city gates and water gates were only open for half an hour before being closed again by the King of Han's men. However, the Empress Dowager's ship, with its sails fully unfurled, had already sailed a thousand miles away, making it impossible to pursue.
It was golden autumn, the autumn wind was brisk, and the vegetation along the canal, not yet stained with the frost or the ravages of war, was covered in yellow leaves, like budding yellow flowers in spring, a scene of boundless beauty. But the Empress Dowager and her concubines had no heart to appreciate it; they were burdened with worries and their spirits were low. Upon reaching Sizhou, the frail and sickly eldest prince, unable to withstand the arduous journey, fell ill and died. A boatload of mournful cries filled the air, moving all who heard them on both banks of the canal.
In early September, Ji Nuli personally led 100,000 troops to attack Mengzhou. The siege continued day and night, and the city fell after three days. The defending general of Mengzhou died defending the city. The Northern Rong entered the city, burning, killing, and looting, leaving nine out of ten houses empty. Fearing further ravages by the enemy's iron hooves, the nearby people packed their belongings and fled south. As a result, the official roads leading south were filled with refugees, with carts and horses lined up one after another, causing severe congestion and several road closures.
After conquering Mengzhou, Ji Nuli used it as his central camp to repair his wounds and reorganize, while awaiting the arrival of the Northern Rong's northern army.
The King of Han personally went to Mengzhou to negotiate with Ji Nuli, expressing his willingness to become a vassal state and pay tribute annually.
The Northern Rong tribes generally believed that they should ignore him, capture the capital of the Great Zhou, seize the land north of the Huai River, use it as a base to prepare for war for two years, and then march south to annex the entire Great Zhou. However, Ji Nuli believed that the Great Zhou's foundation was not broken. The reason they were able to advance so quickly this time was fourfold: first, the Great Zhou thought the Northern Rong were in turmoil and had no time to spare, so they were complacent and their border defenses were lax; second, the Prince of Jin had taken half of the imperial guards with him on his expedition to Jiaozhi; third, the Great Zhou had lost many famous generals and was dominated by incompetent officials; and fourth, the Prince of Han had unexpectedly captured the capital, cutting off the emperor's retreat route and causing unrest in the army. When the king returned to reinforce, the armies from various prefectures and counties would gather to defend the emperor, which would inevitably lead to a protracted war. The Northern Rong, isolated and deep in enemy territory, probably could not occupy the area north of the Huai River for long. Therefore, it was necessary to establish a pseudo-dynasty to control the Han and tie down the military forces of the various prefectures and counties.
On the tenth day of the ninth month, Ji Nuli reached an agreement with the King of Han.
The King of Han returned to the capital and forged Emperor Xuanzong's edict appointing Chai Hao (the fifth prince) as emperor. He sent this, along with a proclamation to punish Chai Gang, to various prefectures, declaring that the Northern Rong were friendly allies and that the southward advance was to uphold the legitimacy of the Chai clan. This tactic greatly intimidated some prefectural officials, who, unaware of the true situation, feared it was an internal power struggle aimed at the extermination of their entire clan. Therefore, they adopted a wait-and-see attitude—fortifying the city gates, neither attacking the Northern Rong army nor sending troops to the emperor's aid.
However, King Zhao, unable to withstand the pressure and unwilling to be manipulated by King Han, hanged himself. Subsequently, King Han installed King Kang (the seventh prince) as emperor and Consort Lin (Tianyin Zhenren) as empress dowager.
On September 15th, the emperor finally received a letter from the Prince of Jin, which had traveled through several places. The letter stated that the local troops in Guangzhou and Hunan would remain to guard the border and continue to fight against the Kingdom of Jiaozhi. On August 22nd, the Prince of Jin led 100,000 light cavalry back to the capital by land, while 200,000 infantry and supplies traveled north by water.
On the same day, the Northern Rong's northern army finally arrived in Mengzhou to join forces, and Ji Nuli used Mengzhou as his base to mobilize troops.
Considering that the 300,000 imperial guards of the Prince of Jin on his expedition to Jiaozhi consisted of 100,000 cavalry and 200,000 infantry, and that the cavalry would mostly return by land, while the infantry could only return by water as quickly as possible, it was decided to divide the army into three routes. The western route would attack Tongguan to intercept troops from the northwestern prefectures of the Great Zhou coming to the aid of the prince, and seize the opportunity to attack Weinan. The central route would attack Changying and Chenzhou to intercept troops coming from the central region to the aid of the prince. The northern route would attack Suzhou, Haozhou, Sizhou, and Yangzhou to cut off the waterways and block the return of the expeditionary army to Jiaozhi.
In short, the goal was to blockade the entire Huai River, trapping the emperor at Tongguan and preventing the reinforcements from crossing the Huai River.
On September 18th, under the cover of night, 60,000 northern troops silently surrounded Suzhou, while another 50,000 marched straight to Sizhou.
On the shore, frost fell overnight.
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