Dynasties of ChinaFive Dynasties and Ten KingdomsBack beam
Qianhua and others · Reign 913—923
After Brother Zhu came to the throne, he had a ten-year confrontation with King Li Cunxu of the Jin Dynasty in Jiahe. Due to his suspicion of senior generals and favoring his relatives, the country's power declined day by day, and the country eventually fell.
Zhu Youzhen was the son of Zhu Wen and Zhanghuangzhou. He was granted the title of King Jun and served as the Governor of Kaifeng, the Eastern Capital. In 913, he united with the imperial army to kill his brother Zhu Yougui, who had killed his father. He ascended the throne in Kaifeng and restored the Qianhua reign. From then on, he no longer made Luoyang his capital. In 915, after the death of Yang Shihou, the governor of Wei Bo, he divided Wei Bo and provoked a mutiny. Wei Bo surrendered to Jin King Li Cunxu, and most of Hebei was lost.
After that, the Liang and Jin armies faced each other along the Yellow River for nearly ten years. The Last Emperor favored his brother-in-law Zhao Yan and Zhang Hanjie, the brother of the concubine De, and alienated his former ministers such as Jing Xiang and Li Zhen. The famous generals Liu Xun and Wang Yanzhang were either suspected or restricted. In 923, Li Cunxu proclaimed himself emperor, and immediately adopted the policy of surrendering Kang Yanxiao. He took the main force of the Liang Army far north of the Yellow River and led his elite cavalry to Kaifeng. The Last Emperor was desperate and ordered Huangfulin to kill him, and the Later Liang was destroyed.
The Last Emperor is gentle and has no evil intentions, but he lacks the ability to control the overall situation. He favored his relatives and close ministers, alienated the old generals of the previous dynasty, mishandled Wei Bo and lost Hebei, and deposed Wang Yanzhang at a critical moment. He was finally killed by Li Cunxu in one blow. Although the collapse of the Later Liang Dynasty was due to the strong Jin Dynasty and the weak Liang Dynasty, it was also the result of his improper employment of personnel.
PoliticsZhu brother ascended the throne
In February, King Zhu Youzhen, together with Yang Shihou, Yuan Xiangxian and others, launched an army to kill Zhu Yougui, who had killed his father and usurped the throne. He ascended the throne in Kaifeng, the eastern capital, and restored the Qianhua reign. The political center of Houliang moved back to Kaifeng.
MilitaryWeibo Rebellion
Yang Shihou died of illness in March, and the Last Emperor took the opportunity to split Wei Bo into two to weaken its power. The Weizhou sergeants did not want to separate, so they launched a mutiny and kidnapped the Jiedushi envoy and surrendered to Jin. Li Cunxu entered Weizhou and Hou Liang lost the Hebei barrier.
MilitaryThe defeat of Yuancheng
Liang general Liu Xun failed in his surprise attack on Jinyang and moved to Hebei. In February, he was defeated by Li Cunxu in Guyuan City. The 70,000 Liang army was almost completely wiped out. After that, most of the prefectures and counties in Hebei returned to the Jin Dynasty, and Houliang could only defend along the Yellow River.
MilitaryBattle of Huliupi
At the end of the year, Li Cunxu led his army south and fought a fierce battle with Liang Jun at Huliupi in Puzhou. General Zhou Dewei of the Jin army was killed in the battle, and both sides suffered heavy casualties. The Jin army barely won, but was unable to cross the river and go south. The two armies continued to confront each other across the river.
SocietyChenzhou Wuyi Uprising
People who believed in Manichaeism in Chenzhou revolted under the leadership of Guan Yi and Dong Yi, proclaimed Wu Yi as emperor, and fought in Chen, Ying, and Cai states. They were later suppressed by Liang Jun, and Wu Yi and others were taken to Kaifeng and beheaded.
PeopleWang Yanzhang was defeated and captured
In May, King Yanzhang sent out a surprise force to capture Desheng Nancheng, which once turned the tide of the war. However, he was squeezed out by Zhao Yan, Duan Ning and others and was removed from military power. In October, he led a small number of troops to defend the central capital. He was defeated and captured. He refused Li Cunxu's persuasion to surrender and died calmly.
PoliticsThe fall of Houliang
In October, Li Cunxu adopted the strategy of Kang Yanxiao, the general of Liang Dynasty. Taking advantage of the fact that the main force of Liang army was stationed far north of the Yellow River under the leadership of Duan Ning, he led his elite cavalry towards Kaifeng. The Last Emperor knew that he was hopeless, so he ordered Huangfulin to kill him. Huangfulin immediately committed suicide and Houliang died.
He is brave and good at fighting, holding an iron gun and galloping like flying, and is nicknamed "Wang Iron Spear". He was loyal to the Hou Liang Dynasty but was repeatedly ostracized. He was defeated and captured in 923. He refused to surrender and died. It is often said that "a leopard dies and leaves its skin, and a man dies and leaves his name."
He is famous for his resourcefulness, and Jin people call him "one step can make hundreds of plans". In 916, a surprise attack on Jinyang failed and was defeated miserably in Yuancheng. Later, he was suspected because of his slow response to the rebellion, and was forced to drink poison and die in 921.
Zhu Wen's son-in-law and brother-in-law of the Last Emperor was in charge of secrets, had exclusive power to accept bribes, and squeezed out Jing Xiang, Wang Yanzhang and other senior generals. When Hou Liang died, he went to Xuzhou Wen Tao and was killed by Wen Tao.