Chapter 675: Court Coup

After Gao Xianzhi left Shu, Guo Yingyi, the general of the Yulin Army, succeeded him as the military governor of Jiannan and took control of the military forces in Shu. Originally the governor of Longyou and the commander of Qinzhou, Guo Yingyi was known for his extravagant lifestyle. An avid horseball player and lover of women, he combined these interests by training teams of female horseball players, spending hundreds of strings of coins daily, which angered both the common people and officials. When Li Qingan took power, he dismissed Guo Yingyi from his position.

This filled Guo Yingyi with resentment toward Li Qingan, so he followed Li Longji into Shu, where he won Li Longji’s trust and was appointed general of the Yulin Army. Soon after, he defected to his new master, Li Hen, and played a key role in Li Hen’s court coup.

Unlike Gao Xianzhi, Guo Yingyi was highly skilled in governance and well-versed in the rules of the bureaucracy. He was especially adept at adapting to circumstances, never tying himself to one party. During the mass search in Chengdu, he allowed his soldiers to loot openly, enabling the entire army to amass huge wealth.

Moreover, he captured over 5,000 civilians who owned military equipment, claiming to investigate spies from the Northern Tang, but actually extorting money from them—freeing each person for between 20 and 100 strings of coins. From this alone, his army earned more than 200,000 strings of coins, sparking widespread public outrage. The court officials were also furious and even jointly impeached him. Yet Guo Yingyi cared little, as he controlled the most important military forces of the Southern Tang and was unafraid of the civil officials and censors.

Guo Yingyi’s home was not in the city but in a manor in the northern suburbs. Of course, he had a residence in Chengdu as well, but he found it too small for horseball games, so he moved his family to the suburbs and built a manor covering 150 acres. The horseball field alone was 100 acres in size. Every evening, he would organize a women’s horseball match, with red tassels fluttering and delicate shouts filling the air, much to his delight.

However, these days Guo Yingyi had no mood for women’s horseball matches. The struggles for the throne, the loss of Jingxiang, and the pressure from the Northern Tang had weighed heavily on him. He realized his good days were numbered, but he still held out a glimmer of hope—that things wouldn’t get too bad either. The Northern Tang’s occupation of Jingxiang was likely for logistical reasons, and until An Lushan was defeated, they might only be putting pressure on the Southern Tang rather than attacking it outright.

It was already late at night, yet Guo Yingyi still hadn’t gone to bed. Li Hen’s illness gave him a premonition that something might happen soon, and sleeping would cost him many opportunities.

It was almost time for the first watch. He yawned; he was indeed tired. He put down his book and got up to go back to his room to sleep. As soon as he stood up, he heard hurried footsteps outside—those of his personal bodyguard captain.
“General! Someone wants to see you urgently.”
“Who is it?”
“It seems to be… Li Fuguo.”
“What!” Guo Yingyi was stunned. Li Fuguo had arrived.
Guo Yingyi supported Prince Li Jin of Peng. It wasn’t that he had any special fondness for him, but since he had discovered that Li Heng wanted to change the crown prince, he naturally sided with the emperor. To be honest, he didn’t like Prince Peng at all—the prince was too weak, too dull, and too inclined to listen to civil officials. If he became emperor, it wouldn’t benefit him at all.
But Guo Yingyi first considered the emperor’s stance. As long as the emperor supported him, even if it was a pig, he would wholeheartedly back him. Yet Li Fuguo was on the side of the crown prince! Was he coming to ask Guo Yingyi to switch his support?
It seemed quite possible. Xiangyang was in trouble—the crown prince had lost the support of Yu Chaoen’s army, and his situation was precarious. Coming to him might be their last resort.
Guo Yingyi first thought of conditions. He asked again, “What did Li Fuguo bring?”
“Li Fuguo brought several large chests.”
Realizing something, Guo Yingyi smiled and said, “Ask him to wait in the main hall. Bring the chests in as well.”
A moment later, Li Fuguo entered the main hall. Guo Yingyi’s twenty-some personal guards carried five heavy chests into the hall and arranged them in a row.
Today, Li Fuguo came to Guo Yingyi with a humble attitude. Although he could control Li Heng, he was powerless against the court officials who wanted to support Li Jin. The most crucial factor was military support—five thousand Imperial Guards had already pledged their allegiance to Li’s faction, but there were still a hundred thousand troops stationed outside the city, and their attitude was vital.
In history, eunuchs often succeeded against civil officials not only because they held power in the palace but also because their approach differed from that of civil officials. Civil officials cared about face, integrity, and thorough deliberation, while eunuchs were mostly pragmatists—more direct, more efficient, and adept at seizing opportunities.

For example, tonight, Li Heng had already made it clear to Grand Secretary Dou Hua that the crown prince should be deposed and asked him to fetch the imperial edict. However, Dou Hua believed it was too late and that there was no rush; it would be fine to fetch it the next day. He remained calm and unhurried. In contrast, Li Fuguo not only seized the imperial edict first but also devised a plan with the empress and crown prince. Moreover, he left the city that very night to seek support from Guo Yingyi. His method was simple and practical—he relied on interests rather than righteousness.

Soon, Guo Yingyi entered the hall. Glancing at the five chests, he chuckled and said, “It’s so late—hasn’t Eunuch Li gone to rest yet?”

Li Fuguo replied with a smile, “I came to visit the great marshal and express my gratitude.”

“Oh! How dare I accept Eunuch Li’s kindness?”

Li Fuguo knew Guo Yingyi well—he was greedy and lustful. He had been promoted by Li Longji but later betrayed him, showing that he cared only about interests, not loyalty. He was someone who could be coaxed over.

Without saying another word, Li Fuguo opened four large chests. The hall was instantly filled with dazzling brilliance—jewels and treasures so splendid they were blinding. There were two full chests of precious gems and two full chests of gold.

Li Fuguo said humbly, “These are gifts from the crown prince to Marshal Guo.”

Guo Yingyi’s eyes lit up. Intuitively, he knew these treasures and gold were worth at least hundreds of thousands of guan—pure luck. He couldn’t hide his greed, rubbing his hands nervously. “I, I really can’t accept this.”

“The crown prince has long admired Marshal Guo but never had the chance to show his appreciation. This is just a small part of his gratitude.”

Implied by Li Fuguo’s words were even greater benefits. Guo Yingyi stopped pretending and immediately ordered his guards to carry the four chests into his wife’s room. Li Fuguo was then invited to his study.

Once they sat down in the study, since the matter had been brought up, Guo Yingyi didn’t beat around the bush and asked directly, “I wonder what other gifts the crown prince has for me?”

Li Fuguo smiled and presented an exorbitant list: “Fifty palace maids, all the finest beauties. Additionally, the title of General of the Cavalry, Prince of Jinchang with a fief of five hundred households, plus the position of Minister of War and co-chancellor of the imperial court.”

Jinchang was a county under Shazhou and also Guo Yingyi’s hometown. Wealth, the title of prince, the rank of general, and the position of chancellor—Li Longji was really generous! Guo Yingyi gasped. Even the emperor’s concubines were being given to him. What was the intention? Could it be…

Suddenly, Guo Yingyi realized this wasn’t just about getting his support.

“Eunuch Li, is something wrong?”

Li Fuguo nodded and said darkly, “The emperor’s illness has suddenly worsened. The imperial physicians say he may not make it through the night.”

“What!” Guo Yingyi’s eyes widened in shock. He couldn’t endure this any longer. “How… how is this possible?”
“It’s a disease that has been with him since childhood. I know—he’s most vulnerable to extreme stress. The fall of Xiangyang and the destruction of his 200,000-strong army caused him too much stress, triggering the recurrence of his old illness.”
Li Fuguo pointed. “The imperial physicians said a lot of blood flowed from his body; even his facial features bled. Alas! None of us expected this—it happened so suddenly.”
Guo Yingyi suddenly understood. Blood from the facial features—what could that mean? He grasped it all at once. At that moment, he made up his mind. Since Li Heng was no longer alive, what reservations did he have? In life, interests come first.
“What does the crown prince want me to do?”
Li Fuguo seemed to see the light of victory. He eagerly said, “The crown prince wants the troops to enter the city immediately and impose a city-wide curfew.”
……
In the middle of the night, Li Heng suddenly woke up. Perhaps it was thirst, perhaps the sound of footsteps, or some inexplicable unease. He slowly opened his eyes and saw several shadowy figures standing by his bed. All the lights were out, so he couldn’t make out their faces.
“Who… who are you?”
“Father, it’s your son!” It was the voice of Crown Prince Li Xi.
“What are you doing here… why isn’t the light on?”
Li Heng was very weak, speaking in broken phrases. Li Xi suddenly knelt before him and kowtowed. “I’ve come to ask you to abdicate, Father. Since you can no longer govern, let me take charge and save the Southern Tang from crisis.”
“What did you say?”
Fury surged in Li Heng’s heart. He struggled to sit up, but Li Xi held him down, preventing him from moving.
“Someone! Help!”
In desperation, Li Heng shouted, but no one came for a long time.
Li Xi smiled coldly. “Father, there’s no need to shout. No one will come.”
“Rebel son! What… what do you intend to do?”
Suddenly, Li Heng saw murderous intent in his son’s eyes. Frightened, he quickly said, “Very well! I’ll issue an edict to pass the throne to you. I’ll become the retired emperor.”
Li Xi shook his head. “There’s no need for an edict from Father. I’m the crown prince. As soon as Father passes away, I’ll naturally ascend the throne.”
With that, Li Xi stood up and gave a signal to the men in black nearby. They stepped forward, holding down Li Heng’s head and limbs, forcing open his mouth. One of them took out a small gourd bottle, removed the stopper, and poured something into his mouth.

Li Heng was terrified beyond measure. He struggled desperately, but to no avail—the poisonous wine was poured into his stomach. Li Xi watched him coldly from start to finish. By this moment, any father-son affection had vanished; they were merely rivals fighting for the throne—either he died or he lived.
“Father, don’t blame me! It was you who wanted to depose me first!”
These were the last words Li Heng heard in this world. The intense pain in his stomach was unbearable. He tried to roll around, but his body was firmly held down, forcing him to slowly face death.
Suddenly, the image of his eldest son Li Yu being poisoned appeared before his eyes. He leaned by the window, reaching out as if shouting for his father to spare his life, along with his grandson and his father. All those who had died came back to life before him. There were also countless others who wanted to kill him, but they were stopped by his eldest son. He shouted, “Don’t kill my father!”
A tear of regret rolled down Li Heng’s cheek.
…
At the very moment Li Heng died from poisoning, 100,000 soldiers from Jiannan rushed into the city again, imposing martial law. The neighborhood gates were closed, the city gates remained shut, and no one was allowed to leave.
The Prince of Peng’s palace was also surrounded by thousands of soldiers. At the fourth watch, Li Xi issued an order to execute the Prince of Peng. Thousands of soldiers rushed into the palace, killing anyone they encountered. Li Jin and Yan Kai, realizing the situation was dire, fled in panic to the Buddhist scripture building in the back yard, only to be slaughtered by the pursuing soldiers. Poor Yan Kai didn’t even have time to reveal his identity before being killed as well.
At the fifth watch, the Right Prime Minister Wang Gong submitted a letter to Li Xi, formally declaring his support for him to ascend the throne. The Left Prime Minister Cui Yuan also expressed his support for his coronation.
As dawn broke, Crown Prince Li Xi, dressed in imperial robes and escorted by 3,000 armored soldiers, entered the Qinzhen Hall to ascend the throne. He received congratulations from all officials and officially became emperor, changing the era name to Xuanren.
The reign of the third emperor of Southern Tang had begun.