This story begins with the counterattack of the Yellow River water thieves, and finally leads to the bloody dusk in the Jiaolan Palace. At the end of the 9th century AD, the Tang Empire had exhausted its strength, with feudal vassals and towns being divided and imperial power falling apart. Zhu Wen, a warlord who came from a humble background and started as a rebel, relied on his extraordinary scheming and ruthlessness to gain a foothold in Bianzhou, the hinterland of the Central Plains, and became the most powerful force in the empire. On the surface, he respected the imperial court and was regarded as the "white jade pillar holding up the sky" by Emperor Zhaozong of the Tang Dynasty, and was given the name "Quanzhong", but in his heart he burned with the ambition to devour the world.
The young Tang Zhaozong Li Ye harbored the dream of reviving the empire, but he inherited a mess riddled with holes. He mistakenly placed his hopes on Zhu Wen, and even moved the capital to Bianliang, the center of his power, under Zhu Wen's "suggestion". From then on, like a moth in a net, every move was under Zhu Wen's control. The imperial palace became a gorgeous prison, and the courtiers, driven by fear and interests, tacitly turned away collectively, and the foundation of the Tang Dynasty was hollowed out from the inside.
All the conflicts broke out in the spring of 907 AD. Tang Zhaozong's birthday banquet became the Hongmen Banquet carefully planned by Zhu Wen. In the Jiao Lan Palace, Zhu Wen forced the emperor to attack the palace brazenly. Under the light of swords and shadows, the blood of the two loyal ministers who tried to escort him was splattered on the spot. The most chilling scene unfolded: no one from the civil and military officials of the dynasty, including the Li Tang clan, came forward, and the group used silence to complete the final blow to the old master. Under absolute force and complete isolation, Zhaozong suffered a mental breakdown and was forced to take the Zen throne.
