Background
Yuan Gong was born in 498, during the reign of Emperor Xiaowen. His father was Yuan Yu (元羽) the Prince of Guangling, a son of Emperor Xianwen and a brother of Emperor Xiaowen. His mother was Yuan Yu's concubine Lady Wang. In 501, during the reign of Emperor Xiaowen's son Emperor Xuanwu, Yuan Yu died from injuries he suffered when he was attacked by his lover's husband, the low level official, Feng Junxing (馮俊興), and for reasons unclear, Yuan Gong inherited Yuan Yu's title even though he had one older brother, Yuan Xin (元欣), and neither he nor Yuan Xin was the son of Yuan Yu's wife Princess Zheng. Yuan Gong also had one younger brother, Yuan Yongye (元永業).
Yuan Gong was described to be confident and strong-willed, and also filiially pious toward his grandmother Princess Dowager Meng and his father's wife Princess Dowager Zheng (whom, under Confucian doctrines, he was required to treat as a mother). During Yuan Cha's regency over Emperor Xuanwu's son Emperor Xiaoming (i.e., sometime between 520 and 525), Yuan Gong, because of Yuan Cha's corruption and violent tendencies, pretended to be ill and unable to speak, living in the Buddhist Longhua Temple (龍花寺). During the reign of his cousin Emperor Xiaozhuang, someone made a report to Emperor Xiaozhuang that Yuan Gong was only pretending to be unable to speak, and had treasonous intent. When Yuan Gong was informed of this, he, in fear, fled to Shangluo Mountain (上洛山, in modern Shangzhou, Shaanxi), but was captured and returned to Luoyang. Interrogations and investigations, however, yielded no proof that Yuan Gong plotted treason, so he was released.
In 530, Emperor Xiaozhuang, in fear that the paramount general Erzhu Rong would seize the throne, killed Erzhu Rong. Erzhu Rong's clan members rose and declared Erzhu Rong's wife Princess Beixiang's nephew Yuan Ye the Prince of Changguang emperor. Around the new year 531, Erzhu Rong's nephew Erzhu Zhao captured Luoyang and seized Emperor Xiaozhuang, subsequently killing him. Yuan Ye traveled toward Luoyang to take the throne. However, Erzhu Rong's cousin Erzhu Shilong was uncomfortable with Yuan Ye's lineage being distant from that of recent emperors, and wanted to find an emperor with closer imperial lineage. Erzhu Rong's nephew Erzhu Tianguang suggested Yuan Gong, and after Erzhu Shilong sent his brother Erzhu Yanbo (爾朱彥伯) to visit Yuan Gong to force him to accept and to ascertain that he was not truly unable to speak, Yuan Gong agreed, and Erzhu Shilong, when Yuan Ye arrived at Luoyang, forced him to yield the throne to Yuan Gong. Yuan Gong, after making three submissions to Yuan Ye declining the throne, took the throne as Emperor Jiemin.
Read more about this topic: Emperor Jiemin Of Northern Wei
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