Intrigue
Li Chong's uncle Emperor Gaozong died in 683 and was succeeded by his son Li Zhe (as Emperor Zhongzong), but real power was in the hands of Emperor Gaozong's powerful wife Empress Wu (later known as Wu Zetian). She took power as empress dowager and regent. In spring 684, when Emperor Zhongzong showed signs of independence, she deposed him and replaced him with his brother Li Dan the Prince of Yu, but thereafter held onto power even more tightly. She also gradually elevated the statuses of not only herself but also her Wu clan members, both past and present. This led members of the imperial Li clan to suspect that she planned slaughter them, overthrow the Tang Dynasty, and replace it with her own.
Read more about this topic: Li Chong (Tang Dynasty)
Famous quotes containing the word intrigue:
“Effeminate men intrigue me more than anything in the world. I see them as my alter egos. I feel very drawn to them. I think like a guy, but I’m feminine. So I relate to feminine men.”
—Madonna [Madonna Louise Ciccione] (b. 1959)
“I never had but one intrigue yet: but I confess I long to have another. Pray heaven it end as the first did tho’, that we may both grow weary at a time; for ‘tis a melancholy thing for lovers to outlive one another.”
—John Vanbrugh (1663–1726)