Sui and Tang · Chief Minister

Li Fengji 李逢吉

Attested AD 820 - AD 826

Passages: 26
Chapters: 4
Histories: 1

Overview

Li Fengji was a Chief Minister.

Life and dates

Attested activity

AD 820 to AD 826 敬宗前後
Dated from the passage context · New Book of Tang 175, passage 50
AD 822 to AD 824 穆宗時
Dated from the passage context · New Book of Tang 173, passages 161-162, 165
AD 822 to AD 824 逢吉用事
Dated from the passage context · New Book of Tang 181, passages 74, 85
c. AD 821 to c. AD 824 長慶
Directly stated · New Book of Tang 172, passage 45

Key source chapters

Career and standing

Minister of War 兵部尚書
AD 822 to AD 824 穆宗時 · Appointed
Directly stated · New Book of Tang 173, passage 161
chief minister 宰相
AD 822 to AD 824 穆宗時 · Replaced · With Pei Du (裴度)
Directly stated · New Book of Tang 173, passage 165

Places and affiliations

Polity Tang 唐 · Relation Served
Strongly inferred · New Book of Tang 173, passage 161
At Xiangyang 襄陽 · Relation Recalled from
Directly stated · New Book of Tang 173, passage 161
Organization Fengji's faction 逢吉黨 · Relation Leader of
Directly stated · New Book of Tang 181, passage 91

Events and relationships

Asked emperor to banish Shen
Political · Accuser · With Li Shen (李紳)
Directly stated · New Book of Tang 181, passage 86
Banished
Political · Punisher · With Wu Si (吳思)
Directly stated · New Book of Tang 181, passage 89
Claimed to have urged Jingzong
Political · Alleged advocate · With Emperor Jingzong (敬宗) · Mode allegation Source Person Id Li Fengji (李逢吉)
Directly stated · New Book of Tang 181, passage 85
Engineered accusation in Yu Fang affair
Political · Instigator · With Yuan Zhen (元稹)
Directly stated · New Book of Tang 181, passage 74
Estranged and demoted
AD 822 to AD 824 穆宗時 · Political · Schemer · With Pei Du (裴度)
Directly stated · New Book of Tang 173, passage 162
Slandered and exiled
AD 822 to AD 824 穆宗時 · Political · Schemer · With Pei Du (裴度)
Directly stated · New Book of Tang 173, passage 165

Show 8 more source-backed claims

Sought to entrap
Political · Adversary · With Li Shen (李紳)
Directly stated · New Book of Tang 181, passage 80
Relation Patron of · Person Li Xu (李續)
Directly stated · New Book of Tang 173, passage 165
Relation Rival of · Person Pei Du (裴度)
Directly stated · New Book of Tang 173, passages 161-162
Relation Patron of · Person Zhang Youxin (張又新)
Directly stated · New Book of Tang 173, passage 165
Relation Allied with · Person Wang Shoucheng (王守澄)
Directly stated · New Book of Tang 181, passage 84
Relation Patron of · Person Li Zhongyan (李仲言)
Directly stated · New Book of Tang 173, passage 165
Relation Patron of · Person Zhang Quanyu (張權輿)
Directly stated · New Book of Tang 173, passage 165
Relation Sought to advance · Person Niu Sengru (牛僧孺)
Directly stated · New Book of Tang 181, passage 75

Source notes

Historicity historical
Directly stated · New Book of Tang 172, passage 45; New Book of Tang 173, passage 161

References in the histories

Search passages

History

26 passages

New Book of Tang, Chapter 172Volume 172 Biographies 97: Yu, Wang, Two Du's, Fan · 2 passages

帝初欲頔告老，宰相李逢吉謂得謝乃優禮，非所以示責。 The emperor first wanted Di to retire, but Chief Minister Li Fengji argued that granting retirement would look like an honor, not a punishment.

而李逢吉黨謀傾執政，乃告稹結客刺裴度，事下有司，驗無狀，方坐誅。 Li Fengji's faction, plotting to oust the chief minister, accused Zhen of hiring assassins to kill Pei Du; though the inquiry found no proof, Fang was executed anyway.

New Book of Tang, Chapter 173Volume 173 Biographies 98: Pei Du · 3 passages

權佞側目，謂李逢吉險賊善謀，可以構度，共諷帝自襄陽召逢吉還，拜兵部尚書。 Power-hungry sycophants whispered that Li Fengji was a cunning schemer who could destroy Du. Together they urged the emperor to recall Fengji from Xiangyang and make him Minister of War.

度居位再閱月，果為逢吉所間，罷為左僕射。 Du had been in office barely two months when Fengji estranged him from the emperor and had him demoted to Left Vice Director of the Department of State Affairs.

逢吉既代相，思有以牙孽之，引所厚李仲言、張又新、李續、張權輿等，內結宦官，種支黨，醜沮日聞，乃出度山南西道節度使，奪平章事。 Once Fengji replaced him as chief minister, he sought to destroy him. He gathered his protégés Li Zhongyan, Zhang Youxin, Li Xu, and Zhang Quanyu, allied with eunuchs, planted factions, and spread slanders daily until Du was sent out as commissioner of Shannan West and stripped of the chancellorship.

New Book of Tang, Chapter 175Volume 175 Biographies 100: Dou, Liu, Two Zhangs, Yang, Xiong, Bai · 11 passages

為鎮州小吏，王承宗奇之，薦於李逢吉，繇鄧州司倉參軍擢右拾遺。 A minor clerk in Zhenzhou, he won Wang Chengzong's notice, was recommended to Li Fengji, and rose from Dengzhou warehouse aide to Right Reminder.

逢吉之罷裴度、逐李紳，皆嗾而為奸者。 Fengji's ouster of Pei Du and banishment of Li Shen were both driven by Qichu as his scheming henchman.

李逢吉傳詔：「毋叩頭，待詔旨。」 Fengji relayed the decree: "Cease knocking your head; await the throne's word."

故事，侍郎無宣授者，逢吉喜助己，故不次任之。 By precedent vice ministers were not directly commissioned; Fengji, glad of his support, broke precedent to elevate him.

李逢吉用事，惡李紳，冀得其罪，求中朝兇果敢言者厚之，以危中紳。 Fengji, hating Li Shen, sought grounds against him, found bold speakers at court, and richly paid them to imperil Shen.

又新與拾遺李續、劉棲楚等為逢吉搏吠所憎，故有「八關十六子」之目。 Youxin, with Li Xu and Liu Qichu, were detested as Fengji's attack dogs, earning the name "Eight Passes and Sixteen Sons."

嘗買婢遷約，為牙儈搜索陵突，御史劾舉，逢吉庇之，事不窮治。 He once bought a maidservant then reneged; the broker searched and humiliated him; censors impeached him, but Fengji protected him and the matter was not pressed.

及逢吉罷，領山南東道節度，表又新為行軍司馬。 When Fengji lost office and went to the Shannan East Circuit, he took Youxin as campaign Sima.

宰相李逢吉數言其狡譎不可信，白為濠州刺史，宿上疏自言，留不遣。 Fengji often called him treacherous and had him sent to Hao as prefect; Su petitioned in his own defense and was kept at court.

帝欲以為諫議大夫，逢吉曰：「諫議職要重，當待賢者。 The emperor wanted him as Left Remonstrator; Fengji said: "That office is weighty and should go to a worthy man.

後逢吉罷，詔權知諫議大夫，宰相崔群、王涯同請曰：「諫議大夫，前世或自山林、擢行伍任之者，然皆道義卓異於時。 After Fengji's fall an edict made Su acting Left Remonstrator; Cui Qun and Wang Ya petitioned together: "Remonstrators of old came from reclusion or the army, yet all stood out in conduct.

New Book of Tang, Chapter 181Volume 181 Biographies 106: Chen, Three Li's, Cao, Liu · 10 passages

稹為宰相，而李逢吉教人告於方事，稹遂罷； When Zhen became chief minister, Li Fengji engineered an accusation in the Yu Fang affair and had him dismissed;

帝素厚遇紳，遣使者就第勞賜，以為樂外遷，紳泣言為逢吉中傷。 The emperor, who had always favored Shen, sent messengers to his home with gifts, assuming he welcomed the provincial post; Shen wept and said Fengji had slandered him.

逢吉終欲陷之。 Fengji still meant to destroy him.

虞失望，後至京師，悉暴紳所言於逢吉。 Disappointed, Yu later came to the capital and repeated everything Shen had said to Fengji.

逢吉滋怒，乃用張又新、李續等計，擢虞、昔範與劉棲楚皆為拾遺，以伺紳隙，內結中人王守澄自助。 Fengji, enraged, followed the counsel of Zhang Youxin and Li Xu, promoting Yu, Xifan, and Liu Qichu as remonstrance officials to spy on Shen while secretly winning the eunuch Wang Shoucheng.

會敬宗立，逢吉知紳失勢可乘，使守澄從容奏言：「先帝始議立太子，杜元穎、李紳勸立深王，獨宰相逢吉請立陛下，而李續、李虞助之。」 When Jingzong succeeded, Fengji saw Shen was vulnerable and had Shoucheng report calmly: "When the late emperor first debated the heir, Du Yuanying and Li Shen favored Prince Shen; only Chief Minister Fengji urged installing Your Majesty, aided by Li Xu and Li Yu."

逢吉乘間言紳嘗不利於陛下，請逐之。 Fengji then said Shen had once opposed the emperor and asked that he be banished.

詔下，百官賀逢吉，唯右拾遺吳思不往，逢吉斥思，令告大行喪於吐蕃。 When the edict appeared, the officials congratulated Fengji—all except Right Remonstrance Official Wu Si, whom Fengji banished to announce the late emperor's mourning in Tibet.

此時，人無敢言者，惟韋處厚屢言紳枉，折逢吉之奸。 No one dared speak then except Wei Chuhou, who repeatedly declared Shen's innocence and exposed Fengji's malice.

後天子於禁中得先帝手緘書一笥，發之，見裴度、元穎、紳三疏請立帝為嗣，始大感悟，悉焚逢吉黨所上謗書。 Later the emperor found in the palace a box of the late emperor's sealed papers; inside were memorials by Pei Du, Yuan Ying, and Shen urging his installation as heir. Greatly enlightened, he burned every slanderous document from Fengji's faction.