Like Qin Shihuang and Han Wudi, Emperor Taizong was an outstanding figure among the emperors of China. Praise his wise and great works, probably a few trains can't finish. But when he was seriously ill in his later years, he also made the same low-level mistake as Qin Shihuang and Han Wudi, that is, he believed that people could live forever. But unlike Qin Shihuang and Han Wudi, he did not ask for immortality, but asked an Indian alchemist to refine the elixir for himself and then take it.
It was the twenty-second year of Zhenguan. You Wei led Wang Xuance, who has a long history, to win the crusade against Tianzhu, and captured an alchemist named Rona, who claimed to have the skill of immortality. Wang Xuance was overjoyed and thought it was an opportunity to please the emperor. The emperor may not be interested in Tianzhu's treasure, but he doesn't want to live forever.
Wang Xuance returned to Chang 'an, the capital, and presented the alchemist to Emperor Taizong. Rona Bomei said that she was over 200 years old, and some nonsense convinced Tang Taizong and respected him like a god. Immediately arranged for him to stay in Jinbiao Guest House, let him refine Dan medicine, and ordered Cui Dunli, a minister of the Ministry of War, to supervise the matter. Then, according to Roldy Bomei's medicine list, he sent messengers to collect strange medicines and stones all over the country. For medicinal materials that cannot be collected in China, messengers are sent to Brahmins and other countries to obtain them.
According to the Biography of Tianzhu Kingdom in the New Tang Dynasty, the tea-making water used by the Indian alchemist came from a stone mortar and was guarded by a stone elephant man. Water has seven colors, whether it is hot or cold, it can melt the gold and iron of vegetation. When a person puts his hand into the water, his skin will rot and he can only scoop it with a skeleton. A medicinal material used in alchemy is a strange leaf. Its tree name is Drunken Leroy, and its leaves are like pears. It was born in a cliff cave in the deep mountain, and no one was allowed to enter the cave. In order to get this leaf, you need to shoot the branches with a square arrow. The leaves will be taken away by birds when they fall, and they need to be photographed again to get them. For an alchemist, obtaining other materials is equally difficult and bizarre. According to historical records, Rolbomei mainly uses mercury, sulfur, arsenic and other substances to refine this Dan medicine.
A few months later, the refining of the longevity medicine was completed. Emperor Taizong 1 year ago suffered from wind disease, probably just a nervous headache and so on; After taking this medicine, the condition has not improved, but has worsened. Emperor Taizong followed Roldi's instructions and increased the dosage. As a result, he was seriously poisoned. He died suddenly in May of the following year at the age of 5 1, which was considered an early death. Otherwise, he could have achieved many great achievements.
Emperor Taizong took the elixir of life and died, but his children and grandchildren did not wake up. After him, many emperors tried to live by taking elixir of life.
Tang Xianzong, known as the Lord of Zhongxing in the Tang Dynasty, still played a certain role compared with those bad emperors. However, since he thought that his achievements had been achieved and the world was at peace, he gradually became arrogant and extravagant, not only building large buildings, but also building palace buildings; Moreover, he believes in Buddhism deeply and wants to live forever. He once wrote to all the alchemists in the world, seeking remedial measures to make them realize their great desire for immortality.
As soon as the imperial edict was written, some courtiers responded positively, and charlatans followed. Prime Minister Huangfu Tie and General Li successively recommended alchemist Liu Bi and monk Datong to Xianzong, saying that they could make elixir of life. Liu Bi claimed to be 400 years old and said that Tiantai Mountain was a place where immortals gathered. Although I know, I can't do it. If I can become an officer there, I may get it. Datong monk also boasted that he was 150 years old. There is also an alchemist, Tian Yuanzuo, who claims to have a secret recipe for turning gravel into gold. Xianzong did not love gold, but was only interested in immortality, so he named Liu Bi as the secretariat of Taizhou and gave him the gold. The remonstrator said: Qin Shihuang also favored alchemists, but did not let them be local officials. Xianzong said: "If you are troubled by the power of a country, you can be the master and live forever. Why bother to seal his official position? " . So ministers dare not protest.
As soon as Liu Ying arrived in Taizhou, she rushed the local officials and people to collect herbs in the mountains. She was flogged for a slight negligence, and she tossed about for 1 years but got nothing. Afraid that he could not fool the emperor, Liu Bi fled to the mountains with his family, was caught by observers in eastern Zhejiang and sent to the capital. Xianzong has always had illusions. Instead of being punished, he was appointed as imperial academy, and let him live in Xingtang Temple, carefully refining the elixir of life. Liu Bi knocked at random, claiming that the medicine had been refined. Xian zong was overjoyed and immediately accepted it; But soon he became restless, thirsty and abnormal. Pei _, a family member in daily life, advised that alchemists came for profit, and the stones and stones they refined could only cure diseases, not be eaten often, and it was even more impossible to make people live forever; It is also suggested that alchemists and recommended people take refined medicine 1 year to test its authenticity. Pei _ said that all this was for the emperor, and Xianzong was furious and reduced him to Jiangling order.
After taking Liu Bi's longevity medicine, Xianzong was unable to go to court for several months because of poisoning. Temperament is becoming more and more violent, and eunuchs around them are often killed for no reason, making everyone feel insecure. In the first month of the fifteenth year of Yuanhe, Chen Hongzhi, the chamberlain, conspired with Wang Shoucheng, the envoy of Guan Junrong to kill Xianzong, who was only 43 years old, in Zhonghe Hall, but announced that the emperor had suddenly died of a drug attack. Even if he is not killed, he will not live long.
After Xianzong was killed by eunuchs, his third son Hengli acceded to the throne for Tang Muzong. Mu Zong was dissolute, indulgent, good at hunting, extravagant in feasting, and indifferent to state affairs. After he ascended the throne, although he executed the alchemist Liu Bi and others, he was later tempted by the alchemist to live forever and took the elixir. Chu Shi Zhang Hao suggested that the first emperor believed the alchemist's nonsense and took drugs to cause diseases. Your majesty doesn't know, how could you make the same mistake? Mu Zong spoke well of Zhang Hao, but he listened, which made him even weaker. In November of the second year of Changqing, Mu Zong played ball with eunuchs, and one of them accidentally fell off his horse. Mu Zong was frightened to disgrace and was ill in bed. But he still used Dan medicine as a lifeline, feasted on it and barely supported it for 1 years. Finally, he died of taking too much Dan medicine at the age of 30.
Tang Wuzong is Tang Muzong's fifth son. In the fifth year of Huichang, he wrote a letter denouncing the disadvantages of Buddhism, which led to the destruction of monasteries all over the country and the return of more than 260 thousand monks and nuns to the secular world, which was called Huichang to destroy Buddhism in history. But the emperor who didn't believe in Buddhism believed in Taoism. As early as two years before the promulgation of the imperial edict to destroy the Buddha, he ordered the construction of Wang Xianlou in the Forbidden City, dreaming of meeting the immortals upstairs. At the same time, 8/kloc-0 people, including Zhao Guizhen, a Taoist priest, were called to give lectures in the DPRK, and a golden record Dojo was set up in the palace to receive legal records in person. Later, Liu Xuanqing, a Taoist priest in Hengshan Mountain, was named Dr. Guanglu of Yin Qing and a bachelor of Chongwen Museum, and was named Mr. Guangcheng. He lived in the palace with Zhao Guizhen and wrote a record of the revision of the law. Li Deyu, the prime minister, advised him not to be fooled by the alchemist, but he said that I understood the truth very well, and he had no big deal in the past. I summoned him just to talk to him about keeping healthy. He believes that Taoist priests like Zhao Guizhen can live forever by taking Dan medicine, which makes them step up refining elixir. He also ordered the construction of the Sendai Observatory in the southern suburbs, and ordered the Shence Army to rebuild 539 rooms in the palace, Wang Xianlou and Langshe, ready to take the elixir and welcome the immortals.
I didn't expect that after eating the Dan medicine refined by Zhao, Liu and others, Wu Zong became irritable like his grandfather. Later, he was too poisoned and his face was gaunt. He couldn't talk for more than ten days before he died. When he was 33, he reported to his grandfather and father.
The thirteenth sons of Xianzong, Tang Xuanzong and Wu Zong, are half-brothers. In governing the country, he inherited the legacy of his ancestor Tang Taizong, who was called Tang Taizong. He and his brother signed their own names. As soon as they came to power, they insisted on killing and exiled Taoist priests Zhao and Liu, and then poisoned them. Another decree aimed at reviving Buddhism was issued, so that all temples destroyed by Wu Zongchao will be rebuilt. But one thing he and his brother are the same, that is, taking Dan medicine to prolong life. At first, he ordered Taoist priests to prepare Dan medicine; Taoist priests all know that longevity medicine is a deceptive activity. Both Xian Zong and Wu Zong are well-known people who take medicine or get sick or die. If they poison this medicine again, their lives will be hard to protect, so they prescribe a strange prescription: it takes 65,438 Jin of plum clothes, peach hair, turtle hair, rabbit horn and raw chicken slices to make the longevity medicine. Such materials, of course, are incomparable. Xuanzong knew that literati made excuses and made people visit famous doctors all over the world. As a result, a man named Li was favored by Xuanzong, who hired him into the palace with a high salary of 700 thousand, appointed him as a doctor too much, and ordered him to prepare an elixir of life. Following the emperor's orders, Li worked hard with Taoist Yu Zizhi and Shan Lesan, and finally developed this fairy medicine. I didn't know that Xuanzong had a poisonous sore on his back after taking medicine. In August of that 13th year of Dazhong, Xuanzong' s back became worse and he could not go to court. A few days later, he was poisoned by the poison at that time, at the age of 50.
In addition to the above five, there were several emperors in the Tang Dynasty who were obsessed with Dan medicine. Tang Gaozong once took Dan medicine in Yao Kai for two years; Wu Zetian took the Dan medicine of Taoist Hu Huichao in his later years; Emperor Xuanzong of the Tang Dynasty also ordered Taoist priests to watch alchemy in Songyang, and the Anshi Rebellion retreated to the emperor's father and was still thinking about burning alchemy medicine in the golden furnace; Scholars in the late Tang dynasty also took the elixir, but after taking the elixir refined by Zheng Zhu, their condition improved. I don't know if it's true or not.
In addition to the pursuit of immortality, there is another important reason that the emperors of the Tang Dynasty were obsessed with Dan medicine one after another, that is, treating diseases. There is a hereditary disease in the royal family of Li Tang called wind disease. According to historical records, people suffering from this disease are Gaozu, Taizong, Gaozong, Shunzong, Mu Zong, Wenzong and Xuanzong. Wind disease, now called stroke, has a sudden onset and a high mortality rate. During the reign of Emperor Gaozong, Wu Zetian was able to master the affairs of state because Emperor Gaozong suffered from wind disease, which made it difficult for her to manage government affairs and gave her an opportunity.