The Fractured North: Birth of Eastern and Western Wei
Gao Huan’s fears proved prophetic. Just two years after installing Emperor Xiaojing in Yecheng (534 CE), his puppet emperor, Emperor Xiaowu of Northern Wei, grew restless. Seeking real power, he secretly conspired to eliminate Gao – and even tried to recruit Gao Qian, one of Gao Huan’s most trusted generals.
Gao Qian refused and warned Gao Huan to depose the emperor. But the plot leaked. Emperor Xiaowu executed Gao Qian and fled Luoyang for Chang’an, where warlord Yuwen Tai eagerly welcomed him as a figurehead.
Gao Huan, humiliated but unwilling to march on Chang’an, declared Luoyang the true capital – then deposed Xiaowu and enthroned Yuan Shanjian as Emperor Xiaojing of Eastern Wei. To distance himself from Yuwen’s influence, he moved the capital to Yecheng.
In 535, Yuwen Tai poisoned Emperor Xiaowu and installed Yuan Baoju as Emperor Wen of Western Wei.
Thus, the Northern Wei dynasty – 148 years old – split in two:
Eastern Wei, ruled by Gao Huan from Yecheng
Western Wei, controlled by Yuwen Tai from Chang’an
Though both claimed legitimacy through Emperor Xiaowen’s lineage, they became bitter enemies, locked in decades of warfare.
The Rise of a Traitor: Hou Jing’s Ambition
Among Gao Huan’s generals was Hou Jing – a Jie ethnic warlord from the same hometown. They had grown up together, fought in the Six Garrisons Uprising side by side, and risen through rebellion.
Trusting his old comrade, Gao Huan granted Hou Jing control over more than ten provinces in Henan. To ensure secrecy, they agreed: all genuine letters from Gao would bear a small dot on the back.
Hou Jing respected Gao Huan – but despised his son, Gao Cheng. He once sneered:
“As long as the Great King lives, I obey. But after he’s gone? I’ll never bow to that boy.”
In 547, Gao Huan fell gravely ill. Fearing Hou Jing’s disloyalty, Gao Cheng forged a letter summoning him to court – without the telltale dot.
Hou Jing saw through the ruse. When Gao Huan died shortly after, Hou Jing knew his time was up.
A Desperate Gamble: From West Wei to Liang
Hou Jing first offered allegiance to Yuwen Tai of Western Wei. But Yuwen, wary of betrayal, seized seven of Hou’s provinces under false pretenses.
Outmaneuvered, Hou turned south – to the aging Emperor Wu of Liang, who had just returned from his fourth monastic ordination at age 83.
Blinded by dreams of northern reunification, the emperor trembled with joy:
“This is the merit of my Buddhist vows! Appoint Hou Jing Generalissimo and Prince of Henan – let him lead the northern campaign!”
He sent his nephew Xiao Yuanming with 50,000 troops to support Hou.
But Gao Cheng dispatched general Murong Shaozong, who crushed Xiao Yuanming at Pengcheng (using flood tactics) and routed Hou Jing at Tuoyang (modern Mengcheng, Anhui). Hou fled with only 800 cavalry to Shouyang.
Yet instead of punishing him, Emperor Wu promoted Hou to Governor of Southern Yu Province and supplied him generously.
To test the emperor’s loyalty, Hou forged a letter from Eastern Wei:”Return Xiao Yuanming, and we’ll hand over Hou Jing.”
Emperor Wu replied without hesitation:
“If Xiao Yuanming arrives in the morning, Hou Jing departs that night.”
When Hou Jing read the letter, he gnashed his teeth:
“If that’s how it is – I’ll march on Jiankang and take the throne myself!”
The Wolf at the Gate: Betrayal from Within
Hou Jing found the perfect ally in Xiao Zhengde, Emperor Wu’s resentful nephew. Once adopted as heir, Xiao Zhengde was cast aside when the emperor’s biological son, Crown Prince Zhaoming, was born. Humiliated, he had even defected to Northern Wei – only to be ignored.
Now, Hou Jing promised:”Help me seize Jiankang, and you shall be emperor.”
Xiao Zhengde leapt at the chance:”I’ve waited years for this!”
In autumn 548, Hou Jing marched south under the banner of “purging corrupt ministers.” Local garrisons surrendered or fled. At the Yangtze, Emperor Wu – astonishingly – put Xiao Zhengde in charge of capital defense.
Seizing the opportunity, Xiao Zhengde sent dozens of ships under guise of transporting reeds – and ferried Hou Jing’s army across the river.
Jiankang fell without resistance. Xiao Zhengde opened Xuanyang Gate, and rebels stormed the outer city, laying siege to Tai City – the imperial palace complex.
The Siege of Tai City: Piety Meets Brutality
For months, loyalists held out. Hou Jing tried fire, battering rams, scaling ladders – nothing worked.
Impatient, Xiao Zhengde declared himself emperor and named Hou Jing chancellor. But Hou had other plans.
He realized: Emperor Wu’s prestige far outweighed Xiao Zhengde’s. To legitimize his own future rule, he needed to overthrow the revered “Bodhisattva Emperor” – not a usurping nephew.
So he entered Tai City with formal obeisance, treated Crown Prince Xiao Gang respectfully – and ignored Xiao Zhengde entirely.
Humiliated, Xiao Zhengde wept at the emperor’s feet. The frail monarch sighed:
“Crying won’t save us. We’re both doomed.”
When Xiao Zhengde plotted rebellion, Hou Jing had him executed in the emperor’s name.
Then came the final cruelty: Hou Jing imprisoned Emperor Wu in Jingju Hall, denying food, medicine, and water.
Starving, the 86-year-old cried out:”Honey… I want honey…”
No one answered.
The great Buddhist emperor died of hunger – abandoned by the faith he had so extravagantly funded.
(Remember Yuan Shu in the Three Kingdoms period? Once a proud emperor, Yuan Shu wandered in despair. In one poignant scene, he asked for honey water but was given only plain water.)
Tyranny and Collapse
Hou Jing installed Xiao Gang as Emperor Jianwen of Liang, then styled himself “Grand General of the Universe.”
Gone was the rhetoric of liberation. Now he ordered:
“Any city that resists – slaughter every soul upon capture.”
Temples, gardens, and the unfinished Tongtai Temple pagoda stood as symbols of wasted wealth. Enraged commoners and freed slaves flocked to Hou’s banners.
After two years, Hou forced Jianwen to abdicate, murdered him, installed puppet Xiao Dong, then declared himself emperor of a new “Han” dynasty.
But resistance surged. Regional commanders – like Chen Baxian – united against him.
In 552, Jiankang fell. Hou Jing fled – only to be killed by his own men en route.
His rebellion, which began in the northern garrisons and ended in southern ashes, left millions dead and the Liang dynasty shattered.
The End of an Era: Rise of the Chen Dynasty
With the imperial family decimated, Liang princes fought among themselves for the throne.
Amid the chaos, general Chen Baxian seized control. Seeing no hope of restoring Liang, he founded the Chen dynasty in 557, becoming Emperor Wu of Chen.
But the realm was a shadow of its former self. Northern powers had seized vast territories. The Chen state held only the southeastern corner of China – smaller than Liu Song, Southern Qi, or Liang at their peaks.
The age of grand Buddhist emperors was over.
An era of fragmentation and realism had begun.
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