The Rebellion Case of Li Zhen, Prince of Yue and Prefect of Cai

In 688 AD, Li Zhen, the Prince of Yue and Prefect of Cai, along with his son Li Chong, Prince of Langya, conspired with other Tang imperial clan members to rebel against Empress Dowager Wu Zetian. Alarmed by Wu Zetian's consolidation of power, her deposition of Emperor Zhongzong, and the virtual house arrest of Emperor Ruizong, they planned a joint uprising. Li Chong launched the first attack but was quickly defeated and killed. Li Zhen subsequently raised an army in Yuzhou (Cai Prefecture) in an attempt to march on Luoyang. However, his forces were demoralized and outnumbered by the central government troops. After a brief siege, Li Zhen retreated into the prefectural office and committed suicide by drinking poison. Following the failed rebellion, his corpse was decapitated for public display.

Li Zhen was posthumously convicted of high treason. His head was cut off and publicly exhibited. He was stripped of his imperial surname Li and forcibly renamed with the derogatory surname "Hui" (Viper), symbolizing his expulsion from the royal lineage and marking him as a beast rather than a human. His sons and close associates were executed, and his family properties confiscated.

The central controversy was whether Li Zhen's military action constituted righteous loyalty ("Qing Jun Ce") to protect the Li family's Tang Dynasty against a usurper, or whether it was an illegal act of treason and rebellion threatening state stability under the legitimate regency of Empress Dowager Wu.

This case triggered a massive political purge. Wu Zetian used the rebellion as a pretext to eliminate the Tang imperial clan, executing prominent princes including Li Yuanjia and Li Lingkui. The subsequent "Cruel Officials" political culture flourished, allowing Wu Zetian to solidify her absolute power and formally establish the Wu Zhou dynasty a year later, fundamentally altering the succession of the Tang Dynasty.