Gao Conghui

Gao Conghui (Chinese: 高從誨) (891 – December 1, 948), might have been born with or used the name Zhu Conghui (朱從誨), also known by his posthumous name as the Prince Wenxian of Nanping (南平文獻王), courtesy name Zunsheng (遵聖), was a ruler of Jingnan during the Five Dynasties and Ten Kingdoms period of China, reigning from 929 to 948.

Gao Conghui was born in 891, during the reign of Emperor Zhaozong of Tang. At that time, or shortly after his birth, he might have been known by the surname of Zhu—because his father Gao Jichang had become an adoptive son of Zhu Yourang (朱友讓), who in turn was an adoptive son of the major warlord Zhu Quanzhong the military governor of Xuanwu Circuit (宣武, headquartered in modern Kaifeng, Henan). (It was not until later in Gao Jichang's career that his name was changed back to Gao—sometime after 903.) Gao Conghui's mother was a Lady Zhang; it was not clearly stated in the historical accounts whether she was Gao Jichang's wife or concubine, although it was said that Gao Jichang favored her. He was Gao Jichang's oldest son.

Apparently sometime after Gao Jichang was made the military governor of Jingnan Circuit (headquartered in modern Jingzhou, Hubei), and sometime after Zhu Quanzhong had seized the Tang throne and established his own Later Liang as its emperor, Gao Jichang sent Gao Conghui to then-capital Luoyang to serve as an imperial attendant, and he later became the supervisor for cavalry supplies. On a later occasion, when he was given a vacation back to his father's post at Jingnan, Gao Jichang kept him at Jingnan and made him a commander of the Jingnan army. At some point, either during his service at the Later Liang capital or after his return to Jingnan, Gao Conghui successively carried the title of prefect of Hao Prefecture (濠州, in modern Chuzhou, Anhui—then under control of Wu) and prefect of Gui Prefecture (歸州, in modern Yichang, Hubei, one of the Jingnan prefectures).

In 925—by which time Later Liang had been conquered by Later Tang, which Gao Jichang then was a vassal of (and had, therefore, changed his name to Gao Jixing, to observe naming taboo for the Later Tang emperor Li Cunxu's grandfather Li Guochang (and Gao Jixing was carrying the Later Tang-created title of Prince of Nanping))—Li Cunxu launched a major attack to destroy Later Tang's southwestern neighbor Former Shu. As part of the attack, he assigned Gao the task of capturing three of Former Shu's eastern prefectures on the border with Jingnan Circuit, Kui (夔州), Zhong (忠州), and Wan (萬州) (all in modern Chongqing). Gao left Gao Conghui in charge of the Jingnan headquarters and attacked west, but was defeated by the Former Shu general Zhang Wu (張武) and forced to return to Jingnan's capital Jiangling Municipality. (Zhang later surrendered his territory to the overall Later Tang commander Li Jiji, not to Gao Jixing.)

In 926—by which time Former Shu had fallen to Later Tang, but Later Tang itself was then overrun with mutinies—Li Cunxu was killed in a mutiny at Luoyang, and his adoptive brother Li Siyuan succeeded him as emperor. Gao Jixing requested that Kui, Zhong, and Wan become part of his territory, and Li Siyuan initially agreed. However, when the imperial government would not agree to Gao's demand that he himself be allowed to commission those prefects without imperial agreement, Gao seized Kui by force—effectively rebelling against the Later Tang imperial government. Gao Conghui was said to have repeatedly urged Gao Jixing against rebelling against Later Tang, but Gao Jixing did not listen. Subsequently, during his (successful) resistance campaign against the Later Tang army sent against him, Gao instead submitted to Wu as a vassal—an overture that Wu initially rejected but later accepted. Apparently as part of Gao's submission to Wu, Gao Conghui was given the title by Wu's emperor Yang Pu of military governor of Zhongyi Circuit (忠義, headquartered in modern Xiangyang, Hubei, then under Later Tang control); Yang also gave him the honorary chancellor designation Tong Zhongshu Menxia Pingzhangshi (同中書門下平章事).

Around the new year 929, Gao Jixing fell ill, and put Gao Conghui in charge of Jingnan's headquarters. Gao Jixing died shortly after. Yang Pu thereafter gave him the title of military governor of Jingnan, and bestowed on him the greater honorary chancellor title of Shizhong (侍中).

Upon his assumption of Jingnan's governance, however, Gao Conghui believed that it was inadvisable to continue to be inimical to Later Tang and be a vassal to Wu, pointing out that Wu's main territory was much farther away than Later Tang. He therefore, through his southern neighbor Ma Yin the King of Chu, offered apologies to Li Siyuan, and later also made the same request by writing Later Tang's military governor of Shannan East Circuit (山南東道, i.e., the same circuit as Zhongyi), An Yuanxin (安元信). When An relayed his request to Li Siyuan, Li Siyuan agreed to his request to resubmit. He then submitted a petition, referring to himself to only to his former Later Tang-approved titles of commander of the Jingnan army and prefect of Gui Prefecture (i.e., not with the ones that Wu had conferred). Li Siyuan accepted his submission, gave him the titles of military governor of Jingnan and Shizhong, and formally terminated the campaign against Jingnan. (Later Tang had not pursued the campaign actively for several years, but had never formally terminated the campaign.) Gao also submitted a petition to Yang, apologizing for resubmitting to Later Tang, but asking that his decision be excused because he had been concerned that the tombs of the Gao ancestors, located within Later Tang territory, would be destroyed. Wu sent an army to attack Jingnan, but could not capture it.

In 931, Li Siyuan gave Gao the honorary chancellor title Zhongshu Ling (中書令). In 932, he created Gao the Prince of Bohai. In 934, he created Gao the Prince of Nanping—the same title that Gao Jixing had held previously.