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Zhou Zong (周宗), courtesy name Juntai (君太), was an official of the Chinese Five Dynasties and Ten Kingdoms period state Southern Tang. Zhou was a close associate of its founding emperor Emperor Liezu and thus was honored by Emperor Liezu (Xu Zhigao/Li Bian) and his son and successor Emperor Yuanzong (Xu Jingtong/Li Jing). His two daughters became successive empresses (known as Empress Zhou the Greater and Empress Zhou the Lesser) for Emperor Yuanzong's son and successor, Southern Tang's final emperor Li Yu (often known as Li Houzhu). == During Wu == Zhou Zong's birth date is not clearly stated in history — although he was said to be in his 70s at the time of his death during the Later Zhou invasion against Southern Tang,〔''Spring and Autumn Annals of the Ten Kingdoms'' (十國春秋), (vol. 21 ).〕 which was launched in 956〔''Zizhi Tongjian'', vol. 292.〕 and ended in 958 in Southern Tang's submission to Later Zhou as a vassal〔''Zizhi Tongjian'', vol. 294.〕 — placing somewhat of a timeframe around the time of his birth. His family was from Guangling. In his youth late in the Tang Dynasty, there were great disturbances in the region. As a result, he lost his parents, and he was poor. During Wu (one of the successor states of Tang after Tang fell, which ruled over, inter alia, Zhou's home city of Guangling and had Guangling as its capital), Zhou came to serve under the general Xu Zhigao, an adoptive son of Xu Wen, Wu's regent, as Xu Zhigao's supply officer. Zhou was said to be particularly appropriate in protocols and wording, and served Xu Zhigao well, thus causing Xu Zhigao to greatly favor him.〔 When Xu Wen died in 927 at Jinling, Zhou was at Jinling. Xu Zhigao's younger brother (Xu Wen's then-oldest-surviving biological son) Xu Zhixún — who was then in a power struggle with Xu Zhigao over who would effectively succeed Xu Wen as Wu's paramount regent — told Zhou to inform Xu Zhigao, who was then in Guangling serving as junior regent over the regime of Wu's king (but who would soon thereafter declare himself emperor, following Xu Wen's final petition before death that he does so) Yang Pu, that there was no need for him to attend the funeral proceedings and that it was more important for him to pay attention to the affairs of the state. Zhou insisted that Xu Zhixún write this down in a letter, so Xu Zhixún did so. When Xu Wen's other biological sons were displeased that Xu Zhigao did not attend the funeral, Zhou showed the letter to them, and Xu Zhixún was unable to argue against what he himself had written.〔 After Xu Wen's death, the power over the Wu realm effectively became divided between Xu Zhigao and Xu Zhixún, with Xu Zhigao in control of the imperial government at Guangling, but Xu Zhixún in control of the large army that Xu Wen had commanded at Jinling. Given Xu Zhixún's military strength, Xu Zhigao feared him, but Xu Zhixún's arrogance alienated his younger brothers. Meanwhile, Xu Zhixún was not curbing his actions properly; for example, when Qian Liu, the king of Wu's neighbor Wuyue, sent Xu Zhixún gifts of vessels and saddles adorn with dragons and phoenixes — which only the sovereign could use — Xu Zhixún used them, making no attempts to avoid making them into a display. His close associate Zhou Tingwang (周廷望) persuaded him to let Zhou Tingwang take large amounts of wealth to Guangling to try to use them to bribe other high level officials to turn from Xu Zhigao and toward him, but when Zhou arrived at Guangling, Zhou Tingwang, who was friendly with Zhou Zong, secretly pledged allegiance to Xu Zhigao through Zhou Zong, and informed Xu Zhixún's actions to Xu Zhigao — but then, when he returned to Jinling, also informed Xu Zhigao's actions to Xu Zhixún, trying to play both sides. Zhou Zong told Zhou Tingwang to inform Xu Zhixún that he had been accused of seven major crimes and should go to the capital to defend himself. Xu Zhixún believed Zhou Tingwang, and therefore went to Guangling. Once he arrived there, Xu Zhigao detained him and did not allow him to return to Jinling, sending the officer Ke Hou (柯厚) to lead the Jinling forces back to Guangling, thus consolidating the command under Xu Zhigao himself.〔''Zizhi Tongjian'', vol. 276.〕 In 933, by which time Xu Zhigao himself had his headquarters at Jinling with his son Xu Jingtong serving as junior regent at Guangling, Xu Zhigao's chief strategist Song Qiqiu, who was then a chancellor, suggested that the Wu capital be moved from Guangling to Jinling. Xu Zhigao thus began palace construction projects at Jinling.〔''Zizhi Tongjian'', vol. 278.〕 However, the project to move the capital was not popular with the people, and Zhou Zong pointed out to Xu Zhigao that if he moved the imperial government from Guangling to Jinling, then, because of Guangling's importance, he would have to move his own headquarters from Jinling to Guangling, effectively doubling the expense of the movement. The project was therefore cancelled.〔''Zizhi Tongjian'', vol. 279.〕 Meanwhile, Xu Zhigao had long considered seizing the Wu throne for himself, but because Yang was known for carefulness, he did not want to take the potentially unpopular action of seizing the throne from him, and therefore wanted to wait until after Yang's reign — a course of action that Song agreed with. However, one day, in Zhou's presence, Xu Zhigao was plucking white facial hair from his face and stating, "The state is secure, but I am getting old." Zhou, who was then serving as the operations officer for Xu Zhigao's headquarters, realized that Xu Zhigao had the intent of taking the throne, and therefore volunteered to head to Guangling to hint to Yang to yield the throne and to inform Song. Xu Zhigao agreed — without first consulting with Song. When Zhou informed this to Yang and Song, Song became jealous of Zhou's doing so, and therefore not only opposed the action but further requested that Zhou be put to death, as an apology to Yang. Xu Zhigao, not wanting to turn against Song's suggestions at this point, while not putting Zhou to death, demoted him out of the headquarters to serve as the deputy military prefect of Chi Prefecture (池州, in modern Chizhou, Anhui). However, later, Xu Zhigao's other officers Li Jianxun and Xu Jie (徐玠) came to opine the same way as Zhou did, and therefore Xu Zhigao recalled Zhou back to headquarters to again serve as operations officer, while beginning to distance himself from Song.〔 In 937, when, as part of the preparation for the transition, Yang created Xu Zhigao the Prince of Qi and Xu Zhigao became to build a government on the scale of the imperial government, he commissioned Zhou Zong and Zhou Tingyu (周廷玉) to serve as his chiefs of staff (內樞使, ''Neishushi'')〔''Zizhi Tongjian'', vol. 281.〕 (analogous to the ''Shumishi'' positions of the other states at the time, but not using the character ''mi'' (密) to observe naming taboo for Wu's founder Yang Xingmi).〔 抄文引用元・出典: フリー百科事典『 ウィキペディア（Wikipedia）』 ■ウィキペディアで「Zhou Zong」の詳細全文を読む スポンサード リンク
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