Emperor Gao of Southern Qi - Under Emperor Ming of Liu Song

Under Emperor Ming of Liu Song

By the time that Emperor Xiaowu's brother Emperor Ming and Emperor Xiaowu's son Liu Zixun were fighting for the throne in 466 after the brief reign and assassination of Emperor Xiaowu's son Emperor Qianfei, Xiao Daocheng was a general, and his allegiance was with Emperor Ming. He participated in the campaign against the army nominally commanded by Liu Zixun's brother Liu Zifang (劉子房) the Prince of Xunyang and governor of Kuaiji Commandery (會稽, roughly modern Shaoxing, Zhejiang), and he subsequently defeated the army sent south by Xue Andu (薛安都) the governor of Xu Province (徐州, modern northern Jiangsu and northern Anhui). For these contributions, Emperor Ming created him the Marquess of Xiyang and made him the acting governor of South Xu Province (南徐州, modern western central Jiangsu). Later, he became the governor of Southern Yan Province (南兗州, modern eastern central Jiangsu), defending the important city of Huaiyin (淮陰, in modern Huaian, Jiangsu). It was said that while at this post, he began to engage a group of talented followers.

During Emperor Ming's reign, there were rumors that Xiao Daocheng's facial features were unusual and were signs that he would become emperor. By 471, Emperor Ming, who had already carried out a campaign of killing most of his brothers and some high level officials in fear that they would not be loyal to his son Liu Yu the Crown Prince after his death, became suspicious of Xiao, particularly because there were also rumors that Xiao was secretly communicating with Northern Wei. Emperor Ming sent his general Wu Xi (吳喜), a friend of Xiao's, with a sealed pot of wine to Huaiyin to deliver to Xiao. Xiao became fearful that the wine was poisoned and was preparing to flee to Northern Wei. Wu secretly told Xiao that the wine was not poisoned, and drank some himself, before Xiao would dare to drink. Once Wu returned to the capital Jiankang, he assured Emperor Ming that Xiao was loyal, but after details of Wu's leaking the information to Xiao became known to Emperor Ming, Emperor Ming forced Wu to commit suicide, but did not take any actions against Xiao. Soon thereafter he recalled Xiao to Jiankang. Xiao's followers largely suspected that Emperor Ming would kill him and suggested that he resist, but Xiao believed that Emperor Ming would not do so, and therefore returned to Jiankang, where he became a commanding general of Crown Prince Yu's guards. (In secret, Xiao told his followers that he believed that LIu Song would not last much longer, and that he would need their support when opportunity presented itself.) When Emperor Ming grew gravely ill in 472, on the recommendation of the high level official Chu Yuan (to whom, along with Yuan Can, Emperor Ming entrusted Crown Prince Yu to), who was a friend of Xiao, Xiao became a commanding general of the capital defense force. Emperor Ming soon died, and Crown Prince Yu took the throne as Emperor Houfei.