Before establishing the Later Tang Dynasty, Li Cunxu launched a southern campaign against the Later Liang Dynasty. During a battle with Liu, a fierce general of the Later Liang, Li Cunxu had not yet formed his battle lines when Liu led a sudden assault. At this critical moment, Li Cunxu's subordinate Shi Jingtang stepped forward to cover his retreat, ensuring Li's safe escape and earning great merit. After this event, Shi Jingtang not only received high praise from Li Cunxu but also became a renowned general far and wide.
Shi Jingtang was the second son in his family, quiet and reserved from a young age, yet deeply interested in the art of war. The great Warring States general Li Mu and the Han Dynasty general Zhou Yafu were the two military commanders he admired most. After reaching adulthood, Shi Jingtang served under Li Cunxu and fought alongside Li Cunxu's adopted son, Li Siyuan, on numerous campaigns. Li Siyuan faced life-threatening dangers several times, and each time Shi Jingtang rescued him. As a result, Li Siyuan held Shi Jingtang in high regard, put him in command of the elite "Left Archery Army" guards, and even married his daughter, Princess Yongning, to him.
On the battlefield, Shi Jingtang was brave and skilled in combat, repeatedly achieving remarkable feats. Politically, he was also highly strategic, to the extent that even his father-in-law, Li Siyuan, would seek his advice when encountering problems. Shi Jingtang served in various posts in Shanzhou, Weibo, and Hedong, where he was known for his incorruptible governance and outstanding achievements, earning him great popularity among the people.
During Shi Jingtang's tenure in Hedong, Li Siyuan died of illness, and his son Li Conghou ascended the throne. Li Conghou transferred Li Siyuan's adopted son Li Congke from Shaanxi to Hedong as military governor, while reassigning Shi Jingtang to Zhenzhou as the military governor of Chengde Army. Unexpectedly, Li Congke then raised an army in rebellion. Li Conghou sent troops to suppress him, but the dispatched army surrendered to Li Congke instead. Leading his forces, Li Congke directly attacked the capital Luoyang. Li Conghou fled in panic and encountered Shi Jingtang on the way. It turned out that Shi Jingtang had been invited by Li Congke to discuss military and political affairs. To curry favor with Li Congke, Shi Jingtang killed all of Li Conghou's attendants and captured Li Conghou alive. Later, Li Conghou died at the hands of Li Congke, who also seized the throne from him.
What Shi Jingtang never expected was that by helping Li Congke eliminate his greatest threat, he not only failed to earn his trust but instead became a thorn in his side. Unable to return home, Shi Jingtang was forced to remain in the capital Luoyang, where he grew haggard and ill from worry and sickness. Seeing this, his wife Princess Yongning could only plead for help from her mother, Empress Dowager Cao. Although Li Congke was only Li Siyuan's adopted son and shared no blood relation with Empress Dowager Cao, he had been favored by her since childhood. When she asked him to let her son-in-law Shi Jingtang go home, he agreed. Li Congke did this partly to show respect to Empress Dowager Cao, but also because he believed Shi Jingtang was already gravely ill and no longer a threat.
With the help of his mother-in-law and wife, Shi Jingtang finally returned to Hedong. After recovering his health, in order to make Li Congke let down his guard, Shi Jingtang pretended to still be ill and unable to manage the Hedong region. At the same time, he requested that Li Congke stockpile large amounts of military grain in Hedong to prepare for a possible attack by the Khitan at any time. Li Congke believed this, as the Khitan were indeed frequently harassing the borders of the Later Tang Dynasty at that time. In reality, resisting the Khitan's attacks was merely an excuse for Shi Jingtang; his true goal was to deal with Li Congke.
Shi Jingtang's wolf-like ambition fooled Li Congke but did not deceive the soldiers of Hedong. Some soldiers wanted to make Shi Jingtang emperor and even shouted "Long live!" to him in front of Li Congke's envoy. This sudden upheaval left Shi Jingtong at a loss, and he executed all thirty-six soldiers who had led the cheers. Even so, Shi Jingtang could not rest easy; he submitted a memorial to Li Congke requesting a transfer to serve as a military governor elsewhere. This was certainly not Shi Jingtang's true intention—he did so merely to test whether Li Congke had become suspicious of him.
The minister Xue Wentong believed that Shi Jingtang's rebellion was only a matter of time, and suggested transferring him elsewhere to catch him off guard; Li Congke accepted this advice. Realizing that his ambitions had been seen through by Li Congke, Shi Jingtang had no choice but to stall for time as best he could. Using illness as an excuse, he remained in Hedong and declared that Li Congke was merely the adopted son of the late emperor and had no right to the throne, demanding that Li Congke abdicate and let Li Siyuan's biological son, Li Congyi, succeed. This finally enraged Li Congke, who first stripped Shi Jingtang of all his official positions and then sent troops to attack him.
Despite extensive preparations beforehand, Shi Jingtang was still no match for Li Congke. At this critical juncture, Shi Jingtang chose to seek aid from Yelü Deguang, the ruler of the Liao Kingdom. Yelü Deguang personally led his troops to defeat Li Congke's Later Tang army. Shi Jingtang then established the Later Jin Dynasty and ascended the throne as Emperor Gaozu of Later Jin.
Shi Jingtang, having received such great favor from Yelü Deguang, naturally had to pay a corresponding price. In fact, the two sides had already agreed on the terms from the start: as long as Yelü Deguang helped Shi Jingtang ascend the throne, the regime Shi Jingtang established would thereafter refer to itself as a vassal state to the Liao Kingdom, paying tribute annually with large quantities of goods, and ceding the entire Sixteen Prefectures of Youyun, located in present-day Hebei and northern Shanxi, to the Liao Kingdom.
From this point on, every year the Later Jin would tribute 300,000 bolts of silk to the Liao Kingdom. Additionally, although Shi Jingtang was a full ten years older than Yelü Deguang, that did not stop him from addressing Yelü Deguang as "Imperial Father." The Sixteen Prefectures of Youyun covered a vast area and held a strategically critical position; after the Liao Kingdom occupied this region, the Great Wall—the natural barrier between the Central Plains and the Liao—fell within Liao's sphere of influence. From then on, it became extremely easy for the Liao people to invade the Central Plains. By becoming the "Son Emperor," Shi Jingtang also became a sinner who brought disaster to the people of the Central Plains.
After Shi Jingtang became emperor, his life was far from easy. Envoys from the Liao Kingdom often spoke to him disrespectfully, even harshly criticizing him, yet he could not show anger and had to force a smile and speak kindly in return. Most of the Later Jin court officials advocated resisting Liao's oppression, with only a few ministers, such as Sang Weihan, insisting on enduring Liao's humiliation in silence. Shi Jingtang followed Sang Weihan's advice and continued to play the role of a humble "child emperor." Meanwhile, rebellions kept breaking out within the Later Jin, as generals across the land rose up to seize the throne. During the suppression of these revolts, two of Shi Jingtang's sons died, and Shi Jingtang himself fell gravely ill. Before the rebellions could be quelled, this "child emperor" breathed his last.