Yelü Lihu , also named Honggu, courtesy nameXiyin, formally Emperor Zhangsu, was an imperial prince of the Khitan Liao state. As the third son of Liao's founding emperor Emperor Taizu and his wife Empress Shulü Ping, Yelü Lihu served as crown prince during the reign of his older brother Emperor Taizong, who was their second son, as Empress Shulü wanted him to be emperor after Emperor Taizong. However, after Emperor Taizong's death, their older brother Yelü Bei's son Yelü Ruan was able to defeat Yelü Lihu in battle and take the throne. Yelü Lihu was put under arrest and later died while under arrest.
Early life
Yelü Lihu was born in 911, as the third son of Khitan chieftain Yelü Abaoji and his wife Shulü Ping — after his older brothers Yelü Bei and Yelü Deguang. Yelü Lihu was Lady Shulü's youngest son, although Yelü Abaoji would later have a younger son, Yelü Yaliguo, by a Lady Xiao. In Yelü Lihu's youth, he was said to be brave, strong, and ferocious, but was also cruel. Even on minor things where people would anger him, he would punish those people by tattooing their faces or by throwing them into fire or water. There was a time when Emperor Taizu observed his sons sleeping, with Yelü Lihu curled up and sleeping toward the inside. He commented, "This must be a sign that he is lesser to the others." There was also a time when it was extremely cold, when he told his sons to go out to fetch firewood. Yelü Deguang, without being choosy about the kind of wood, grabbed the wood and returned quickly. Yelü Bei selected the dry wood, bundled it up carefully, and then returned with the wood. Yelü Lihu did not gather much wood and lost much on the way, and when he returned, he simply left the wood there and stood by. Emperor Taizu commented, "The oldest is skillful, but the second is more capable. The youngest is lesser than the others." However, Empress Shulü favored Yelü Lihu.
During Emperor Taizong's reign
Emperor Taizu died in 926. After his death, Empress Shulü diverted the succession away from Yelü Bei, to Yelü Deguang, who took the throne as Emperor Taizong. In 930, Emperor Taizong sent Yelü Lihu on an incursion into the territory of Khitan's southern neighbor Later Tang. Yelü Lihu attacked Later Tang's Huan Prefecture, and returned with many captives. Emperor Taizong thereafter created him crown prince and gave him the title of generalissimo of all armies. During Emperor Taizong's subsequent campaigns, Yelü Lihu was often put in charge of defending the capital Linhuang. In 936, Emperor Taizong launched a campaign to aid the Later Tang general Shi Jingtang to overthrow Later Tang. The campaign was successful, and Shi's new Later Jin replaced Later Tang as the ruling regime in central and northern China. Shi remained submissive toward Khitan and in 938 had his chancellors Feng Dao and Liu Xu visit Liao on a diplomatic mission, offering honorable titles to Emperor Taizong and Empress Dowager Shulü, including honoring Emperor Taizong as "father emperor" while Shi referred to himself as "son emperor." Shi also often offered gifts to many key Liao generals and nobles, and Yelü Lihu, as crown prince, was the recipient of many of these gifts as well. However, after Shi's death, his nephew and successor Shi Chonggui took a confrontational stance against Liao, causing Emperor Taizong to launch a major campaign against Later Jin in 946, destroying it. During the campaign, Yelü Lihu presumably remained at Linhuang to defend it.
After Emperor Taizong's reign
Emperor Taizong claimed imperial title over China as well, but soon tired of the many rebellions rising up against him throughout the former Later Jin realm. He began a withdrawal back to Liao proper, but died on the way, near Heng Prefecture. As Empress Dowager Shulü had, when Emperor Taizu died, killed many chieftains so that she could bury them with Emperor Taizu, many of the Khitan generals feared that she would do the same thing again; they therefore resolved to support Yelü Bei's son Yelü Ruan the Prince of Yongkang as emperor. Yelü Ruan was subsequently able to overpower the ethnically Han Chinese general Zhao Yanshou and take over Heng Prefecture, and then declared himself emperor. However, knowing that Empress Dowager Shulü had intended for Yelü Lihu to succeed, Emperor Shizong decided to head back north to Liao proper in order to face off against his grandmother. She sent Yelü Lihu with her army to face Emperor Shizong, but Yelü Lihu was defeated by Emperor Shizong's forward commanders Yelü Anduan and Yelü Liuge. Knowing that her cause was lost, Empress Dowager Shulü accepted the suggestion of the official Yelü Wuzhi and negotiated a peace agreement where she accepted Emperor Shizong as emperor. Emperor Shizong subsequently had her placed under house arrest at Emperor Taizu's tomb, while Yelü Lihu was placed under house arrest at Zu Prefecture. In 960, Yelü Lihu's son Yelü Xiyin plotted a rebellion against then-reigning Emperor Muzong. As a result, both he and Yelü Lihu were arrested and placed in jail. Yelü Lihu died in jail thereafter.
