battling warlords, advocated restraint. Emperor Zhaozong did not listen, and ordered Du to be in charge of the operations. Du, despite his reluctance, accepted the order. However, Du's chancellor colleague Cui Zhaowei was conspiring with Li Maozhen and Wang Xingyu, and therefore, everything that Du planned was leaked to Li Maozhen and Wang Xingyu. They reacted by inciting the people at Chang'an to protest against the planned campaign, including violent protests in the presence of Ximen, Cui, and another chancellor, Zheng Yanchang. Emperor Zhaozong's resolve against Li Maozhen was initially not changed, and he put Li Sizhou (李嗣周) the Prince of Qin in command of 30,000 men to attack Li Maozhen, assisted by the imperial guard general Li Hui (李鐬), to escort Xu to Fengxiang. Li Maozhen and Wang Xingyu mobilized their forces, some 60,000 strong, to resist Li Sizhou. As the Fengxiang and Jingnan forces were seasoned veterans, and the imperial forces were new recruits with little combat experience, before the armies could engage each other, the imperial forces were stricken with panic and collapsed. Li Maozhen and Wang Xingyu approached Chang'an. Cui, who had long resented Du, informed Li Maozhen that it was not Emperor Zhaozong's idea to attack Li Maozhen, but Du's. Li Maozhen thus submitted a petition listing a number of accusations against Du, demanding Du's death. Du stated to Emperor Zhaozong, "I had long predicted what would happen. Please allow me to trade my life for Your Imperial Majesty's safety." Emperor Zhaozong initially tried to placate Li Maozhen by exiling Du to be the prefect of Wu Prefecture (梧州, in modern Wuzhou, Guangxi) while also executing Ximen and two other top eunuchs, Li Zhoutong (李周潼) and Duan Xu (段詡) and blaming the campaign on Ximen, Li Zhoutong, and Duan. But even a further demotion of Du to be the census officer at Lei Prefecture (雷州, in modern Zhanjiang, Guangdong) did not placate Li Maozhen, who continued to demand Du's death and announced that he would not withdraw until it occurred. Emperor Zhaozong was forced to order Du, as well as his brother Du Honghui (杜弘徽), to commit suicide. Subsequently, after Li Keyong defeated and killed Wang Xingyu and forced Li Maozhen into brief submission to the imperial government, Emperor Zhaozong posthumously honored Du. Du's son Du Xiao later served as a chancellor during the succeeding Later Liang. Notes and references Old Book of Tang, vol.