so. He also falsely accused the chancellor Wei Fangzhi, who was subsequently exiled and executed in exile. Then, at the instigation of Empress Dowager Wu's powerful nephew Wu Chengsi, he accused Emperor Gaozong's sons by concubines, Li Shangjin () the Prince of Ze and Li Sujie the Prince of Xu of treason. Li Sujie was strangled, while Li Shangjin committed suicide. Later in 690, Emperor Ruizong yielded the throne to Empress Dowager Wu, and she took the throne as "emperor" of a new Zhou Dynasty, interrupting Tang Dynasty. Yet later that year, the prefectural prefect Li Xingbao () and his brothers were falsely accused and sentenced to have their clan executed. A subordinate of Zhou's at the ministry of justice, Xu Yougong () tried to get the judgment reversed but was not able to. However, Zhou then accused Xu of acting on behalf of treasonous individuals and requested that Xu be executed. Wu Zetian refused to execute Xu, but for a time relieved Xu of his duties. Death In 691, however, a famous incident involving Zhou Xing and a fellow secret police official Lai Junchen would lead to Zhou's downfall. Earlier that year, general Qiu Shenji () had been accused of a crime and executed, and subsequently, there were secret reports that Zhou was involved with Qiu's crimes. Wu Zetian had Lai investigate, without Zhou's knowledge. One day, Lai and Zhou sat down to lunch, and Lai asked Zhou the question, "Many of the accused are not willing to confess. Do you have an idea of how to get them to confess?" Zhou responded, "That is easy. Take a big urn and set a fire under it. Put the accused in it, and surely he will confess everything." Lai had a big urn brought and a fire set underneath, in accordance with Zhou's instructions, and then rose and stated to Zhou, "I had received secret instructions from Her Imperial Majesty with regard to you, big brother. Please enter the urn." Zhou, in fear, knelt and confessed. Wu Zetian did not execute Zhou but exiled him, and on the way to his place of exile, Zhou was killed by his enemies. (This incident inspired the Chinese proverb "invite the gentleman into the urn" (請君入甕, qing jun Ru Weng), now used for the concept of putting a person into a trap that he himself or she herself had set.) Notes and references