Li Siyuan
At that time, Li Cunxu was faced with several mutinies north of the Yellow River, the chief of which was at Xingtang, where the soldiers had forced the officer Zhao Zaili (趙在禮) into leading them in mutiny. Li Cunxu initially sent Li Shaorong to try to quell the rebellion, but Li Shaorong's siege of Xingtang was fruitless. The key officials, including Zhang Quanyi and Li Shaohong, all recommended that he send Li Siyuan, and despite his hesitations, he put Li Siyuan in command of the imperial guards and sent him against the Xingtang rebels. Li Siyuan subsequently arrived at Xingtang and put it under siege, but that night, the officer Zhang Pobai (張破敗) led a mutiny and took Li Siyuan and his deputy Huo Yanwei — now with the imperially-bestowed name of Li Shaozhen — hostage, forcing them to join the Xingtang rebels. After some initial confusions in which the Xingtang rebels attacked and killed Zhang, the Xingtang rebels welcomed Li Siyuan and Li Shaozhen into the city, but subsequently allowed them to leave to regather their troops, after Li Siyuan made assurances to ally with them.