[3][6] In 826, Emperor Jingzong was assassinated, purportedly by his polo players, led by Su Zuoming (蘇佐明).
[7] Emperor Wenzong made Empress Dowager Xiao's older sister the Lady of Xu.
He also ordered that the governor of Fujian Circuit carry out a search for Empress Dowager Xiao's younger brother, whom she had not seen since her departure from home.
There happened to be a worker at a tea shop, Xiao Hong (蕭洪), who claimed to have a lost sister.
Emperor Wenzong came to believe that Xiao Hong was in fact his uncle, and therefore made him a member of the staff of the Crown Prince in 828.
One of Xiao's predecessors as the military governor of Fufang was a Shence Army officer, but died before he could pay back.
After Li Xun was killed in the Ganlu Incident—a failed attempt by Emperor Wenzong, Li Xun, and Zheng Zhu to massacre the eunuchs—in 835, the powerful eunuch Qiu Shiliang, who commanded one of the two Shence Armies, thus came to resent Xiao Hong deeply.
Emperor Wenzong ordered an investigation by the office of the imperial censors (御史台, Yushi Tai).
Emperor Wenzong ordered further investigations by not only the office of the imperial censors, but also by the ministry of justice (刑部, Xingbu) and the supreme court (大理寺, Dali Si).