His mother's name was not recorded in history, but it is known that he was not a son of Li Zhe's wife Crown Princess Wei.
Li Zhe was subsequently exiled to Jun Prefecture (均州, in modern Shiyan, Hubei).
In 698, under the advice of the chancellor Di Renjie, she recalled Li Zhe to Luoyang, which had been made capital.
[6] In 704, Wu Zetian created Li Chongfu the greater title of Prince of Qiao.
Emperor Zhongzong also ordered that the prefectural governmental officials keep close watch on Li Chongfu.
During Emperor Zhongzong's reign, he had often issued pardons, and the exiled persons were generally all allowed to return to the capital.
However, Li Chongfu was not, and lamenting the situation, he wrote a petition to Emperor Zhongzong in 709, stating: Your Imperial Majesty has been burning fragrant wood to personally perform grand ceremonies -- to worship Heaven south of the capital.
She dispatched imperial guards to Jun Prefectures to watch Li Chongfu closely.
Emperor Ruizong promoted Li Chongfu to be the prefect of Ji Prefecture (集州, roughly modern Bazhong, Sichuan).
Meanwhile, though, Li Chongfu's guest, the official Zheng Yin, who had been demoted by Emperor Zhongzong in 709 and had been passing through Jun Prefecture, prior to the coup, had been planning to rise in rebellion against Empress Dowager Wei with Li Chongfu and Zhang Lingjun (張靈均).
After Li Chongfu's plans were set, Zheng, who had been recalled to Chang'an but then redemoted again to be the prefect of Yuan Prefecture (沅州, roughly modern Huaihua, Hunan), intentionally stopped in Luoyang to wait for Li Chongfu.