General Wang-Shih-Chung had gathered a large army in an attempt to oust the Emperor from the Imperial throne and start a new Dynasty. Li Shimini, the Emperors son, was sent with an army again the usurper. Wang-Shih-Chung forces managed to capture the Emperors son and inflicted great damage to the Tang army. The General also threatened to kill the Tang Emperors heir if he did not desist with his attacking army. It seemed like a no win situation.

Why the Tang Emperor sought the help of Shaolin is not entirely clear, but he did. He sent a message to Shaolin, asking for help to save his son. This was a heavy burden for Shaolin as it went against the foundation of their Buddhist beliefs, to cause harm to humans for any reason. Yet the Emperors 'request' could not be ignored.

It is recorded that Shaolin sent 13 Pole Fighting monks to help free the Imperial heir. The Shaolin devised a Dawn Attack raid wherein they silently entered the Army just before dawn, removed any resistance, creating some damage (legends suggest they killed 10,000 soldiers but .. .) and escaped with the Emperors son. This successful raid causing much damage and demoralizing the troops which broke the army and allowed for Royalist troops to 'clean up'.