When autumn comes, we look at each other with fluttering hair, but before we feel guilty about the cinnabar, we feel ashamed of Ge Hong.
Spending the days drinking and singing wildly, who is the hero of flying and domineering?
——"Gift to Li Bai" Du Fu
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Bai Fu used the excuse of recuperating from illness and did not go to court for a month. He secretly investigated the assassination and made all the officials in the court uneasy.
As a young general who had slaughtered 100,000 cavalrymen in Bohai County, Bai Fu was not an economical person. He would definitely retaliate for this disaster.
Anyone who has some grudge against Bai Fu is wary, fearing that Bai Fu will frame him and take advantage of him to use force.
What's even more terrifying is that the assassination of Bai Fu opened the lid of the magic box.
Li Linfu once told Bai Fu that there was an unwritten rule in fighting within the court - assassinations were not allowed in the capital.
Assassination is the bottom line of the power struggle, and no one can touch this bottom line. Once this bottom line is exceeded, there will be no rules for the power struggle. Everyone in the court will be in danger, and the capital will be in chaos. No one will be the winner.
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With Bai Fu's current martial arts skills and the number of capable men and strangers under his command, if he deliberately launches an assassination regardless of his status, except for the emperor, the prince, the heads of several powerful families, and a few other powerful officials, there may not be many officials in Chang'an who can sleep peacefully.
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In order to avenge Princess Taiping and his wife Xue Zhao, the head of Qingxuan used his own efforts to kill Xuanzong, making him disgraced and unable to sleep or eat well. The older generation of courtiers can still remember this vividly.
Bai Fu's illustrious military exploits and thunderous methods of handling government affairs are simply another copy of the head Qingxuan.
Many veterans and royal family elders who had seen Bai Fu's methods secretly rejoiced and praised Suzong's strategy of controlling his ministers - taking Bai Fu as his consort.
In the eyes of many courtiers and relatives of the emperor, Bai Fu, a grassroots man, was simply unlucky. He rose step by step from a poor family to a high position, becoming a marquis, prime minister, and marrying a princess.
But court officials like King Qing Li Cong and Changsun Yanxing who have experienced great storms know that once reckless heroes like Guo Ziyi, Li Guangbi, and Bai Fu rise, they will be unstoppable.
The eldest grandson Yan Xing once discussed with Qing Wang Li Cong how the world's elites could join Dendrobium.
Changsun Yanxing's view is that throughout the dynasties, there have been many people in the world who are not content with farming. Changsun Yanxing classified them into four types of people: wisdom, courage, eloquence, and strength, that is, wise men, warriors, eloquence, and warriors. This
The four types of people are inherently better than ordinary people. They are not willing to be farmers, nor are they willing to live in poverty all their lives.
Therefore, a wise emperor will share his wealth with these four kinds of people. Even if they do nothing, as long as they are content with freeloading, the whole world will be peaceful.
With the changes of the times, the emperor's strategy to appease these four types of people also changed. During the Warring States Period, this strategy was the retainer system; during the Wei and Jin Dynasties, the strategy was the nine-rank Zhongzheng system; since the Sui and Tang Dynasties, the strategy was the imperial examination system.
In the view of Changsun Yanxing, the crux of the reason why the Qin Dynasty died in the second generation lies here: the imperial court forcibly turned all the people into farmers and warriors, leaving no way for the four types of people: wisdom, courage, eloquence, and strength.
Qin unified the world, and they had no chance to flee to other countries outside Qin. Therefore, once Chen Sheng, Wu Guangguang, and Zexiang revolted, these four types of people rose up, creating a turbulent situation and tearing an irreparable hole in the sky.
If you want the ancestral foundation to be long-term and stable, you need to win over such people.
As the saying goes, those who have perseverance have perseverance. Fame and wealth are the curse, but wine and beauty are the graves of heroes.
Letting the chosen people like Bai Fu become rich as soon as possible, start a family and have children is the way to stabilize the country. Only with the ties of family and wealth can the heart of the wild hero be restrained.
It's a pity that there are fewer and fewer important ministers with this kind of insight and vision in the court.
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Just when all the courtiers were uneasy but waiting to see what would happen, the eunuch Li Fuguo took the lead. Li Fuguo took the opportunity to visit Bai Fu on behalf of Su Zong and took the initiative to show his goodwill to Bai Fu.
Changsun Yanxing once said to Bai Fu: "One of the differences between good people and evil people is that good people are confused and don't know who the evil people are; evil people clearly know who are good people and who are evil people who cannot be offended..."
Although Li Fuguo was powerful, his scheming was far deeper than that of Prince Li Chu and King of Yue Li Xi. He had dealt with Bai Fu several times and knew that Bai Fu should not be underestimated. He did not dare to easily provoke Bai Fu, let alone Bai Fu.
The beams that cannot be broken can't be broken down under the complex knot.
After receiving Li Fuguo's invitation, Bai Fu fell into deep thought. Li Fuguo was obviously one of the suspects in his assassination. He had not yet figured out how to deal with Li Fuguo.
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During the Daming Palace Rebellion, Bai Fu witnessed with his own eyes the life-and-death battle between Gao Lishi and Li Fuguo.
Li Fuguo used the evil spell of "resentful couple and evil spirits", which allowed Bai Fu to almost conclude that Li Fuguo was the secret agent planted by An Lushan around Suzong, and he was also the highest-level spy lurking in Chang'an for the rebels during An Lushan's era.
Bai Fu told Gao Lishi his guess. Gao Lishi pondered for a moment and then told Bai Fu a story from the past.
The two confirmed each other's intelligence, and the mystery of the Maweipo Mutiny was revealed bit by bit:
It was under Li Fuguo's planning that the Beiya imperial army guarding Xuanzong suddenly launched a mutiny and massacred Yang Guozhong and other Yang clan members.
The soldiers of the Forbidden Army refused to give up and insisted on Yang Yuhuan's life. Li Fuguo also had an ulterior motive - to kidnap Yang Yuhuan for An Lushan.
In view of the fact that Yin Fenglan had a troubling marriage with An Lushan, Li Fuguo let Yin Fenglan and Yang Yichan go.
Li Fuguo blackmailed Yin Fenglan and ordered her to recommend the "Resurrection Pill" to Xuanzong that could fake death.
This plan kills two birds with one stone. On the one hand, it alleviates Xuanzong's inner guilt, and on the other hand, it can kidnap Yang Yuhuan without anyone noticing.
As long as Yang Yuhuan took the Resurrection Pill and his body was intact, with Li Fuguo's magic, he would be sure to bring Yang Yuhuan back to life after removing the coffin from the tomb.
At that time, Gao Lishi did not know that Li Fuguo had this sorcery, but he vaguely felt that this matter was not simple.
Gao Lishi tried hard to persuade Xuanzong not to listen to Yin Fenglan's plan. However, in order to appease the mutinous imperial army and save his own life, Xuanzong finally chose to sacrifice Yang Yuhuan.
Gao Lishi finally realized that Xuanzong no longer cared whether Yang Yuhuan could truly survive. The "Resurrection Pill" strategy was a deception, allowing Xuanzong to execute Yang Yuhuan without any guilt.
After understanding Xuanzong's thoughts, Gao Lishi was heartbroken.
Gao Lishi decided to take advantage of the situation and strangled Yang Yuhuan himself. He must not let Yang Yuhuan fall into the hands of the rebels, his innocence be tainted by the rebels, and his reputation be ruined in one day.
Just when Gao Lishi tightened the white silk wrapped around Yang Yuhuan's neck, Gao Lishi discovered Li Xuexuan and You Fang Langzhong hiding on the roof. Of course, Gao Lishi did not know at the time that You Fang Langzhong was Bai Fu in disguise.
When Li Xuexuan was training in the Huben Army, Gao Lishi often met him and was very familiar with him. Gao Lishi was quite assured of Li Xuexuan's character and martial arts.
Therefore, Gao Lishi changed his strategy and showed mercy. He first used the innate power to protect Yang Yuhuan's heart, and then placed the antidote on the incense table, hinting Li Xuexuan to rescue him in time.
By the time Li Fuguo and the other rebel spies returned to Maweipo and dug up the grave, Li Xuexuan and Bai Fu had already rescued Yang Yuhuan.
Gao Lishi was loyal to Xuanzong all his life, but he always kept this matter secret from Xuanzong.
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Let's put aside the past, Bai Fu would not even bother to associate with a traitor like Li Fuguo. However, after experiencing the intrigues in the court, especially this attack, Bai Fu deeply understood the way to survive in officialdom.
Every force has its own reasons for its survival and growth. Rather than uprooting it, it is better to coexist with it in a balanced way. The way to power lies in compromise and checks and balances.
Bai Fu said to the housekeeper: "Tell the eunuch who sent the greeting card that Bai Fu will greet Eunuch Li respectfully tomorrow morning!"
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In this chapter, Chang Sun Yanxing’s views on talents and redundancy are based on Su Shi’s article “On Nurturing Scholars”