Around the first year of Kaiyuan, there was a pair of famous monks named "Hanshan" and "Shide". They sat on the same side with a drought-sama, and one day they had a famous question and answer.

"What should people in the world do if they slander me, bully me, insult me, laugh at me, belittle me, despise me, hate me, and lie to me?"

The answer to this Zen question is naturally very philosophical, but Gu Qing and Yang Guozhong are not monks. They are just ordinary people. To be precise, they are not good people, and sometimes the things they do are not even considered human beings.

So if you ask Gu Qing about this famous question, Gu Qing's answer is probably "Just scold him, scold him, scold him, scold him, scold him, scold him, scold him, scold him, scold him, I will start a newspaper and continue scolding him."

Gu Qing's prompt gave Yang Guozhong an inspiration, and at that moment he thought a lot.

As the eldest brother-in-law of the emperor, holding fifteenth position, does Yang Guozhong have any political enemies?

Of course there is. There is no one in the world who is loved by everyone like the RMB. Even the emperor of a country has political enemies in the court. However, because the straight name cannot be removed, he can only pinch his nose and hold back his disgust.

There are too many people who dislike Yang Guozhong, and there are so many people who cross the river. If killing people is not illegal, those who want to kill Yang Guozhong can rank from Xuanwu Gate to Chengtian Gate.

Because Yang Guozhong is not a good person.

In the first half of his life, he didn't read much. In order to be a small county magistrate, he became the imperial concubine for no reason, and he became the emperor's brother-in-law, an authentic relative. The Tang Dynasty did not pay attention to the fact that relatives could not interfere in politics, so he was granted a lot of official positions by his brother-in-law and suddenly jumped to a high position. How could Yang Guozhong not be able to be arrogant? Once a powerful person floated up, how could he not do anything that was harmful to the world?

In fact, Yang Guozhong has done a lot of bad things in Chang'an in recent years, including enclosing land, forcing land to seize civil property, bullying men and women, etc. The censors of the Censorate have participated in him countless times, but Yang Guozhong's status is still unmoved. No matter how fierce the impeachment memorial is, it is just a tickling for him.

The feeling of being favored by the emperor is so wonderful.

Gu Qing suddenly mentioned the word "political enemy", which immediately gave Yang Guozhong a lot of inspiration.

Yes, if the Bagua Newspaper can control the public opinion in Chang'an City, wouldn't it be nice to use it to deal with political enemies in the future? Use a joke tone to ruin the reputation of political enemies, and spread it to the people. The civilians and scholars don't care about the truth or falsehood. It's enough to have some topics of discussion. If you are preparing to attack the political enemies at the critical moment, give him a fierce note in the Bagua Newspaper, the people's hearts and public opinion are incited, and the political enemies will collapse in the whole paragraph...

After understanding this, Yang Guozhong's eyes turned to the gossip report on the table, and the meaning in his eyes became different.

Gu Qing smiled beside him and said, "Has Yang Taifu understood the agreement?"

Yang Guozhong did not answer, but said slowly: "Is this gossip... what did you think of by my brother?"

"Yes, I'm just having nothing to do, just chat for fun."

"Is this a pastime? It's obviously a life-threatening knife." Yang Guozhong sighed.

"But in the eyes of scholars and civilians, it is just a pastime. Before the knife is unsheathed, it is harmless for humans and animals. Others don't even know it is a knife, but they just think it is a toy."

Yang Guozhong said in awe: "If each publication only records some anecdotes of court officials and famous scholars, this gossip report would seem harmless, but in the eyes of smart people, its role will be seen sooner or later. If the emperor and the court officials held accountable, how should you and I deal with it?"

Gu Qing blinked: "So the officials also need to pull the imperial concubine into the gang. At the same time, we must also try our best to convince the emperor that this thing is a pastime toy and is not worthy of much attention."

Yang Guozhong's face was gloomy and gloomy. After a long time, he gritted his teeth: "Okay, I'm the one! But we have to make it in advance. If the emperor finds that this thing is inappropriate and we cannot convince the emperor, then let it go and don't mention it again. My foolish brother is a minister, and the emperor cannot contradict him."

"Of course, if the emperor objected, the subordinates would not dare to continue."

After talking about the main business, Yang Guozhong was about to say goodbye. Gu Qing hesitated for a moment and said, "If Yang Taifu wants to convince the emperor, it is best to take action."

"Why are you anxious for a moment?"

Gu Qing sighed: "Today, Yang Taifu came to the door for this gossip report. How could Taifu know if other powerful people in Chang'an City come to the door? How could the people who came to the door know whether the purpose of coming is good or evil?"

Yang Guozhong was stunned, looked at Gu Qing deeply, then nodded, hurriedly stuffed the gossip report on the table into his arms, said goodbye, went out to get on the carriage, and went straight to Xingqing Palace.

Looking at the disappearing back of the carriage, Gu Qing curled his lips.

After five years of layout, the first one fell swoop on the chessboard.

No one has discovered that the foundation of the prosperous era is shaking, but Gu Qing's mood is getting more and more urgent. In the vast nest, there is no end to the end. Before the troubled times are approaching, Gu Qing must be fully prepared, otherwise in the future, it will be a piece of duckweed that will go with the flow, and it will not be able to protect himself or the people he cares about.

…………

After Yang Guozhong entered the palace, he first met Yang Guifei.

The gossip report was read through Yang Guifei. The more she looked, the more interesting she felt, and she smiled non-stop at the incident of Yang Taifu falling into the water on the front page headline.

Yang Guozhong was a wink. Seeing that Yang Guifei seemed very interested in it, he immediately said, "Does Empress like this gossip report?"

Yang Guifei smiled and said, "It's interesting, but it's fun to pass the boredom."

"To be honest, this report was jointly organized by the minister and Gu Qing, to give the powerful and scholars in Chang'an City a daily entertainment."

Yang Guifei was stunned and then laughed: "You... are all ministers of the emperor. There are so many major affairs waiting for you to do, but are you working together to do such things?"

Yang Guozhong laughed and said, "Of course, it is to relieve your majesty and the empress. Your majesty and the empress rarely leave the palace. Look at the gossip reports every day to see what despicable or unfair things the court officials and scholars in Chang'an City did. It is said that His Majesty and the empress laughed."

Yang Guifei shook her head and smiled, "Forget it, you can just play, it's not a big deal."

Yang Guozhong blinked and carefully tentatively said: "Empress, what your little fellow villager Gu Qing means, can you ask Empress to join us? After all, this gossip report specifically records some absurd and absurd things about court officials and famous scholars. I am worried that those court officials will be angry and impeach us for not doing our jobs..."

Yang Guifei glared at her eyes and said angrily: "You are not doing your job properly, can you still make sense? What's wrong with that child Gu Qing? He obviously looks like a child who knows how to behave with you, why do you mess with such things?"

Yang Guozhong smiled and said, "The Empress said very well, but Gu Qing was a member of the Zuowei Palace's official office and joined the army. He did not handle too much official duties on weekdays. Coincidentally, the day minister was killed by a thief, so Gu Qing came up with an idea to record it. It was used as a pastime for the literati in Chang'an City. In the future, he would praise His Majesty for his wise and his peerless appearance in the Eight Tribunal, so that everyone in the world knows His Majesty's holy name and His Majesty's beautiful name..."

After hearing this, Yang Guifei covered her mouth and smiled: "This must be the idea that Gu Qing came up with. He praised people as shameless. However, it is rare for him to think about it. Forget about the gossip in this palace, I have reported it. But you are not allowed to use my name to bully and do things that violate the national laws, otherwise I will not protect you."

Yang Guozhong hurriedly bowed to thank him.

At this time, the eunuch's sharp voice came from outside the Huae Tower, and the emperor arrived.

Concubine Yang and Concubine Yang hurriedly stood in front of the hall gate to welcome him. Not long after, Li Longji, wearing a bright yellow dress, walked slowly, helped Concubine Yang first, and smiled gently, "My wife has been married for many years, why should you be so polite?"

Yang Guozhong said respectfully from the side: "My minister, Yang Guozhong, pay homage to Your Majesty."

Li Longji glanced at him, nodded with a smile, and signaled that he would be exempted from the gift.

In fact, in his heart, Li Longji looked down on Yang Guozhong. Li Longji has heard of what Yang Guozhong is, but Yang Guozhong has an advantage that others cannot reach, that is, he can trust.

Concubine Yang was Li Longji's only favored concubine. In the 12th year of Kaiyuan, Li Longji deposed Empress Wang due to Fu Yan's case, and never established an empress again. Concubine Yang was actually the lord of the harem. Although he did not have the name of the queen, he was actually the queen. As Yang Guozhong's cousin, he was smart and smart, and he was not very knowledgeable, but he was much better than most court officials. In addition, he was his brother-in-law, so Li Longji decided to reuse him.

First, he was to show kindness to Yang Guifei, and second, Yang Guozhong's existence could restrain the court situation. If the East Palace and Li Linfu are the two major forces in the court, and Li Longji must balance these two major forces in order to achieve stability, then Yang Guozhong is a backup force in Li Longji's heart. Once one of the two major forces falls, Yang Guozhong can immediately make up for the position, so that the situation in the court will quickly form a new balance overnight. That's why Li Longji granted Yang Guozhong fifteen official positions. Now the officials who cursed Yang Guozhong in the court are not inferior to those who cursed Li Linfu.

This is Li Longji's imperial mindset. He worked steadily in the first half of his life, so he created the Kaiyuan prosperous era. In the second half of his life, he only focused on others, which made the court monarchs and ministers intrigue from top to bottom. However, Li Longji was still content with his complacent and felt that he played with the hearts of the world in his palm.

No matter how bad Yang Guozhong is or how ignorant he is, Li Longji thinks he is useful, so he is the pillar of the country.

I looked down on Yang Guozhong anymore. Li Longji still did a good job in superficial skills. He smiled and signaled to give him a seat, and chatted with Yang Guozhong for a long time.

Then Li Longji glanced at him and saw a piece of paper on the table in front of him, with the words "Gossip Report" printed on it. Li Longji picked it up and read it. The first thing he noticed was the front page headline Yang Guozhong fell into the water. Li Longji laughed twice, and then looked through the other articles, mostly some nostalgic stories.

"This thing is interesting, who did it?" Li Longji smiled.

Yang Guozhong reported: "Your Majesty, it was done by me and Gu Qing, the director of the Zuowei Palace, who joined the army. The imperial concubine also found it interesting, so she also joined the group."

Li Longji raised his eyebrows and looked at Yang Guifei, and smiled and said, "Is my wife also interested in this thing?"

Concubine Yang had just agreed to Yang Guozhong, so she glared at him dissatisfiedly, and then smiled at Li Longji and said, "Sanlang, I think this thing is very interesting. Gu Qing and the others said that this newspaper does not involve the government affairs. They all record the rumors about some famous court officials in Chang'an City. It is a topic of conversation after dinner. I think it is not wrong, so I agreed to them."

Li Longji smiled and looked at the gossip report, and suddenly asked, "Although this thing does not involve the government affairs, it is similar to the palace gate copy. Can it be distributed in Chang'an?"

Yang Guozhong said aggrievedly: "This part in your Majesty has been distributed more than 2,000. In recent days, the scholars and civilians in Chang'an City are all about the incident of the fall from the water. The streets and alleys are all about it. I am considering that I have made a lot of laughter for the officials and scholars in Chang'an City..."

Li Longji's smile gradually faded and frowned and said, "Are you talking about the streets and alleys?"

"yes."

Li Longji's eyes became a little cold: "If a newspaper can be known to everyone, if one day I send some news that caught me or the court officials off guard, it will cause a lot of sensation among the people, how can the court officials handle themselves?"

Yang Guifei didn't think so far, so she hurriedly argued: "Sanlang, the gossip report is just a free time to record the anecdotes of famous scholars, and never involve the government affairs. How could there be a stirring news?"

Li Longji ignored it and stared at Yang Guozhong and said, "Is it your idea, or Gu Qing's idea?"

"It was Gu Qing's idea to go back to your Majesty. The young man likes to be lively and tries every means to make some noises to make people smile." Seeing that Li Longji was unhappy, Yang Guozhong quickly sold Gu Qing without changing his expression.

Yang Guifei said anxiously: "If Sanlang is not happy, I will ask Gu Qing to stop immediately. The young man did not know that the court was dangerous and he had a temporary fun. Even if he caused trouble, he would be unintentional."

Li Longji's appearance appeared in Gu Qing's mind. After thinking about it, he felt that at Gu Qing's age, it seemed that it was not intentional to run this newspaper, and the miscellaneous stories recorded above were not sensitive. It seemed that it was really a joking work by a young man. Maybe even Gu Qing himself did not expect that a newspaper would spread throughout Chang'an, which attracted a lot of discussion among the scholars and civilians in Chang'an.

So Li Longji's expression relaxed and said, "Although this thing is all right, it has been spread widely. If it is used by someone who is interested, some news that is unfavorable to the monarch and his subjects..."

Yang Guozhong was anxious. Although he sold Gu Qing without hesitation just now, it was just because of self-protection instinct. From the bottom of his heart, he still hoped that the gossip newspaper could be handled. The inspiration Gu Qing gave him was very useful. In the future, this thing may play a big role in dealing with political enemies.

So Yang Guozhong whispered: "Your Majesty, the gossip report is just a harmless and miscellaneous story. Chang'an is at the foot of the emperor. Gu Qing and Chen are not people who are not serious. How dare they arrange randomly in the newspaper? If I have the courage to send things randomly, wouldn't I be afraid of losing my head?"

Seeing that Li Longji's expression had relaxed, Yang Guifei immediately sent a divine assist, pouted her mouth and pulled his sleeves and swayed left and right, saying: "Sanlang is still hesitant about this little thing. It's just that I and my brother Gu Qing and I have nothing to do to get rid of boring gadgets. Is Sanlang still afraid that it will turn the world? There are so many generals under Sanlang who hold military power, and you don't doubt it. But we can't do this little gadget, Sanlang..."

Li Longji was relieved.

Yes, I have arranged so many generals with military power to clearly define them. Compared with the sensitivity of military power, how big a storm can this tabloid bring? I think I'm overly worried.

So Li Longji smiled boldly and said, "Then you go, remember to be a matter of duty, don't cause trouble, otherwise the court will be full of people even if I am not aware of it."

…………

Li Linfu's mansion.

Mu Bin half knelt in front of Li Linfu's illness, looking at the twilight old man in front of him, his heart was so sad that he almost burst into tears.

Having half of his life's authority can never escape birth, old age, sickness and death. The Prime Minister's illness has become severe and he will die at some point.

After a long time, Li Linfu woke up slowly, his turbid old eyes looked at Mu Bin and said, "Is there anything wrong again?"

Mu Bin lowered his head and said, "Prince, the source of the gossip report has been found out in the evening."

"explain."

"I only found two businessmen from Shuzhou, and then I'm afraid I'll be interrogating people. That gossip report was spread by the two businessmen."

Li Linfu frowned: "The merchants are so brave to openly arrange court officials? There must be someone behind them."

"Yes, but to know who the person behind the scenes is, you must take down two merchants. The current source is in them, and you can't ask if you don't take down. Wansheng didn't know how deep the water inside, so he had to ask the Prime Minister first and ask the Prime Minister to show him."

Li Linfu closed his eyes and calmed down, covered his mouth and coughed a few times, and his mind turned rapidly.
To be continued...