After the Wenyan incident, in the next few days, Supervisor Xuan Wen and other officials began the review of compulsory education in Chang'an City.
Du Fu, the Minister of Rites, after finishing his duties, went to Zuo Xiang's mansion to pay a visit to Gao Shi.
Gao Shi is in a good position, but his house is located in Huaiyuanfang next to the West Market.
The house is ordinary, with no luxury at all. Next to it is the residence of ordinary people. Compared with the high-ranking officials in the court, it looks a bit shabby.
Du Fu knocked on the door of the courtyard, and an old servant walked out of the gatehouse. He looked Du Fu up and down and said, "Please Du Shangshu come with the old servant. The master of the house has been waiting for you."
Du Fu was a little surprised: "Does the Left Prime Minister know that I'm coming?"
The old servant nodded and said, "The master of the house told me a few days ago that Du Shangshu would be a guest."
When Du Fu heard this, he wanted to ask something, but he thought about it and finally gave up.
After walking through the vestibule and the middle courtyard, Du Fu came to a study room in the side room and saw Gao Shi practicing calligraphy in the room.
Hearing that Du Fu was coming, Gao Shi did not stop what he was doing, but just nodded and said: "See where you sit."
Du Fu sat down as he was told, and the old servant brought him another cup of tea. Only then did the former have the opportunity to look at the study.
In his early years, Gao Shi served as a knight, passed the examination, joined the army, and fought with Tibet and Turks. He was capable of literary and military skills and had extraordinary intelligence.
In the study, there are copybooks of poems and poems, as well as paintings by famous scholars, but most of them are copies of the art of war and the weapons used by warriors hanging on the wall.
In the center of the study room, there is a green rainbow sword hanging, and there is a message posted next to it, which reads:
Long-term strategies must be put into practice,
Men don't take care of themselves.
Qiancai ascended the throne,
A lonely sword can penetrate thousands of miles.
Du Fu read it softly and secretly said a good poem in his heart.
Gao Shi stopped writing, looked at Du Fu, and asked: "Zimei came to see me, isn't it because of official business?"
Du Fu shook his head.
Gao Shi: "Is it to say goodbye?"
Du Fu: "I have come to Chang'an on this trip. Most of my work has been completed, and I will return to Liangcheng the day after tomorrow... However, besides saying goodbye, I have other things to do when I come this time."
Gao Shi: "Is it for Li Taibai?"
Du Fu was stunned for a moment, then nodded helplessly, and said softly: "If you win in September, please ask the left prime minister..."
Hearing this, Gao Shi raised his hand and signaled to Du Fu not to say anything.
Gao Shi knew Du Fu's purpose of coming.
Every September, when the imperial court wins, officials need to be evaluated and scored. Only those who pass the evaluation will not be fined.
As a young eunuch of Xuanwen Supervisor, Li Bai came to Chang'an for official duties this time, and the person in charge of the evaluation was Gao Shi, the Prime Minister of the Left.
In other words, in the next official evaluation of the imperial court, as long as Gao Shi gives a bad review, Li Bai will be in trouble.
Gao Shi stared at Du Fu and asked: "Li Hanlin made rude remarks at the previous cultural banquet. Are you worried that I will take the opportunity to retaliate?"
Hearing this, Du Fu hesitated a little and didn't know how to answer for a while.
Gao Shi asked again in a deep voice: "In Du Shangshu's opinion, Gao is the kind of person who doesn't distinguish between public and private affairs?!"
Du Fu heard the anger in Gao Shi's words and quickly said: "Fu never meant this. He just felt that Li Hanlin acted impulsively and went too far this time, so he wanted to make amends for him."
Gao Shi was silent for a while.
Just when Du Fu was sweating faintly on his forehead, Gao Shi spoke.
Gao Shi: "This is the way it is in nature, so why is there anything wrong with it?"
When Du Fu heard the other party calling out the word Li Bai, he immediately breathed a sigh of relief.
Gao Shi slowly sat down and said to Du Fu: "What makes me angry is that you, Du Zimei, actually think that I am the kind of villain who wields power."
Du Fu smiled coquettishly and did not answer.
Gao Shi: "Gao Mou has heard a lot of comments about me from the outside world when I was in the court. Most of them are unkind, alienated from relatives and friends, and taking credit for others. You and Taibai probably think so too, right?"
Du Fu was silent.
Ten years ago, Gao Shi had been valued by Zhou Jun since he joined Zhou Jun's tent, and he gradually rose to a high position.
Since Gao Shi gained power, he has become even more distant from his former relatives and friends.
Being unkind, alienating relatives and friends, and taking credit for others is indeed what the outside world says about him.
Gao Shi looked at Du Fu and suddenly asked: "Zimei, when and where did you and I first meet?"
Du Fu recalled: "Tianbao was in the land of Liang and Song Dynasty for three years. Taibai was there at that time. The three of us traveled to Wangwu Mountain and Balcony Palace to find Sima Chengzhen. Who would have expected that Baiyunzi (Sima Chengzhen's Taoist name)
) has passed away."
Gao Shi nodded and said, "Did you know that that encounter was the most unforgettable experience in Gao's life?"
When Du Fu heard this, he was a little surprised and froze on the spot.
Gao Shi: "Taibai's literary talent is unparalleled in ancient times and today. He is also a tyrant and addicted to alcohol. His friends are all old people. He is a person of immortal appearance. Gao was not jealous of him at that time, but was fascinated by him."
Du Fu: "I see, I didn't know..."
Gao Shi: "Li Taibai at that time was like a dream to Gao, a dream that could never be achieved."
Du Fu: "If that's the case, then why did you cut off contact with him later?"
Gao Shi: "Because dreams are just dreams after all. Li Taibai can live in it, but Gao eventually fell into reality one day."
Du Fu: "I don't understand."
Gao Shi took a long breath and whispered: "Let Gao think about it, when was the first time he recognized reality?"
Gao Shi: "In the fifteenth year of Tianbao, Marshal Geshu committed suicide. The rebels invaded Chang'an. The Emperor left without saying goodbye and fled in a hurry... That was the first time that Gao touched the Tang Dynasty in an ignorant way.
The reality of the imperial court..."
Du Fu looked puzzled.
Gao Shi continued: "Later, I surrendered to Your Majesty... Oh, at that time, he was just the governor of Anxi. With him, I saw the battle of Hebei, the bloody night in Liangcheng, the military chaos in Fanyang, and the banquet in Chang'an.
, after the coup in the palace, my understanding of that reality became increasingly clear and heavy."
Du Fu: "What is the reality you are talking about...?"
Gao Shi looked at Du Fu and asked: "An Lushan rebelled against the Tang Dynasty, which caused great chaos in the world and devastated all living beings. Who do you think is the biggest culprit?"
Du Fu: "The culprit outside the court is naturally An Lushan, and the culprit inside the court should be the treacherous prime minister Yang Guozhong."
Gao Shi shook his head: "The biggest culprit for An Lushan's rebellion against the Tang Dynasty should be the Li Tang clan and the thousands of prominent families who were involved with it."
When Du Fu heard this, he took a deep breath, stood up quickly, and looked out the window to make sure no one was eavesdropping.
Gao Shi: "His Majesty once told me a word called 'interest class'. I didn't understand it at first, but over the years, I gradually understood it."
"The clans and clans of Li Tang used their connections to control a large amount of land, official positions, wealth and voice. This caused the people to be displaced and had no choice but to join thieves and cause trouble. It also made it impossible for poor students to make progress, which made the imperial court even more miserable.
Other families can only use rebellion to break the original interest class."
"In other words, the so-called An Lushan rebellion against the Tang Dynasty was just an attack on the central interest class outside the imperial court. Even if An Lushan died, if this shortcoming could not be eradicated, the Tang Dynasty would face the same situation in the future.
catastrophe."
As Du Fu listened, his whole body trembled slightly. He tried to speak several times but could not formulate any words.
Gao Shi: "Before he ascended the throne, His Majesty once made some insinuations and asked me for advice. Should we establish a new dynasty to replace Li Tang? Or should we comply with the wishes of the Supreme Emperor and succeed as an adopted son?"
"I told him at that time that once the new dynasty was established, its foundation would definitely be unstable. Firstly, although there was great chaos in the country, people's hearts still turned towards Li Tang. Looking at the world, only Anxi and Beiting were completely loyal to His Majesty; secondly,
The world has been divided. At that time, Yan State, Southern Tang, Bashu, Shannan, etc. were all divided by forces. Only by inheriting the orthodoxy of the Tang Dynasty could your Majesty win over the old ministers and win back the hearts of the people through the banner of Li Tang.
If you surrender to the Tang Dynasty, the new dynasty will not be conducive to controlling the army. Only by slowly replacing the military superiors can we talk about establishing a new dynasty."
Du Fu stammered and asked: "Dafu...why are you telling me this?"
Gao Shi closed his eyes and smiled slightly: "Everyone in the outside world thinks that Shi is unkind, alienated from relatives and friends, and takes credit for others. I don't care about the rest of you, except you and Taibai."
At this point, Gao Shi opened his eyes and said to Du Fu: "As I said just now, Taibai lives in a dream, and I live in reality. There are some things that you just need to know, and there is no need to tell Taibai. Otherwise,
If he talks nonsense while drunk, won't it cause chaos?"
Hearing this, Du Fu nodded quickly.
According to Li Bai's wine, if he knew these things, he might speak nonsense and cause big trouble.
Thinking of this, Du Fu suddenly remembered something and asked: "Since Dafu doesn't like Li Tang's clan and family, why did he go to His Majesty to pardon the prisoners in Luoyang?"
Gao Shi: "This is the time and the other. Your Majesty had not yet ascended the throne, and his wings were not yet full. The clan and clan members hated him deeply and wanted to get rid of him. At that time, the only way to stabilize the government was to use killing methods. But now, His Majesty has already
Sitting firmly in the country, the army is attacking the puppet Tang Dynasty again. Therefore, at this time, instead of killing or exiled the old ministers of Li and Tang Dynasties, it is better to pardon their crimes and show their attitude to the world. In this way, the Jiangnan officialdom has a way out.
They will not risk their lives to fight, as this will help our country regain its old territory."
Du Fu nodded slowly, finally understanding Gao Shi's good intentions.