Chapter 100 Yan Zhenqing, the lone hero of the Tang Dynasty!
……

"Since ancient times, Shandong has produced loyal ministers!"

"It's worthy of being the hometown of Confucius and Mencius. We haven't brought shame to our ancestors!"

"Tough guy!"

"As expected of a Shandong man!"

"A good man from Shandong!"

In the Southern Song Dynasty, Xin Qiji burst into tears as he watched Yan Gaoqing sacrifice his life heroically.

At this moment.

Throughout the dynasties, countless people have stood in awe.

How much courage does it take to go against the general trend on your own?

What loyalty this is!
Through the story of the sky.

For a time, Yan Gaoqing's deeds had a profound impact on civil and military officials of all dynasties.

Even many young people full of vigor and vitality regard him as an idol.

……

[From the name, it should be easy to guess that Yan Gaoqing and Yan Zhenqing are related by blood. ]

[Yes, Yan Gaoqing is Yan Zhenqing's elder brother.]

[After Yan Gaoqing was executed, his son Yan Jiming was also cut into pieces and his body was left exposed in the wilderness.]

[Yan Zhenqing later went to look for his nephew Yan Jiming's body, but only found his head. Facing his nephew's head, Yan Zhenqing was so angry that he could hardly suppress his grief. It was in this context that he wrote this "Sacrificial Essay for My Nephew".]

[The many erasures and changes in the manuscript are due to the fact that Yan Zhenqing wrote in such a sad mood.]

[Yan Zhenqing recalled his nephew's kindness and when he wrote "the ancestral temples and the steps and courtyards are decorated with orchids and jade, which comfort the heart", his emotions were already overwhelming.]

[After writing "The traitorous ministers did not save me", we can almost see a tearful face, trembling with grief and indignation. When the last "Alas" was written, the shape of the characters had already gone out of control, and the writer almost cried to death.]

[A letter titled "Sacrificial Essay for My Nephew" is only 23 lines long, but it cannot express the hatred for our country and family.]

[The feeling of grief and desolation is integrated into the brushwork, and the force penetrates through the paper.]

[According to the Zizhi Tongjian, more than 30 members of the Yan family died during the An-Shi Rebellion.]

【Against the backdrop of surrender, the Yan family became the only lone brave men in Hebei at that time. 】

……

"Yan Qing's loyalty will last forever."

"The loyalty and bravery of his family are enough to serve as a model for future generations."

Zhuge Liang sighed.

"Since ancient times, the land of Yan and Zhao has been home to many generous and tragic people." Zhao Yun was filled with emotion.

……

During his escape, Xuanzong looked at the sky and said, as if he had lost his soul: "In the twenty-four counties of Hebei, there are still loyal ministers... there are still loyal ministers..."

"I don't know what kind of person you are. I haven't even seen Yan Aiqing. You are a scholar, but you can be so loyal and brave. On the other hand, those military generals in Hebei should have defended the territory to the death, but none of them were loyal. They really deserve to die!"

Li Longji's defense was broken.

Even a civil servant whom he had never even met was like this, and the military officers who were supposed to kill the bandits and report the incident surrendered instead.

By comparing the two sides, we can see more clearly the preciousness of the loyalty and bravery of Yan Zhenqing's brothers.

During the period of Suzong of Tang Dynasty.

Guo Ziyi looked at this scene and sighed: "Although Yan Zhenqing was a civil official, his actions during the An-Shi Rebellion were comparable to those of a military general."

"His loyalty and courage are admirable and should be my role model!"

……

[Unlike his brother, Yan Zhenqing was a serious scholar. According to the Old Tang Book, Yan Zhenqing studied hard since he was young, was good at writing poetry, and his best skill was calligraphy.]

[When Yan Zhenqing grew up, he passed the imperial examination and became an official in the court. As a weak scholar, what should he do in this riot where people speak with fists? ]

[The story begins in 753 AD, a year that was very special for Yan Zhenqing and the Tang Dynasty, because in this year, Li Linfu, the treacherous prime minister who had controlled the Tang Dynasty for nearly 20 years, died.]

[The death of the treacherous minister should be a good thing, but the reality is that it may not be.]

After Li Linfu's death, two people started a power struggle, both wanting to succeed Li Linfu as the new powerful official of the Tang Dynasty. These two people were Yang Guozhong and An Lushan.

[Yang Guozhong was the cousin of Emperor Li Longji's favorite concubine Yang Yuhuan. He was appointed as the prime minister, the head of all officials.]

[An Lushan was Yang Yuhuan's adopted son, the governor of three towns, and commanded a large number of Tang troops.]

[For power, the two men attacked each other. Yang Guozhong said that An Lushan had a lot of troops and was planning a rebellion.]

【And what about An Lushan? 】

【It is said that Yang Guozhong controlled the government and misled the country and the people. 】

[What did Emperor Li Longji think of this pair of Crouching Dragon and Phoenix? ] [He did not believe that An Lushan was rebelling, nor did he believe that Yang Guozhong was ruining the country. ]

[One of these two is my godson, and the other is my elder brother-in-law. How could they possibly rebel against me? How could they possibly be harmed by me? ]

【impossible! 】

[Absolutely impossible! ]

[Not only did Li Longji not believe An Lushan, but in order to show his trust in An Lushan, he also promoted An Lushan to a higher position, making him the Director of Imperial Horses and the National Horse Herding Manager.]

【Now An Lushan not only has strong soldiers, but also strong horses. 】

[After An Lushan was pacified, Li Longji said to Yang Guozhong, "I am old now, and I will leave the affairs of state to the prime minister. I have nothing to worry about!"

[It means that I am old, and the affairs of the government are handed over to Prime Minister Yang Guozhong. I have nothing to worry about.]

[Yang Guozhong was completely overwhelmed, and from then on he took the world as his responsibility! ]

【These are the original words from Zizhi Tongjian. 】

['As a prime minister, I take the world as my responsibility.']

【From now on, Yang Guozhong has the final say on world affairs. 】

[There was a flood in Guanzhong, and the people were hungry. Officials petitioned for disaster relief, but Yang Guozhong told Li Longji that it was nothing, it was just that the rain was heavier than in previous years, and it was not a big deal.]

[He speaks freely about state affairs and deceives His Majesty.]

[Not only that, ministers in the court, no matter if they are talented or not, will be sent to serve as officials in other places as long as they do not listen to Yang Guozhong.]

[Yan Zhenqing was among the officials who were exiled for being disobedient.]

……

The evil deeds of Yang Guozhong and An Lushan angered countless ancient people.

"Bah, how dare someone call himself Crouching Dragon or Phoenix Chick? I really want to poke hundreds of transparent holes in him!"

During the Three Kingdoms period, a rough curse was heard.

In the eyes of ancient people, "Wolong Fengchu" was still a commendatory term at that time, not to mention that this idiom came from the Three Kingdoms period.

I saw Tianmu describe the two traitors Yang Guozhong and An Lushan as "Crouching Dragon and Phoenix Chick".

Zhang Fei spat immediately and stood up for the two military advisors, Zhen Zhuo Long and Feng Chu!

"Is this kind of traitor worthy of being compared with the two military advisors? Is Tianmu trying to discredit our two military advisors?"

Since the sky curtain was built, the studious Zhang Fei has also learned a lot of interesting words. The word "black" was learned from the video in which Zhu Jianshen was slandered.

Unlike the Shu Han officials who were filled with indignation, they stood up for the two top strategists, Zhuge Liang and Zhuge Liang.

During the Zhenguan period, Li Shimin felt more heartache.

I feel deeply saddened by Li Longji's stupidity.

The ministers were speechless when they saw Yang Guozhong and An Lushan slandering each other.

You know what, the person who knows you best is always your opponent.

The reasons why these two people criticized each other finally came true.

You see, just as Yang Guozhong said, An Lushan finally rebelled. What An Lushan said was true. It was also true that Yang Guozhong controlled the government and misled the country and the people.

Two treacherous people attacked each other, and the explosive news they revealed were basically all true stories, but Xuanzong, who was involved in the incident, was kept in the dark... No, he refused to believe it no matter what. Isn't that funny?

It’s so off the mark!

In the final analysis, the disaster that befell the Tang Dynasty was due to Li Longji's own stupidity, and he could not blame anyone else.

It is hard to imagine that this is the same person as Li Longji, who worked hard to govern the country and ushered in the Kaiyuan Period of Prosperity.

All I can say is that people are born in adversity and die in comfort.

The wisdom of our ancestors is truly beyond words. They saw through the essence of the problem very early on.

In fact, anyone who has read an education knows these principles, but whether one can do it or not is another matter.

After all, not everyone can resist the temptation of the land of pleasure.

can only say.

There are too many examples in history of people who worked hard to govern the country in their early years but indulged in luxury in their later years. Li Longji is not the only one, nor will he be the last.

……

【Different from the foolish Li Longji. 】

[Faced with Yang An and his mutual insults, Yan Zhenqing chose to believe both. ]

[He believed that Yang Guozhong was ruining the country, and he also believed that An Lushan would rebel.]

[Yan Zhenqing, who could not tolerate any injustice, disdained to associate with Yang Guozhong.]

[When all the officials in the court were busy trying to curry favor with Yang Guozhong, Yan Zhenqing became a lone brave man in the political faction.]

(End of this chapter)