pjbooks Chapter 46 An Lushan
Chapter 46 An Lushan
During the reign of Emperor Taizong of Tang Dynasty
Li Shimin's eyes reddened, and he felt extremely suffocated. He had ruined such a prosperous era!
Indulging in wine and women, indulging in pleasure, and having a fondness for extravagance.
How is this any different from the dissolute and tyrannical Second Emperor of Sui!
What kind of fate awaits the people of my Great Tang Dynasty!
……
Lin Ke: "On this day, a portly Hu general came to pay homage to Li Longji, but he ignored the crown prince standing beside him."
"Others said that this was the Crown Prince, the one who would succeed the Emperor after his death, and that you had to pay your respects. Upon hearing this, An Lushan burst into tears, saying that he was foolish, that he didn't know what a Crown Prince was, and that he only knew about the Emperor!"
"Upon hearing this, Li Longji was delighted, thinking the fat man was very honest, and thus An Lushan became his favorite minister."
"So how did An Lushan rise from a chubby little barbarian to become the military governor of three towns?"
According to records, when An Lushan was born, moonlight shone on his room, and wild animals roared around him.
"The local military governor felt this was an ominous sign and immediately marched on An Lushan's tent. His mother managed to escape with him, thus saving them from this calamity."
"An Lushan was of mixed race. His father was a Sogdian from the northern grasslands. Initially, they were allied with the Turks. After Li Shimin destroyed the Eastern Turks, some Sogdians came to the Tang Dynasty."
"His mother was a Turkic shaman, so some people in the Tang Dynasty also referred to An Lushan as a 'mixed-barbarian' (a term referring to people of mixed ethnicities)."
"Not long after, An Lushan's father passed away, leaving the widow and her young son unable to survive. Thus, An Lushan happily gained a stepfather."
"At his stepfather's house, An Lushan honed his skills in horsemanship and archery. As a child, he enjoyed visiting the border trade areas of the Tang Dynasty to see the novelties sold by merchants from all over the world, which explains why he was able to learn multiple languages."
"Later, An Lushan simply became a broker in the border trade, but he didn't make much money, so he went to steal sheep and got caught."
"Just as he was about to be beaten to death after being captured, An Lushan cried out in desperation: 'Does the doctor not wish to exterminate the two barbarians? Why are you beating and killing Lushan!'"
"Sitting in the hall is Zhang Shougui, whom the court sent to deal with the Khitan and Xi vassal states. Upon hearing this, Zhang Shougui curiously asked what he could write."
An Lushan said that he was fluent in both languages and was an excellent horseman and archer.
"Thus, An Lushan survived and served under Zhang Shougui, doing the work of capturing enemy soldiers, mainly gathering intelligence in enemy territory."
"This was largely thanks to An Lushan's past experiences, coupled with his ability to speak well and navigate social situations, which allowed him to quickly become one of the enemy's allies."
"An Lushan had a neighbor named Shi Siming, who, like him, frequented the streets. However, he inadvertently incurred debts to the government and fled to Xidi. He quickly told the Xidi chieftain that he was an envoy from the Tang Dynasty, and the chieftain, upon hearing this, treated him to the best food and drink."
"When Shi Siming left, he instructed the chieftain of Xidi to send a few men with him to the Tang Dynasty. However, upon arriving in the Tang Dynasty, Shi Siming casually sold these men to Zhang Shougui."
"See? Shi Siming is cunning, isn't he? But An Lushan is no less so."
"An Lushan went to great lengths to please Zhang Shougui. Zhang Shougui disliked his weight, so An Lushan dared not eat too much each day, and even washed Zhang Shougui's feet."
"Zhang Shougui had a black mole on his foot. When An Lushan saw it, he boasted to An Lushan that his current status and achievements were all thanks to this black mole."
"Upon hearing this, An Lushan told him he had two, and they were even darker and larger. Zhang Shougui saw that it was indeed true and, believing he would amount to great things, adopted him as his godson."
Zhu Baba of the Ming Dynasty: Hehe, our old Zhu has one too!
"With the support of his godfather, An Lushan was able to go out to fight, but on one occasion, he suffered a defeat due to his bravery and was sentenced to death according to military regulations."
"His godfather, Zhang Shougui, felt it was a bit of a pity, so he passed the buck to the imperial court, letting them handle it."
When An Lushan met with Emperor Xuanzong (Li Longji), the emperor, seeing the portly man, asked curiously, "What's inside that belly of yours?"
An Lushan flattered him, saying, "What else could it be but a heart full of loyalty to His Majesty?"
A soldier from the Ming Dynasty: Goodness, he's a master of flattery!
A courtier of the Song Dynasty: Does this apply to all matters above?
……
At this moment, Zhang Jiuling, who was serving as prime minister in the imperial court, stepped forward to advise that military law could not be violated, and that An Lushan showed signs of rebellion; if he was not killed, he would surely become a future scourge!
"That's absolutely right, but unfortunately Li Longji wouldn't listen at the moment, insisting that he was making a mountain out of a molehill."
"Zhang Jiuling tried to persuade him further, but An Lushan simply bowed and thanked the emperor for sparing his life, then performed the Hu Xuan dance, which was Li Longji's favorite."
"After this incident, An Lushan felt that the emperor was the one who called the shots in the world, so why didn't he just try to please the emperor?"
"An Lushan bribed court officials with large sums of money to speak well of him to Li Longji, and over time, Li Longji appointed An Lushan as the military governor of Pinglu."
"What does a Jiedushi (military governor) do? Simply put, he's the highest-ranking official in charge of a region."
"Once, An Lushan went to the capital to report on his duties. He told Emperor Li Longji that the areas under his jurisdiction were plagued by locusts. He prayed that if he was disloyal to the emperor, the locusts would eat his heart; if he was loyal, the locust plague would pass. Unexpectedly, not long after, a flock of large birds came from the horizon and ate all the locusts."
"It was so outrageous that it struck a chord with Li Longji, and not long after, he appointed An Lushan as the military governor of Fanyang. This is something to be aware of."
"Fanyang had the largest military force among the ten major military governorates, with a total strength of 490,000 men at the time, of which An Lushan alone commanded nearly 130,000."
Li Erfeng of the Tang Dynasty (using very vulgar language): You son of a bitch, you've done something inhuman...! %...
"To consolidate his power, An Lushan set his sights on Yang Yuhuan, Emperor Xuanzong's favorite concubine, and recognized her as his godmother."
"Now An Lushan was even more favored by Li Longji, who specially ordered the construction of a very luxurious mansion for him."
"Not only that, Yang Guifei specially designed a 'bathing ceremony' for him on his third day. This little baby was wrapped in an enormous swaddling cloth, and from then on, An Lushan could freely enter and leave the palace, even staying out all night."
"Some people spread rumors that he had an improper relationship with the Imperial Concubine, but Li Longji didn't believe them at all."
People in Wanchaozhong: This is indeed quite abnormal…
"An Lushan made an even more outrageous request: he demanded to concurrently serve as the military governor of Hedong. Li Longji agreed without the slightest hesitation."
"From then on, An Lushan commanded three towns, with a total strength of approximately 184,000 men."