Insufficient balance

  I don't really care about the life and death of the Yang family. To say that there are not many good people in the Yang family, Yang Guozhong's sons are all typical evil young masters of a powerful family, and Yang Xiaosan, who was killed, was also known as the wolf of the capital when he was in Chang'an, and had a notorious reputation along with the five tigers of the northern army. Even Yang Yuer, who is a relative, has not been spared from being bullied by these cousins because of her birth, and was often scolded as a bastard when her parents were not around.

  Of course, there are also a few exceptions, and my home's Yu'er is certainly one of them. She is simply a shy and introverted little girl, or maybe it's because she's still too young to have learned how to be bad.

  As for the other Yang Taizhen, I don't have much of a biased view towards this woman who has been embroiled in many controversies throughout history. After seeing and hearing things over time, I still hold this view. At least I think that being born beautiful is not one's own responsibility - if you want to blame someone, ask her parents. The downfall of a dynasty is the result of many factors interacting with each other, and it's often the case that later generations of writers with a strong masculine bias will attribute the consequences of a country's decline and an emperor's incompetence to individual women in historical records. This is itself a very irresponsible behavior. Moreover, in the social environment at the time, women were always in a subordinate position, no matter how much favor they received - the actual power to make decisions often didn't lie in their own hands.

  Everyone says she is shameless and corrupts human relationships, but they don't know that this tradition has been passed down in the Li Tang royal family for a long time. The history books have always said "Han's Confucianism, Jin's clear talk, Tang's turtle, Song's nasal mucus, Qing's laziness". The Tang turtle refers to the fact that the Tang emperors had the "glorious tradition" of making others turtles. Moreover, the more prosperous and famous the emperor was, the more so it was. The most famous and typical one is the great Emperor Taizong of Tang, Li Shimin. This emperor not only had great talent but also couldn't resist women. For example, he killed his brother and took his wife Yang as his own concubine, who gave birth to Wu Wang Ke. Later, after Li Jing and Su Dingfang defeated the Eastern Turks, they captured many people from the Sui dynasty, including the former empress of the Sui emperor Xiang. She was also taken into the palace by Emperor Taizong (it's worth noting that according to the five degrees of mourning, everyone knew that Tang Gaozu Li Yuan and Sui Yangdi were sworn brothers, but his wife and daughter entered the harem of his nephew Li Shimin). Later, when his uncle Lujiang Wang rebelled and died, his widow was also taken into the palace as a concubine. All these things, even the famous minister Wei Zheng, who was known for his straightforward words, knew that this was the emperor's private virtue and dared not speak of it. As for later emperors such as Gaozong taking his father's concubine, Wu Zetian keeping a male lover, and Empress Wei's misrule, there were countless cases of making others turtles. If one had to say who was the cleanest, it would be only Emperor Ruizong, the father of Emperor Xuanzong, whose reign was relatively short.

  As for the rumors in historical books that like to link Yang Guifei and An Lushan together, after seeing her in person, I would say that it's ridiculous to think that such a beautiful woman with a noble and elegant demeanor, who can charm the city with just one smile, could have an affair with that coarse, ugly, fat-headed, and infamous An Lushan. It's like comparing apples and oranges. However, if we say that she lived a life of luxury and prosperity, with little to worry about, and lacked vigilance towards the outside world due to her long residence in the deep palace, then that's not entirely unfounded. If we follow what the historical books say, that she played mother-son games with An Lushan, being intimate without any reserve, it's possible because sometimes she would do things that left people speechless, such as when she suddenly had an idea after listening to a report from a little maid, and specially summoned me, then leaned in extremely close for a good look, right under the emperor's nose. At the moment when I was dazzled and my heart skipped a beat, she suddenly thought of touching that tooth mark, scaring me out of my wits and giving me cold sweats.

  The emperor's possessiveness and jealousy are notorious, especially the more majestic and powerful the emperor is, the more severe it is. Although the old emperor rarely heard of political affairs in his later years, most of his energy was devoted to his favorite concubine, how could he tolerate the existence of infidelity in his harem? As for the interactions between the imperial concubines and external officials, it is even less possible that there would be no preventive measures at all. Not to mention Yang Guifei, who had staked her entire family's reputation on the emperor, viewing An Lushan as a political enemy with whom she could not coexist. It is more likely that An Lushan was infatuated with her beauty, and this rumor seems more like a ploy used by palace officials to frame each other.

  On the other hand, in order to maintain her own status and future, she would stop at nothing, and the drama of jealousy and favoritism had been performed for generations within the imperial harem, and was not unique to a particular era or person. As for interfering with state affairs, she, who loved music and dance but rarely asked about worldly matters, was far less involved than her predecessor, Consort Wu Hui. This was also one of the reasons why the emperor could maintain his favor towards her for so long. Yang Guozhong's rise to power was only one factor, and most of the responsibility lay with the emperor's own problems in appointing and using people.

  Rightly thinking about it, but met Han Zhongwang's gaze coming over, and nodded slightly after being stunned for a moment, only to see that his eyes were not only friendly but also had other intentions.

  Of course, the King of Hanzhong, Li Yu, also had his own thoughts. As the saying goes, "the heavenly will is unpredictable", after experiencing so many things, it's hard to guess what's on the emperor's mind. The officials from Shu naturally took the initiative to secretly investigate the situation of the imperial entourage and others, in order to determine their stance after Yang's downfall and which political direction they would take in the future.

  Among the people around His Majesty who are worth paying attention to, the first is Wei Jian, the new chief minister. Although Hanzhong is an enemy in the southwest, it also has the advantage of convenient communication with Guanzhong and the capital. This man originally belonged to the Yang party system, with a reputation for virtue, but was personally promoted by Yang. After the destruction of the Yang party, he not only did not receive any punishment, but his father and son were both promoted together, one door producing generals and chancellors. Along with the new nobles who rose after the fall of the Yang family, such as Yu Huai, Fang Suo, Yu Chou, Shen Jie, they inherited most of the Yang family's political influence. Moreover, although the Yang party was eliminated, the root cause and helper of the Yang family's rise to power, Yang Guifei, is still by His Majesty's side, and her imperial favor has not diminished despite the destruction of the Yang family. Does this mean anything? There is also the crown prince who went north to mourn... After the fall of the Yang party, various changes occurred, even if he was prepared, he could not help but be surprised.

  In comparison, among those newly rising stars, the most eye-catching and legendary one is this man who can be described as suddenly appearing out of nowhere and rapidly rising to prominence, yet is known for his independence - General-in-Chief Zongzhixing, with the title of Right Golden Armor Middle Commander, serving as Left Dragon Martial General, Liang Xiaoliang Rongyangruo.

  As for the young Left Golden Guard, it's not hard to find out about him. With a little investigation, there are many strange and unbelievable stories about this man and his subordinates, such as ambushing friendly troops, looting and mutilating the bodies of killed enemies, and even rumors that he selects strong prisoners of war to be eaten, which is so astonishing that it leaves people speechless and at a loss for words.

  There are as many praises for his military achievements and criticisms of his arrogance. If we only look at these two aspects, it's hard to distinguish between rumors and facts, and the more you talk about him, the harder it is to understand his true nature. His tendencies in the imperial court have become increasingly difficult to fathom.

  Moreover, what kind of troops are under his command? At first glance at the imperial guards, although they had heard rumors, they still couldn't help but be frightened. The armor and clothes that could be worn were almost tattered, with people sitting idly in disarray, giving off an air of laxity and lack of energy. Except for a few officers who maintained their dignity, the rest of the crowd was covered in scars and dark stains on their armor. They didn't have the majesty of the heavenly army at all, making one wonder what had happened to them, but it's also hard to believe that these troops would be the ones to rout the enemy and make them flee in disarray.

  As soon as the order was given, everyone's eyes revealed an unspeakable ferocity, and their entire body hid a sharp killing intent. And seeing the large crowd on this side, with wolf-like eyes that shot out green light. (Imagine struggling to survive for many days, half-starved, and suddenly seeing a scene of abundance) It made people feel a chill run down their spine in the scorching sun at noon, yet unable to forget the feeling.

  After hearing the origin, he was secretly shocked. Although Han Zhong and Fan Yang are thousands of miles apart, in recent years, An Shi's rebellious son has been rampant, and from the imperial court's reports, it is also known that An Shi had outstanding military achievements in his early years, with countless elite soldiers and generals under his command. This "Ye Luo River" may have only a few thousand men, but they are all strong warriors who emerged from the mountains of corpses and seas of blood, claiming to be able to take on hundreds of enemies alone. Looking at them... The tattered armor and bloody marks on these generals' bodies can be seen as extremely tragic, no wonder they were so desperate. As for this young general with a head full of unusual short hair, he couldn't help but pay attention to him again.

  The King of Hanzhong walked over with a smile, shook hands and said, "Lord Liang, you've had a long and arduous journey, but I heard that General Liang's military strategy is superb. With the Golden Crow protecting the sacred chariot in times of turmoil, he defeated 17 routes of rebel troops, capturing and killing the bandit general Xiong Lei in battle. His demeanor is something we can't help but admire, it's just a pity I haven't had the chance to see him in person." The flattering words made everyone feel comfortable and at ease. When mentioning the ambush, the Hanzhong Sima beside him smiled awkwardly and said, "Please don't praise me too much, Lord Liang is like a tiger or wolf when it comes to military strategy, I'm just a small general who has seen his ways, and should be respected." He also said, "Those young men have rarely seen such a scene, they must be laughing at us."

  The King of Hanzhong also said, "I have also heard that in ancient times, Han Fei's general governed with few laws, but his subordinates were good at fighting and unmatched. Now I see it for myself." Those Shu officials all chimed in with voices saying "young and promising" and "boundless future", not giving anyone a chance to modestly decline or explain.

  But this flattering you is really comfortable. I can only smile bitterly in my heart, what has become of the seventeen routes of the broken and inverted thieves, it's too exaggerated, I'm afraid those hundreds of scattered soldiers are not enough. In the battle array, capture and kill the bandit general Xiong Lei, who pursues and kills whom, I'm afraid it should be said in reverse.

  Of course, no one would believe me if I said this to those guys, not even my subordinates. On the contrary, they would say that this is a manifestation of your humility and prudence, not calculating gains and losses. When you reach a certain position, saying too much truth is actually unbelievable. Being an official is indeed strange like this.