In the first month of 751 AD, the Tang Palace was immersed in jubilation, and Yang Guifei called out in a motherly and loving tone: "Lu'er, Lu'er, come here, mother will wash you for three!" Under her call, An Lushan, who was forty-eight years old and weighed more than three hundred pounds, slowly entered a special huge bath barrel under the joint support of the guards.
After taking a bath, An Lushan changed into baby clothes specially customized for him: swaddling clothes, tiger head hat, and tiger head belly pocket, which looked funny and funny. The palace ladies surrounded him, as if they were a newborn baby, and placed him on the sedan chair and displayed it around the field, attracting everyone's laughter. In the face of this absurd scene, Tang Xuanzong not only did not show his sorrow, but generously threw away the money for washing children, and rewarded An Lushan even more.
People can't help but wonder why Yang Guifei accepted An Lushan, who was 16 years older than herself, as her adopted son, and Tang Xuanzong was so pleased with this? Behind all this is because of An Lushan's unique character and experience.
An Lushan showed a mischievous personality at an early age, and at the same time cultivated strong social skills. When he was growing up, with his extraordinary language talent, he was fluent in six Chinese, which became a rare advantage. As an adult, he traveled all over the world as a "tooth lang", wandering between all kinds of people, and practiced a set of superb communication skills to see people and talk about ghosts.
With this linguistic advantage and rich intermediary experience, An Lushan is well aware of the situation of border nomads, and is deeply appreciated by Zhang Shouqi, a frontier official. He further performed the technique of flattery, not only allowing Zhang Shouqi to accept him as his adopted son, but also successfully clinging to Li Linfu, the prime minister who leaned towards the government and the opposition. Under the protection of Li Linfu, coupled with the increasingly dim old age of Tang Xuanzong, An Lushan's career soared, and he successively served as the envoy of Pinglu, Fanyang, and Hedong, holding hundreds of thousands of elite soldiers and power. Even so, he still spoke skillfully and continued to please Yang Guifei and Tang Xuanzong.
The mother-son relationship between Yang Guifei and An Lushan actually originated from an accidental game. In order to ridicule this "godson", Yang Guifei arranged a palace version of the "washing three" ceremony. An Lushan was stripped of his clothes and carried into the tub to bathe in full view of everyone. After taking a bath, he frolicked around in the harem, and the palace people followed Yang Guifei's example and called him "Lu'er, Lu'er", and the scene couldn't help laughing. Tang Xuanzong, who was more than sixty years old, witnessed this scene, not only did not think he was angry, but laughed heartily, completely ignoring court etiquette.
However, the brighter Tang Xuanzong's smile was at this moment, the more bitter the tears would be in the future. An Lushan was able to meet Tang Xuanzong through heavy bribes in his early years. Faced with Tang Xuanzong's curious inquiry about his fat body, he replied wittily: "The only thing hidden in the belly of the minister is to be loyal to His Majesty. Although the words were vain, they just catered to Tang Xuanzong's preferences and doubled his favor for An Lushan.
Once, An Lushan returned triumphantly, and Tang Xuanzong set up a banquet to celebrate his achievements. Yang Guifei took the opportunity to propose that with An Lushan's upright loyalty, why not marry him as a brother with a different surname? An Lushan understood and proposed to recognize Yang Guifei as his godmother, and Tang Xuanzong readily agreed. Since then, the relationship between them has become closer and closer, and An Lushan has become more favored and trusted, in addition to the Pinglu Jiedu envoy, he also serves as the envoy of Hedong and Fanyang Jiedu, and his power is as powerful as the sky.
However, the expansion of power has given rise to ambition. An Lushan secretly hoarded weapons, grain and grass, and plotted rebellion. Yang Guozhong noticed his abnormal movements, repeatedly reminded Tang Xuanzong, and even suggested that An Lushan be recalled for questioning. However, An Lushan had already bought off the eyes and ears of the imperial court, making the investigation fruitless. When Tang Xuanzong finally summoned him back to Beijing, An Lushan accused Yang Guozhong of being jealous of his foreign origin and wanted to frame him, but Tang Xuanzong listened to his words and trusted An Lushan even more.
It was not until 755 A.D., when An Lushan refused to summon him twice, that Tang Xuanzong realized that the situation was serious, but it was too late. An Lushan brazenly launched the "Anshi Rebellion", which lasted for eight years and dealt a devastating blow to the Tang Dynasty. Tang Xuanzong fled in a hurry, and when he passed through Maweipo, when he was in the midst of life and death, he had to reluctantly order Yang Guifei to be hanged. The crown prince Li Heng was forced to stay and turn the tide, while An Lushan once captured Chang'an, established himself as Emperor Xiongwu, and established Dayan, but soon died because of his brutal treatment of his cronies.
This historical farce, which ended in tragedy, revealed the distortion of human nature and the madness of power lust in the power game, and also witnessed the turning point of the prosperous Tang Dynasty from prosperity to decline.