Chapter 63 154 Li Linfu with honey belly sword

Tang Xuanzong had been the Emperor of Taiping for more than 20 years, and gradually developed a feeling of pride and laziness.He thought, the world is peaceful, the prime minister is in charge of political affairs, and the border guards are guarded by generals, so why should he worry so much about state affairs.So, he pursued a life of pleasure. Seeing this situation, Prime Minister Zhang Jiuling was very anxious and often gave advice to Tang Xuanzong.Tang Xuanzong originally respected Zhang Jiuling very much, but later, he couldn't listen to Zhang Jiuling's opinions. There was a minister, Li Linfu, who was ignorant.He doesn't know anything, but he has learned a set of flattery and flattery skills.He colluded with the eunuchs and concubines in the palace to spy on the movement in the palace.He first found out what Tang Xuanzong said and thought in the palace.When Tang Xuanzong asked him to discuss something, he answered fluently, just as Tang Xuanzong thought.Tang Xuanzong felt very comfortable after hearing this, and felt that Li Linfu was capable and obedient, much better than Zhang Jiuling.

Tang Xuanzong wanted to promote Li Linfu as prime minister and discuss with Zhang Jiuling.Zhang Jiuling saw that Li Linfu was not an upright person, so he said bluntly: "The status of the prime minister is related to the safety of the country. If your majesty worships Li Linfu as the prime minister, I am afraid that the country will suffer disaster in the future." These words spread to Li Linfu, who gritted his teeth with hatred for Zhang Jiuling.General Niu Xianke of Shuofang (where the government is located in Lingwu, Ningxia today) is illiterate, but he has a lot of ways to manage money.Tang Xuanzong wanted to promote Niu Xianke, but Zhang Jiuling did not agree.Li Linfu said in front of Tang Xuanzong: "People like Niu Xianke are candidates for prime minister; Zhang Jiuling is a bookworm and doesn't know the general idea."

Once, Tang Xuanzong asked Zhang Jiuling to discuss the promotion of Niu Xianke.Zhang Jiuling still disagreed.Tang Xuanzong got angry and said sharply: "Don't you have to decide everything!" Tang Xuanzong felt that Zhang Jiuling hated him more and more, and he believed Li Linfu's slander, so he finally dismissed Zhang Jiuling and made Li Linfu the prime minister. As soon as Li Linfu became prime minister, the first thing he did was to isolate Tang Xuanzong from all officials, and not allow everyone to raise opinions in front of Xuanzong.Once, he summoned the admonishers and announced publicly: "Now the emperor is wise, and the ministers only need to act according to the emperor's will, and there is no need for everyone to talk about it. Haven't you seen the horse on horseback (a kind of action in front of the palace) Horses used for ceremonial guards)? The feed they eat is equivalent to the treatment of third-rank officials, but if any horse barks, it will be pulled out and used, and it is too late to regret it."

An admonisher refused to listen to Li Linfu's words, and wrote a memorial to Emperor Xuanzong of Tang Dynasty.The next day, he received an order and was demoted to another place to be a county magistrate.Everyone knew that this was what Li Linfu meant, and no one dared to ask Xuanzong for advice in the future. Li Linfu knew that he had a bad reputation in the court.All the ministers who are more capable than him, he will do everything possible to squeeze them out.He wanted to squeeze someone out, on the surface he was calm and smiling, but he stabbed someone behind his back. Once, Tang Xuanzong looked through the curtain from the Qinzheng Building, and Lu Xuan, the Minister of the Ministry of War, rode downstairs on horseback.Tang Xuanzong saw that Lu Xuan's demeanor was very good, so he casually praised him.The next day, when Li Linfu learned of this, he demoted Lu Xuan to be the governor of Huazhou.Not long after Lu Xuan took office, he was falsely accused of being in poor health and incompetent, so he was demoted again.

There was an official, Yan Tingzhi, who was squeezed out by Li Linfu to be the governor in other places.Later, Tang Xuanzong thought of him and said to Li Linfu: "Is Yan Tingzhi still there? This man is very talented and can be used." Li Linfu said: "Since Your Majesty misses him, I'll go and find out." After retreating from the court, Li Linfu hurriedly found Yan Tingzhi's younger brother and said, "Your brother really wants to go back to the capital to meet the emperor. I have a way." Yan Tingzhi's younger brother was of course very grateful to see Li Linfu caring about his brother so much, and asked for advice on what to do.Li Linfu said: "As long as you ask your brother to make a memorial, say that he is sick, and ask to return to the capital to see a doctor."

Yan Tingzhi received a letter from his younger brother, and actually wrote a memorial requesting to return to the capital for medical treatment.Li Linfu took the memorial to Tang Xuanzong and said, "It's a pity that Yan Tingzhi is seriously ill now and can't do great things." Tang Xuanzong sighed regretfully, forget it. There are quite a few people who have been deceived like Yan Tingzhi.However, no matter how ingeniously Li Linfu dressed up, his conspiracy was finally seen through by people.People say that Li Linfu is "like honey in his mouth, but a sword hidden in his stomach" (this is how the idiom "mouth with honey and belly with sword" comes from).

Li Linfu had been the prime minister for nineteen years, and all the talented and upright ministers were rejected, and batches of villains who tried their best to flatter horses were reused and promoted.During this period, the politics of the Tang Dynasty turned from prosperity to decline, and the prosperity of the "Kaiyuan Reign" disappeared, followed by the "Tianbao Rebellion" (Tianbao was the reign title of Emperor Xuanzong in the late Tang Dynasty).