Chapter 43 Li Mi: Commoner "Prime Minister"

Li Mi, whose courtesy name is Changyuan, has been intelligent since childhood. He has extensive knowledge of classics and history, and works in poetry and books. He often claims to be Wang Zuozhi's talent.Li Mi has been known as an "odd boy" since he was a child. In the sixteenth year of Kaiyuan (728 A.D.), when he was just six years old, Xuanzong called him to Beijing in admiration.When Li Mi entered the palace for an audience, Xuanzong was playing chess with Prime Minister Zhang Shuo.In order to test his intelligence, Xuanzong hinted that Zhang said to test him.Zhang Shuo said casually: "A square is like a chess game, a circle is like a chess piece, movement is like a chess game, and stillness is like a chess game is dead." .Without thinking about it, Li Mi opened his mouth and said: "Fang is like doing righteousness, round is like using wisdom, moving is like being talented, and being quiet is like complacency." ("New Book of Tang Li Mi Biography")

As soon as this remark came out, everyone was shocked.Xuanzong was overjoyed, and said to his left and right: "This child's mind is far beyond his age." Immediately, money was given, and a special edict was issued to let his parents cultivate him well.The famous courtiers Zhang Jiuling, Zhang Tinggui and others at that time all admired him very much, and formed friends with him for many years, and often called him "little friend" affectionately. After growing up, Li Mi became more knowledgeable, especially proficient in "Book of Changes".But he has no intention of official career, and is ashamed of pursuing fame like ordinary people. Instead, he loves mountains and rivers, admires the skills of old villages and gods, and often travels or lives in seclusion among Songshan, Huashan and Zhongnanshan.In the mid-Tianbao period, Li Mi wrote a letter to Xuanzong, bluntly speaking of the gains and losses of the government at that time, and Xuanzong suddenly recalled the "odd boy" back then, and then recruited Li Mi into the court, and granted him the post of imperial edict, and asked him to assist Prince Li Heng in the East Palace.

It was from this time that Li Mi and Li Heng formed an indissoluble bond.Li Heng respects him very much and often calls him "Sir".Strictly speaking, Hanlin Daizhao is just a literary attendant, not a real official, and Xuanzong once wanted to grant Li Mi a formal official position, but he declined.Therefore, Li Heng and Li Mi have actually been "friends of the common people". After working in the East Palace for a few years, Li Mi wrote a poem "Ganyu Poem" to ridicule the government because he couldn't understand Yang Guozhong's favoritism and power. As a result, he offended Yang Guozhong and was expelled from the capital immediately.Li Mi simply broke away from politics and hid in Songshan, Henan, where he began his life of seclusion.

In the next few years, Li Heng and Li Bi lost contact with each other. When Li Heng went north from Mawei to Lingwu, one could imagine the hesitation and helplessness in his heart, so he immediately thought of Li Mi, and then sent someone to Songshan to look for him, hoping that Li Mi could come out of the mountain to help him. When the mountains and rivers are broken and the country is in crisis, Li Mi certainly has no reason to stay out of the world and stand by.So, without any hesitation, he followed the envoy to Lingwu day and night.Li Heng was overjoyed, and immediately led into the inner hall to have a long talk with him.From then on, Li Mi stayed by Suzong's side as a commoner.Su Zong "consulted with him on matters no matter how big or small, and obeyed everything he said, and discussed with him about the advancement and retreat of the generals." (Volume 218)

Obviously, although Li Mi was still a commoner at this time, his influence on Emperor Suzong far surpassed all civil and military officials, and even surpassed the prime minister. .Suzong wanted to appoint Li Mi as prime minister many times, but Li Mi resolutely refused.He said: "Your Majesty treats me like a friend, which means that my status is more noble than the prime minister. Why must I be an official and go against my will?" Suzong had to give up. However, with the passage of time, the scale of Suzong's court has grown larger and its authority has also increased day by day, and everything is developing rapidly in the direction of regularization, so Li Mi's status as a commoner has become more and more embarrassing for Suzong .Once, Suzong and Li Mi passed by the barracks together, and the soldiers pointed at them and whispered, "The one in yellow is a 'sage', and the one in white is a 'mountain man'." The so-called "sage" , meaning the emperor; and the so-called "mountain man" means a mountain villager.When Suzong heard such words, he was of course very upset, so he made up his mind to change Li Mi's status as a commoner no matter what.

Suzong told Li Mi about the outside discussions, and then said: "In this critical period, although I dare not force you to become an official, I still ask you to change into a purple robe (official uniform above the third rank), so that the people below will not say Make irresponsible remarks." Li Mi had no choice but to accept it.But as soon as Li Mi put on the purple clothes, Suzong looked at him with a smile on his face and said: "Since all the purple clothes are worn, how can we not have a status!" Then he took out an edict that had been prepared from his arms, and announced the appointment Li Mi is the history of the marching commander of the army and the marshal's mansion.The so-called "serving the military country" is a special invention of Li Heng, and it is also tailor-made for Li Mi.It can be seen from this that in order for Li Mi, who refused to be the prime minister, to have a proper status, Li Heng worked hard with good intentions.

Now, Li Mi realized that he was being fooled by Suzong, so he quickly declined.Suzong said with a serious face: "I dare not make you prime minister, but I only give you a status temporarily, and when the rebellion is put down, I will let you go far away." The emperor has already talked about this point, if Li Mi refuses again, it will be too unreasonable.Li Mi had no choice but to reluctantly agree. The reason why Li Mi refused to be an official was because of his unique personality.He has always despised the world's fame and fortune, especially those who do anything for power and wealth.Therefore, even if he had to go out of the mountain to assist Li Heng, he still hoped that he would always maintain a detached mentality and would not be bound by worldly fame and fortune.

However, this is not the main reason why Li Mi refused to be an official. In fact, Li Mi's real motivation is much deeper than this.In the words of Wang Fuzhi, a thinker in the late Ming Dynasty, the reason why Li Mi resigned repeatedly was because he had a "big opportunity" related to the rise and fall of the Tang Dynasty in his heart. As we all know, in the later period of Xuanzong's reign, the most serious problem was that "the emperor despised the title" and "people coveted the precious pet".These two are two sides of the same coin.That is to say, since the emperor was indiscriminate in granting rewards and did not cherish the imperial ranks, all the officials of course only wanted to flatter the emperor and win wealth, honor and favor with all their heart.In the last years of Tianbao, the reason why Yang Guozhong relied on favor and arbitrarily power inside and An Lushan conspired to rebel outside was the result of this long-standing malpractice.

Therefore, Li Mi's "big opportunity" is to eradicate this long-standing abuse of Tianbao politics. Specifically, Li Mi wanted to achieve two goals through his own practical actions: first, set an example for the civil and military officials of Suzong's court, so that "people do not regard official positions as valuable but meritorious services, and do not take pride in vanity Prosperity and reality" (Volume 23 of "Du Tong Jian Lun").That is to let officials really do things for the country and the people, instead of being obsessed with flattery and only thinking about getting promoted and getting rich.2. On this basis, Suzong's court can develop a healthy atmosphere of "cherishing honors and rewards" and "not being greedy for glory and profit" from top to bottom, creating a good start for Suzong's great cause of rejuvenation.

Needless to say, it is very difficult for Li Mi to change the old habits of an era, but only in this way, Li Mi's efforts are even more commendable. Suzong Li Heng was really lucky to be able to obtain such an incomparable talent as Wang Zuozhi like Li Mi.Even though Li Mi can't change the atmosphere of an era, his wisdom and talent are more than enough to assist Li Heng. Not long after arriving in Lingwu, Li Mi promptly corrected a serious mistake Suzong was about to make.That is about the selection of the Marshal of the World's Soldiers and Horses. At first, Suzong wanted to hand over this important position to his third son, Li Tan, king of Jianning, because Li Tan was brave and courageous by nature, good at riding and shooting, and rich in talent.For example, after Li Heng and Xuanzong divided their troops in Mawei, the idea of ​​going north to Lingwu was proposed by Li Tan.Later, on the way to Lingwu, Li Heng and his party "met bandits and robbers many times", thanks to Li Tan's "self-selection of bravery, standing in front of (Li Heng) and defending in bloody battles" (Volume 218), Li Heng was able to Turn the corner.

With such an excellent son, Li Heng has no reason not to entrust him with the post of Marshal. However, Suzong's decision was opposed by Li Mi.He said: "King Jianning is certainly a marshal, but King Guangping Li Chu is the eldest brother. If King Jianning made great contributions in the war against rebellion, where will King Guangping be placed?" Suzong said disapprovingly: "Guangping is the eldest son, and he is the natural candidate for the future crown prince. Why must he be the marshal?" Li Mi said: "The problem is that King Guangping is not in the East Palace yet! The current situation is difficult, and the people's hearts all depend on the Marshal. If King Jianning has achieved great success, even if His Majesty does not regard him as the crown prince, how can those who follow him make meritorious deeds?" Promise? What happened to Emperor Taizong and Emperor Taishang is the most typical example." When Suzong heard this, he couldn't help being startled. He only wanted to regain Chang'an as soon as possible, but he almost caused a serious political hidden danger.If Li Mi hadn't reminded him in time, he would have made a big mistake.Suzong immediately changed his decision and gave the position of marshal to Li Chu, king of Guangping, and ordered him to command the generals. Afterwards, Jianning Wang Li Tan learned of this, and immediately thanked Li Mi face to face, saying: "This is exactly my wish." Li Mi's persuasion this time resolved a crisis of brothers fighting against each other. Immediately afterwards, he advised Suzong again, successfully avoiding the possible father-son guessing between Suzong and Xuanzong. One day, Suzong and Li Mi were talking, and the topic unknowingly came to Li Linfu. Suzong gritted his teeth and said that on the day when Chang'an was conquered, an imperial edict must be issued to dig up Li Linfu's grave, burn his bones and ashes. To vent the hatred in my heart.However, Li Mi shook his head and said: "Your Majesty will rule the world, how can you seek revenge from the dead! Li Linfu is just a dead bone now, ignorant, and His Majesty's doing so can only show the lack of holiness. What's more What's more, there are so many thieves from the sky, once they hear about it, they will feel fear in their hearts, doesn't this mean blocking their way of self-rehabilitation?" Suzong was very displeased, and said: "This thief used to do everything possible to harm me and make me precarious. I can live to this day, thanks to God's blessing! Li Linfu also disliked you at that time, but he died before he could do anything to you , do you want to forgive him?" Li Mi said: "I don't know what Li Linfu did back then, but this is not what I consider. Please think about it, Your Majesty, the emperor has been in the world for nearly fifty years, enjoying peace and joy, but now he is frustrated and has gone away to Bashu. The climate in the south is harsh, and the emperor is old. If he hears His Majesty's decree, he will definitely think that His Majesty hated him because of Concubine Wei's dismissal. Li Heng was forced to divorce Webster, who subsequently shaved off his hair and became a nun.) If the emperor felt uneasy and guilty because of this, and became sick with sentimentality, then His Majesty would definitely be accused of "the world is so big that you cannot rest in peace with your relatives." , when the time comes, how can His Majesty explain himself?" When Suzong heard the words, he suddenly woke up like a dream, got up immediately, looked up to the sky and bowed, and said, "I didn't think of this at all. It was God who asked me to come in with this faithful advice!" Then he hugged Li Mi and wept endlessly. Although Li Heng's performance was exaggerated, he also expressed his feelings. After all, Li Linfu is Xuanzong's favored prime minister for many years. It is said that beating a dog depends on the owner. If you, Li Heng, really crush him, it is tantamount to slapping Xuanzong in the face. put?What's more, Li Heng, as a self-reliant emperor, tried his best to downplay the notoriety of "good standing", so why bother to provoke criticism from the world, and bear the infamy of "unable to make peace with the emperor" for no reason?If it weren't for Li Mi's foresight and timely remonstrance, Li Heng would obviously make another low-level mistake. Li Mi always puts the overall situation first, and he knows everything and speaks endlessly. Although it is of great help to Su Zong, sometimes it is unavoidable to offend people because of his outspoken words. For example, not long after Suzong's court moved from Lingwu to Hue, Li Mi offended a special person.To be precise, this is a woman. She is Suzong's beloved concubine Zhang Liangdi.