Today, the History Encyclopedia editor brings you the story of An Lushan. Interested readers can follow the editor to take a look together.
It is said that during the An Lushan Rebellion, one of An Lushan’s slogans was to seize Yang Yuhuan and take him over as his own. If this is true, then An Lushan must be very, very fond of Yang Yuhuan, but it’s hard to say whether the two of them have an affair. There is no record of this in both old and new Tang books, but there are many writings on this topic in unofficial histories and miscellaneous records.
History books describe An Lushan as a person who was “lustful” and was very good at observing people’s words and expressions, flattery and flattery. In 740 AD, he was appointed as the Military and Horse Envoy of Pinglu, allowing him to meet the king in court. Due to his eloquent words and gestures, he was also highly appreciated by Emperor Xuanzong of Tang, Li Longji. An Lushan knew that Li Longji favored Yang Yuhuan, so he tried his best to curry favor with her and let Yang Guifei adopt him as his adopted son. In 747 AD, An Lushan was promoted to the position of Grand Master. From then on, he rose rapidly and in 751 AD, An Lushan submitted a memorial to Emperor Xuanzong of Tang requesting to serve as the military governor of Hedong. As he wished, Emperor Xuanzong granted him the position.
At this time, An Lushan still met Yang Yuhuan as his adopted son and could enter and exit the harem under the guise of His Royal Highness Yu’ergan. Afterwards, many unofficial histories recorded that the relationship between An Lushan and Yang Guifei during this period was extraordinary.
Legend has it that An Lushan, in order to please Yang Guifei, ordered someone to wrap him tightly in a blanket after taking a bath, like a baby in a swaddling clothes. Lifting herself up in front of Yang Guifei, she saw Yang Yuhuan pretending to be crying like a baby, which made Yang Yuhuan burst into laughter. Later, Yang Yuhuan treated him like a baby, talking and playing with him. Imagine An Lushan, a chubby guy with a beard weighing several hundred pounds, wrapped up like a baby, with stubble all over his face, and pretending to be a baby and acting cute. Sigh Poverty really limits our imagination.
There is also a legend that once An Lushan went to Mount Li to meet the “Queen Mother”. Yang Guifei was bathing in Huaqing Pool at that time, so she let An Lushan go into the water and bathe with her. After bathing, An Lushan still pretended to be a baby and lay in a cradle made of colorful brocade. Ten palace maids pushed the cradle, and An Lushan played the role of a baby in the cradle, crying or laughing, while Yang Guifei only wore a thin veil and laughed heartily on the side. From then on, the two of them often met when Li Longji was not around. After all, Li Longji was older and far less powerful than An Lushan’s Kong Wu, while Yang Guifei was in the age of tigers and wolves, and it was understandable that she liked An Lushan.
The most bizarre legend left here is that once while playing in the cradle of An Lushan, she accidentally left a scratch on Yang Guifei’s chest due to excessive force. Yang Guifei was afraid of being questioned by Emperor Xuanzong of Tang and unable to explain, so she covered her chest with brocade, which is said to be the predecessor of the current bra. Since then, ‘The Claw of Lushan’ has become an allusion.
Of course, these are all unofficial legends, and as for their authenticity, we have no way of distinguishing them. However, the Tang Dynasty was truly a strange and open era.
