I think back then, when Emperor Xuanzong of the Tang Dynasty imitated the story of Emperor Wu of the Han Dynasty admiring Sima Xiangru and invited Li Bai to serve as a literary attendant in the court, it was a great favor from the emperor. Li Yangbing, Li Bai's uncle, described the grand reception Li Bai received when he was summoned to Beijing: "(Xuanzong) came down with his chariot to welcome him, as if he saw Qi Hao. He gave him food on a seven-treasure bed, and his hand poured soup into the rice." Qi Hao. , Qili Ji, one of the four hermits in Shangshan in the early Han Dynasty - the Shangshan Sihao. The Sihao of Shangshan once refused the call of Emperor Gaozu of the Han Dynasty and lived in seclusion in Shangshan. Empress Lu asked them to come down the mountain to consolidate the status of the crown prince (who would later become Emperor Hui of the Han Dynasty Liu Ying). Liu Bang, the Emperor of the Han Dynasty, was in awe of them. At the beginning of Li Bai's service to the Imperial Academy, he gained high trust from Xuanzong. "... He was placed in the Jinluan Hall, went in and out of the Imperial Academy, asked about state affairs, and hid the imperial edicts, but was ignorant of others" ("Preface to the Thatched Cottage Collection"). Li Bai himself also wrote a poem about this kind of auspicious encounter, "Once the king wiped his hair, he broke his heart and lost the snow in his heart. Suddenly the sun returned to the scene, and he went straight up to the blue clouds to give birth to wings. Fortunately, he accompanied Luan out of Hongdu, riding a green dragon and a horse in the sky. "Princes and princes borrowed colors and came to meet each other with gold medals and purple ribbons." ("Giving to Yangshan people after driving to the Hot Spring Palace")
There is evidence that Li Bai was indeed an outstanding "sacrifice" after entering the palace. Hanlin". In October of the same year when he was appointed as a concubine in the Imperial Academy, Xuanzong took Concubine Yang to the Lishan Hot Spring Palace. Li Bai was ordered to accompany her and wrote poems such as "Attendant Traveling to the Hot Spring Palace". In the early spring of the second year of Tianbao (743), there was music in the palace. Xuanzong composed the music himself. He wanted to add new words to the music, so he urgently summoned Li Bai. At that time, Li Bai was very drunk in the hotel. However, he was carried into the palace, soaked in cold water, and asked to write poems. In an instant, he wrote more than ten poems - eight of which have been preserved to this day. Xuanzong was very happy and praised him very much. In mid-spring, Xuanzong visited Yichun Garden, and Li Bai was ordered to follow him and wrote "The willows are green in the Long Pond, listening to the song of a hundred new orioles". In late spring, Xuanzong and Concubine Yang were admiring peonies in front of the Agarwood Pavilion of Xingqing Palace. On a whim, they ordered Li Bai to compose new lyrics. Li Bai was so intoxicated that he wrote three poems in one breath, praising Concubine Yang's beauty. This group of three poems titled "Qing Ping Tiao Ci" has gorgeous words and famous lines, "The clouds think of clothes and flowers think of face, the spring breeze blows on the threshold and the dew is rich", "May I ask who in the Han Palace is like it? Poor flying swallows leaning on new makeup", "Explaining the endless hatred of the spring breeze, the agarwood pavilion leaning against the railing in the north" describes the beauty and charm of Concubine Yang, and every poem can be called a masterpiece. In summer, Xuanzong went boating in the White Lotus Pond, and Li Bai was ordered to write "Preface to the Blooming of the White Lotus". In addition to the above-mentioned works, Li Bai also wrote some other works that should be produced. Judging from Xuanzong's frequent recruitment and ordering him to write poems, he was very satisfied with Li Bai's quick poetic talent. On the other hand, Li Bai is also fully qualified for the post of serving the Hanlin.
Logically speaking, whoever Xuanzong Li Longji asked to pack up his bags should not let Li Bai leave. However, it was Li Bai who packed up his bags and went home. In the spring of the third year of Tianbao (744), Li Bai had to leave the court and Chang'an. Li Bai served as a member of the Imperial Academy for only a year and a half.
So, what is the reason?
The legend in "New Book of Tang" is that Li Bai himself begged to quit the court and return to his hometown ("return to the mountain"). "If he begged to return to the mountain, the emperor would grant him gold and release him." Of course there is a reason for this, that is, Li Bai "knew that he was not tolerated by people close to him". In other words, the people around the emperor already hated Li Bai and could not tolerate him continuing to stay with the emperor and in the court; Li Bai himself also Realizing that there is no point in continuing to stay in the court. In other words, Li Bai offended people around Xuanzong Li Longji, such as Concubine Yang and Gao Lishi.
Today's authoritative literary history textbooks generally believe that Li Bai was forced to leave the court and Chang'an because of the slander by the powerful in the court, based on Li Bai's autobiography. In other words, it was the powerful people in the court who pushed Li Bai out of the court.
The inscription on Li Bai's new tombstone written by Fan Chuanzheng said that Xuanzong was worried that Li Bai would be drunk all day long, talk without restraint, leak the secrets of the palace and cause trouble, so he reluctantly approved Li Bai's resignation request. In other words, it was Emperor Xuanzong's good intention to let Li Bai pack up and go home.
I think Li Bai's plea to return to the mountain is just a superficial phenomenon. It is also not very credible that the general elite rejects Li Bai. During Li Bai's tenure as a Hanlin envoy, he did not see any political attempts or actions. His status was not enough to challenge the powerful, and it was impossible to hinder the interests of anyone in power. In addition, judging from Li Bai's words and deeds before and after, it is impossible for him to leave the court on his own initiative. He was absolutely forced to leave the court. Whether it was the disgust of those close to the emperor or the rejection of ordinary court dignitaries, it was Emperor Xuanzong who gave the final order. In the early years of Tianbao, Li Longji was still able to control the government. Therefore, the most important reason why Li Bai left the court and Chang'an was that Xuanzong no longer liked Li Bai. Letting Li Bai pack up and go home was Xuanzong's way of protecting Li Bai, which is like a fool's dream.
According to reasonable inference, if you don't like him in general, you can ignore him, you can lower his official position, or you can send him to be an insignificant official outside the capital. Xuanzong was not like this with Li Bai. He immediately dismissed him from his official position, which was a great move. This shows that in Xuanzong's view, Li Bai was an obstacle to the court. Documents record that Li Bai relied on Xuanzong's favor and got Gao Lishi to take off his boots while drunk. Gao Lishi felt humiliated and spoke ill of Li Bai in front of Concubine Yang. For example, he said that his "Qing Ping Tiao Ci" compared Concubine Yang to Concubine Yang. To be Zhao Feiyan is to belittle Concubine Yang.
These things were just a matter of conversation and laughter, and were not worthy of the parties concerned to worry about, so it was difficult for people to believe them. This was the main reason why Li Bai could not stay in the court.
Li Bai did not enter the court's power circle, and it was impossible for him to hinder the interests of any court dignitary. In other words, there was no need for the court dignitaries to exclude Li Bai. Gao Lishi and Yang Guifei may not like Li Bai very much, but they don't have to expel him from the court and Chang'an. I believe that the person who really drove Li Bai out of the court and out of Chang'an was Tang Xuanzong Li Longji himself.
Why did Li Longji expel Li Bai from the court and Chang'an? The main reason is: Li Bai misunderstood him. Specifically, Li Bai, who liked to drink, revealed the secrets of the palace. Fan Chuanzheng said that Li Bai "went in and out of the province while drunk, and had to talk about the greenhouse trees." Wang Qi of the Qing Dynasty suspected that Li Bai "had leaked information about the ban while drunk, and the Ming Emperor ignored it." Originally, Li Longji summoned Li Bai to the palace to embellish his literary talent and "embellish his career." Unexpectedly, Li Bai was a drunkard and an outspoken master, which of course made Xuanzong disappointed and dissatisfied. Li Bai originally intended to imitate Dongfang Shuo of the Han Dynasty, but in fact he could not be as detached and elegant as Dongfang Shuo. In the poem "Yin of the Jade Pot", the four sentences "The world does not know Dongfang Shuo, and the great hidden Jinmen is a banished immortal. A beautiful woman smiles and frowns, and an ugly girl is exhausted after imitating", which reveals Li Bai's admission that he did not learn Dongfang Shuo. His ability to hide his true feelings and make jokes around the emperor was self-defeating. Li Bai is not Sima Xiangru or Dongfang Shuo. He has a strong self-esteem and his words are inevitably sharp. He is often drunk and has difficulty keeping secret. He is not willing to just play the role of a "actor" and cannot help but criticize reality. . These should be the main reasons why Li Bai was fired by Tang Xuanzong.