A thousand-year-old family begins with one fighting against ten thousand.

"Given An Lushan's greed, I estimate he wouldn't last three days."

Li Bai gently placed the chess piece, giving an answer of 3 days.

Based on his meeting with An Lushan today, he has determined that An Lushan is not a law-abiding person.

They are currently not making any moves because they are wary of the Imperial Guards and the Central Army, but they will definitely show their fangs in no more than 3 days.

At that time, Li Longji will have to bear the responsibility for his choices.

Set aside your desire to help others and respect their fate.

He now finally understood why his master had taught him that phrase after he had just started learning the skills.

This also makes it clearer why the Wei family chose to remain so detached from worldly affairs.

The human heart is indeed the most complex thing in the world.

Li Bai is unaware that Li Longji has blamed him for all the mistakes. If he did, he would probably be even more determined to leave the court soon.

He should be like his master, detached from the court.

The imperial court is not suitable for someone with a mind as pure as crystal.

"Three days?"

Wei Mai smiled. "I don't think he can wait even a day longer."

"Taibai, you have stayed in Luoyang for too long. You have been influenced by the court and unconsciously bring the court officials into your actions and thoughts."

"An Lushan is different. He came from the borderlands and was a general who grew up in battle. Such a person is decisive and ruthless."

"He won't wait too long, because on the battlefield, delay can lead to unforeseen circumstances."

"Every day we postpone it increases the risk; nobody knows what unexpected things might happen the next day."

"So I estimate he'll make his move tonight."

"How about we take a gamble?"

Wei Mai took one of Li Bai's chess pieces and said with a smile.

"What are we betting on?"

Li Bai pondered for a moment and felt that although Wei Mai's words made sense, the court's 5 imperial guards and 20 central army were not just for show. An Lushan was neither a fool nor a madman, and he would definitely be wary of him.

"If I win, you'll write me a poem, at least a masterpiece."

"If I lose, your eldest grandson will soon be starting his education, right? I'll personally give him his lessons, how about that?"

Wei Mai's eyes lit up; even someone of his status and position couldn't help but admire Li Bai's poetry.

Li Bai was also overjoyed. To be personally enlightened by the Prince of Yan was such an honor and such a great opportunity.

Li Bai was most deeply moved by the teachings of the Prince of Yan's lineage.

With his senior brother's guidance, his eldest grandson's potential will be fully developed, and he will benefit immensely.

If we lose, it's just a poem, a masterpiece that can be made with a few bottles of good wine.

He could also take this opportunity to ask his senior brother for some of the Wei family's treasured wine. He had been fortunate enough to receive a jar from his teacher before, which was a wine that had been aged for hundreds of years. The taste of it was unforgettable to Li Bai to this day.

Such fine wine was rare, even for the Wei family, and even Li Bai rarely had the chance to drink it.

Feeling that he couldn't lose out no matter what, Li Bai agreed to Wei Mai's request without hesitation.

"Taibai, do you intend to retire?"

Wei Mai noticed the change in Li Bai's mindset from his chess moves and couldn't help but ask.

Li Bai nodded slightly. "Senior brother, how did you know?"

"Your chess playing style taught me that."

Wei Mai stroked his beard slightly and said with a smile.

"When you used to play chess, you liked to take the initiative and occupy the corners to gain an advantage."

"When playing chess, I like to press my opponent relentlessly, suppressing them at every turn. I always consider the whole game and plan carefully before acting."

"But now your playing style is completely different. You place your pieces much more randomly, which seems to have no rules compared to before. It's like a gazelle hanging its horns, leaving no trace."

"Yet it forms a complete system of its own, perfectly natural, and indescribably wonderful."

"This clearly shows that you have given up on the court and are preparing to retire into seclusion."

"Hahahaha, is what you said right, senior brother?"

Li Bai nodded with a wry smile, never expecting that his thoughts had been expressed so clearly.

"Indeed, after stepping into this imperial court, I realized how precious those carefree days were."

"However, I do not regret it. After all, thanks to my efforts over the years, countless people have been freed from displacement and from the invasion of eunuchs and Yang Guozhong's forces."

"It's just that His Majesty is too disappointing, so I'll take this opportunity to leave the court and retire to the mountains."

Facing his senior brother, Li Bai naturally didn't hide anything and directly expressed his true thoughts.

"Um."

Wei Mai stroked his beard slightly. There were far too many cases like Li Bai in history. These direct descendants would start learning history books after their early education, and the first thing they would learn was the history of the Wei family ancestors. That's why they developed a personality that didn't care much about power from a young age.

"Retiring to the mountains might be a good thing for you; go ahead and do it if you want to."

Li Bai nodded with emotion. Since his debut, no matter what choices he made, the Wei family had always silently supported him and never interfered with his choices.

His gratitude towards the Wei family grew stronger.

……

The following morning, Li Bai led a large group of court officials to confront An Lushan at the palace gates.

He couldn't rely on An Lushan and Shi Siming's leniency for all his safety, so he was accompanied by the Imperial Guards this time when he went to court.

To ensure their safety, they naturally needed these imperial guards to escort them into the palace.

Otherwise, if one were to be alone in the palace, wouldn't one be at the mercy of others?

If An Lushan truly harbored such intentions, why would he allow them to bring the Imperial Guards into the capital?

Even if he didn't have such intentions, he was afraid that once these imperial guards entered the palace, they would take advantage of the court session to kidnap Li Longji, so he would not allow these imperial guards to enter the palace.

The two sides reached a stalemate, as their lives and fortunes were at stake, and neither was willing to back down.

"Prime Minister Li, His Majesty has decreed that all ministers be summoned to the palace for an audience. These imperial guards may wait outside the palace."

"Would you like to verify His Majesty's written edict?"

Under An Lushan's arrangement, Shi Siming went to Li Longji and obtained a handwritten edict.

Regardless of whether Shi Siming demanded this edict from Li Longji, just tell me whether Li Longji wrote it himself.

"If it is issued by the Ministry of Personnel without being drafted by the Secretariat and reviewed by the Chancellery, it is not considered an imperial edict and need not be obeyed."

Li Bai said calmly, "How can you suffer the same loss twice?"

"waste!"

Li Bai's words enraged An Lushan and Shi Siming to the point of madness. Even Emperor Li Longji fell under their swords. How dare you, a mere Li Bai, be so arrogant!

"I'm telling you this: if you want to come in, only one of you will go in, and the Imperial Guards will stay here. Otherwise, nobody will come in!"

An Lushan said arrogantly.