During the period of the Northern and Southern Dynasties, when the rites collapsed and the lives of the people were disregarded, the heroes rose together, the princes everywhere were divided, and the thrones of each country simply became the banner of the king of the mountain, and it was replaced every two days. Every commoner feared that he would accidentally become an ant crushed by the chariots of the times, and every nobleman swayed sharply between his inflated ambition and his fear of death.
But there is one person who has actually lived as a clear stream in that turbid and chaotic world, and this person is the Lanling King of Northern Qi.
Gaosu, the king of Lanling, is the fourth son of Emperor Wenxiang of Northern Qi. One of the most commendable characteristics of this person is that he is beautiful, so how beautiful is it? It was so beautiful that it affected his normal work. It is said that although the king of Lanling is a man, his appearance looks like a fair-skinned and beautiful woman. Not only that, but his voice is also very soft.
After archaeological excavations, the bones of King Lanling were found by modern people, and the appearance of King Lanling after 3D restoration is really very beautiful, which confirms that the historical record is not a lie.
The king of Lanling is going to lead his troops to fight, how can he deter the enemy with such a handsome face? So whenever he went into battle, King Lanling put on a hideous mask.
There is a kind of person who is born to be favored by God, and King Lanling is such a person, God not only gave him a handsome face, but also gave him extraordinary courage and intelligence, as well as a noble character.
King Lanling is very good at fighting, and it is said in the "Yuefu Miscellaneous Records" that he is "courageous, good at fighting, and "victorious in a hundred battles".
He experienced numerous battles in his life, the most famous of which was the "Battle of Bishan". In 564 AD, the Turks in the north and the Northern Zhou who occupied the Loess Plateau joined forces to launch an attack on the Northern Qi, Luoyang was besieged by the 100,000 troops of the Northern Zhou Dynasty, and the troops defending the city had run out of ammunition and food, and the situation was very critical. If Luoyang is lost, then the regime of the Northern Qi is also in jeopardy. Emperor Wucheng of the Northern Qi Dynasty hurriedly mobilized troops from all over the country to relieve the siege of Luoyang.
But when the army of the Northern Qi rushed to the outside of Luoyang City, they could not find a breakthrough in the face of the Northern Zhou army that besieged Luoyang City layer by layer. Just when everyone was at a loss, a general wearing armor, holding a sharp blade, and wearing a terrifying mask on his face led 500 people to storm the Northern Zhou army. This general was extremely brave, and the army of the Northern Zhou Dynasty could not stop him. This team fought their way out and rushed straight to the city of Luoyang.
The officers and soldiers of the Northern Qi Dynasty defending the city were already desperate, and in the face of this group of men and horses who rushed to the city, they did not dare to open the city gate rashly, for fear that it was the enemy's trick. When the general took off his mask, the officers and soldiers boiled, and they recognized that the general who attacked by surprise was Gao Su, the king of Lanling.
Gaosu's reinforcements gave great confidence to the officers and soldiers defending the city, and they opened the city gates and fought against the Northern Zhou army with the army of the king of Lanling. As a result, the enemy army was routed in one fell swoop. This great victory made the King of Lanling famous, and the Emperor of Northern Qi also named him Shang Shuling.
In addition to his outstanding military talents, King Lanling's more praised qualities also lie in his personality charm. He "will be diligent and meticulous in his work, although he will count the fruits of a melon, he will share them with the soldiers." Once, the king of Lanling entered the court with his servants, and as he walked, all his servants were scattered, and Gao Su returned alone, and did not punish the servants.
The charm of King Lanling's personality is also reflected in the fact that he inspired the enemy with his personality.
The high achievements of the king of Lanling have long made the royal family in power uneasy. Empress Dowager Hu was afraid that he would take the throne of her son, so in the name of the emperor, she gave him a concubine named Zhang Xiangxiang, but the real purpose was to assassinate him. Zhang Xiangxiang is beautiful and fragrant, and he tried his best to induce King Lanling to make mistakes, but King Lanling has always adhered to the courtesy of the monarch and never moved. Half a year has passed, Zhang Xiangxiang was actually moved by King Lanling, and she confessed the queen mother's conspiracy to King Lanling. The angry Empress Dowager Hu wanted to recall Zhang Xiangxiang and kill him. King Lanling fell in love with this beautiful and kind woman in the process, and really took her as a concubine.
The high achievements of the king of Lanling have long made the royal family in power uneasy. Empress Dowager Hu was afraid that he would take the throne of her son, so in the name of the emperor, she gave him a concubine named Zhang Xiangxiang, but the real purpose was to assassinate him. Zhang Xiangxiang is beautiful and fragrant, and he tried his best to induce King Lanling to make mistakes, but King Lanling has always adhered to the courtesy of the monarch and never moved. Half a year has passed, Zhang Xiangxiang was actually moved by King Lanling, and she confessed the queen mother's conspiracy to King Lanling. The angry Empress Dowager Hu wanted to recruit Zhang Xiangxiang back and kill him. King Lanling fell in love with this beautiful and kind woman in the process, and really took her as a concubine.
But such a Lanling king, who is cultivated inside and beautiful outside, still can't get rid of the tragic fate.
Born in troubled times, looking at the six emperors of the Northern Qi Dynasty in just 28 years, you can know how difficult it is for King Lanling to survive. Emperor Wenxuan, the second uncle of the King of Lanling, because he listened to slander, put his half-brothers Gao Jun and Gao Jian in a cage, and stabbed them to death with spears, and then burned them on fire and filled them with earth and stones.
The ninth uncle, Emperor Wucheng, Gao Zhan, not only ** the second brother's widow Li, but also beat her son to death in front of Li. The two elder brothers of the king of Lanling also died tragically at the hands of these two crazy imperial uncles.
The battle for the throne is bloody, and if you don't participate in the battle for the throne, you will be uninvited. Therefore, King Lanling was very cautious. Then don't ask about political affairs, if you can get sick, it's a good thing. Once, the Jianghuai area was harassed by robbers, and the situation was urgent, and the king of Lanling was worried about paying homage to the generals again, so he complained to himself: "Last year, the face was swollen, why not send it now?" ”
Although he was low-key and cautious, the emperors of the Northern Qi Dynasty were generally full of shadows because of the power struggle. A member of the royal family who is accustomed to fighting and has a heavy army in his hands can make people feel extremely unsafe from any point of view. This even makes the ruler forget about the dangers he will face if he loses him.
Danger comes with a seemingly warm scene.
One day, Gao Wei, the queen of the Northern Qi Dynasty, and the king of Lanling reminisced about the victory of Pishan together. Gao Wei said that at that time, the king of Lanling "entered the battle too deeply, and there was no way to regret the defeat." Hearing that the emperor cared about and loved him so much, King Lanling was very excited, and said a word to show his loyalty: "The family affairs are cordial, and I don't realize it." ”
Such a sentence made Gao Wei think, does this prince want to replace him?
One day in 573 AD, Gao Wei, the queen of the Northern Qi Dynasty, sent someone to "visit" the king of Lanling, but the gift was a cup of poisonous wine. King Lanling looked at the cup of poisonous wine, and didn't understand why he was "loyal to the matter, why should he be worthy of the sky, and be punished"!
Before he died, King Lanling burned a huge amount of bonds, and after leaving a sentence of "how can the face of heaven be seen", he drank poisoned wine and ended his life at the age of 33.
After the Northern Qi lost its outstanding military general, Queen Lanling, it was destroyed by the Northern Zhou Emperor Yuwen Yong four years later, and almost all the descendants of the Gao clan were "wiped out".