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

That evening, at the Li residence.

Li Bai and several friends, including Du Fu, gathered together to discuss their experiences after arriving at the capital.

"Brother Taibai, I've heard about what happened in court today in the Secretariat. His Majesty is trying to flatter you to death!"

Du Fu looked at Li Bai with a worried expression. His family was also an official family, and he had received relevant education since childhood. He could naturally see through Li Longji's open schemes.

"To praise someone to death?"

"What happened in the imperial court?"

"Brother Taibai, didn't you receive a reward from His Majesty in court today? What do you mean by 'praise to death'?"

Some of Gao Shi and others standing nearby had not yet heard what had happened in the court, while others had heard but did not realize that Li Longji was deliberately praising him to his death.

Du Fu recounted to everyone what had happened in the court that day.

"Isn't this a good thing? Brother Taibai has become a prime minister as soon as he enters the court. Congratulations!"

"Brother Li Bai's talent is more than enough to put his abilities to use, to reform the court, and to save the nation!"

Gao Shi said happily, "And what Your Majesty said is right. In the past, a treacherous minister like Li Linfu was able to rise to a high position, and no one in the court dared to speak out about it. Even the imperial examinations could be changed at will. This shows how dark and corrupt the court was, and how all the officials were mediocre and incompetent."

Wang Wei: "..."

He glanced at Gao Shi speechlessly. If someone like Gao Shi were to stand in the imperial court, he definitely wouldn't live more than three days.

"Your Majesty is flattering Brother Taibai to the point of ruin. Brother Taibai has only just entered the court and is already receiving such favor from Your Majesty. How can the other ministers not have objections?"

"If it were you, Brother Dafu, you can recall how His Majesty directly promoted Li Linfu. Overnight, he went from a minor official to prime minister. If it were you, wouldn't you have some objections?"

"How can that treacherous minister Li Linfu be compared to Brother Taibai? You are insulting Brother Taibai!"

Gao Shi frowned, extremely dissatisfied with Wang Wei's comparison of Li Bai to Li Linfu.

Wang Wei sighed, rubbing his forehead, utterly helpless at Gao Shi's political acumen.

"Not everyone knows about Brother Taibai's abilities and talents, and the court is not black and white; it is extremely complex."

"All you need to know is that after today's court proceedings, a large number of officials harbored feelings of jealousy, dissatisfaction, and hostility towards Brother Taibai."

"These are turbulent times!"

Although Gao Shi was still somewhat puzzled, after spending so much time together, he knew that Wang Wei was not someone who spoke carelessly, and he trusted his judgment.

"What should we do then?"

Seeing Gao Shi's worried look, Li Bai smiled faintly.

"It's alright."

"I entered the court not for high office and wealth, nor for power and fame, but simply to rectify the court and uphold the nation."

"We were destined to clash with these people in the future."

"What I need to find are officials who truly have integrity and moral character; only those officials are our comrades."

"Your Majesty's move has indeed flattered me to death, but it also helps me select those truly upright ministers."

"To turn the tide and save the collapsing edifice, I will go even if it means facing a million enemies!"

Feeling Li Bai's spirit of "I will go even if there are thousands of people against me," Gao Shi and others felt an even deeper respect for Li Bai.

At the same time, he secretly resolved to work hard as soon as possible so that he could help Li Bai.

"My lord, there are imperial officials visiting outside."

The steward walked in quietly. Ever since Li Bai officially entered the court, he had changed the title from "Young Master" to "Master" to prevent anyone from making Li Bai seem young because of the title "Young Master" and causing others to look down on him.

"Which official is it?"

Li Bai asked slowly, without a trace of doubt in his tone, as if he had expected it all along.

"There were ministers of the Ministry of Works, vice ministers of the Ministry of Rites, vice ministers of the Ministry of Revenue, vice ministers of the Ministry of War, secretaries of the Secretariat, and officials of the Chancellery."

Tsk tsk, they are all people with names and surnames in the imperial court.

"Please come in. Have someone prepare tea and snacks."

"Please make yourselves at home, gentlemen. I'll go and greet my guests now."

Li Bai smiled apologetically at his friends, and only after Du Fu and the others expressed their understanding did he turn and leave.

It was at this moment that he truly understood for the first time what his master meant when he said that once you enter the imperial court, you are no longer in control of your own destiny.

Several hours later, Li Bai returned, looking utterly exhausted.

Of the people in this group today, only the Minister of Works is truly sincere; the others are all here to curry favor, and some are even fighting as a scout for those behind them.

Li Bai rubbed his temples. Dealing with these old monsters was truly exhausting.

They are all thousand-year-old foxes, with empty eyelashes.

Compared to this group of people, he is indeed still a bit inexperienced.

"How is Brother Taibai? Are there any capable people among them?"

Du Fu and the others did not rest and waited for Li Bai to return.

Li Bai shook his head in disappointment.

"Hasn't the Minister of Works always followed the lead of the Prince of Yan's faction?"

Du Fu asked in confusion.

"Indeed, but I am not your master. Although the Ministry of Works is close to me, it is difficult to get their full support."

"They have always remained neutral in the court. Nominally they belong to the Ministry of Personnel, but in reality they have always listened to the Ministry of Agriculture and have never participated in the power struggles in the court."

Li Bai explained.

If he needs the Minister of Works' help, the Minister will definitely help him out of respect for his master.

However, the Minister of Works would never openly take sides.

"Brother Taibai, have you ever thought about something?"

Wang Wei narrowed his eyes and suddenly spoke.

"What is it?"

Li Bai looked at Wang Wei and felt that Wang Wei, with his eyes narrowed, looked like a fox spirit.

"A year ago, Li Linfu held absolute power in the imperial court, and many people who were unwilling to submit to him were either demoted or dismissed from their posts."

"Brother Taibai, what kind of people do you think are allowed to remain in the imperial court?"

"Even if they hadn't sided with Li Linfu, they would probably have remained silent."

Wang Wei's words were like a flash of inspiration to Li Bai. He suddenly understood that the current court had been selected by Li Linfu, so what kind of people would be left?

Most of them are probably mediocre and unproductive.

At least not one of his like-minded comrades.

But he couldn't possibly train them from scratch; there simply wasn't enough time.

It takes a tremendous amount of time and effort to cultivate someone from someone who is not even qualified to attend court assemblies to someone who can influence the court.

Not to mention, even he couldn't possibly cultivate too many people like that; the imperial court isn't his personal fiefdom.

He could only choose from the worst of the worst, selecting those with clean backgrounds to win over and make them work for him.

"Brothers, I'll do everything in my power to help you rise to the top. Please, I need your help!"