The Turning Point of the Glorious Tang, 736

After Zhang Jiuling, the last chancellor of the Kaiyuan Golden Age to dare speak out, was deposed, the treacherous chancellor Li Linfu seized control of the court. The wrongful cases of the three commoners left blood running along palace walls, while the clear-eyed He Zhizhang protected himself with a reputation for madness and made his final protest. The powerful Yang Guozhong rose to challenge Li Linfu, An Lushan amassed power and launched a rebellion, and the golden age crumbled amid imperial suspicion and political infighting.