It was said that both Li Bai and the
emperors of the Tang dynasty were descendants of Li Guang, a famous general
frightening the Huns in the Han dynasty. During the Sui dynasty his ancestor
moved to the Western Regions for committing a crime. Later another of his
forefathers sneaked into the west of Ba, i.e. the present Chuang. At the age of
forty-two,
he was summoned to the capital by Emperor Xuanzong and appointed as member of
the Imperial Academy. But he was not satisfied with his job to entertain the
emperor and the Imperial Concubine Yang by writing poems. Soon he resigned the
post and left with the cash gift bestowed by the emperor.