Empress Wu's tone became more and more fierce. Li Qinzai was not afraid, but he still sighed secretly in his heart.
The relationship with her finally eased, and the past grudges were laughed off by everyone. Unexpectedly, they would be against her again today.
Li Qinzai doesn't like to do things that offend others, especially if the target is the current queen.
But what he wants to do cannot be changed, so the conflict between him and Empress Wu is inevitable.
This is not a trivial matter, but a conflict of interest between the two parties.
Li Qinzai's interests were the common people, while Empress Wu's interests were her personal status.
The focus was all on Li Zhi's enthronement to Mount Tai.
Li Qinzai hoped to dissuade Li Zhi and postpone his canonization, but Empress Wu was eager to leave immediately. When she accompanied Li Zhi, the couple stood on the top of Mount Tai. Of course, Li Zhi, the emperor, was destined by destiny, and she, the queen, was also destined by destiny. Tie.
Empress Wu urgently needed this sacred ceremony to eliminate all the criticisms of her from the government and the public.
The hatred between people is often uncontrollable.
Once two people who are in harmony with each other have conflicts of interest, even if they don't want to be enemies with each other, the situation will force each other to stand on opposite sides.
This is the case for Li Qinzai and Empress Wu at this moment.
No matter how much he concealed the purpose of Li Qinzai's visit to Puzhou, it would have no effect in front of Empress Wu.
Li Qinzai knew that he should not underestimate this woman. Her intelligence and power were far more terrifying than he imagined.
"Jing Chu, I have always had a good impression of you. At the beginning, the grudge between you and me was not brought to the surface, and I never took it seriously, so I forgive you. But today, why are you still at odds with me? "Empress Wu sighed quietly.
Li Qinzai was silent for a moment and sighed: "Queen, whether you believe it or not, I really have no intention to have a grudge with you. My courage and ambition are both small. If possible, I would like to stay in Ganjing Village for the rest of my life and not go out. All the things in Chang'an City I can ignore the disputes and disputes and never get involved."
Empress Wu said in a deep voice: "But you still got involved, Jingchu, this time, it's not a small grudge. You are disturbing the foundation of this palace."
Li Qinzai sighed: "Queen, who is more important, the people or the country?"
Empress Wu sneered and said: "According to the corrupt Confucianism of Mencius, the people are the most valuable, the country is second, and the king is the least important. But I don't agree."
"Who is more important, the people or the queen?"
Empress Wu said proudly, "Of course I am the most important. Li Jingchu, don't use Confucianism to hold me hostage. Only when my status is stable can I supervise the emperor to implement benevolent policies, carry out good policies, promote agriculture and mulberry, and only then will the people of the world be well-being." "If the palace is not peaceful, how can the world be peaceful?"
After speaking, Empress Wu suddenly stood up, stared at Li Qinzai and said: "I and the emperor are one and the same. The emperor is the country, and I am also the country!"
Li Qinzai's body trembled slightly.
The words spoken by the only empress in history were truly unparalleled in domineering power. Although he did not agree with her words at all, Li Qinzai could not help but be shocked by her aura.
"Back then, the Emperor deposed the King and the Empress and made me the Queen. From that time on, the Emperor and this palace have been inseparable. We have been fighting against the noble families all the time these years. The world has criticized this palace for a long time. Over the years, there have been rumors about the deposed queen. One after another, the world is in constant turmoil."
"In addition to the eldest grandson Wuji, the imperial examination was instituted, the princes were reduced, the surnames were ranked, and the noble families were suppressed. In these years, the emperor and the palace have become friends and enemies of the noble families in order to consolidate the imperial power..."
"The emperor is in the right position, but they don't dare to embarrass the emperor, so they blame all the faults on this palace. The noble families and scholars are clamoring behind their backs every day, asking the emperor to depose the queen, clean up his side, and set the record straight..."
Empress Wu's eyes suddenly became sad and dark.
"Jingchu, I need the Zen ceremony more than the emperor needs it, do you understand? Only by standing on the top of Mount Tai and praying to heaven on behalf of millions of people in the world can we calm down the criticism of me as a queen. It’s justifiable.”
Empress Wu's eyes showed a fierce light, and she said coldly: "Whoever obstructs the emperor from conferring Zen is my enemy. Jingchu, you are an important weapon of the Tang Dynasty and a rare talent since the founding of the Tang Dynasty. I am very I don’t want to see you as my enemy, so don’t force me.”
After a long speech, Li Qinzai looked shocked and remained silent for a long time.
He finally understood why Empress Wu proposed to Li Zhi the idea of conferring immortality on Mount Tai.
He had always felt that Empress Wu was a strange woman who was not inferior to men and had a great perspective on the overall situation. She knew that the national treasury was empty and the people were tired, but she still chose to admonish and enshrine herself. This was very abnormal in itself.
It turned out that she was not dizzy, but was forced by the situation.
Only by participating in the ceremony of enshrining the queen, the queen's position will be solid. Even if Li Zhi has thoughts of deposing the queen in the future, as long as he thinks that she once accompanied him to Mount Tai to enshrine the throne, he will not dare to take action rashly.
Because it was a serious matter to depose the queen who had participated in the enshrinement of Zen. It is tantamount to offending God, and at the same time it will not be allowed by the courtiers and the people.
In this era, let alone saying that superstition is useless, it will turn into a sharp weapon at the right time and the moral high ground. Even the emperor cannot capture this high ground.
However, which one is more important than the interests of one person and the interests of all people in the world?
Li Qinzai didn't want to ask Empress Wu this question, because he knew that Empress Wu's answer would be different from his.
"Does the Queen know that last year there was a severe drought in the northern part of the Tang Dynasty? To this day, people in many prefectures and counties in the north are still relying on food relief from the imperial court to survive?"
Empress Wu said with a cold face: "I know."
"Does the Queen know that not only did the national treasury have no balance last year, but the local governments also owed debts to many private landlords?"
"I know."
"Does the queen know that even if the weather is good this year, the common people may not be able to fill their stomachs, and the imperial court plans to increase the amount of money from the common people in order to prepare funds for the title of Zen?"
"I know."
Li Qinzai showed a sarcastic look: "So, in order to be granted Zen status, the Queen will not hesitate even if the land is starved to death and the people are displaced?"
Empress Wu said expressionlessly: "I have said that if the palace is not peaceful, how can the world be peaceful?"
Li Qinzai sighed: "In this case, I have nothing to say. Please leave."
After speaking, Li Qinzai bowed to Empress Wu, turned around and walked resolutely towards the palace gate.
Empress Wu stood up, stared at his back and said sternly: "Li Qinzai, do you want to be an enemy of me?"
Li Qinzai kept walking towards the palace door.
"Within and outside the court, the territory is thousands of miles away, are you, Li Jingchu, the only one who is a saint?"
Li Qinzai finally couldn't help but said: "Fuck the saint! When you were praying to God on Mount Tai in your gorgeous clothes, have you ever thought about how many people in the world are starving to death? Praying for blessings? Haha, you are obviously committing murder!"
