"Okay, okay!" Dai Zhide smiled and said: "If you really feel that you owe me, just say a few more good words to me when you are repairing books in Hongwen Hall in the future! In fact, in terms of talent, General Wang is far better than Pei Shizhong , of course, it goes without saying that he leads the troops in war; if he can accomplish the water transportation matter, all generations will benefit from it! You are really discerning in choosing to side with him!"
"If that's the case, then why did Duke Dai persuade General Wang to give in just now?" Zhang Wenguan asked in confusion.
"Haha!" Dai Zhide smiled: "Zhigui, do you think the general just gave in?" After that, he walked to the hall, leaving Zhang Wenguan standing there alone, frowning and thinking.
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Daming Palace.
The cold rain fell, turning the palace walls coated with cinnabar into dark red, like coagulated blood. Empress Wu was leaning on the brocade couch by the window, staring at the palaces in the distance. Under the rain, the continuous palaces in the Daming Palace became blurred.
In a daze, she seemed to have returned to that evening twenty years ago. It was also a rainy day. She rode a small sedan, passed through the palace walls for the second time, and returned to the deep palace, still pregnant with her baby. A child, that is Hong'er, the emperor now on the throne. It was Queen Wang who facilitated her entry into the palace. That stupid and self-righteous woman was forced to retreat by Concubine Xiao Shu. In desperation, she even came up with the bad idea of introducing herself, a woman who had an old relationship with her husband, into the palace to deal with Concubine Xiao Shu. .
What happened later was very simple. Both Concubine Xiao Shu and Queen Wang were defeated by him. They lost their love, husband, prominent status, and in the end they didn't even save their lives.
They attributed the reason for their failure to their cunning and viciousness. In fact, they never understood that they did not spend much effort in fighting for favor. To be precise, the pheasant slaves were the more active party in this matter. What they tried so hard to get from the pheasant slaves, they themselves got it without any effort.
Queen Wang called herself a fox, but in terms of charm and intelligence, who could compare to Concubine Xiao Shu? Even when he saw that woman for the first time, he couldn't help but admire her talent and charm. After all, he was once the late emperor's concubine. At that time, he was already in his mid-twenties and already old, while Concubine Xiao Shu was in her youth.
There was only one reason why Pheasant Nu chose himself. He saw in himself what he lacked - strength, ambition and the determination not to give up until the goal was achieved. It’s funny to say that as the son of the bravest, resolute, and ambitious man in the world, Pheasant Nu turned out to be a coward. The Confucian education he received since he was a child and the pretense he wore as a prince were like layers of bandages, binding him and preventing him from doing anything. Dare to do what he really wants to do and seize what he wants, such as himself - the woman who once belonged to his father.
But I can tell him straightforwardly, Pheasant slave, you are already the emperor, nothing can restrain you or stop you anymore! As long as you say I want it, I'm yours! Those Tuogu veterans who always talk about "the late emperor's legacy" are just fragile shadows. They always say in the name of the late emperor that this will not work! That won't work! But the late emperor is dead, and dead people cannot speak. It is not the late emperor who stops you, but them, a group of frail old men with white hair and beards, not far from the grave.
And as long as you wave your hand, you can drive them to Annan and Qiongya to wait for death! These are words that Queen Wang and Concubine Xiao Shu will never say. They will only talk about asking the pheasant slaves to follow the late emperor's instructions, obey Uncle Yuan's arrangements, and be obediently the marionettes of those old men. How could the pheasant slaves like them like this? woman? Even if they don't have themselves, sooner or later there will be another woman to replace them. It's a pity that they will never understand this truth until they die, and they still attribute everything to themselves and call themselves coquettish! It's really ridiculous.
But all this has passed. Queen Wang and Concubine Xiao Shu have long been reduced to a few handfuls of withered bones in the cave, and he and the slaves have also been driven off the throne and become the Supreme Emperor and Supreme Queen. The only difference is that Xiao Shu Concubine's The two dead daughters came back and lived in the Daming Palace. They gritted their teeth and looked at themselves, hoping to avenge their mother.
Twenty years ago, Queen Wang brought herself into the palace to deal with Concubine Xiao Shu; and twenty years later, someone brought Concubine Xiao Shu's two daughters into the palace to deal with herself. Who said the sky has no eyes? The sky obviously has eyes, and he can see everything clearly, but he just likes to joke too much.
"Awu!"
Li Zhi's voice came from behind. Empress Wu turned around and saw Li Zhi walking over with joy on his face, holding a folding fan in his hand: "Did you know? Hong'er has ordered the construction of a palace in Lishan. Don't you dislike the Ming Dynasty?" Is the palace unbearably hot? You can go there to escape the heat next summer!"
"Lishan Li Palace?" Empress Wu frowned: "Where did you hear the news?"
"Xia Yu just told me by the Taiye Pond!" Li Zhi said with a smile: "I heard that construction has started at Lishan Mountain, but they still kept it from us, saying they wanted to give us a surprise. This child didn't know either Where did you learn this? What is there to hide about this kind of thing!"
There was no smile on Empress Wu's face. She grabbed her sleeve with her right hand, her knuckles turned white. Suddenly she sneered: "Pheasant slave, you are still happy, they are going to drive you and me out of Chang'an City!"
"Drive out Chang'an City?" Li Zhi was stunned when he heard this: "Where do you start talking about this?"
"You still don't understand?" Empress Wu sneered: "We are bored in Daming Palace, so we built a few houses in Lishan to drive us out of Chang'an. Isn't it ridiculous that you are still happy here? ?”
"Awu, why do you think so? Didn't Hong'er already say that we live in Daming Palace and he is in Taiji Palace, so how could he kick us out?"
"This time and that time! His throne was not stable at that time, but now it is. Besides, he didn't drive us out, he just sent us to Lishan Mountain to escape the summer heat, and then found any reason to occupy the Daming Palace, and we stayed in Lishan Let's take care of ourselves! Do you think there will be people who won't know how to speak for you and me at that time?"
Li Zhi pondered for a moment, and finally slowly shook his head: "No, absolutely impossible. Hong'er has a kind and filial personality and will never do such a thing!"
"Hong'er can't do it, but the group of people around Hong'er can do it!" Empress Wu sneered: "At that time, everyone will say a few words, do you think Hong'er can hold on?"
This time Li Zhi was speechless. As the saying goes, a son is better than his father. His son was good at everything, but his character was a bit weak. If those around him agree on what to do, it is indeed unlikely that he will go against everyone's opinions.
"Ah Wu, I think the situation may not be as bad as you think!" Li Zhi said: "Although there are many people around Hong'er, the only one who can really make him obey his words is Wang Wenzuo. This person is not someone who wants to add insult to injury. Villain!"
"Is it too late for you to say good things to him now? Well, if you don't believe it, you can just ask Hong'er next time he comes!"
Li Zhi was silent for a while, and finally nodded heavily.
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Wang Wenzuo's Mansion.
"I pay my respects to Her Royal Highness the Princess!" Wang Wenzuo talked about the front and knelt down.
"There is no need to be polite between you and me!" Li Xiayu hurriedly stood up to avoid Wang Wenzuo's kneeling ceremony: "If it weren't for Sanlang, how would we sisters be today? If you say you want to kneel down, I should kneel down to Sanlang! "
"This is all due to your highness' luck, and I am just following the trend!" Wang Wenzuo said with a smile.
"Who can say clearly about fortune!" Li Xiayu sighed: "Back then, my sister and I were wandering around and had no hope of becoming a farmer's son, so what kind of fortune would we have? I would have been satisfied if I could return to Chang'an, but Auntie, my brother’s injustice has not been vindicated, and I can’t sleep peacefully even thinking about it!”
Hearing Li Xiayu say, "Auntie, my brother has been redressed." Wang Wenzuo's heart skipped a beat and he said with a smile, "As far as I know, your majesty has issued an order to return his relatives and restore the Xiao surname, right?"
"Is this enough?" Li Xiayu gritted his teeth: "Mom, how did my brother die? Sanlang, you should also know that the original culprit is still in the Daming Palace and can be seen day and night! How can I bear it?"
"Your Highness, mother and son are the closest relatives, and Your Majesty is in trouble too!"
"That's why I came to see Sanlang!" Li Xiayu said anxiously: "I don't ask for anything else. I just want to drive that woman out of Chang'an. I don't need to trouble Sanlang for the rest. Everything is my own business!"
Wang Wenzuo immediately smelled a hint of danger in Li Xiayu's words. He stood up and said, "Your Highness, I invite you to return to Chang'an to reunite the two of you. Please don't do anything that will make your relatives hate you or your enemies." Something stupid will happen soon, and when that happens, not even I can protect you!"
Li Xiayu spoke quickly and expressed what was on his mind, but regretted it as soon as he said it. She lowered her head and avoided Wang Wenzuo's gaze: "I am who I am. Whether I live or die is my business alone. I will not implicate anyone else!"
"Your Highness, don't say stupid things. Do you know where your Majesty, your sister, and your father will be put if you do this?" Wang Wenzuo sneered: "You'd better give up this idea as soon as possible!"
"Why do you want me to give up on the hatred of killing my mother and brother?" Li Xiayu's eyes were bright and he sneered: "If Sanlang, your mother and brother were killed, would you be able to let it go?"
Wang Wenzuo suddenly became speechless. He pondered for a moment and then said: "You are right. If it were me, I really wouldn't be able to let you go. But that woman is His Majesty's mother. For this reason alone, I cannot let you hurt her. Otherwise, Your Majesty will be harmed." Where?"
"Have you forgotten, Sanlang, that woman once wanted to kill you?" Li Xiayu asked anxiously.
"Of course I won't forget it!" Wang Wenzuo said, "But this is a personal vendetta!"
"An ordinary man knows how to draw his sword to retaliate. Now that you are a general, Sanlang, why are you not as good as an ordinary man?"
"Not bad!" Faced with Li Xiayu's sharp words, Wang Wenzuo was not worried: "Everyone has only one life, so naturally he has no scruples. The more he has, the more scruples he has. I have received great favor from your majesty. Naturally, You cannot act willfully. Your Highness, I understand your desire to avenge your mother, but as long as Your Majesty is in power, that woman cannot touch her. This is my attitude."
Looking at Wang Wenzuo's calm eyes, the anger in Li Xiayu's eyes finally gradually dissipated, leaving only a few traces of sadness: "Well, since you said so, Sanlang, then I can only agree. I just didn't expect you to be here in the past few years. The officials of the Tang Dynasty are getting bigger and bigger, but they no longer have the courage to act as they did when they rescued our sisters in Chang'an."
After hearing Li Xiayu's words, although he knew that most of the other party's words were intended to provoke the general, he couldn't help but feel a little unhappy. I secretly thought that Li Xiayu's temperament had changed a lot compared to when he was struggling to survive in the Yeting Palace in Chang'an during these years of pampering and giving orders in the Japanese country. She is a little less weak and a little more courageous and persistent. Although she has made concessions in front of herself this time, I am afraid that the matter will not be settled so easily. She will probably use some tricks to avenge her mother.
He had brought the sisters back to Chang'an: firstly, to send them back home, and secondly, to leave two nails in the royal palace in case of emergency. But God is not as good as man, and these two were of no use for a while. Instead, they wanted to avenge their mother and brother, which turned into a big trouble.
"It seems like we can't let these two sisters continue to live in the Daming Palace. Otherwise, if they look up and don't see each other every day, there might be trouble one day!" Wang Wenzuo slapped his thigh and immediately thought about how to let them go. Li Hong secured the residences of the two princesses as soon as possible so that they could be separated from Wu Zetian by palace walls. In any case, it was considered a heavy insurance.
"Then should we move Li Zhi and Empress Wu out of Chang'an City? Move out of this political whirlpool? This is also a way, but I seem to have promised not to drive them out of the Daming Palace. It seems not very kind to do so! How about moving sisters Li Xiayu out of Chang'an? Then wouldn't it be unnecessary for me to spend so much effort to get them back to Chang'an?"
Wang Wenzuo was thinking about it in his mind, weighing the pros and cons, but he still couldn't come up with a way to get the best of both worlds. He had to admit that being an opposition party offstage and being the ruling party on stage were completely different things.
When he is off stage, he does not need to be responsible for anything at all. As long as he is focused on finding faults in the people on stage, as long as he can finally get Li Hong on stage, it is victory. But now that Li Hong has ascended the throne, although he is already a highly respected minister, he is constrained in doing things.
For example, Pei Judao, because the other party was Li Hong's father-in-law, he was very cautious; and Li Zhiwu and his wife, they were full of all kinds of conspiracies when they were on stage, but they restrained themselves a lot after they stepped down.
After all, after Li Hong ascended the throne, Wang Wenzuo regarded the Tang Empire as his own. When doing things, he always thought about taking the people of the world into consideration. Unlike in the past in Baekje and Japan, There was nothing to worry about in Goguryeo. It was not my own home anyway, and I didn’t feel bad if the jars and jars were broken.
"It seems that if this continues, sooner or later we will be bundled together and nothing will be done!" Wang Wenzuo thought to himself: "I have to find a sharp knife to do things that are inconvenient for me. In this way, it would be great if that guy Zhou Xing hadn't died. Got it!"
I wish everyone a happy Mid-Autumn Festival and National Day!
