Tang Dynasty, my wife Wu Zetian

Chapter 116 Empress Wu's Test
Ministry of official affairs.

Liu Sheng looked gloomily as he flipped through the official letters sent by military officers from various places.

He was a Langzhong in the Ministry of Personnel, responsible for reviewing the achievements of officials from various places submitted by the Sigong Canjun, in preparation for the year-end assessment.

He read very quickly, almost scanning ten lines at a glance. It goes without saying that he would not be able to complete the job well if he did so.

At this time, a person in charge of the Ministry of Personnel walked in and said happily, "Doctor Liu, there's good news from the front. We've defeated the Turks!"

Liu Sheng said coldly: "And then?"

The head of the Ministry of Personnel was stunned for a moment, then said, "The Secretariat has issued an edict that the emperor will host a banquet for officials of the fifth rank and above in Chengqing Hall at 5:00 pm this afternoon."

Liu Sheng said with a cold face: "Do I have to go?"

The head of the Ministry of Personnel said, "Not really. It seems like you can go or not."

Liu Sheng snorted coldly and said, "I understand. You can get out now."

The head of the Ministry of Personnel bowed and took his leave.

Liu Sheng finished his official business at a rapid speed, and then strode out of the Ministry of Personnel's office.

It was not even the hour of Chen yet, and he was already preparing to leave the yamen and go home.

He has been like this recently. Because he has a lot of seniority, Xu Xiaode doesn't dare to control him, and others don't dare to say anything more.

Liu Sheng returned home in a carriage, changed into casual clothes, and went straight to the flower hall in the backyard.

He ordered people to summon the singers and dancers in the mansion, and while drinking, he enjoyed the singing and dancing, and soon became drunk.

Just then, a servant came to report that the son-in-law Xiao Rui wanted to see him.

Liu Sheng waved his hand and said, "Please ask him to come in."

Soon, Xiao Rui walked in slowly, fanning himself with a folding fan, and said with a smile, "Brother Liu is truly a refined scholar. He's been appreciating singing and dancing music at home this morning. No wonder people call you a master of music."

Liu Sheng smiled and said, "Please take a seat, Prince Consort. This is the only hobby I have, and it is not something that can be appreciated in a formal setting."

After Xiao Rui sat down, he looked at the singing and dancing and sighed, "What a beautiful dancer! Even among all the wealthy families in Chang'an, I'm afraid there wouldn't be many who can compare with Brother Liu's dancer."

Liu Sheng raised his eyebrows and said, "Let me be arrogant. Not only Chang'an, but even the singing and dancing girls in the imperial palace's art stage are not as good as I am in training them."

Xiao Rui smiled and said, "Of course. Brother Liu was once the chief official of the Music Bureau after all."

Liu Sheng was born in the Hedong Liu family, and his cousin was Queen Wang's uncle Liu Shi.

In the third year of Yonghui, Emperor Gaozong of Tang had just taken Wu Meiniang out of Ganye Temple.

At that time, Emperor Gaozong of Tang was not yet ready to depose Queen Wang. Instead, he wanted to support Queen Wang's relatives to check and balance Zhangsun Wuji.

Liu Shi was the person chosen by Emperor Gaozong of Tang and was appointed as prime minister.

It was a pity that Queen Wang had no children. Liu Shi suggested that she adopt the eldest prince Li Zhong and enthrone Li Zhong as the crown prince, thus consolidating her position as queen.

However, the government was still under the control of Zhangsun Wuji at that time. If Li Zhong wanted to become the crown prince, he had to get the support of Zhangsun Wuji.

In order to consolidate Queen Wang's position, Liu Shi sided with Zhangsun Wuji.

Emperor Gaozong of Tang was naturally angry, and from then on he decided to support Wu Meiniang and replace Queen Wang.

Queen Wang was deposed, Chu Suiliang was demoted, and Liu Shi finally realized his mistake.

He voluntarily resigned from his position as prime minister and requested to be transferred to the Minister of Personnel. However, Emperor Gaozong of Tang disliked him so much that he directly sent him away.

The place he was exiled to was still Shu.

Since Wang Liwu was deposed, the Liu family has been in decline. A while ago, a member of the Liu family was shot to death by Yuchi Gong, but the emperor said nothing.

Liu Sheng was depressed and no longer cared about his official duties. He enjoyed drinking and watching dance every day.

Liu Sheng glanced at Xiao Rui and said with a smile, "The Prince Consort came here specially, isn't it just to drink with me?"

Xiao Rui sighed, "I just saw that Brother Liu was in danger, but he didn't realize it, so I came to remind him to fulfill our friendship."

Liu Sheng raised his eyebrows and said, "What do you mean?"

Xiao Rui glanced at the dancers and smiled without saying anything.

Liu Sheng waved his hand and dismissed all the singing and dancing girls and servants.

Xiao Rui then spoke up, "Brother Liu, you must have seen what happened to Chang Sunyang recently, right?"

Liu Sheng said in a deep voice: "So what if you saw it?"

Xiao Rui said slowly: "Liu Rengui and his gang of upright people were severely suppressed by us in the past. Now that they are in power, they will definitely not let us go."

Liu Sheng frowned and said, "Aren't they investigating Chang Sunyang under the emperor's order?"

Xiao Rui snorted coldly, "Do you think they are really that noble? They are just taking advantage of the emperor's order to take revenge."

Liu Sheng shook his head and said, "What does it matter if I know? I am the fish on the chopping board. I will just take it one day at a time."

Xiao Rui said calmly, "Brother Liu, do you really want to be sentenced to death like Chang Sunyang?"

Liu Sheng's eyelids twitched, and he said, "Don't exaggerate. There are so many noble families, it doesn't make sense for them to come to me alone."

Xiao Rui sighed, "Brother Liu, haven't you realized it yet? After they cleaned up the Ministry of Revenue, the next one to go is the Ministry of Personnel!"

Liu Sheng was stunned for a moment and said, "No way..."

"Of course not. Brother Liu, have you forgotten about the imperial examination? The Sage was furious at the time. Do you think he would let the Ministry of Personnel off?"

Liu Sheng's expression changed as he said, "I had no involvement in Gao Youdao's affairs at all."

Xiao Rui said coldly, "The Qingliu faction won't care about this. When they thoroughly investigate the Ministry of Personnel, they won't let go of any evidence. Brother Liu, do you think you can get away with this?"

Liu Sheng's face turned pale and he said, "Then what else can I do?"

Xiao Rui said, "Qingliu has just started to gain momentum, and its foundation is not stable. The saints may not trust them that much, so they found a knife."

Liu Sheng asked, "What knife?"

Xiao Rui asked in return, "Who was at the forefront of the Chang Sunyang case?"

Liu Sheng's face changed as he said, "Di Renjie!" Xiao Rui nodded and said, "Indeed, Di Renjie is the Sage's dream minister. The Sage has great trust in him, and he has the ability to solve cases. That's why Qingliu used Di Renjie as a sharp blade, pointing it at us."

Liu Sheng finally understood and said, "You want me to deal with Di Renjie?"

Xiao Rui said, "I'm not asking you to deal with him, but if you want to protect yourself, you must break Di Renjie's sword."

Liu Sheng sighed, "Since Di Renjie has gained the Saint's trust, how can I deal with him?"

Xiao Rui smiled and said, "Even if he is favored by the emperor, he is still a young man after all. Brother Liu was very good at dealing with young people like this when he was in the Jiaofang Bureau?"

Liu Sheng gave him a deep look and said, "Qingliu treated Di Renjie as a knife, and you also treated me as a knife, wanting me to help you deal with Di Renjie."

Xiao Rui sighed, "Brother Liu, you and I are both on the same boat. Even after the Ministry of Personnel is cleaned up, the Qingliu will not let me go. We are all just trying to protect ourselves."

Liu Sheng closed his eyes and thought for a long time, then suddenly said, "Today at twilight hour, the Saint is holding a banquet in Chengqing Hall. Did you know?"

Xiao Rui said: "Of course."

Liu Sheng said, "I have a way to ruin Di Renjie's reputation. Perhaps the Saint will no longer favor him."

Xiao Rui said with a stern gaze, "As long as he loses the Holy Grace, there will be nothing to fear."

Liu Sheng said: "I need to prepare a plan immediately, and I also need you to do me a favor."

Xiao Rui said, "Brother Liu, please speak up."

Liu Sheng walked to Xiao Rui and they whispered for a while. Xiao Rui nodded, stood up and left Liu Mansion.

……

Wu Shun walked briskly to the Lizheng Hall, only to hear Madam Yang and Wu Meiniang talking in low voices in the inner hall.

She walked in quickly, clapped her hands and laughed, "Good news, good news!"

Wu Meiniang looked up and asked, "What good news makes my sister so happy?"

Wu Shun sat down next to his mother and said with a smile, "I heard that a great victory was won on the front line. General Su Dingfang broke through the Turkic king's tent, and General Xue Rengui broke through the Yancheng city."

Madam Yang scolded, "Your sister is pregnant. Don't talk about those things on the battlefield. She can't stand it."

Wu Meiniang smiled and said, "Mother, it's okay. As a prince of the Tang Dynasty, I will help the Saint defend the country in the future. It's good for him to listen to it."

Wu Shun smiled and said, "Then I will continue to talk. Don't be afraid when you listen."

Madam Yang asked in surprise, "Any other news?"

Wu Shun nodded and whispered, "I heard from the old lady of Duke Lu's mansion that Xue Rengui captured Yancheng and beheaded more than 30,000 people!"

Madam Yang's face changed drastically. She clasped her hands together and murmured, "Amitabha, Amitabha."

Seeing that Wu Meiniang was silent, Wu Shun jokingly said, "Sister, you are usually very bold, but you are scared now, right?"

Wu Meiniang smiled faintly and said, "It's just killing a few people, what's so surprising about that? I'm just surprised. I usually see General Xue as quite reserved, but I didn't expect him to be so brave on the battlefield."

At this time, Zhang Duohai walked in and saw them talking, so he stood aside silently.

After a while, Wu Shun felt the room was too stuffy and went to stroll around Qiumi Garden.

After a while, Madam Yang went to Foguang Temple to petition, and finally Empress Wu was the only one left in the hall.

Zhang Duohai walked up to Empress Wu and whispered, "Your Highness, the Palace Office has heard that someone seems to be planning to deal with Di Renjie."

Wu Meiniang asked, "Who is it?"

Zhang Duohai said: "The nobles are now acting extremely cautiously and have not yet found out any accurate information."

Wu Meiniang looked at him without saying a word.

Zhang Duohai hurriedly said, "I will go and investigate further."

"return."

Zhang Dahai turned around and said, "Don't you need to check?"

Wu Meiniang said calmly, "Since you know, Wang Fusheng should know too. In other words, His Majesty also knows, so I cannot interfere."

"That's true." Zhang Dahai's face looked a little unnatural.

According to his insider report from Sigongtai, Wang Fusheng's Sigongtai spies have been working like crazy lately, getting up early and working late, which makes him feel very stressed.

Wu Meiniang took a sip of tea and said, "There is one thing that I find strange."

Zhang Duohai asked, "What makes Your Highness feel strange?"

Wu Meiniang asked, "Why did the people from the aristocratic family suddenly attack Di Renjie?"

Zhang Duohai thought for a moment and said, "I think it's because of Chang Sunyang's incident."

Wu Meiniang said, "The Qingliu officials were primarily responsible for investigating the Changsun Yang incident. They should retaliate against the Qingliu officials."

Zhang Duohai said, "I heard that Liu Rengui was hiding behind the scenes in the matter of Changsun Yang and Changsun Quan, and it was mainly Di Renjie who was investigating."

"Oh." Wu Meiniang's eyes flashed.

Zhang Duohai laughed and said, "Di Renjie is still too young. He is being used as a pawn by the upright officials."

Wu Meiniang glanced at him and said, "Do you think Liu Rengui is such a person?"

Zhang Duohai was stunned and said, "But judging from the current situation, this is the case."

Wu Meiniang was silent for a while, then said, "We'll know if this is the case after a test."

Zhang Duohai asked, "How are you going to test it?"

Wu Meiniang did not answer. She walked to the desk and picked up the pen. Zhang Duohai hurried over to help her grind it.

Wu Meiniang wrote a note and handed it to Zhang Duohai.

"Take it to Xu Chongrong and she will tell me the answer."

(End of this chapter)