Tang Dynasty, my wife Wu Zetian

Chapter 192 The Tang Dynasty's Conspiracy

The north wind blows harder and the weather becomes colder.

When Li Zhi heard that Wang Jishan and Subilaya had requested an audience together, he met them directly in the warm bedroom.

After the two of them exchanged greetings, Li Zhi raised his hand and ordered Wang Fusheng to bring them a chair and serve them tea.

"Has Madam Lan Ya seen that Subi man?" he asked slowly.

Lan Ya held the teacup but did not drink from it. She placed her palm against the wall of the teacup as if to warm her hands, with a very solemn expression.

"Your Majesty, that man's name is Ling Zan, and he is the golden bird of Niangbo."

"Jin Ju?" Li Zhi was stunned.

"Your Majesty, in our Subi country, Jin Ju refers to the first husband of the female chief. He has the most respected status among all the men of the female chief." Lan Ya explained.

The customs of the women's country are indeed the opposite of those of normal countries. Simply put, they are similar to the existence of the queen.

Li Zhi thought about it and realized that the Tubo people always came to ask for this person, which was obviously the request of Niangbo Golden Bird.

Judging from this, the Niangbo Golden Bird must be very fond of this "Queen".

"Madam Lan Ya, I wonder what the relationship is between this person and Niangbo Jinniao?"

"Before I was imprisoned, the relationship between the two of them was very good. Ling Zan was a famous handsome man in Subi, and Niangbo Jinniao would bring him with her when attending various banquets." When Lan Ya mentioned the past, she lowered her head slightly.

Li Zhi nodded and began to think about how to use this person to alienate the relationship between Niangbo and Tubo.

"Your Majesty." Wang Jishan saw his thoughts and said, "I think there is no need to go to such trouble. Simply releasing Ling Zan will have a miraculous effect."

"Put it back directly?" Li Zhi looked up at him.

"Yes, just release him." Wang Jishan affirmed, "Niangbo is very loyal to Tubo. If he is allowed to instigate, it will easily backfire."

Not only will it have a counterproductive effect, but if he wants to use Ling Zan to provoke Niangbo Jinniao, he might even be killed by the other party.

After all, she is the woman who rules the entire Subi region. It is obviously unrealistic to expect her to be a passionate person.

What's more, even if Ling Zan is forced to obey now, he will definitely be out of control after returning to Niangbo.

Li Zhi already understood what Wang Jishan meant.

To deal with stupid people, you can use conspiracy, to deal with smart people, you should use open conspiracy.

The Tang Dynasty simply released the person and did not let Ling Zan do anything. This behavior would make Lu Dongzan suspicious.

Now that he is suspicious, can he still trust Niangbo?

Even if Lu Dongzan could not think too much about it, could the little Zanpu not think too much about it?
Niangbo Jinniao will have no way to defend herself at that time. Even if Ling Zan is killed, it will be useless. Instead, it will make others think that there is really a problem and they will kill him to silence him!
The so-called open conspiracy means that no matter how the other party responds, it will still be effective!

Li Zhi smiled slightly and said, "From this perspective, this Ling Zan is quite useful."

Wang Jishan said, "Your Majesty is absolutely right. I was just about to ask Your Majesty, where did you find this person?"

Lan Ya also looked at Li Zhi.

"What a coincidence! When this man was on a diplomatic mission to the Tang Dynasty, he committed a crime in Chang'an and was exiled by the late emperor. It was Minister Li who inadvertently reminded me that there is such a person in our Tang Dynasty."

Having said that, Li Yifu's rating in Li Zhi's heart increased by a few points.

Apart from other things, this person is really capable, has a keen sense of smell, and can always help me.

"General Wang, tell Lord Li about your plan. If Lord Li has no objection, then release Ling Zan."

When Li Ji learned about this, he immediately expressed his agreement.

However, he was more careful after all, and felt that he needed to find a reasonable reason to release him so that Lu Dongzan would not notice the flaw.

The next day, under Li Ji's instructions, Subilaya went to Empress Wu to plead for mercy, and Empress Wu whispered in the emperor's ear.

The Emperor of the Tang Dynasty then reluctantly released Ling Zan and allowed him to return to Subi.

The Ruben Mansion of the Subi State was built against the mountain and has seven floors. It is the most magnificent building in Subi.

This mansion was originally the royal palace during the reign of Queen Subi. It had nine floors. It was damaged during the war and only seven floors remained after reconstruction. It was used as a residence by the Niangbo Golden Bird.

Niangbo Jinniao is in her forties this year. She has an average appearance, but her skin is as smooth and delicate as a young girl's.

She loved handsome men and had more than a hundred male servants in her harem, but only a dozen of them were favored by her and were all granted titles.

Although Jinniao loves beauty, she is also a diligent Ruben, so she is favored by Lu Dongzan and is allowed to take charge of Suobei.

She was currently sitting in a room on the seventh floor of the palace, on an ivory chair, handling the affairs of Subi.

Two male waiters knelt at her feet and massaged her legs, while two other male waiters stood behind her and massaged her shoulders.

At this moment, a female official came into the room and performed the Subei ceremony towards the golden bird.

"Ruben, Lingzan Jinju is back."

The golden bird was stunned for a moment, unable to react for a moment, and looked up at the female official.

"What did you say?"

The female official smiled and said, "Your favorite Jin Ju is back!"

The golden bird was overjoyed. It kicked away the two male servants at its feet and ran out of the hall.

Outside the hall stood a handsome, heroic man wearing a cloak. It was Ling Zan.

"Ruben, I'm back." Ling Zan glanced at the golden bird and lowered his head.

Jinniao held his face with both hands and said happily: "It is indeed Benru's Jin Ju. He is still so handsome. I miss Benru so much!" and hugged Lingzan tightly.

Ling Zan was stunned and asked, "You haven't sealed the new Jin Ju yet?"

The golden bird laughed and said, "You are my only golden friend. As long as you live, I will keep my place for you."

Holding his hand, they entered the hall. The two sat side by side on an ivory chair. Jin Niao asked him how he left the Tang Dynasty. Jin Ju sighed, "It was all thanks to Subiranya."

Jinniao frowned and said coldly, "She's also in Chang'an?"

Ling Zan said: "Yes, she went to Chang'an, and it was she who begged the Queen of the Tang Dynasty to release me."

Jinniao's face darkened, and he loosened his grip on Lingzan's hand, saying, "Why did she suddenly help you?"

Ling Zan said: "She said that I am also a Suobi after all, and she hopes that after helping me, you can treat the people of the Sunbo tribe well."

The golden bird snorted and said, "Now that Queen Subi is gone, Subi is ruled by Benru. I will treat my people well and there is no need for her to remind me."

"You're right." Ling Zan said hurriedly.

Jinniao's attitude towards Ling Zan became a little colder. He waved his hand and said, "You've been away for many years. You must miss your family very much. Go and see them."

Ling Zan thanked him and left.

A few days later, the news of Lingzan's release reached the Tubo Lhasa City.

After Xiruo learned about this, he immediately went to the study and reported to Lu Dongzan.

"Father, don't you find it suspicious? Why would the Tang people suddenly release Ling Zan for no apparent reason?"

Lu Dongzan stroked his beard and said calmly, "What do you want to say?"

"Ling Zan must have defected to the Tang Dynasty and wanted to persuade Niangbo Jinniao to betray Tubo and defect to the Tang Dynasty!" Xiruo said decisively.

Lu Dongzan stared at him and said, "If you think so, you will fall into the trap set by the Tang people."

"What trick?" Xiruo was stunned.

Lu Dongzan said slowly: "Use your brain to think carefully, what have we been doing in the past few months?"

Xiruo frowned and said, "Didn't they deal with Tang spies before? Later, they sent people to Kucha to stir up a rebellion in the Anxi Protectorate, but unfortunately they failed."

Lu Dongzan said slowly, "At this moment, the Tang people suddenly released Ling Zan. Why do you think that is?"

"Of course it's to win over Niangbo and betray Tubo!"

"Stupid!" Lu Dong scolded. "Among the three Subi tribes, Niangbo is the most loyal to us. If they want to win over the other two tribes, they should choose Niangbo. Why choose Niangbo? This is obviously an attempt to alienate us from Niangbo!"

"Then...what should we do?"

“You don’t have to do anything.”

"What if Ling Zan persuades Niangbo Jinniao to betray us?"

Lu Dongzan said calmly, "If he really does that, I believe the golden bird will send his head here."

"Father, do you trust that woman so much?" Xiruo snorted.

"Get out!" Lu Dongzan suddenly shouted.

Xiruo was shocked and had to leave.

Lu Dongzan leaned back in his chair, his eyes closed, and said nothing.

The confrontation with the Tang Dynasty made him very tired, and the enemy's powerful military force put him under pressure all the time.

He could only use strategy to make up for the gap in strength between the two countries.

However, there were also capable people in the Tang Dynasty court. After several battles, the situation of Tubo became increasingly serious.

If we continue to passively defend, the situation will only get worse. We must take the initiative to attack in order to prevent Tubo from being destroyed.

Just as he was thinking about how to fight back, Qin Ling suddenly walked into the study and said, "Father, the Zamp just issued an order for the deputy minister, Mo Cha, to go to Subi for an inspection."

A look of shock and anger flashed in Lu Dongzan's eyes, and he said, "Zanpu is asking him to investigate the Niangbo Golden Bird!"

Qin Ling said calmly, "My son has sent people to cause an accident on the road to block his path. It's not too late for you to catch up with him now!"

Lu Dongzan's eyes flashed with appreciation, and he said, "Well done, quickly prepare the horses."

"The horses are ready, fed with hay, and waiting outside the mansion gate."

Lu Dongzan patted his son's shoulder and said, "You stay in the city and keep an eye on Zamp. Don't let him do anything extreme again!"

After saying this, he strode out of the study.

Lu Dongzan finally recovered Mocha, but two days later, Dabowu suddenly came to Lhasa City, accused Niangbo of colluding with the Tang people and the Subi Queen, and asked the Zamp to confer the title of Ruben on him.

Under the instigation of his ministers, the young Zanpu actually agreed.

However, before the order was issued, it was intercepted by Lu Dongzan's ministers.

Lu Dongzan went into the palace overnight and persuaded the young Zanpu to change his mind.

When Dabowu learned about this, he was very angry and left Lhasa in anger.

When Niangbo Jinniao heard this, she was very frightened and claimed to be ill to the Zamp, and did not go to Lhasa to attend the Tibetans' end-of-year banquet.

This made the young Zamp very angry, and many ministers of the Tubo Kingdom began to doubt the golden bird.

Lu Dongzan had no choice but to write a letter to Jinniao, suggesting that she execute Lingzan to show her loyalty to the Zamp.

The golden bird had no choice but to kill Ling Zan.

However, she also felt that Lu Dongzan no longer trusted her, and began to secretly strengthen her armaments.

On the other side, Dabowu was also strengthening his armaments.

For a time, people in Subi were in panic.

(End of this chapter)