Tang Dynasty, my wife Wu Zetian

Chapter 295: Comforting Empress Wu

After Gao Youdao entered the palace, he went directly to Ganlu Palace to meet the emperor.

After passing through Ganlu Gate and arriving at Ganlu Palace, she learned that the emperor had not come yet and was teasing the little princess in Lizheng Palace.

Gao Youdao had no choice but to go to the side hall first to meet with Lu Zhaolin, Du Yijian and others.

The two were very happy to see him back. Du Yijian asked him what the purpose of his business trip was.

The war in Anxi had ended, so Gao Youdao did not hide anything and told them the truth.

When Guo Zhengyi and Yuan Wanqing heard that it was related to the war in the Western Regions, they put down their pens and listened attentively.

After hearing this, everyone praised Pei Xingjian for his extraordinary strategy.

Just then, the eunuch came to report that the emperor had returned to the main hall.

Gao Youdao immediately stood up and ordered the eunuch to pass on the message.

After a while, the emperor summoned him to an audience.

Gao Youdao came to the main hall, and after the formalities, he reported all the situations in Anxi to Li Zhi.

Li Zhi leaned forward and listened very carefully.

Although Pei Xingjian had already reported the matter to him, some specific details were glossed over.

Moreover, through Gao Youdao, he could also judge whether there were any exaggerations in Pei Xingjian's memorial.

Gao Youdao's account roughly matched Pei Xingjian's. Li Zhi nodded and said, "Mr. Gao, thank you for your hard work on this trip."

Gao Youdao bowed and said, "According to Your Majesty's instructions, I have carefully investigated the people's livelihood in Anxi and the situation in the Western Regions. I have two things to report to Your Majesty."

Li Zhi said, "Speak."

Gao Youdao said, "First, when I visited Tingzhou, I discovered that during his tenure as governor, Cui Zhibian, actively helped the people solve their problems and enjoyed an excellent reputation among the people."

Li Zhi nodded: "This person's evaluation last year was above average. It seems that he should also get a good evaluation this year. He is truly a model for provincial governors."

Gao Youdao continued, "The second matter I want to report is related to the Western Turks."

Li Zhi asked curiously, "Are you talking about the Wunu Shibi tribe outside Suiye City?"

Gao Youdao said, "That's right. I heard that the Western Turks are restless again, forcibly occupying the lands of other countries in the Western Regions, and are quietly growing stronger."

Li Zhi asked, "Does Pei Xingjian know about this?"

"Then I don't know." Gao Youdao lowered his head.

Although the people of the small countries in the Western Regions said that Pei Xingjian knew about this and was biased towards the Turks, this has not been confirmed.

Gao Youdao was unwilling to use such ambiguous information to accuse a general who had just made military achievements.

Li Zhi pondered for a moment and said, "I will send someone to investigate this matter. Do you have anything else to report?"

Gao Youdao bowed and said, "These are the only two things I'm looking into."

Li Zhi smiled and said, "Well, you've worked hard all the way, so go back and rest. I'll grant you a day off, and you can come back to the yamen the day after tomorrow."

Gao Youdao thanked him and left.

There are not many memorials today. According to experience, Li Zhi can handle them all within an hour.

However, when he saw a memorial from Yan Liben, he frowned.

He slowly stood up, walked out of the Ganlu Palace, and walked north along the Thousand-Step Corridor, with a lot of thoughts in his mind.

There was only about a year left before he left Chang'an City.

As the time approached, he gradually felt some uneasy signs.

For example, in the memorial just submitted by Yan Liben, he proposed to add a few more teachers to Crown Prince Li Hong.

There have been several memorials like this recently.

Either propose to impeach an official in the Eastern Palace, or propose to add a teacher to the prince.

On the surface, it seems to be for the good of the prince, but in fact, the prince has made the ministers unhappy recently. They dare not criticize the prince directly, so they can only direct their criticism at the people around the prince.

The reason for the ministers' dissatisfaction was very simple, because of the pawnshop incident.

Li Zhi also knew about this. Because Li Hong was too kind, he ordered the return of the collateral to those who refused to repay their debts.

As a result, not long after, other people got the news and went to the pawnshop to borrow items and never returned them.

In this case, it won't be long before the pawnshop will be unable to operate.

Li Hong was a child after all, and perhaps he was panicked, so he hurriedly issued an order that the collateral would not be returned to those who did not return it within the time limit.

In governing the world, the most taboo thing is to change orders every day.

Li Hong's behavior not only dissatisfied the ministers, but also the people, and public opinion of him turned bad in an instant.

This was actually a trivial matter. The child was innocent and simple, and Li Hong was kinder than other children since he was young.

However, Li Hong was the crown prince after all, and this incident happened too suddenly, which made Li Zhi feel something was wrong.

Being the crown prince is a high-risk job, and anyone with ambition will set their sights on this position.

Either he wanted to seize the position, or he wanted to cause chaos in the court by targeting the crown prince.

Throughout the dynasties, countless princes were deposed.

Not to mention the distant past, since the founding of the Tang Dynasty, Crown Prince Li Jiancheng and Crown Prince Li Chengqian both ended up badly.

Even Li Zhong was a prince who had just been deposed.

Therefore, anything that is related to the prince is likely to be more complicated than it seems.

Now that he is here, he can help Li Hong withstand the pressure from these ministers and prevent Li Hong from being affected by this matter.

However, a year later, he left Chang'an and encountered a similar situation. Could Li Hong still withstand the pressure from the court and the public?
At this moment, Li Zhi deeply felt the helplessness of a father.

He had vaguely sensed that beneath the calm surface of Chang'an City, there was a force that had already pointed its spearhead at Li Hong.

Although Li Zhi had a suspect, he had no evidence.

Moreover, this matter may very well involve his other sons, which makes him very upset.

He even had the idea of ​​giving up the treatment of his headache and continuing to stay in Chang'an so that Li Hong could grow up safely.

But reason told him that protecting Li Hong too much would make him lose his ability to fight.

If he died prematurely due to a headache and Li Hong was unable to control the situation, it would cause a big chaos.

This is exactly the helplessness of the imperial family. While enjoying supreme power, it is also inevitable that they will kill each other due to the struggle for power.

While he was thinking, a eunuch came from a distance and whispered a few words to Wang Fusheng.

Li Zhi was feeling bored, so he asked, "Fu Sheng, what's wrong?"

Wang Fusheng hurriedly said, "Your Majesty, my men have already investigated and discovered that someone was behind the incident at the Pawnshop, fanning the flames and making it known to everyone."

Li Zhixuan raised his eyebrows: "Who is it?"

Wang Fusheng whispered, "I am incompetent. The other party is very efficient and has dealt with all the people involved. I cannot find out who is behind this."

Li Zhi's heart sank. He said, "This shows that they guessed in advance that the Palace Affairs Office would investigate, and were able to respond in advance."

Anyone who is so familiar with the court must be someone in the court.

Wang Fusheng whispered, "Your Majesty, there aren't many people who have motives to deal with the Crown Prince. Should we start by investigating those who have grudges against him?"

Li Zhi was silent for a moment, then shook his head and said, "That would only cause unrest in Chang'an, and everyone would be in danger. If Chang'an becomes chaotic, incidents like this will only increase."

Wang Fusheng hesitated for a moment and said, "The Queen seems to be investigating this matter as well."

Li Zhi touched his forehead and suddenly felt a headache.

Wu Meiniang had been on a positive trajectory recently, and if this incident unleashed her ruthless nature, it would be even more troublesome. He immediately set off towards the Lizheng Palace.

What Wang Fusheng said was absolutely correct. At this moment, Empress Wu was listening to Wang Hong’s report on the pawnshop.

"Your Highness, we have already found out that someone is ruining the prince's reputation behind the scenes. It's really hateful!" Wang Hong said gritting his teeth.

While writing calligraphy, Wu Meiniang asked, "Who is it?"

Wang Hong whispered, "They haven't found anything." After a pause, he said, "Eunuch Wang hasn't found anything either!"

Wu Meiniang said: "This is not surprising. Since the other party dared to attack Hong'er, they must have countermeasures. It won't be so easy to find out."

Wang Hong hurriedly said, "I already have a suspect."

Wu Meiniang glanced at him sideways.

"Oh?"

Wang Hongdao said, "Those villains who targeted His Royal Highness the Crown Prince must be targeting the position of heir apparent. Currently, the only ones threatening the Crown Prince's position are the First, Second, Third, and Fourth Princes. The person behind them is the most suspicious."

Wu Meiniang continued writing without making any comment.

Wang Hong suddenly added, "By the way, Concubine Zheng has given birth to a son, and the Zheng family of Xingyang is also a suspect. Your Highness, why don't we investigate these families first?"

Wu Meiniang said coldly, "Have you ever considered that this was the work of forces outside Chang'an?"

Wang Hong was stunned and asked, "Outside Chang'an City?"

Wu Mei Niang asked, "Do you think those princes surnamed Li are really that honest? They only want to see the world in chaos, and using Hong Er's case to stir up trouble is exactly what they want."

Wang Hong thought for a moment and said, "Prince Teng Li Yuanying and Prince Guo Li Feng are the most suspicious. They have both been reprimanded by His Majesty!"

Wu Meiniang put down her pen and handed the paper to Wang Hong.

"Start by checking these people."

Wang Hong took it and looked at it, and was immediately shocked.

The paper was filled with the names of four princes: Li Yuanying, Li Feng, Li Lingkui, and Li Yuanjia.

"Your Highness, Li Yuanjia is a famous and virtuous king. Why did you include him in the list?"

Wu Meiniang said coldly, "In this world, the more treacherous and evil a person is, the more he likes to pretend to be righteous. It is precisely because he is too virtuous that I doubt him."

Wang Hong asked again, "Do you want to investigate the people in Chang'an?"

Wu Meiniang was silent for a while, then said, "Let's investigate outside first, and then we'll see what happens inside Chang'an."

She knew very well that Li Zhi valued the stability of Chang'an the most, and if she acted recklessly, it would likely cause the emperor's dissatisfaction.

Just then, the eunuch came to report that the emperor was coming towards the Lizheng Hall.

Wu Meiniang sighed and said, "It seems Jiulang is still worried about me." She led her people out of the hall to welcome the emperor.

After a while, Li Zhi arrived and Wu Meiniang welcomed him into the palace and poured him the newly prepared flower wine for him to taste.

After Li Zhi drank two cups, he pulled Wu Meiniang to sit in his arms and talked to her about Li Hong intentionally or unintentionally.

Wu Meiniang leaned against him and said softly, "Your Majesty, don't worry. I am not someone who doesn't know the seriousness of the matter. I won't do anything reckless in Chang'an because of this."

Li Zhi squeezed her shoulders and said, "Mei Niang, don't worry. As long as I am here, I will never let anyone shake Hong'er's position as the crown prince."

Wu Meiniang smiled and said, "Your Majesty, I feel relieved now that you have said that."

She picked up an orange and peeled it while saying, "Actually, I think this isn't a completely bad thing." She stuffed a piece of peeled orange into Li Zhi's mouth.

Li Zhi opened his mouth and ate it, then asked curiously, "What do you mean?"

Wu Meiniang said, "Hong'er, who grew up in the deep palace, thinks too highly of everyone in the world. After this incident, he should have learned how treacherous people are."

Li Zhi nodded and said, "I agree with you. If we want Hong'er to become a qualified crown prince, we can't protect him too well. He needs to learn to face problems on his own in order to grow."

Seeing that they had the same opinion, they smiled at each other.

At this time, the tutor came over carrying Princess Taiping and Li Dan.

Li Zhi immediately stood up, went over to hug Princess Taiping, kissed her rosy cheek, and said with a smile, "My dear daughter, smile."

Princess Taiping was hurt by his beard, and she waved her little hands and burst into tears.

Li Dan, who was standing by, heard his sister crying and started crying too.

Princess Taiping has been particularly fond of crying since she was born.

What’s even more interesting is that whenever she cries, Li Dan will cry too.

Every time the two little kids cried, Li Zhi would only coax Princess Taiping and ignore Li Dan.

Wu Meiniang, standing by, picked up Li Dan, rocked him gently, and said angrily, "Your Majesty, you are really partial. You only care about coaxing your daughter."

Li Zhi laughed and said, "It's okay for a boy to cry."

At this time, Wang Fusheng came to Li Zhi and whispered, "Your Majesty, His Royal Highness the Prince of Yue has entered the palace and is waiting to see you in Ganlu Palace."

Li Zhi nodded, handed Princess Taiping to the tutor, said hello to Wu Meiniang, and went towards Ganlu Palace.

Li Zhi returned to the bedroom first and ordered someone to summon Li Zhen to meet him.

Among all the vassal kings, Li Zhen had the best relationship with Li Zhi.

His son Li Chong was the prince's companion to Li Hong, and like Xue Na, he was Li Hong's best friend.

When something happened to Li Hong, he was even more anxious than Li Zhi.

As soon as he stepped into the hall and finished the formalities, he got straight to the point and said, "Your Majesty, I'm afraid there's something fishy going on with the Crown Prince."

Li Zhi extended his hand to invite him to sit down, and slowly said: "Is Eighth Brother also investigating this matter?"

When Li Zhen heard the emperor say this, he knew that the emperor already knew.

"The Crown Prince is the heir apparent to the throne. After this incident became a major issue, I and Juro secretly investigated the matter. Apparently, someone is using the pawnshop incident to attack the Crown Prince's reputation."

Li Zhi said, "Eighth brother, do you know who did it?"

Li Zhen said in a low voice, "Your Majesty, do you still remember Li Yuanjing?"

Although this sentence did not give a direct answer, it also meant that he suspected the vassal kings of the same uncle generation as Li Yuanjing.

Before Li Yuanjing rebelled, he denigrated Li Zhi's reputation among the people and elevated the reputation of Wu Wang Li Ke to create chaos.

Now that the imperial power is stable, anyone with ill intentions will certainly not attack the emperor directly.

The best option is to point the finger at the prince.

Li Zhi said in a deep voice, "This is a serious matter and needs to be thoroughly investigated. Eighth brother, I have something to ask of you."

"Your Majesty, just ask."

Li Zhi said slowly: "My eyes can only see the people inside Chang'an City. I can't see the people outside Chang'an City clearly."

Li Zhen's heart moved: "I understand. I will keep an eye on those vassal kings for Your Majesty."

Li Zhi said, "There's someone, Eighth Brother, you need to pay special attention to him."

"Who?"

Li Zhi said, "King Han, Li Yuanjia."

After hearing this, Li Zhen was shocked.

Among the princes of the Shu generation, he was best impressed by only two people, one was Prince Zheng and the other was Prince Han Li Yuanjia.

He knew that the emperor must know something, which was why he said that, so he didn't ask any more questions and accepted the order.

The two brothers hadn't seen each other for half a year. After talking for nearly an hour, Li Zhen took his leave and left the palace.

(End of this chapter)