Tang Dynasty, my wife Wu Zetian

Chapter 313 The Emperor and Empress Jointly Judge
The two of them came to Lizheng Hall together, only to see Empress Wu sitting on the couch, questioning three palace maids in their forties or fifties.

The two men stepped forward and paid their respects to Empress Wu.

Wu Meiniang raised her hand and said, "You two are the disciples of Divine Doctor Sun, right?"

Fei Shisan hurriedly said, "Your Highness, the two of us are indeed Sun Fengyu's disciples."

Wu Meiniang smiled faintly and said, "Since you are a disciple of the Divine Doctor, your medical skills are beyond doubt. Have you examined the corpse I showed you?"

Meng Shiyi said, "I've checked it. It's a female corpse. She must have died more than twenty years ago. She was probably in her twenties when she died. Also, someone smashed her right index finger with a blunt object."

When the three old palace maids around Wu Meiniang heard this, they were all surprised.

When Wu Meiniang saw this, she asked, "Why, do you know her identity?"

The oldest palace maid on the left said, "Your Highness, the person who died should be Wei Jue. She was Concubine Wang's personal maid."

These three people were the palace maids on duty in Baoning Palace at that time. Wu Meiniang specifically ordered people to find them and ask about the matter of Concubine Yin.

Wu Meiniang's eyes flashed, and she asked, "Are you sure?"

The old palace attendant said, "That's for sure. When Concubine Wang was riding a horse, she nearly fell. Wei Jue went to catch her, but ended up having his right index finger crushed by the horse's hoof."

After these words were spoken, Meng Shiyi and Fei Shisan's faces turned red.

They guessed that it was smashed by a blunt object, but they didn't know that it was actually caused by horse hooves.

Wu Meiniang looked at the old palace maid and said, "Go on."

The old palace servant seemed to be recalling what happened back then and didn't know how to start.

The forty-year-old palace maid next to him said, "Your Highness, I remember Wei Jue."

"Okay, you go ahead."

The palace servant said: "At that time, Chao Fengyu of the Shang Pharmacy fell in love with Wei Jue, and Madam Defei wanted to make the decision and give Wei Jue to Chao Fengyu."

Wu Meiniang suddenly asked, "Does Concubine Yin value that Chao Fengyu very much?"

The palace maid said, "Yes, whenever Madam Defei was ill, it was Chao Fengyu who diagnosed her. Madam Defei did not trust other imperial doctors."

The old palace attendant added: "Imperial Physician Chao was also the best physician in the palace at that time."

Wu Meiniang asked, "What happened next? Do you know how Wei Jue died?"

A palace maid in her forties said, "Although Madam Defei asked the late emperor for permission, Wei Jue refused to go with Chao Fengyu. She asked Concubine Wang to intercede with Madam Defei, but it was to no avail. Madam Defei still gave Wei Jue to Chao Fengyu."

"We all thought she had followed Chao Fengyu, but we didn't expect she was already dead."

Wu Meiniang's heart moved, and she thought to herself, "So it seems that Concubine Wang and Concubine Yin have fallen out because of Wei Jue's matter."

She asked about the circumstances of Concubine Wang's sudden death, and the palace maids all said they didn't know. However, they did mention that when Concubine Wang was ill, it was Imperial Physician Chao who treated her.

From this we can see that Imperial Physician Chao has the best chance of killing Concubine Wang.

After listening to this, Wu Meiniang closed her eyes and thought for a while, then instructed Zhang Duohai: "Go check on the condition of the imperial physician Chao."

It was not until the next afternoon that Zhang Duohai came to reply to Wu Meiniang.

Chao Fengyu's real name was Chao Shumou. He was the son of Chao Yuanfang, a famous doctor in the Sui Dynasty. He was proficient in medicine. He entered the palace during the Wude period and served as Fengyu for a long time.

In the 15th year of Zhenguan, Chao Fengyu suddenly resigned from his position as Fengyu of the Shangyao Bureau and disappeared.

There is news that he followed King Qi Li You to Qizhou. Later, when Li You rebelled, some people saw him. After Li You's rebellion was put down, he disappeared.

Empress Wu pondered for a moment and said to Zhang Duohai, "Send someone to keep an eye on Prince Deng and Prince Jiang. Report back immediately if there's any news."

Zhang Duohai agreed and took the order.

Wang Hong suddenly hurried into the palace and said to Wu Meiniang, "Your Highness, His Majesty requests that you come over."

Empress Wu immediately got up and went to Lizheng Hall. To her surprise, Li Zhi was waiting for her in the outer hall.

Empress Wu came outside the hall, announced it, and entered the hall. She glanced and saw a man standing at the steps. It was Di Renjie.

"Your Majesty the Queen," Di Renjie bowed to her.

Empress Wu smiled and nodded, then she stepped onto the throne and bowed to Li Zhi.

Li Zhi pulled her to sit on the dragon throne and asked about King Deng. Wu Meiniang just said that she was still investigating.

Li Zhi said: "Well, listen to Di Renjie's words, maybe it will help you."

Wu Meiniang turned her head to look at Di Renjie and asked curiously, "Isn't Di Siqing going to Luoyang to handle a case?"

Di Renjie bowed and said, "Your Highness, I have solved the case, so I have returned."

Wu Meiniang was surprised and asked, "So fast, who is the murderer?"

Di Renjie said, "When I went to arrest this man, he had already committed suicide. His identity is unknown. I sent someone to suppress the news, claiming that the murderer had not been caught, and then quietly returned to Chang'an."

Wu Meiniang's eyes flickered: "What's your intention in doing this?"

Di Renjie said, "According to my suspicion, the murderer is a determined soldier, sent by someone to commit this series of murders to lure me to Luoyang."

Wu Meiniang's eyes showed a hint of admiration as she smiled and said, "So you quietly returned to Chang'an, wondering why they transferred you to Luoyang?"

Di Renjie said, "Your Highness has hit the nail on the head."

Li Zhi said, "Mei Niang, Di Renjie and I have discussed this and both of us feel that the person behind this could be one of King Deng or King Jiang."

Wu Meiniang nodded in agreement. This was the only major event that had happened in Chang'an City in recent days.

Li Zhi continued, "Although Mr. Di couldn't find out who sent that assassin, he did find out the inn he stayed in. According to the innkeeper's confession, he spoke with a Hebei accent."

Wu Mei Niang's heart moved, and she said, "Your Majesty, have you reached a conclusion?"

Prince Jiang was in Xiangzhou, Hebei, while Prince Deng was in Xiangzhou, Jiangnan. From this, it can be judged that Prince Jiang is more suspicious.

Li Zhi said, "What does the Queen think?"

Wu Meiniang said, "I just found out that Concubine Wang, the biological mother of Prince Jiang, had a feud with Concubine Yin. It's possible that Concubine Yin sent Concubine Zhao to kill Concubine Wang."

Li Zhi took a deep breath and said, "If it really is the day of King Jiang's wedding, Changshan will definitely make some moves. Let's wait and see what happens."

After all, there is no conclusive evidence at the moment, and King Jiang has a special identity. We can only take action against him after he reveals his true identity.

Wu Meiniang reminded: "Your Majesty, do you want to remind Changshan?"

Li Zhi thought for a moment, raised his hand and said, "No, you can tell Xincheng to stay by Changshan's side. I always feel that Prince Jiang must have other reasons for wanting to kill Changshan."

Judging from the attitudes of Princess Changshan and Prince Jiang, the two once had a very good relationship.

Even if Concubine Zhao killed Concubine Wang, Prince Jiang would at most ignore Princess Changshan and stop associating with her. There was no reason for him to hate her so much!
Days passed, and in the next few days, Chang'an City returned to peace. People from all walks of life in Chang'an City were paying attention to the princess's wedding.

Princess Changshan's mansion has been renovated.

Li Zhi doted on his sister very much. He not only chose a mansion for her that was close to the imperial palace, but also close to the Princess Xincheng Mansion.

In addition, he also sent a guard of 200 people to Princess Changshan.

Empress Wu selected 108 eunuchs, 108 palace maids, and dozens of attendants from the princess's courtyard, and moved them all to the princess's mansion together with Princess Changshan.

The complicated etiquette for the princess's wedding was all handled by the Ministry of Rites, so Li Zhi did not need to worry about it.

On the wedding day, there was another round of complicated rituals.

Li Zhi hosted a banquet for his ministers in the Liangyi Hall. According to the rules, the princess also had to come out to pay her respects, and all the ministers knelt on the ground in return.

By the time Princess Changshan finished praying in the Taimiao, it was already mid-afternoon. She then boarded the Luancha lent to her by Empress Wu and left the palace.

The Jinwu Guards were on martial law along the road, and there were stoves everywhere on the roadside, which was extremely spectacular.

Arriving at the princess's residence, after going through a tedious process, the princess finally entered her bridal chamber towards evening, while her husband remained in the inner hall to entertain the guests.

The guests who came to congratulate the princess on her wedding were naturally all prominent people. Those sitting in the inner hall were either dukes and ministers, or royal nobles.

Prince Jiang was one of them. After waiting for the prince consort to come over and toast him, he stood up and left the room.

The moment he stood up, King Deng glanced at him.

Prince Jiang walked towards the back hall, but was stopped by the guards when he arrived at the hanging flower gate. According to the rules, no outsiders were allowed to enter on the day of the princess's wedding.

King Jiang said calmly, "Go and inform the princess that I want to see her. If she doesn't see me, I will turn around and leave."

The guard had no choice but to go over and report, and soon the princess invited him in.

Prince Jiang walked to Princess Changshan's bridal chamber and knocked on the door. Princess Changshan's personal maid Cai'er opened the door and invited him in.

Inside the bridal chamber, Princess Changshan wore an exquisite red silk skirt with gold thread and a gorgeous crown on her head, which was inlaid with amber, agate, pearls and other ornaments, shining with golden light.

"Brother, you came to see me." Princess Changshan smiled slightly, with a bright glow on her face.

Prince Jiang sighed and said, "According to the rules, it's not appropriate for me to come to you at this time. But although we are not siblings, our relationship is closer than that. I will be leaving the capital tomorrow. This is the rock honey I promised to give you."

Handed over a glass bottle.

Princess Changshan took it and looked at the rock honey in the bottle with a nostalgic look on her face. She said, "Thank you, brother."

King Jiang said, "Today is your big day, and I can't stay here for long. I'll leave first." He turned around, pushed the door open and left.

Not long after he left, Princess Xincheng and Cai'er walked in together.

Princess Xincheng looked at the glass bottle and said to Princess Changshan, "Sister, let me put this bottle of rock honey away for you."

Princess Changshan nodded and instructed, "Please keep it safe. Don't bump it or it will be a waste of your brother's kindness."

Princess Xincheng said, "I understand."

Princess Changshan noticed that she looked strange and asked, "Sister, what's wrong?"

Princess Xincheng forced a smile and said, "It's nothing. The prince consort should be here soon. I won't bother you anymore."

He turned and left the house, walking west along the corridor. Soon, he saw two people standing in front of him, one was Di Renjie and the other was Sun Simiao.

"Your Highness, did you get the things?" Di Renjie asked.

Princess Xincheng nodded and handed the glass bottle to Sun Simiao. Sun Simiao opened the bottle and sniffed inside. In addition to the sweet fragrance, there was indeed a mixture of other flavors.

As he smelled them, he whispered, "Shootworm, blister beetle, egg case..." His expression became more and more solemn.

Di Renjie asked, "Doctor Sun, is there a problem?"

Sun Simiao twirled his beard and said, "There are a lot of medicinal insects mixed in this rock honey."

Princess Xincheng asked in surprise, "What is a medicine bug?"

Sun Simiao said, "It refers to medicinal materials related to insects, such as insect corpses or body parts."

Princess Xincheng asked curiously, "So, it's all medicinal herbs mixed in there, so it won't be harmful to my sister?"

Sun Simiao shook his head and said, "Each insect has unique medicinal properties. The insect prescriptions handed down from ancient times all use a combination of several auxiliary herbs and a single insect to cure an illness. You absolutely cannot randomly mix and match insects, let alone combine so many."

Princess Xincheng asked, "What will happen if we pair them together?"

Sun Simiao said slowly: "I don't know what effect this mixture of so many medicinal insects will have, but it will definitely be harmful to the body."

Princess Xincheng gritted her teeth and said, "Brother is right, Prince Jiang really wants to harm me."

Di Renjie said, "There is no time to lose. You must inform His Majesty of the situation immediately."

When Prince Jiang returned to the inner hall, he sat for only a short while before saying hello to Lu Zhaolin and leaving the princess's mansion.

Just as I walked out the door, I heard a shout behind me.

Turning around, I saw that King Deng had also come out.

King Jiang was not polite to King Deng at all. He said coldly, "Why did you call me?"

King Deng did not answer, but just looked up at the street.

King Jiang followed his gaze and heard the sound of horse hooves in the distance. Soon, a group of Qianniu Guards came running over.

The leading Qianniu Beishen bowed to the two men and said, "Your Highness Prince Jiang, Your Highness Prince Deng, His Majesty invites you two into the palace."

When King Jiang heard that the emperor had summoned him, his heart sank. He took a deep breath and followed the Qianniu Guards.

The two followed the Qianniu Guards into the palace and were soon taken to the Ganlu Palace.

Entering the outer hall, King Jiang looked astonished.

Not only the emperor and Empress Wu were sitting in the hall, but Di Renjie was also there.

King Jiang looked at Di Renjie and wanted to ask him why he was there. But when the words were on the tip of his tongue, he suddenly realized that if he asked this question, he would be confessing himself.

He took a deep breath, calmed himself, and saluted Li Zhi and Empress Wu.

With a bang, Li Zhi placed a glass bottle on the dragon table and said slowly, "Seventh Brother, Changshan's strange illness is caused by you, right?"

When King Jiang saw the glass bottle, he looked up to the sky and sighed, knowing that the emperor already knew everything and it was useless to hide it any further.

As a member of the royal family, he was naturally proud and immediately raised his head and said, "Yes, I did it."

Li Zhi said: "I would like to hear your reasons."

King Jiang gritted his teeth and said, "Reason? She killed my biological mother with her own hands. Do you think I should kill her?"

Li Zhi was shocked and said, "How is that possible? When your biological mother, Concubine Wang, died, she was only five years old. How could she have killed someone?"

King Jiang said, "Your Majesty, do you know how my biological mother died?"

Li Zhi said: "I heard that he died suddenly."

King Jiang snorted coldly, "No, she was poisoned to death. The poison was in the rock honey on your table!"

Empress Wu suddenly asked, "This poison was developed by the former imperial concubine Chao Shumou, right?"

Prince Jiang glanced at Empress Wu and said, "Yes, that old fellow! After taking this poison, it will be diagnosed as a heart disease. If the cause is not discovered, the patient will die within two days."

Empress Wu asked again, "Is it Concubine Yin who wants to kill Concubine Wang?"

King Jiang showed a look of surprise and said, "You even know this?" He turned his head to glance at King Deng, thinking that it must be King Deng who said it.

Empress Wu said calmly, "I found out that Concubine Wang and Concubine Yin were at odds because of a palace maid named Wei Jue, so I made this guess."

Prince Jiang said, "Wei Jue is the person that A Niang trusts the most. He even saved A Niang's life. Concubine Yin wanted to give Wei Jue to Old Man Chao in order to win him over, but A Niang naturally disagreed."

"Unfortunately, my mother's position was too low to stop Concubine Yin, so Wei Jue was eventually given to Old Man Chao. My mother was filled with grief and indignation, so she secretly tried to defect to Concubine Yang."

"Because of a palace servant's leak, this matter was known to Concubine Yin. She wanted to kill A Niang, but A Niang was already on guard against her, so she couldn't succeed."

"Later, Concubine Yin found Concubine Zhao and gave her a packet of poison, asking her to get rid of A Niang. Concubine Zhao did not dare to disobey Concubine Yin, so she put the poison in A Niang's favorite lotus crystal cake and asked Changshan to deliver it to A Niang's palace."

"A-niang and Lady Zhao were like sisters, so she had no suspicion of her. Moreover, the person who gave her the crystal cake was a five-year-old child, so she ate it without any precautions."

"That night, A'niang felt unwell. The imperial physician was summoned to examine her, and he concluded that she was not poisoned but suffering from a heart disease. Old Concubine Cui also examined A'niang herself and asked other imperial physicians to diagnose her, but they also concluded that it was a heart disease."

"The next afternoon, my mother passed away. Everyone in the palace assumed she had died of an illness. I had already established a residence outside the palace by then, and I didn't even have the chance to see my mother one last time!"

Speaking of this, he burst into tears.

Li Zhi tilted his head slightly and sighed.

Prince Jiang wiped his tears and continued, "At that time, there was fierce fighting in the harem, and my mother died suddenly for no apparent reason. Naturally, I suspected someone had poisoned her, so I secretly sent people to investigate."

"Unfortunately, I couldn't find any clues. Later, Wei Jue came to me and told me that it was a special poison developed by Old Man Chao that killed my mother!"

"So I asked Wei Jue to lurk around Old Man Chao and get the poison as evidence. As expected, Wei Jue helped me get it. I then went to find Old Concubine Cui and asked her to seek justice!"

"But Old Concubine Cui said that this bottle of poison alone wasn't enough and that Wei Jue was needed as a witness. When I went to look for Wei Jue again, she had disappeared."

Wu Meiniang said slowly, "She was probably caught stealing medicine and was executed by Concubine Yin. She was buried under the plum blossom forest in Baoning Palace."

Prince Jiang said in a deep voice, "I also guessed that she was dead, so I had no choice but to go to Concubine Cui again and ask her to find a solution. It's just hateful that she is unwilling to take the lead!"

Prince Deng finally spoke up, "It's not that Mother didn't want to help you, but at that time, Concubine Yin was too powerful in the harem. Mother secretly wanted to gather evidence against her, but she was restricted in every way and couldn't do anything about it."

Prince Jiang said coldly, "That's because she's unwilling to fight to the death with Concubine Yin for a little beauty."

Prince Deng lowered his head and said, "Mother indeed had many concerns and could not take action against Concubine Yin. She felt guilty about you because of this matter, and she also felt guilty towards the late emperor for her poor management of the harem. This exhausted her and she contracted a serious illness. Before leaving, she could only persuade the late emperor to punish Concubine Zhao, which was also a way to avenge you."

Prince Jiang said coldly: "Concubine Zhao deserves to die, and Changshan cannot escape responsibility!"

Li Zhi said in a deep voice, "So that's why you used the poison Wei Jue gave you to poison Changshan?"

King Jiang said, "Yes, I didn't do it at the time. I waited for a few years until I was about to leave Beijing to become a vassal. Then I gave her the poisoned rock honey."

"Because I've been visiting her for the past few years and always bringing her food, she had no defenses against me. Unfortunately, after taking the medicine, she only got a strange disease and didn't die immediately."

Li Zhi said, "She was only five years old at the time and didn't know that the medicine she gave your mother was poison. How could you take your anger out on her?"

King Jiang shouted, "It wasn't your mother who died, so of course you can think that way!"

Wu Meiniang shouted, "How dare you!"

King Jiang snorted and said, "Now that things have come to this, I have nothing to fear. You can kill me or chop me up, it's all up to you. I have avenged my mother and have no regrets!"

Li Zhi suddenly asked, "After you learned that Changshan was getting married, you devised a plan to poison her. At the same time, you ordered your assassins to commit a series of murders in Luoyang to lure Di Renjie there, right?"

King Jiang said, "Yes, Di Renjie is too famous, and I am afraid he will find out about me."

Li Zhi said sternly, "Even if you were avenging your mother, those who were killed had nothing to do with you. Why did you kill them?"

Prince Jiang didn't dare to look Li Zhi in the eye. He lowered his head and whispered, "I can't think of a better way. I can only blame them for being unlucky."

Li Zhi shook his head and asked Prince Deng, "Uncle Wang, how did you know that Prince Jiang wanted to kill Changshan?"

King Deng said, "Before she died, my mother still felt guilty towards Qilang. She told me this secret and asked me to keep an eye on King Jiang to prevent him from doing anything extreme."

"When Changshan fell ill with a strange disease, I suspected he was involved, but unfortunately, I was powerless to do anything. Later, when Changshan recovered and was about to get married, I suspected he would attack again after Changshan left the palace, so I spread rumors in an attempt to prevent the wedding."

Li Zhi nodded.

No wonder Prince Deng’s way of stopping this matter was so gentle, and he didn’t come to find me. It was obvious that he sympathized with Prince Jiang because of the instructions of Old Concubine Cui.

Li Zhi looked at Di Renjie and asked, "Mr. Di, do you have any questions?"

Di Renjie said, "I have only one question for Your Highness Prince Jiang."

King Jiang snorted, "Ask."

Di Renjie looked at the glass bottle on the dragon table and asked, "Was the poison in the bottle also developed by Chao Fengyu?"

King Jiang said, "Yes."

"Where did you get it?"

King Jiang narrowed his eyes and smiled, saying, "He's also the enemy who killed my mother. How could I forgive him? After Li You's rebellion failed, I sent people to capture him and imprisoned him in the cemetery near my mother's tomb. I originally wanted to keep him locked up for life and make him atone for his sins, but I didn't expect Changshan to survive. So I had to ask him to create a new poison."

Di Renjie nodded and said nothing more.

Li Zhi looked at King Jiang, not knowing what to do with him for a moment.

He pondered for a while, waved his hand, ordered Di Renjie to lock him up temporarily, then stood up and left the hall with Wu Meiniang.

As the sun rose and set, Chang'an City experienced another peaceful day, and Princess Changshan's wedding went smoothly.

Li Zhi finally decided not to tell her about King Jiang.

Princess Changshan's life over the past twenty years has been miserable enough, and Li Zhi doesn't want her to be overshadowed by her childhood events.

Under Li Zhi's instructions, Prince Jiang's revenge was covered up. This palace secret will remain a secret forever, buried in the torrent of history.

The Dali Temple announced that the Luoyang case was committed by people sent by Prince Jiang. Princess Changshan even went to Li Zhi to plead for Prince Jiang.

Li Zhi finally issued an edict to strip King Jiang of his title, demote him to a commoner, and exile him to Lingnan.

This old palace affair caused by Princess Changshan's marriage finally came to an end.

(End of this chapter)