Tang Dynasty: To win Yang Guifei, they asked Emperor Xuanzong to die.

Gao Chen was startled. After asking around, he learned that he had been caught red-handed by Li Mao while spying on the horse farm.

"You loser!"

The beaten eunuch trembled below. Seeing this, Xiao Xizi said to Gao Chen, "Prince Shou is clearly showing you a sign of disrespect and doesn't take you seriously."

"Moreover, now that the surveillance personnel have been discovered, Li Mao might preemptively strike, and you would be in a passive position."

After the eunuch finished speaking, a murderous glint flashed in Gao Chen's eyes, and he slammed the wine cup heavily on the table.

"Don't worry, it's as difficult as climbing to heaven for Prince Shou to find fault with our family!"

"I will report this matter to His Majesty in the Imperial Garden tomorrow."

The next day, in the Imperial Garden.

Xianglan and Li Longji were admiring flowers together.

Li Longji looked at the flower in front of him and said calmly, "This flower is indeed extraordinary. I wonder where it came from."

Xianglan gently placed her delicate hand on the beautiful flower and revealed a smile.

"These beautiful flowers were sent down from heaven for His Majesty to admire."

As the emperor, what he hoped for most was auspicious omens from heaven.

Xianglan's words were exactly what Li Longji wanted to hear, and he waved his hand to reward Xianglan with twenty taels of gold.

"Thank you for your kindness, Your Majesty."

Xianglan hurriedly kowtowed to express her gratitude.

Seeing this, Gao Chen realized that the time had come. He deliberately frowned and remained silent.

Li Longji raised his eyelids and glanced at him: "Judging from your appearance, it seems there are turbulent events outside the palace."

"Your Majesty, I do indeed have something to report."

Gao Chen immediately knelt down, his expression serious, as if something big had happened.

"speak."

Gao Chen lowered his head, his eyes dark and unfathomable.

"Your Majesty just said that this flower is an auspicious omen from heaven, but I don't believe it, because I received news that several military governors sent Li Mao some gifts a few days ago."

"One of the gifts was a pot of flowers, and those flowers were exactly the same as those in His Majesty's Imperial Garden."

"Oh?"

The most taboo thing for an emperor is to have others have what he has, and others have what he does not have.

Li Longji turned to look at Xianglan.

The powerful aura and oppressive force made Xianglan kneel down instantly.

"Please forgive me, Your Majesty, these flowers were indeed sent by His Highness Prince Shou."

"His Highness Prince Shou has made it clear that the military governors are all military officers, and it would be a laughing stock if they presented such a thing to His Majesty. Therefore, they asked His Highness Prince Shou to deliver it."

"His Highness felt that sending a flower out of nowhere would only invite gossip, so he gave it to Chief Steward Gao, who then passed it on to me."

"It was Chief Steward Gao who taught me about auspicious omens from heaven. I don't know why he's saying this again today."

Xianglan, quick-witted, turned the situation around.

Li Longji turned his gaze to Gao Chen

Gao Chen was stunned. He never imagined that this young woman could think so fast and speak so fluently and flawlessly in the blink of an eye.

If he denied these words, Li Longji would surely punish him.

However, if they admit it, it would be like slapping themselves in the face, rendering their previous statements invalid and turning them into a false accusation.

For a moment, Gao Chen was drenched in sweat, kneeling on the ground without saying a word.

No one is smarter than the emperor. Li Longji, observing people's expressions, immediately understood the situation.

"Alright, go down."

Helped up by two eunuchs, Gao Chen left trembling.

Xianglan thought she had won a round, and pressed her advantage, immediately continuing, "Your Majesty, Gao Chen and those little eunuchs are always making false accusations against Prince Shou, and now they're starting to frame me. If this goes on for too long, they might even spread rumors about you."

"I hope Your Majesty can punish Gao Chen and shut these eunuchs up."

"enough."

Li Longji raised an eyebrow slightly, clearly already angry.

He lifted Xianglan's chin: "You fabricated such lies, a heinous crime, and you still dare to implicate others?"

If the emperor is angered, a person's head will fall if they are not careful.

Xianglan trembled violently, her entire body almost touching the ground: "Your Majesty, please forgive me!"

"roll!"

Xianglan scrambled away from the Imperial Garden.

Watching Xianglan's departing figure, Li Longji was filled with emotion.

He was the emperor, high above all others, and no one dared to disobey him. He could decide life and death with a single word. Yet, since birth, only one person had ever truly entered his heart.

That was Yang Yuhuan, who was in a Taoist temple!

Previously, Li Mao had Yang Yuhuan stay in a Taoist temple for a year, but now Li Longji is getting impatient.

Although Xianglan was beautiful and exceptional in bed, he still longed for Yang Yuhuan.

Feeling frustrated, Li Longji decided to expedite the previously agreed-upon timeline.

He summoned Gao Chen and instructed him, "Go find Yang Xuangui immediately and tell him to come to the Imperial Garden to see me."

Half an hour later.

After Yang Xuangui and Fei Gaochen finished paying their respects in the Imperial Garden, Li Longji, unusually, smiled and asked Yang Xuangui to sit down: "I am troubled today, so I have prepared some wine for you to have a drink with."

"Your Majesty, I am filled with fear and trepidation."

Yang Xuangui rose to express his gratitude, but Li Longji waved his hand.

"Let's skip the formalities today. Just keep me company with a drink."

Li Longji rarely invited his ministers to drink, and it was unprecedented for him to schedule the time during the day.

Yang Xuangui was somewhat puzzled and filled with immense fear.

For a subject, the most terrifying thing is when the emperor does something unusual.

"I wonder how your family is doing lately, and whether you have visited Yang Yuhuan."

Yang Xuangui immediately cupped his hands in thanks: "Thank you for your concern, Your Majesty. My family has always been well. As for my daughter Yang Yuhuan, she is now a recluse, and I dare not go to visit her."

"If I were to visit her, I fear it would violate temple etiquette. Moreover, His Highness Prince Shou would not agree to me doing so."

Li Longji put down his wine cup, seemingly lost in thought: "I believe that Yang Yuhuan's choice to distance herself from worldly affairs and focus on spiritual cultivation is a great blessing. As her family, shouldn't you offer her some assistance?"

Li Longji's words were cryptic and ambiguous, leaving Yang Xuangui unsure how to respond.

All they could do was nod and agree.

"Please rest assured, Your Majesty, after I return, I will send people to find eminent monks to preach to my daughter."

Li Longji shook his head.

"If one wants to focus on spiritual practice, one must sever ties with worldly affairs; only then can one achieve enlightenment."

"I believe that if you can sever your father-daughter relationship with Yang Yuhuan, she will have no more attachments and can concentrate on her cultivation."

Upon hearing this, Yang Xuangui was shocked. He never expected that Li Longji had summoned him specifically to sever his father-daughter relationship with Yang Yuhuan. What was his intention?

Yang Xuangui was overwhelmed with mixed feelings and didn't know what to do.

"What? Not happy?"

Yang Xuangui quickly shook his head and lowered his head as well.

"I dare not!"

"I was simply not mentally prepared and didn't know how to answer for a moment."

Li Longji's expression remained unchanged, yet it sent shivers down one's spine: "Does my dear minister agree or disagree?"

Li Longji pressed on relentlessly, and Yang Xuangui was sweating profusely, but he still couldn't give an answer.

Once you agree to something like this, there's no going back.

If we go the wrong way, it will be a terrible disaster.