The Tang Dynasty: Wu Zetian made me her imperial tutor

Roll, roll—

Lu Jun left Shangyang Palace at noon, and instead of returning to the Imperial Workshop, she went straight home from the capital.

Just as they stepped out of Guangzheng Gate, the sound of wheels came from behind. A magnificent carriage with a red-gold body, a purple canopy, curtains wrapped around pillars, and colorful ribbons draped over its steeds emerged. It was Princess Taiping's carriage.

"Chu Yu, come up here!" Li Lingyue waved with a smile.

Although the Yanzhai was luxurious, it was still a two-wheeled vehicle, and it swayed as it crossed the Tianjin Bridge.

The princess wrapped her arms around Lu Jun's arm, her soft upper body swaying with the movement of the carriage, leaving warmth and fragrance on his arm.

Her eyes, as if admiring a masterpiece, scrutinized Lu Jun's face repeatedly, making him feel almost melted.

"Ahem." Lu Jun tugged at her arm lightly, blushing, and said, "Your Highness, aren't you afraid of the Empress Dowager's punishment for being so blatant?"

Li Lingyue didn't let go and held on tightly.

"My mother told me to stay and listen to your political discussions, which meant she wouldn't punish me. I realized that long ago!"

"Last time you asked me to make suggestions on horse administration and the imperial examination, my mother was very satisfied and said that I have a great talent for governance."

"After you left, she didn't scold me much. She just told me not to bother you. As for the reason..."

She winked and said, "I think you look a bit like someone, but so what? You look even more approachable~"

Lu Jun remembered that when Li Lingyue first met her, she said that she looked somewhat familiar, and at the time she thought it was one of her flirting techniques.

He asked疑惑地问道, "Who does it resemble?"

"I won't tell you!" Li Lingyue smiled mysteriously.

"You haven't thanked me yet. I risked my life to persuade Mother today, so I deserve some credit, don't I?"

She pulled Lu Jun's arm closer and brought her face closer to him, less than half a foot apart. Heat rose from under the thin silk robe, and her breath could be clearly heard.

The scent of rouge mixed with sweat made my head spin, and I couldn't help but want to droop.

Li Lingyue breathed out softly and said quietly, "I can ask the coachman to slow down; we have plenty of time..."

"Time is too short for me, I'm leaving now!" Lu Jun pulled her arm away while she still had some control.

If you can't resist, you'll be firmly controlled and tied down by this older sister from now on.

Just like Cui Shi, a respectable scion of a prestigious family, all he thinks about is getting into her family and becoming completely devoted to her.

The princess was passionate and ardent towards him, but it was hard to say how much of that affection was genuine and how much was just a ploy to win him over.

She is indeed very talented in this area.

Seeing that Lu Jun did not respond, he was not angry: "Don't worry, Chu Yu, I will support you in searching for the escaped households."

He chuckled and watched them go for a long time from the carriage before lowering the curtain and instructing the coachman to whip the horse.

Lu Jun got off the carriage at Anyefang and soon returned to Chongyefang. After entering the North Gate, she wandered to the corner of her own courtyard and saw several people blocking the door.

Uncle Zhong, Ade, and Liu Da, three male servants, tried to persuade them to leave, but the men pleaded with them:

"My elder brother was born in the same year as Lu Shiyi, and we once rode together through the streets. Please let me see him, just once!"

"My elder brother is truly innocent; he is by no means a traitor or collaborator, and he will not implicate the relic collector!"

"We came all the way from Huazhou, and now we have no relatives or friends in the capital. Please, remembering our friendship from our school days, help us out..."

The group of people were covered in dust, their clothes were tattered, and their chests and backs were soaked with sweat in the sweltering heat. They spoke urgently and mournfully, which was very touching.

Lu Jun stood at a distance and did not go over.

Di Renjie had warned him that cruel officials were at their most rampant at this time, and that he should avoid such situations at all costs.

It wasn't until Uncle Zhong went to Wuhoupu to summon the Imperial Guards and drove those people away that he turned into the street.

Upon entering the house, Ade immediately greeted him, took out a letter from his pocket, and said anxiously:

"My lord, I was just going to the South Market when someone suddenly handed me this, stuffed it into my hand, and ran off. I couldn't catch him, so I had to take it home..."

He knew that things were not peaceful in the capital recently, and he didn't know if he was doing the right thing. He lowered his head and dared not look at his master.

Uncle Zhong and Liu Da stood by, their faces filled with apprehension after the incident of blocking the door earlier.

Lu Jun took it and saw that it was sealed with thick cocoon paper and wax.

The outer layer was unmarked, bearing only the words: "To be opened by Lu Chuyu."

He smiled slightly at Ade: "You did the right thing. If you hadn't taken it home, it would have been even worse if someone else had picked it up."

She walked quickly back to the inner courtyard. Just as Yan Niang was about to serve tea, Lu Jun waved her hand and opened the screen, opening the letter by herself.

"Prince Ying of Nan'an respectfully bows to Lord Lu..."

It was written by Li Ying, the Prince of Nan'an!

The handwriting looked familiar, just like the fake list he had given before; it was indeed written by Li Ying!

Lu Jun was only on guard at the street corner, not particularly nervous, but upon seeing these words, her heart suddenly began to pound wildly.

Why did Li Ying write a letter to herself?

Given his status as a prince, why would he use the word "worship"? Does he have something to ask of me?

Lu Jun's first thought was to burn the letter, but there were only a few lines of text at the end. Since she had already opened it, she decided to quickly scan and read it:

"I have previously been presumptuous and caused you to be imprisoned. The reason I have delayed in offering my thanks is that I feared that I might be implicated and thus bring trouble upon you."

"Whenever I think of this matter, I break out in a cold sweat in the middle of the night, and I cannot help but pat my heart and blame myself, feeling ashamed and remorseful beyond measure."

"If the magistrate is imprisoned and unable to get out, I will definitely submit a petition to the authorities and take responsibility for the matter myself. Even if it means my body is crushed and my head is broken, I will not dare to fail in my duty."

"Once you receive this book, I will already be in charge of the prison."

"The suffering inflicted by Chu is indeed the duty of the royal family, but I never expected that you would fall here before me. I am filled with regret..."

Li Ying, did he apologize?

Has he apologized for getting himself imprisoned?

According to him, if he hadn't been able to get out, he would have turned himself in to get himself out.

"Nonsense, right? A prince like him would risk his life for me?" Lu Jun scoffed, completely disbelieving.

Upon seeing the words, "If you obtain this book, I will already be serving in prison," I felt a pang of regret and sighed.

After all, he was once my principal, and when that day actually came, I still felt a little reluctant.

He entered Lijing Gate ahead of time. Perhaps it was his mention of the "Great Cloud Sutra" that accelerated the course of history, preventing him from even celebrating the Dragon Boat Festival.

Even if... we're even, let's say we're even.

As for "submitting a petition to the authorities and admitting the matter himself," it should be an expression of apology, followed by saying a few kind words afterward.

Lu Jun found the sentence jarring. She read it over and over again, shook her head, and continued reading.

"The Empress Dowager is wise and, given her role as the matriarch, it is inevitable that she will rule the world; this is an irreversible trend."

"But Chengsi and Sansi are both talented but selfish and disregard public duty. If they were to seize the imperial power, the people would be doomed."

"The former wanted to enlist your help to discuss secret matters, not for his own selfish reasons, but for the sake of the clan and the state. It was also a heavy trust placed in him by Duke Wei Xuantong, which he dared not forget."

"I am at a loss for words as we part. I have heard that you wish to release the Wei family in Lingnan. Lord Wei will surely be smiling in his grave."

"Ying bows again."

This ending is truly baffling...

Lu Jun frowned, feeling that the few words spoken were inexplicable and incoherent.

Li Ying is clearly a member of the imperial clan, yet she claims that her efforts to win me over are "not for personal gain," which is rather shameless.

Later, he admitted that it was "for the sake of the clan and the state," and then he said "the important trust of Duke Wei Xuantong." What does this mean?

Wei Xuan entrusted him with the task of helping him study and pass the imperial examinations. He didn't say that Wei Xuan had to risk his life for him, did he?

If it's truly to buy one's own life, then it's not a great favor, so what's the point of talking about "smiling in the afterlife"?

Is this prince cerebral palsy?

Or is the handwriting imitated?

Whether it's real or fake, it's just an apology letter... Lu Jun decisively lit the candle and burned the letter.

The most important issue at hand is the Yongzhou problem. We should avoid the troublesome capital and wait for an opportunity to counterattack Zhou Xing.

As for the organization, I wish them good luck.

The following day at court, the eunuch publicly read out the imperial edict, announcing Lu Jun's new appointment:

"Imperial Edict: Lu Jun, the Attendant Gentleman and Acting Left Remonstrator, has long been known for his competence and thoroughness. He has recently been selected for a position and his suggestions have been widely praised. He is hereby appointed as a Supervising Censor to oversee the area within the Great Wall, specifically in charge of searching for fugitives and correcting records. All other duties remain unchanged."

He was originally a low-ranking official of the eighth rank, and being appointed as a censor was not considered a promotion, but the whole court was in an uproar.

Although the Imperial Censor was a close advisor to the emperor, he could only offer suggestions. However, the Censorate held real power and was a well-known and important position.

Many officials held this crucial position with only the rank of sixth or seventh grade.

The reason is that practical experience is required.

Lu Jun was appointed as an imperial censor less than two months after his official appointment, which is hard to accept.

After the uproar subsided, many ministers, with the Empress Dowager present, dared not speak out, but secretly cast disdainful and resentful glances at her.

After the court session ended, groups of three or five people followed closely behind Lu Jun, discussing loudly:

"Having just passed the imperial examination and achieved nothing, all he did was brew some tea, submit an article, and he's already a censor?"

"You don't understand. You submitted your article under your own name, while they jointly signed it with the Empress Dowager. That's called being pragmatic!"

"Wouldn't it be better to offer a piece of jade instead?"

"How do you know they haven't offered it to you privately?"

"It's good for private use, after all, youthful romance is a thing..."

Lu Jun had heard Li Qiao and Shen Quanqi say that many ministers actually wanted to serve the Empress Dowager, in the physical sense.

For example, Song Zhiwen once wrote a poem for the Empress Dowager, implying that he could serve her.

Fireflies flit about on the loom, while a lone goose flies by the Magpie Bridge.

The Minghe River is visible but unreachable; I wish I could ride a raft to inquire about its course.

She even took the stone from the Weaver Girl's loom and went to visit the fortune teller in Chengdu.

……

He was known as the fortune-telling young master.

He was tall and handsome, with excellent physical attributes. In order to get closer to the Empress Dowager, he brushed his teeth dozens of times a day at the art school and even put chicken tongue in his mouth to cover up his bad breath.

Unfortunately, the Empress Dowager didn't like him and made it clear to others that she disliked his bad breath.

Those who gossiped about Lu Jun's "youthful charm" were subtly mocking him for relying on male beauty, but their words were full of sour grapes.

Lu Jun ignored him and headed straight for the East City.

First, go to the local official's office to check the household registration in Yongzhou.

Upon arriving at Wenchangtai, a group of people, dressed in scarlet, green, and cyan official robes, suddenly appeared and surrounded Lu Jun.

"Lu Chuyu, did you offer slanderous advice to plunder the people of Yongzhou so you could wear a green robe?"

"If people weren't desperate, who would abandon their land and become fugitives? Do you want to make their situation even worse?"

"Which scholar-official family doesn't have a few tenant farmers? Everyone turns a blind eye, so why are you pretending to be a loyal minister?"

"You're an official responsible for remonstrating with the emperor, and instead of thinking about alleviating the burden on the people and reducing the number of people fleeing the country, you're making everyone suffer?"

"Don't blame me for not warning you, if you forcibly kidnap someone, be careful you don't get attacked by the mob!"

"..."

They all spoke at once, shouting with righteous indignation.

Originally there were only seven or eight people, but more and more people gathered, and in a short while there were thirty or forty people, forming several circles.

Someone rolled up his sleeves, his beard trembling as he spoke, and in his excitement, he reached out and grabbed Lu Jun.

Thump, thump, thump—

At this moment, a group of people rushed from the direction of Taichu Palace. Under the sunlight, their bright armor gleamed coldly, and their breastplates were dazzlingly bright.

Footsteps arrived first, followed by the rustling of armor plates and the clanging of blades against each other, like a sudden downpour.

The guards all had swords at their waists, long spears in their hands on either side, the shafts pointing upwards, their cold gleams shimmering, and crossbows in their middle hands, the arrows pointing downwards, the bowstrings not yet drawn.

The leading general was over six feet tall, with a robust build, and around forty years old. He strode forward, pushing through the crowd.

"The Imperial Guards are here, ordered to protect Imperial Censor Lu!"

"All unauthorized personnel, step back!"