On the fourteenth day of the second month, Li Xian made Consort Wei shi the Empress.
The officials had no objections to this. Consort Wei had always been Li Xian's zhengfei. When Li Xian had been the Emperor, she had been the Empress. It was natural for her to be the Empress again. Also, she had accompanied Li Xian in guarding Fangzhou for sixteen years. No one could compete with her for the position of Empress.
Li Xian also posthumously conferred upon Empress Wei's father, Wei Xuanzhen, the title of Shangluo Wang, and his mother, Cui shi, the title of Wang Fei. The Empress' deceased father and mother were posthumously conferred the titles of Wang and Wang Fei. While it was a bit higher, they were already dead. Who would argue with the dead? So this matter was passed smoothly.
But on the fifteenth day of the second month, during morning court, Empress Wei shi suddenly appeared in the golden hall and shocked all the officials.
Li Xian ascended to sit in the hall. Empress Wei shi entered the hall with him. Seeing this, the officials couldn't help but look at each other, not understanding why the Empress had suddenly come to the golden hall. They were puzzled, but etiquette could not be ignored. According to the rules, they first bowed to the Emperor and Empress, thinking that the Son of Heaven would have an explanation for this.
Unexpectedly, after the officials greeted each other, two internal attendants carried a couch over and placed it on the left side of the Emperor's throne. Then they pulled up a thin curtain in front of it. Seeing this, the entire hall was in an uproar. With this posture, who wouldn't understand the Emperor's intentions? Was the Empress going to preside over the government?
Some of the older officials in the hall were not unfamiliar with this scene. In his later years, Gaozong Li Zhi had suffered from a head disease and his eyes had problems. Hadn't Empress Wu Zetian preside over the government at that time? What was happening now? Did Empress Wei want to repeat the story of Ze Tian and have two saints come to court?
Right now, the leader of the hundred officials was Zhang Jianzhi. In terms of prestige, status, and power, no one could compare to him. In this kind of situation, it was natural that he had to speak. Zhang Jianzhi came out with his jade tablet. He first looked coldly at Empress Wei.
Empress Wei sat behind the curtain, her figure faintly discernible. He could see Empress Wei's movements, but he could not see her facial features. Because Empress Wei was very close to the curtain, she could clearly see the expressions of the officials from behind. Zhang Jianzhi's wary and disdainful glance made Empress Wei's back straighten, her hands unconsciously gripping the back of the chair.
Zhang Jianzhi cupped his hands towards Li Xian and asked in a deep voice: "Your Majesty, what matter has the Empress come to court today for?"
Li Xian expressionlessly replied, "We have just ascended to the throne and are busy with state affairs. Our energy is somewhat lacking. Thus, we invite the Empress to attend court and discuss state affairs with us."
Zhang Jianzhi raised his white eyebrows and said loudly, "Your Majesty, the affairs of the state are busy, and there are officials who will share Your Majesty's worries. The Empress attending the court is against the system!"
Li Xian's face remained expressionless, appearing very wooden. His words, however, were gentle yet firm. "Minister Zhang's words are incorrect. Could it be that you have forgotten the story of the Second Sage Emperor's reign?"
Zhang Jianzhi immediately took a step forward and said in a clear voice, "I haven't forgotten! Could it be that Your Majesty has forgotten the story of how the Divine Mother Empress Dowager became the Great Sage Emperor? "
Li Xian calmly said, "We naturally haven't forgotten. However, that was only an expedient measure taken during a time of crisis. Hasn't the Great Sage Emperor Zetian passed the throne back to us now? "
Zhang Jianzhi was instantly stunned. Li Xian's eyelids drooped, and then slowly rose again. He stared coldly at Zhang Jianzhi and said, "What? Could it be that Minister Zhang disagrees with this?"
Zhang Jianzhi opened his mouth, but was momentarily speechless.
Li Xian had a hidden meaning that he didn't say: even if there hadn't been a coup d 'état by the Dragon God, Wu Zetian would still have passed the throne to him. This was something that had already been decided. The only difference was that he still had to wait, wait until Wu Zetian died of old age. Moreover, during this process, the Second Sage Emperor wouldn't cause any trouble.
Of course, Zhang Jianzhi could emphasize that Wu Zetian's ascension to the throne was definitely not an expedient measure. It was basically a usurpation of the empire. However, when she grew old, she discovered that she lacked a successor, so she had no choice but to pass the throne to her son. Moreover, according to the empress's original plan, she wanted him to be the Emperor of the Great Zhou Dynasty, and not the Emperor of the Tang dynasty.
However, he just couldn't say this, because in order to prevent Li Xian from being accused of being unfilial and heartless for forcing his mother to usurp the throne, they announced to the public that Empress Zetian had voluntarily abdicated the throne. Although in reality, she had been forced by military remonstrance, how could these things be brought up in public?
Moreover, in order to persuade the Wu Clan to participate in the coup, this was also an important condition that they had promised the Wu Clan. If they went back on their word now, wouldn't that make the already dissatisfied Wu Clan even more furious? The Wu Clan still held great power, and it wouldn't be good to rashly provoke them.
It wasn't that Li Xian had a well-thought-out plan today, and he sincerely wanted to wrestle with this group of meritorious ministers who wielded power. The reason why he was so calm was completely because after ascending to the throne, he had been criticized and ordered around by these arrogant ministers who relied on their achievements and treated him like a marionette. He was venting his anger, but when he saw that Zhang Jianzhi was speechless, he felt great satisfaction in his heart, and his courage grew a bit.
He laughed, and his voice rose a bit. "Since we ascended to the throne, there have been frequent discussions among the people. There are many different opinions, and the people are uneasy. We intend to announce to the world why Emperor Zetian had painstakingly claimed the throne, as well as how We received the abdication of the Abdication Kingdom. Today, I will tell everyone to know. "
In the beginning, Zhang Jianzhi had only agreed to announce to the public that the empress had abdicated the throne for the sake of a smooth transition of power. Now, he was trapped in his own trap, and he couldn't refute it. He could only be so angry that his old face turned red. He didn't understand why the Emperor was so bold today. Could it be that after being the Emperor for a few days, he had found the feeling of supremacy?
Zhang Jianzhi wanted to oppose him, but he also had misgivings. It was one thing to directly admonish the Emperor in private, but now, under the eyes of the public, if he was disrespectful to the Emperor, how would the bystanders view him? Right now, he was the most meritorious minister of the present court, and also the most loyal minister of the present court. Some people were already comparing him to the Duke of Zhou. How could his clean reputation be affected by this?
Seeing Zhang Jianzhi hesitate, Huan Yanfan immediately stepped out of the crowd and said harshly, "Your Majesty! A woman usurping power is harmful and not beneficial! This subject requests that the Empress stay in the Middle Palace and not interfere with outside matters. "
Even though it was common to describe women wielding power as a woman usurping power since ancient times, Empress Wei herself was present in the hall. Huan Yanfan's words were a bit too rude.
However, Huan Yanfan himself did not feel that there was anything wrong. He had personally seen Li Xian's cowardice and incompetence. Also, this Emperor had not led them in a coup, but they had initiated a coup to deliver the throne into Li Xian's hands. Therefore, he did not have the proper reverence for Li Xian as an Emperor, much less the reverence he had for the Empress.
On the other hand, he had gone from being a Disciplinary Vice-Minister to becoming a Duke and Prime Minister in one step. In one day, he had the power to overturn the court. He lacked the tempering of a heart that came from following the normal path of promotion, and he did not have the calmness of careful self-examination. Suddenly climbing to a height that he had never dared to think of before, he had somewhat forgotten himself.
Empress Wei's face was ashen. Her fists were tightly clenched, her nails digging into her palms. However, she still did not say a word. She did not act like Wu Zetian and charge out of the curtain to point at the remonstrating minister and roar at the Emperor, "Why don't you kill this person!"
The ruler and the minister were in a deadlock. Seeing this, the members of the group of meritorious ministers immediately chimed in. They all bowed to Li Xian and said, "A woman usurping power is harmful and not beneficial! Empress, please stay in the palace and do not interfere with external affairs! "
Cui Xuanhui had once been a subordinate official of the Eastern Palace. Seeing this situation, for a moment, he did not know what to do. This was a matter of position, but after a moment of hesitation, he still walked out and silently stood with the crowd. Li Xian couldn't help but panic at this sight. His palms were covered in sweat as he awkwardly twisted his body. His throat felt like there was a small bug crawling about. He wanted to say something, but he didn't know what to say.
Empress Wei saw this and lightly coughed. Li Xian heard this and suddenly remembered what his wife had said to him before the court session. "Husband, today, qie and husband will attend the court session together. The hundred officials will definitely object. No matter what, Husband must keep his composure. If you concede this time, they will definitely take an inch and want a foot. You, the Emperor, will henceforth become a puppet in their hands, completely at their mercy. "
Li Xian swallowed with difficulty and looked at the officials who had stepped out. He realized that the officials of the Prince of Xiang's faction were whispering to each other and exchanging meaningful glances. The members of the Taiping Faction were expressionless and did not move, while the members of the Wu Clan's faction were all sneering as if they were watching a play. He couldn't help but feel reassured.
"My wife is right. Zhang Jianzhi and the others are trying to seize credit and power, their arrogance stinking. Right now, it is not just me, the Emperor, who is dissatisfied with them."
He turned to look at Yang Fan, who for the moment, he could not determine which faction he belonged to. He saw him standing in the middle of the formation, his hand holding a ceremonial tablet, thoughtfully looking at those ministers who were trying to force the Emperor to abdicate. Li Xian felt even more relieved. "We ordered him to increase the number of cavalry to ten thousand. This favor of winning him over has been effective."
Li Xian's courage grew. He suddenly slapped the imperial table and stood up. He sternly shouted, "What, are you trying to force the Emperor to abdicate?"
Zhang Jianzhi, Huan Yanfan, and the others hurriedly bowed their heads and said, "Your subjects do not dare!"
Li Xian loudly said, "When We were trapped in Fangzhou, only the Empress shared weal and woe with us. If not for the Empress's support, We might not have been able to live until today. Back then, We swore to the heavens that once we saw the light of day, We would not be in conflict with the Empress. Do you want us to go back on our word? "
The Emperor had already spoken to this extent and the officials of the other factions were all calmly sitting on the fishing platform. Cui Xuanhui felt that it was unwise to make things too awkward with the Emperor, so he stepped forward to smooth things over. Zhang Jianzhi saw that Empress Wei had been sitting silently behind the curtain the entire time and felt that she might not be as tyrannical as the Empress of Zetian, so he took a step back and finally resolved the conflict.
After the court was dismissed, because Yang Fan was a general of the Imperial Guards in the Palace, he did not need to leave the Palace with them. So Yang Fan only took a detour. Once he crossed the Golden Water Bridge, he turned left and went from the walls of the Palace to the rear garden of the Palace. Very quickly, he arrived at the Palace where Shanghai Wan 'er worked.
Yang Fan looked around. Seeing that no one was paying attention, he was about to flash toward Wan 'er's residence when he suddenly saw a person come out of a nearby Palace room. Behind him was a servant who carried a chest in his arms. When Yang Fan saw this person, he immediately stopped, a surprised expression on his face. He had not thought that he would meet this person again in the Palace.
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