Princess Taiping turned around the screen, her tears streaming down her cheeks. She stubbornly raised her chin, letting the tears crawl down her cheeks, one by one they fell on her lapel. It was not until Yang Fan's heavy footsteps slowly faded away that Princess Taiping suddenly collapsed to the ground, as if someone had pulled out all of her bones, she burst into tears.
A pair of snow-white socks silently approached and stopped not far from her. Then, a corner of a blue robe was raised and a person slowly kneeled down.
Princess Taiping raised her head, her teary eyes gazing over. She saw Great Teacher Mo calmly gazing at her, his eyes suffused with the pity and helplessness of an experienced person who could see through the affairs of the world and human nature.
Taiping slowly straightened her body and wiped the tears from the corners of her eyes. She whispered, "Erlang's actions are just as Teacher said. He has a plan."
Great Teacher Mo lightly creased his grizzled brows and stroked his beard. After a few moments of thought, he said, "Your Highness once tested your esteemed brother, the Prince of Xiang. If the Prince of Xiang truly had no interest in the imperial throne and had never pretended before Your Highness …"
Taiping cut him off. "He wouldn't pretend! The current emperor has lived in seclusion in Fangzhou for sixteen years and his personality is vastly different from when he was young. I truly misjudged him. But I would not misjudge the Prince of Xiang. The Prince of Xiang and I have lived in Luoyang for several decades and relied on each other for survival. I understand him.
He has been emperor, and he has also been Crown Prince. In these last few years, he has seen his mother not act like a mother, his son not act like a son, his family killing each other, his blood enemies. The Prince of Xiang is benevolent and has long since hated this. He truly has no interest in the imperial throne! "
Great Teacher Mo smiled. "Then this is very interesting. The Son of Heaven is tyrannical. Since General Yang wants to cut down tyrannical and establish Dao, and the Prince of Xiang is not willing to rebel against his brother, who does General Yang want to work with? "
Taiping slowly calmed down. She pondered what Yang Fan had just said and suddenly understood. "I understand. He must have reached an agreement with the Prince of Xiang's five sons. Once the matter is settled, the Prince of Xiang will have no choice but to ascend the throne!"
Princess Taiping hesitated, then suddenly said, "Great Teacher Mo, if Erlang succeeds, I don't seem to need to …"
Mister Mo's eyes suddenly became sharp, like two sharp knives. Princess Taiping was frightened by the sharpness of his eyes, and her heart was shaken.
However, Mo Yuhan immediately realized that he had lost his composure. He hastily retracted his expression and regained his elegant and gentlemanly demeanor. He lightly said, "Your Highness, you must never say such words again. You must never have such thoughts again!"
Mo Yuhan looked at Princess Taiping and said sincerely, "Your Highness, think about it, how many people have entrusted their lives to you? Some things, once started, could they be stopped? There was no turning back. How could the Princess be half-hearted and hesitant?
Even if you don't think about others, you should think about your children. If you give up now and the secret is leaked, you can only wait for death. At that time, your children will also suffer! "
Princess Taiping was somewhat perplexed. In these past years, she had first fought with her strong and shrewd mother and worked hard to preserve the seeds of Li Tang. Then she fought with her muddle-headed and cold-blooded brother. In order to ensure the survival of herself and the Prince of Xiang, she had long ago put in a lot of effort.
Great Teacher Mo said in a low voice, "Since a decision has been made, it must be continued. Besides, even if the Prince of Xiang ascends to the throne, perhaps he is not as cold and indifferent as the Emperor today, but can he become a promising Son of Heaven just by being kind?
Their talents and virtues are far inferior to Princess. You have done so much for the Tang dynasty, even your lifelong happiness, but what have you obtained? Since others can't do it well and don't want to do it, then Princess, you should not pass on this responsibility! "
The more Great Teacher Mo spoke, the more excited he became. His clear face flushed red. "Your father is the Emperor, and your mother is also the Emperor! Why can't you be the Emperor? You are also the descendant of the Emperor!
Your Highness, if you become the Emperor, what in the world can make things difficult for you? Even if you want to stay with General Yang for a long time, you only need to issue an imperial decree to take him as your empress. Who would dare to say anything? You are the Emperor, you make the rules! You make it right, it's right! "
Hearing Great Teacher Mo's bewitching voice, Princess Taiping's weak expression gradually became firm …
… …
Lu Binzhi looked at the two lists Ding Yue had produced and lightly arched his brow. "What does Princess Taiping want with these things? These are all forbidden items, haha … it seems that Princess Taiping has some plans. "
Ding Yue had already sent someone to serve Princess Taiping as a Hu merchant of the Western Regions, gaining Taiping's trust. These lists were the items that Great Teacher Mo wanted this Hu merchant of the Western Regions to purchase for him and the items that he urgently needed to turn into cash.
The items that Great Teacher Mo wanted to purchase were materials that could be used to make bows, arrows, sabers, swords, armor, and other weapons, while the items that could be turned into cash were large quantities of jewels, paintings, and even fields and manors. Lu Binzhi saw these two lists and could easily guess that Princess Taiping was plotting something.
Lu Binzhi tossed the two lists onto the table and smiled. "The Emperor's throne is truly something that makes one drool. It seems that the Prince of Xiang's dislike of the throne was just an act. He just doesn't dare to trust us.
Princess Taiping's actions must have been inspired by the Prince of Xiang. Haha, I really did think that he was a turtle that could endure. Someone's saber is already at his neck, but he's still not willing to counterattack. I didn't think that he would be so cautious. "
Ding Yue frowned. "Young Master, should we help them buy these things? Ma Qinke and Yang Jun have already become Empress Wei's guests, so we don't seem to need to use any more chips on the Prince of Xiang's side, do we? "
Lu Binzhi glared at him and rebuked, "Short-sighted! Just look at Xue Huaiyi and Er Zhang. They've always been ostentatious. Their status as gigolos means that no one will wholeheartedly submit to them. If there's a storm, they'll immediately fall.
Ma Qinke and Yang Jun have become Empress Wei's guests, so they can only provide us with some important intelligence on the Wei Faction. Look at the people in charge of the Wei Faction right now; it's very difficult for Ma Qinke and Yang Jun to get a share of the pie.
Besides, the Emperor is still alive. Empress Wei dares to keep gigolos, but she doesn't dare to publicly promote her gigolos to an official. At most, she'll reward them with some gold and silver. What use are these things to me?
If we want to interfere with the Imperial Court, we can only place our bets on the Prince of Xiang's side. As the saying goes, adding flowers to a brocade is not as good as sending charcoal in snowy weather. If the Prince of Xiang succeeds, our people will be able to be of the greatest use. "
Lu Binzhi stood up and slowly paced a few steps before instructing, "Help them get everything they need done. Also, recommend some talented people to them, be they skilled in literature or martial arts. Pick the most talented people for them!
Once they succeed, we will have done the service of ascending the dragon and can be worshipped as generals and conferred marquises. In time, they will become pillars of the Imperial Court. At that time, the world will be under my control. If we fail … we will just lose some money and manpower. "
Ding Yue worriedly said, "This subordinate is worried that, given the sensitive ears of the Obvious and Hidden Sects, they will smell something unusual. At that time, they will assuredly become our great enemies."
Lu Binzhi waved his hand. "There's no need to worry about them. This young master just received a secret report that Guo Yuanzhen was framed by Zong Chuke and was on the verge of being imprisoned. He sent his son to the capital because Yang Fan helped him greatly.
Yang Fan's actions were clearly to show his favor to Guo Yuanzhen. Guo Yuanzhen is the Anxi Protector-General, and Shen Mu's foundation is in the Western Regions. For Yang Fan to be willing to offend the Wei Faction in order to rope in Guo Yuanzhen, what do you think he's up to? Haha, the duel between the Obvious and Hidden Sects … is approaching. "
The more Lu Binzhi spoke, the happier he became. "The Obvious and Hidden Sects are about to meet on the battlefield. And in the Imperial Court, the Prince of Xiang and Taiping have reached the end of their patience. A fierce struggle between dragons and tigers is about to take place! It's too wonderful. When the Obvious and Hidden Sects both suffer heavy losses, it will be time for us to step forward and take over the Hall of Succession.
As for the Imperial Court, if the Prince of Xiang's faction gains complete victory, we will henceforth take control of the Imperial Court. If the Prince of Xiang loses, we won't suffer too many losses. When the time comes, the Obvious and Hidden Sects will be in our hands, and we can slowly plan. "
"Hahahaha …"
Lu Binzhi held his hands behind his back and laughed. "I like this feeling of having everything under my control! I like this feeling of controlling everything from behind the curtains! "
… …
Yang Fan finally understood why Princess Taiping's personality had undergone such a massive change.
He had originally believed that Taiping was middle-aged and had a temperamental temperament, that this sort of woman was not rare. Only now did he understand what Taiping was afraid of, what she grieved about. Even more lamentable was that he could not use a single forceful word to comfort her. Yang Fan couldn't help but feel a deep sorrow.
Taiping was right. He was also keenly aware that the pleasure of the bed alone could not sustain a relationship. He and Taiping naturally did not have a carnal relationship, but any sort of relationship required a heavy foundation to continue, whether it was a family or a child.
But what was there between them?
He had his family and his children, and Taiping also had her family and her children. They each had their own lives, and no one could enter the other's family world.
Taiping was not a qualified wife, because this marriage came from Wu Zetian's coercion. This husband and wife, who shared the same bed but dreamed of different dreams, did not need to fulfill the duties of a husband and wife. But in front of her children, she was still a mother.
As one grew older, the passion between a man and a woman would gradually fade. No matter if it was a man or a woman, the focus of his life would inevitably turn to his family and children, and this was precisely where they could not have any interaction.
Yang Fan reined in his horse and looked toward the palace. Inside the palace, there was Wan 'er. This was the difference between Wan 'er and Taiping. Wan 'er was imprisoned in a visible palace, while Taiping was trapped in an invisible palace made of human relationships and emotions.
The city that trapped Wan 'er, he could use his knife to cut it open and rescue her. The city that trapped Taiping, what could he use to break it? He was also a human. Born as a human, he had to follow some basic rules of the human world. That heart city was not something he could break.
Yang Fan stood in a daze on the long street. After a long time, he could only sigh.
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