Zhou Xing stood on the stone steps of the mountain gate, motionless. Even the frown on his face did not change for a long time. If it was not for the spring breeze gently brushing against his robe and his beard, he would have looked like a statue standing there.
After a long time, he shook his head and said in a low voice: "I have thought about it and still feel that the possibility of the Empress passing the throne to the Li descendants is the smallest! Although they are the Empress' children, if the throne is passed to them, they will definitely restore the title of Li Tang. Then what is the point of the Empress becoming the Empress? She can just continue being the Empress! "
Qiu Shenji nodded solemnly and said: "Yes, that's what I meant. That is why we chose Taiping. Speaking of which, if Taiping is willing to fight, I feel that she has the highest chance of becoming the Crown Prince. "
Zhou Xing said: "Yes! If there was anyone in this world that the Heavenly Queen truly loved and cared about, it was Taiping. Although her surname is also Li, if she wants to inherit the world, only a new dynasty can do so. Once the title of Li Tang is restored, she will no longer be the Empress and will have to return to the Imperial Clan of Li Tang. So, Taiping is the best candidate. "
Qiu Shenji's eyes moved and he suddenly said with interest: "The Empress kills her own sons if she wants to, but she only favors Taiping. The rumors say that it was because the Empress strangled her infant daughter to death to frame Empress Wang for the Empress position. The Empress is a woman after all, and she killed her own daughter. The Empress only favors Taiping because she wants to make up for her guilt towards the little princess? "
Zhou Xing smiled faintly and said: "There is a reason for this. A little princess who died a few months ago does not need to be treated with great courtesy. But after the Empress came to power, she gave this little princess a title and moved her to a grand burial. This is more grand than all the princesses of the Tang dynasty. Perhaps this rumor is true. However, there is no need to investigate it. The important thing is that the Empress favors Taiping. Otherwise, there would not be so many rumors. Unfortunately, everyone has their own ambitions … "
Qiu Shenji said: "Taiping has no intention of becoming the Empress. Then the Wu Clan's descendants are the most likely?"
Zhou Xing shook his head: "This is why I cannot make up my mind. The Empress and the Wu Clan do not have a good relationship. More accurately, it is extremely bad. After the Empress took power, the Wu Clan was the first to be punished. Think about it, what happened to the Empress' two half-brothers, Wu Yuanshuang and Wu Yuanqing, and her three cousins, Wu Huailiang, Wu Weiliang, and Wu Huaiyun? "
Qiu Shenji thought for a moment, then said: "Wu Yuanshuang and Wu Yuanqing died in exile, it is said that they died of depression because they were too worried. Of the Heavenly Empress' three cousins, Wu Huailiang died a long time ago, Wu Weiliang and Wu Huaiyun were executed by the Heavenly Empress, their children all changed their surnames to Viper, exiled to Desolate Border! "
Zhou Xing replied with a "heh", "That's right! Even their surnames had been changed to Wei, the Wei from Viper! Even the Empress' cousin, Wu Huailiang, who died a long time ago, was not spared. The Empress sent his wife, Lady Shan, to the capital and personally whipped her with thorns. Lady Shan's back was smashed until bones were exposed. She wailed as she died. This isn't just discord with the family. What kind of hatred does one have to do such a thing? "
Qiu Shenji's eyes flickered: "The Empress announced that they were disrespectful to the Empress' birth mother, Lady Yang. Haha, I don't really believe this reason. Lady Yang was already forty when she married the Empress' father. At that time, the Empress' father was conferred the title of Duke Ying. He was one of the sixteen founding fathers of the Tang dynasty and one of the eight prime ministers. He controlled the Imperial Army and had great power. What kind of woman couldn't he marry?
Madam Yang was over forty years old, but she was still able to marry the second wife of High Duke Ying only because she was from the Yang family of Hongnong, a prestigious and influential family. With such a background and being the wife of Duke Ying, how could her two stepsons dare to disrespect her? Not to mention that Wu Huailiang and the other two are from the Wu branch. They can't be disrespectful to the Duke's wife. "
Zhou Xing said, "That's right. Because of this' rudeness', the Empress took it to heart and entered the palace at the age of fourteen. Forty years later, when she was in power, she couldn't wait to execute her brothers and exile the entire Wu clan? I'm afraid this vengeance is not as simple as it seems. It might not even be on Lady Yang. "
Qiu Shenji said: "The Empress entered the palace at fourteen. I heard that she was still a young girl before she entered the palace. Is that how her beauty spread?"
The two of them looked at each other as if they had suddenly thought of something, but neither of them were willing to say it out loud. Their gazes met and they quickly looked away. Zhou Xing changed the topic and said, "The Empress placed the Wu clansmen in an important position. It was only after she had the idea of becoming the Emperor that she changed their surname from Wei back to Wu and transferred them back to the capital to give them important positions. That's why I'm not sure if the Empress still needs them after she becomes the Empress. "
Qiu Shenji thought about it and said: "In my opinion, the Empress has no other choice. If she chose a descendant of the Li Clan, why would she spend so much effort to become the Empress? Once the Empress becomes the Empress, she has to consider how to pass down her empire. Since the Empress can give up her vengeance and use the Wu Clan to become the Empress, then … to pass down her empire, she can only choose a descendant from the Wu Clan! "
Zhou Xing paced back and forth on the stairs with his hands behind his back. He looked up and asked: "Then, in your opinion, if the Empress can only choose one descendant from the Wu Clan, who is the most likely?"
Qiu Shenji said decisively: "Wu Chengsi!"
Zhou Xing said: "What's the reason?"
Qiu Shenji said: "Among the Wu Clan's descendants, the most promising are Wu Chengsi and Wu Sansi. In terms of ancestry, Wu Chengsi inherited the ancestral title of Duke of Zhou and the legacy of Empress Wu's biological father. So, he is the eldest, while Wu Sansi is the junior. In terms of bloodline, Wu Chengsi is of Wu Yuanshuang's bloodline, Wu Sansi is of Wu Yuanqing's bloodline. Yuanshuang is the elder brother, so he's the eldest branch. Yuanqing is the younger brother, so he's the second branch. According to this order, Wu Chengsi has the highest chance of becoming the Empress. What does Brother Zhou think? "
Zhou Xing started pacing again. After pacing for a while, he stopped and turned back to Qiu Shenji: "The Empress will be staying at Fragrant Hill Temple. The Empress' relatives and civil and military officials will be staying at other temples and temporarily requisitioned residences of the officials. Wu Chengsi's residence is at Fengxuan Temple! "
Qiu Shenji smiled: "Good! When he arrives, I'll pay him a visit. I hope this time, I won't come back empty-handed again! "
Zhou Xing laughed and said with certainty: "That won't happen! Wu Chengsi is not Taiping! "
…
Wu Zetian's guards of honor arrived at Dragon's Gate. The civil and military officials who had arrived earlier to prepare went to the front of the mountain to welcome the Empress. Only then did they disperse and settle down separately. Qiu Shenji rearranged and inspected the patrolling matters. When he returned to Fragrant Hill Temple, he reported to Empress Wu. When he saw the Empress looking tired, he quickly got up and bade farewell.
Qiu Shenji left Fragrant Hill Temple and went straight to Fengxian Temple. When the people in Wu Chengsi's residence saw that it was the Great General of the Jin Wu Guards visiting, they did not dare to slight him. They quickly invited him into a quiet and clean meditation room and served him a cup of cheese made from goat's milk.
Qiu Shenji sat down and drank a mouthful of cheese. He asked: "I took the liberty to visit without an appointment. I wonder if the Minister of Wu is here?"
Wu Chengsi was now the Minister of Rites, one of the lower three ranks of the Hall of Governmental Affairs. He was one of the Prime Ministers, which was why Qiu Shenji addressed him as such. The people in the Wu House answered: "Unfortunately, the Empress is visiting Dragon's Gate. There are many Wu clansmen accompanying her. Because the clansmen rarely see each other, Ah Lang and Minister Xia, Lord Sansi, have gone to visit the Wu clansmen."
Qiu Shenji replied with an "oh". He was slightly disappointed. Then he asked: "How long has the Minister of Wu been away?"
The people in the Wu House answered: "About three hours."
Qiu Shenji thought for a while and said: "If that's the case, the Minister of Wu should be back by now. I will sit here for a while and wait for the Minister."
The people in the Wu House answered: "Yes, Great General, please sit. When Ah Lang is back, I will immediately report to you."
At this moment, in the valley behind Fengxian Temple, pine and cypress trees stood tall and a cool breeze blew gently. Dozens of bamboo mats were laid out in the forest. There were a few tables on the mats. On the tables, there were buttermilk, rice wine, fruits, pastries, and all kinds of food. The Wu clansmen in the capital were all gathered here. They were all dressed in embroidered robes and jade belts.
With so many people gathered here, it was as if they were on a spring outing. However, the scene was abnormally quiet. There was no noise at all. The ones sitting in the middle were, of course, Wu Chengsi and Wu Sansi. These two were obviously the core members of the Wu Clan.
Wu Chengsi said: "Everyone, I have already made it very clear to Sansi just now. Our Wu Clan's wealth and glory are all tied to the Empress. Now, the matter of the Empress replacing Li Tang is imminent. At this time, our Wu Clan must work together and do our best to help the Empress ascend the throne as soon as possible. "
Wu Sansi said loudly: "Once the Empress ascends the throne, our Wu Clan will be the royal clan! We will be incomparably noble and worry-free! Therefore, everyone in our Wu Clan must do their best. Whoever is half-hearted will be the common enemy of our entire clan. We will unite and annihilate them! The Empress is still unwilling to ascend the throne because there are still people loyal to Li Tang in the imperial court. Some have troops, some have power, so the Empress has no choice but to be wary. What we need to do now is to kill all the members of Li Tang's imperial clan and the ministers loyal to Li Tang. We need to eliminate all obstacles for the Empress! "
Wu Chengsi nodded: "Sansi is right! Now, Prince Ze Li Shangjin, Prince Xun Li Sujie, Prince Nan 'an Li Ying and other members of Li Tang's imperial clan are still here. We need to get rid of these people as soon as possible. Then, we need to get rid of the ministers in the imperial court who are not willing to submit to our Wu Clan! "
Wu Sansi saw that he was arrogant and always put on the airs of the Wu Clan's patriarch in front of his clansmen and himself. He was very displeased and coldly snorted: "Don't forget! There are still Li Xian's two sons! They must not be allowed to live! "
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