Today, the sky was gloomy. It had been gloomy since the morning. You couldn't see any dark clouds, but they had already covered the entire sky. The sky was dark, but there was no rain.
Every now and then, a gust of wind would blow. It was damp, heavy, and annoying. The swallows would either skim across the ground or quickly fly into the sky. It looked like a heavy rain was inevitable, but no one knew when it would come.
The Empress's expression was gloomy. If the gloomy sky was said to make people feel vexed, then the gloomy sky of the Empress would make people feel fearful. Everyone in the Hall of Martial Accomplishment was very careful, afraid to offend the Emperor. Wan'er, who was always cautious, was no exception. She was even more careful than usual.
Wu Zetian was in a bad mood. One official after another was imprisoned. One official after another, whom she thought was loyal to her, became a traitor. How could her mood be good?
She was not worried that without these officials, the imperial court would not be able to function. There were many people in the world waiting to become officials, and these officials in the yamen had been waiting for a long time. If no one made room for them, they might have to wait for a very, very long time. This storm was an excellent opportunity for them.
But for Wu Zetian, who could guarantee that the newly appointed officials would be loyal to her? She was very old. Even if she didn't want to admit it, she knew that she was too old.
Once upon a time, she used all her schemes and did not hesitate to get rid of so many important officials just to become the Empress of the Tang dynasty. Later, the officials that died by her hands were still uncountable. Countless royal family members and nobles became sacrifices for her to ascend to the throne. At that time, she wanted to become the Empress. But now?
Now, she had to consider the issue of the inheritance.
Wu Chengsi's entanglement and the Prime Ministers' counterattack had caused both sides to lose. But they had succeeded in one thing: the Empress had to face the matter of her death.
Once an emperor was planning for his death, he would mercilessly eliminate those who were loyal, had no problems, or just had too much power and might threaten the authority of his successor, not to mention those whose butts weren't clean at the moment. Wu Zetian didn't mind killing them all!
The problem was, she still hadn't decided who would inherit her empire!
If she chose her son in the end, then these officials who were inclined towards the Crown Prince would be useful, very useful! If she killed them all, her son would be useless, and the Wu Clan would take the opportunity to grow stronger. She was afraid that once she died, a thunderstorm would erupt in her territory.
But these officials were too impatient, they actually wanted to start a mutiny, forcing her to abdicate, forcing her to pass the throne to her son. If these people were not killed, her authority would be challenged, there would be more and more ambitious people, like weeds that could not be burned by a wildfire, one after another, they would appear.
However, if she killed all of them, she would no longer be able to choose her own successor. At that time, the court would only be left with the forces loyal to the Wu Clan's kings. When she grew old and no longer had the power to control the court, regardless of whether she was willing or not, she could only choose one of the Wu Clan's kings as her successor.
This was a problem that Wu Zetian, who liked to control her fate in her own hands forever, did not want to face.
Her mood was very contradictory and complicated. During the morning court, she found that so many familiar faces had disappeared, and those who took their positions were all ministers that she was not familiar with. She was in a very bad mood.
The Empress returned to the Martial Achievement Palace in a bad mood. Just as she sat down, Lai Junchen came to annoy her again.
Wu Zetian looked at the confession that Lai Junchen presented, and her hands couldn't help but tremble.
Shangguan Wan 'er, who was standing to the side of the imperial table, did not dare to peek at the confession in the Empress' hands. She could only guess in her heart, "Which minister is going to suffer this time? This was the third time the Empress had this kind of reaction. The first time, the Empress heard that three prime ministers had participated in the rebellion. The second time, the Empress heard that four ministers and vice ministers were accomplices of the rebellion. This time, the official's position will not be small … "
Thinking of this, Shangguan Wan 'er suddenly felt a kind of sorrow for Wu Zetian. "The Empress is really old. I remember when Xu Jingye raised his troops in Yangzhou, the Empress was talking and laughing. When the King of Langya, Li Chong, called for the Li Clan's kings to rebel, the Empress was still calm and collected. She has never had such a big reaction."
In these two years, the Empress had really aged too quickly. Her mental and physical strength could no longer cope with such a big change. Her mood seemed to be more temperamental than before.
"Yang Fan! What a good Yang Fan! We personally promoted him to be a minister, we gave him a beautiful wife, and this is how he repaid us! Very good, very good! "
Wu Zetian laughed angrily. When Shangguan Wan 'er heard the two words' Yang Fan 'from Wu Zetian's mouth, her expression suddenly changed. Her pretty face became as white as paper. Fortunately, Wu Zetian did not notice her. Lai Junchen was focused on watching Wu Zetian's expression.
"Everyone thinks that I won't live long! They are all busy looking for a way out! I promoted him to be a minister, and the traitor gave him a great general! I gave him a beautiful woman, and the traitor gave him sixteen shops! Generous! Much more generous than I am! "
Wu Zetian said angrily. Her two eyebrows gradually rose, and her murderous aura soared to the sky!
She really wanted to kill. It must be known that even if they were all on duty in the palace, different positions played different roles. There was more than one Chamberlain, and there were no less than dozens of Chamberlains in the palace. Each of them had their own responsibilities, and Fan Yunxian's role was limited.
Leading Commandant Zhu Bin's role was also limited. Although he had six hundred Big Horn Warriors under his command, they did not play much of a role other than the ceremonial review and daily sentry duty. At night, they had to camp in Jiacheng.
Not to mention that Zhu Bin might not be able to incite all six hundred Big Horn Warriors to rebel with him. Even if he could, if they wanted to break through the gate between Jiacheng and the palace, they would not be able to do so until dawn. The gate was also locked and guarded at night.
But Yang Fan was different. He was the Emperor's most trusted general of the garrison troops, guarding the most critical places. He was even qualified to carry his sword to the palace hall and meet the Emperor. He controlled one of the most critical forces that could decide the fate of the Emperor and the lifeline of the dynasty. If he participated in the rebellion, as long as he could incite dozens of people to rebel with him and open the palace gate unexpectedly, the Great Zhou Dynasty would collapse overnight!
Wu Zetian gritted her teeth and ordered, "Arrest him and immediately execute him! No! Death by a thousand cuts! "
"Everyone, don't!"
Wan 'er had been so shocked by Wu Zetian's words that her vision had darkened. Now that she had come back to her senses and suddenly heard such a decree, she didn't care about anything else and immediately spoke.
"Why not?"
Wu Zetian coldly glanced at her. Wan'er knew how to protect herself, and she never interfered in these kinds of matters. She had taken the liberty to speak up today, which was a very strange thing to do. However, in her anger, Wu Zetian had forgotten about it.
Wan 'er always planned before she acted. If she had something to say, she would have thought about how the Emperor would ask and carefully thought about what to say. This time, she spoke in a hurry and did not have time to think.
When the Emperor asked, she thought quickly and slowly answered, "Yang Fan … has always been loyal to everyone. He may not have rebellious thoughts …"
Before she finished, Wu Zetian interrupted her and said indifferently, "Not necessarily? Can something not necessarily be done accurately? The Yulin Guard is a treasured sword that I use to protect myself. It is also a dagger that cuts my throat. This weapon cannot be used by the hands of others. If there is even a hint of suspicion, it is enough! "
Wan 'er was scared witless. At this time, she only wanted to slow down and think of a good plan. She casually said, "Everyone, at least … we should ask how many accomplices this person has in the army. Killing him in a hurry is actually helping him!"
These words moved Wu Zetian. Wu Zetian thought about it and nodded. "Yes! The Yulin Guard is where my safety lies. There can be no mistakes. Lai Junchen, capture him and interrogate him. I want to know how many accomplices he has! "
At this point, Wu Zetian angrily slapped the imperial table and shouted, "Tell that idiot Wu Youyi to personally accompany you to capture him! Hmph! I gave him such an important task, and he can't even watch over his own people. He really gives me face! "
When Lai Junchen heard the Emperor's decree to execute Yang Fan, he was already overjoyed. He didn't think that Shanghai Wan 'er would suddenly interrupt and lose a thread of hope. He was annoyed. Now that he heard Wu Zetian's decree, he quickly agreed and hurriedly left Wucheng Hall.
Lai Junchen left Wucheng Hall and stood on the steps. He thought, "It seems that this Yang Fan really climbed up the high branch of Shangguan Waizhi. There is an eighty to ninety percent chance that he was recruited by Shangguan Waizhi. Unfortunately, this is a major case of rebellion. You can protect him for a while, but you can't protect him forever. This person is dead for sure!"
When Lai Junchen left Wucheng Hall, Wan 'er gently leaned against the imperial table. Her small hands under her sleeves tightly held onto the table. If she didn't do this, she would have fallen to the ground. Her heart was beating wildly, and her legs were trembling. She felt a chill in her heart. She had long sensed that there was something wrong with her langjun, but she didn't expect …
"Langjun really participated in the rebellion?"
"Wan 'er …"
Wu Zetian turned to Wan 'er and suddenly saw that Shanghai Wan' er's face was gray and her forehead was covered with a fine layer of sweat. She couldn't help but be startled and asked, "Wan 'er, what's wrong?"
"Ah! Everyone, Wan 'er … "
Shanghai Wan 'er wiped away the cold sweat on her forehead and forced a smile. She said, "I was frightened a few days ago, so I haven't slept much. Today's weather is hot and stuffy, so my chest feels stuffy."
"You … I am old, but you are still young. Your body can't take it anymore. Ah! Go and rest for a while. "
"Yes, Wan 'er will leave now!"
Shanghai Wan 'er moved her trembling legs and forced herself to walk out of Wucheng Hall. As soon as she left the hall, she took two quick steps and held onto a pillar. She took a few deep breaths and said, "Whether or not my langjun is an accomplice of the rebellion, I can't let him die. I can't!"
Inside the hall, Wu Zetian watched Shanghai Wan 'er's somewhat weak back disappear through the door. She gently shook her head and waved her hand to summon the chamberlain, Little Hai. She ordered, "Pass on my decree. Transfer the Right Guard into the palace. Therefore, the Yulin Guard and the Right Guard will jointly guard the vital areas. They will not be subordinate to each other!"
Outside the Black Tortoise Gate, Great General Wu Youyi of the Yulin Guard had a gloomy face. He led a group of cavalry and rushed towards the Yulin Guard's camp with Lai Junchen.
In the sky, there was a loud crack of thunder, shaking the window frame. The heavy rain that had been brewing for a long time finally poured down!
…
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