Yang Fan and Xiao Man had just become husband and wife, so they were very close to each other. When they got home at night, the couple had dinner together, chatted, and drank a few cups of rice wine. After getting a little tipsy, they walked hand in hand in the back garden.
It was almost Chinese Valentine's Day, so the moon wasn't very bright. However, the two didn't light a lamp or ask a maid to accompany them. They just walked side by side in the quiet night, talking softly.
When they came to a cluster of blooming flowers, they smelled the fragrance and felt refreshed. Yang Fan pulled Xiao Man to sit among the flowers. Xiao Man was about to sit on the stone bench next to Yang Fan, but Yang Fan, who had sat down first, pulled her into his arms.
Xiao Man was really gentle to Yang Fan, and she did whatever he wanted. She sat on Yang Fan's lap, and after a moment of shyness, she wrapped her arms around his neck.
Yang Fan held Xiao Man's slender waist with one hand, and gently stroked her smooth and firm thigh with the other. He said, "The Emperor is obviously waiting for me to come up with a way to clean up the mess, but it's already been a few days, and there hasn't been any movement from the Censorate. If this continues, the Emperor will definitely be impatient, and maybe tomorrow he will make a decision on the Prime Ministers. At that time, there will be a conclusion to my matter. I think I will have to leave the palace for a while. "
Xiao Man said reluctantly, "If you don't stay in the palace, then you will have to go to another imperial army. Langjun is in the barracks, so it won't be easy to go home."
"Yes!"
Yang Fan kissed her thin, soft, and sweet lips. He said, "Can't bear to part with Langjun?"
He thought that this teasing would make Xiao Man shy and silent, but he didn't expect Xiao Man's face to turn red, and she lowered her head slightly. After a moment of silence, she actually softly said, "Yes! Can't bear to part … "
Her words were full of affection, and Yang Fan unconsciously hugged her tightly. He gently stroked her shoulders, and their ears and temples were close for a while. Although they didn't say a word, their tenderness and affection were all in the silence.
Yang Fan stroked her hair and said softly, "It's fine if you go to the Imperial Army. You can always come back after ten days or half a month. He was afraid that when he was sent to a place, the Imperial Court would not allow him to bring his family with him. That would be terrible. So... I would like to meet Xue shi tomorrow and ask him to represent me so that I can remain in the capital. "
"Yes! Although Master Xue was Langjun's master, he still had to be polite. Tomorrow morning, I'll go to the warehouse and see if there's anything suitable for Master Xue. After I've made the necessary arrangements, Langjun … "
At this point, Xiaoman's voice stopped abruptly as if she had thought of something.
Yang Fan patted her head and said with a smile, "What's wrong? Did you think of something?"
Xiaoman said, "When Langjun said that he was going to visit Master Xue tomorrow, I suddenly thought of something. This afternoon, a very strange person came to visit, but he didn't bring a visiting card. He only brought a message, asking Langjun to attend a banquet at the Golden Hairpin Tavern tomorrow afternoon. "
When Yang Fan heard this, he also felt a bit strange. For some reason, he suddenly thought of Tin Aino. The first time he went to that place was with Tin Aino, and he was lucky enough to enjoy a wonderful Hu Xuan Dance. These two days, after he was released from prison, he had a lot of things to deal with, and he didn't have time to look for Ah Nu's whereabouts. Could it be that she took the initiative …
Thinking of this, Yang Fan hurriedly asked, "What did that person say in the message?"
Xiaoman said, "That person said that his master's name is Lotus Canal Companion Fishing Mountain Man, and he invited you to the Golden Hairpin Tavern tomorrow. He also said a lot of strange things … "
When Yang Fan heard the four words "Lotus Canal Companion Fishing Mountain Man", a strange expression appeared on his face. Fortunately, Xiaoman was softly nestled in his chest and didn't see his expression.
"Lotus Canal Companion Fishing Mountain Man?"
Yang Fan thought of the beautiful princess who was dragged into the water by the fish, and her alluring buttocks when she ran into the Moon Sweeping Pavilion with her wet clothes. He immediately snorted, "She's just pretending to be mysterious, ignore her! I'll be back after I go to White Horse Temple! "
Xiaoman innocently said, "En! Nu Nu also thought that person was pretending to be mysterious and crazy. Not only did he refuse to tell me his real name, but he also said that his master caught two big fish, one was more alert and actually let go of the hook, but the other was fatter and got hooked. He wanted to invite you to the Golden Hairpin Tavern, to share delicious food … "
Yang Fan was stunned again, "Is that so … then … I'll go."
Xiaoman curiously asked, "Does Langjun know who that person is? Do you understand what he's saying? "
Yang Fan looked at the mermaid in front of him who was "a little alert and actually let go of the hook", intimately scratched her nose, and softly sighed, "Yes! This person is a true disciple of Jiang Taigong, when he's fishing, there's always someone willing to take the bait. I'll just go with her! "
… …
Xue Huaiyi really cared for Yang Fan. In the past, he sheltered Yang Fan mainly because Yang Fan was the most promising among his disciples and brought him a lot of face. That day when he was drunk, he confided in Yang Fan, and in his heart, he faintly regarded Yang Fan as a close friend.
When Yang Fan explained the purpose of his visit, Xue Huaiyi immediately agreed. As soon as Yang Fan left, Xue Huaiyi changed into a purple kasaya bestowed by the emperor and rushed to the palace with his two trusted disciples, Hong One and Hong Six.
On the Lovely Spring Terrace, Lai Junchen was prostrating himself in front of Wu Zetian.
One bow, two bows, stand up, kneel, meticulous, extremely respectful.
As he knelt down, his eyes secretly glanced at Wu Zetian's expression.
Unfortunately, Wu Zetian's expression was like that of the Great Buddha of Dragon Gate, mysterious and serene. It was impossible to tell whether she was happy or angry. Lai Junchen unconsciously felt a bit of fear in his heart.
He considered himself as Wu Zetian's lackey, so he naturally put in a lot of effort to figure out his master's temperament. It seemed that ever since Wu Zetian ascended to the throne, there was only a short period of peace and clarity. Just when the world had a feeling that she was working hard to create a glorious Great Zhou Empire, she reverted to her old ways.
This old way was suspicion, suspicion, and bloodlust!
In the past, this mentality was based on her desire to become the Empress, and the resistance was endless. Not only did it come from Li Tang's imperial family and Li Tang's ministers, but the people also held a suspicious and opposed attitude towards a female Empress that had never existed before.
In the process of this kind of struggle, Wu Zetian seemed to have the bag of victory, but Cao Mengde's suspicion, Sima Yi's suspicion, and the decisive and unhesitating character of many founding heroes formed the main aspects of her character. Regardless of whether she was calm, thunderous, or kind in front of others, these were the things hidden in her heart.
After she ascended to the throne, all of this seemed to disappear. For half a year, there was no longer a reign of terror in the imperial court, and the ruthless officials had "put away their weapons". Even the informants in the copper pans were no longer read by her. It seemed that she really intended to use open and aboveboard political means to govern the world.
In the end, it did not take long for Wu Zetian to revert to her old ways because of the struggle for the throne.
She was not only the first female Empress in history, she was also the oldest Empress in history to overthrow the previous regime and ascend to the throne. So after she ascended the throne, the most important problem was not the governance of the country, but the choice of the heir.
And through "peaceful evolution", she seized power from the hands of her husband and son was unprecedented, so the difficulty of choosing her successor was something that the founding emperors had never encountered before. So … she once again reverted to the mentality that she had developed in order to seize the throne.
She was doing something that no previous woman had ever done. She was walking a path that no one had ever walked before. In the past, whether it was fighting for the position of Empress or Emperor, she had a clear goal, but when faced with the problem of inheriting the throne, even someone as wise as she was had no choice. Her future … she could not see it clearly.
She was afraid of any counterattack, and she happened to have the greatest power in the world, so what would she do? Lai Junchen had grasped this mentality of Wu Zetian, so he felt that no matter if it was a prince, a general, or a minister, he could do the same as before he helped Wu Zetian ascend to the throne, controlling life and death!
But now, he could not grasp the Emperor's mentality.
When Lai Junchen heavily kowtowed for the last time, he suddenly thought of an answer, "Could it be that the Emperor has made a decision regarding the heir?"
Wu Zetian did not interrupt his bow with a smile like before. She calmly sat there, waiting for Lai Junchen to finish kowtowing for the last time. Then she slowly said, "Someone in the Eastern Palace has reported a change of heart!"
Lai Junchen's expression quickly became solemn.
Wu Zetian said, "Today, a chamberlain revealed that the Crown Princess, Lady Liu, and Concubine, Concubine Dou, harbored resentment against me and used witchcraft to plot against me. Today, the two of them have been executed, and the Eastern Palace chamberlains and palace servants have confessed that the Crown Prince not only knew about it, but was also the mastermind! Lai Junchen, I hand this case over to you to try! "
Lai Junchen was ecstatic. He knew that once this case was confirmed, his crime of forcing the Prime Ministers to confess was no longer a big problem.
Wu Zetian was silent for a while, then said, "Dan … is my son, and he is the Crown Prince. I do not want the world to know that the current Crown Prince wants to rebel against the Emperor, and I do not want the world to know that my son wants to kill his mother! You cannot bring this person to the Senate, so you can try him in the Crown Prince's Palace! "
Lai Junchen had already expected this kind of arrangement, so he only calmly agreed and did not raise any questions.
Wu Zetian revealed a slightly satisfied expression and said, "The Crown Prince's Palace is under the strict supervision of the palace guards. Without my written order, no one is allowed to enter or leave. Wan 'er … "
Shanghai Wan 'er held up a yellow silk handwritten order from Wu Zetian and handed it over. Wu Zetian said, "Take this and use it to enter the Crown Prince's Palace. I … want to know the truth! "
Lai Junchen took the Emperor's order with both hands and humbly lowered his head, "I … I will not disappoint Your Majesty!"
At this time, chamberlain Xiao Hai tiptoed into the hall. Seeing that the Emperor had finished talking to Lai Junchen, he bowed and said, "Everyone, White Horse Temple's Great Master Huai Yi requests an audience!"
Wu Zetian slightly frowned and said, "I have not summoned him, what is he doing here?"
However, Wu Zetian had personally decreed that Great Master Huaiyi of the White Horse Temple could enter the palace without being summoned. He could freely enter and leave the palace. Now that Xue Huaiyi had come uninvited, it was not a crime.
Wu Zetian pondered for a while, then said, "Call him in."
Lai Junchen did not change his expression and directly left the hall. As he turned to leave, he thought to himself, "Looking at this situation, Xue Huai Yi's royal favor is gradually declining …"
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