Li Chengqian of the Tang Dynasty: Please say long live His Majesty

Chapter 484: Knocking on the Palace Gate at Night: Blazing Fire Burns My Remains (Part )

The flames flickered, and the candlelight shone.

Changsun Wuji looked at Shi Hedan who had turned back in surprise, and nodded, "What do you want to say?
"I heard that the Indian sorcerer Naloersapomei is refining the elixir of immortality for the retired emperor. May I ask the Duke, is this true?" Shi Hedan bowed and looked at Changsun Wuji seriously.

Changsun Wuji shook his head and said, "The elixir that Luo Er Suo Bo Mei prepared for the Emperor Tai Shang was not an elixir of immortality, but merely a longevity elixir to soothe the body and mind."

Shi Hedan hesitated for a moment, then after a moment's thought, he bowed and said, "Sikong, Luo Er Suo Bo Mei's medicine cannot be taken."

Chang Sun Wuji's face darkened slightly, and he asked, "Why can't I eat it?"

"Sikong," Shi Hedan said earnestly, cupping his hands. "There's something Sikong might not know. My wife is Sogdian. She's a Zoroastrian. Zoroastrianism originated in Persia. The Persians even built a temple in Huaiyuanfang, south of the West Market."

"The Sabao Mansion is the official residence that manages all Persian affairs in the Tang Dynasty." Changsun Wuji shook his head and said, "It's been like this since the Sui Dynasty, but they are very obedient and rarely cause trouble."

"Yes!" Shi Hedan hesitated for a moment, but still said, "That's indeed the case with Zoroastrianism. They even hold collective sacrifices in the temple every month."

Changsun Wuji frowned and asked, "If you have anything to say, just say it directly."

"Yes!" Shi Hedan bowed and licked his lips. "My wife once happened to see the Venerable Naluoer Sapomei during a sacrificial ceremony last August. He even had a few words with Sa Baoyan... Since I am a sixth-rank official in the Secretariat, my position is close to the front, so she subconsciously showed concern."

"You mean to say that Luoersapomei is a Zoroastrian?" Changsun Wuji couldn't help but feel a little confused.

"Although only Zoroastrians can participate in Zoroastrian ceremonies, that's not the case, Sikong." Shi Hedan bowed and said, "That Luo Er Suo Bo Mei is not a Zoroastrian, because Zoroastrians never declare themselves Buddhists. He is also not a Buddhist, because Buddhists would not appear in his religion's ceremonies."

"So what?" Changsun Wuji narrowed his eyes.

"He's a Zoroastrian." Shi Hedan bowed and said, "Duke, Zoroastrianism is actually a branch of Zoroastrianism, but it later merged with Nestorianism, Buddhism, and the doctrines of many other religions to form a sect. Compared to Zoroastrianism, Zoroastrianism is more radical and its methods are more extreme. They believe that there are no gods in the world except the Supreme God."

Zhang Sun Wuji was stunned for a moment, then he couldn't help but stand up, staring at Shi Hedan and said, "You mean to say that he presented medicine to the emperor this time for other purposes."

"Yes!" Shi Hedan bowed and said, "Your Majesty is always fair in matters of Buddhism and Taoism, and there are countless gods in the world, so Your Majesty has no interest in Zoroastrianism. Therefore, they can only rely on the Emperor, which is why they want to ask the Emperor for the elixir of immortality."

"Immortality elixir." Changsun Wuji muttered these words.

What the Buddhists and Taoists are refining for Li Shimin now is just a longevity elixir to nourish his body, but if it is not controlled in the end, it will definitely develop into an elixir of immortality.

The elixir of immortality sounds like that, but Changsun Wuji knows it clearly in his heart.

Where in the world is there any elixir of immortality?

The so-called elixirs of immortality are all problematic pills.

Naropa, a Zoroastrianism, has only one God.

There must be something wrong with the medicine he presented to the emperor.

Zhangsun Wuji couldn't help but stand up immediately. He looked up at Zhangsun Chong standing beside him and said, "Dalang, go find Zhang Xuan, the General of the Left Thousand Oxen Guard, and have him send someone to investigate Naluo Er Suo Bo Mei's residence to see if there's anything wrong."

"Yes!" Chang Sun Chong immediately bowed.

Zhang Sun Wuji then looked at Shi Hedan and said, "You, come with me to the palace now. We will first go to see His Majesty, and then we will go to see the Supreme Emperor together."

"Yes!" Shi Hedan bowed seriously.

Changsun Wuji sighed softly and said, "I hope everything is alright."

……

Under the Vermillion Bird Gate, palace lanterns are brightly lit.

A team of Qianniu Guards and two teams of Jinwu Guards escorted Changsun Wuji to the Suzaku Gate.

A little further away, there were more Jinwu Guards escorting and on guard.

Changsun Wuji's carriage slowly stopped in front of the Suzaku Gate. At this moment, a fast horse came quickly from the west side of the long street.

The fast horses stopped before Changsun Wuji's carriage. Zhang Xuan, the General of the Left Thousand Oxen Guard, quickly dismounted and said to Changsun Wuji inside the carriage, "Your Excellency, I just sent someone to search Luo Er Suo Bo Mei's residence and found a large number of illegal drugs and several pagan texts."

Inside the carriage, Shi Hedan looked at Changsun Wuji cautiously.

Changsun Wuji glanced at him, shook his head, and said, "These things alone are not enough to completely convict him. We also need to find his accomplices, examine his prescriptions, and determine whether he has harmed the Emperor... If none of these are found, then it will be difficult to convict him."

Whether it is Zoroastrianism or Zoroastrianism, it is not illegal in the Tang Dynasty.

Nalosavamei was a monk in his early years, then joined Zoroastrianism, and finally returned to Buddhism.

As long as the Buddhist community has no objection to these matters, the Tang Dynasty will not be able to hold him accountable for them.

"What should we do then?" Shi Hedan murmured and looked up.

"The only way is to trick him." Changsun Wuji stood up and got off the carriage.

The city walls are tall and the soldiers are standing in rows.

Changsun Wuji stood at the gate and shouted, "Which general is on duty tonight?"

"General Zheng Rentai greets the Minister of Works." At the Suzaku Gate, Zheng Rentai, dressed in red and golden armor, poked his head out from behind the parapet. He looked at Changsun Wuji warily and said, "Forgive my disrespect, Duke. May I ask what brings you to the Suzaku Gate so late at night?"

"I request to see Your Majesty." Zhang Sun Wuji raised his head slightly and said, "It is extremely urgent."

After the curfew, the palace gates were locked. Even though Changsun Wuji was the prime minister and the emperor's uncle, he had no way of getting the palace gates opened.

Especially since the person in charge of guarding the palace gate tonight is General Zheng Rentai of the Right Guard.

Zheng Rentai is the biological father of Concubine Zheng and the maternal grandfather of Prince of Yan Li Jiu.

In terms of relationship with the emperor, although his relationship is slightly worse than Changsun Wuji's, it is not much worse.

"I will send someone to ask for instructions from Your Majesty right now." Zheng Rentai bowed slightly.

Changsun Wuji stood at the foot of the city gate and could clearly hear the hurried footsteps of someone walking down the city gate.

Changsun Wuji nodded slightly, looked at Zheng Rentai and said, "Lord of Susong County, is the Indian sorcerer Naluo Er Suo Bo Mei still in the palace?"

"Yes." Zheng Rentai nodded. Although he was a little surprised, he still said, "Luo Er Suo Bo Mei is currently at the Shang Pharmacy. The Emperor took the elixir he made today, so he needs to wait in the palace."

"Has the Emperor taken the medicine?" Zhangsun Wuji's expression changed slightly. He looked up at Zheng Rentai and said, "Sousong County Lord, please send people to surround the Shang Pharmacy immediately and monitor Luo Ersuo Mei.

This person's identity is questionable; he may have tampered with the Emperor's elixir."

"What?" Zheng Rentai's expression changed.

He was also a veteran of the Qin Palace who had fought his way out of Xuanwu Gate, so his attitude towards Li Shimin was naturally different.

Hearing what Changsun Wuji said, Zheng Rentai immediately turned around and said, "Send a message to General Duan Baoxuan of the Left Thousand Oxen Guard to capture Luo Ershuamei immediately." "Yes!" A guard bowed and accepted the order, then turned around quickly.

After the palace was closed, Zheng Rentai was on duty at the Suzaku Gate and Xue Rengui was on duty at the Xuanwu Gate.

In the entire imperial palace, near the harem, Xue Rengui has special powers at critical moments, and in the imperial city in front, Zheng Rentai also has the power to handle emergency affairs.

This was granted by the emperor.

"Sousong County Lord, we just need to keep him under surveillance, there's no need to rush to arrest him." Changsun Wuji was a little surprised, as the evidence they had was not enough.

"Sikong." Zheng Rentai looked at Zhangsun Wuji and said solemnly, "Today, after taking the medicine, the retired emperor toured the Northern Garden and met with the King of Wei."

"What?" Zhang Sun Wuji couldn't help but screamed in surprise. Then he looked at Zheng Rentai anxiously: "Why didn't you inform me about this? It's such a big deal. Something bad is going to happen."

"Don't worry, Sikong, the retired emperor was accompanied by His Majesty during his tour of Beiyuan." Zheng Rentai quickly explained, then said, "After returning from Beiyuan, the retired emperor rested and had nothing else to do."

Changsun Wuji sighed softly.

Everything was fine, so why did Li Shimin go to see Li Tai?

Doesn't he know that such behavior today is likely to trigger a certain mentality in the emperor?

If he is not careful, the emperor will order Li Tai to be killed.

Of course, this doesn’t mean that anything will really happen to Li Chengqian.

Changsun Wuji knew Li Chengqian's character.

However, the struggle for power can never be viewed simply from these aspects.

What the court lacks the most is those villains who will do anything to harm others.

If Li Chengqian were to be in a bad mood again, even if Li Tai died, Li Chengqian would only regret it in the future.

Changsun Wuji looked up at the city wall.

The thought in his mind about whether he should ride in a basket into the palace alone completely disappeared at this moment.

He was the prime minister of the dynasty, the minister of the left, and the emperor's uncle. At a special moment like now, he could force his way into the palace.

Even if he was the only one entering the palace, the situation would immediately be different.

However, in this case, no matter how generous the emperor was, it would inevitably leave a shadow in his heart.

It's okay when nothing goes wrong.

If something happens, it will be a crime.

Having just experienced the previous events of Chu Suiliang being dismissed from his position as prime minister and Li Shimin's visit to Li Tai, Changsun Wuji began to feel a little uneasy.

As for the matter of Luo Er Suo Bo Mei, there won't be any problem anyway since Duan Baoxuan will handle it.

What he was really worried about now was what Li Chengqian was thinking.

……

The Shang Pharmacy is located in the southwest of the imperial city, near the Ministry of Internal Affairs.

Naluo Er Suo Bo Mei was originally dozing in the room, but the sudden sound of footsteps woke him up suddenly. He could clearly hear the footsteps outside the room approaching quickly.

Naluo Ersabumei suddenly sat up and grasped the short knife hidden inside with his right hand.

At this moment, there was a clear knock on the door, and then a voice rang out: "Master, the emperor is unwell. The eunuchs ask you to rush over now."

"Now?" A strange voice sounded from Luo Er Suo Bo Mei, but at this time, his hand grabbed the wine gourd on the table on the side.

With a "bang", the door was suddenly kicked open, and a horizontal sword slashed directly towards Luo Ersabomei.

Naluo Ersabamei jumped to the left and rushed towards the window.

With two "swish" sounds, two long spears pierced through the window and stabbed directly in.

That Luo Er Suo Po Mei immediately jumped to the side and avoided the long spear.

It was clear from the broken windows that the outside was already full of Jinwu Guards armed with swords and spears.

"Naroer Supomei, your crime has been exposed." Duan Baoxuan moved with his sword and rushed towards Naaroer Supomei.

Luo Er Suo Po Mei rolled on the ground in a panic and avoided Duan Baoxuan's knife.

At this time, two Jinwu guards holding long spears happened to rush in.

The long spear stabbed directly towards Luo Ersuo Pomei's armpit.

At the same time, Duan Baoxuan behind him also followed and rushed over.

Attack from both sides, from inside and outside.

In an instant, it seemed that Luo Ersabomei had no room to dodge.

But at this moment, Luo Ersabamei swung the green gourd in his hand instantly.

A stream of black liquid spilled out directly from the gourd.

Duan Baoxuan sniffed it and immediately screamed, "Quickly retreat, it's stone fire oil."

The two Jinwu Guards' faces changed and they stepped back subconsciously, but they were still a step too late.

The oil of stone fire has been sprinkled on them.

However, at this time, Luo Ersabamei suddenly took a step back, looked at everyone with a smug look, hatred and regret, and the next moment, he poured all the stone fire oil in the green gourd onto his head.

A tinder fell out of his sleeve.

The moment it fell, flames started to rise.

Immediately afterwards, the flames violently engulfed the Luoersapomeibyte.

Duan Baoxuan looked at the scene in astonishment.

A voice mixed with pain and joy rang out from the flames: "Burn my remains, blazing fire. What joy is there in life, and what pain is there in death? I do good and eliminate evil, for only light can shine. Joy, sorrow, and sadness will all return to dust..."

(End of this chapter)