Tang Dynasty, my wife Wu Zetian

Chapter 385 The Queen poisoned the Emperor?

In early July, a post horse entered from Chunming Gate and headed straight for Zhuque Gate.

The sun was shining brightly and Chang'an City was particularly hot this year. The postman almost fainted when he arrived outside the Suzaku Gate.

The news brought by the postman was quickly sent to the Ministry of War.

After reading the urgent report, Minister of War Hao Chujun hurriedly put down his work and went to Ganlu Palace to meet the emperor.

Li Zhi was not in Ganlu Palace, but was taking a nap in Linhu Palace.

When the eunuch Xiaolou brought the news to Linhu Palace, Wang Fusheng did not go to wake up the emperor.

Xiaolou whispered to Wang Fusheng, "Foster father, judging from Minister Hao's appearance, the situation must be very urgent. Why not wake up His Majesty?"

Wang Fusheng shook his head and said, "Your Majesty has been very busy with disaster relief efforts lately. Let Your Majesty rest a little longer. Besides, Minister Hao brought good news, so there's no need to worry."

Xiaolou asked in surprise, "How do you know it's good news?"

Wang Fusheng smiled faintly and said, "Minister Hao may appear reserved, but he's actually very impatient. If it's bad news, he won't let you pass it on and will directly ask to come with you to see the emperor."

Xiaolou said, "I see."

The two stood by the lake for half an hour before Li Zhi slowly woke up.

Wang Fusheng then stepped forward and told him about Hao Chujun's visit.

Li Zhi asked, "Where is the urgent report?"

Wang Fusheng handed over the memorial.

After reading it, Li Zhi showed a happy expression and waved his hand, saying, "Summon Hao Chujun to see you."

Xiaolou nodded and turned away.

Li Zhi continued to look through the memorial in his hand and read it again.

This was a report sent by Gao Kan, which stated that the hidden dangers in Hanhai had been resolved.

Li Zhi did not expect that just taking a piece of land from Yanran Protectorate would cause a split within the entire Eastern Turkic Khaganate.

Strictly speaking, it cannot be considered a split, because this time it was twenty-three Turkic tribes that joined forces to deal with the Baideng tribe.

Moreover, Gao Kan did not take any part in this campaign, and no soldiers were used. It was entirely carried out by the Turks themselves.

Led by Fengzhi's Zhishi tribe and Wuda's Sheli tribe, more than 20 tribes joined forces to attack Wen Fu, the stubborn stubborn leader.

Of course, Gao Kan did not do nothing. He issued an order of attack, giving legal support to Fengzhi and Wuda.

The strength of Wen Fu's army was stronger than imagined. Although he only had a small number of troops, he refused to give in. He gathered more than 10,000 troops near Longba Mountain and put up a desperate resistance.

This battle was quite brutal.

The coalition forces of more than 40,000 troops, one in the east and one in the west, were ready to attack Wen Fu from both sides.

Feng Zhi was impatient. He thought he could deal with Wen Fu's troops on his own. Without waiting for Wu Da's Western Army, he led more than 20,000 people to fight Wen Fu in Longba Mountain.

As a result, Wen Fu adopted the strategy of feigning defeat to lure the enemy and defeated Feng Zhi.

Fortunately, during the fierce battle, the Western Allied Forces led by Wu Da arrived early and surrounded Fengzhi's troops from behind, and Fengzhi's troops were surrounded on both sides.

While the three parties were fighting, a strange army appeared in the north, carrying black flags. They raided several tribes in the north of the Turks and rushed to Longba Mountain with great momentum.

This group of people was none other than the army of the Qudumei Kingdom. They had already secretly allied with Wen Fu, so they came to rescue.

However, this is a vast ocean after all, and the other Turkic tribes did not originally send out all their troops.

When they saw that the Qudumei people had also intervened, they were naturally furious. The twenty-three tribes became more united and mobilized all their troops to join the battle.

In this war, the Turkic coalition forces ultimately won and defeated the armies of Wen Fu and Qu Dumei.

However, the Turks also suffered heavy losses, especially the Fengzhi tribe, because they were too aggressive at the beginning and their own soldiers suffered serious damage.

After this battle, the hidden danger of rebellion against the Tang Dynasty within the Eastern Turks was temporarily eliminated, and Gao Kan also successfully completed his mission.

However, what concerned Li Zhi was another matter.

Gao Kan said in his memorial that after Wen Fu was arrested, he shouted loudly that he wanted to meet the Emperor of the Tang Dynasty and had an important secret to tell the Emperor.

For this reason, Fengzhi and Wuda did not kill him and handed him over to Gao Kan.

Even under severe torture by Gao Kan, Wen Fu refused to reveal the secret and only spoke after he met Li Zhi.

Wen Fu was not the Turkic Khan. Strictly speaking, he was not qualified to be sent to Chang'an to be presented as a captive, nor was he qualified to meet Li Zhi.

Therefore, Gao Kan didn't know whether to send him to Chang'an, so he sent a report to ask Li Zhi for instructions.

A little later, Hao Chujun arrived, and Li Zhi said to him, "Hao Qing, have you read Gao Qing's memorial?"

Hao Chujun bowed and said, "Your Majesty, I have read it."

Li Zhi said, "Write a reply immediately and have Gao Qing send Wen Fu to Chang'an. I want to meet him in person to see what secrets he wants to tell me."

Hao Chujun said, "I accept your order."

In July, the days are long and the nights are short. It is past the hour of You, but the sun still refuses to set, and the evening breeze carries a hot air.

South of Chang'an City, Dayefang.

This is a dilapidated courtyard on South Street.

Wang Hong walked cautiously on the bluestone road covered with fallen leaves, his eyes full of suspicion. He looked three steps ahead before taking one step, like a rabbit looking for food.

Suddenly, there was a "crunch" sound, which was the sound of fallen leaves being crushed.

Wang Hong was startled and turned around quickly, only to see a man in black wearing a black cloak behind him.

The man's head was covered by a hood and he had no beard, so he should not be very old.

Wang Hong looked at him warily and asked, "Why are we meeting here this time?"

The man said calmly, "Because what I want you to do this time is different from the previous ones, you must not leak any of it."

Wang Hong snorted and said, "Let me be clear, I won't do anything dangerous."

The man in black said in a low voice, "Please follow me." He walked to a rockery in the backyard.

Inside the rockery, there is a movable iron door. When you open the door, you will see a secret passage leading downwards. It is dark and seems to lead to the depths of hell.

Seeing the other party being so cautious, Wang Hong's face changed and he asked, "What exactly do you want me to do?"

The man in black squatted down without saying a word and walked down the secret passage.

Wang Hong hesitated for a long time and finally followed.

The stone steps of the secret passage are covered with moss, which shows that this secret passage is very old.

Although the road is narrow, there is no strange smell of decay, so there must be ventilation holes in the road.

After walking down more than ten stone steps, I suddenly heard a "click" sound. It seemed that the iron door above was closed by someone, and the sunlight could no longer shine in.

There was a dim oil lamp hanging on the wall of the secret passage. Under the dim light, the entire secret passage looked particularly gloomy.

When you get to the bottom, you will see a long and narrow corridor, less than five feet wide. It is difficult for a person to turn around in the corridor.

After walking about ten steps along the corridor, a stone chamber appeared on the right. It was about ten feet square and had no furniture except a table.

The man in black stood in front of the table, stretched out a hand and pressed it on a box on the table.

Wang Hongdao: "You are sneaking around, what exactly do you want me to do..."

Before he could finish his words, he saw the man in black opening the box. A golden light flashed, and the box was filled with gold cakes.

Wang Hong swallowed his saliva and said in a trembling voice: "This, this is..."

The man in black said in a deep voice, "This is fifty kilograms of gold, enough for three generations of you to live a comfortable and prosperous life."

Wang Hong stared at the gold and said, "I don't have any children, what do I need so much gold for?"

The man in black said calmly, "But you have two younger brothers, and they both have sons. When your Wang family becomes rich, all your descendants will know that it was you, Wang Hong, who made the Wang family prosperous."

Wang Hong clenched his fists and asked, "What exactly do you want me to do?"

The man in black raised his head, revealing a cold face, and said word by word: "Regicide!"

"what?"

Wang Hong's legs went weak and he fell to the ground.

The man in black looked at him and said calmly: "What are you afraid of? I am not asking you to kill the emperor with your own hands. You just need to put this packet of medicine powder in the emperor's food." He took out a packet of poison from his arms.

Wang Hong trembled all over and hissed, "You're crazy! Even His Majesty's food is tested for poison. How could this be successful?"

The man in black said, "Of course we know. No matter who sent the food, Wang Fusheng would personally test it for poison, with one exception."

Wang Hong's face turned pale.

The man in black said, "It seems you've thought of this too. Yes, Wang Fusheng will not test the medicinal food for poison unless it is brought to him personally by Empress Wu."

Wang Hongzhi shook his head and said, "No, you don't understand. Her Majesty the Queen always tastes the medicinal food herself before sending it to you. There is no chance at all."

The man in black said, "We've known this for a long time. Don't worry, the Queen will be fine after drinking it, at least for the time being."

Wang Hong was stunned and asked, "Why is this?"

The man in black said coldly, "You don't need to know so much. As long as you do this, your entire family will be rich and prosperous."

Wang Hong trembled and said, "No, if I do this, my entire clan will be wiped out. I beg you, please find someone else!"

The man in black squatted in front of him and said grimly: "You have no choice. If you don't agree, I will kill you now and then kill your entire family. You should know that I have the ability to do this." Wang Hong was terrified and full of regret.

Because he failed to win favor in the Iljeongjeon Palace, he was retaliated by Jang Da-hae and his life in the palace was difficult.

When he had the opportunity to leave the palace, the man in black approached him and wanted to cooperate with him and pay him to buy information about the palace.

He was filled with resentment at the time, but somehow he agreed. How could he have known that the other party would actually ask him to do such a thing as executing his entire family?
He was forced into a corner and said, "Even if the Queen is fine after drinking it, I can't find a chance to poison her. Every time I make medicinal food, the Queen's three trusted aides always watch over me. There's no chance."

The man in black said, "That's easy. You just need to poison the ingredients. My medicinal powder won't be affected even if it's boiled."

Wang Hong hissed, "The ingredients were also brought to the Imperial Food Bureau by the Empress's trusted palace servants. How could I possibly have the chance to poison them?"

The man in black said, "Don't worry, we will make other arrangements to create an opportunity for you to poison us."

Seeing that he couldn't persuade him, Wang Hong gritted his teeth and said, "Then just kill me. Death is better than leaving a bad reputation."

The man in black said calmly, "If you succeed, you won't die. My master will inherit the throne and appoint you as the Grand Eunuch in the future!"

Wang Hong was surprised and asked, "Who is your master?"

The man in black said, "You should be able to guess it."

Wang Hong lowered his head and his eyes became uncertain.

"Think about how those people in the palace treat you. Zhang Dahai bullies you, the queen ignores you, and the emperor doesn't care whether you live or die. Why should you be loyal to him?" The man in black whispered.

Wang Hong gritted his teeth and said, "How can you guarantee that after this incident, your master will let me be the chief eunuch instead of killing me to silence me?"

The man in black sighed, "I can't guarantee anything, but you can take a gamble. Like you, I don't know if the master will kill me to silence me. But the master needs people to accomplish his mission. Rather than dying in mediocrity, why not give it a try? Aren't fame and fortune earned through hard work?"

Wang Hong was shocked. He looked at the packet of powder and said, "Once the emperor dies, I will be captured. How can I fight?"

The man in black glanced around and said, "You've seen this place. It's extremely secret. It's where you're hiding. After you poisoned me, leave the palace immediately and hide here."

"I'll leave water, food, and a bottle of poison here. If I succeed, I'll come find you. If I don't come find you, it means I've failed. You can take the poison and commit suicide. I promise it won't hurt you at all."

Wang Hong's eyes flickered for a while, and finally he stretched out his hand tremblingly and stuffed the poison into his chest.

The man in black warned, "You only have one chance. You must act within five days. Only then will the master's plan succeed!"

Wang Hong asked, "Whenever I take action, will your people assist me?"

"good."

Wang Hong nodded and looked at the box of gold again.

The man in black said, "I will keep this box of gold. You can give it to your family or bury it somewhere. It's up to you."

Wang Hong took a deep breath and said, "Okay, I'll do it."

In late July, a long-awaited heavy rain fell in Yanzhou, Henan.

In March, there was a severe drought in the south of the Yangtze River. Although the situation in Henan was not as serious as in the south of the Yangtze River, there was not much rain, and this year's harvest was in jeopardy.

This timely heavy rain will nourish the crops struggling to survive in the fields and ensure this year's harvest.

Since the beginning of spring and the beginning of summer, the people of Yanzhou, who had been living in fear, rushed out of their homes, used pots and pans to catch rainwater, cheered loudly, and expressed their joy.

The people's joy had nothing to do with Prince Lu Li Lingkui.

As the governor of Yanzhou and a royal prince, even if Yanzhou suffered a drought for one or two years, it would not affect his life.

After the emperor was assassinated last year, King Han Li Yuanjia was demoted to Hongzhou in the south of the Yangtze River, and the foundation he had laid in Shu for many years was lost.

Li Lingkui also knew that it was impossible for him to do anything extraordinary again, so he let go of the thoughts in his mind and indulged himself in sensual pleasures.

That day, he had just returned home from worshipping Buddha at Xinglong Temple. As he entered the house, he saw the housekeeper approaching mysteriously and whispering, "Your Majesty, the King of Han is here."

Li Lingkui was surprised and asked, "Where is he?"

"The small study in the west courtyard."

The small study was the study of Li Lingkui's son Li Ai. Li Ai is now studying in Chongwenguan, so the study is left vacant.

Li Lingkui walked quickly to the small study, pushed the door open and entered the room, only to see King Han Li Yuanjia standing by the window, admiring the heavy rain.

"Brother, why are you here suddenly and dressed like this?" Li Lingkui asked in surprise.

At this moment, Li Yuanjia was wearing a Fan Yang hat, a straw raincoat, and a sword hanging from his waist, looking like a wanderer in the world.

"I just came back from Hedong and came to see you." Li Yuanjia said lightly.

Li Lingkui's face changed and he asked, "What are you doing in Hedong?"

Li Yuanjia asked, "Do you still remember Master Wen?"

Li Lingkui closed the door, came to his side, and asked, "That Turkic man?"

Li Yuanjia said, "He once sent someone to find me, threatening me with Wei Ziliu's matter and asking me to help him transfer Gao Kan away from Hanhai."

Li Lingkui was shocked and asked, "How did he know that Wei Ziliu was sent by us? Did Wei Ziliu betray you?"

Li Yuanjia shook his head and said, "I believe Wei Ziliu did not betray me, but I did underestimate Wen Fu. I don't know how he found out about me."

"I originally wanted to go to the Turks in person to appease him, so that he wouldn't inform the emperor, but who knew..."

Li Lingkui asked, "What?"

Li Yuanjia said in a deep voice, "As soon as I arrived in Yunzhong, I heard that Wen Fu had been eliminated by the other Turkic tribes, and he himself was captured and handed over to Gao Kan."

Li Lingkui was shocked and clenched his fists. Since Wen Fu was captured, he would most likely give Li Yuanjia away.

"What are you going to do?" he asked.

Li Yuanjia said, "I have been secretly planning something since the year before last. Although it may be a little hasty to start now, it may not fail to succeed."

Li Lingkui's face changed color and he said, "You never mentioned it to me!"

Li Yuanjia glanced at him and said, "Do you know what I am planning?"

Li Lingkui shook his head.

Li Yuanjia lowered his voice and slowly said, "Poisoning the emperor."

Li Lingkui was shocked and asked, "Is there any chance of success?"

Li Yuanjia said, "If I'm given another year or two, I might have a 30% chance. If I take a risk now, I probably only have a 10% chance."

Li Lingkui said anxiously: "The prince is already not a child anymore. Even if the emperor dies, I'm afraid there will be no chance."

Li Yuanjia narrowed his eyes and asked, "What if the Empress poisoned the Emperor?"

Li Lingkui was surprised and asked, "Are you trying to put the blame on Wu?"

Li Yuanjia said, "Yes, I have already arranged it. I will poison the medicinal food she gave to the emperor. When the emperor dies, she will be the regicide. How can her son still hold the throne as the crown prince?"

Li Lingkui said, "That woman is no ordinary person. Can she succeed?"

Li Yuanjia said coldly: "No matter how powerful she is, she is still a woman. My plan this time is to take advantage of her weakness as a woman."

"what?"

Li Yuanjia took out two bottles from his arms and placed them on the windowsill, one was red and the other was white.

"Do you know what's in here?"

Li Lingkui shook his head.

Li Yuanjia said, "The red bottle contains a medicinal herb called Red Swallow Ganoderma. It grows in Mao County, Shu. Grinding this herb into powder and taking it has the effect of maintaining youthful appearance and promoting longevity."

"The white bottle contains a type of snake venom. This snake grows alongside the red swallow fungus, and the people of Maoxian call it the red swallow snake."

"This snake's venom is extremely strong and can kill a person within two quarters of an hour. However, if someone consumes Red Swallow Ganoderma over a long period of time, they will develop resistance to the poison and the poison won't take effect immediately. Even if it does, it won't be fatal."

Li Lingkui was stunned and asked, "Is this the Wu family's weakness?"

Li Yuanjia said, "Mrs. Wu has been in constant favor with the Emperor and has been searching for something to preserve her youth. I deliberately let her know about this item a long time ago. She has been taking Red Swallow Ganoderma for more than two years."

Li Lingkui asked, "So what?"

Li Yuanjia glanced at him and said, "If I order someone to put the venom of the red swallow snake into the medicinal food, Wu will be fine if she eats it herself. But if I give it to the emperor, what do you think will happen?"

Li Lingkui's eyes lit up and he said, "I understand. This way, we can indeed put the blame on the Wu family and poison the emperor!"

The rain outside the window was getting heavier and heavier. As soon as the two people's voices floated out of the window, they were shattered by the sound of the rain.

Li Yuanjia said solemnly, "This is just the most ideal scenario. In practice, I've estimated that there's only a little over a 10% chance."

Li Lingkui was stunned and said, "It's not that low, right?"

Li Yuanjia put away the bottle and said in a deep voice, "Sun Simiao is at the Shang Pharmacy. Even if the emperor is poisoned, he might be able to save him. I originally planned to lure Sun Simiao out of Chang'an first before taking action. Unfortunately, I don't have time."

Li Lingkui remained silent.

Li Yuanjia glanced at him and said, "I didn't let you get involved this time because I wanted to leave a way out. If the plan fails and I'm found out, I'll kill myself. I'll leave my offspring in your care."

As a member of the imperial family, even if Li Yuanjia committed treason, his descendants would not be sentenced to death. Most likely, like Li Ke, the King of Wu, his descendants would be exiled to Lingnan.

Li Lingkui felt his throat was blocked. Li Yuanjia did not let him participate, but in fact he was protecting him.

"Brother, I..."

Li Yuanjia waved his hand and said, "It's come to this. No need to say more. If I succeed, I will come to you again. If I fail, this will be the last time we meet as brothers."

He looked at Li Lingkui deeply, pushed the door and left the house. The thin figure quickly disappeared in the rain.

(End of this chapter)