Book Synopsis
Book Tags
Donation Rankings
Comment
0 Comments
You May Also Like
墨書 Inktalez
Street Folk has something to say: whether it is fortune or misfortune, what is meant to come will eventually arrive, and there is no way to avoid it. Xu Zhen is very clear that it is time to lay everything on the table. He wants to distance himself completely from the Rebellion plans of Fang Yi'ai and Princess Gaoyang. Now, he can only have a straightforward conversation with the other party.
However, before that, he must make a trip to Taiyi Mountain. After taking over the Ministry of War from Cui Dunli, the first thing Xu Zhen did was send that batch of copper ore to Yan Lide.
Now in the court, who does not know that Xu Zhen has once again gained the favor of the Sovereign? At this moment, aside from Changsun Wuji and Murong Hanzhu, who would dare to oppose Xu Zhen? Ordinary officials would not even think of intervening.
It is often said that new officials bring three fires, but Xu Zhen, as the new Minister of War, has simply become a hands-off manager, delegating all official duties to the deputy minister and colleagues at the Ministry of War and Yamen, while privately transferring that batch of copper ore away without a sound.
Xu Zhen did not intend for this to happen. If he still wanted to navigate through the Tang Dynasty Court, he should not act this way. However, his plan was about to be completed, and he was on the verge of true liberation. How could he care about a mere position as Minister of War?
For this reason, Xu Zhen felt at ease letting go, completely ignoring the affairs of the Ministry of War, and set off for Taiyi Mountain early in the morning.
Just after Xu Zhen left, a visitor arrived at the residence. The person was dressed in gray silk robes and wore a cap typical of noble households in the capital. He brought an invitation but did not reveal which individual wished to host a banquet for the new Minister of War, Xu Zhen.
The old steward of Xu Manor had already received instructions from Xu Zhen in advance: all invitations should be declined. However, the visitor seemed to see through Xu Zhen's intentions and slipped a heavy small cloth bag into the old steward's hands, specifically instructing him to ensure that the invitation reached Xu Zhen.
When the old steward opened the bag, he found it filled with gold nuggets, shining brilliantly. He swallowed hard and immediately agreed. The visitor then left with peace of mind.
With Xu Zhen absent, the old steward had no choice but to deliver the invitation to Li Wushuang.
He was also an old hand at Xu Manor, knowing that his master, Li Darlong, favored Lady Caesar. However, with the current situation where Madam was pregnant and surrounded by caretakers fearing any mishap, and with Third Miss Zhang Suling also heavily pregnant, he could only bring the invitation to Second Miss.
At that moment, Li Wushuang was playing happily with Little Si Tang. Upon receiving the invitation, she felt somewhat displeased. Yet she was not like Caesar and others who disregarded worldly matters; she understood that with Xu Zhen now in a high position, many things still required caution. Thus, she decided to keep the invitation.
Upon opening the gilded invitation, Li Wushuang couldn't help but frown.
This was actually an invitation from the current Chancellor, Liu Shen, inviting Xu Zhen to a banquet at his home!
Liu Shen was born into a prestigious family, the He Dong Liu Clan. He has held positions such as Chancellor, Minister of War, and Vice Minister of the Central Secretariat. Currently, he serves as Chancellor and holds the same rank as the Third Division of the Secretariat, making him one of the current prime ministers.
After returning to Tang, Li Wushuang was able to spend more time with her father. Occasionally, she would sneak Little Si Tang to visit Li Daozong's residence for play. Li Daozong had high hopes for his beloved daughter, but unfortunately, she preferred to wield swords and spears. Later, she was granted the title of princess by the Sovereign and married far away to Tuguhun. Now that she has finally returned, Li Daozong realizes he desires nothing more than for Li Wushuang to lead a happy life.
For this reason, Li Daozong did not hide anything from Li Wushuang and often shared the political situation in court with her, hoping she could remind Xu Zhen through her words.
Thus, Li Wushuang quickly deduced the purpose of Liu Shen's invitation.
In addition to his illustrious titles as Chancellor and holding the same rank as the Third Division of the Secretariat, what concerned Li Wushuang even more was that he was the uncle of the current Empress Wang!
Although Empress Wang came from a noble family and was the original consort of Li Zhi, accompanying him since Consort Taizi's time, she had no offspring. She was dignified and elegant but lacked charm, causing Li Zhi to gradually lose interest in her.
Eventually, Consort Xiao captivated Li Zhi with her allure and bore him children, shifting his affections from Empress Wang to Consort Xiao.
Empress Wang was not one to be underestimated either; she had clashed with Consort Xiao several times over jealousy. Both women had powerful families backing them, resulting in various victories and defeats.
To outmaneuver Consort Xiao and seek third-party support against her, Empress Wang deliberately sought to please Li Zhi by proposing to bring Wu Mei from Ganyesi Temple back to the palace.
Li Zhi was overjoyed by this suggestion, leading to a significant change in his attitude towards Empress Wang.
However, after Wu Mei returned to the palace, she monopolized Li Zhi's affection, overshadowing even Consort Xiao. In fact, Consort Xiao found it difficult to have Li Zhi stay with her for even one or two nights.
Empress Wang gained no benefits from this situation; it truly was a case of losing more than she gained. Realizing this painful truth, she decided to join forces with Consort Xiao to suppress Wu Mei.
Yet before Wu Mei entered the palace, she had already conceived Li Zhi's child. Upon her return, she gave birth to a son named Li Hong. Li Zhi cherished both mother and son immensely; thus, any requests made by them were met with compliance.
As Wu Mei's elevation to Second-Rank Imperial Concubine approached on the agenda, both Consort Xiao and Empress Wang felt their positions were at risk. It seemed that within just a few years, Wu Mei might snatch away the title of Empress!
In desperation, she sought out her uncle, the current Chancellor Liu Shen.
Liu Shen was known for his wisdom and cunning, having navigated the political arena for many years. He was well-versed in the rules of court politics and was no stranger to the struggles within the Inner Palace. Thus, he devised a plan for Empress Wang.
Li Zhi's eldest illegitimate son, Li Zhong, was born to Court Lady Liu Clan. Although he came from humble beginnings, he was not looked down upon by Li Zhi. Born in the Eastern Palace when Li Zhi was still the Crown Prince, Li Zhi hosted a banquet at Hongjiao Hall to celebrate with court officials, where Emperor Taizong himself attended. In a moment of revelry, he even got up to dance, and all the ministers joined in, enjoying themselves thoroughly. Everyone present at the banquet received gifts.
Because of this, Li Zhi had always treated this illegitimate son well. Liu Shen recognized this and had recently arranged for the childless Empress Wang to adopt Li Zhong.
Since the current Sovereign ascended to the throne, he had yet to establish a Crown Prince. If a petition could be submitted requesting Li Zhi to name Li Zhong as Crown Prince, then with a mother’s influence over her son, Empress Wang would naturally gain favor as well.
Currently, Wu Mei did not dare interfere with state affairs nor did she rally her own faction; she relied solely on Li Zhi's affection and the power of the Wu family.
However, the civil and military officials in the court sensed subtle changes. Li Zhi had completely fallen under Wu Mei's spell. With Li Hong having just been born, it seemed that Wu Mei was pregnant again with a Dragon Breed.
Li Zhi was already planning to elevate Wu Mei to Second-Rank Imperial Concubine. If this continued, Empress Wang's position would be at risk. Yet what concerned the officials was not just this but Wu Mei's identity.
Wu Mei was a palace talent of Emperor Taizong; such actions by Li Zhi would violate familial ethics. If he were to elevate Wu Mei to Empress, it would surely bring ridicule upon him!
Liu Shen understood this clearly. He was not afraid of opposition from civil and military officials but worried that Li Zhi might object. Although Li Zhi faced considerable constraints from Changsun Wuji, he was an adult with his own opinions and had gradually cultivated a faction that occupied many significant positions in court, his influence now vaguely rivaling that of Changsun Wuji.
If Li Zhi became stubborn and acted unilaterally, no matter how much opposition there was from officials, it would ultimately be of no benefit.
Thus, Liu Shen naturally thought of Xu Zhen.
Xu Zhen was currently favored and held an official ministerial position as a Third-Rank official with real power. She was about to be conferred the title Duke of the Right Guard and enjoyed great trust from Li Zhi.
Moreover, she had been personally nurtured by Emperor Taizong as a pillar in the military, renowned for her reputation and capable of intimidating foreign tribes. With Xu Zhen's support, establishing Li Zhong as Crown Prince would pose no difficulty at all.
After realizing this, Li Wushuang surprisingly sent someone to Liu Shen's residence to specifically present the receipt, agreeing to the invitation on behalf of Xu Zhen.
Upon receiving the news, Liu Shen was naturally overjoyed, believing that great things were in store. He hurriedly took Empress Wang's mother, Lady Wei, with him to the palace to inform Empress Wang.
While there was much joy on this side, Xu Zhen, who had just arrived at Taiyi Mountain, was also taken aback by two good pieces of news.
The first piece of good news was naturally about the copper mines. With those copper mines, Yan Lide and others began directing the craftsmen to build and create the most essential machinery. It was believed that the entire project would be completed in no time.
The second piece of good news delighted Xu Zhen even more. After several days and nights of research and experimentation, Yan Lide finally managed to completely open the Zoroastrianism Cipher Tube and Ahriman's Seal!
Moya, who had a much deeper understanding of Zoroastrianism's history than Xu Zhen, immediately took what was retrieved from the Cipher Tube for further study. It was said that Xu Zhen rushed out to Taiyi Mountain's secret realm without even wearing shoes.
"That is a map! A map!"
Upon hearing this, Xu Zhen felt quite disappointed. If it was a map, it was likely a treasure map related to Zoroastrianism. He didn't care about his third-rank position as Minister of War; why would he go through all that trouble following a map to seek treasure?
Moya seemed to see through Xu Zhen's thoughts and quickly explained, "My lord should not be disheartened; this is not a treasure map..."
Upon hearing this, Xu Zhen suddenly felt a glimmer of hope rise within him. His eyes brightened as he excitedly asked, "If it's not a treasure map, could it truly be the hiding place of the dark demon army?"
Looking at the surprised face of Xu Zhen, Moya smiled slightly but gently shook his head and said, "It can be said to be so, but it can also be said not to be. The origins of this matter will require me to explain in detail with you..."
It was unclear how long it had been when Moya finally walked out of the room, leaving Xu Zhen alone in deep thought. After a long while, he suddenly burst into laughter. He grabbed paper and pen and began writing furiously, unknowingly working until late into the night.
Li Chunfeng had long wanted to have an in-depth conversation with Xu Zhen; however, since Xu Zhen had confined himself in his room and hadn't even eaten dinner, Li Chunfeng ordered food and wine to be prepared and personally brought a food box to his door.
He gently knocked on the door but was surprised when it opened.
Xu Zhen was still bent over her desk, completely absorbed in her writing. Li Chunfeng smiled lightly and walked up behind her, gently pushing her back.
"Why is Brother Xu working so diligently, to the point of neglecting food and sleep?"
Xu Zhen smiled without answering, flicked her wrist to write the final stroke, blew on the ink, and gathered the pages filled with tiny characters on the desk before handing them to Li Chunfeng.
After Xu Zhen took a break to eat, it was Li Chunfeng's turn to lock himself in his room. He looked at the nearly one hundred pages in his hand, and a storm of emotions surged within him.
The more he read, the more captivated he became, eventually reaching a state similar to Xu Zhen, neglecting food and sleep for an entire day and night without stepping out of his room!
It wasn't until the morning of the third day that Li Chunfeng let out a long breath, closed the pages, bound them with a cover, and wrote three words on the cover: "The Book of Prophecies"!
Opening the first page revealed two interlocking circles; one circle had the character "red" inside it, while the other had "white." Below was a prophecy that read: In the vastness of heaven and earth, there is no end; the sun and moon cycle, beginning anew. The verse stated: Since Pangu to Xi Yi, the battles between tigers and dragons are indeed extraordinary. Understanding the true meaning of cycles lies in discussing the original mechanism after Tang.
(Note: The Book of Prophecies is considered the foremost book of prophecies in China, predicting China's fate for 2000 years after the Tang Dynasty.)
Comment 0 Comment Count