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People often say that the Unforgivable Sin, with Rebellion at its forefront, is something that emperors throughout history have dreaded the most. Just looking at the Tang Dynasty alone, in a span of merely twenty to thirty years, there have been numerous instances of Rebellion, with countless individuals executed as a result.
Wu Mei was the most favored; Li Zhi listened to her every word. After hearing what she said, Li Zhi felt a chilling sensation in his heart, and his body involuntarily trembled.
"The Consort and the princesses are actually colluding with civil and military officials to plot Rebellion!" Such accusations are not something one can casually utter. Even though Wu Mei was Li Zhi's most beloved woman, without evidence, he could not recklessly tarnish others' reputations; this was a capital offense. Moreover, she was accusing two princesses and two Consorts, along with a large group of esteemed officials and the son of a founding elder, including the soon-to-be Consort, Xu Zhen!
After these past two or three years, Li Zhi had come to truly admire the wisdom and foresight of the late emperor. He genuinely intended to accept and rely on Xu Zhen.
Had it been anyone else reporting this matter, Li Zhi might have immediately killed the informant. However, this person happened to be Wu Mei, whom he trusted the most. The usually indecisive Li Zhi suddenly fell into a state of panic.
He wanted to reinstate Xu Zhen because he recognized her talents. Ever since Xu Zhen accepted Li Zhi's olive branch, he secretly felt relieved because he knew that having someone like Xu Zhen as an ally was far better than having her as an enemy.
If Xu Zhen were indeed plotting against him, it would be catastrophic!
"Wife Mei, is there any solid evidence for this?" Having been a ruler for quite some time now, Li Zhi had gradually developed the composure befitting a king. He was no longer that young monarch controlled by Changsun Wuji. Steadying his mind, he furrowed his brow and asked.
Princess Gaoyang could never have imagined that her lover Chen Xuan Yuan would betray her by exposing their plans for Rebellion to Wu Mei in order to gain credit.
Wu Mei understood that framing someone could lead to her losing favor, so she presented Chen Xuan Yuan's Confidential Report to Li Zhi. Princess Gaoyang was also superstitious; she had made Chen Xuan Yuan observe celestial phenomena at night to divine the empire's fortunes—this was strictly forbidden in ancient times!
Not only that, after obtaining the Confidential Report, Wu Mei sent people out to investigate this matter thoroughly. Since Xue Wanche and others were ill and remained in the capital, although it took some effort, they managed to uncover the truth and traced it back to Fang Yi'ai and others who had bribed Xu Zhen under the pretense of congratulating her!
After reading the Confidential Report, Li Zhi's heart tightened painfully. His decision to reinstate Xu Zhen had been made after careful consideration and great resolve; however, he never expected that she would be involved in this matter!
He had to admit that he felt a sense of jealousy towards Xu Zhen. The late emperor's appreciation for her even surpassed that for Li Zhi himself. The military elders regarded Xu Zhen with special favor; during the Goguryeo campaign, she had saved the emperor twice, which further solidified her position as a trusted confidante.
It could be said that Xu Zhen's rise to prominence at such a young age was largely due to Emperor Taizong's support.
The intensity of this cultivation is akin to how the former Emperor nurtured Tubo and Li Chengqian. Although others may not have commented on it, and perhaps even Xu Zhen herself did not feel it, Emperor Taizong was treating Xu Zhen as if she were his own son.
This is also one of the sources of Li Zhi's jealousy towards Xu Zhen. If it weren't for the need to regain control of the court, he would not have decisively pulled Xu Zhen back into his camp.
However, just as Xu Zhen was being promoted to such an important third-rank position as Minister of War, this incident occurred!
Wu Mei is now enjoying extreme favor, surpassing all in the harem, even making Empress Wang retreat. Everything she has is granted by Li Zhi, and she has no grievances against Xu Zhen; there is absolutely no reason for her to risk her life and fortune to slander Xu Zhen. At least, that is what Li Zhi thinks.
If he knew that Wu Mei treated Xu Zhen this way solely because Xu Zhen had stolen the heart of her beloved, how would Li Zhi face that?
Given the seriousness of the situation, Li Zhi could not act hastily. He instructed Wu Mei to keep the secret and not to alert anyone. He quickly summoned Murong Hanzhu to the palace.
He had thought Changsun Wuji was reliable, but this uncle-in-law always regarded him as a child who had not grown up. He believed that Xu Zhen was sent by the late emperor to assist him, but now with solid evidence, it was clear that Xu Zhen was plotting rebellion.
After going around in circles, he still felt that Murong Hanzhu was the one he could truly trust. Murong Hanzhu possessed Changsun Wuji's strategies and wisdom but came from a noble family without the constraints of Changsun Wuji's title as uncle-in-law, allowing Li Zhi to feel his own sense of control.
Murong Hanzhu would not make Li Zhi feel jealousy like Xu Zhen did. It was only now that Li Zhi realized that the truly dependable person was this scatterbrained attendant he had personally promoted!
He did not hide anything from Murong Hanzhu. After listening to the situation, Murong Hanzhu feigned surprise. This information had been deliberately leaked by him through Chen Xuan Yuan to Wu Mei, using her to bring it to the emperor's ears. It could be said that he had been orchestrating the entire plan all along!
He was not a military general and could not seek merit on the battlefield. As a civil official, what could be more meritorious than resolving a major rebellion through clever dialogue? He needed to enhance Li Zhi's trust in him; besides personally fabricating a rebellion, he also needed to quell it and use this rebellion to eliminate all those who opposed him!
He had promised to give Princess Guanghua a city; now Guanghua had returned to this city, and what remained was how to elevate Guanghua to the position of city lord.
With this thought in mind, Murong Hanzhu felt a surge of confidence and ambition. He composed himself and solemnly reported back to Li Zhi.
"Sage, this matter is of great importance. Even if the intelligence is accurate, we must not act rashly or alert anyone. We should strategize quietly and make proper arrangements, even luring them out into the open so we can justifiably eliminate these traitors. Otherwise, given their popularity and influence, even if we decisively execute them, there will likely be many who are dissatisfied among the populace—one or two may imitate them—and we cannot rush into it..."
Li Zhi felt an overwhelming urgency, wishing he could immediately capture and behead these people to make an example of them. However, it was undeniable that Murong Hanzhu's considerations were more thorough and his vision more far-reaching than his own.
He was also in a state of turmoil; the thought of Xu Zhen being involved ignited a fierce blaze of hatred within him. This anger from betrayal consumed his rationality entirely, leaving him with no choice but to let Murong Hanzhu handle the matter.
"Cui Qing is right. In that case, I will entrust this matter entirely to Cui Qing. You may act with the Secret Edict as you see fit. The Imperial Guards can be commanded by Cui Qing, but ensure that nothing goes wrong and eliminate all these thieves!"
"Understood! I will not fail the Sage's trust!" Murong Hanzhu was overjoyed upon hearing this, though he suppressed his excitement. With a stern gaze and serious demeanor, he bowed and took three steps back before turning to leave.
After leaving the palace, Murong Hanzhu tightly gripped the Secret Edict in his hand, his eyes filled with coldness. If he could not defeat Xu Zhen this time, he would have no place left to go!
Xu Zhen suddenly sneezed for no reason and muttered, "Who is thinking about me again?"
Sitting across from her, Chen Shuo Zhen furrowed her brows. She looked at the map on the rolled table and asked Xu Zhen heavily, "Have you really decided? What will happen if you fail?"
Xu Zhen chuckled confidently and replied, "By handing this over to you, I'm leaving myself a way out. If I fail, my life and everything I have will be entirely in your hands!"
Chen Shuo Zhen was now well aware of Xu Zhen's identity. She never expected to encounter someone like her in such a place. She wanted to join Xu Zhen's ultimate plan, but unfortunately, Xu Zhen's methods could not be applied to her.
She wanted to persuade Xu Zhen to stay, but since Xu Zhen was determined otherwise, she felt helpless. Now that Xu Zhen had handed her the map from the Cipher Tube, Chen Shuo Zhen had no reason to refuse.
After bidding farewell to Chen Shuo Zhen, Xu Zhen took a trip to Taiyi Mountain before returning home.
Just as she settled in and changed her clothes, Li Wushuang entered the room with an invitation from Liu Shen and discussed it with Xu Zhen.
Without a moment's hesitation, Xu Zhen agreed and headed to Liu Shen's residence for the banquet the next day at noon.
Such a family banquet typically involved only very close acquaintances; Xu Zhen's invitation indicated that Liu Shen held her in high regard.
The family banquet was filled with joy. Under the suggestion of Liu Shen, he and the Xu Zhen took a walk beneath the Pavilion in the residence, enjoying warm wine and snow while sharing their innermost thoughts.
Liu Shen then brought up the matter of establishing Li Zhong as the crown prince. He intended to offer significant benefits to the Xu Zhen, but to his surprise, she readily agreed, which delighted him.
Three days later, during the grand court assembly, Liu Shen indeed allied with a group of civil officials to propose Li Zhong's ascension as crown prince. Zhu Suiliang and other civil officials quickly expressed their support, and the Xu Zhen also endorsed the proposal.
Li Zhi had no intention of appointing an heir, but seeing that the Xu Zhen was also present at the Court Meeting, he feared alarming anyone and had no choice but to agree. This led to a moment of great joy for everyone involved.
However, upon further reflection, he devised a plan to implement Murong Hanzhu's strategy and decided to put the wedding between the Xu Zhen and Li Mingda on the agenda as well.
The requests from Liu Shen and others were granted approval, marking a time of celebration. In return, there was no dissent regarding Li Zhi's decision; even Minister of Rites Xu Jingzong surprisingly refrained from contesting it through ceremonial laws.
After the Court Meeting, it was decided that the marriage between the Xu Zhen and Li Mingda would be set for January of next year. With just over ten days left until the new year, preparations could begin afterward.
Once news of Li Zhong being named crown prince reached the imperial harem, Empress Wang was naturally overjoyed. However, Wu Mei felt a significant threat; after uncovering the details of the situation, her hatred for the Xu Zhen deepened. She went to whisper in Li Zhi's ear, prompting him to summon Murong Hanzhu once again.
Murong Hanzhu smiled confidently and said, "Sage need not worry; this matter is assured!"
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