Start with detective Li Yuanfang

Chapter 389
Purple Palace.

Changshengyuan.

After Empress Wu moved to Luoyang, she moved here to live.

Empress Wu has always liked Luoyang's luxurious architectural style. Perhaps what she most agrees with is Yang Guang's architectural ideas, but after Li Hong succeeded to the throne, there was no major construction.

The current treasury situation is not the exhaustion of the late Gaozong in history. After all, since the disastrous defeat in the Battle of Dafeichuan, Datang has not lost to Tubo one after another, but has achieved considerable victories.

As a result, the commercial roads in the Western Regions were unimpeded, and the countries followed suit and paid tribute very diligently. After Tuyuhun was restored to the country, a large amount of livestock, cattle and sheep were imported to Longyou. In addition, Li Hong and the people did not make any major moves, and the treasury was full. At that time, Empress Wu suggested that a Vientiane Shrine should be built to demonstrate the authority of the emperor.

Vientiane Shrine is another name of Mingtang. At the beginning of construction, the idea was to be an important ritual building for saints to govern and sacrifice. It is not meaningless, but after referring to the opinions of the officials, Li Hong felt that the current Not at the right time, the proposal was rejected.

Empress Wu was quite disappointed.

Of course, creating a spectacle is a hobby after all, and what she is currently concerned about is still the situation in the court.

Recently, bandits and bandits in the south of the Yangtze River have been rampant, making it impossible for the governments of the states to contain it, and the people are in chaos. Although it has not reached the point of directly rebelling, it is not stable.

The DPRK and China will naturally send officials to calm the chaos, including the five prime ministers, all of whom have recommended candidates.

Empress Wu was concerned about someone else. At this time, she put down the transcribed records and nodded to Eunuch Cai: "You did a good job. Di Huaiying's experience is very complete. Even the records he checked by the inner guard None of the cases were missed."

Eunuch Cai said happily: "It is my great fortune to be able to share the empress dowager's worries!"

Empress Wu asked again: "What is the attitude of all the officials in the court now to Li Yuanfang's recommendation of Di Huaiying as the governor of the south of the Yangtze River?"

Eunuch Cai said: "Most of them are not optimistic. That Di Sicheng is capable of solving cases, but how can a mere Dali Sicheng be able to sort out the current chaos in the south of the Yangtze River? What's more, he has to cooperate with the Meihua inner guard. The plum blossom guards don't even like it!"

Empress Wu was noncommittal, and continued to ask: "Who are there who are strongly opposed?"

Eunuch Cai said: "There are not many people who oppose fiercely. After all, Li Yuanfang is fierce... Uh, but I heard that Lai Shilang directly laughed at Di Huaiying in Shangshu Province. He dared to stand up for such things..."

He knew the empress dowager's likes and dislikes, and felt that the other party's morale had just been boosted, so he hurriedly added: "Li Yuanfang made a foolish trick this time, and I don't know how many people are waiting to see his jokes. Queen Mother."

The words fell, but there was no expected approval. Instead, Empress Wu looked down coldly: "Just because you hate Li Yuanfang, you expect him to fail in everything? This palace has taught you a lot these days, and you still have such a vision?"

Eunuch Cai turned pale with shock, and hurriedly knelt down, sweating and said: "The Queen Mother forgives the sin! The Queen Mother forgives the sin!"

Empress Wu picked up the case record again, looked it over again, and her gaze flickered slightly: "Li Yuanfang is so arrogant in his bones that he dares to pave the way for his cronies to be prime minister. I hope that the Di Huaiying recommended by him can really calm down. The chaos in the south of the Yangtze River..."

Eunuch Cai was in a daze, while Eunuch Gao, who was standing beside him with his head bowed, thought for a while and said, "The queen mother wants to come to serve as her servant?"

Empress Wu showed a bit of approval: "Yes, if this Di Huaiying is really incompetent, then Li Yuanfang's improper recommendation of talents is at most a slight loss of prestige. What is it to him? But if Di Huaiying is really If you can put down the chaos in the south of the Yangtze River, then Hengke will lose face!"

As soon as Eunuch Gao heard Empress Wu addressing her by name, she knew that she looked down on Lai Heng, and she was even worse than the sixth-rank Dali Temple Prime Minister.

But then Empress Wu ordered: "From now on, you should contact the people around Laiheng, and you must get in touch with him privately before the Jiangnan Rebellion comes to an end, understand?"

Eunuch Cai kowtowed again and again: "Yes! I will do it well!"

The servants that Empress Wu has cultivated are far more than the two of them. If he can't handle the errands well, then there is no possibility of turning over.

Empress Wu admired Eunuch Cai's ruthlessness and loyalty, but knew that this person was only doing small things. Looking at Eunuch Gao, she patiently said: "The Zhengxi army is about to return to the court, and Qiu Ying is among them. You healed him before, Make good contact with him, the palace needs the support of the oldest cabinet leader."

Eunuch Gao hesitated and said: "But Li Geling has already seen through... Qiu Geling's role in the Liangzhou Jia thief case, I'm afraid he was prepared."

Empress Wu sneered: "Of course Li Yuanfang was on guard, but he was brought out by Qiu Ying. The two have different feelings. Do you think he would not be selfish? If he was really upright, he would have arrested Qiu Ying for interrogation." , do you still have to wait now?"

Eunuch Gao had no choice but to accept the order: "I understand!"

Empress Wu waved her hand: "Back off!"

Eunuch Gao and Eunuch Cai stepped back, and passed by the other two eunuchs who entered the hall.

Eunuch Cai collided with their eyes, full of competition and vigilance, and left quickly as soon as he left the palace.

With a sense of crisis, he became more and more motivated to complete the task entrusted by the Queen Mother.

Eunuch Gao took his time and stopped outside the hall, running the light energy in his body, and vaguely heard a few key words in the conversation in the hall, all of which involved Cao Si, the newly established department of the sage.

His head was lowered, his eyes flickered for a moment, and he turned to leave.

Empress Wu in the hall summoned ten batches of servants, with a high stack of documents piled up beside her.

There are quite a few literate servants in the palace, but the handwriting inevitably has its own characteristics and looks very tired, but Empress Wu read it carefully without hesitation, and immediately gained a deep understanding of the situation in the court.

I didn't find out before that these servants are quite capable, and the troubles in the palace can't be hidden from them.

Li Hong's choice not to put her under house arrest is wise, but even if she loses her wife, she still has ways to influence the court.

Empress Wu felt a pain in her heart when she thought of her life.

After what happened to Wu's son, the wives were able to deal with it superficially in Chang'an at first, but they didn't even do superficial skills when they arrived in Luoyang. There are few people here.

The prestige she had built up through her ten years of hard work and painstaking efforts was completely lost in just half a year because of this opportunity.

After all, everyone knows the truth of that incident. Who would risk their reputation to get close to a queen mother who is obviously disliked by the saint?

As he was dying, when he was full of anger, the palace maid came to report: "Duke Zhou entered the palace to pay his respects."

Empress Wu gritted her teeth: "Here again? Saint, you are so cruel!"

She sincerely hoped that Wu's children would stay in Chang'an, but Li Hongsheng was afraid that these people would stay there and do evil, so he brought them to Luoyang, and asked Wu Chengsi to visit the palace every day to pay his respects.

At this time, seeing Wu Chengsi's wretched figure walking in, Empress Wu closed her eyes slightly, and silently chanted: "An unbearable, unmoving, is like the earth, and deep meditation, like a secret treasure..."

She must take good care of her body, and must not be angry, must not be angry.

Wu Chengsi approached, knelt down to pay his respects, and said in a respectful manner: "I pay my respects to the Queen Mother. May the Queen Mother be in good health and have a long life."

Empress Wu hummed softly, as if facing a servant: "Get up...retire without incident..."

Wu Chengsi breathed a sigh of relief, feeling that since coming to Luoyang, this aunt has treated him much more pleasantly.

In this case, he has been brewing for a long time, and finally he can say what he thinks is a decent and progressive statement: "I report to the Queen Mother, the thief of Wu Yizong wanted to misbehave with his wife, and he did it alone. The Empress Dowager shares her worries... ah!!"

This sentence is too lethal, and the Buddhist scriptures can't stop Empress Wu from breaking her defenses. The veins on her forehead popped up. She picked up the bottle at hand and smashed it down hard:
"Get out!! Get me out of here!!"

……

at the same time.

In the Li Mansion.

Li Yan was a little moved when he read the letter, because it detailed Empress Wu's recent movements and plans.

He got up and saluted: "Thank you, Neiguan Xu, for taking a huge risk to deliver the letter. I will always remember your friendship."

This internal officer Xu is one of the three servants under the eunuch Gao, and hurriedly returned the salute: "I am willing to help you. I followed Li Ge all the way back to Chang'an in the past. At that time, there was a catastrophe in the pass, and only Li Ge was willing to risk his life." The disaster, speaking for the common people, the slaves have always kept it in their hearts..."

Li Yan nodded slightly, and said apologetically, "You are also helping me at the risk of beheading. If the queen mother finds out, I can't intervene in the affairs of the harem in time. I can only ask the queen, maybe it will be too late... And I have to tell the truth, I can hardly change the status of the servant."

Most of those who were sent to the palace to be castrated were poor children from poor families. He sympathized with them, but he knew very well that the group of eunuchs could not stand up.

Maybe there are a few good eunuchs occasionally, but this is an inevitably distorted group, which is of no benefit to the country or the people, and it is not even an inevitable extension of imperial power, it is just a shortcut regardless of the consequences.

So Li Yan directly put the ugly words in front of him. After all, he has the confidence to deal with Empress Wu even without the help of his servants.

Eunuch Xu's eyes darkened when he heard the words, but he was also mentally prepared: "Leader Li, to tell the truth, has always regarded us as human beings from the beginning to the end. Slaves and others with physical disabilities are willing to work for Leader Li. risk!"

"Thank you! If Empress Wu finds out, you must notify me immediately, and I will try my best to protect your safety!"

Li Yan thanked him sincerely, and carefully read Eunuch Gao's letter again, his eyes fell on the last line, and his heart couldn't help feeling warm.

It was written in very serious handwriting, one stroke at a time:

"Moral support from many, scant support."

(End of this chapter)