People in the early Tang Dynasty: I compete with Wu Zhao for the throne

Chapter 1535: The Emperor's Will in King Peng's Hands

In front of the gate of Huiyou Palace, Qiu Huan stood in awe.

Deep in the hall, Shangguan Wan'er lowered her head cautiously.

Countless faint breathing sounds flashed by inside and outside.

Facing Empress Wu's questioning, Li Xuan finally hesitated, but after a moment, he raised his head and said seriously: "Your Majesty, in my opinion, the Prince of Xiang and Your Majesty are more like brothers and sisters, and the Prince of Xiang is also a capable person. If possible, I hope that the Prince of Xiang can serve as the governor of Yongzhou for two years."

Empress Wu looked up in surprise. She didn't expect Li Xuan to say that.

Li Xuan bowed slightly, and then said: "This year you will continue to serve as the governor of Luozhou, and next year you will be transferred to the governor of Yongzhou. After three years, the prince can be transferred to another place to take up a real position, such as Jiangnan or Yizhou, to serve as a governor. After a few more years, when the world is stable, you can be transferred back to serve as a minister of the imperial clan."

After a short pause, Li Xuan smiled calmly and said, "If nothing unexpected happens, I will probably return to Chang'an after the Prince of Xiang is transferred, and then I will transfer the Prince of Xiang back when it is time for me to leave."

Although it is undeniable that the four brothers Li Hong, Li Xian, Li Xian and Li Dan had some power struggles with each other, in fact they all intended to control themselves within a very small range.

The relationship between the three brothers is rarely harmonious.

Of course, this is also related to the fact that they are not very old.

Another thing is that the late emperor always appointed a crown prince very quickly, so that others would not have too many extravagant hopes.

Even Li Xian, who realized early on that he had a good chance of becoming the crown prince, did so because of Li Hong's poor health.

Therefore, if Empress Wu had not interfered, Li Xuan would have really helped Li Dan to have a good future.

The sincerity in Li Xuan's words made Empress Wu fall silent.

She nodded slightly, then raised her head and asked, "The late emperor appointed Pei Yan as the assistant minister to lead the Political Affairs Hall... When do you think it would be best to make adjustments to the Political Affairs Hall?"

Li Xuan couldn't help but fall silent.

Is it something he can easily say?

If things go wrong, he may tell Empress Wu about it today, and she will tell it to other people tomorrow.

After a moment of silence, Li Xuan finally began to speak: "Reporting to the Queen, the position of Prime Minister is based on qualifications, merits, and the emperor's trust.

Now that the new emperor has ascended the throne, it is understandable to adjust the prime minister, but once the political situation is stable, it is better not to easily change the prime minister... even if there is a vacancy. "

Empress Wu nodded and then asked, "What do you think of the prime ministers, ministers, and generals in the court?"

"minister……"

……

Just as Empress Wu summoned Li Xuan in Huiyou Hall and the entire palace was paying attention, in Liqi Pavilion in a remote corner of the northwest, an old man with a head full of white hair was gradually waiting for the sound of life to stop.

This person was none other than the Eunuch Supervisor, Wang Fulai.

Wang Fulai was lying alone in the cold corner of the attic. He could clearly hear the guards patrolling back and forth in the corner outside. He didn't know how many people were waiting for him to die, overtly or covertly.

Suddenly, an extremely slight sound of footsteps flashed in the shadows behind the curtain.

The curtains swayed slightly, and it seemed that no one noticed, but Wang Fulai knew that someone was coming.

“It’s useless. You’ve used this trick three times. Although the people who came were different, their purpose was to get something from me. But you are wrong. There are some things that I would rather take to the underworld to see the late emperor than say a word to you.” Wang Fulai sat up a little, looked up and sneered.

Although his words were extremely cold, there was still a hint of longing in his eyes as he looked at the newcomer. Even his voice was deliberately kept at a level where only two people could hear it.

"In the first year of Longshuo, Emperor Xiaojing moved to the Eastern Palace and selected thirty people from the inner court to enter the Eastern Palace. At that time, it was the prince who personally selected them." Xu Lu walked out of the dark shadows, looked at Wang Fulai with a complicated expression, and said, "Xu Lu, the Junior Supervisor of the Crown Prince, greets the prince."

Looking at Xu Lu, Wang Fulai was stunned. He never thought that among so many people in the palace, it was Xu Lu who came here at the last moment of his life.

"Yes, although you have been in the East Palace for many years, you have actually been in the palace for even longer. You are familiar with everything here, and you are low-key enough in the East Palace, so no one will notice your thoughts." Wang Fulai sighed and said, "You are a close confidant who is filial to the emperor. It seems that you still can't mind his death."

Xu Lu looked at Wang Fulai calmly without saying a word, but his fists were clenched.

Wang Fulai raised his head and glanced out the window. The footsteps of the guards outside had become steady.

"Tell the emperor to be careful of the inner guards."

Wang Fulai turned around and looked at Xu Lu, sneered slightly, and said: "Tell him, let him know that the most powerful and easiest to kill people in the palace are the inner guards."

"Half of the inner guards are eunuchs, and the other half are palace maids. Lord Wang is in charge of the eunuchs, and Lord Qiu is in charge of the palace maids. Now, the eunuchs should have fallen into Fan Yunxian's hands. In other words, Fan Yunxian has completely become the Queen Mother's person." Xu Lu deduced everything in an instant.

When the emperor was in the inner palace, Empress Wu's spies were watching him every step he took.

This means that everything he has is under the control of Empress Wu.

"Only those of you who come from the Eastern Palace are wholeheartedly loyal to the emperor, while everyone else is deceived." Wang Fulai had a bitter smile on his face.

After the death of the late emperor, Empress Wu quietly won over the commanders of the inner guards in the name of the late emperor. Everyone else thought they were loyal to the late emperor, but in fact their loyalty was stolen by Empress Wu.

"Was Lord Wang killed because he discovered this?" Xu Lu looked at Wang Fulai carefully.

Wang Fulai fell silent, then shook his head and said, "It's not because of this."

"Because what?" Xu Lu took a step forward slightly, his eyes fixed on Wang Fulai.

This was the reason why he came here today. "Promise me one thing." Wang Fulai looked up at Xu Lu.

Xu Lu suddenly fell silent. Wang Fulai had been an old man in the palace since the time of Emperor Taizong. Later, because of the Empress Dowager, he became a confidant of the previous emperor. Now even the new emperor trusted him. However, the sudden onset of typhoid fever directly sent Wang Fulai to his death.

Once he dies, all the secrets he knows will be completely destroyed.

"What's the matter? Tell me." Xu Lu's voice became cautious.

"Do you know Wang Yinke, the chief secretary of King Peng?" Wang Fulai asked, and Xu Lu suddenly stared at him intently.

Wang Fulai smiled, and looked very proud!
"Ahem..." Wang Fulai couldn't help coughing twice, looking at Wang Yinke, he said proudly: "You are indeed King Peng's man."

Xu Lu did not continue speaking, his eyes fixed on Wang Fulai.

Wang Fulai smiled and waved his hands, saying, "Don't worry, I won't tell anyone else about you, and I don't have the time."

Xu Lu remained silent.

Wang Fulai restrained his voice and said softly, "It is actually very difficult to hide Prince Peng's actions. You are an old friend from the time when you were filial to the emperor. You are here again today, which means you have connections outside the palace. The only person you can contact is Princess Dai, and the person who has taken the most care of Princess Dai over the years is Prince Peng."

After hearing what Wang Fu said, Xu Lu suddenly relaxed.

Wang Fu looked at him and nodded, "That's right, as long as you don't have any contact with Princess Dai anymore, no one will be able to suspect you."

"So, let's say a word to King Peng." Wang Fulai raised his head and looked at Xu Lu with pleading.

Xu Lu blinked and nodded slightly.

"If Prince Peng returns to Chang'an one day, let him tell Wang Yinke the truth about my death." Wang Fulai looked straight at Xu Lu.

Xu Lu remained silent.

Wang Fulai looked up calmly and said softly, "Prince Peng is not an ordinary person. If he returns to Chang'an in the future, it means that something has happened to your majesty. He also has the last will of the previous emperor in his hand, so I'm afraid he will have to do something."

Xu Lu remained silent.

"Prince Peng is a rare figure in the world. He is the person the late emperor used to consolidate the emperor's foundation. With him around, even if there is any chaos, it can be dealt with. But too many people know about the matter of the will, especially the Queen Mother. If he can escape from the Queen Mother's hands, it will be difficult for him to get back to her." Wang Fulai sighed.

"Wang Yinke." Xu Lu finally couldn't help it.

Li Xuan is currently being summoned by Empress Wu, and because of this, all eyes in the palace are on that place.

Even Wang Fulai, who was under strict surveillance, still couldn't avoid revealing some loopholes.

But this time cannot be too long, so we need to hurry up.

Another thing is Li Xuan. If Empress Wu really wants to do something against him, Xu Lu will need to find a way to remind the emperor.

Wang Fulai calmly raised his head and looked at Xu Lu, and said softly: "You know, my last name is Wang, but you probably don't know that I am actually from the Wang family of Taiyuan."

Xu Lu suddenly looked up and looked at Wang Fulai in surprise.

"Back then, I followed Concubine Wang into the palace." Wang Fulai saw Xu Lu's surprised look, shook his head and said, "She is not Concubine Peng, but Concubine Jiang. Concubine Peng is from the Longmen Wang family, while Concubine Jiang is from the Taiyuan Wang family. There is a difference."

Xu Lu lowered his head slightly.

Wang Fulai continued, "At that time, Concubine Wang's status in the palace was not high. Later, with the arrival of Prince Jiang, her status was gradually raised. Later, Emperor Taizong died of illness, and Concubine Wang became Prince Jiang's concubine and followed Prince Jiang out of the palace. A few years later, she died, and I was forgotten."

"But at that time, the Queen Mother had already entered the palace." Xu Lu looked straight at Wang Fulai.

"When Queen Wang died, Concubine Dowager Jiang had already died, so King Jiang was not involved, nor was I involved. Moreover, King Jiang didn't even know who I was, and Queen Wang also didn't know that I was from the same clan. The people around her didn't even look at me, and there was no contact, so Queen Wang's affairs didn't involve me either."

Wang Fulai sighed slightly. Sometimes, when you encounter bad things, being different is really a bad thing.

"After that, I completely severed my relationship with the Wang family, until later, when my sister-in-law secretly sent my nephew here." Wang Fulai did not name anyone, but Xu Lu already knew that this person must be Wang Yinke.

Wang Fulai was born into the Wang family of Taiyuan, and Wang Yinke was naturally also from the Wang family of Taiyuan. Wang Yinke's parents died at the hands of Empress Wu, so Wang Yinke was raised by Wang Fulai until today, and Wang Yinke didn't even know that he was born into the Wang family of Taiyuan.

And Wang Yinke is now a close confidant of Empress Wu. After Wang Fulai's death, his hatred for Empress Wu will become even greater.

Moreover, he was born into the Wang family of Taiyuan. No matter what, Empress Wu would not tolerate him.

In this way, he has only one way to go.

But when to tell Wang Yinke about his background is a very delicate issue.

If he is used well, it will bring great benefits to Li Xuan.
"How can we gain his trust?" Xu Lu stared at Wang Fulai.

"Just bring a pot of Fenjiu." Wang Fulai said in a light tone.

"Okay." Xu Lu nodded.

Wang Fulai finally breathed a sigh of relief, and finally looked up at Xu Lu and said, "Recently, Qiu Huan seems to be looking for something. It seems that the late emperor left something behind before his death, and someone took it out of the palace. If it goes as expected, that person should be a member of the Death Guard."

"Death Guard?"

(End of this chapter)