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

Chapter 1730: King Peng said that Your Highness should stay at Qianling Mausoleum to accompany the late emperor
The crescent moon is like a hook, shining on Qianling Mausoleum.

A figure stood on the top of the mountain, looking at the lights of Chang'an in the distance.

Under the moonlight, the familiar face was Princess Taiping who was supposed to have died in the fire.

He was dressed in black brocade and had a long sword hanging from his waist.

Soon, a burst of hurried footsteps appeared behind her.

Guo, who had never appeared in the entire incident, regretted standing behind Princess Taiping and bowed, "Your Highness!"

"How's the situation in Chang'an?" Princess Taiping asked calmly.

Guo Huihui hesitated for a moment, but still said, "The news that Your Highness was bewitched by the thieves and intended to seize the throne has spread throughout the world."

Princess Taiping was a little surprised: "That's all?"

"There was also news that His Highness attempted to strangle the emperor, stab Prince Yuzhang to death, and die together with Prince Dai." After a short pause, Guo Huiyue continued, "The princess's mansion was confiscated, the prince consort was demoted to a commoner, and took the young master back to Hedong."

"Huh?" Princess Taiping turned around suddenly and stared at Guo Huiyue in disbelief.

She originally thought that Xue Shao and his son Xue Chongyin would both be killed by King Peng, but she didn't expect that Li Xuan would let them go.

“All the Xue family members involved in the case, except the prince consort, were exiled to the Western Regions, all of their relatives within three generations were dismissed from office, and all of their property was confiscated… Thirty percent of the Xue family’s land was confiscated by King Peng, so in the end King Peng released the prince consort.” Guo regretted, and the corner of his mouth twitched slightly.

"How cruel!" Princess Taiping's eyes suddenly turned gloomy.

As a result, there were very few members of the Xue family who actually died at the hands of Li Xuan.

But in reality, none of the exiled people ever come back, and their families are just holding on to false expectations.

Of course, with their means, the Xue family, a noble family in Hedong, could easily find some fertile women and send them to the Western Regions to help these exiled sons give birth to children.

In this way, they have fulfilled their last duty in this life and can then wait for death.

The Xue family lost 30% of their land, and the resentment should have fallen on Li Xuan, but because Li Xuan released Xue Shao and Xue Chongyin, all the resentment eventually fell on Xue Shao and Xue Chongyin.

This father and son will not have an easy life in the Xue family in the future.

As long as this father and son are around, the Xue family’s resentment will always be there.

It would be fine if Princess Taiping didn't show up, but as soon as she showed up, the Xue family would immediately try every means to kill her.

This is Li Xuan's truly heartbreaking and brutal method.

"Isn't it time for King Peng to be crowned emperor?" Princess Taiping's face darkened.

"Now in Chang'an City, people are saying everywhere... that Emperor Taizong's bloodline is unknown, and the emperor is too young, and Prince Peng is in power. Such things are bound to continue to happen in the future." Guo regretted and couldn't help but bow slightly.

"So the best way is to replace Prince Peng as emperor." Princess Taiping's expression suddenly turned cold.

"Yes!" Guo Huiqiu continued to bow and said, "With the army under the command of King Peng, he could have forcibly usurped the throne, but he was worried that the world would be unstable if he did so, so he temporarily stabilized the world. Prime Minister Cui and His Highness saw this clearly, so they wanted to expose King Peng's true face, but they failed."

"I'm afraid he never thought that I could survive." Princess Taiping sneered.

Guo regretted and lowered his head. The reason why Princess Taiping was able to survive was all thanks to a secret passage in the Taiji Palace.

Yes, there is a secret passage in the Taiji Hall.

Not only in Taiji Hall, Liangyi Hall, Qianyang Hall, and Zhenguan Hall, but everywhere.

However, this secret passage has always been known only to the emperor.

And even if it is dismantled and rebuilt, it still cannot be opened if the mechanism is not found.

Unless, you dug the foundation.

But that would be a huge project and would take more time.

Li Xuan has always been unwilling to waste too much time on palace affairs, which can be seen from the fact that he reduced the number of palace maids.

Princess Taiping discovered the secret of Zhenguan Hall only after studying Su Liangsi's affairs.

Of course, it is possible that Li Xuan discovered the secret passage in the Zhenguan Hall, but the underground secret passages are partitioned at the points where they are connected, and they cannot be opened without finding the mechanism.

So Princess Taiping was not worried that Li Xuan would find out that she was still alive.

……

"As soon as he ascends the throne." Princess Taiping turned around again, staring towards Chang'an, and said through gritted teeth: "As soon as he ascends the throne, everyone in the world will see his true colors. At that time, I will unite with loyal people in the world and raise an army to restore my father's rule. The world will definitely return to the orthodox."

"Yes!" Guo Huiqiu bowed solemnly, but a hint of doubt flashed in his eyes. In today's world, is there anyone else that Princess Taiping can mobilize?
"Here are four letters. Send someone to deliver the first three to Suzhou, the grassland, and Silla." Princess Taiping took out four letters from her bosom, handed them to Guo Hui and said, "Send the last letter to the Chen family in Fuzhou."

"Chen family?" Guo Huiyue was slightly stunned.

"Chen Yuanguang, the General of the Left Guards and the Commander-in-Chief of the Lingnan Road, is the son of General Chen Zheng of Guide. The Chen family originally had an alliance with the Zuo Xiang family, but because the son of the Chen family died in Dunhuang, the fourth daughter of the Liu family married King Peng as a concubine. The Chen family always remembered this incident and told them that I am not dead yet, and asked them to prepare and lead an army to attack the Jiangzuo and Jiangyou areas."

There was a gleam of cruelty in Princess Taiping's eyes.

The Chen family is in Fujian, and whether it is Hongzhou or Yuezhou, it is only a thin line away.

As long as she could capture these two places, Princess Taiping would be able to establish a foothold in Jiangnan, and even go north to join forces with Prince Shu to attack Jiangnan, go north to Yangzhou, and recover Emperor Gaozong's sacred artifacts.

"Yes!" Guo regretfully took the four letters and accepted the order solemnly.

Princess Taiping looked towards Luoyang and said softly, "What a pity for the White Horse Temple and the Buddhist sect. After this time, I'm afraid they will never help me again."

The reason why the White Horse Temple helped Princess Taiping was because of Empress Wu's influence. Princess Taiping promised that no matter what Empress Wu had promised them, she would agree to the same thing, which led to the following events.

"Your Highness, where are you going next?" Guo regretfully bowed and said carefully: "Even if King Peng is now focused on ascending the throne, if Your Highness reveals even a little bit of his whereabouts and is discovered by the Qianniu Guards, then..."

"I can't stay in Yongzhou anymore, nor can I go to the Western Regions or Bingzhou. Now it seems that I can only go to Hebei." Princess Taiping looked at the starry sky in the direction of Hebei and said softly, "My uncle is the governor of Dingzhou. He may not be happy about King Peng ascending the throne. In addition, there is Di Renjie in Yingzhou, who may not be impossible to win over. If we can take over Youzhou and Jizhou and connect with Xin..."

With a "puff" sound, a cold sword suddenly pierced into Princess Taiping's abdomen.

In an instant, Princess Taiping looked up in disbelief and looked at the person she trusted the most.

Guo regretted approaching Princess Taiping, and whispered in her ear: "Prince Peng said that since Your Highness has arrived at Qianling Mausoleum, you should be buried here forever to accompany the late emperor."

Before he finished speaking, Guo Huihui twisted the hilt of the shuriken with force, and as the sword spun, Guo Huihui suddenly pulled it out.

Endless blood suddenly gushed out.

Princess Taiping’s last consciousness was the endless night sky above her head and a figure dragging her feet.

With a "thump" sound...

……

In the East Palace, Li Xuan lay on the bed on her side.

The morning light shines on the ground through the window frames of Cheng'en Hall.

A refreshing feeling.

After taking a look at Pei who was still sleeping soundly on the bed, Li Xuan gently got up.

Li Guangren's death dealt a heavy blow to the Pei family.

If Li Xuan had not agreed to give birth to a son with Pei in the future and then lied that the son was the son of a palace maid, the palace maid would have died of childbirth complications, and Li Xuan would have adopted her son to Pei as her son.

It took a lot of effort to coax Pei into accepting the situation, but after just one night, she realized the etiquette issues involved.

How could Li Xuan's son be adopted by Li Hong as his heir?

You must know that Li Xuan is Li Hong's uncle according to the legal law, and Li Xuan's son is Li Guangren's uncle. The son of Li Xuan and Pei cannot replace Li Guangren.

As a result, the relationship between the two was exposed.

This is something Pei doesn't want to see.

So in the end she could only give birth to a son, and then claim him as the son of a certain royal family member, and then adopt him to inherit Li Hong's incense.

Walking out of Cheng'en Hall, Li Xuan calmly walked into Mingde Hall.

Yu Ze was already standing in the Mingde Hall, and with a solemn expression he placed four letters in front of Li Xuan.

Li Xuan glanced at the cover, then looked at Yu Ze and said, "Change it. The letters to Fumin will continue to be sent to Fumin; the letters to Silla will continue to be sent to Silla; the letters to Turks and King Shu will be placed among the letters confiscated from the Princess's Mansion, and have the Zhongshu Sheren deliver them."

"Yes!" Yu Ze nodded solemnly, then quickly turned and left.

……

At the site of the Taiji Hall, Li Xuan couldn't help but sigh as he looked at the ruins that were being cleared.

"Send an order, order the Supervisor of the Imperial Household Wei Hongji and the Chief Architect Pei Feishu to return to Chang'an immediately to prepare for the reconstruction of the Taiji Hall." Li Xuan turned sideways.

Li Lang immediately bowed, then quickly turned and left.

Looking at the Tai Chi Hall in front of him, a hint of relief flashed in Li Xuan's eyes.

For some reason, every time he entered the Tai Chi Hall, he felt a heavy sense of oppression.

This was true even on the imperial couch.

It’s a good thing now that it has been destroyed and rebuilt, so the Taiji Hall can be made more magnificent.

Soon, Li Lang came back from outside and stood silently behind Li Xuan.

Li Xuan turned sideways and asked, "How is Luoyang going? When will the emperor return to Chang'an?"

"Your Majesty." Li Lang bowed and said seriously, "Your Majesty may have been hurt by the princess. Once he saw a lot of people, he immediately burst into tears. The imperial physician's treatment was ineffective. We can only wait for it to heal."

Li Xuan nodded slightly and said, "Okay, tell Luoyang..."

"Your Highness!" A burst of hurried footsteps, accompanied by a call, came from a distance.

Zhongshu Sheren Yang Jiong and Zhongshu Sheren Hu Yuanfan rushed out from Taiji Gate.

Walking quickly to Li Xuan, Yang Jiong hurriedly cupped his hands and said, "Your Highness, among the secret letters seized from Princess Taiping's mansion, we found news that Princess Taiping was in contact with the Turks. The Turks are planning to plunder Longxi in half a month."

Li Xuan's eyes suddenly became serious.

Hu Yuanfan bowed and said, "Also, Prince Shu is also connected to Princess Taiping. It has been verified that Prince Yuzhang brought Prince Shu's private soldiers into the capital. Please deal with Prince Shu's matter quickly."

"The letters from Prince Shu and the princess should be sent to Luoyang immediately and handed over to the prime minister and the minister of the Imperial Clan Affairs Bureau for processing." Li Xuan turned to look at Yang Jiong and said, "Immediately pass on my order to send the left and right leading guards to the grassland to investigate the Turkic people's movements. The left and right guards, the left and right guards, each with 10,000 soldiers, to follow me at any time..."

"Your Majesty!" Li Zhu, the assistant minister of the Ministry of War, suddenly rushed over from the Taiji Sect and shouted loudly, "The Turks are moving."

Li Xuan's expression suddenly became serious.

(End of this chapter)