After being dressed as Wu Zetian's daughter, she was favored by the group

Chapter 103 Forcing the Palace
With the addition of the prime minister, Empress Wu's strength has greatly increased.

The court immediately fell into a fierce argument, and the officials of the two factions blushed so much that they almost rolled up their sleeves.

Li Zhi couldn't stand this messy scene the most, he rubbed his painful temple, picked up the incense burner next to him and threw it out.

With a "snap", the incense burner hit the floor, ash was scattered everywhere, and smoke rose.

Seeing that the emperor was angry, the ministers stopped arguing and bowed their heads to plead guilty.

As soon as the court fell silent, Hao Chujun, a veteran in the political arena, immediately seized the opportunity and remonstrated loudly:
"Your Majesty, Prime Minister Pei kept saying that there is no such precedent for "the empress goes out of the palace to wear mourning". Then I would like to ask, is there any precedent for 'the empress participates in politics during the mourning period'?"

After finishing speaking, he turned his head to look at Pei Yan, and asked: "Pei Xiang, it's useless for you to read the books of sages, don't you even understand the principle of 'the dilemma of loyalty and filial piety'? If you want to be loyal, then tell the world and don't respect Confucianism and etiquette; if the queen wants to be filial, then stay away from the court and wear cloth and hemp! There is no reason to have both..."

Hao Chujun was completely desperate, and at the end, he nodded to Li Zhi, wept and said: "Your Majesty, I have been in the court for more than [-] years, and I only serve the empress of Ming Dynasty. If the empress insists on staying in the palace for mourning, I ask for your majesty's permission." , Let the minister tell his old age and return to his hometown!"

Seeing that Hao Chujun actually used 'resignation' to force him, Li Zhi's original shame towards this old official was gone, he was about to say yes, but Xiao Yuanzhao, the servant of the Ministry of Rites, nodded and said:

"Your Majesty, I read the books of sages and sages, understand the way of sages, and act with virtue. If the queen despises filial piety, I would like to resign from the position of Minister of Rites!"

It seems that the righteousness is awe-inspiring, but in fact it is for the sake of prudence and protection. Xiao Yuanzhao knows in his heart that once he fails to defeat Empress Wu, what awaits him will be retaliation from Empress Wu. This method not only forced the emperor to express his position, but also left himself a way out.

As soon as Xiao Yuanzhao asked to resign, Dai Youde, Minister of the Household Department, Zhang Cang, Minister of Zhongshu, and Li Song, the Minister of Political Affairs, all followed suit. In a blink of an eye, the court knelt down again.

"Chen Huangmen servant, Yao Wenshuo, please resign!"

"Chen Shangshu Zuo Cheng, Zhang Zhongzhi, please resign!"

"Chen Guozi Siye, Zhao Zhonghui, would like to resign"

……

Pei Yan looked at the officials who had resigned, and didn't say anything more, but chose to stay out of the matter, and began to watch from the sidelines again.

Li Zhi was so angry that he stood up from the dragon chair again. The reason why he was angry was not only because of Empress Wu, but because the courtiers threatened and forced him by resigning from office, which made him feel very embarrassed and humiliated.

As the emperor of the Tang Dynasty, if he really complied with his subjects' wishes and made a compromise, then his king's face and authority would definitely be despised and shaken, and this is exactly what a king cannot tolerate.

"You guys are so brave. You dare to threaten me with this. Do you really think that I won't dare to deal with you?"

Li Zhi roared furiously, and then ordered without hesitation:
"Come on! Take down this gang of rebellious officials and thieves!"

The left and right Jinwu guards waved their hands, and countless Jinwu guards rushed in and pushed all the officials who had resigned to the ground.

Seeing that a court turmoil was about to happen, Empress Wu's voice came out from the curtain:
"stop!!"

Simple two words, but revealing absolute majesty.

The two maids in charge of the curtain opened the bead curtain, and Empress Wu got up and walked slowly to the front of the stage.

When the ministers saw Empress Wu coming out, no matter whether they were civil servants or military generals, they couldn't bear the chills on their backs. Those timid fence-sitters and defectors buried their heads deeply and kept silent like a cicada.

If I remember correctly, this is the second time that Empress Wu walked from behind the curtain to the front of the stage. The first time was when Prime Minister Shangguanyi abolished the empress at the court meeting.

"Meiniang, why do you..."

Li Zhi wanted to go forward to appease, but Empress Wu waved her hand to signal that she was fine.

With steady steps, she walked to the edge of the imperial platform, and then looked down at the civil and military men of the court. The strong sense of oppression that emanated made the originally noisy Xuanzheng Hall instantly silent.

"You have spent a lot of trouble, don't you just want me to go back to Dongdu to mourn? Well, I will fulfill you!"

　Sorry, I'm outside, typing on my phone, so I can only post this tonight.

　　
　
(End of this chapter)