Wu Zetian knew very well that the best way to keep Li Zhi's position as crown prince was to get rid of Li Shimin!

In this way, he was in a position where the court was controlled by Changsun Wuji, and he was the legitimate son of Li Shimin and Empress Changsun, with his status as crown prince already established and announced to the world.

As long as Li Shimin is eliminated, he will be the rightful emperor of the Tang Dynasty!

However, compared to Li Zhi, who was still a greenhorn, Wu Zetian preferred Li Shimin, a peerless hero, and hoped to have children with him.

Therefore, she decided to settle for second best and start with Li Jue.

Although Geng Jingming's affair cannot depose Li Jue, it will at least make him suffer a loss and temporarily suppress the limelight of his great victory in the eastern expedition, giving Li Zhi, the rightful crown prince, a temporary respite.

Wu Meiniang stared blankly at the painted boat for a while, then returned dejectedly, pondering how to deliver an even more fatal blow to Li Jue!

The clouds dispersed and the rain ceased; the sea was calm and the river was peaceful.

Li Shimin lay wearily on the bed, while Xu Hui nestled contentedly against His Majesty's broad chest, enjoying a rare moment of tenderness.

"Your Majesty, my eldest grandson hasn't been to the palace for a long time, and I miss him terribly..."

"oh?"

Li Shimin frowned slightly upon hearing this. The reason he went to the inner palace was precisely because he was annoyed by this grandson's affairs.

Why bring him up out of the blue?

"What's wrong?"

"Could it be that the eldest grandson has offended His Majesty?"

Upon hearing this, Li Shimin shook his head in frustration.

"That's not it. The main problem is that officials in the court have been impeaching him like madmen lately!"

Why is that?

"Didn't the eldest grandson just make great contributions in Goguryeo?"

"well!"

Li Shimin sighed upon hearing this.

"If he hadn't made such a great contribution, he wouldn't be facing so many people impeaching him now."

"Recently, an official died in the court. This official was poisoned. What's more, the day before he was poisoned, he submitted a memorial impeaching Li Jue."

Xu Hui immediately understood upon hearing this.

"Your Majesty, the eldest grandson has been set up!"

Li Shimin nodded upon hearing this.

"certainly!"

"I know that grandson best. He would never stoop to such despicable tactics."

"Furthermore, Geng Jingming is not a big shot. At most, Li Jue will beat him up and then never order someone to poison him."

"Moreover, even if he were to kill someone, he would choose a knife or a bow and arrow, rather than ordering someone to poison him!"

"Poisoning?"

Xu Hui's heart skipped a beat when she heard those two words. She remembered her father saying that generally only women liked to poison.

Because women are not as strong as men, the only way they can subdue or kill others is by poisoning them.

But she didn't know whether she should say such things. After all, she was a woman too. If she said such things, how would His Majesty view her?

However, just as Xu Hui was hesitating, a hurried sound suddenly came from outside the painted boat.

"Your Majesty, great news! People from the Imperial Hospital just came to say that the Crown Princess is pregnant!"

"ah?"

Upon hearing this, Li Shimin immediately jumped off the bed.

"What? My young slave is going to be a father?"

"Yes!"

"Prepare the carriage!"

"I'm going to the Eastern Palace!"

"promise!"

Li Shimin excitedly shouted on the ground, and when he saw Xu Hui lying on the bed, he immediately waved his hand.

"What are you all standing there for? Get up and help me change my clothes!"

"promise!"

Xu Hui struggled to get up from the bed, feeling weak and sore all over. She could barely lift the belt when she was changing Li Shimin's belt.

Li Shimin also noticed Xu Hui's fatigue. He stretched out his large hand and slapped Xu Hui hard on a certain part of her body, then said with a smug look on his face.

"How about it? My sword is still sharp as ever, isn't it? Hahaha!"

Upon hearing this, Xu Hui blushed as red as an apple and lowered her head shyly, not daring to look at anyone.

"Someone, help Xu Hui change her clothes!"

At Li Shimin's command, palace maids and eunuchs immediately filed in and busied themselves with Xu Hui.

"Your Majesty, I..."

"You will accompany me to the Eastern Palace in a little while!"

"ah?"

"What do you mean, 'ah'? I'm a grown man, I wouldn't go and have private conversations with the Crown Princess, would I?"

"You are, after all, a woman, and you are about the same age as the Crown Princess, so you have more in common to talk about."

"Oh oh oh..."

Upon hearing this, Xu Hui immediately stopped resisting and obediently cooperated with the palace maids and eunuchs to change her clothes.

Before long, Xu Hui was completely transformed, her head adorned with pearls and jade.

However, Li Shimin still seemed dissatisfied, feeling that Xu Hui's attire was too plain.

"Someone, bring a set of coral jewelry from the treasury and put it on Xu Hui!"

"promise!"

Upon hearing this, Xu Hui's heart tightened, and she quickly refused.

"Your Majesty, you mustn't! The coral jewelry in the treasury was worn by the Empress Dowager back then. How could I possibly be worthy of wearing such a thing?"

Upon hearing this, Li Shimin sighed deeply.

"I told you to wear it, so wear it! Stop with the nonsense!"

In fact, the person Li Shimin most wanted to marry was Empress Zhangsun. However, she had already passed away, so he had to find a replacement.

"Oh, by the way, go to the treasury later and pick out a few sets of jewelry that the Empress used back then, and give them to the Crown Princess on my behalf!"

This time, Xu Hui did not refuse, but instead softly hummed in agreement.

In reality, Li Shimin couldn't do much when he went to the Eastern Palace. He could only talk to Li Zhi and give the Crown Princess Wang a generous reward.

To be fair, Wang was very satisfied with her daughter-in-law. Not only was she a relative of the royal family, but she herself was also a descendant of the Taiyuan Wang clan, a family that had been prominent for generations.

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