Chapter 944: Your Majesty is the King
Not long after Luo Junwei sent the letter, Wu Zhao received a beautiful jade from Luo Su. Although Luo Su did not say a word, Wu Zhao knew that she was indeed on the right track.
"The key to politics is to take sides!"
This is the truth that Wu Zhao discovered when she was in her twenties.
After thinking that everything was ready, Wu Zhao launched a fierce attack on the throne of Queen.
Of course, she is now just a Zhaoyi. Although she has the emperor's favor, she still lacks effective means to deal with foreign courts, so she still has to start with Emperor Li Zhi.
But Wu Zhao had already chosen her track, which was - to regain the imperial power for Emperor Li Zhi!
Since Zhangsun Wuji is unwilling to return power, then just take it over.
Since the Queen and the Crown Prince began to rely on Zhangsun Wuji to maintain their status, as long as Zhangsun Wuji falls, the Queen will naturally lose power, and the new political forces will definitely strip the Queen and the Crown Prince of their status.
At that time, you don’t even need to do anything.
The difficulty in seizing power actually lies in the emperor's own thoughts.
Changsun Wuji was the Shangshu Zuo Pushe, which meant he was the de facto chief prime minister. He was also Li Zhi's uncle, a founding hero, the second in the Lingyan Pavilion, and the regent appointed by the previous emperor. All these titles on his head were like layers of halos, which made Li Zhi feel suffocated. Li Zhi was originally weak in character and had great fear of Changsun Wuji.
But Wu Zhao didn't think so.
She lost her father at a young age, and then she and her mother and sister were driven out by the uncles and brothers of the Wu family. She entered the palace and suffered a lot, and endured for so many years before she finally got her reward. She has an extremely firm mind and has almost no fear of most people.
Be polite before using force.
Wu Zhao decided to give Changsun Wuji a chance and let the emperor show weakness first. This idea coincided with Li Zhi's idea. He did not have the courage to go against Changsun Wuji, so he decided to discuss it with Changsun Wuji. Over the past years, everyone had become accustomed to this way of getting along.
But the final outcome was a failure. Zhangsun Wuji used a tough attitude to reject Li Zhi's idea of making Wu Zhao the queen. When leaving Zhaoguogong Mansion, Li Zhi was extremely angry, but also felt sad, and Wu Zhao...
…
In the palace, Wu Zhao was happily telling Luo Junwei about this matter. She was not angry at all because of Zhangsun Wuji's opposition. Instead, it was exactly what she wanted.
Luo Junwei's position as female historian was removed from her position, and she was instead appointed to another female official position, the chief priest of the Qingjiao Academy. This was a female official appointed by Wu Zetian in the palace to teach etiquette to the princes and princesses.
More government offices can be set up in the palace. From this we can see that Wu Zhao’s power now actually exceeds that of the queen.
"Chang Sun Wuji is too arrogant. Your Majesty is very angry. Anger is a good emotion. Only when people are angry will they do many things that they would not dare to do under normal circumstances.
Princess, I told His Majesty yesterday that I would promote the Duke of Yong to the position of Minister of Works, and the Duke of Ying to the position of Minister of Works. The Duke of Yong will be promoted to the position of Minister of the Right, and the Duke of Ying to the position of Minister of War, and both will be promoted to the third rank of the Secretariat."
Luo Junwei was stunned when she heard that. In today's Tang Dynasty, the prime ministers were only Shangshu Zuo Pushe, Zhongshu Ling, Menxia Shizhong, and Tongzhongshu Menxia Sanpin.
He suddenly gave the two Lingyan Pavilion meritorious officials the title of Three Dukes, and at the same time he was actually appointed as prime minister, and then he slowly and solemnly said: "Your Majesty, does he dare?"
Did he dare to rebel against Duke Zhao?
Wu Zhao narrowed her eyes slightly, "Changsun Wuji has angered His Majesty. His Majesty feels like he is entangled in layers of spider webs, and it is almost difficult for him to breathe. He struggles hard to break free from the web woven by Changsun Wuji and his accomplices, and the Duke of Yong and the Duke of Ying are the sharp blades that can cut through the spider webs."
Luo Junwei has been at the center of the government for many years and has a clear understanding of the current situation in the Tang Dynasty. Zhangsun Wuji and his party are indeed a bit too ostentatious. "Brother, I will find a chance to talk to you, but you may think that changing the queen and prime minister is related to the country's major plans."
Wu Zhao smiled and waved her hand, her eyes were quite deep, and she didn't know where she was looking. "No hurry, it's not the last moment yet, and we don't need a heavyweight like Duke Yong to take action. What we need now are some thugs. Has Zhangsun Wuji really taken control of the court?
I don't think so. There must be many people who are dissatisfied with Zhangsun Wuji. Among these people, are there any who are capable and can be used by me and Your Majesty?"
…
In the Taiji Hall, Li Zhi was playing chess with Luo Junzhuo. Luo Junzhuo had been promoted very quickly in recent years, but he was also a military officer. As everyone knows, it is not easy for a military officer to be appointed as a prime minister, and even after being appointed as a prime minister, he is basically a mascot.
After all, he had never served in the Six Ministries, nor had he experienced the training of civil service positions such as the Hongwenguan and Jixiandian, nor had he held any government office in the local area, so it was difficult for him to make the right choices regarding state affairs.
Moreover, in recent years, Zhangsun Wuji has been in control of the government, and he has the final say in the government hall. If Luo Junzhuo is really sent over, he will be suppressed for nothing.
In terms of other identities, Luo Junzhuo is not afraid of Changsun Wuji, but the first in Lingyan Pavilion is Luo Xuanye, and the second is Changsun Wuji. This makes Luo Junzhuo very passive.
Li Zhi was a little upset while playing chess, and said gloomily: "Zi Yang, why is it so difficult for me to be the emperor?
Has there ever been a king more aggrieved than me since ancient times?
I cannot even make a woman I like my queen, and I do not have the slightest say in government affairs."
Luo Junzhuo seemed to be thinking about something. "Your Majesty, my elder sister once mentioned this matter. She said that Your Majesty's power is actually very great, but Your Majesty just doesn't use it. But my sister only mentioned it briefly, and I didn't ask any more questions."
"My cousin said that?"
Li Zhi was a little surprised, but then he felt it was very reasonable. Li Zhi knew his cousin quite well.
When he was still young, Luo Junwei often went to the palace, more frequently than now, and would often help take care of them children.
Since the Luo family's return to the south, the trend of men leading the military and women leading government has become stronger.
Starting from Prince Zhou Luo Xuanye, Luo Xuanxing, Luo Xuanling and Luo Xuanyun, and later Luo Juncheng, Luo Junjun, Luo Junlie and Luo Junzhuo, are all military generals.
Only Luo Xuanchen is a civil servant.
This was out of consideration for maintaining military honors. For the Luo family, on the one hand, civil skills require too much talent, while on the other hand, military skills are relatively more advantageous. But the disadvantage is that in a relatively stable dynasty, when there is no fierce struggle to the point of overturning the table, the prime minister has greater influence.
Luo Junwei is the most outstanding political person among this generation of Luo family members. Luo Su sent her into the palace with the consideration of a woman ruling the country. Since it is a new era, women without Luo family are naturally not beautiful.
After Luo Junzhuo left, Li Zhi pondered for a moment. He knew that Luo Junwei often went to Wu Zhao's palace. Thinking of this, he decided to find Luo Junwei and hear what his cousin had to say.
Luo Junzhuo left the Taiji Hall and turned around a corridor, his expression instantly froze. As a close minister of Li Zhi, in the eyes of many people, he was the second Prince Zhou Luo Xuanye, but Luo Junzhuo himself knew that was not the case.
Among the current Luo family, he is indeed the one with the closest relationship to the emperor. He also married Princess Jinyang, who is Li Zhi's most beloved sister. Throughout the Tang Dynasty, no minister has a closer relationship with Li Zhi than him.
But deep down in his heart he knew that his relationship with the current emperor was not as good as that between his father and the previous emperor. There was a slight difference.
As for the reason…
Luo Junzhuo shook his head slightly. It would be better not to say anything. He just had to be careful and must not do anything by relying on the fact that he had known the emperor since childhood.
Although he had the powerful connections of the Luo family and was not in danger of life and death, it was still inevitable that he would be demoted. One must know that Luo Xuanchen was dismissed from his position as prime minister twice. In this political arena, only the emperor was difficult to depose.
Li Zhi was quite anxious, so he quickly went to the Jiaolan Palace. When he arrived at the palace, Luo Junwei happened to be there.
After Wu Zetian welcomed Li Zhi in, Li Zhi did not beat around the bush and directly asked his doubts, hoping that Luo Junwei could answer them for him.
Luo Junwei didn't expect that Li Zhi would ask this question. She hesitated for a moment before decisively saying, "Your Majesty, I have a question. Do you think the Grand Commandant poses any threat to your throne?"
Li Zhi burst out laughing and said, "Of course not. He is just a civil official. The ones who hold the military power are Sikong and Situ. Huh?"
Li Zhi realized that his throne would only be stable if he had the support of the army. Even if Changsun Wuji was so arrogant, without military power, what big waves could he cause?
Wu Zhao was more talented in this area than Li Zhi. Moreover, Luo Junwei had hinted at many things to her before, and she almost immediately realized the deeper things.
Changsun Wuji's power is indeed very strong. His level of power as a prime minister is extremely rare from ancient times to the present, but in essence, it is still the power of a prime minister!
What is the power of the prime minister?
Starting from the system of three provinces and six ministries, this was voluntarily given up by Li Shimin so that the prime minister could check and balance the emperor. In other words, the power of the prime minister was a transfer of imperial power, and this power could be taken back at any time as long as the imperial power was willing.
Unless Xiang Quan can complete the upgrade.
For example, the power of the prime minister becomes the power of regent, or the power of the prime minister is completely above the imperial power. No matter which one it is, it actually means just one thing, that is, to have the power to depose and enthrone the emperor. Only with this power in hand can one gain the upper hand and ultimately win in the struggle with imperial power.
In other words, whoever has the power to depose the other will be the ultimate winner.
This is the fundamental nature of political struggle!
Does Zhangsun Wuji have the ability to depose Li Zhi?
Not at all!
He had never thought of deposing Li Zhi. Deep down in his heart, Changsun Wuji was a loyal minister, but his ideas were different from Li Zhi's.
The most famous case in history where a proposal to change the crown prince was rejected was during the early Han Dynasty, when Emperor Gaozu of Han wanted to change the crown prince. However, he was fought back by the Luo and Lu families, who led the founding heroes, and he finally gave up the idea.
That is a typical case where the emperor was completely unable to interfere in this matter. Almost all the ministers opposed it, including all of Liu Bang's close ministers. Moreover, Luo and Lu were too powerful, so powerful that even Liu Bang despaired.
And what about Changsun Wuji now?
He didn't even have any allies in the army, and relying solely on his own strength, he actually overestimated his own capabilities and wanted to confront the emperor.
Luo Xuanling didn't want to have anything to do with Changsun Wuji at all. This was because Changsun Wuji was too outrageous. His power came from Li Zhi. It was because Li Zhi was young and ignorant at the time, so he temporarily gave the power to him to manage. As a result, Changsun Wuji actually felt that Li Zhi could not take back this power.
Using the emperor's power to suppress the emperor, no one knows how Changsun Wuji died.
With just one sentence, the light in Wu Zhao's eyes became brighter and brighter, and then she felt Luo Junwei gently pinching her plump thigh. She turned her head slightly and saw Luo Junwei gently shaking her head, signaling her not to talk more. Wu Zhao was startled and nodded slowly.
Li Zhi had come back to his senses, with a look of surprise on his face, "My cousin is indeed a talented person who can assist the king, and she is from the famous Luo family. What you just said was really an enlightenment for me.
Since my throne cannot be deposed by the Duke of Zhao, I can fight with him bit by bit. Even if I fail, I still have countless opportunities to make a comeback. But the Duke of Zhao cannot afford to lose. As long as there is one chance, he will be completely defeated. "
Wu Zhao did not speak out what she had just thought of, but said with a slightly stern look: "Your Majesty, it is not just that. You are the real king. It is up to you to decide whether to promote or demote."
yes.
A fierce look also appeared in Li Zhi's eyes. This was the king who was almost born invincible. As long as the court was not united, he would always be able to find those who wanted to take the throne and attack Changsun Wuji again and again.
but.
When Li Zhi thought about launching an attack on Zhangsun Wuji, he became hesitant again. Wu Zhao, who knew Li Zhi well, said directly: "Your Majesty, are you willing to live like this for the rest of your life?
That thing originally belonged to you. Is there any reason to hesitate about taking it back?
I don’t think so. How many years have you been crowned?
In the past, the regents of the Luo family all chose to return power after the Zhou and Han emperors were crowned. But now Zhangsun Wuji is just a minister of state, but he has seized power and is unwilling to return it to Your Majesty. I feel deeply sad for Your Majesty!"
Li Zhi's character was somewhat weak, but Wu Zhao was not. Once she made up her mind about something, she would definitely do it. If you want to make her turn back, you have to get herself beaten to a bloody pulp.
No matter how weak Li Zhi was, as a king, he had an extremely strong obsession with power. In the Luo clan, the opinion of King Yi of Zhou and Emperor Hui of Han had always been very high. Even most monarchs, even if they knew they had no ability, would still cling to power tightly. As for what the world would become, that was not what they cared about.
Now, after hearing Wu Zetian's words, all the resentment Li Zhi had towards Changsun Wuji was aroused. He thought of the countless times he had wanted to do something, but was always beaten back by Changsun Wuji. He thought of himself, as the supreme emperor, but being ignored by his subjects in the empire.
Although the Yonghui Reign was named after him, everyone knew that it was the achievement of Zhangsun Wuji.
Li Zhi said slowly: "Over the years, the Taiwei has controlled the government and demoted those ministers who disobeyed him. As a result, the court is now full of his accomplices. In the government hall, he almost makes the final decision. I am deeply ashamed of this.
Are there no other ministers in this world?
I remember that there were quite a few people who were ministers praised by the previous emperor during the Zhenguan period. However, when I ascended the throne, these people were demoted by the Grand Marshal and Chu Suiliang.
The party unites to attack the dissidents, how hateful! "
If you want to launch an attack on Changsun Wuji, you have to organize a strong political team, or at least there must be someone in the court who speaks for you.
As the emperor, if he directly used all kinds of unreasonable attitudes to confront Changsun Wuji and used means that violated political rules, Duke Yong would not support him, but this was not the case for others.
It's time to send out the strongest signal possible.
Let everyone in the world know that I want to replace the queen and make Wu Zetian the queen, and see if there is anyone in the court who will speak for me.
Is there?
Of course!
And there are indeed quite a few of them. In the political arena, there has never been a shortage of speculators or people who take risks to get to power, although history has proven that these people do not end up well in the end, and they will lose the status they obtained in the same way.
But most people still flock to it, thinking that they will be the special one and that they will always be on the side of the winner.
Even a smart person like Changsun Wuji fell into arrogance.
…
The emperor wanted to change the queen, and the reason was childlessness, which was one of the seven reasons for divorce. But Wu Zetian had a son, not just one, and she was fertile and very fertile. At this time, she had all the advantages.
But the ministers were also quite tough. The Queen had no children now, but that didn't mean she wouldn't have any in the future. Although being childless was one of the seven reasons for divorce, the Queen was only in her twenties. How did you know that she couldn't have children in the future? Moreover, you, the Emperor, didn't even sleep with the Queen. If the Queen was really pregnant, that would be a big problem.
The most important thing is, "The country already has a crown prince. Even though the queen does not have a biological son, according to etiquette and law, she already has a legitimate eldest son. Your Majesty does not need to worry about this anymore."
This sentence really pissed off Li Zhi.
The prince was forced to be appointed as the crown prince in the first place, and now this matter was used to provoke him. Li Zhi left in anger, and the ministers also left unhappily.
During the Yonghui period, the clear sky seemed to be filled with dark clouds.
Many people were paying attention to this matter. It seemed that such a fierce struggle suddenly broke out between the emperor and the prime minister, which shocked many people. At the same time, many people hoped to find some opportunities from it.
The Mansion of Duke Yong.
The Luo family has actually participated in this war. Both Luo Junwei and Luo Junzhuo have in fact stood on the side of Li Zhi and Wu Zhao.
After all, no matter how you look at it, Changsun Wuji is not reliable, and he is indeed in the wrong in this matter. He used the emperor's power to ask the emperor to shut up. Even King Luo Wen was not so arrogant.
As for replacing the queen without reason, and the fact that the prince must be replaced after the queen is replaced, it should not be done logically.
But what the queen represents and the attitude she displays in her daily life are original sins. She is an obstacle to the great cause and does not know how to take the initiative to avoid suspicion, so the only option is to declare war.
Moreover, there is another very important reason why the Luo family has always been able to easily survive political struggles, that is, the Luo family is truly clean and has the ability to prove their innocence.
In political struggles, in order to kill political enemies, false accusations often occur, or an issue that is not a big deal in normal times is seized upon to torture someone to death.
And the Luo family.
Thanks to his extremely strict family education and his cautiousness in daily life, he rarely sits in a way that would cause him to be knocked down.
Secondly, there is the matter of false accusation. So far, no one who has falsely accused Luo has been able to see the next day's sunrise alive. Even when the censor impeached him, he would not report it based on hearsay. After all, Luo attaches great importance to his reputation. If someone is framed without real evidence, the end will not be good.
In this political arena, almost no one is innocent. As long as you find problems, few people will be wrongly accused. This gave Li Zhi and Wu Zhao an opportunity.
Luo Xuanling, the most powerful figure in the Luo family, has not yet made a real statement. Only Wu Zhao knows that at the critical moment, Luo Xuanling will stand on her side and give Changsun Wuji a fatal blow.
Luo Xuanling quietly waited for the final outcome. Changsun Wuji had indeed become a little arrogant in recent years. It was said that he had even asked others who had a higher status between the Changsun family and the Luo family.
After knowing this, Luo Xuanling sneered and felt that Changsun Wuji really deserved his death.
Who is your Changsun family? Not to mention the long historical heritage, nor such useless things as bloodline.
Just look at the reputation of my Luo family in the world and how many contributions we have made to the Chinese nation. Are you and I on the same level?
No matter where my Luo family goes, even to the Western Regions, Liaodong, or the grasslands, as long as we show our holy mark, we can hold a high position. What does your Changsun family have that can compare with my Luo family?
It's really crazy.
It has always been Zhangsun Wuji who has been excluding dissidents, and Li Zhi, who has no tentacles in the outer court, could only watch passively. But now he has gathered a large number of ministers who are willing to fight for him.
Most of these ministers were people who found it difficult to gain benefits in the order led by Changsun Wuji. Their eyes turned red and they were ready to fight. They launched a desperate charge towards Changsun Wuji, determined to fight him to the death.
The winner will gain all the glory, power and status, while the loser will leave Chang'an, the center of the world, in disgrace.
Under the instigation of Wu Zhao, Li Zhi brazenly attacked the generals of Zhangsun Wuji's group. Chu Suiliang left Chang'an sadly on a bleak autumn morning. He was demoted to Hongzhou. His carriage had just reached Luoyang when officials from Chang'an issued a new decree to him, which was to demote him to Guangzhou.
That is the real Lingnan area, full of miasma. Among the six kingdoms, it is also a very strange place. I wonder which prince will be enfeoffed there in the future.
When Chu Suiliang received the news, he was extremely distraught. Until now, he still didn't understand why the emperor suddenly became tough and why these imperial decrees could actually be issued.
The system of three provinces cannot really refute the emperor's edict. Thinking of this, Chu Suiliang suddenly felt a little scared.
He felt that this demotion seemed different from the last time. The last time he was demoted to Qinzhou, which was right next to Chang'an in Guanzhong. It had nothing to do with being demoted at all. It was just like a vacation.
But this time, he could not even be called demoted, it was just like being exiled.
He looked back at Chang'an City and seemed to see Changsun Wuji, the leader of the faction. He felt a deep chill. What did the emperor's attitude mean?
Chu Suiliang didn’t know, and he didn’t want to know.
The demotion of a prime minister was an extreme shock to the imperial court, especially to Changsun Wuji, who felt a chill in his heart.
Because according to common sense, it was impossible for Chu Suiliang to be demoted, but the reason for this was that Li Ji, Duke of Ying, and Luo Xuanling, Duke of Yong, spoke, and Li Zhi seized the opportunity of Chu Suiliang's corruption and demoted him.
Regarding the matter of making Wu Zhao the empress, Changsun Wuji originally thought that at least Luo Xuanling would stand on his side, but he did not expect Luo Xuanling to say, "The empress has no children, so the prince is adopted as her son, but for the country, this is ultimately a hidden danger.
Although the etiquette and laws are strict, there have been many major events since ancient times, and people’s hearts cannot but be considered.”
He is not my biological son, so this is a big problem.
When Luo Xuanling said this, Changsun Wuji was stunned. Isn't it enough to be his son according to the etiquette? Why must he be a son by blood?
Wasn’t this etiquette established by your Luo family ancestors?
If Luo Xuanling knew, he would definitely tell him. These things were formulated more than a thousand years ago. Could they be the same back then as they are now?
The rituals and music have been in disarray for so many years that even if we restore the old order, it is impossible to completely restore the old order.
Can biological children and non-biological children be the same?
The relationship between the emperor and the empress is bad, the relationship between the emperor and the crown prince is bad, the crown prince has no maternal family, and the empress is not smart.
This thing is a big thunder at first glance. You, Changsun Wuji, have nothing to do but support such a queen and prince. I, the Luo family, will not go crazy with you.
Zhangsun Wuji, who had been defying the emperor all along, wanted to retreat the moment he felt Luo Xuanling's statement. This time he really wanted to leave because he knew that it was a foregone conclusion that Wu Zhao would become the queen.
If you don't leave now, you may never be able to leave.
It's fine to deal with the emperor or the Luo family alone, but Changsun Wuji is not that stupid to fight against both of them at the same time. But now that things have come to this, there are people who don't want him to leave.
That is Li Zhi and Wu Zhao!
Li Zhi had suffered so much in the past years. He had no gratitude but only resentment towards Changsun Wuji, so he wanted to take out all his anger on Changsun Wuji!
(End of this chapter)
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