Chapter 943 Wu Zhao holds the key to the times!
A sharp blade rose from the Tai Chi Hall, and its edge seemed to be able to kill someone directly.
Wu Zhao's bedroom was not particularly magnificent. She was the most favored by Li Zhi in the palace, so she naturally received many rewards, but she distributed them all to other palace maids. For Wu Zhao, this was just like a natural gift.
"Princess, this is a fruit sent back by express horse from Yizhou. It's called lychee. Try it."
Wu Zhao peeled the lychee and fed it to her. Her fingers were white and tender, even three points brighter than the lychee flesh. Luo Junwei opened her cherry lips and swallowed the flesh. The sweet juice burst in her mouth, leaving her with an endless aftertaste and reluctant to leave.
Seeing this, Wu Zhao smiled and took a lychee to feed herself, squinting her eyes slightly. In this palace where murderous intentions were lurking at all times, Wu Zhao would not trust anyone, including the emperor Li Zhi whom she loved. The emperor's promises were like used waste paper, and only a foolish woman would believe the emperor's vows of love.
Wu Zhao would use her actual actions to make Li Zhi always trust her, like her, and stand on her side, but the initiative must be in her hands, rather than relying entirely on the emperor's so-called love. She, Wu Zhao, was not a delicate little lady, she had her own schemes and means.
But the Luo Junwei in front of her is different. If there is one person in this world who she can really trust 100%, it is Luo Junwei. This is an extremely complicated feeling.
"Have you been to the Imperial Master these days? I haven't seen the Imperial Master for many years. I wonder if he is in good health?"
Wu Zhao brought up the topic and directed it to Luo Su. Luo Junwei smiled slightly, "The old ancestor is immune to all diseases. He sits in the Lingtian Pavilion, overlooking the world. All clues cannot escape the old ancestor's sight."
Wu Zhao paused, and then surprise flashed in her eyes, "Then I feel relieved."
Luo Junwei nodded slightly when she heard this. The words between the two seemed to be a witty remark, but this was precisely mutual respect. Luo Junwei was a female historian and had the responsibility to record historical facts, but some things did not need to be recorded, so Wu Zhao could not make many words too clear, otherwise it would embarrass Luo Junwei.
It's a pity that female family members who stay in the palace for a long time are either palace maids, concubines and female officials, or female historians. Luo Junwei certainly cannot hold the above-mentioned palace positions, so she must have the identity of female historian to stay in the palace for a long time. Otherwise, Wu Zhao really wants to suggest Li Zhi to replace Luo Junwei's position of female historian, so that she won't have to beat around the bush when speaking.
Wu Zhao thought for a moment and said slowly, "The Queen has no children, so she wants to adopt a maid's son as the eldest son. This is because a minister from the outer court wrote to Your Majesty, asking him to establish a crown prince to rectify the country. Alas, in my opinion, this will not stabilize the country, but will bring disaster."
Luo Junwei's expression was stern. The queen had no son, which was a major factor in the instability of the queen's position. In actual history, this was not the first time such a situation had occurred. Adopting a prince of humble status was the best way to solve this problem.
The prince of humble status suddenly became the eldest son, and the queen was able to smoothly consolidate her position and become the empress dowager in the future. She was also able to suppress the emperor. It can be said to be a win-win move in the struggle for power.
However, whether the adoption of a prince can be successful does not depend on the queen herself, but on the attitude of the emperor and the attitude of the outer court, that is, who has the final say. Only when that person makes the final decision can this matter be successful.
Now, the person who can decide this matter in the outer court is Zhangsun Wuji, and the attitude of Emperor Li Zhi is not very important.
In fact, Li Zhi was very averse to establishing a crown prince, especially when his ministers forced him to do so. Li Zhi was born in the second year of Zhenguan, and he was still very young. He thought it was completely untimely for him to establish a crown prince. The fight for the crown prince position also left a shadow in his heart.
The most important thing is that the two people who wanted to establish a crown prince were the empress and Zhangsun Wuji, both of whom were the people he hated the most at the moment. The inner court and the outer court joined forces to establish a crown prince, which made Li Zhi even more angry and frightened.
What does this mean?
Now that the crown prince has been appointed, does that mean that if I, the emperor, am displeased, I can be replaced?
It was human nature for Li Zhi to have such thoughts. As the Son of Heaven, he had always been on the margins of the political arena. Now, there was a person with the title of "Lord" in the imperial palace. He was like a tiger whose territory had been invaded. The hairs on his body stood up. His already limited sense of security was completely stimulated.
Wu Zhao keenly felt that this incident would be of great help to her plan. She had been thinking about how to connect the Queen and Zhangsun Wuji. Now without her adding fuel to the fire, the two of them took the initiative to get closer. It was like God was helping her.
After hearing Wu Zhao's sigh, Luo Junwei, as a good supporting actor, immediately asked: "The crown prince should be appointed early to ensure the safety of the country. Why does Zhao Yi say that he is causing trouble for the country?"
Wu Zhao said softly: "How can the position of Crown Prince be established so easily?
Since the founding of the Tang Dynasty, the outcome caused by the wrong person being entrusted with the position of crown prince, isn’t this a warning to us?
The country has no legitimate son, and the crown prince is the foundation of the country. Your Majesty does not appoint a crown prince because he wants to consider the various princes and choose the wise and capable ones among them to truly stabilize the foundation of the country.
But now, the position of crown prince has become a tool for some people to fight for power and the basis for some people to make a living.
Doesn’t this put the individual above the country?
I think this is incorrect, so I feel deeply saddened by it."
These words made Luo Junwei smile and nod, "What Zhaoyi said makes sense. I'm sure your majesty will be pleased by these words. After hearing these words, some people in the outer court will also understand the concerns of Zhaoyi and your majesty."
The word "Crown Prince" is not a sacred word at all in the current Tang Dynasty, because the Tang Dynasty has just entered its third generation, and the previous two generations of Crown Princes were unable to ascend the throne due to various reasons.
Whether to the emperor, empress or courtiers in the outer court, the crown prince is just a bigger target. Of course, this does not mean that the position of the crown prince is not important. As the defender, as long as he can withstand the winds from all sides, he can win everything in the end, which is half a point better than others.
Wu Zhao was very happy to be recognized by Luo Junwei. Luo Junwei was willing to spread these words, which was to help Wu Zhao.
Wu Zhao's goal was simple. She wanted to please Li Zhi. At this moment, she still stood with Li Zhi. She also used Zhangsun Wuji's act of appointing him as the crown prince to build her own power, regardless of the future image of the court.
And the prince who might be appointed as the crown prince will also be burdened with a reputation that he became the crown prince because Zhangsun Wuji wanted power for himself and the queen wanted to find someone who is easy to control. He himself is a person with neither moral character nor ability. Wu Zhao's move kills three birds with one stone. It is simple but effective.
Wu Zhao's ultimate goal is to get the help of the Luo family and let Duke Yong really help Li Zhi. Now the person who can most influence Duke Yong is the national teacher. As long as the national teacher reveals a little bit of his intention, Duke Yong will go all out.
As for how to influence the Imperial Master, Wu Zhao whispered, "Princess, I haven't seen the Imperial Master for many years and I miss him very much. Would you be willing to deliver a letter to the Imperial Master for me?"
Luo Junwei narrowed her eyes slightly, "Of course it's fine, please ask Zhao Yi to write the letter."
Wu Zhao smiled and said, "No need to write. The princess can memorize it after reading it, so just convey it verbally. I believe the princess will not open the letter to read it."
Luo Junwei almost couldn't hold it together.
Wu Zhao asked Luo Junwei to convey the message verbally and also asked Luo Junwei to pretend that she didn't know the content of the letter.
Really good at joking.
After Wu Zhao made a joke, her expression became a little more serious. "The Imperial Master personally wrote:
In the past few years, I have been accompanying Your Majesty in governing the country and have seen some realities about the Tang Dynasty, from which I have discovered some inappropriate trends.
Since the Zhenguan period, the system of enfeoffment was widely implemented, and many kings and dukes went out to establish their own kingdoms. Although this led to a lot of development, another problem arose.
During the pre-Han period, kings and princes rose and fell, and there were many cases of white-robed ministers. During the post-Han period, the powerful families were strong, but with the struggles between foreign relatives and eunuchs, many of them were destroyed. The Yuan family of Runan had three dukes in four generations, but they were only prosperous for a few decades.
After the fall of the Eastern Han Dynasty, the aristocratic families became increasingly powerful, but they rose and fell quickly, and many of their branches were destroyed.
The gentry in Shandong and Jiangnan now rely on the reputation of their ancestors to serve as officials and gain respect from the world. However, according to the practice of the past three hundred years, if no one is prominent after many generations, they will eventually decline.
I believe that the imperial examination will be the way to change all this.
But from what I have seen over the years, these high-ranking families, relying on the external expansion of the kings and dukes, many of their sons and daughters have been promoted due to their meritorious service. They have been promoted in the kingdoms and duchies, and then transferred to the Central Plains through the recommendation of their clans and in-laws. In just ten years, most of the official positions above the sixth rank in the Tang Dynasty were occupied by these high-ranking families.
I am deeply terrified, and believe that this trend must not be allowed to continue, otherwise the Tang Dynasty will be in ruins.
Now Queen Wang and Concubine Xiao Shufei are from prominent families, and Zhangsun Wuji is also from Guanlong, and has many connections with the old families. The world has become stagnant. I think this is definitely not a scene that the Imperial Master wants to see."
Luo Junwei looked at Wu Zhao deeply, with no surprise in her eyes, just a smile. This was the Wu Zhao she knew, who was always able to keenly realize the key to the problem.
At this crucial moment of the confrontation, she grasped the issue that the Luo family or Luo Su was very concerned about, that is, the complete solidification of the upper class.
This is the inevitable result of the feudal system. The feudal system does not simply enfeoff nobles outside and conduct imperial examinations in counties inside.
Even in the era of the Zhou Dynasty, which had a complete feudal system, the princes were seeking to enter the emperor's royal capital to govern and become the Three Masters or Three Dukes. For example, the Luo family had governed the royal capital for nine consecutive generations.
The same is true for the present Tang Dynasty. The feudal kingdoms and principalities are not completely independent of the Tang Dynasty. They are still the territory of the Tang Dynasty. All under heaven belongs to the king, and all the people in the world are the king's subjects.
Then there is a very important question. Let's forget about the six big kingdoms, but what about the princes and nobles of those small kingdoms and principalities? Are we really going to let them stay in the country for their whole lives without giving them any opportunities for advancement?
Impossible!
Wouldn't that be disloyal?
And not to mention the princes and nobles, will their descendants and the powerful families who followed them abroad never come back?
That's even more impossible.
After these aristocratic families go out, it is easier for them to make contributions than ordinary people. Once they are awarded titles, coupled with their already strong connections, even if the Ministry of Personnel wants to block these people from being selected as officials, it will not be able to find a suitable reason.
Even if people from poor families pass the imperial examination, they can become officials from the ninth rank, but these powerful families are officials of the sixth or seventh rank right from the start, and they are promoted faster later on. With their merits, it is only natural for them to be promoted.
As long as the cost of the imperial examination is reduced, the large number of poor families can compete with the wealthy and powerful families.
The enfeoffment was a game that was difficult for the poor to participate in. What was even more terrifying was that the enfeoffment was equivalent to giving the rich and powerful families an opportunity to show off their merits. People from the rich and powerful families, especially those in the current Zhu Xia, those children of noble families who had private troops, would not easily die on the battlefield.
With merits and connections, why should the poor fight against the powerful families?
This is why Luo Xuanchen felt a little desperate when he knew that the feudal system would be opened up. He knew that the imperial examination system would be killed.
But the feudal system can effectively develop the various states. This is the thousand-year plan of our ancestors. What else can he say?
I can only say that it was bad luck.
Wu Zhao saw this. Although this consequence was caused by the Imperial Master, Wu Zhao knew that the Imperial Master was not willing to see this completely. She had sensed this after having been with Luo Junwei for so many years.
Opening up upward channels is a very important thing for Luo's company.
Although this situation cannot be completely reversed now, it does not mean that we should allow it to continue. As long as we can curb the speed at which it solidifies, it will be good governance.
It would definitely be impossible for Queen Wang and Zhangsun Wuji to continue doing this.
Only her, Wu Zhao.
Only she could see this and was willing to put it into practice. Wu Zhao was born in a poor family. Her ancestors had no prominent background. Her father was a businessman. The so-called clan power was just a small family. With the passing of her father, it had begun to decline gradually.
She had no burden and could suppress those aristocratic families with all her strength, and she could also influence Emperor Li Zhi, but this required one thing, that is, she could become the queen and she had to be able to grasp power.
"Zhao Yi, the ancestors will definitely like your letter. You have touched one of the key keys to this era."
There was a beautiful light in Luo Junwei's eyes, and she spoke very seriously.
One of the key keys to unlock Luo's secrets.
Wu Zhao suddenly felt relaxed. She chuckled twice and then said in a low voice: "I hope to meet the Imperial Master soon."
(End of this chapter)
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