[Another year, the second year of Tianshou.]
Peony has gradually gotten used to her life as a dog.
There is nothing wrong with being reborn as a dog. After all, Shaoyao was a worthless person when she was a human, but now she is a dog, but she is well-dressed and well-fed, and well-cared for.
Such days were as beautiful as a dream. The only bad thing was that her master was Emperor Wu, the person who indirectly caused her death.
She does not hate His Majesty.
How could she hate His Majesty?
She had done something wrong.
The Queen became His Majesty, and His Majesty is a god, a natural law, and definitely not someone that lowly people like them can talk about. It was not unfair that she was killed because of her improper words.
But although she does not hate Your Majesty, she is afraid and in awe of Him.
Living with a king is like living with a tiger. She has now been reincarnated as a beast, a beast that is more likely to die than humans. She cherishes her second chance at life as a dog.
Therefore, she was particularly clever and sensible. Although she could not speak, she tried her best to please His Majesty, and finally won some favor from His Majesty. Her status in the palace also rose rapidly. Some eunuchs and palace maids privately called her "Imperial Dog Lady."
Unexpectedly, Tuosheng was born as a dog and became an adult, which made her feel particularly novel and happy.
…
In June, the weather was getting hotter and hotter, and Peony was so hot that she could only follow her instinct and breathe out with her tongue sticking out.
Your Majesty has no time to relax in such hot weather.
She had endless memorials to review and state affairs to deal with every day. Although she had the help of Shangguan Da Ren to handle government affairs, she was still too busy to cope with them.
Shaoyao was also amazed when she saw this. No wonder only the emperor could be the emperor. Ordinary people couldn't do such a hard job.
That day, His Majesty dismissed everyone, held her in his arms, and was lost in thought, as if he was thinking about something.
Peony has also gotten used to it.
For His Majesty, this kind of solitude is a rare time of leisure and relaxation. All Shaoyao can do is to keep quiet and not disturb His Majesty's peace.
"The whole world is my enemy, they all want to pull me down." His Majesty grabbed her hair, Shaoyao didn't dare to say a word despite the pain, she quietly listened to His Majesty's secret words that could not be told to others: "So I want to let them know that I am destined to be."
"...It seems that we can only make a deal with the Buddhist sect."
Shaoyao blinked in confusion, not understanding what His Majesty was saying.
After saying this, His Majesty left in a hurry. That night, the meeting room was brightly lit and His Majesty stayed up all night.
Then came July.
When His Majesty was away, Shaoyao slipped out of the bedroom and went out to relax.
After becoming a dog, her hearing became much more sensitive and she could hear many of the palace servants' private conversations.
When she passed by a palace by chance, she vaguely heard the palace servants whispering in the room: "Have you heard that a few days ago a monk presented the "Dayun Sutra", and the sutra said that Your Majesty is the reincarnation of Maitreya Buddha!"
"No wonder your majesty can become the emperor. It turns out that Maitreya Buddha came to earth to save the people."
"What does the scripture say?"
"How would I know? But His Majesty has set up Dayun Temples in all the states of the two capitals and ordered monks to explain the scriptures. If you are curious, you can go and listen some other day."
Shaoyao's body suddenly stiffened.
For some reason, the whisper of His Majesty that day suddenly emerged in her mind.
"I want them to know my destiny."
"...It seems that we can only make a deal with the Buddhist sect."
Is this a "transaction"? 】
Liu Yinxiu said firmly: This is a "deal"!
As a well-informed person from later generations, Liu Yinxiu of course saw through Wu Zetian's operation at a glance - deification.
She packaged herself as a god walking in the world, mythologized herself, thereby gaining the people's worship and faith and consolidating her position.
Many religions operate in this way in the early stages of their development.
Although there is nothing new about it, it is enough to fool the lower-class people.
After all, Wu Zetian was a woman who became an emperor, and her position was unstable. It was understandable that she wanted to use the power of religion to legitimize her rule. This was also the skill that a mature ancient politician should have.
At this point, Liu Yinxiu became completely interested in Wu Zetian. It turned out that this first empress in history really had some skills.
[……
His Majesty is angry.
Just now, a palace maid was dragged away and beaten with a stick because she made a lot of noise when she walked.
Shaoyao hid under the bed, trembling, and dared not come out.
She was afraid that she would become a punching bag too.
Your Majesty was very happy yesterday.
Because the Tubo leader led the tribe to request submission, His Majesty was very happy and specially sent General Zhang with 20,000 elite troops to welcome them. He was also very pleased with her in private.
"The Tubo tribe admired the majesty of the heaven and surrendered to the emperor. This is an unprecedented feat and will surely go down in history." His Majesty looked up and said with great enthusiasm: "Although I am a woman, how can I not be as good as the late emperor in terms of civil and military strategies?"
But in just one day, everything changed.
His Majesty was furious and everyone in the palace was silent.
His Majesty walked around in the empty palace, growling in a low voice: "It's them! They regard me as their enemy and even colluded with foreign countries to inform them. They don't want me to accumulate merits!"
Shaoyao was full of doubts, but she could only pray that His Majesty would not remember her. She didn't want to be a punching bag.
…
A few days later, Shaoyao heard from several guards that the news of Tubo's surrender had somehow leaked out and was known to people in Tubo. They forced the leader Hesu back to the country, and the surrender naturally failed.
Only then did she realize.
Your Majesty, are you suspecting that someone in the country leaked the information, leading to the failure of surrender?
The rage that day seemed to be just an illusion. Your Majesty soon became the emperor who could not tell the difference between joy and anger again. In addition, the leader of the Qiang tribe led his tribe to surrender, and Your Majesty was in a much better mood.
Shaoyao slowly put this matter behind her.
But, she forgot, but His Majesty did not.
In September of the first year of Changshou, Your Majesty sent troops to the northwest to attack Tubo and recapture the four Anxi towns of Qiuci, Shule, Khotan, and Suiye.
When the news of victory came, Shaoyao was dozing off on the side of His Majesty's legs, when she heard His Majesty suddenly burst into hearty laughter.
"Good!" His Majesty's eyes were so hot that they seemed to be burning with fire. "Now, let's see who dares to disobey me."
His Majesty quickly summoned all the ministers to the court, told them the news of the victory, and announced his decision: to increase the number of troops in the four towns of Anxi by 30,000. This decision caused an uproar, and all the ministers opposed it and advised His Majesty to change his mind and not waste money and manpower.
Your Majesty acted on his own will, firmly rejected the opinions of his ministers, insisted on his own view, and ordered additional troops.
When no one was around, His Majesty held her in his arms and sneered, "They underestimated me. I will let them see that although I am a woman, my tactics are as strong and cruel as those of men! I will use this battle to kill the chicken to scare the monkeys, establish my prestige, and make them dare not do anything disobedient!"]
Roland's eyes sparkled, and he looked at Wu Zetian with admiration.
As a face control, she used to dislike the empress's aging and fading beauty, but now she has to admit that charm has nothing to do with age! The empress is so handsome! She is almost turned gay!
She also understood why the Queen was so strong, because people at that time looked down on women. If the Queen was not stronger and more cruel, not only would people at home pretend to obey her but would secretly disobey her, even foreign countries might regard her as a soft persimmon and attack her!
Therefore, the Queen gave them a good beating this time and frightened them so that they would never dare to offend the Dragon's majesty again. At the same time, it also warned some people in the country against their restlessness.
[In the first month of the second year of Changshou, the palace maid Tuan'er reported to Your Majesty that Crown Prince Li Dan's concubines Liu and Virtuous Consort Dou were practicing witchcraft and cursing Your Majesty.
Tuaner is lying.
Shaoyao knew that His Majesty also knew that Tuan'er was lying.
But she decided to believe it.
Recently, Crown Prince Li Dan has been making small moves in private and His Majesty has been fed up with it and wants to teach him a lesson to make him more obedient. Tuan'er's frame-up is exactly what His Majesty wants.
...Was it Your Majesty who suggested Tuan'er's frame-up?
In the past, Shaoyao would never have had such a rebellious idea. But after she witnessed one conspiracy after another and understood more and more about His Majesty's character, she could not help but make such an association.
Your Majesty killed the two concubines and demoted the prince's sons to the rank of princes.
The prince met with two ministers at night. When His Majesty found out, he had the two ministers beheaded in the market. Then someone reported to His Majesty that the prince was plotting something bad.
When His Majesty learned the news, his face was calm, as if he had expected it.
But when no one was around, a hint of sadness flashed across his eyes, "Heaven..."
This sorrow came and went quickly. Soon her eyes returned to their usual rationality and calmness. She summoned Lai Junchen, her confidant, and asked him to interrogate the people around the prince.
Shaoyao knew Lai Junchen's notoriety. He was cruel, good at forcing confessions, and very trusted by the emperor. Now people around the prince would definitely say that the prince was plotting a rebellion.
…
A few days later, a seriously injured man was carried into the palace, and His Majesty sent someone to treat him.
The next day, His Majesty ordered Lai Junchen to stop the interrogation, and the prince was safe.
Peony knew what was happening.
The news had already spread among the palace maids.
The seriously injured man was An Jinzang, a worker at the Taichang Temple and a member of the Crown Prince's entourage. When Lai Junchen interrogated him this time, he used his saber to cut open his chest, exposing his heart and liver to prove his innocence.
When the news of this heroic act spread, ministers and palace maids praised An Jinzang's chivalry and sympathized with the prince. Even among the people, there were some rumors.
His Majesty said to An Jinzang, "I don't trust my son's character, which caused you to suffer such a great crime." There seemed to be regret in his words.
But privately, His Majesty became disgusted with the Crown Prince and began to plan to appoint another one.
Shaoyao knew that His Majesty was the king.
King, suspicious.
Therefore, Your Majesty employs cruel officials, selects officials from the common people, and encourages informing on others.
In this world, no one can be trusted, she only trusts herself. 】
In just a few minutes, a court party and government conspiracy was full of twists and turns, so thrilling and exciting that Luo Bao was extremely excited.
It seems that being the first female emperor in history is not an easy job. She has to face unprecedented challenges and conspiracies as she does things that no one has done before.
The storm seemed to have subsided, but Luo Bao could sense that beneath the calm surface of the lake, a bigger storm was brewing.
[……
When she learned that Xue Huaiyi burned down the Heaven and the Mingtang in anger because he had fallen out of favor, Her Majesty was reviewing memorials. When she heard the palace maid's report, she nodded nonchalantly and said, "He is quite bold."
"Let Wu Youning come to see me."
Xue Huaiyi is His Majesty's first lover. Although people spread rumors that His Majesty dotes on him, only Shaoyao, who accompanies her day and night, knows how much Xue Huaiyi means to His Majesty.
That's a toy.
Her Majesty used him to prove her authority as the emperor. It is normal for a male emperor to have three palaces and six courtyards, and for a female emperor to have three thousand concubines, right?
The only redeeming quality of Xue Huaiyi is his loyalty.
It was he who found the "Da Yun Sutra" and presented it to Your Majesty.
But now he was full of resentment, and it seemed that he had lost even his loyalty.
So His Majesty said to Lord Wu lightly: "Go and kill him, and then send his ashes to the White Horse Temple to build a pagoda."
In October of the same year, the Turks sent envoys to surrender. Two months later, Your Majesty performed the Fengshan ceremony at Mount Song and changed the reign title to Wansui Dengfeng.
Liu Yinxiu felt as if he had accompanied the empress through the last glorious years of her life in just over an hour.
The legendary queen's reign had its ups and downs, brilliance, glory, as well as lows, embarrassment, and desolation.
Liu Yinxiu watched rebellions breaking out in various places, Wu Zetian exhausted from dealing with them, and her army suffering defeats again and again; he saw her expending much energy in maneuvering among various forces, trying her best to consolidate her authority; he saw her employing cruel officials, gathering her followers, but showing fear and helplessness on her face when no one was around.
By the end, Liu Yinxiu had long forgotten her initial dissatisfaction with Wu Zetian and began to truly admire and sympathize with her.
She never fights against just one or two people.
She is against the whole world.
She is fighting against thousands of years of rules and traditions in a patriarchal society.
How limited is the power of an individual?
Even though she was the emperor, ruling the world and possessing immense wealth, she was still too weak.
Because even though she conquered the world, it would eventually return to the hands of Li Tang.
She was 67 years old when she ascended the throne.
It was impossible for her to have another child. It was impossible for her to have another child of her own.
Her successors all have the blood of Li Tang and naturally have the support of the people.
Her nephew has ulterior motives and is not fit for any important task.
In the end, she had no choice but to surrender and accept her fate.
She made Li Xian the crown prince.
Later, she fell ill.
She is 82 years old and no longer young.
As soon as this powerful lioness showed signs of fatigue, the fully-fledged young lions immediately seized the opportunity, bared their fangs, and launched a coup.
Crown Prince Li Xian launched a coup, led his troops to surround Wu Zetian's bedroom, and forced her to abdicate.
After losing the throne, Wu Zetian aged rapidly.
For her, power is the foundation of her existence, her blood and her soul.
A real man cannot live without power for a day. This is the case.
She wore no makeup and had no intention of dressing up. The palace maids around her were all the new emperor's confidants, and her only confidant was just an old dog.
Shaoyao is old now. She accompanied the first female emperor in history through the last glorious years of her life, and then calmly faced the final ending.
Even if it doesn't end well.
[On November 26th of the first year of the Shenlong reign (December 16th of 705), Empress Wu Zhao passed away. Before her death, she left a will, giving up her imperial title and asking future generations to call her the Great Saint Empress Zetian.
Shaoyao did not cry when His Majesty died, but she burst into tears when she heard the eunuch reading the will.
Her Majesty...
Later, another coup d'état took place and Lord Shangguan died. It was said that he shouted "Your Majesty the Emperor Wu" before his death.
Later, Peony fell ill and was about to die.
Before she died, she heard from the palace maids that the new emperor and his ministers had never agreed on how to engrave words on the tombstone of Empress Wu Zetian, so there has been an inscriptionless tombstone in front of Qianling Mausoleum.
A monument without words...
If Your Majesty were still alive, I'm afraid he wouldn't care.
In her life, she has done so many great things that have never been done before and will probably never be done again. It doesn't matter whether she is praised, criticized or criticized in history books in the future.
She just wanted to be a good emperor.
She did it.
Therefore, there is no word on the stone tablet, but the name is recorded in history. 】
The movie ended. Liu Yinxiu was silent for a moment, took off his helmet, and heard warm applause echoing in the auditorium.
The brother and sister sitting on the right burst into tears but still clapped their hands hard.
Even Liu Yinxiu's eyes were a little moist. Director Shi made another good movie.
After watching "The Queen's Dog", he himself seemed to be captured by the charm of the empress and was willing to be her running dog.
How could one not be afraid of such a woman? And how could one not love her?
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