Looking at Tao Rong, who had come back from the dead, Empress Wu's bad premonition grew stronger. If it were according to her usual way of doing things, she would definitely have tried to escape by now.
But today, for her son's sake, how could she run away? Running away would mean giving up everything.
How can this be!
"Tao Rong, you're still alive?" Empress Dowager Wu looked at Tao Rong coldly.
Tao Rong did not kneel and bow to Empress Dowager Wu and Ji Yanzhuo as before, but instead held up a booklet and looked at the ministers.
"Everyone, General Wu did not kill me back then. I merely used this as an excuse to secretly investigate the evidence of Empress Wu and the Grand Preceptor's disregard for human life, corruption, and chaos in the harem over the years."
In the twelfth year of the Yongtai reign, Empress Dowager Wu ordered someone to push the eldest prince into the water, creating the illusion that he had accidentally fallen in. This continued until the eldest prince's death.
In the thirteenth year of the Yongtai reign, Consort Shu was pregnant with a prince. Empress Dowager Wu added safflower to her food, causing Consort Shu to miscarry and remain infertile for the rest of her life.
In the same year, Consort Xin became pregnant. Empress Dowager Wu falsely accused her of using witchcraft to curse the Empress and had her beaten to death.
In the fourteenth year of Yongtai, a severe drought struck Le'an City in Xiaoyue. The late emperor allocated one million taels of silver for disaster relief. Empress Dowager Wu recommended her father to oversee the relief efforts. However, less than one percent of the one million taels actually reached the disaster victims; the entire amount was embezzled by the Wu family.
......
In the fifteenth year of the Yongtai reign, Empress Dowager Wu sent people to try to kill the second prince born to Consort Yun.
In the twentieth year of the Yongtai reign, Gao Hongyuan entered the palace and was appointed as the Imperial Preceptor by the late emperor. Not long after entering the palace, he used a Gu poison on the late emperor in an attempt to control him, which led to the late emperor's death from the Gu poison.
In the same year, Gao Hongyuan began secretly having young children captured in order to use them to refine human gu poison.
"The twenty-first year of Yongtai..."
Tao Rong recounted the crimes committed by Empress Wu and Gao Hongyuan one by one, with each case accompanied by witnesses and physical evidence.
Empress Dowager Wu's face grew paler and paler, and Gao Hongyuan's usually calm expression finally cracked, revealing his anger.
"General Wu, Prime Minister Lu, and I had already noticed something amiss between the Empress Dowager and the Imperial Preceptor. In order to facilitate the investigation, we conspired to fabricate the story that General Wu accidentally killed someone."
When Tao Rong said this, everyone understood that only in this way could Empress Wu and Gao Hongyuan avoid noticing them and obstructing them, making it easier to secretly investigate the case.
Lu Hong flattered and ingratiated himself with Empress Wu, gaining her trust and providing her with convenience and protection.
Tao Rong had irrefutable evidence, but Su Ruojin found it somewhat strange.
Empress Dowager Wu once plotted to murder palace concubines. Tao Rong could find the clues by asking some old people in the palace to investigate the matter of the imperial heir. However, the fact that the late emperor was poisoned by a curse is something that ordinary people would not think of.
Su Ruojin glanced at Tao Zhengyu, who was following behind Tao Rong, head down and silent.
She had seen Tao Zhengyu once before in front of General Wu's mansion, so she naturally recognized him.
"Lord Tao, where is General Wu?" Duke Xian asked.
Tao Rong pointed outside, "General Wu has secretly assembled the Wu family army to assist the Second Prince in ascending the throne and to eliminate the usurper who murdered the emperor!"
At this moment, the sounds of fighting outside grew louder and louder, and suddenly a series of footsteps sounded.
Wu Xiong led a group of soldiers to block the entrance to the main hall.
"Lord Tao, what a brilliant plan to escape unscathed!" Wu Xiong slowly scanned everyone in the hall.
"Those who choose to submit to the Empress Dowager and the Emperor now will all be promoted three ranks after I deal with these traitors. If you choose to resist, don't blame me for my sword showing no mercy!"
Empress Dowager Wu, whose mind had been disturbed by Tao Rong's appearance, made up her mind after hearing her brother's words.
The city's garrison and imperial guards number over ten thousand, plus the five thousand generals my brother brought. What can these men possibly use to compete with me?
At this moment, Xiao Yanchu spoke up, his tone sarcastic, "What, Empress Dowager Wu, does General Wu think that the Wu family army, the Chixiao army, the Lu family army, and my Xiao family army are no match for your Wu family army?"
"Xiao Yanchu! You are a prince of the Great Chu, why do you keep interfering in my Xiaoyue court affairs!" Empress Dowager Wu was furious.
"Empress Dowager Wu, you are not old yet, why are you so forgetful? Yuan Hong is the younger brother of my queen. Since he is my brother, you have taken what belongs to my brother and caused harm to the people of Xiaoyue. Tell me, should I not intervene?" Xiao Yanchu's gaze was like a cold arrow.
Empress Dowager Wu's heart trembled, but she still stubbornly said, "Xiao Yanchu, don't forget that this is my Xiaoyue, not your Great Chu! I refuse to believe that no matter how strong you are, you can be stronger than tens of thousands of soldiers!"
"Tens of thousands of soldiers?" Xiao Yanchu's lips curled into a cold smile as he looked at the Duke of Xian.
"Lord Xian, please tell the soldiers outside what Lord Tao just said. I want to see if these soldiers are Xiaoyue's soldiers or your Wu family's soldiers."
Whether it's Wu Xiong or Gao Hongyuan, apart from the Wu family army, their ability to mobilize the city's garrison and the imperial guards is merely due to Ji Yanzhuo issuing the emperor's orders.
If the generals and soldiers learned that Ji Yanzhuo was not the late emperor's son, but someone who had confused the royal bloodline, how many of them would still be willing to stand on Empress Dowager Wu's side?
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