Book Synopsis
Book Tags
Donation Rankings
Comment
0 Comments
You May Also Like
墨書 Inktalez
Fang Yi'ai secretly visited Xu Manor, causing Xu Zhenxin to become suspicious. This was a tumultuous year for Yonghui, and although Xu Zhen did not remember the details clearly, Li Jue had previously hinted at the undercurrents within the Court, suggesting that significant events might unfold. Xu Zhen became increasingly certain of her suspicions.
Both Fang Yi'ai and Chai Lingwu were Dukes of the Right Guard and shared a close friendship. They had secretly participated in plotting during the struggle for the throne among Tubo, Li Chengqian, and Li Zhi. After the incident, their family elders covered up their involvement, which spared them from significant repercussions.
Fang Yi'ai held the position of Minister of the Imperial Granary and was a Regular Attendant, achieving a status of nobility. After Fang Xuanling's death, Taizong consoled him by granting him the title of Right Guard General.
However, Fang Yi'ai was not as loyal as his elder brother. His wife, Princess Gaoyang, was an outspoken and bold woman who often engaged in secretive dealings with monks and Taoists. Fang Yi'ai turned a blind eye to this behavior. Although Princess Gaoyang was indulgent and reckless, she was also a very astute woman who sought out two beautiful maids to serve Fang Yi'ai.
The couple should have lived peacefully together; however, among Princess Gaoyang's lovers was a peculiar Taoist named Li Huang. He secretly divined and claimed to glimpse heavenly secrets. After some flirtation, he revealed that Fang Xuanling should have died peacefully and that there must be something suspicious about his death.
Li Huang's claims were mere fabrications meant to gain Princess Gaoyang's favor. Unbeknownst to him, Princess Gaoyang harbored resentment towards Li Zhi. After much contemplation, she decided to investigate the cause of Fang Xuanling's death. She uncovered the truth, which implicated Changsun Wuji and Li Zhi in the conspiracy to poison Fang Xuanling.
Princess Gaoyang's maternal family was the Fan Yang Lu Clan, an ancient and prestigious family that often communicated with her. This investigation leveraged the clandestine support of the Fan Yang Lu Clan.
After uncovering the truth, Princess Gaoyang believed this matter could turn the tide and informed Fang Yi'ai. He had already suspected foul play in his father's death and wanted to summon his brothers to discuss countermeasures upon learning the truth.
He had already fallen out with his elder brother Fang Yizhi over disputes regarding the inheritance of Duke Fang Xuanling's title, so he did not inform him but instead told his younger brother Fang Yize.
Fang Yize was carefree and not very discreet; after drinking too much, he carelessly mentioned this matter to his wife. His wife was the daughter of King Jing Li Yuanjing. Upon hearing such secrets, she felt there was much to gain and quickly informed her father.
King Jing Li Yuanjing was the sixth son of Li Yuan, making him Li Shimin's brother and Li Zhi's uncle. He was known for his patience and had been plotting since Li Zhi ascended to power. After Li Zhi became emperor, he appointed him as Minister of Education with a substantial fief of 1,500 households to win his favor.
Upon hearing his daughter's confidential report, Li Yuanjing was overjoyed but knew that Fang Yize was weak-willed. After much thought, he instructed his daughter to probe Princess Gaoyang for information. The two exchanged secret letters and surprisingly reached an agreement on a conspiracy!
Not only that, but Princess Gaoyang also recruited a large number of court officials who held grievances against Li Zhi. During Emperor Taizong's campaigns against Goguryeo, Xue Wanche had been proud of his achievements and had grievances against the court for being reprimanded and mistreated; he was surprisingly drawn into her rebellious faction!
Xue Wanche had been dismissed from office during the Zhenguan Era by Taizong and exiled to Xiangzhou. After receiving a pardon and returning home, when Li Zhi ascended to power, he appointed Xue Wanche as Governor of Lizhou to appease him. However, harboring resentment in his heart, Xue Wanche returned to Chang'an shortly after taking office under the pretext of suffering from foot ailments and could only remain in the capital.
After successfully recruiting Xue Wanche, Princess Gaoyang privately contacted the Consort of Princess Balin, Chai Shao's son Chai Lingwu, intending to conspire against Li Zhi to harm Fang Xuanling and Li Shimin, seizing the throne in the name of instigating a palace coup to elevate Li Yuanjing as the ruler.
Having such a willful and domineering wife like Princess Gaoyang made Fang Yi'ai's life extremely difficult, but it did not mean he was foolish or ignorant. The conspiracy between Princess Gaoyang and Li Yuanjing eventually came to Fang Yi'ai's knowledge.
Although Fang Yi'ai mourned his father's poisoning, he could not bring himself to commit the act of rebellion. He was distracted and troubled, which made Princess Gaoyang suspicious.
Princess Gaoyang sent two beautiful maidservants to attend to Fang Yi'ai, originally to monitor her husband. Feeling frustrated, Fang Yi'ai was plied with alcohol by the two concubines. In his drunken state, he wept bitterly and inadvertently spilled the details of Princess Gaoyang's conspiracy.
The concubines quickly reported this to Princess Gaoyang, who pretended to be unaware and summoned Chen Xuan Yuan from the Grand Historian Bureau.
Chen Xuan Yuan, like Li Chunfeng and Yuan Tiangang, was a member of the Daoist sect, skilled in astronomy and calculations. Although his official position was not high, he was a close minister to the emperor and held in great regard by Li Zhi.
Chen Xuan Yuan was originally a person of integrity. However, due to Princess Gaoyang's promiscuous nature, it seemed unlikely they would become involved with each other; yet, Chen Xuan Yuan indeed became a subordinate under Princess Gaoyang's influence.
To be precise, their entanglement was thanks to Wu Mei.
At that time, Wu Mei had become a nun at Ganyesi Temple, feeling lonely and desolate. She received care from Sister Chen Shuo Zhen in the temple, and the two became sworn sisters.
Chen Shuo Zhen was from Qingxi in Muxzhou. Having lost her father at a young age, she relied on her sister for survival, living a hard life by serving wealthy families as a servant.
Unexpectedly, Qingxi suffered from a catastrophic flood that occurred once in a hundred years. The court not only failed to open granaries for relief but continued to collect various taxes, leading to widespread suffering among the people who were forced into selling their children.
Chen Shuo Zhen had little martial skill but was agile. With her sister's help from their fellow villagers, they managed to survive; how could she bear to watch her neighbors starve?
This heroine disregarded her own safety and secretly opened the granary of her employer to aid the disaster victims. However, she was caught by her employer and beaten severely. Many villagers could only grit their teeth and rush into the woodshed where Chen Shuo Zhen was imprisoned to rescue her; tragically, Chen Shuo Zhen's sister was brutally ravaged by their employer and died!
Chen Shuo Zhen was filled with grief and anger. However, as the officials and soldiers searched everywhere for her, she could only hide within Capsized Ship Mountain. This mountain was home to many cultivators, and it was said that even Earth Immortal spirits roamed there. With nowhere else to turn, Chen Shuo Zhen transformed into a Daoist Nun to heal her injuries. Fortunately, she received guidance from a master of the Gao Zao Sect, allowing her to learn the essence of Daoism.
To evade the officials' pursuit, Chen Shuo Zhen claimed to have encountered the Supreme Old Lord in the mountains and received divine powers. After descending the mountain, she frequently displayed her supernatural abilities, quickly gaining millions of followers. The authorities, fearing her influence, indeed withdrew their accusations against her.
However, Chen Shuo Zhen was not satisfied with this. She sought revenge for her sister and planned to kill her former employer. Thus, she began to set up a cunning scheme to eliminate him without leaving any traces. The officials believed that he had met his end due to retribution from Chen Shuo Zhen's sister's ghost, and the matter ultimately faded away.
With her vengeance fulfilled, Chen Shuo Zhen found herself losing the joy of being human. Additionally, consumed by her obsession with Daoist arts, she left her hometown and traveled to Chang'an.
Many beautiful Court Ladies, including Wu Mei, had entered the temple. Outside the Ganyesi Temple, there were often lecherous men eyeing them. One day, a nobleman's son became entangled with Wu Mei, who struggled to escape his advances. Coincidentally, Chen Shuo Zhen happened to pass by and drove off the suitor, leading to their acquaintance.
Seeing Wu Mei in such a pitiful state reminded Chen Shuo Zhen of her own sister, deepening her affection for her. When Wu Mei was summoned back to the palace, she brought Chen Shuo Zhen along with her.
Wu Mei treated her like a sister and would not allow her to become a palace maid. Instead, she whispered a word to Li Zhi, resulting in Chen Shuo Zhen entering the Grand Historian Bureau.
Although the Tang Dynasty was relatively open-minded, it was still rare for women to hold official positions. Fortunately, with the title of Immortal Mistress, Chen Shuo Zhen was able to act outside convention.
While Li Chunfeng focused on matters entrusted by Xu Zhen, it was left to Chen Xuan Yuan to manage the Grand Historian Bureau. Knowing about the relationship between Chen Shuo Zhen and Wu Mei, he intentionally sought connections with them due to their shared surname and kinship ties. After some flattery, he surprisingly gained Chen Shuo Zhen's trust.
Upon hearing this news, Princess Gaoyang frequently used Chen Xuan Yuan as a go-between to gather information about Wu Mei from Chen Shuo Zhen.
Initially, during the struggle between Li Chengqian and Li Zhi for the crown prince position, Princess Gaoyang had once coerced Wu Mei. In the Shuyi Hall of Li Mingda, she facilitated a union between Li Zhi and Wu Mei. At that time, Wu Mei was merely a low-ranking talent; thus, there were no reservations from Princess Gaoyang. However, now that she had become immensely favored as a Martial Talent, soon to be elevated to a Second-Rank Imperial Concubine, concerns began to arise in her heart. Consequently, she urged Chen Xuan Yuan to flatter Chen Shuo Zhen even more frequently.
After meeting with Princess Gaoyang, there was no shortage of intimate encounters between them; they exhausted themselves before stopping. Taking advantage of the lingering atmosphere, Princess Gaoyang incited further actions from Chen Xuan Yuan. Although he did not understand what Gao Yang intended, he complied with her requests.
Within two days, Li Zhi demoted Fang Yi'ai to the position of Governor of Lizhou. Confused by this sudden change and unsure how to handle it, he found himself perplexed by his unexpected demotion.
At this moment, Princess Gaoyang arrived leisurely and threatened Fang Yi'ai, implying that if Fang Yi'ai leaked any information, he would die on his way to take office. Although it was not explicitly stated, Fang Yi'ai felt a strong sense of murderous intent.
He knew well that Gao Yang was capricious and unreasonable, and he had no doubt that Gao Yang would truly act against him. As he was about to take office, he lived in constant fear. With no other options, he could only seek help from the Xu Zhen.
It was common knowledge that the Xu Zhen was about to be favored by Li Zhi. However, to truly gain Li Zhi's trust, the Xu Zhen needed to demonstrate sufficient merit. Exposing Princess Gaoyang and others for rebellion would undoubtedly be a significant achievement, something the Xu Zhen would eagerly seek.
This was Fang Yi'ai's line of thought; he believed the Xu Zhen would not refuse him. He could not betray his family and could only rely on others, with the Xu Zhen being the best candidate without a doubt.
However, he sat in the living room for quite some time without seeing Xu Zhen. After about a quarter of an hour, the Old Steward from Xu Residence finally entered the hall and handed a handwritten letter from the Xu Zhen to Fang Yi'ai.
Fang Yi'ai was bewildered as he opened the letter and skimmed through it hurriedly. Then, in disbelief, he read it again and began to cry uncontrollably. He sighed three times towards the sky and walked straight out of Xu Manor.
The Xu Zhen watched Fang Yi'ai leave in secret, feeling a tightness in her chest. She could not help Fang Yi'ai because she knew the outcome of his situation with Princess Gaoyang. She did not want to change anything nor seek personal gain from this matter.
She understood Fang Yi'ai's character well; no matter how willful or reckless Princess Gaoyang was, as a man, watching his woman stray while doing nothing, and seeing the true culprit behind his father's poisoning revealed without having the courage to seek revenge—such a man was nothing but useless mud that couldn't be propped up. Why should she involve herself further in court struggles over this matter?
With a gentle sigh, the Xu Zhen turned back to the courtyard where Li Mingda had been waiting under the protection of the Female Knight for quite some time.
Comment 0 Comment Count