Chapter 25: Following the Trend (Part 2)

  "Your Majesty decrees that Crown Prince Li Xian of Zhou immediately enter the palace and pay respects at the Two Instruments Hall!"

  As expected by Li Xian, after Yuan Wanju left for about an hour or so, Emperor Gaozong sent the eunuch Sun Quanfu, Deputy Director of the Two Inner Halls, to deliver an oral edict.

  "Your subject has received your orders and thanks you for your kindness!"

  Li Xian bowed according to the rules and thanked the holy grace. Taking advantage of the moment he stood up, he shook his hand and took out a folded ten-guan flying bill (a kind of certificate issued by the government for the convenience of merchants' settlement) from his wide sleeve, and quietly stuffed it into Sun Quanfu's sleeve. Then, with a smile on his face, he said: "Thank you, Mr. Sun, I don't know why the emperor summoned me in such a hurry, is there something important?"

  The Liangyi Temple is the place where the inner and outer courts meet, where the emperor meets with his trusted ministers after court. Those who serve in this temple are not ordinary people. Sun Quanfu, as a deputy eunuch, has long been accustomed to receiving bribes, and would not be moved by Li Xian's attempt. He did not directly answer Li Xian's question, but instead made a "please" gesture and said: "Your Highness, please, don't let the Emperor and Empress wait."

  It's indeed Wu Hou who will preside over justice for Yuan Wanhe, interesting! Li Xian is a clever person, and as soon as he heard Sun Quanfu's words, he read the emphasis on "Empress" and immediately understood the subtlety of it. He couldn't help but smile, and without saying another word, he nodded silently and turned to leave, only making a secret signal to Gao Miao while walking away.

  The horse carriage creaked as it moved forward on the snowy ground, and Li Xian's face was gloomy in the carriage, not a hint of his previous calm demeanor. His hands were tightly clenched into fists, and his worried expression was evident - everyone under heaven knew that Empress Wu was not to be trifled with, and if you crossed her, you would either die or lose a layer of skin. There was no doubt that Li Xian's actions now were risky, and one misstep could lead to complete defeat. However, opportunities often come with risks, and to counter Empress Wu's formidable power, taking risks was necessary. To achieve great things in the future, it was better to take risks now than to face greater dangers later. This was Li Xian's reasoning for deciding to gamble. Now that he had placed his bet, whether he would succeed or not, even Li Xian did not dare guarantee - all he could do was take things one step at a time.

  "Your Highness, Prince Lu has arrived."

  Li Xian's carriage had just reached the square in front of Chengtian Gate and hadn't even come to a complete stop when Gao Miao hastily stuck his head against the curtain, lowering his voice and reporting with a hint of excitement.

  Good, this kid finally didn't disappoint! As soon as he heard that Li Xian had arrived, Li Xian's tightly clenched heart finally relaxed a bit. He loosened his grip on the carriage door and swung it open, poking his head out to see Gao Yan hastily approaching to help him down from the carriage.

  "Sixth Brother, you've arrived." Li Xian immediately got down from the carriage and hastily took a few steps forward, standing in front of Li Xian. He bowed respectfully and greeted him.

  "Hmm." Li Xian's complexion was obviously not good, his face sullen as he waved his hand and snorted through his nose - having received Li Xian's urgent message, Li Xian had originally not planned to join in this commotion, but fearing that Li Xian would lose his composure and blurt out the previous imperial prison incident all at once, he had no choice but to force himself to come, his heart already cursing Li Xian for stirring up trouble, how could he have a good expression?

  He's really angry, how petty! As soon as he saw Li Xian giving him a dirty look, he secretly laughed to himself, but on his face, he put on an extremely wronged expression and softly called out: "Sixth Brother, younger brother..."

  "Alright, alright, just go and deliver the notice."

  Li Xian's pitiful appearance made Li Xian feel unbearable, but thinking of the previous time Li Xian helped him gain fame, his anger dissipated by half. Moreover, in front of so many subordinates, Li Xian couldn't afford to be too excessive. Helpless, he shook his head with a bitter smile and replied reluctantly.

  "Yes, I am following Sixth Brother's orders."

  Li Xian is indeed a master of acting, and this change of face is even faster than flipping through a book. Just now it was still cloudy, but in the blink of an eye, the sun was shining brightly, and with a smile on his face, he took the token and ran to the front of the Chengtian Gate with Gao Mo. Before long, Sun Quanfu, who had already entered the palace, led two young eunuchs out from inside, and the two brothers each adjusted their clothes and hurriedly welcomed them as they approached.

  "Your Majesty has decreed: Proclaim that Li Xian, King of Lu, and Li Xian, King of Zhou, shall both present themselves at the Two Inner Halls for an audience!"

  Sun Quanfu saw Li Xian brothers walking over, immediately stood still with a proud expression, waiting for the two brothers to arrive, then proclaimed Gaozong's edict in a pretentious tone.

  "We, your ministers, have received Your Majesty's decree and thank you for your gracious favor."

  The two brothers thanked him in unison and walked shoulder to shoulder into the Chengtian Gate, straight along the main road of the palace towards the Temple of Two Principles. They had just passed by the Taiji Hall when they heard a series of mournful wails coming from inside, accompanied by the sound of slapping flesh on wood, which sent shivers down their spines.

  Huh? What's going on? Are they trying to give me a show of power or something? No, why does Lao Liu's face look so ugly? As soon as Li Xian and the others turned around the inner wall gate, they saw a small eunuch lying on the ground being punished. Two other eunuchs were holding him down with all their might, while two sturdy eunuchs were striking him with boards. Seeing this, Li Xian was taken aback for a moment - punishing eunuchs who had committed offenses was a common occurrence in the palace, but it was usually carried out within the inner chambers, and rarely done in the outer courtyard. If there was no ulterior motive, how could Li Xian believe it? Looking at Li Xian's face again, his expression didn't seem right, and Li Xian's heart suddenly tightened up.

  "Your Highnesses, please desist; His Majesty and Her Majesty the Empress are already in the palace."

  Sun Quanfu, who had accompanied the two brothers into the palace, saw that they were both unable to move and had no choice but to clear his throat and speak up.

  "Hold on, what crime did the eunuch commit? Why is he being executed here?" Li Xian was about to lift his foot and leave, but Li Xian obviously had no intention of doing so. He stretched out his hand and blocked Sun Quanfu's path, gritting his teeth and asking in a cold voice.

  "Your Highness, this little fellow lost his manners in the palace today and enraged Her Majesty the Empress. As a result, he should be punished with flogging. Your Highness, please enter the palace first." In front of Li Xian, this renowned prince, Sun Quanfu did not dare to show any disrespect, and hastily accompanied him with a smile, explaining the situation.

  "Lost manners? Hmph, what good are lost manners!"

  Sun Quanfu didn't explain, but as soon as he did, Li Xian's face turned iron-gray in an instant, and he clenched his fists tightly, showing signs of exploding at any moment.

  Not good, this little eunuch is probably Old Six's inside man. This is a warning to the monkey by killing the chicken, what a ruthless move! Li Xian was clever and heard this, how could he not understand what was going on with this play in front of him? His heart shook, and without thinking much, he quickly pulled Li Xian's sleeve and said in a low voice: "Sixth brother, let's discuss this further when we see the emperor."

  Li Xian's guess was correct, the eunuch who was pressed to the ground was indeed Zhang Dekei, the palace attendant who had informed Li Xian of the news. This time, Wu Zetian used this as an excuse to have him beaten to death, in order to teach a lesson to Li Xian and his brother. Li Xian obviously thought of this too, but he couldn't keep his temper like Li Xian did. In his anger, he was already on the verge of making a scene, if not for Li Xian's quick eyes and hands pulling him back, he might have already rushed forward to loudly stop it.

  "Go, into the temple!"

  Although Li Xian was a bit impulsive, he wasn't brainless. After being pulled by Li Xian like that, he had already come to his senses. His face changed colors for a while before he gritted his teeth, stomped his foot, and turned to leave the hall with a flick of his sleeve.

  It seems that this pass is not going to be easy, that guy can give Lao Liu a brick, and there must be another brick prepared for us, just don't know how heavy this "gift" will be! Li Xian's footsteps were steady, but his heart was racing with calculations, the original full confidence was involuntarily discounted, however, since things have come to this point, it is impossible to turn back now, and the only plan is to parry as we go, thinking of this, my heart feels a bit stuffy.

  Huh? Why are there so many people here? Li Xian followed closely behind Li Xian and entered the palace, where he saw Emperor Gaozong and Empress Wu sitting side by side at the top, with Crown Prince Li Hong smiling and sitting on a soft couch below. There were also many people standing below, including all five chief ministers, who had all arrived without exception. Even Yuan Wanqing, who was not qualified to enter the Two Instruments Palace, was standing off to the side with a dark expression on his face. The crowd seemed to be chatting happily, and laughter could be heard coming from inside the palace. Li Xian didn't dare look around too much, and quickly followed Li Xian as they went forward to pay their respects.

  "The sons and ministers pay their respects to the emperor, having paid their respects to the empress."

  The two brothers had different thoughts, but they were both very polite and courteous, without any trace of rudeness.

  "Xian'er and Xiang'er have both arrived, get up."

  As soon as the two young men arrived, a hint of unusual color flashed across Gaozong's face, seeming to be unbearable, but he immediately smiled and kindly raised his hand.

  "We, your children, thank Your Majesty for his great kindness."

  As soon as they heard their father calling, the two brothers didn't think much and thanked him in unison, each standing up. Just as they were about to retreat to one side, Empress Wu suddenly spoke up: "Wait, Xian'er, stay!"

  As soon as Wu Hou spoke, Li Xian's brothers couldn't help but stop in their tracks. After exchanging a glance with each other, Li Xian gritted his teeth and retreated to one side, leaving only Li Xian standing alone in the grand hall.

  "After mother, child is here listening respectfully to your holy teachings."

  Li Xian had long expected that he would not be able to pass easily, but he was not flustered. He slightly shook his sleeves, bowed his head, and spoke in a very calm tone. However, after waiting for a long time, Empress Wu did not summon him, nor did she give any instructions. Poor Li Xian could only stand there with his head bowed, and the grand hall became eerily quiet...