Chapter Five: Thoughts on a Cold Night

  It was very late at night, the snow kept falling, and the strong wind howled incessantly. The cold north wind pierced to the bone, and despite having two large charcoal braziers burning brightly in the room, it was still hard to ward off the chill that seeped into every pore. Although he was covered with two thick layers of quilted bedding, Li Xian's small body, which couldn't be considered sturdy, curled up into a ball like a kitten. At first glance, it seemed as though he had fallen asleep soundly, but his eyelids twitching nonstop betrayed the truth.

  The scenes, one by one, jumped and flickered, entwining together like a montage, constantly piling up in Li Xian's mind, the accumulated pressure growing greater and greater, until finally it was as heavy as a mountain, pressing down on Li Xian's breathing, making it more and more urgent.

  "No, don't, don't..."

  As the deepest and most painful scars were uncovered one by one, Li Xian suddenly sprang up with a loud cry under the intense stimulation of the great pain, his face covered in cold sweat. His voice was high-pitched and shrill, instantly startling awake the two young maids who were sleeping on a small bed beside him.

  "Your Highness! Your Highness!"

  "Your Highness, wake up!"

  ……

  Two young maids, both fifteen or sixteen years old, had been following Li Xian for some time, but they had rarely encountered a situation like this. Seeing Li Xian yelling like a madman, they were all frightened and rushed forward, one of them grasping Li Xian's arm and calling out anxiously.

  "Hmm..." After Li Xian shouted for a while, his enlarged pupils slowly shrank back to normal, and he was shaken awake by the two maids. He gradually came to, looked at the two maids beside him, took a deep breath, shook his head slowly and said: "It's nothing, I just had a dream, it's nothing, it's nothing. Yan Hong, Cui Liu, bring me a pot of tea, I need to calm down."

  "Your Highness, is nothing wrong?"

  Yan Hong had been serving Li Xian for six years, since he was still living in the palace. She knew his temperament like the back of her hand. Seeing him speak clearly and calmly now, without the previous madness, she couldn't help but breathe a sigh of relief. However, listening to his tone, which didn't sound as childish as before, but rather like an old man, she felt a twinge of doubt again. She looked at Li Xian with suspicion and hesitated for a moment before asking a question.

  Is everything all right? It's possible that nothing is really all right. Li Xian was suddenly awakened from his dream because he had dreamed of the most painful experience in his previous life - after being demoted to King of Lu Ling, his beloved eldest son Li Zhongrun was accused of discussing Empress Wu Zetian's private life with his sister Li Xianhui and brother-in-law Wu Yanji. As a result, he was beaten to death by order of Empress Wu in front of Li Xian. The cries for help from his son and daughter were like knives cutting through Li Xian's heart into pieces. At this moment, even though he knew that this event had not yet occurred, the pain still could not be alleviated or dissipated.

  Even a ferocious tiger would not eat its own cubs, but Wu Zetian was different. She killed her sons and daughters, even her grandsons, all for the sake of ascending to the throne. There's nothing she wouldn't dare do for herself. Is such a person worthy of being a mother? No, she doesn't deserve it. She's just human trash, an evil demon in human skin! As soon as Li Xian thought about the bloody past, his heart started racing wildly. But reason clearly told him that these were secrets not to be shared with outsiders, no matter who they were.

  "I'm fine, I just want to be alone and quiet for a while. Go ahead, bring me a pot of tea... no, a flask of warm wine instead."

  Li Xian's heart ached severely, but he didn't want to show it in front of the two little girls, nor did he plan to pour his heart out to them. He furrowed his brow slightly and forcibly suppressed the turmoil in his chest, giving orders in a calm tone.

  "Yes, this servant obeys."

  Yan Hong's small mouth moved a few times, still wanting to persuade him again, but seeing Li Xian's childish face already showing obvious impatience, she suddenly felt a strong and unyielding aura rushing towards her, and her heart couldn't help but skip a beat. She didn't dare say another word, nodded obediently, and led Cui Liu away to prepare the warm wine without mentioning it again.

  Eighteen years, and another eighteen years! Li Xian remembered very clearly that in his previous life, his weak father still had eighteen years to live. Calculating the time, it seemed quite ample, but actually not so. Because Li Xian had experienced it once before, he knew very well - the reason why Wu Zetian could ascend to the throne as a woman was fundamentally because she accumulated an unmatched foundation in these eighteen years, and then killed two sons and deposed another two, seizing the Tang Dynasty's throne in one move. In this sense, the time left for Li Xian was pitifully short.

  Within ten years, at most not exceeding ten years, if Li Xian cannot establish a force that can rival Wu Zetian's power, what awaits him will still be an extremely tragic and humiliating life, possibly even worse than his fate in the previous life. In the previous life, Li Xian was deposed but managed to keep his life because Wu Zetian did not bother to kill him, not because she was merciful. This was due to the fact that Li Xian had no outstanding talent and no influence on the imperial court, except for being an emperor's descendant, he was useless. This is the fundamental reason why Li Xian could keep his life in the previous life. In other words, if Li Xian wants to achieve something in this life, it will be difficult for Wu Zetian to spare his life again.

  What to do? Go with the flow? No! Absolutely not! Li Xian, who has suffered for a lifetime, does not want to come back again, even if it means death without a place to stand. Li Xian must make a comeback, otherwise, how can he live up to the opportunity given by heaven for rebirth? The question is, where should this comeback start from?

  "Your Highness, the wine you wanted has arrived."

  Just as Li Xian was bewildered and didn't know where to go, Yan Hong led two maids carrying food boxes from outside the door, walking in with a gentle swaying motion. Seeing Li Xian sitting on the edge of the bed wrapped in a quilt, staring blankly, she hesitated for a moment, but didn't dare ask more questions, and hurriedly walked forward, bowed slightly, and reported softly.

  "Alright, let's put it up."

  Li Xian's mind was not on eating, he only glanced at Yan Hong and hummed a noncommittal response.

  "Yes, slave will obey." Yan Hong became increasingly suspicious of Li Xian's unusual behavior, but she didn't dare to say it out loud. She slightly furrowed her eyebrows and responded with a soft voice, instructing the two little maids to place the wine and food on a small table in front of the couch. Then, she walked over to Li Xian's side and said softly: "Your Highness, let slave help you change your clothes."

  "Ah, thank you, Yan Hong sister." Li Xian naturally wouldn't refuse Yan Hong's kind intentions, nodded his head slightly and thanked her lightly, with no emotion detectable in his tone.

  "Your Highness, did something go wrong when you entered the palace today?"

  "Hmm, this girl is suspicious! Li Xian, who has the memories of three lifetimes, is no longer Wu Xiaoming. His thoughts are very sharp and he had already guessed what was on Yan Hong's mind after hearing her question. However, he didn't take it to heart and only slightly furrowed his brow, replying calmly: 'Nothing big, I can handle it myself.'"

  Li Xian's tone was calm, but inside he was full of irresistible aura, with a kind of casualness that made Yan Hong involuntarily stunned. She twitched the corner of her mouth, but didn't dare to ask further. She quietly helped Li Xian adjust his clothes and stood beside him, constantly sizing up Li Xian's still undeveloped body with curious eyes, as if inquiring about the origin of this obvious change.

  "You all withdraw, it's better for me to be alone." Li Xian saw Hongyan's thoughts, but he was too lazy to care and didn't want to explain, so he just waved his hand silently.

  "Yes, this servant obeys."

  Li Xian had said so, Yan Hong did not dare to disobey, and hastily responded with a sound, leading the maids in the room to retreat to the outside of the door, waiting respectfully in the warm pavilion outside, waiting for Li Xian's summons at any time.

  In the great Tang Dynasty, there was no fine wine. Even if Li Xian were a noble prince, all he had in his mansion was just some coarse rice wine that had gone bad. It was indeed light and refreshing, but hardly had any flavor to speak of. Not to mention comparing it to the high-end wines like Maotai that Li Xian would drink in later years, even the cheap liquor sold on the streets was more mellow and rich than this insipid rice wine. However, at this moment, Li Xian's mind was not on the wine, so he just forced himself to take a few sips, barely managing to get it down. But as soon as the wine entered his stomach, his worries only intensified.

  It's definitely going to be a fight, and this is already a done deal. The problem is where to start, which makes Li Xian feel like a tiger eating the sky - as for Wu Zetian, that heartless snake, there's no need to mention her, she can't be expected to give up her ambition to usurp the throne. As for Emperor Gaozong, he's not reliable either. To be honest, Emperor Gaozong was able to ascend to the throne purely due to luck. If not, in terms of ability, Emperor Gaozong would definitely be at the bottom among Taizong's sons. He's completely unsuitable to be an emperor, so how could Li Xian pin his hopes on him? At most, he can only use his soft heart to do some small tricks, which is not a reliable way. As for his two older brothers, they are also unreliable - both of them have talent, but unfortunately, they had bad luck and were born to an ambitious mother, ultimately ending up drinking poison and dying. It's clear that relying on others is unreliable, the key is whether one can create their own path.

  Strength, after all, is the key to speaking out, whether it's for self-protection or to stop Wu Zetian's ambition. Without strength, everything is just empty talk. This statement is correct, but building one's own foundation without arousing Wu Zetian's suspicion is a difficult task. One careless move could attract not only the attention of two elder brothers but also Wu Zetian's severe counterattack. Once trapped in this situation, it would be irreparable. This cannot be avoided by being cautious alone; a smokescreen is needed to cover up. The question then arises - who can serve as that smokescreen?

  Are you using your own father as a shield? Unlikely! The entire court is nominally his, he doesn't need to get involved himself; Wu Zetian? Even more impossible, plotting with her would be suicidal; The Crown Prince? A bit of possibility, but although the Crown Prince is kind and gentle, he's not stupid, on the contrary, he's very astute, beneath that gentle face lies a sharp mind, it won't be easy to deceive him. Moreover, from a moral standpoint, the future throne belongs to him, he doesn't need to rush to cultivate private relationships, obviously this path is also unlikely to succeed. In the end, only Li Xian has some hope!

  "Li Xian? Li Xian!" Li Xian muttered unconsciously, suddenly feeling a flash of inspiration, and his mind had already made up its decision. He continued to think carefully along this line, and his thoughts gradually became clearer. A smile spread uncontrollably from the corner of his mouth, and after a long while, Li Xian suddenly slapped his palm and shouted: "Summon Gao Mo to see me immediately!"

  As soon as Li Xian spoke these words, the maids waiting in the outer warm pavilion immediately fell into a subtle commotion...