Chapter 20: The Financial Empress?

  Du He looked at the secret letter he had translated, his expression changing unpredictably. The development of things was much more serious than he had imagined.

  Conspiring against the empress is a big deal in ancient times, and the conspirator is still the prince, with a not low status.

  Although this behind-the-scenes person did not explicitly state his identity, it is not difficult to guess who the mastermind behind the scenes is!

  Firstly, this person must be someone who has the hope of inheriting the throne; secondly, this person possesses a certain amount of power; thirdly, the Empress Dowager's survival poses the greatest threat to whom; lastly, whose death would benefit from the Empress Dowager's demise.

  The answer is on the tip of one's tongue.

  Li Shimin had many sons, but only three of them truly had the power to obtain the throne: Crown Prince Li Chengqian, Wu Wang Li Ke and Wei Wang Li Tai.

  Crown Prince Li Chengqian can be eliminated, and the remaining ones are only Li Ke and Li Tai.

  According to his knowledge, Li Ke had both literary and military talents, with a generous and dignified demeanor, somewhat similar to that of Emperor Taizong of Tang. Therefore, he was deeply liked by Emperor Taizong, and Empress Changsun also treated him like her own son. As for Li Tai, he had exceptional writing skills and was the only one who received Emperor Taizong's doting love, and Empress Changsun was his biological mother.

  On the surface, neither of them had a motive, but in reality, it was not so.

  Li Chengqian was too hypocritical and artificial, and not in harmony with the emperor, his actions had already caused Li Shimin great displeasure, this point is obvious to all, the intention to abolish him may have been there for a long time. But because of the existence of Empress Longsun, it has not been revealed so far.

  Empress Changsun was the first person to resolutely support the establishment of the crown prince. What she did and thought was not like Changsun Wuji, who had ulterior motives, but because she had experienced the Xuanwu Gate Incident and feared that history would repeat itself.

  As a mother, if her children are at odds with each other like fire and water, never reconciling, how great the pain will be.

  Therefore, Empress Longsun made every effort to avoid this from happening.

  Empress Changsun held a certain position in Li Shimin's heart, which was self-evident. If she did not change her mind, even if Li Shimin had the intention to replace her, he would avoid discussing it.

  This led to the murderous intentions of others. As long as Empress Zhangsun was dead, Emperor Taizong would not mind anything else, and his intention to depose the Crown Prince also lost its greatest obstacle.

  So both Li Ke and Li Tai are possible.

  They have the possibility of ascending to the throne and also have certain strength. As long as Empress Changsun is alive, she poses a threat to them. If Empress Changsun dies, they can each benefit from it.

  But in private, Du He thought that Wei Wang Li Tai's possibility was a bit greater.

  Because he was the most favored by Li Shimin, and was the eldest legitimate son next to Li Chengqian. As long as Empress Zhangsun died, he would be the only one to receive their "family's" favoritism.

  Only Li Tai was the biological son of Empress Longsun, and for a son to murder his own mother...

  Du He shook his head and sighed, thinking of the gentle and kind Empress Zhangsun, and felt a little sad for her. Perhaps this was the greatest sorrow of being in the imperial family!

  "What should be done about this matter?" Du He asked himself, feeling a bit overwhelmed.

  With just this letter, without a signature and no clear indication of who wrote it, all the key words have been omitted, leaving only the two characters "废立" to arouse suspicion. This is not ironclad evidence, and it's really impossible to determine anyone's guilt, let alone Li Ke, who also has suspicions surrounding him. Can't just because of this secret letter, both princes be dealt with together?

  The most important thing is that the means by which one has gained power are not always pure, and if this were to be made public, it would be even more disadvantageous for oneself.

  "Never mind! I won't think about it anymore!" Du He put away the two things and planned to hand them over to Du Ruhui after returning to Chang'an, letting him worry about it.

  Du Ruhui has been in the position of prime minister for many years, his political means are not ordinary, far from what Du He can compare to, handing it over to him to handle is undoubtedly the most correct decision.

  Du He brushed her hair and took a glance at Wu Zhao who was sleeping soundly, then flipped open "The Art of War" by Sun Tzu.

  I've watched many TV dramas about Du Hua's battles and have also read "The Art of War" by Sun Tzu, but because I never had to use it, I never made an effort to truly understand it.

  The Tibetans are about to invade, Du He has a mind to build merit and establish his career, so he always carries the "Art of War" by Sunzi with him, often flipping through it.

  After reading for about an hour or so, Du He Nai couldn't resist his drowsiness and fell asleep with his head on the table.

  At dawn, Wu Zhaoyang vaguely opened his eyes to find himself in an unfamiliar environment, and he couldn't help but feel shocked. Turning his head, he saw Du He sleeping peacefully on the desk, and his mood suddenly turned calm.

  She recalled what had happened last night and how she fell asleep in his arms, her face flushing with two red clouds once again.

  "This must be where Mr. Du is staying!" Wu Zhao thought to himself, a sweet smile spreading across his face.

  Although she was away from home and although Du He and he didn't spend much time together, in her heart she had full trust in Du He.

  Du He originally looked pretty and charming, that sleeping appearance added a few more childishness, making him look especially adorable, Wu Zhao was stunned for a moment.

  Du He slowly came to, and as soon as he opened his eyes, he saw Wu Zhao staring at him with a dazed expression, revealing an enchanting smile. "You're awake!"

  Wu Zhaohui came back to his senses, covered his ears and closed his eyes like a thief hiding a bell, his heart almost jumping out of his throat.

  Du He stretched out his waist, let out a hearty laugh and asked with a smile: "How's that? My sleeping posture is quite handsome, right? You're enchanted!" Looking at the blushing Wu Zhao, he couldn't help but tease her, recalling her status in history.

  Wu Zhaos head was covered by his son and he directly became a turtle with its head withdrawn.

  Thinking that he had teased Wu Zetian, Du He felt particularly pleased in his heart and laughed three times. "Alright, stop laughing," he said, "let's talk business. How did you let them capture you?"

  Wu Zhaos face turned bright red, almost to the point of bleeding, as she quietly poked her head out. Seeing that Du Hezhen wasn't laughing at her, she composed herself and said: "Last night, I was serving my mother well, washing clothes by the well, when those people suddenly rushed up and pinned me down, covering my mouth with a sack. Ah...” She suddenly became anxious and hastily said: “I've been missing for a whole night, Mother and little sister must be worried to death, I have to go back.”

  Du He stretched out his hand to stop him, and said with a bitter smile: "Anyway, I've already been missing for one night, no need to rush, listen to me finish speaking. First of all, I must apologize to you, those people came after me, you just happened to be implicated. Sorry!"

  Wu Zhaoben was indeed a cautious and thoughtful person, and Du He's actions last night had already proven this point. She had already secretly suspected it, and now hearing him say so didn't feel unexpected at all, but rather somewhat delightful, feeling that Du He trusted her and didn't treat her as an outsider. She shook her head immediately: "I haven't suffered any harm, young master doesn't need to worry."

  Du He Dao: "Also, I hope that last night's matter is not known to anyone else. The situation is more serious than you and I imagined, but I won't say what it is for your own good. I still have some reservations about this matter, if the other party discovers your existence, you should be able to guess the consequences."

  Wu nodded solemnly.

  They are all intelligent people, and Du He's words were clearly understood by Wu Zhao. She also knew that she had no power or influence to get involved in this matter, and if she did, it would only harm herself and her family.

  She blinked and smiled: "I'm a weak girl since childhood, last night I went out to buy needles and threads, not knowing much about being rescued by you after fainting on the side of the road."

  Du He nodded in satisfaction, but Wu Zhao had a clever mind.

  Du He took out a bag of money and smiled: "Didn't you say that you were going to do some business in Chang'an? I have two hundred silver cakes here, just as a loan. I'll provide the money, you provide the labor and brains, make the business bigger, and we'll split the profits. What do you think?"

  "Wu Zhao stared at Du He in shock..."

  Du He smiled and said, "This is not a bribe. Although we have only been together for a short time, I have discovered that your intelligence is no less than that of men, and you will certainly achieve great things. If you go into business, perhaps you will become the richest merchant in the Tang Dynasty."

  Du He smiled and started to have crooked thoughts, he didn't want another female emperor to appear in history. The existence of Wu Zetian had no actual benefits for the Tang Dynasty, while preventing her from becoming a female emperor, supporting her in business, with her intelligence she might become the financial queen of the Tang Dynasty.

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