Whatever the Wu family sets their eyes on, sooner or later, it belongs to the Wu family!

Chapter 52: Whatever catches the Wu family's eye will sooner or later belong to the Wu family!

"I only regret that we failed to root out this scourge when we restored the Tang dynasty, bringing about today's disaster!"

A middle-aged man dressed as a scholar stamped his foot and cursed bitterly.

"Could it be that there was not a single person in the imperial court who offered counsel?"

Li Shimin asked with a frown, finding it hard to believe that no one in the court had foreseen today's calamity in advance.

The scholar said with righteous indignation, "Does my lord truly not know? The Prince of Hanyang (Zhang Jianzhi) and others once petitioned to strip the Wu clan members of their princely titles, only to be rejected by the emperor."

"The Prince of Hanyang remonstrated, saying that when Empress Wu was in power, the imperial clan of Li was slaughtered to the last. Now that Your Majesty has been restored to the throne, the Wu family still retains their royal titles—by what logic is this permitted?"

"Yet the emperor remained completely indifferent, as if turning a deaf ear! Nearly the entire capital of Chang'an has heard of this incident!"

Those standing nearby immediately chimed in, "Indeed! Back then, when Empress Wu eradicated the Li imperial clan, every single one of us subjects of the Great Tang was filled with rage. How could the emperor, as the head of the Li clan, be so callous and apathetic about this?!"

"It is utterly outrageous! I can hardly bear to look upon it any longer!" someone muttered softly from the side.

Li Shimin took a deep breath. He had only known that Li Xian was weak and incompetent, but he had never imagined he would sink to such depths.

"With the Five Princes eliminated, Wu Sansi now acts in the imperial court without a single restraint. He once told those around him, 'I know not what the world calls a good man, nor what it calls an evil man; those who are good to me are good men, and those who do evil to me are evil men.'"

The scholar's voice trembled, betraying the turmoil within his heart.

The rough meaning of this statement was simply: whoever was on good terms with him was a good person, and vice versa. From this, one could easily tell just how arrogant and overbearing Wu Sansi truly was.

"Fool!" Li Shimin sneered. "Since he lacks the ability, he should at least understand the importance of balance. The Five Princes had already launched one coup; no matter what, they could not possibly brave the universal condemnation to launch a second. One might say that to Li Xian, those five were precisely the most harmless individuals."

"With Empress Wu casting such an overwhelming shadow, even Empress Wei, Princess Anle, and Princess Taiping all posed threats to his throne. Not to mention Prince Xiang, Li Dan—even if this Prince of Xiang had no desire for the imperial throne, circumstances often dictated otherwise."

"Once this balance is shattered, I dare not imagine what kind of end awaits him!"

"A mere boy has destroyed our Great Wall of ten thousand li!" At this, Li Shimin could not help but let out a bitter curse.

These words were originally uttered by the famed Liu Song general Tan Daoji when he was arrested, hurled in bitter condemnation at Emperor Wen of Song, Liu Yilong. While using them here might not be entirely precise, they were, at the very least, fitting beyond a doubt.

Yet this bizarre sequence of operations by Li Xian had uprooted the five pillar ministers who stood steadfastly on his side, leaving himself utterly exposed and entirely vulnerable to danger, ultimately leading to his death at the hands of others and making him the laughingstock of the realm.

In reality, there were two legendary accounts of Li Xian's death: the first was that he was poisoned to death by Empress Wei and Princess Anle; the second was that he died suddenly of a violent stroke. If the Five Princes had still been alive, the first scenario would have been entirely impossible. Even if he had died suddenly of a sudden illness, the Five Princes would have smoothly supported the crown prince's ascension, preventing the imperial succession from falling into the lineage of Prince Xiang, Li Dan.

In short, Li Shimin's description was spot on: Li Xian was quite literally destroying his own Great Wall.

"Before the restoration of the Tang, it was those surnamed Wu who threw the court into chaos. After the restoration of the Tang, it is still those damn people surnamed Wu who are throwing the court into chaos!" the scholar cursed again in agony. "Then what was the point of restoring this House of Li's Tang empire?!"

"It has gone full circle, right back to the reign of Emperor Gaozong—it is yet another case of hens crowing at dawn!" another scholar lamented mournfully. "That Wei woman is even more intolerable than the Wu woman. Is our Great Tang about to witness a repeat of Wu Zhou usurping the Tang?"

"My lord, watch your tongue!" those nearby immediately stopped him. Chatting about other things was one thing, but declaring that the imperial court was currently being ruled by hens crowing at dawn—if that reached the ears of someone with ulterior motives, it would spell massive trouble.

"What is there for me to fear!" The scholar cupped his hands upward toward the sky. "This is the mausoleum of Emperor Taizong Wen. Under the protection of Emperor Taizong's divine spirit, how can petty villains be allowed to act so presumptuously here!"

Just as they were sighing in grief, a disheveled woman stained with blood stumbled in from the outside.

Looking frantic and sobbing, she pleaded with the crowd for help.

"Don't panic, take your time and speak," Liu the Sixth stepped forward to comfort her gently.

The woman panted heavily; her desperate run just moments before had drained her of all strength. After gasping for breath for a long while, she finally recovered slightly. Before she could even speak, tears rolled down like broken beads.

Through her intermittent recounting, the crowd finally understood what she had just experienced.

Simply put, while she was out offering incense at a temple, Wu Chonglie took a fancy to her beauty. When his advances were rejected, he attempted to take her by force. Had it not been for her fiancé fighting desperately to protect her, she would have already been dragged back to his estate.

"In broad daylight under the bright blue sky, such a thing actually happens!" Liu the Sixth was consumed by fury, his hair and beard standing on end. "Have no fear, maiden! This is the mausoleum of Emperor Taizong; surely Wu Chonglie wouldn't dare use force against you here!"

"Indeed, within the Zhaoling Mausoleum, I refuse to believe he dares to act so lawlessly!"

The moment his voice fell, a frivolous voice rang out.

"The Zhaoling Mausoleum? And what of it? Whoever this prince has his eyes on, who dares to block the way?"

The crowd followed the voice and saw a pale-faced, unsteady-footed young man. At a glance, one could tell he was a debauched scion who had spent his life indulging in wine and women, completely hollowing himself out.

Upon seeing this rake, the woman's eyes widened in terror, and she stumbled backward.

It was none other than Wu Chonglie, who had been pursuing her.

"Did you truly think that by running here, this prince would have no way to deal with you?" Wu Chonglie's expression held a playful amusement. "Could it be that you believe these bumpkins can protect you?"

With that, he waved his hand.

"Bring him up."

Following his command, a group of armored soldiers escorted a bound Confucian scholar forward.

Seeing the scholar, the woman lost all color in her face: "Master Xiao!"

"Running? Heh..." Wu Chonglie shook his head at the woman with supreme arrogance, reaching out to pat the bruised and battered face of the scholar surnamed Xiao. "Since you love to run, your beloved scholar has to suffer a bit."

"Great monks always say that the sea of bitterness has no bounds and turning back leads to the shore. As long as you are willing to submit to me, I will spare your little lover's life. What do you say?"

Trembling all over, the woman pointed at Wu Chonglie and asked with grief and indignation, "Do you truly believe that relying on the Wu family's status, you can do whatever you please? Are you not afraid that Emperor Wen's spirit in heaven will bring down divine retribution upon you?!"

"Hahahahaha..."

Wu Chonglie burst into wild laughter, as if he had just heard the most ridiculous joke in the world.

"In this world, whatever the Wu family sets its sights on..." Wu Chonglie shouted with a manic look on his face, "...sooner or later belongs to the Wu family!"

"As for Emperor Wen's spirit in heaven? Hahahahaha... Stop joking. My grand-aunt, Empress Wu, seized the throne and proclaimed herself emperor, yet we never saw Emperor Wen send down any divine retribution, did we? Hahahahaha..."

---

Seeking reads and monthly tickets~~qwq

(End of this chapter)