Chapter 111 Suspicion
After Zhao Ji returned to Luoyang, his life entered a regular routine of punching in and out of get off work. Although his days were dull, he lived a comfortable and peaceful life.

Unfortunately, these leisurely days did not last long. After the empress returned to Luoyang from Huzhou, she often suffered from minor health problems.

As a close minister, Zhao Ji was often by Wu Zetian's side.

At first, the queen was in good mental state and nothing seemed unusual.

But as time went by, over the past few months, her spirit gradually weakened and she was often troubled by nightmares at night.

Wu Zetian began to feel exhausted and her attention to state affairs gradually decreased. Grand court meetings became rare, and she even became unable to review memorials to the emperor.

Against this background, Shangguan Wan'er got unprecedented opportunities.

She originally served as the Neishen Ren, responsible for drafting imperial edicts for Wu Zetian, and now she was assisting Wu Zetian in handling memorials and monitoring state affairs.

This can be considered as Shangguan Wan'er enjoying the real "female prime minister" treatment in advance.

Historically, she reached this point after Li Xian ascended the throne.

But there is gain only when there is loss.

Shangguan Wan'er got the power to assist Wu Zetian in handling government affairs. She had to hang out with Di Renjie and Zhang Jianzhi in the Council of State Affairs every day, so she could not serve Wu Zetian closely all the time.

The one who replaced her was a female official named Chunxiang. This was naturally arranged and guided by Princess Taiping.

There has been an unusually heavy amount of rain in Luoyang this year, with continuous heavy rain and occasional severe thunderstorms.

This strange weather made the whole city shrouded in a depressing atmosphere, and Zhao Ji became more cautious when on duty.

July 14th, night.

Zhao Ji braved the heavy rain and returned to the You Qianniu Guard Mansion from the palace. He happened to run into Xiao Bao and Shen Tao whispering around Zhang Huan in the corridor.

Xiao Bao talked with excitement, while Zhang Huan and Shen Tao listened calmly.

Xiao Bao and Shen Tao followed Zhao Ji out and gained some experience, and now they have become Qianniu Beishen. Zhang Huan was also helped by God and was promoted to Qianniu Beishen through his own efforts.

Zhao Ji stopped in the distance and coughed.

The three of them were shocked and walked over to Zhao Ji and saluted: "General Zhao."

"What are you three talking about? I see Xiao Bao is showing his fangs and claws." Zhao Ji asked curiously.

Zhang Huan and Shen Tao hesitated and were unwilling to speak. Finally, Xiao Bao answered: "General, we are talking about the ghost in the palace."

Zhao Ji's expression immediately darkened upon hearing this, and he said seriously, "Don't talk nonsense, how could there be a ghost in the palace!"

Zhang Huan quickly explained: "General, calm down. Xiao Bao also heard it from the palace servants in Shangyang Palace."

Shen Tao also echoed, "Yes, General. This word has spread among the eunuchs and maids in the palace, and it will naturally spread to our Qianniu Guards."

Xiao Bao nodded hurriedly: "That's right, that's right, many people said they encountered ghosts in the middle of the night, and many halls had lights on for no apparent reason at night."

Zhao Ji knew in his heart that someone was deliberately making trouble and spreading rumors with ulterior motives.

The emperor was seriously ill, so the palace maids and eunuchs were naturally in a panic. If they secretly sent people to do some small things, it would be easy to create the illusion that the palace was haunted.

Zhao Ji said sternly, "Whether there are ghosts or not has nothing to do with us. I have no right to control the palace maids, but my Qianniu guards are not allowed to talk about these things. This is a taboo."

"Give orders to everyone to do their job properly and not spread rumors. If I hear anyone saying this again, I will bring them to justice!"

"Yes!" Zhang Huan, Shen Tao and Xiao Bao responded solemnly.

Zhao Ji immediately turned around and strode away.

When things had developed to this point, how could he not understand that Princess Taiping's conspiracy against Wu Zetian was already brewing.

However, Zhao Ji carefully observed the actions of Chunxiang and others, and did not find anything like the original drama that created a nightmare with reality.

These attendants could even be said to be loyal to their duties and there was nothing unusual about them.

However, Zhao Ji could also understand it. He thought that putting Wu Zetian in a box and moving it back and forth was not reliable at all.

Even if Wu Zetian herself couldn't tell whether it was reality or a dream, a large box was inexplicably carried out from the emperor's bedroom, and then the emperor inexplicably traveled through space and appeared somewhere else.

It's okay if it happens once or twice, but if it happens too often, the Qianniu Guards are not blind or stupid, so how can they possibly hide it?

I think it was probably the use of hallucinogens, coupled with the verbal induction and psychological suggestion of Chunxiang and others, that caused Wu Zetian to have frequent nightmares.

But this would make it very difficult for Zhao Ji to take action.

As an outsider, I cannot investigate the emperor's diet for no reason. That would be a bad intention.

Moreover, there are many unrecorded and unknown poisons that cannot be tested, and even if they are tested, there may not be any results.

It is very likely that Wu Zetian had consumed a powder made from some unknown poisonous mushroom from the south of the colorful clouds, which caused her hallucinations.

But it was impossible for Zhao Ji to remain indifferent, so he went to find Shangguan Wan'er first to give her a reminder.

By virtue of his position, Zhao Ji was well aware of the patrols and defenses of the guards in the imperial city, which greatly facilitated his tryst with Shangguan Wan'er.

Taking advantage of the rainy night with thunder and lightning, Zhao Ji sneaked into Shangguan Wan'er's bedroom.

With his martial arts skills, it is quite suitable for him to be a flower thief.

The lights in Shangguan Wan'er's bedroom were dim, and the owner of the bedroom was leaning over a desk.

Zhao Ji quietly approached and saw that it was Shangguan Wan'er who had fallen asleep, with a pile of messy memorials beside her. "It turns out she was tired." He stared at Shangguan Wan'er's peaceful sleeping face, and the tiredness between her brows made him feel distressed.

Zhao Ji took off his wet coat and walked carefully to Shangguan Wan'er, fearing to disturb the sleeping beauty.

He gently picked up a thin blanket and covered his lover with it.

Zhao Ji's movements were gentle enough, but they still woke Shangguan Wan'er up.

She opened her sleepy eyes and murmured in a daze: "Chengyuan, you are here..."

"If I had known, I wouldn't have come and let you sleep a little longer." Zhao Ji responded softly.

Shangguan Wan'er slowly stood up and stretched. Her graceful figure looked particularly charming under the dim light.

Zhao Ji turned and walked to the dressing table, took a towel, soaked it in a copper basin, wrung it dry, and handed it to Shangguan Wan'er.

Shangguan Wan'er took the towel, a strange light flashed in her eyes. She looked at Zhao Ji, her eyes seemed to contain thousands of words.

"How can I let you do this?"

Zhao Ji was slightly startled, then he realized that men in ancient times probably didn't often do such things.

"Zhang Chang is still drawing eyebrows for his wife, what am I doing?" Zhao Ji said casually.

Shangguan Wan'er blushed slightly when she heard this, and said coquettishly, "What are you talking about? You are becoming more and more presumptuous."

She was thinking of Zhang Chang's answer: The joy of the boudoir is greater than painting eyebrows.

Zhao Ji raised his lips slightly and said teasingly, "You are so unruly because of your sister's indulgence. I just feel sorry for you. Why do you have to work so hard?"

Shangguan Wan'er glared at Zhao Ji, then reluctantly took the towel and wiped her face.

After tidying up a bit, she said with some pride: "Your Majesty is not feeling well, so he entrusted the important task to me. Of course I must do my best to share your worries. Others would not have the chance to do so much."

"If you really care about me, please work harder and get into the government hall. Only then can you really help me."

Zhao Ji rolled his eyes and said, "Good man, you have really high expectations of me. Is this something that can be achieved solely through personal efforts?"
Having said that, Zhao Ji looked at Shangguan Wan'er and felt a little sad.

The woman in front of me will have her biography recorded in history books in the future, but there is still no trace of my own "Biography of Zhao Ji".

Shangguan Wan'er sat on the couch and asked with a smile, "Tell me, what do you want to see me about?"

Zhao Ji also sat next to Shangguan Wan'er and replied with a smile: "Could it be that I came here because I missed you?"

Shangguan Wan'er chuckled and said, "Stop talking nonsense. What's the matter?"

Zhao Ji smiled helplessly, then said seriously: "Do you know about the recent haunted incident in the palace?"

Shangguan Wan'er shook her head: "I have heard of it, but I don't know clearly."

Zhao Ji took a deep breath and said, "I suspect someone is deliberately spreading rumors."

"Is there any evidence? What did you find?" Shangguan Wan'er asked hurriedly.

Zhao Ji shook his head: "There is no solid evidence, but I have a vague feeling. Your Majesty has been feeling unwell recently and has been having nightmares. Haha, it just so happens that at this time, the palace has started to be haunted..."

Shangguan Wan'er immediately understood what Zhao Ji meant and frowned, "Are you saying that someone is trying to murder His Majesty?"

"We can't jump to conclusion now because we don't have evidence." Zhao Ji borrowed a sentence from Di Renjie.

Shangguan Wan'er's eyes flashed with thought, and she nodded: "You and I are here today, all thanks to your Majesty. I can't get away here, so you must keep an eye on your Majesty and make sure nothing unexpected happens."

"I understand. I'll take care of everything," Zhao Ji said confidently.

Shangguan Wan'er nodded slightly: "I believe you."
-
There are many shady things happening on thunderstorm nights, such as someone sneaking into the forbidden area or plotting murder.

At the foot of Mang Mountain, on the open space outside Zixia Temple, an extremely long iron rod stood tall, with a copper wire wrapped in animal skin connected to the rod.

The copper wire meanders and extends all the way to a remote room inside the temple.

Inside the room, Franklin of the Great Zhou Dynasty - Wang Zhiyuan, the national teacher, was conducting human experiments.

A young Taoist priest was drugged and lay quietly on the bed.

He wore a copper hood on his head, and there was a hook at the end of the copper wire connected to the iron rod, which was hooked on the hood.

Suddenly, there was a deafening thunder in the sky, and a flash of lightning streaked across the night sky, hitting the iron rod accurately.

The electric current instantly rushed along the copper wire and rushed straight towards the young Taoist priest.

In an instant, the Taoist spasmed and became a familiar face.

Wang Zhiyuan witnessed this scene from a distance, his eyes revealing excitement and surprise.

When the sound of lightning stopped, he slowly walked over and felt the Taoist's breath, but found that he was already dead.

He silently took off his hood, and at this moment, another flash of lightning streaked across the night sky, illuminating half of Wang Zhiyuan's face, highlighting his eerie and terrifying expression at the moment.

Just when the weird atmosphere reached its climax, a knock on the door broke the silence.

A little Taoist priest's voice sounded outside the door: "Master, the princess is here to visit."

　Thanks to Sifang for the reward.

　　
　
(End of this chapter)