Chapter 115 The mastermind behind the scenes
The sun was rising, and the continuous thunderstorm finally came to an end.

In Shangyang Palace, everything seemed to have returned to its former tranquility, and the ghosts and evil spirits had temporarily retreated.

Di Renjie sat beside Wu Zetian under the imperial couch, playing with the green toad that almost scared Wu Zetian to death.

Four words are engraved on the bottom of the green toad: "To Prince Xian".

Di Renjie frowned, his face solemn, thinking about the origins of Cui Chan.

Just as he was lost in thought, Wu Zetian had woken up at some point and was staring at Di Renjie.

"Huaiying, why are you in the palace?"

Political animals are political animals, and their killer instinct is still at work.

Wu Zetian was exhausted from all the tossing and turning last night and she could barely speak, but the first words she said when she woke up were still full of vigilance and suspicion.

She was suspicious and wary of Di Renjie, the prime minister and an old minister of the Li Tang Dynasty, as to why he learned the news so quickly and entered the palace alone when she was critically ill.

Di Renjie quickly put the toad back to its original place and stood up to answer: "Your Majesty, your Majesty was not feeling well last night, and it was Princess Taiping who asked me to enter the palace at night to treat your Majesty."

When Wu Zetian heard the answer, her expression eased a little: "So it was you who saved my life."

It was just that Di Renjie was standing beside the couch while Wu Zetian was lying flat on the bed, neither of them had the dignity of an emperor.

But Wu Zetian was still a little weak, so she had no choice but to say, "Help me up."

Upon hearing this, Di Renjie immediately stepped forward, gently helped Wu Zetian up, and moved a pillow for her to support her back.

"You sit down too." Wu Zetian said lightly, with a tired smile on her face.

Di Renjie then sat down with peace of mind: "Your Majesty just said that I saved your life, I dare not take credit for it. The imperial physician Feng Chunlai gave Your Majesty a few crucial injections, in fact, he is the hero who saved your life, I am just the icing on the cake."

Wu Zetian nodded and said: "I have wronged him. Where is Feng Chunlai now?"

Di Renjie replied, "I have already rushed to the Imperial Medical Bureau to prepare medicine for Your Majesty."

Di Renjie continued, "Last night, something happened suddenly. Princess Taiping did not sleep all night and has been serving Your Majesty. I just asked her to go to the side hall to rest for a while."

After hearing this, Wu Zetian's eyes flashed with relief: "Among all my children, she is the most filial."

When talking about her children, Wu Zetian's eyes dimmed again, and her left fingers gently touched the green toad beside the bed.

"I heard from the eunuchs that this green toad was brought into the palace by Feng Chunlai?" Di Renjie asked tentatively.

Wu Zetian had already taken the green toad in her hand. She shook her head and said, "Li Xian has been dead for more than ten years. Feng Chunlai had not yet entered the palace at that time. How could he have such a thing?"

Di Renjie looked puzzled: "I also feel that this is strange. Then how did this thing appear in the palace?"

Wu Zetian closed her eyes tightly, her face filled with fear, and her breathing became rapid: "It's a ghost. It's a ghost!"

Di Renjie didn't expect the emperor to give such a ridiculous answer: "Ghost?"

Wu Zetian nodded repeatedly, as if accepting her fate: "It's a ghost... It's Li Xian's ghost that's haunting me! He won't let me go. For the past few months, I've been haunted by the evil ghost almost every night. I'm afraid this is a warning from the underworld. I won't be around for long."

Di Ren was shocked when he heard this. He felt that Wu Zetian was mentally abnormal. It would be fine if she talked about ghosts, but could she just say something like "she will not live long"?

This is a difficult situation. The physical illness has been curbed, but mental problems have arisen.

Di Pangpang is a man of integrity, and he cannot tolerate these evil spirits. Moreover, he is loyal to Wu Zetian and will not sit idly by, so he starts a verbal therapy for the emperor...
-
On the other side, Shangguan Wan'er and Zhao Ji found a secluded corner and discussed the matter of Cui Chan.

"Wan'er, did you see how the green toad appeared under Feng Chunlai's feet?" Zhao Ji asked.

Shangguan Wan'er pondered for a moment and shook her head gently: "At that time, all my thoughts were on His Majesty, and I didn't pay attention to these details."

Zhao Ji raised his eyebrows and sighed, "What a pity."

Shangguan Wan'er looked thoughtful and asked, "Do you suspect someone deliberately brought Cuichan into the palace in order to disturb His Majesty?"

Zhao Ji smiled when he heard this: "It's obvious that it wouldn't have jumped in by itself. It could have been brought into the palace by someone." "Who was it? Could it really be Feng Chunlai?" Shangguan Wan'er frowned.

Zhao Ji shook his head and said, "It doesn't matter who it is. It could be Feng Chunlai or the eunuchs around His Majesty. But these people are just following orders. There must be someone behind the scenes directing them."

Shangguan Wan'er pressed on, "Who? Who ordered this?"

Zhao Ji took a deep breath and said coldly, "This person must first know that Your Majesty has given Prince Yong a green toad. Secondly, he must be able to know where the green toad is kept and then get it. Finally, he must be able to command the eunuchs or the imperial physician to do his bidding."

"There are actually only a handful of people who meet all these conditions." Zhao Ji's eyes suddenly became sharp.

Shangguan Wan'er felt a chill piercing her bones, and was a little bit unbelieving: "You mean, it's the Crown Prince, the Prince of Xiang and the others."

Zhao Ji's eyes sparkled, and he added, "You missed one person, Princess Taiping."

Shangguan Wan'er was stunned and asked in confusion: "I can understand that the Crown Prince and the Prince of Xiang want to murder Your Majesty. It is reasonable for them to fight for the throne. But Princess Taiping is deeply loved by Your Majesty. What is the point of her doing this? Even if the trick succeeds, what can she gain?"

Zhao Ji shook his head and said, "I just said that Princess Taiping meets those conditions, I didn't say it must be her."

Then, Zhao Ji analyzed: "The Crown Prince, Prince Xiang and Princess Taiping are the three people. The Crown Prince is weak and has just been robbed in Huzhou. Even if he has the intention, he definitely doesn't have the courage to do it."

"Prince Xiang is a good man. The reason why the crown prince was able to be restored to the throne was because he submitted a petition and strongly advocated giving up the throne. It doesn't seem likely that he wanted to murder Your Majesty."

"Only Princess Taiping, who is very similar to Your Majesty in character, seems to be someone who can do this. What a coincidence that I saw her enter the palace last night. I think she is very suspicious. I am afraid that this princess is thinking of imitating Your Majesty."

Shangguan Wan'er felt a little unbelievable: "You mean the princess also wants to be the emperor? No way..."

Zhao Ji looked back at Shangguan Wan'er and said with emotion: "Your Majesty is a woman who has become an emperor. There is no one before and there will be no one after. It is indeed impossible to emulate. But who can predict what a person is thinking?"

Shangguan Wan'er smiled upon hearing this, and focused on the first half of the sentence: "I didn't expect you to be quite respectful to His Majesty."

Zhao Ji smiled lightly and did not refute: "I just told the truth."

There has only been one genuine female emperor in China in thousands of years. Her skills and abilities have indeed surpassed many of her peers of different surnames. She is not as good as the best, but better than the worst.

Di Renjie might be having a heart-to-heart talk with Wu Zetian right now, and the two of them are talking about those classic dialogues.

After Wu Zetian became emperor, she might not necessarily be proud of her identity as a woman, and might even be worried about it.

All the frameworks of this ancient empire are designed to serve the male rulers. Even if women stand at the top of this framework, they will still feel inconvenienced.

For example, if there is no Wu clan girl of the right age for a marriage, then a Li clan member like Li Qingxia will be sent to complete the marriage.

In the future, who knows, there might be men with the surname Wu who will marry into the royal family, creating a miracle that will be remembered for generations to come.

The most crucial point is that if Wu Zetian was a man, she would not have to waver between her nephew with the same surname and her son with a different surname on the issue of succession.

If Li Xian's position was stable, Princess Taiping would never have the chance to have evil thoughts.

Shangguan Wan'er looked at Zhao Ji with a worried look on her face, "No matter how reasonable your words are, we don't have any evidence at all. What should we do?"

Zhao Ji also nodded: "Yes, there is a saying that distant relatives cannot separate us. If we just rely on Cuichan's words, they may even bite back and say that you and I brought them into the palace. So this matter needs to be considered carefully."

"Are we just going to do nothing? His Majesty is in imminent danger." Shangguan Wan'er said anxiously.

Zhao Ji said confidently, "No. I guess the reason why the people behind the scenes pretended to be ghosts and gods and set up a ghost show in the palace is because they don't dare to risk the world's condemnation and directly murder Your Majesty."

"And they should never, ever involve Judge Dee. If they were to plot this in front of Judge Dee, they would be the only ones to suffer."

Hearing Di Renjie's name, Shangguan Wan'er was somewhat convinced, and said helplessly: "There is really no way. This involves the fight for the throne. You and I are insignificant and have no say."

"All we can do is to ensure His Majesty's safety. Chengyuan, I can't get away. I can only rely on you."

Zhao Ji nodded slightly: "I will do my best. As the General of the Guards, if anything happens to your majesty, I will not be able to escape the blame."

　Thanks to Xiaoxiaowuwanghai and Uncle for the reward.

　　
　
(End of this chapter)