Chapter 048: The Beauty

Wu Zetian of course knew that even without Wang Bo's help, she could become emperor.

Now, holding the demonic pearl, she can use its power every day to create a master comparable to Eunuch Li. Once she has enough such people, she can use this group to suppress all opposition inside and outside the imperial palace.

Only in this way could she secure her position as emperor.

At first, Wu Zetian thought the same.

But plans cannot keep pace with changes.

She had not expected that Li Zhi would pass away so soon.

In her plan, Li Zhi absolutely must not die; he had to live, even if barely alive, for only then would she have enough time to place her own people within the court.

When the time came, with her wings fully fledged and Li Zhi dead, she could calmly ascend to the supreme throne and become the first female emperor in history.

Yet its own wings were not yet fully fledged, and the army it had created could not yet suppress all voices of opposition.

Li Zhi died.

For Wu Zetian, this was undoubtedly a tremendous blow.

Ever since she became one of the Two Sages, remonstrances flowed like a stream within the court, voices opposing her grew louder by the day, and voices supporting her were far too weak.

If she launched a coup now, the likelihood of failure would be high, with almost no certainty of success.

Wu Zetian was fully aware of this.

The best course now is to put forward a prince to ascend the throne, while I govern from behind the curtain, on one hand placing my own people within the court, and on the other, cultivating experts.

Once the time is ripe, she could just as well depose the emperor and ascend to the supreme throne.

But in that case, Wu Zetian would have to wait.

She would even have to wait several years before she could become emperor.

Moreover, during this period, everything must proceed smoothly. If there are any setbacks—such as the new emperor being dissatisfied with her regency and wanting to vie for power—then she would have to delay once again.

Or for instance, the demonic pearl might bewitch one's own people, causing trouble for oneself, and then stage a drama of holding the emperor hostage to command the feudal lords, and so on.

All these are things that could happen.

No one understood better than Wu Zetian that the demonic pearl was in truth a double-edged sword.

Used well, it is one's own aid; once a mistake is made, it will bring upon oneself colossal trouble.

But even so, Wu Zetian was still unwilling to give up the demonic pearl, for the benefits it brought her were simply too great—so great that Wu Zetian could disregard its dangers.

Originally, as long as Li Zhi was alive and the court was not in turmoil, Wu Zetian was confident she could suppress the demonic pearl.

But now, Li Zhi is dead, and after the new emperor ascends the throne, if he contends with me for power and profit, it will drain a great deal of my energy. When the time comes, if the demonic pearl stirs up any trouble, chaos could easily ensue.

So after pondering the matter repeatedly, Wu Zetian once again thought of Wang Bo.

This unfathomable man, who each time brought her tremendous surprises, was the only man Wu Zetian could not see through.

If she had this man's help, perhaps she would not need to wait several years, and could easily ascend to the supreme throne.

Therefore, after careful consideration, Wu Zetian took advantage of the emperor's death and the ensuing chaos in the palace to secretly leave and come to Wang Bo's residence, attempting to win him over and gain his support.

But unfortunately, Wang Bo had no interest in vying for power.

He just wanted to live his own shameless and carefree life in peace, and had no desire to bother with Wu Zetian at all.

Seeing Wang Bo remain impervious to persuasion, Wu Zetian grew increasingly agitated. Li Zhi's death had disrupted all her plans, and now Wang Bo's stubborn refusal to help her caused the fury in her heart to surge unceasingly.

But even so, Wu Zetian still did not fall out with Wang Bo.

For she knew that the man before her had no regard for the law, no taboos, and did not take her seriously at all. If she rashly vented her anger at him, it would only make matters worse.

So she had to endure it.

"What exactly will it take for you to help me?" Wu Zetian asked.

Wang Bo flatly refused, "Go back. I have no interest in this matter, nor will I help you."

Wu Zetian was so furious that she nearly ground her white teeth to dust.

She rose resentfully, pulled open the door and walked out. Not long after, she and Lian Nishang left.

Wang Bo breathed a sigh of relief, finally having sent this difficult woman on her way. After closing the door properly, he returned to bed, closed his eyes, and fell straight asleep.

The night passed quickly.

Wang Bo had thought the matter was over, but to his surprise, the next night, just as he was about to go to sleep, Lian Nishang once again barged into his room, bringing Wu Zetian with her.

Wang Bo looked at Wu Zetian with a face full of irritation. "Why have you come again?"

"I've come to ask you, just how can you help me?" Wu Zetian said coquettishly.

Wang Bo: ...

"I should have answered you yesterday—I don't want to get involved with you."

Wu Zetian said lightly, "I thought you would change your mind today."

"Then let me tell you now, not just today, even tomorrow, the day after, the day after that, or for a year or two, I will not change my mind," Wang Bo said through gritted teeth. "So don't come again."

Wu Zetian said faintly, “Nothing in this world can be spoken of so absolutely. When I entered the palace, I never imagined that one day I would become empress, much less that one day I would actually want to become emperor.”

Wang Bo said, “We are not the same.”

Wu Zetian said, "People are all the same, because they are endlessly fickle."

Wang Bo couldn't be bothered to waste words with Wu Zetian. He turned over, facing away from her, and closed his eyes to sleep.

It was not that he looked down on Wu Zetian; with her strength, trying to kill him would be as difficult as ascending to heaven. Even Lian Nishang, standing outside the door, could not kill Wang Bo.

Wu Zetian walked over, sat on the edge of the bed, and reached out a hand to touch Wang Bo's cheek.

Wang Bo grabbed Wu Zetian's hand. "What are you trying to do?"

Wu Zetian said coquettishly, "As long as you are willing to help me, whatever it is, I can give it to you, and that naturally includes myself."

Wang Bo couldn't help but widen his eyes, looking at Wu Zetian in disbelief. "Are you crazy? Li Zhi just died."

Wu Zetian said mournfully, “Ever since he was wounded by that group of rebels over half a year ago, we have never shared a bed again. I am a normal woman, too.”

As she spoke, she bent down, brought her mouth close to Wang Bo's ear, and whispered, "I am not only a woman, but also the emperor's woman."

"Apart from the emperor, no one has ever touched me, and you are the first."

"If I become emperor in the future, I will be the first female emperor in history. Master Wang, what are you still hesitating about?"