Chapter 050: Martial Arts Are Not History

After Wu Zetian returned to the imperial palace, the excitement in her heart could not be calmed for a long time.

To be honest, at first Wu Zetian indeed treated Wang Bo as a powerful weapon, wanting him to cooperate with the mighty warriors she had created using the demonic pearl to suppress the imperial palace together.

Wu Zetian believed that with Wang Bo's formidable strength, combined with her super soldiers, they could surely suppress all resisters inside and outside the palace, as well as the mutinous soldiers.

When the time came, he could ascend the throne and proclaim himself emperor.

Yet just as the words were about to leave her lips, Wu Zetian suddenly recalled what Wang Bo had done a few days earlier.

He placed the enormous chest into his own pocket.

This kind of thing simply cannot be explained by martial arts.

This man was even more mysterious than he had imagined.

Thus, as if guided by some unseen force, at the critical moment Wu Zetian changed her mind and decided to have Wang Bo help her persuade those old ministers in the court who opposed her.

This was entirely a spur-of-the-moment idea; Wu Zetian was not even sure if Wang Bo could accomplish it.

Yet unexpectedly, Wang Bo actually agreed.

This left Wu Zetian astonished and increasingly excited. If Wang Bo could truly persuade those old ministers in the court who opposed her, then her path to the throne would surely be smooth sailing.

At the same time, Wu Zetian also felt that Wang Bo was increasingly mysterious.

What exactly is the background of this man?

……

After Wu Zetian left, Wang Bo picked up a piece of paper she had left behind, on which was written a long list of old court officials who opposed Wu Zetian, each one holding an important position in the court.

And the first name was one familiar to all.

Zhangsun Wuji.

When Wang Bo saw this name, he couldn't help but roll his eyes.

Although he knew this was a martial arts world, could you at least show some respect for history? If Wang Bo remembered correctly, when the story of this world began, Di Renjie was already thirty years old.

Di Renjie was born in 630 CE, so at thirty he would be in 660 CE.

And by this time, Zhangsun Wuji should already be dead—he died in 659 AD, which means he died just last year.

Wang Bo remembered that Zhangsun Wuji had opposed Emperor Gaozong of Tang's plan to make Wu Zetian empress a few years earlier, thus angering Wu Zetian. Then, last year, Xu Jingzong had someone submit a secret memorial to Gaozong, claiming that the investigating censor Li Chao was colluding with Zhangsun Wuji and plotting rebellion.

In the end, Emperor Gaozong of Tang, Li Zhi, issued an edict stripping Zhangsun Wuji of his official posts and fief, exiling him to Qianzhou, and ordering the prefectures and counties along the way to dispatch troops to escort him. Zhangsun Wuji's sons were all dismissed from office, struck from the rolls, and exiled to Lingnan.

In the seventh month of the same year, Emperor Gaozong of Tang again ordered Li Ji and Xu Jingzong to review the case of Zhangsun Wuji's conspiracy to rebel. Xu Jingzong sent the Secretariat Drafter Yuan Gongyu to Qianzhou to interrogate Wuji on the charges of rebellion. As soon as Yuan Gongyu arrived in Qianzhou, he forced Zhangsun Wuji to hang himself. After Zhangsun Wuji's death, his family property was confiscated, and his close relatives were all exiled to Lingnan as slaves.

Thus the foremost meritorious official of the Lingyan Pavilion met such a miserable end.

Yet now, on the paper left behind by Wu Zetian, the four characters 'Zhangsun Wuji' were written clear as day.

Clearly, in this world, Zhangsun Wuji has not yet died.

It completely disregards history.

But on second thought, this world is, after all, merely a martial arts world, completely different from the historical one. For instance, in actual history, when Wu Zetian was granted the title of Heavenly Empress and, together with Emperor Gaozong of Tang, was hailed as the Two Sages, she was already in her fifties.

But in this world, Wu Zetian is only in her thirties. Incidentally, she was born in 624 CE, six years older than Di Renjie.

This is also one of the reasons why Wang Bo was won over by Wu Zetian in bed. After all, Wu Zetian in her thirties was at the most gorgeous time of her life, skilled in sweet talk and in serving others.

Before transmigrating, Wang Bo was nothing more than an ordinary person.

Even after gaining immense power, he always considered himself an ordinary person.

Even having traversed two worlds, his mindset remained much the same as when he was an ordinary person; never before had he seen a queen who ruled all under heaven touching him freely, flattering him, and pleading with soft words.

Thus, being won over was only a matter of time.

After Wang Bo accepted the reality that Zhangsun Wuji was still alive in this world, he repeatedly reminded himself that there was no need to take things too seriously in a martial arts world. Then, on the second night, he infiltrated Zhangsun Wuji's residence and quickly found him.

What Wang Bo hadn't expected was that at this moment, Zhangsun Wuji was sitting alone in the courtyard, drinking in silence.

He looked as if he were quite unhappy.

In truth, Zhangsun Wuji was indeed very unhappy, because his nephew Li Zhi had died.

A few years earlier, Li Zhi had wanted to depose Empress Wang and install Wu Zetian—then known as Wu Meiniang—as empress. To forestall opposition from his uncle, he made a point of bringing Wu Zetian with him to his uncle's home.

At the same time, he bestowed ten cartloads of gold, treasures, silks, and brocades, and appointed Zhangsun Wuji's three sons as court gentlemen for consultation. During the banquet, Li Zhi remarked that Empress Wang had no heir, hinting that Zhangsun Wuji should support deposing the empress.

Yet at the time, Zhangsun Wuji evaded the subject, pretending not to understand Li Zhi's intentions.

Without a doubt, this act absolutely made Wu Zetian harbor a deep grudge.

But Zhangsun Wuji was not flustered, for he was Li Zhi's maternal uncle, the foremost meritorious official of Lingyan Pavilion, and a veteran of two reigns; as long as he committed no grave error, a mere Wu Zetian was not worth his notice.

But not long after, his nephew Li Zhi deposed Empress Wang and made Wu Zetian the empress.

He even disregarded the opposition of many court ministers, allowed Wu Zetian to participate in state affairs, and elevated her to the position of the Two Sages.

This greatly startled Zhangsun Wuji, and he also felt the pressure.

However, given his status, he could still withstand the pressure.

What Zhangsun Wuji had not expected, however, was that the appearance of the demonic pearl would leave his nephew so gravely injured, bedridden and unable to recover, that power would fall completely into Wu Zetian's hands.

Wu Zetian grew ever more brazen, forcing Zhangsun Wuji to retreat step by step.

For a time, to save his own skin, Zhangsun Wuji could only collude with his partisans to resist the pressure from Wu Zetian.

Unfortunately, before he could gain a firm foothold, something even worse happened: his nephew Li Zhi unexpectedly succumbed to severe injuries and passed away.

This left Zhangsun Wuji completely dumbfounded.

Now, the emperor is dead, and a new one has not yet been installed. If Wu Zetian installs a young emperor and takes control of the court, holding all power in her hands, who could oppose her?

Every time he thought of this, Zhangsun Wuji felt a pang in his heart.

Ever since Li Zhi died, he had been unable to sleep night after night, and could only drink alone in the courtyard, brooding over how to resolve the current situation.

You must understand, the current crown prince Li Hong is Li Zhi's fifth son, and also Wu Zetian's first son.

And this year, Li Hong is not yet ten years old.

If he ascends the throne and proclaims himself emperor, who could stop Wu Zetian, now the Empress Dowager?

Her own position, and even the lives and safety of her entire family, were in imminent danger.