Chapter 053: The Superior

After gaining Wang Bo's support, Zhangsun Wuji was overjoyed. He promised Wang Bo that he would give him an explanation within three days.

Wang Bo agreed, since he was in no hurry anyway.

Yet by the following night, after Wu Zetian had once again subdued Wang Bo in bed, she lay in his arms and, with a weary expression, said, "These past few days, undercurrents have been surging in the court. Many ministers are urging me to appoint a new monarch. I'm finding it hard to hold on."

Because Li Zhi died so suddenly without naming a successor, in recent days the ministers have submitted memorials arguing that the state cannot be without a ruler for a single day, urging Wu Zetian to appoint a new sovereign.

But all were suppressed by Wu Zetian.

But the longer things dragged on, the more disadvantageous the situation became for Wu Zetian. By now, many senior ministers were already criticizing her, and faced with the unanimous opposition of the court, Wu Zetian was beginning to find it hard to bear.

After all, she has held great power for too short a time, and there are not many who can help her.

Wang Bo listened, patted her smooth back, and said calmly, "Don't worry. In a few days, things will naturally take a turn."

Wu Zetian raised an eyebrow, a delighted smile spreading across her face. "Could it be that you've already persuaded a whole group of people?"

"I've only persuaded one person."

"Who?" Wu Zetian was rather disappointed.

Zhangsun Wuji.

"That old fox?!" Wu Zetian was both shocked and delighted. She had never imagined that Wang Bo could actually persuade Zhangsun Wuji. Back when Li Zhi wanted to depose Empress Wang and install Wu as empress, Zhangsun Wuji had talked around the subject and shown her not the slightest respect.

This made Wu Zetian both annoyed and resentful toward that old fox.

But the man was not only a veteran official of two reigns, but also Li Zhi's uncle; even she could not shake him in the slightest.

Even in the past six months, when she had monopolized power and suppressed Zhangsun Wuji at every turn, she had been unable to kick him out of the court—a fact that made Wu Zetian deeply wary of this old fox.

But she had never imagined that Wang Bo, with a single move, would persuade that old fox.

"How did you persuade him?" Wu Zetian asked curiously.

"It was simple. I said you are a reincarnation of a celestial star, that your becoming emperor is a blessing for the Great Tang, and that you are on good terms with the King of Hell in the underworld. With a single word, you could have the King of Hell arrange everything for Zhangsun Wuji—he would suffer torment while alive, and after death he would fall into the animal realm, with no possibility of ever becoming human again. That way, Zhangsun Wuji would naturally stop opposing you."

These words from Wang Bo left Wu Zetian utterly dumbfounded.

"Zhangsun Wuji believed it?" she said incredulously. He was an old fox; how could he possibly believe such absurd, superstitious nonsense?

"Why wouldn't he believe it?" Wang Bo countered.

"Of course it is..." Wu Zetian was about to say something when she suddenly recalled how Wang Bo had placed box after box of gold into an open pocket.

She couldn't help changing her words, "In this world, are there truly immortals and buddhas?"

"In this world, there are naturally immortals and buddhas," Wang Bo said with absolute certainty. Even if this world lacked them, this multiverse most certainly had them.

Wu Zetian said thoughtfully, "You once said that your strength was bestowed by a deity."

“That's right.”

"Doesn't that mean you've actually seen a deity?"

"That's not wrong either." Wang Bo had indeed seen a deity; he had once seen Anubis in a dream, and the god had even invited Wang Bo to be his keeper of the dead.

But Wang Bo refused.

Wu Zetian's heart grew increasingly fearful. She found this man even more mysterious and unfathomable than she had imagined—he actually had connections with gods. Though she did not know whether it was true or false, judging by his appearance, he did not seem to be lying.

If this were true, wouldn't that mean he is a messenger of the gods?

“By the way, have you still been drinking Sparrow Tongue tea lately?” Wang Bo suddenly recalled something and asked on his own initiative.

Wu Zetian nodded. "Sparrow Tongue tea is a tribute item, with an extremely mellow flavor that leaves a lasting aftertaste. If you like it, I can give you some."

"No need!" Wang Bo refused flatly. "Also, I advise you to stop drinking the Queshe tea and find an imperial physician to examine you. The one who shares my name is not bad."

Empress Wu's heart jolted. "You mean there's something wrong with the Sparrow Tongue."

"To be precise, it contains a poison made from venomous insects!"

Wu Zetian: "...!!!"

She had not imagined that the royal tribute could have such a serious problem.

"The Qingxin Tea House has some nerve!!!" Wu Zetian flew into a towering rage.

Wang Bo said, “Qingxin Tea House does not have such audacity; the bold ones are the Eastern Islanders. The owner of Qingxin Tea House, Yuan Zhen, has fallen into the hands of these Eastern Islanders, and is probably already in a state worse than death.”

Wu Zetian suppressed the anger in her heart and asked, "What is the origin of these Eastern Islanders, that they dare to tamper with the tribute items."

"Dongdao is a small country sandwiched between the Great Tang and the Kingdom of Fuyu. Your two nations are at war, and the conflict has spilled over onto this little island, causing its people unbearable suffering. Naturally, they have come to settle accounts with you."

Wu Zetian gave a cold snort and said icily, "A mere speck of land, yet they dare stir up trouble in the Great Tang. It seems these people have a death wish. Tomorrow I shall issue an edict to raze the Pure Heart Tea House to the ground and hang every last one of these Eastern Islanders."

Wang Bo thought for a moment and did not offer any advice.

After all, they were just a bunch of Eastern Islanders, with not the slightest connection to himself; whether they lived or died, Wang Bo didn't much care.

Still, he offered a word of caution: “Do not inform the Court of Judicial Review about this matter; there is a mole within that court.”

Upon hearing this, Wu Zetian grew even more furious. She reckoned that Wang Bo would never deceive her in this matter, but it was precisely because of this that she became so enraged.

Yuchi Zhenjin is truly becoming more and more useless. How disappointing!

Yuchi Zhenjin was someone she had personally promoted, yet under his command the Court of Judicial Review had actually produced a mole. If Wu Zetian could still have a good impression of Yuchi Zhenjin, that would be seeing ghosts indeed.

That is simply how those in power are.

Rarely does a superior show consideration for subordinates; in the eyes of most superiors, subordinates are nothing more than tools.

If useful, the superior will entrust them with important tasks.

If they prove useless, the superior will discard them like worn-out shoes.

This is especially true of the emperor.

Throughout history, rulers who could empathize with their ministers and ensure that all of them had a good beginning and a good end have been exceedingly rare—one might even say as rare as phoenix feathers and unicorn horns.

Wu Zetian, naturally, was no exception.

Obviously, Yuchi Zhenjin would suffer misfortune because of this matter, but it still had nothing to do with Wang Bo. Although Yuchi Zhenjin had offended him, Wang Bo had also beaten Yuchi Zhenjin.

The two of them are even now.

How Wu Zetian dealt with Yuchi Zhenjin was none of Wang Bo's business, nor did he care to bother; he wasn't Yuchi Zhenjin's father, after all.