Chapter 1386
The Legendary Empress Modeled After Empress Wu!
Chapter 1386 The Legendary Empress Modeled After Empress Wu!
"Let's go to the palace and meet this legendary empress."
Watching Yan Hong being dragged away, Wang Mang felt a mix of emotions. He then turned to Surtur and said...
For Wang Mang, a time traveler, he saw in Empress Liu the shadow of Wu Zetian, the only female emperor in his previous life!
The same emperor was seriously ill, the same power was in their hands, the same hen crowing at dawn, and even the same ambition!
Over the years, Wang Mang had noticed some suspicious activity. At least among the three Liu brothers, who were now besieging the city, there was definitely some connection with Empress Liu.
Therefore, he wanted to see what was so special about this legendary woman who resembled Wu Zetian.
"Why didn't you kill him? He was so unfriendly to you."
On the way, Surtur couldn't help but ask.
"It would be a pity to kill such a loyal minister, and we also need such people to remind me not to forget my original intentions."
Wang Mang smiled.
"Besides, the three thousand assassins secretly raised are not there to kill loyal ministers."
He paused and added.
This is no exaggeration. Over the years, Wang Mang has been emulating Sima Yi in his previous life, secretly cultivating three thousand elite warriors in the capital. These warriors were all orphans selected from various places and secretly trained by Wang Mang. They were all highly skilled and extremely loyal.
These people were scattered throughout the imperial city on ordinary days. Some worked as peddlers, some as coachmen, and some even infiltrated the imperial guards, becoming Wang Mang's spies.
These loyal soldiers played a crucial role in purging the Grand Secretaries and taking over the Imperial Guards; without them, Wang Mang would not have been able to succeed so smoothly.
He had made many preparations for this day long ago; Yao Guangxiao was merely the one who gave him the start.
As the imperial palace of the Great Ling Dynasty, the copper rings of the Zhu Tian Gate gleamed coldly in the night. The palace gate, which usually required three tokens to open, was wide open at this moment. The palace lanterns on both sides inside the gate swayed in the night wind, casting a play of light and shadow on the bluestone pavement.
Wang Mang stepped on the dew that remained on the stone slabs, the hem of his black python robe gently sweeping across the ground with each step, creating a soft sound.
Surtur followed beside him, his red hair and beard blazing like fire under the palace lanterns. The hilt of his greatsword, "Burning Branch," was burning hot in his hand, and the heat emanating from his body made the surrounding palace lanterns shine even brighter.
"The hinges of the Vermilion Bird Gate were made of jujube wood when the late emperor was in power. It is said that they selected century-old wood that was transported from the southern border at an urgent speed of three thousand li, supposedly to prevent moisture and insects. But now, our assassins have easily taken care of it."
Wang Mang sighed inwardly, his gaze sweeping over the dark figures standing with their hands at their sides inside the palace gate—these were the assassins he had secretly raised for over twenty years.
These men, dressed in the uniforms of the Imperial Guard, with expressionless faces, were silently leading the way for him, revealing the palace's defensive deployment.
As Wang Mang walked to the steps in front of the Chengtian Hall, he stopped and looked up at the layers of upturned eaves, a complex emotion welling up in his heart.
Back when he first entered the capital, he was just a young man relying on his family's protection. The first time he accompanied his father to the palace to pay homage, standing under the imperial steps, he felt the majesty of the palace was so overwhelming that he could hardly breathe.
Now, under the cover of night, he leads his troops into the heart of the Great Ling imperial power, a place from which there is no turning back!
"After enduring so many years, today has finally come." Wang Mang sighed inwardly, his fingertips unconsciously stroking the jade belt hook at his waist—it was a gift from Empress Liu, said to be an old item used by the late emperor, but it was actually just an ordinary piece of Hetian jade, yet he had worn it as a treasure for over twenty years.
Who would have thought that this "good junior" who was always obedient and submissive to Empress Liu and even willing to take the blame for her had started secretly training assassins when he was only ten years old?
At that time, Wang Mang had only been in this world for a short time. He witnessed firsthand the arrogance of the royal family and the infighting of powerful ministers. He knew that in order to survive in this chaotic world and even realize his dream of becoming emperor, he needed to have enough power.
He used his saved New Year's money to buy three homeless orphans from human traffickers, secretly sent them to a secluded valley outside the city, and hired retired veterans to teach them martial arts.
Later, as his status in the court rose and his resources increased, the number of his assassins grew from three to ten, then to one hundred, and finally to three thousand.
Over the years, he played the role of a "good boy" in front of Empress Liu, which can be described as the pinnacle of forbearance.
When Empress Liu wanted to suppress a powerful minister, he would step forward to act as her pawn; when Empress Liu wanted to support her relatives, he would help pave the way, even at the cost of offending his own colleagues.
Even when Empress Liu's nephew abducted a woman by taking advantage of his power and was impeached by the censor, he stood up to take the blame for him, saying that it was because he had not disciplined her properly.
People in the court laughed at him, calling him Empress Liu's "follower" and spineless. But only Wang Mang himself knew that he was "playing dumb to fool the enemy."
Empress Liu was incredibly shrewd. She was able to gradually take control of the court when the emperor was seriously ill, with methods comparable to Wu Zetian in her previous life. Could she not see that Wang Mang had ambitions?
Of course you can see it!
But Wang Mang was too good at hiding his ambition. He wrapped his ambition in layers of obedience. Every time Empress Liu tested him, he could show his loyalty perfectly and even voluntarily hand over some unimportant power so that Empress Liu would feel that he was "controllable".
Just like last year, when Empress Liu deliberately reduced his military power, he not only did not object, but also took the initiative to write a letter saying, "I am unworthy of my position and am willing to share the Empress's worries." This made Empress Liu very happy, and she then rewarded him with a lot of land.
"This woman's mind is deeper than the sea. If Wu Zetian was able to become empress, and she had been born in my previous life, she probably could have turned the world upside down too."
As Wang Mang pondered this, he stepped onto the steps. The incense burners on both sides of the steps still held the scent of sandalwood, the top-grade tribute incense used in royal sacrifices, worth ten taels of silver per ounce. But now, in his eyes, it was nothing but useless junk.
Passing through Chengtian Gate, one arrives at Chentian Hall. The hall doors are also open, and the hall is brightly lit with candles. Empress Liu sits on a phoenix chair below the dragon throne, wearing a bright yellow phoenix robe embroidered with lifelike phoenix patterns, the gold threads shimmering in the candlelight.
She was around fifty years old, very well-preserved, with almost no wrinkles on her face, except for the fine lines at the corners of her eyes that betrayed her age. Her eyes were sharp as an eagle's, and she was staring intently at Wang Mang as he walked in.
"What is Grand Secretary Wang planning to do, entering the palace late at night with so many soldiers?"
Empress Liu's voice was calm and even, yet anyone could hear the chill in it.
She had already received the news that Wang Mang was carrying out a large-scale purge in the capital city that night, taking down the imperial guards and placing the censor-in-chief under house arrest. But she never expected that Wang Mang would act so quickly, actually leading his troops directly into the palace.
She always thought that although Wang Mang was ambitious, he would not dare to easily touch the forbidden palace, after all, it was a symbol of imperial power, and she had Granny Lingxu by her side.
But now it seems that she underestimated this man's patience and ruthlessness—he secretly raised three thousand assassins, and had been preparing for it since he was ten years old. Even she was shocked by his endurance!
(End of this chapter)