They are all concubines, so of course they choose the future emperor.

Chapter 216: Just a Monster

Jiang Wanyue waited for a long time but did not receive any message from Xiuchun.

She thought that the master had given up.

But what was unexpected was that on the next day, just after breakfast, unexpected news came from Sanqing Temple.

The guards inside and outside the Sanqing Palace have been replaced by Li Ce. Now they are all his men and will report any disturbance to him immediately.

Someone handed a visiting card to the retired emperor this morning, but the guards did not deliver it to the retired emperor immediately, but quietly sent it to the Liangyi Palace.

Since the emperor moved into the Sanqing Hall, he has refused all visitors.

Only when the noble concubine knelt for a long time outside the Sanqing Hall with the concubines did she see the emperor. After that time, the emperor never saw any outsiders again.

Everyone knows about the former dynasty and the harem, so why would someone still pass on a letter?

Jiang Wanyue and Li Ce were both a little surprised.

Li Ce took the post, opened it, and frowned.

There is no name written on it, just "old friend born in the year of Jiayin".

The name written on the top of the letter was not the name of the retired emperor, but a strange name.

Long Fei.

"Is this the name my father used before?" Jiang Wanyue also saw it.

Li Ce shook his head slowly.

"Never heard of it."

Jiang Wanyue's gaze continued to move downward.

"The year of Jiayin..." She calculated in her mind, "That was thirty years ago. Father was still a prince at that time, right? Maybe it was an alias he used when he was incognito."

Li Ce said "hmm", closed the visiting card, and asked Liang Gaosheng to return it to the guard.

Without any further instructions from him, the guards would naturally deliver the visiting card to the emperor.

Li Ce was also somewhat curious about this "old friend" and whispered to Jiang Wanyue while pulling her.

"Come with me tomorrow to see it."

Jiang Wanyue had some vague guesses in her mind, but she wasn't sure. She also wanted to go, so she nodded and agreed.

The next day came in a blink of an eye.

After receiving the post, the emperor was extremely excited and almost did not sleep all night.

After having a quick breakfast in the morning, he drank two pots of strong tea and waited anxiously for the guests.

He had never felt that time was so long.

Finally, the agreed time arrived.

Outside the palace gate, a familiar yet unfamiliar figure appeared.

She walked into the hall step by step and saw the emperor with a calm and cold look.

"It's really you!"

The emperor stood up suddenly and rushed over quickly.

He rushed to her and tried to grab her arm, but was dodged.

"Qianfan! Are you finally willing to come and see me?"

The retired emperor's eyes were bloodshot and sparkling with astonishing light.

The woman he called Qianfan took a step back and looked away.

"I came here for Sister Wu's descendants. You killed her entire family, leaving only this one child. If I can't save her, I will be ashamed of Sister Wu in my grave."

The emperor was stunned.

"Are you here for Wu Linglan?"

His brows furrowed, the excitement in his eyes faded, and a hint of coldness emerged.

"She intended to murder me! She deserves death!"

Qianfan sneered.

"Aren't you alive and well now? What did she do to you? I watched this child grow up. She is just a stupid and unintelligent child. How could she plot against you?"

The emperor stood up straight and sat back down.

"You have many misunderstandings about me. I had no choice but to do what happened back then..."

He seemed to want to explain, but he was interrupted by Qianfan just as he opened his mouth.

"I don't want to hear about your helplessness, and you don't have to bother explaining it to me. Whether you are forced to do it or not, it has nothing to do with me. I helped you at the beginning only for Sister Wu's sake. I thought you at least respected her as a wife, but I didn't expect you to be so cruel as to wipe out her entire family."

When talking about the past, Qianfan's usually calm face finally showed some fluctuations.

For more than twenty years, she tossed and turned every night, unable to sleep. Regret and pain gnawed at her heart and turned her hair into grey at an early age.

She wanted to go back and change everything countless times.

But it was all in vain.

The retired emperor clenched his dry and rough hands suddenly.

"I am the emperor. Anyone who threatens my throne should be killed!"

Qianfan sighed.

"Yes! I forgot that from the day you ascended the throne, you were no longer yourself, but just a monster clinging to the imperial power."

As she spoke, her tone suddenly changed.

"Ultimately, this is all my fault. I shouldn't have said that."

Her voice echoed in the hall, as faint as a cold wind blowing across the ground.

The emperor's look suddenly changed.

"So, what you said is indeed true! The Wu family will destroy my Li family!"

he muttered.

"I did the right thing... I was not wrong."

"I am right!"

His voice became louder and louder.

One voice became louder than the other, echoing passionately in the hall.

The next moment, he suddenly jumped up, turned around, ran to a hidden corner next to the statue of Daozu, and muttered in a low voice.

"I'm not wrong... Mei'er... Can you forgive me? Will you forgive me?"

In that corner, unnoticed by anyone, there was a small tablet with something written on it in vermilion ink.

Beloved wife Wu Mei.

The ink stain was mottled and looked like it was about to be worn away.

The four corners of the tablet are round, smooth and shiny.

The retired emperor reached out and picked up the tablet, stroking it gently with his hands. His movements were so gentle, as if it was not a piece of wood but his wife.

His eyes were dazed and he was mumbling words that no one could hear clearly.

For a moment, it was impossible to tell whether he was awake or...

Already crazy.

Qianfan stood there for a long time, looking at the appearance of the retired emperor, with a hint of pity in his eyes.

She didn't say anything else. After a sigh, she turned and walked out of the hall.

However, not long after he walked down the stairs, he was stopped by several guards.

"The Emperor invites you."

There was no sign of surprise on Qianfan's face. He nodded slightly and followed the guards.

The guard did not take her too far. After turning a corner, they stopped in front of a small pavilion.

She followed the guards into the palace, and when she saw that the guards stayed outside, she didn't care and walked in alone.

There was a man and a woman in the house.

Looking at the attire of these two people, Qianfan recognized that they were the emperor and the empress.

She was somewhat surprised that apart from the two of them, there was no one else in the room, no eunuchs, no palace maids, and no guards.

It was obvious that the emperor and empress did not want anyone to know about this conversation.

Qianfan lowered his eyes, took a few steps forward, and gave a not-so-standard salute.

"I pay my respects to the Emperor and Empress."

Jiang Wanyue looked at her curiously.

She was certain that the white-haired woman in front of her was the ancestor Xiuchun had mentioned.

He is indeed a very special person.

For some reason, Jiang Wanyue always felt that there was a familiar feeling about this person.

She tried to recall it carefully, but she couldn't remember it after searching her mind.

This feeling is distant and vague.

It’s like a previous life.

Last life?

Jiang Wanyue's heart moved and her eyes flashed.

She had a lot of questions she wanted to ask, but in the end she asked nothing and just looked at Li Ce.

Li Ce raised his hand slightly.

"Be flat!"

He was also somewhat curious about Qianfan.

But Li Ce is a straightforward person. Now that he has met the person, of course he has to solve his biggest confusion.

So he started asking.

"You and my father and mother are old acquaintances? Then do you know what happened to my mother in the past?"

Qianfan paused and nodded slowly.

"I believe you two have already heard about the conversation I had with the Emperor in the Sanqing Palace. The Wu family was destroyed in the past, and there was indeed a reason."

She took a long breath, adjusted her words, and then continued.

"Your father... The Emperor Retired had a hard time gaining the throne, and the Wu family helped a lot. Empress Wu was a truly kind and extraordinary woman. She once saved me, so we became close friends. To escape from my original family, I entered the Wu family as a maid and stayed with Empress Wu. Because I knew some medical knowledge, I helped her a lot, so we became sworn sisters."

She simply recounted the story of how she met Empress Wu, and without stopping, she went on to talk about Empress Wu and the retired emperor.

In fact, the process of these two people getting to know each other was not that thrilling. They just happened to see each other at a banquet and knew that this person existed.

But neither of them expected that the late emperor would suddenly grant them a marriage.

The imperial edict could not be disobeyed. After receiving the decree, the Wu family happily prepared for the wedding, but Empress Wu was often worried.

At that time, the fight among the princes had not yet reached a fever pitch, but the princes' competition for favor had already shown signs since childhood. The emperor was obviously interested in that position, and Empress Wu knew she couldn't escape it, but she didn't want her good sister to be implicated, so she let Qianfan leave the Wu family.

After leaving the Wu family, Qianfan changed his appearance and traveled around disguised as a man.

She was originally a doctor, and when she saw the patients she couldn't help but help treat them. However, she didn't expect that after a while she got the reputation of a miracle doctor.

It was several years later before she returned to Beijing again.

At this time, the fight among the princes was in full swing. The emperor was not outstanding, and the Wu family could not support it alone. Empress Wu begged Qianfan for help, and she agreed.

After that, Qianfan appeared in everyone's sight as a miracle doctor and met the late emperor. Because of his outstanding medical skills, the late emperor appreciated him and made an exception to keep him by his side.

Later, when the late emperor was injured and his life was hanging by a thread, the retired emperor stepped forward.

This incident determined his position as crown prince.

On the day when the crown prince was successfully appointed and moved into the East Palace, the emperor drank too much and was excited. He took Empress Wu's hand and said,

"Mei'er has done me a favor. If it weren't for you, things wouldn't have gone so smoothly. This position is not just mine, it belongs to both of us! When he ascends the throne, Mei'er and I will sit on the throne together!"

He was drunk, full of passion, and made amazing promises.

Qianfan, who was with him at the time, was drunk and said something that he would regret for the rest of his life.

"This is so interesting, Empress Wu... This is very similar to a female emperor I know!"

At that time, she didn't know that her casual words were remembered by others.

Empress.

Just this one word, even without explanation, can reveal a lot of things.

But the emperor at that time was not so suspicious as to be unbelievable, and did not feel afraid because of this.

This was like a seed, lurking in the deepest part of his heart.

Until he ascended the throne.

When the new emperor ascended the throne, he wanted to confer titles on his meritorious officials. The Wu family was the one that had made the most contributions.

The Wu family was famous for a while.

When people are too proud, they always ignore some details.

After the Wu family came to power, they occasionally acted beyond the line. The retired emperor indulged them at first, but after two or three times, the seeds of hatred sprouted in his heart.

The emperor and the empress gradually began to have conflicts.

Suddenly one day, Empress Wu became pregnant.

This was like a thorn that pierced the heart of the retired emperor.

He thought of what he heard when he was drunk that day, and he couldn't help but feel disgust and... murderous intent towards Empress Wu and the unborn fetus in her belly.

A month later, Empress Wu had a miscarriage due to a plot.

Almost at the same time, a maid in her palace became pregnant.

After her miscarriage, Empress Wu had been taking care of her health, but she became weaker and weaker.

She sensed something was wrong and secretly ordered her confidant to send a letter to Qianfan who was far away at the border.

Qianfan received the letter, said goodbye to everyone in the army, and set off back to Beijing.

But she was still a step too late.

When she arrived in the capital, she heard the news that Empress Wu had passed away.

Before she could even ask for an audience in the palace, the retired emperor suddenly launched an attack, citing countless charges and throwing hundreds of people from the Wu family into jail. Within two days, they were all sentenced to death.

Qianfan hasn't returned to Beijing for many years. He wants to save people, but he has no way to do it.

Everyone she knew was related to the Wu family. At this moment, they were either being implicated or trying to protect themselves.

In the end, she only managed to save a small child.

That is Wu Linglan.

That's the end of the story.

Qianfan spoke in great detail, and her description of what happened seemed to be happening right before their eyes.

Jiang Wanyue was so engrossed in listening that she didn't say anything to interrupt.

She heard regret and self-blame in Qianfan's words.

Qianfan probably felt that it was his words that killed everyone in the Wu family.

But in Jiang Wanyue's opinion, even if she had not said that, the emperor would not let the Wu family go under such circumstances.

Perhaps, he might keep Empress Wu and the child, but he could not let go of the Wu family, as they were the greatest contributors to Emperor Zhongzong and were also his in-laws.

But if that were the case, with all the members of her mother's family wiped out, would Empress Wu still be able to keep her throne?

And that child, as the queen's legitimate son, how could he survive without the Wu family as his backing?

So, the ending is still the same.

Jiang Wanyue sighed secretly.

People's hearts are changeable.

Once you become an emperor, your temperament will change exceptionally quickly.

The retired emperor may not have been unrequited in his love for Empress Wu, but in the end, his desire for power prevailed.

Li Ce...what would be different?

Jiang Wanyue was just thankful that she had always been sober and that the Jiang family had always been well-behaved and low-key.

Moreover, although she was also a queen, unlike Empress Wu, Li Ce had Li Chengye, her eldest son.

Empress Wu's child hastened her death, because the emperor at that time had only two sons, and the second son was disabled. If the legitimate son was born, his status would definitely be different.

In addition, the Wu family was so powerful that the emperor felt threatened.

The Empress's motto is nothing but an excuse.