Chapter 18 Chapter Eighteen
Backed by Wu Zetian, Pei Yan attacked viciously, "Fu Nian knew the current affairs so well, so he wouldn't have rebelled at that time. He surrendered so easily, wouldn't it have wiped out the hard work of the generals. If you don't kill the rebels, it is the law of heaven." Not allowed."
Li Zhi glanced at Wu Zetian who was sitting beside him, and agreed to Pei Yan's request.Pei Xingjian did not dare to disobey the holy order, and sighed: "Wang Hun and Wang Jun have been regarded as shameful since ancient times to compete for merit. However, if you kill those who submit, I am afraid that no one will dare to surrender in the future."
He claims to be old and sick and no longer leaves the house.Heyuan Jinglue envoy Hei Chi Changzhi led the troops well, and the soldiers and horses were strong, so he led the army to attack the Tubo army.In Liangfei Chuan, Qinghai, Hunan, the battle against Zanpo was fought so darkly that the sun and the moon were dark, Lun Zanpo was defeated and fled.The Tang army captured Tubo's food, fodder and livestock, and returned to the division with a triumphant song.Hei Chi Changzhi guarded Heyuan for seven years, and won the hearts of the people, and the army and the people live in harmony.But Tubo was very afraid of him and did not dare to invade.Time flies like an arrow, and the sun and the moon fly like a shuttle.Princess Taiping has grown into an eighteen-year-old girl unknowingly, but she is still wearing a Taoist robe, and so is Xia Tian.The princess has discovered that she is as beautiful as a fairy, enchanting and charming, but Taoism does not allow makeup and dressing up. Thinking of living a hard life like an ascetic, she can't help but feel sad.Determined to do everything possible to get rid of it and jump out of the sea of suffering, she negotiated with a prostitute in the inner teaching workshop, quietly took off her Taoist robe, disguised herself as a man and put on Tubo clothes, went to the front of her father and queen, bowed to the ground, and said "Tashi Dele!" Then she turned her head and stretched her neck, raised her hands and feet, squatted down, bounced up, and danced a brisk and funny welcome dance, accompanied by the musical prostitute with an earthen xun.It seemed that Li Zhi had never been so happy before, he was rocking back and forth with a smile.
Wu Zetian laughed with tears in her eyes, holding her stomach that hurt from laughing, and resting her head on Li Zhi's shoulder: "Little naughty, she can dance better than the maikos in Jiaofang."
"Mother, it's not a little naughty, but a big naughty one."
Princess Taiping said coquettishly.
"Tianhou, what should I reward her with?" Li Zhi stopped laughing and touched Wu Zetian's arm.Princess Taiping fluttered her eyelashes, which were as beautiful as flowers and butterflies, and then said: "If the father, the queen and the queen want to reward, please give it to a son-in-law."
Wu Zetian and Li Zhi exchanged glances: "Hey, we old couple have forgotten, yes, it's time to find a husband for her."
Wu Zetian didn't care about Princess Taiping's marriage at all.It's just that in the past few years, wars and disasters, internal and external troubles, and state affairs have been too busy to distract attention.In addition, she placed too much emphasis on choosing a son-in-law for the jewel in the palm, picking her nose and eyes, and no one liked it.After being reminded by the princess, she quickly chose Xue Shao for her.Xue Shao's father, Xue Yao, once served as Guangluqing in the court, from the third grade, and his mother was Princess Yangcheng, the sixteenth daughter of Emperor Taizong Li Shimin.Princess Yangcheng first married Du He, the son of Du Ruhui, the founding father of the country.Xue Shao was the youngest among his brothers. After his parents passed away, his elder brother Jie acted as the guardian.After proposing marriage, Jie's heart was like fifteen buckets carrying water up and down.He confided his thoughts to Xue Kegou, the family doctor of his father's generation, and said: "Princess Taiping is deeply favored by the emperor and empress. She is inevitably arrogant, willful and arrogant. No one can control her, and she will not obey anyone."
"The emperor's nephew chooses a princess. It's not unusual in the country. As long as he treats it with a respectful and cautious attitude, it doesn't matter. However, the proverb says: If you gather a wife and get a princess, you can make troubles in the government without incident. It must be worrying."
Xue Kegou stroked his flaxen beard.
"Can I refuse the marriage?"
"The marriage proposal of the emperor's family is like an imperial decree. He has changed, but you cannot."
"Isn't this the same as a disaster that fell from the sky, killing people out of thin air?"
"It may not be as bad as you imagined. Some people can't wait for it. If you deal with it well, there are a lot of benefits. The son-in-law is an official among the officials. If you climb the dragon and the phoenix, not only will you not suffer, but you will also gain some glory."
Xue Ji felt that Xue Ke's words made sense, so he accepted the marriage.Xue Shao naturally obeyed his elder brother's arrangement, and everything was up to him.Just when Pei Xingjian put down the Turkic rebellion again, Princess Taiping got married.These two incidents caused a sensation in Chang'an City at the same time.The custom at that time was that the bride was married at night.The princess is wearing a beige embroidered silk dress, and a garnet red long skirt inlaid with beads and jade, with a trailing tail of nearly two feet, which is divided into two sides by twelve maids and gently lifted by hand.There is a phoenix bun on the head, and nine seven-treasure flower tins are inserted.The whole body is full of pearls and jade, and the ring is jingle, like a beautiful woman in Yaoshan, gorgeous and radiant.Qin Tianjian respectfully reported that the auspicious time had come, and the eunuch, the head of the chief ceremonial department, pushed forward the sedan chair decorated with colorful pheasant tails. The female officer guided Princess Taiping to take her seat, and the father, queen and mother sent her to the front.The welcoming team is led by a guide and welcome music, and the concierge first rides on horseback, followed by Princess Taiping's dowry, and then the sedan chair.In front of the sedan chair, there are four wives leading the way, and there are seven wives in the rear, all riding on horses. On the left and right, there are eunuchs walking with the sedan chair in hand, and the internal ministers and guards are behind them on horseback.Zhu Lun rolls, departing from Xing'anmen, the westernmost of the five south gates of Hanyuan Palace, the sound of cars and bells rang together, drums and music were played, and "clearing the way" was held in front of the welcoming team.
The "Avoid" sign, as well as the lanterns, lanterns and torches held in hand, also used gourds, axes and other ceremonial guards.The lights were shining like daytime, and they passed by Xing'an Street with great fanfare and enthusiasm.
The street is 100 paces wide, and the branches and leaves of old locust trees are connected on both sides. The torches scorched the branches and leaves, and some locust trees died because of it.The welcoming team walked about 2,600 steps and arrived at Xue's mansion in the west corner of Xuanyangfang.The gate was low and narrow, so the wall had to be opened, and the sedan chair entered the courtyard.Princess Taiping got married, and most of the prisoners in Chang'an Prison were pardoned.Her dowry was innumerable, and all the things that could be obtained from the palace were brought over, large carts and small carts, and only three or four carts were loaded with gold jewelry and silk satin.At the beginning of the Tang Dynasty, it was stipulated that the prince's fiefdom should be 800 to 1,000 households, and the princess's maximum should not exceed 300 households. Only Princess Taiping added an additional 50 households. This shows how special she is favored.What Xue Jie worried about soon appeared.Although the Xue family respects her very much, the conceited Princess Taiping doesn't take them seriously, especially for the elder sister-in-law Xiao and the second sister-in-law Cheng. For a daughter-in-law, choose another high-ranking family.
Wu Zetian was originally at odds with the powerful and powerful nobles, so she had no choice but to send someone to investigate against her will, only to find out that the Xiao family is the grandniece of Xiao Yu, the younger brother of Emperor Xiao's Empress Xiao of Sui Yang, and she has maintained a concubine relationship with the Li family from the Sui Dynasty to the Tang Dynasty.Xiao Yu's son, Xiao Rui, is married to Li Shimin's daughter, Princess Xiangcheng.Cheng's ancestors were also noble families.This matter has to be given up.The inner estrangement between sisters-in-law and sister-in-law added another layer of gloom, which in turn affected the relationship between Xue Shao and Princess Taiping.
After the new year, that is, the second year of Kaiyao, from March, the weather in Guanzhong was abnormal. There was no rain in the rainy season, and it turned into a severe drought. The wheat harvest was seriously reduced, and the price of rice rose to 300 yuan per bucket of rice.Refugees fleeing famine flocked to Chang'an in droves.Beggars, thieves, quacks, warlocks, singing girls and prostitutes, etc., people of all kinds and ranks were squeezed into the refugees.Chang'an is crowded with people, traffic is blocked, the ground is full of filth and miasma, which disrupts the normal order of life and becomes a mess.Li Zhi was weak-willed and kind-hearted. Seeing this chaotic and pitiful scene, his heart seemed to be cut, smashed, and torn by sharp and hard things, and it was torn to pieces.He was dizzy, his chronic illness worsened, and he wanted to leave Chang'an for Luoyang.
According to Li Zhi's wishes, Wu Zetian left the prince to supervise the country.Li Zhe has resumed his original name Xian.He ordered Shao Fu Liu Rengui, servant Pei Yan, Zuo Shuzi and Zhongshu Ling Xue Yuanchao to assist the prince.The world is not peaceful, even robbery during the day, and the road is not peaceful.The emperor and queen of heaven specially appointed Wei Yuanzhong, the imperial censor, to be in charge of guarding the emperor.After receiving the imperial order, Wei Yuanzhong came up with a bold and ingenious solution.He visited Chang'an Prison all over the place, found a bandit leader named "Yin Yang Face", and proposed to him a condition—to escort Sheng Jia to Luoyang, and ensure absolute safety on the road.After completing this task, pardon his capital crime, release him, give him a reward, and even stay in prison to do business.
"Yin Yang face" listened to Wei Yuanzhong's words, while smiling, showing a fierce look on the other side.
"Hey, have you read too much, or have you gotten carried away? It's a crime in itself to hire a robber to escort the Emperor and Empress. Dude, if you make a mistake, you'll lose everything. Chang'an went to Luoyang, and I knew him very well. There are my minions everywhere."
"As the saying goes, don't be suspicious when you hire someone, and don't use someone who is suspicious. If I don't trust you, I won't look for you. As long as you promise to ask, I have nothing to worry about."
"Vigorous, courageous, hehe, look at my face again, ten people will see it, and ten people will be afraid."
"You can't be judged by appearances, and the sea cannot be measured. People who face evil are not equal to evil, and people with good intentions do not necessarily have good faces."
"Am I a good person? Since you believe that I am a good person, why do you want to arrest me and go to jail?"
"A good person may go the wrong way and do wrong things. As for breaking the law, no matter who he is, he will be punished by law."
After a pause, Wei Yuanzhong said again: "If you have committed a crime, you can correct it. Otherwise, there will be no such things as atonement for the crime, and meritorious service for the crime. The bandit takes his heart and becomes a general. A hero of the Tang Dynasty, Li Jin was a murderous demon king when he was young. He joined the army at the age of seventeen or eighteen. Later, he hit it off with the late emperor. Heroes cherish heroes. .”
"Are you trying to inspire me to learn from him, put down the butcher's knife like him, become a Buddha immediately, and work hard for Datang?"
"Yes, that's exactly what it means."
"You can trust me, but can the Emperor and Empress trust me?"
"The emperor is sick, and the government is in charge of the queen, she has the final say."
"I know this, and I don't need your introduction."
"Since you know it, why ask any more questions? The Empress of Heaven is a person who is well versed in literature and history, resourceful and resourceful, and she knows people well. She is comparable to the late emperor. Pei Xingjian once tried his best to oppose making her a queen. After being demoted, she made contributions in the Western Regions and was still promoted to the Ministry of Rites. Shangshu."
"Okay, I'll stop here with you. You go to play the Empress Dowager and see if they will agree? There is no need to issue any imperial decree, as long as the empress writes my name, my life will be considered worthless. She called me I will do whatever I want, and I will go through fire and water.”
"But, I don't know your name."
"Her surname is Wu, and my surname is Lu. Hehe, you can just say that I am her brother. Not only do I respect her as a sister, but I also learn from her in everything about how to behave in the world."
"Don't be kidding me."
"Every sentence is serious and serious. My name is indeed Lu Chengen."
After hearing Wei Yuanzhong's request, Wu Zetian didn't ask any more questions, and wrote six words "Lu Cheng'en with Yin and Yang face", and handed it over to Wei Yuanzhong to handle by himself.Wei Yuanzhong understood what he meant, brought Lu Chengen out of the prison, and showed him the yellow paper with six characters written by Tianhou.Lu Chengen knelt down to accept the note, looked up to the sky with a smile, and followed Wei Yuanzhong out the door, becoming his personal attendant.Lu Chengen, dressed in black and on a black horse, led the way ahead of the driver.He puffed out his chest, squinted his eyes as if dozing off, and didn't look around or look back.Those in the know can't help but sweat because of this, wondering what kind of medicine is in his gourd?I don't know why Wei Yuanzhong brought such a robber to escort him?I don't even understand why Tianhou approved Wei Yuanzhong's request?From Chang'an, the capital city, to Luoyang, the eastern capital, eight hundred and fifty miles away, because Li Zhi was ill, he had to stop to rest from time to time, and had to take medicine, so he slowed down and walked for 22 days before the imperial chariot could pay. Dichi was in Luoyang city.Although the speed is slow, the road is chaotic, there are many victims, thieves are full of thieves, and there are many green forest heroes blocking the road to rob, but there is no harassment incident along the way, not a single horse is stolen, and even a small coin is not lost.Everyone looked at Wei Yuanzhong with strange and admiring eyes, and asked him how he came up with this idea.Wei Yuanzhong smiled secretly, indicating that he had no comment.It wasn't until Tianhou summoned Lu Chengen that the mystery was finally solved.
"You and Wei Yushi completed this mission beautifully. The two of you cooperated very well. It can be said that they are seamless."
Lu Chengen glanced at Wu Zetian sheepishly, and couldn't help but fall in love with her ageless beauty and spirit.But he was very calm on the outside, one side of his face was dull, the other side was bright, and he played casually: "Tian Hou, it's not that he cooperated well, but that he used me well."
"how do I say this?"
"Hey, I am a bandit leader and a prisoner in custody, and he is a dignified Beijing official who supervises the censor. The censor will never cooperate with criminals, and he dare not cooperate. Hey, he used it skillfully. A strategy, and this strategy is commonly used by Divas—fighting poison with fire."
"Even if you're right, how do you know?"
"Tianhou, your surname is Wu, and my surname is Lu. Please forgive me for my innocence. Just like my sister's actions, how could my brother not know."
"You are really an elf, very ghostly."
Wu Zetian became interested in him, "Let me ask you again, can you understand what I do, can you guess what I'm thinking?"
"I can't figure it out, hehe, I just have a suggestion, I don't know if I should say it or not?"
"But it doesn't matter."
"Nowadays, people's hearts are not old, the social atmosphere is declining, and the court is not peaceful. I am afraid that there will be not enough hundred horses in the Yulin Army in the future."
After the founding of the Tang Dynasty, Li Yuan set up a camp at the north gate at the Xuanwu Gate in Chang'an, the capital. Bie Li is the left and right Habayashi Army, so it is also called Habayashi Flying Horse.They are generally selected from the guards, and are also recruited from households above the sixth rank. They are brave soldiers who are good at riding and shooting, and they are responsible for guarding the palace.Baiqi is especially strong and good at riding and shooting. He is divided into two divisions to guard the north gate. For shooting and hunting, he wears five-color clothes and rides six free horses to accompany him.
"what do you mean?"
Wu Zetian supported the imperial case with one hand and leaned forward.
"The number will increase."
"How much?"
"It must be expanded several times at least."
"Less, it's better to simply expand it ten times and change it from a hundred riders to a thousand riders."
"As the saying goes, three armies are easy to get, but one general is hard to find."
"I've already looked for candidates."
"Who?"
"Cheng Wuting, Zhang Qianxun, and you are added."
"I, hey, what virtue and ability do I have?"
"There is no better candidate than this."
Wu Zetian is worthy of being a hero among women. She accepts advice and knows people well, knows them well, employs people unconventionally, and recruits officials freely. Her courage is far beyond that of ordinary men.Li Zhi's illness was getting worse and worse. On the dragon table were piled up miscellaneous pills, ointments and boiled decoctions. The sleeping hall was filled with the mixed smell of sandalwood and traditional Chinese medicine, which irritated people's nostrils.Rheumatic and nervous headaches tormented the emaciated emperor, his whole body was numb with pain, and his head was struck by sharp pains, which were almost suffocating.Since last year, he has not been able to watch the court, and all the burden of the court has been placed on the shoulders of the Queen of Heaven.Misfortunes never come singly.The Western Turks invaded the border again.Minister of the Ministry of Rites, Wenxi Xiangong Pei Xingjian returned to the court not long ago, but before he could catch his breath, he was ordered to be the general manager of the Jinya Road Marching, leading the army to crusade against the Western Turks.
Gold tooth, that is, the golden tooth tent, refers to the royal family of the Western Turkic Khan.While mobilizing troops and horses, Pei Xingjian suffered a stroke suddenly, and the three armies died before they could get out.He was sixty-four years old.The imperial court mourned and buried with national ceremonies.Known as a Confucian general, Pei Xingjian, who came from a famous family in Jiangzhou, was eager to learn since he was a child. He read a lot of books, learned about the past and the present, and was good at calligraphy. He was also taught the art of war by the general Su Dingfang himself.In August of the sixth year of Yonghui, he was demoted to Xizhou Dudufu as the chief historian because he opposed making Wu Zhaoyi the empress.He did not get depressed, but creatively used the art of war taught by his mentor Su Dingfang to expand the territory of the Western Regions, making great contributions to the development of the Western Regions and the consolidation of national defense.Once some people fail in prayer, they are devastated, disappear from sight, and walk into history.On the contrary, some people stumbled, but they were not discouraged. They dared to face the reality, adapt to the environment, be self-reliant, fight tenaciously, create a new world, and re-enter the stage of history.There are not many such people, and Pei Xingjian is just an outstanding example of this.He has the ability to discover talents and has a unique vision to identify talents.When he was the Minister of the Ministry of Officials, Jinshi Wang Chi and Xianyang Wei Su Weiwei were unknown. When Pei Xingjian saw them for the first time, he told them frankly: "The two of you will be in charge of selecting officials successively in the future. My My son is still young, please, please."
Wang Chi's younger brother Wang Bo, Yang Jiong from Huayin, Lu Zhaolin from Fanyang, and King Luo Bin from Yiwu were all famous for their literary talents, and they were called the Four Masters of the early Tang Dynasty.Pei Xingjian's opinion is different: "Students who are worthy of great positions should first have measurement and insight, and then talent. Although Wang Bo and others are full of literary talents, they are frivolous, impetuous, and shallow. They are not materials for climbing to high positions." Yang Jiong is a little quieter, it is possible to become a county magistrate, and the rest of them will be considered lucky if they die well."
Later, when Wang Bo went south to visit his relatives, he fell into the water and drowned while crossing the sea.Yang Jiong died while serving as magistrate of Yingchuan County.Lu Zhaolin committed suicide by throwing himself into the water due to chronic illness that could not be cured.King Luo Bin was executed for treason.Wang Jin and Su Weiwei successively assumed important positions in the selection of officials, just as Pei Xingjian predicted.Whether Pei Xingjian was a general or a commander in chief, the generals he selected, such as Cheng Wuting, Zhang Qianxu, Wang Fangyi, Liu Jingtong, Li Duozuo, and Hei Chi Changzhi, would become famous generals in the future.In life, some people can say that life is worse than death, with low character, despicable and dirty, like a walking dead.And some even after death, the spirit is still alive.After Pei Xingjian died in the ground, many of his little-known stories spread instead.It is said that once, the attendants went with him to fetch rhinoceros horn and musk, but they lost them.Also, Li Zhi rewarded Pei Xingjian with a royal horse and a matching saddle. The officials of the Ministry of Rites tried to ride it, whipped and galloped, but unexpectedly the royal horse fell down and the saddle broke.The above two people were afraid of being punished and fled in panic.Pei Xingjian sent someone to call them back, and said kindly, "You are all wrong, why do you look down on me so much?"
"My lord, you are so magnanimous, we really didn't expect it."
The two were moved to tears.The first year of Tiaolu...?In July, Pei Xingjian wisely captured the Western Turkic Khan Ashina Duzhi and seized an agate plate with a diameter of more than two feet. He let the soldiers watch it. fell, broke the agate plate.Wang Xiulie knelt down to plead guilty, kowtowed and bled.Pei Xingjian helped him up with both hands, and said with a smile: "You didn't mean it, why are you to blame?"
There was no look of annoyance on his face.Li Zhi issued an edict to reward Pei Xingjian with more than 3,000 pieces of gold, silver and jade wares belonging to Naduzhi, as well as an equal number of cattle, sheep and livestock.He gave all of it to his relatives, friends and generals, and kept nothing for himself.History is fair and cruel.The death of Pei Xingjian shocked both China and foreign countries, and everyone sighed.Only the attendant Pei Yan was jealous of his merits and fame, and rushed to show up ahead of others, and only posthumously awarded the title of Governor of Youzhou to Pei Xingjian, which was too unfair.After his death, the Turks rebelled in an all-round way, and northern Xinjiang returned to the state of the early days of the founding of the country.Ashina Chebo, the leader of the Western Turkic Khanate, besieged Gongyue City, Huocheng County, Xinjiang, Anxi Duhu Wang Fangyi led his army to rescue, defeated the enemy at the Yili River in Yilishui, and beheaded more than a thousand people.In an instant, the Sanxing Tribe, Yanmian Tribe and Ashina Chebo joined forces to block Wang Fangyi and started a fierce battle at Rehai Issyk-Kul Lake. A stray arrow shot through Wang Fangyi's arm.He cut off the shaft of the arrow with a saber, and even the people around him didn't know that the coach was injured, so he gritted his teeth and turned the tide of the battle.Hu Bing in Wang Fang's wing army conspired to rebel and wanted to capture him alive in response to Ashina Chebo.He received the secret report, without showing any signs of expression, convened a military meeting, took out military supplies and pretended to issue rewards, led them out of the tent one by one and beheaded them.It happened that the wind was howling, Wang Fangyi arranged to beat the golden drum violently, killing more than 70 people in a row, the screams were all covered up, and the people who participated in the rebellion didn't even notice it.To purify the interior, Wang Fangyi dispatched generals to attack Ashina Chebo and Yanmian tribes separately, defeated the Turkic coalition forces, captured 300 chiefs, and quelled the Western Turkic rebellion.The imperial court ordered Wang Fangyi to be appointed governor of Xiazhou, and was recruited to Beijing to discuss border affairs.Li Zhi saw the blood stains on his robe and asked why, so he described the situation of the fierce battle in Rehai.Li Zhi inspected the arrow wound on his arm and sighed endlessly.Since he was the cousin of the late king and queen, he was still allowed to go to Xiazhou because he was afraid that Wu Zetian would be jealous and would not be able to stay in Beijing for reuse.Guo Daiju, the servant of the Huangmen, Cen Changqian, the servant of the Ministry of War, Guo Zhengyi, the secretary of the Foreign Shaojian and the secretary of the school, and Wei Xuantong, the servant of the Ministry of officials, were all appointed as the second-level real prime ministers.The imperial court seems to have made another small adjustment to the use and tenure of officials.Li Zhi explained: "The prestige and qualifications of Guo Daiju and others are still low. Let them obtain the qualifications to participate in the government first, and the official titles must be different from those of the senior ministers. It cannot be the same."
Since then, officials below the fourth rank have served as real prime ministers and began to use the name Pingzhangshi.Since May, Luoyang has experienced continuous torrential rains, mountain torrents, and Luoshui flooding.The Tianjin Bridge and Zhongqiao with the largest traffic flow were washed away by huge waves, and the rivers, canals, canals, such as Jin, Yun, Cao, Gu, and Tang, which are connected to Luoshui and cross Luoyang City, caused floods at the same time.Luoyang was flooded, traffic was interrupted, houses collapsed, and thousands of people were drowned or displaced.In the Guanzhong area, including Chang'an, there was heavy rain, and the rain was endless, and the wheat was rotten.Then came the drought.Then came the disaster, locusts came over the sky like dark clouds, and the crops and leaves were wiped out.The price of rice in Chang'an rose to 300 qian per bucket of rice in the spring, and now it has broken through 400 qian, which is almost a hundred times that of a good harvest year.Disasters, famines, and plagues broke out everywhere, seriously threatening the Tang Empire.Chang'an, known as the largest city in the world, has also become a hell on earth of terror and death.Hunger is everywhere, thieves are flooding, dead bodies are piled up, and even cannibals kill and eat each other like wild beasts, or start from babies, eat babies and eat old people and women.In the streets and alleys, some people escaped the patrolling Jinwu Guards and secretly sold "two-legged sheep"-human meat.In midsummer, human flesh is perishable, and those who die from eating rotten flesh will be secretly sold in the market.Infectious diseases spread, victims and victims, death and victims, forming a vicious circle.In autumn, the disaster came to an end.The official distribution station distributed official rice and miscellaneous grains to the people who lined up.
Those who fled famine have fled back and set about rebuilding their homes.The disaster in Luoyang was not as bad as that in Chang'an, and the recovery was faster.In July, according to Li Zhi's wish, Fengtian Palace was built at the southern foot of Songshan Mountain in the southeast of Luoyang to show respect to God.Li Shangan, the supervisory censor, wrote a letter of remonstrance.The so-called Lixing refers to the supervisory censor who has not been formally appointed, which is equivalent to an internship, or an assistant supervisory censor.
Wu Zetian also felt that the people had just recovered from the death line, and their vitality had not yet fully recovered, so he wanted to postpone the construction time. However, Li Zhi, who was ill, firmly believed that the temple built by the hungry people would be more pleasing to God. , It can even eliminate disasters and disasters, turn bad luck into good fortune, and insist on starting work according to the original schedule.The disaster eased a little, and the prince who stayed in Chang'an Jianguo relaxed his tense heartstrings, and went out to hunt one after another. The forbidden garden was not enough, and he dragged the hunting officers and soldiers to the mountains in the suburbs. Xian had to admit that the remonstrance was justified and stopped.When the Emperor Tianhou learned of this, she sent envoys to comfort Xue Yuanchao and summoned him to Luoyang.Xie You, governor of Qianzhou, catered to the queen's wish and forced Lingling Wang Ming, who was imprisoned in Qianzhou, to commit suicide.Li Ming is the youngest son of Taizong Li Shimin, and his biological mother is Li Yuanji's concubine Yang who died at the hands of Li Shimin during the Xuanwu Gate.Li Shimin once wanted to make Concubine Yang the queen, but he gave up because of the opposition of Changsun Wuji.Concubine Yang is the daughter of Emperor Yang of the Sui Dynasty. Wu Zetian's mother Yang is the niece of Yang Xiong, the king of the Sui Dynasty. Wu Zetian and Concubine Yang are obviously related by blood.
Concubine Yang secretly helped Wu Zetian's Palace and when she suffered setbacks.She repays her kindness with such kindness, does Concubine Yang know too much, or does she harbor hatred for the royal family of the Li family?Or both.Concubine Yang is graceful and graceful, with a tranquil nature, and gets along well with Empress Changsun, and she also has the grace of educating Li Zhi, a young pheasant slave.In fact, Li Zhi and Li Ming have no conflict of interest.He was indignant at forcing his younger brother Ming to death, and in a fit of rage, he dismissed all the officials in the Qianzhou prefecture.A few days later, Xie You slept in a room with more than a dozen concubines and maidservants, but the next morning he found that his head had been taken away.Later, the eldest son Jun and the second son Jie of Lingling Wangming were murdered to death when Wu Zetian cleaned the Li family.It turns out that the two brothers hired an assassin to avenge their father and took Xie You's head.
From this, Wu Zetian deduced that she was not wrong to completely cleanse the Li family: "They are either diehards or desperadoes. If they are not killed cleanly, I will never want to change the dynasty and become emperor. Even if I become a queen, it is very easy to have them around." It's hard to sit still."
Entering winter, natural disasters barely passed, and military disasters followed one after another.The remnant tribes of the Eastern Turkic Khanate, Ashina Gu Dulu, Ashide Yuanzhen, etc., recruited the rest of the diaspora, and rebelled against the Tang Dynasty at the northern foot of Yinshan Mountain in Heisha City, and invaded Taiyuan City, Shanxi Province, and Shanyu Duhufu Inner Mongolia Helin Geer County killed Wang Demao, the governor of Lanzhou.Xue Rengui, General Wei, the leader of the army on the right, and Xue Rengui, the governor of Daizhou and Shanxi, led the troops to Datong City, Shanxi, Yunzhou to attack Ashde Yuanzhen.As the two sides set up a battle, Ash De Yuanzhen felt that Tang Jun's weather was different from usual.He lifted the reins of the horse, stepped out of the flag gate, and pointed at the tip of his whip: "The general will have a name, and the nameless ghost of a certain family will not die under the sword!"
"The governor Xue Rengui, why bother to ask questions knowingly."
"You," Ash De Yuanzhen and the Turkic soldiers opened their eyes wide, "Don't lie. We all know that Xue Rengui was exiled to Xiangzhou and died long ago. Maybe he can be resurrected?"
"Don't believe me? Then please see clearly."
Xue Rengui stepped forward immediately, took off his helmet, and exposed his face for the other party to take a closer look.The Turkic was dumbfounded, his expression suddenly became tense, he rolled his eyes vigilantly, and flapped his nose uneasily.I don't know who jumped off the horse first, and everyone got off the saddle and lined up to salute.Then shrink your head and retreat slowly.Xue Rengui took advantage of the situation to launch an attack, took the lead in killing the enemy, and rushed back and forth, disrupting the Turkic camp.The Turks were terrified, they only cared about their own lives, and fled in embarrassment. More than 30,000 people were killed and more than 20,000 were taken prisoner.Tubo General Lun Qinling led his troops to attack Zhezhou [south of Heishui County, Sichuan], Songzhou [Songpan County of Sichuan], Yizhou [northeast of Maoxian County, Sichuan] and other places.They are very ghostly in war, they are elusive, and they are difficult to deal with.The Tang Dynasty dispatched troops and ordered Zuo Xiaowei to guard Li Xiaoyi and Youweilang to defend Pushan, conscripting troops from Tianshui City in Qinzhou, Gansu, Longxi County in Weizhou, Gansu and other prefectures to defend against them.Tubo suddenly pointed the finger at the Heyuan base again and fought.The army envoy Lou Shide led the troops to fight against Tubo in Datong County, Qinghai, Baishuijian, and won eight battles and eight victories.The Emperor and the Empress issued an imperial edict to commend Lou Shide and appointed Wailang, General Zuo Xiaoweilang, and Deputy Envoy of Economic Strategy of the Heyuan Army.Lou Shide declined on the table.
Wu Zetian wrote on the seal: "Qing has both civil and military talents, so don't let him down."
As the new year approaches, people just want this troubled year to pass quickly. Li Zhi is planning to go to Songshan Mountain to worship the heavens, praying for the gods to bless the country and the people, and bless him with health and longevity.As the saying goes, the patient is anxious.Li Healing became more and more willful, and his temper became more and more violent.On the first day of the Lunar New Year, he set off from Luoyang to Fengtian Palace under the escort of a grand guard of honor with thousands of riders.Fengtian Palace was built at the southern foot of Songshan Mountain.The main hall of the palace has been completed, and the side halls, courtyards and other buildings are still under construction.Songshan Mountain is covered with ice and snow, and the mountain road is craggy. Li Zhiren is sick and cannot climb the mountain to worship the gods.
Empress Wu Zetian went up the mountain on her shoulders to offer sacrifices to the Queen Mother of the West, Chaofu and Xu You.According to ancient legend, Yao wanted to give up the world to Xu You. After hearing this, Xu You felt that his ears were polluted, so he hurried to Yingchuan to wash his ears with clean water.The nest father who lives in the deep mountains builds a nest and sleeps in a tree, so it is called the nest father.
Hearing about Xu You washing his ears, he felt that even the water was polluted, so he didn't want to cross Yingchuan again.Li Zhi asked Wu Zetian to sacrifice to the three gods, perhaps with ulterior motives.
During Wu Zetian's trip, he had a full view of the mountains and scenery along the way.Songshan belongs to the Funiu Mountains and is one of the five mountains, with steepness as its main feature.The main body is in the northwest of Dengfeng County, Henan Province. It is divided into Taishi Mountain and Shaoshi Mountain, each consisting of 36 peaks. The whole mountain is called 72 peaks.Taishi Mountain is as majestic as lying, with undulating mountains, and is known as Wolong. The top of the mountain is Junji Peak, which is 1,440 meters above sea level.Shaoshi Mountain is steep and beautiful, with swaying clouds on the surface, so it is called "Nine Tripod Lotus". Yuzhai Mountain is 1,512 meters above sea level, which is the highest peak of Songshan Mountain.
Wu Zetian and his entourage started from Fengtian Palace, detoured around Songyue Temple Pagoda, the first pagoda in Shenzhou, crossed a ridge, and went up the mountain to the north. They saw a square brick pagoda with dense eaves standing on the mountainside of Yuzhu Peak. Fawangji Pagoda, a prominent symbol of Fawangji Temple.Fawang Temple was built only three years later than Baima Temple.
Empress Wu Zetian worshiped Buddha, entered the temple and rested for a while under the ginkgo tree in front of the Daxiong Hall, and looked up to the east of the temple to see the wonderland of "Songmen Waiting for the Moon".Continue to go up the mountain, pass the Tianfu Temple, and finally reach the peak of Taishi, which is "higher than the sky".
Standing on the top of the peak, Wu Zetian overlooks the Yellow River in the north, and overlooks the foot of the mountain from a line of water and sky.After the sacrifice, they went down the mountain to Luyan Temple.In the west of the temple, Xuanlian Peak and Jiming Peak are sandwiched between two mountains, cutting walls and climbing a thousand feet. A wide waterfall looks like Cailian and pours down the mountain. .Go out of the temple gate, walk west along the foot of the mountain for about ten miles, and come down to Zhongyue Temple under Huanggai Peak.The whole temple is built from north to south according to the ups and downs of the mountains. The halls and pavilions are splendid, the ancient cypresses are towering, the momentum is majestic, and the scenery is extremely spectacular.
Wu Zetian was very interested in calligraphy. After seeing the "Monument of Gaoling Temple in Songshan Mountain of Zhongyue", he went to the big stone gate in front of Zhongyue Temple.The temple stele is a stone stele of the Northern Wei Dynasty. The stone inscriptions are vigorous and unique.
Wu Zetian praised it as a "calligraphy art treasure".Stone Que is an important object for studying the evolution of calligraphy, Han paintings in the Central Plains and social customs of the Han Dynasty.In April, Li Zhi and Wu Zetian returned to Luoyang.
Li Zhi's illness was good and bad, but the general trend was getting worse.He only wanted to seek the blessings of the gods of heaven and earth, recover his sick body, and the idea of going to Songshan to enshrine Zen became more and more urgent, and he was almost fascinated.In July, the imperial decree held the Songshan Conferring Ceremony in October of this year, and Prince Xian also attended. The two-year-old Tang Changwang Taisun Chongfu served as the guard in Chang'an, and Liu Rengui served as the deputy guard.At the beginning of October, Prince Xian arrived in Luoyang.On October 10, Yu Jia left Luoyang for Fengtian Palace. The scale and form of Fengshan in Songshan were similar to those in Taishan.The crown of ceremonies, the chariots and chariots, the books of the emperor and the empress, and the ceremonial services of all officials, strive to be novel and luxurious.The leader of the business book, flying to protect the emperor and the empress, the banners cover the fields, shining brightly, shining on the mountains and rivers, marching mightily towards the Songshan Mountain in the southeast direction, flowing like a river, and like the flowing clouds floating down from the sky .When Shengjia arrived at Fengtian Palace, Li Zhi's condition suddenly deteriorated, and he was bedridden, and the medicine was ineffective.On November 3rd, a decree was issued to postpone the Fengchan until next year.The four imperial doctors waited in front of the bed for consultation and treatment, but to no avail.Li Zhi's headache felt like it was about to burst, and he couldn't see anything.Everyone panicked, the imperial physician Qin Minghezuo please apply acupuncture on the head to purify the blood, and they are expected to recover.Wu Zetian, who was sitting behind the bead curtain, was shocked when he heard the words, and shouted angrily, "Bold! Use needles to stab the body of the emperor's dragon indiscriminately. What if something goes wrong?"
"I deserve to die, I deserve to die!" Qin Minghe was so frightened that he knelt down on the ground, kowtowed like garlic, "I beg the Queen of Heaven to spare her life!" Li Zhi was in pain, holding his head in his hands, and moaned in pain, "Why don't you do it like this?" If it hurts to death, it is better to let him try it. He has good intentions and no malicious intentions, so don't blame him. Qin Qing, do it! Ouch, it hurts me to death!" Qin Minghe took a deep breath, forced himself to calm down, and The eunuch and maid supported Li Zhi to sit up, and used silver needles to inject needles into his brain and Baihui acupoints, and scratched his scalp with a special scalpel to release some dirty blood.Immediately there was a miraculous effect, Li Zhi stopped shouting, the pain was relieved by seven or eight points, his head felt much lighter, and his eyesight recovered.There were smiles on the faces of all the people present.Li Zhi looked at Qin Minghe and praised gratefully: "It's amazing, it's amazing, Bian Que is really reborn, and Hua Tuo is alive."
"The Holy Son of Heaven is protected by the gods." Qin Minghe kowtowed to thank him, "The emperor should have recovered from his illness."
武则天欣然从上官婉儿、玉兰、红杏、香荷、丁点儿、傻大哥、高延福等人的手中，一一接过一百匹锦缎，亲手赐给秦鸣鹤：“秦卿果然身手不凡，手到病除。”
“臣幼年上山采药，得异人指点，此法本乃华佗手术，可治许多疑难病症。”
“有书没有？”武则天问。
“没有。仅凭心记，用时全靠手法，具体情况具体对待。”
“赶快把它整理成书，免得失传。”
在武则天的鼓励下，秦鸣鹤等人后来将针灸与泻血的治疗之法编成了专辑，反过来又流传到了民间。李治病势好转，又产生了思想，归心似箭，吵着要回洛阳养病。御医和武则天反复解释他的病未痊愈，严冬外面寒气太重，不宜远行，但李治一概不听，发蛮坚持。不得已圣驾于十一月十二日离开奉天宫，启程返回洛阳。二十四日到了洛阳，守臣在天津桥分班伫立，恭迎圣驾还朝。一路颠簸，旅途劳顿，李治回到洛阳宫又返了病。常言道：返病无返药。御医们再也拿不出什么新医案了，纯粹用参汤之类吊住他的命，延缓时日。十九浅紫色的帷帐李治的病日重一日，医药无效，武则天急得哭了起来。她左思右想，别无他法，只得前往白马寺叩求佛祖垂救。进得山门，武则天赤足披发，一步一拜，来到大雄宝殿，焚纸拈香，许下大愿，宁可减寿代夫，换取李治的健康与平安。白马寺位于洛阳东郊，是佛教传入中国后由官府营建的第一所寺院，被誉为中国佛教的“释源”和“祖庭”。东汉永平七年的某夜，汉明帝梦见一位金神，身高六丈，头顶放射着白色的光芒，在宫殿上空环绕飞行。次日召见群臣，询问梦中所见何神。大臣傅毅奏道：“陛下所梦金神，想必是西方天竺的佛。”
明帝于是派遣郎中蔡愔、郎将秦景、博士王遵等十八人，前往西天求取经法。行至大月氏国阿富汗一带，结识了天竺高僧摄摩腾、竺法兰，获得释迦牟尼像和《四十二章经》，带着二位天竺髙僧，用白马驮着经卷，于永平十年返回洛阳。次年建寺，以白马命名。寺址在汉魏洛阳故城雍门西三里处。寺院背负邙山，南临洛水，殿阁巍哦，布局紧凑，古刹高塔，遥相辉映。十二月四日，为了祈祷李治早日康复，武则天又诏令将永淳二年改元为弘道元年，并特赦天下。李治自觉病入膏肓，硬要亲自登上洛阳宫的正门则天门，直接向天下宣读特赦的诏书。他无力上楼，只好由侍臣们扶上马，然而喘息得厉害，又扶下马，命百姓进到殿前，听候宣谕。门外的广场和横街上，到处挤满了人。朝阳东升，万道金光照射着浮动的人群。
“皇上驾到！”一声吆喝，臣民一齐跪倒在地，低下头来静听圣旨。李治以沙哑的喉咙硬梆梆地宣读完自己的诏令，眼睛一花，天旋地转，倒下了。抬回宫里急救醒来，李治望着左右侍臣，嗫嚅着嘴唇问道：“老百姓快不快乐？”
“臣民都很快乐，感谢皇恩浩荡。”
“好，好。”李治梦呓似的应着，闭上了眼睛。那些已经死去的亲人的形象交替着在他的心目中映现出来。他叹了口气，想起了出生和即位的太极宫：“如蒙上天嘉佑，再给我一、两个月时间，得以回到长安，我死也无憾了。”
夜晚，李治病势危殆，急召侍中裴炎进入贞观殿，当着武则天和太子显的面，留下遗诏：“太子显继承大统，难以裁决的军国大事，兼请天后决断。”
说罢，武则天流着泪握紧其手，送他咽下了最后一口气。享年五十六岁。第二天，裴炎上书天后：“大行皇帝殡天，臣以为近日不宜诏告天下。须迅速安排妥当之后，再举行太子登基典礼。”
十二月七日，公布李治驾崩，全国举哀。裴炎启奏说：“太子显尚未即位，不宜由他直接发布诏命，有紧急情况，宜天后下令给中书省、门下省施行。”
十一日太子显即位，是为中宗，尊天后为皇太后，政事全取决于她。中宗李显，年二十八岁，仪表、气质平平。一张胖嘟嘟的脸，额角又低又窄，招风大耳朵，臃肿的脖子老爱缩进领圈里，像只缩头乌龟似的。他文武都远不及次兄李贤，文学修养和造诣，也很难与长兄弘相比。还有些浅露轻薄，志大才疏。既不谨慎，又不谦虚，缺乏远见而又妄自尊大。裴炎辅佐过太子时代的显，对他有所了解。因此他不得不向天后上书，在未作好准备之前，不宜发布治丧公告，以免引起内乱。裴炎如今深受太后武则天的信赖，他很乖巧，也颇精干。目光—闪，又想出了新招：“太后，韩王元嘉他们地位尊贵，声望崇高，随时得掌握他们的动态呐。”
“俗话说，防不胜防。”
武则天的长指甲在御案上轻敲着，“最好是给予一些甜头，先稳住他们的心。”
“那就给他们加授三公的头衔，作为安抚。实际上嘛，只有爵位，而无实权。”
武则天心领神会，很快颁发了诏书，加授李元嘉第七位亲王三公的高位，让他们高兴高兴。这七位亲王分别是高祖李渊现在活着的五个儿子：第十一子韩王元嘉，第十四子霍王元轨，第十八子舒王元名，第十九子鲁王灵夔，第二十二子滕王元婴另有太宗李世民剩下的二子：第八子越王贞，第十子纪王慎。七位王爷，除了滕王元婴，其余六位大都有才气，有政绩。唯独李元婴，既不会武功，也不懂瀚墨，只因在洪州南昌市修了一座滕王阁，成了一位家喻户晓的人物。九个月后，他留下六个孩子，病死于寿州安徽寿县刺史任上，落了个寿终正寝的归宿。新帝登基，按传统照例都要改元。由于去年十二月四日，已将永淳二年改元为弘道元年，李显登极在年尾的十二月十一日，于是便将第二年改元为嗣圣元年，从正月初一日算起。册立太子妃韦氏为皇后。宰相班子有所调整：刘仁轨当左仆射，裴炎由侍中转中书令，刘景光任侍中。
以往诸执宰在门下省公干议事，故门下省又称作政事堂。而裴炎转为中书令后，中书省俨然成了政事堂。毫无疑义，裴炎已成为中心人物，势力派。李显坐上帝王的宝座，恍若做梦一般，又如腾云驾雾似的，欣欣然，飘飘然，急于尝尝为所欲为的滋味，又想在皇后面前显显威风，或者说讨一讨好。韦后呢，也是个不知天高地厚的人，讲究虚荣，又贪心不足，眼睁睁地望着武则天，想和她攀比，像她一样挟持皇帝运转乾坤。她在背后不断怂恿李显，尽快擢升其父韦玄贞当宰相，奠定她将来掌握大权的基础。皇帝、皇后都不以大局为重，不考虑影响如何，刚刚将韦玄贞由普州〔四川安岳县〕参军升任豫州刺史，紧接着又要提拔他当侍中，还要封奶妈于氏之子当五品官。裴炎当然不想别人分享他所取得的荣耀和地位，何况皇帝是要搬座泰山压到他的头上来。他心头一急，带着讽剌意味的话语从嘴里迸了出来：“侍中乃朝廷股肱，囯家之重臣，他，他韦玄贞有什么能耐，凭什么坐上这个席位？”裴炎态度强硬，言词过激，李显一时接受不了，只觉得脸上热辣辣的，像鸡虱子一样爬。他恼羞成怒，额角青筋勃起，摊开双手，反唇相讥道：“就凭他是皇亲国戚。”
“皇亲国戚多着咧，暂时还轮不到他。”
“朕乃当今天了，请你不要忘记，就是把天下让给他，也没有什么不可以的。”
“荒唐！”裴炎心中很不是滋味，“让这样的人君临天下，实非社稷之福。我，作为托孤之臣，不可失职啊！”但他又不想和他发生口角，毕竟那样有违君臣之礼。缓了口气，他放慢声调，一个字一个字地说：“皇上，大事不决，得问太后。”
“你去问她好啦！”李显袍袖一拂，用跟角的余光瞟了对方—下。裴炎来到后宫，请求晋见皇太后。
“什么事呀，大白天，这么急冲冲地来找我？”
武则天半开玩笑半当真地说着，样子显得很轻松。裴炎行了叩拜礼，调匀呼吸，一本正经地说道：“皇上要老臣代拟圣旨，马上提拔韦玄贞当侍中。”
"That won't work."
武则天答复得很干脆。
“我也不赞同。他却不服气，居然说什么只要朕愿意，就是把天下送给韦玄贞也可以。”
"Nonsense!"
“太后，我很了解他哇。”
“他是我的儿子，我比你更了解。我明白你的意思：如此昏愦的庸人，不配当人君。这样下去，会断送袓宗的基业。”
“太后圣明，微臣确有这么个想法。”
“那好呗，我就依你的，你就照我的去办。”
二人秘密谋划了一气，裴炎带着武则天的口谕匆匆地走了。二月六日，武则天宣布本日的早朝改在正殿乾元殿举行。正殿举行朝会，必有重大事件，如元旦、除夕、册立太子、天子即位和册封皇后等。聚集在乾元殿前的朝臣们面色庄重，心中惴惴不安，又见由百骑扩充为千骑的禁军统统拉出来了，其他禁卫军也进人了戒备状态。左、右羽林军将军程务挺、张虔勖，各领麾下兵马分列殿外御道两侧。陆承恩所带领的百骑排列在殿前东、西檐下。气氛肃穆，异常庄严。
武则天和李显分别下了御辇。
武则天气昂昂地走在前头，李显跟在她身后。当李显迈步走上宝座时，裴炎带着中书侍郎刘祎之上前拦住了。李显惊奇得睁圆了眼睛，口舌打结，说不出话来。殿内鸦雀无声，香炉吐出一缕缕的烟雾，雾蒙蒙的。裴炎扫视了一下殿堂，从袍袖里掏出武太后的训谕，大声宣读道：“从本日起，罢黜李显的天子之位，贬作庐陵王。来人，把庐陵王扶下殿去！”事情发生得太突然，太出乎意料，李显愣住了，像个木头人似的站着一动不动，他还没有明白过来到底是怎么回事，羽林军郎将陆承恩等一拥而上，从两边夹住了李显。李显如梦中惊醒，失声叫道：“谁敢抓朕！朕犯了什么罪？！”
“你不是说要把天下给韦玄贞么？”
武则天拖声慢气地问道。不等李显回答，她双眉一耸，疾言厉色地补充说：“哼，算不算弥天大罪？不知天髙地厚的孽子！来呀，给我拉下去！”陆承恩等架着李显押送到殿外阶下，交程务挺等严密警戒。后来，又把他幽禁到了宫中别院里。
李显从在灵柩前即位到今晨，仅四十四天。次日，武则天小儿子豫王旦即位。去年七月，他从相王改封为豫王，未经历太子的过程，凭着血统关系，偶然地做了皇帝。只不过他这个皇帝窝囊得很，有其名，无其实，倒像个挂名皇帝，国家大事一概由武则天决断，让他这个皇帝居住在另一宫殿，不得干预政事。册立李旦正妻豫王妃刘氏当皇后。刘皇后是刘德威的孙女，刘审礼的侄女，仪凤年间到的旦的王府。李旦的宠姬窦氏升为德妃，她便是后来的玄宗皇帝李隆基的生母。刘皇后所生的儿子永平郡王李成器，年六岁，是旦的长子，被立为太子。大赦天下。更改年号为文明元年。从去年十二月至今年二月，在大约两个月的时间内，三次更改年号：开始从永淳二年改元为弘道元年，元旦又改元嗣圣元年，现在又改元为文明元年。在这一时期内，由高宗李治至中宗李显至睿宗李旦，帝座三次换位。真是古今罕见，天下奇迹。接着，废三岁的皇太孙重照李显的长子，贬作庶人，改名重润。流放韦玄贞到岭南的饮州广东饮州市。羽林军飞骑十几个人，在街巷聚会，划拳饮酒闹腾了一气。有人借着酒性发牢骚，七嘴八舌地聊开了。
“嗨，早知道没有什么功劳赏赐，还不如侍奉庐陵王。”
“现在还来得及。”
“他妈的窝囊废一个，还不如老妈子。”
“老妈子是他娘。”
“可他是天子。先君臣，而后父子。什么都得先听他的。”
“莫错怪他，他没有掌握实权。”
“陆承恩那强盗也鬼得很，附强不附弱，甘心情愿替老妈子卖命。”
“人都是有感情的。他本是个死囚犯，老妈子赦免了他的死罪，反过来还破格任命他当了郎将。”
“他护驾有功，该受封赏。”
“说来说去，还不是一码事。别人干点事，老妈子重赏。我们干的功劳，等于白费力气。”
其中一个名叫包发的飞骑，乘人不备，溜到北门禀报了陆承恩。饮酒扯谈的飞骑还没有散去，陆承恩领着一彪羽林军围住酒楼，逮捕了所在的飞骑，打入禁军监狱。不问青红皂白，一律处死。包发授给五品官。告密之风自此盛行起来。
武则天单独召见裴炎，商议如何稳定局势。她采纳了裴炎的建议，给刘仁轨写了一封亲笔信。信中说：“从前，汉高袓刘邦把关中的事托付给萧何，而今，哀家把关中的事托付给你，两者完全拔―杵。刘仁轨上疏，陈述自己年纪衰老，不能胜任留守的职责，并由此提及吕雉皇后当权及祸败的往事，申明对太后的劝诫之意。
武则天生怕刘仁轨动摇，即派秘书监武承嗣携带用太后的玺印密封的文书，前去抚慰沟通。她的措词委婉而含蓄：“现在皇帝正是守丧期间，不能处理国事，我暂且代他亲政。有劳卿家老远上书劝诫，又以老病辞让官职。信中说：吕雉被后代嗤笑，吕禄、吕产给汉朝带来灾难。引用的比喻很深刻，使我百感交集。你操守方正，终始不渝，劲直之风，古今罕比。骤然听到你的话，怎能不倍感迷惘！但冷静思索，实在可作借鉴。况且你是先朝有德望的老臣，为天下人所瞻仰，希望以匡正补救为怀，不要以暮年推脱。”
武承嗣回禀武则天，说刘仁轨的态度缓和下来了，愿尽忠效命，武则天这才松了口气。她精力充沛，虑事周到，即命左金吾将军丘神筋前往巴州〔四川中巴县〕，简单吩咐说：“检查废太子贤的住宅，防备意外。”
用意相当明显，暗示杀害李贤。丘神筋是丘行恭的儿子，精忠而又残忍，好比一条猎犬，得到了武则天的赏识。朝廷内外稳定下来，又作好了应急的准备，武则天理顺了心态，御洛阳宫武成殿，由新帝李旦率王公以下官员，给她上尊号。隔了三天，她来到殿前平台，不正式坐殿，派礼部尚书武承嗣去李旦居住的殿堂，册封他继任皇帝。由皇太后册封已经登极称帝的人当皇帝，实在稀奇古怪。更古怪的是，一直不举行登基大典，让李旦长期居住在别殿里，享受皇帝的生活待遇，而不坐朝理政。
武则天常常登紫宸殿，在御座前张挂浅紫色的帷帐，她坐在御座上处理政事，即太后临朝称制。称制，一般是由太后代替幼年天子临朝听政。李旦二十三岁了，本来用不着花甲之年的武则天费力操心。而她却挖空心思想出些怪主意，找些歪理由，不让李旦行使皇帝的职权，由她掌管朝政。明眼人一看便知，她是在一步一步地实现自己当女皇的梦想，改朝换代，开创一个空前绝后的女人执政的新时代。她正式坐朝，就任命太常卿、检校豫王府长史王德真当侍中，中书侍郎、检校豫王府司马刘祎之当同中书门下三品，充实和加强了宰相班子。丘神积以“天使”的身份来到巴州，强行把李贤关进—个房间里，逼迫他自杀。贤自缢致死，遗体葬在巴州代城县境。时年三十一岁。
丘神筋从巴州回朝。太后下诏在宫城南门右侧的显福门，为贤行“举哀”礼。所谓举哀，是文武官员在宫门左右排列成长队，同哭三声，表示悲伤，又大哭三声，静默片刻，随后依次退出的一种礼仪。次日，追封已故庶人贤为雍王。朝廷议论纷纷。
武则天不得不嫁祸于丘神筋，将他贬为叠州剌史。不久即召回东都洛阳，复任左金吾将军。贤的三个儿子：长子光顺十四岁，次子光仁十二岁，幺子守义十岁。他们以前都和父亲生活在一起，由于贤犯了叛逆罪遭连累，当成囚犯由巴州押送到洛阳，收入宫中监禁。
武则天降旨，将监禁在宫内的庐陵王显遣送房州湖北房县看管，韦氏和子女们也一并同往。显和家人还在路上，又接到圣旨流放均州湖北丹江口市、均州曾是李治之兄魏王泰流放病死的地方。李治的梓棺由洛阳的殡宫移往长安。八月十一日，落葬乾陵。乾陵因山为陵，位于陕西乾县西北十二里的梁山。有内外城，内城设四门，即东华门、西华门、司马门北人朱雀门南，各有石蹲狮、石马等。
献殿在朱雀门北，南有四夷酋长和使节的石刻像六十一尊，内城阙一对。外城有御道，侧面立述圣记事碑，两侧依次有石人十对，石马五对，金吾驼鸟、翼马、华表各一对，再南有外城阙一对。周围八十里。唐朝皇陵制度由此基本定型，以后诸帝陵均依制修建。九月六日，武则天又将文明元年改元为光宅元年，皇旗及其他旗幡号令，一律改成金黄色。八品以下官员，原来规定应穿青色服装的，改深蓝色。东都洛阳改称神都，洛阳宫更名“太初宫”。其中更改最引人注目的要数衙门和官职的名称：中书省改称“凤阁”，中书令改称“内史”门下省改称