"Are you telling the truth?" After listening to Ji Xu's report, Wu Zetian asked curiously, "Is there such a thing?"

"Of course it's true! Afterwards, I gave him separate questions. Whether it was the ten-day exam, the annual exam or the final exam, he got top marks in all of them!" Ji Xu said with a bitter smile, "Don't say he was sleeping in the school.

Even if I go out to play, I won't stand in his way. This is the first genius like him I have encountered in my life."

Ji Xu always thought that he had an advantage, but compared with Lu Xiaoxian, he felt like a frog in the well, which made him somewhat discouraged.

During dinner, Wu Zetian was still trying to figure out what Jie had just said.

During the prosperous period of the Great Zhou Dynasty, the national power was strong and the whole country paid attention to the trend of luxury. The royal family's atmosphere was especially strong, and luxury was revealed in every dish. It was not only the price and rareness of the food that was eaten, but also the selection and cooking of the ingredients.

The shape of the food, the choice of utensils, etc. are extremely particular.

Something is different now. Apart from the same utensils, the cooking of the entire dish is much simpler. It's not that Wu Zetian has become frugal, but that the food in Luoyang City has quietly changed.

Food utensils in the Tang Dynasty were divided into gold and silver, jade, porcelain, lacquer, wood, bone, etc. Gold and silver are precious metals, and only those with the ability to possess and use large quantities of eating utensils made of them were

royal family.

At this moment, various kinds of delicacies are contained in exquisite gold and silverware. The dishes are colorful in color, aroma and shape, rich and plump, and match the appropriate tableware. They are staggered in height and size, alternate in size, coordinated in shape and texture, and properly combined, which can bring enjoyment to the eater.

Perfect feeling.

These dishes are all original creations of Qiu Fengpo. The Shangshi Bureau specially sent Xiu to learn the cooking skills, and then came back to cook them for His Majesty.

Wu Zetian took a bite of braised carp and chewed it carefully while looking at the plate.

The white fish meat is paired with fragrant golden flowers and leaves in the middle. The yellow and white colors make it hard not to move your index finger.

"Wan'er!" Wu Zetian suddenly put down his chopsticks and asked Shangguan Wan'er, who was waiting on the side, "Tell me, what kind of person is this Lu Xiaoxian?"

He has a quick mind, is good at dealing with relationships, has strong foresight, is good at poetry and prose, and can also innovate dishes. He is simply omnipotent. Not only was Wu Zetian unable to see through it, but Shangguan Wan'er could only shake her head with a wry smile.

In the evening, Shangguan Wan'er directed the maid to bring a basin of medicated foot bath water specially prepared for the Queen. The Queen stretched her feet into the hot basin and breathed a comfortable sigh. Shangguan Wan'er rolled up her sleeves and personally washed and massaged the Queen's feet.

.

The skilled craftsmen worked day and night and finally engraved more than 20 oaths on the iron coupons in small regular script. The completed iron coupons were black and blue, radiating an awe-inspiring brilliance, and are now placed on the iron coupons.

Wu Zetian's desk.

The Queen picked up an iron certificate and couldn't help but rub it. She didn't read the content on it. She looked at the beams of the main hall thoughtfully and smiled softly in spite of herself.

The queen took her feet out of the footbath and told Shangguan Wan'er: "Immediately issue an edict and order the prince, prime minister, princess Taiping, Wu Youji, Wu Chengsi, Wu Sansi and other military officials to take the oath.

We swear that we will never violate each other, and we will co-exist and prosper together. Tomorrow morning, we will declare to heaven and earth in the Mingtang, and inscribe this on the iron certificate!"

Wu Zetian was determined, and Lu Xiaoxian's suggestion was finally adopted.

Shangguan Wan'er clearly remembers that when Lu Xiaoxian made this suggestion, the disdain in her heart was about to come out, and now everything has become a reality.

"Yes." Wan'er agreed, handed the work in her hands to the maid next to her, and went to the front hall to draft the decree.

…

The dandies of the Imperial College finally had a day off, and they were informed that they were going to the palace to attend an important event.

In the morning, in the large Mingtang, a solemn oath-taking ceremony was about to be held.

In front of the tablet of the Lord of Heaven, Earth, Master, Humanity and God, there is a copper tripod filled with millet. In the millet are three thumb-thick sticks of Tianzhu Musk Ice Incense, and the smoke is lingering, refreshing. In front of it is a large square table.

There were sacrifices such as bull heads, horse noodles, black pigs and white sheep, steamed buns, wine, gold and silver.

Before the ceremony, the chamberlain presented snacks and wine, and four acrobats performed their skills in the palace. Then, the maiko performed the Zhezhi Dance.

Wu Zetianyou looked at the people in front of her, including her son, daughter, son-in-law, nephew, and many of the Li family and the Wu disciples. They seemed to be harmonious and harmonious. However, when people are fragile, they will have impermanence.

feel.

She thought: "How long can such a gathering last?" She also thought: "Time changes with people. If I were a hundred years later, would these people still be able to get along with each other as harmoniously as they are now?"

Wu Zetian has always been very hesitant about establishing the crown prince. She must have extraordinary knowledge to become the emperor of the Great Zhou Dynasty. She knew very well that if the Great Zhou Dynasty was not succeeded by the Wu family, then she would die. But if she was established,

Her son, Tang Bing, will definitely return to the country, and then she will be in a very embarrassing position: as the executor of Li Zhi's will, she has not completed what she should do. As the mother of Li Xian and Li Dan,

She failed in her duty as a mother. A tiger is poisonous but will not eat its children. Wu Zetian was even more vicious to her own son than a tiger. As the queen mother of a country, she not only failed to maintain the stability of the country, but instead took advantage of the chaos to rob. Faced with this

A rebellious minister and traitor, can Li Tang still forgive her after his restoration?

In this case, the opinions of the court ministers are very crucial.

In ancient times, the emperor and the scholar-bureaucrats governed the world, not the people. This was the real relationship between the king and his ministers.

Whether it is the Sui Dynasty or the Tang Dynasty, including the Zhou Dynasty, the emperor and ministers have a dual relationship of leadership and cooperation. In name, you lead me, but in fact, both parties cooperate.

The opinions of ministers are really important, not because of their status, but because their opinions represent his position and actions.

Wu Chengsi once asked Wang Fangqing to cause a farce outside the imperial city, but Ji Xu beat him away. But Ji Xu also knew that vicious dogs often exist, but reasonable dog owners do not often exist. The key is to deal with the dog owner.

Through a series of confrontations, Wu Zetian had understood in her heart that the court ministers still loved the Li Tang clan. If she insisted on establishing Wu Chengsi, she would definitely not get the support of the ministers, including Di Renjie, who relied on her most.

Who in the world does not respect the Tang Dynasty!

Wu Zetian no longer mentioned the matter of establishing Wu Chengsi, but took Li Xian back from Fangzhou, and then established Li Xian as the prince. After that, today's Mingtang oath came into being.

"Alas!" Wu Zetian couldn't help but sigh.

If she were young, Wu Zetian would definitely have a way to solve this kind of thing. As people get older, they will look forward and backward on many things. This kind of emotional burden was unprecedented in the past, but at this moment, one after another, one after another

Pieces entered Wu Zetian's mind one after another, and she frowned from time to time...

"Your Majesty, everyone is here!" Shangguan Wan'er reminded in a low voice.

Wu Zetian came to her senses, picked up her chopsticks and struck the copper plate.

With a bang, everyone focused their attention on Wu Zetian, and at the same time, the musicians' orchestral music suddenly stopped.

Wu Zetian whispered to Wan'er to ask the musicians and kabuki actors to stay away.

Everyone was waiting in silence, and suddenly, the whole hall was silent.

"I am old!" Wu Zetian continued solemnly, "My hope is in you, and I hope you will be well in the future. You must rely on each other, this is a condition for survival." She paused, slowly, but

He also continued vigorously, "Therefore, you must swear to heaven and earth in front of me today! In the future, you will share misfortunes and blessings."

As soon as Wu Zetian finished speaking, more than twenty oath-takers lined up ten feet away in front of the incense table. Their movements were quick and neat, and they had obviously rehearsed before.

The oath takers were divided into two columns, led by Prince Li Xian and Liang Wang Wu Sansi respectively. Wei Wang Wu Chengsi was bedridden due to illness and could not come to participate.

To create an atmosphere, forty-nine candles with roughly lit arms were placed around the hall. There was also a small band of twenty-eight people in the southeast corner.

The person who made the alliance was Di Renjie, the first and assistant prime minister of the current dynasty, who was in charge of Tongfengge Luantai. He was wearing a formal dress with wide sleeves.

Regarding Wu Zetian's thoughts, Di Renjie was like a mirror in his mind.

Smart people sometimes do naive and stupid things, and Wu Zetian is like this. She is a politician, she knows all kinds of strategies, and she knows that there are only interests and no morality in the face of power. However, here

For a moment, she felt excited and comforted by the oath of the group of people in front of her to share the good and bad fortune together. She thought this would be reliable.

Although he was very disdainful, it did not affect Li Xian's position as prince, and Di Renjie followed suit and fulfilled the emperor's wish.

Di Renjie stood in front of the incense table, muttered a few words, poured the wine as a libation, made a congratulatory sign in the air with his hand, turned around, looked at everyone with pretended majesty, and announced loudly: "The oath-taking begins."

Prince Li Xian did his duty, walked forward with an oath in hand, and read loudly: "All the gods testify: I, Li Xianxian, will live in harmony with the kings and princesses of the Wu family in the future, and will never violate them. Even thousands of years later, I will continue as before.

.Once this oath is taken, if there is repentance, God will not bless you. The person who made the oath is: Li Xian."

After the prince retired, Wu Sansi came up. Facing the crowd, he coughed, shook the oath in his hand, and read loudly: "As God testifies, I, Wu Sansi, and the children of the Wu family, promise to be with the prince and the prime minister.

, Princess Taiping co-exists and prospers, and shares weal and woe. If you have the slightest deviance, you will definitely be punished by God!"

Everyone came forward one by one in order of elder and younger and solemnly swore an oath. After the oath was completed, everyone knelt down on the worship mat and kowtowed three times in succession to the tablet of the God.

At this moment, the cast iron certificate of the oath was placed neatly among the flowers and cypresses in the Mingtang.

Wu Zetian glanced at the direction of the iron certificate and swept his eyes in front of everyone: "The oath is well written and I am very satisfied. I have decided to display this iron certificate of the oath in the history museum forever. After the iron certificate is made, I will ask for it.

Everyone must strictly abide by the oath and restrain themselves at all times. Anyone who violates the rules will be shot without mercy. Do you understand what I say?"

"I understand!" everyone responded.
Chapter completed!