Wu Zetian came to the Taiping Princess's Mansion in the posture of walking to the door, wearing daily clothes in a normal car, and only brought a few maidservants and eunuchs and a few thousand cavalry guards with him. When Xue Shao, Song Jing, and Xue Chuyu went out to greet him, Wu Zetian was still a little surprised.

"You two are here too?" Wu Zetian looked at Song Jing twice, then at Xue Chuyu, and immediately smiled, "General Tianguan, this palace heard that you were seriously injured, how is it now?" ”

"There is the Empress Dowager Lao's concern, and the minister has recovered unharmed." Xue Chuyu hurriedly returned the salute.

"That's it!" Wu Zetian looked at Xue Shao, then at Xue Chuyu, and sighed rather sadly: "Taiyi, Tianguan...... Seeing the two of you standing side by side, the palace remembered the scene when you accompanied the first emperor to climb the Suzaku Castle Tower during the Shangyuan Festival that year. In a trance, things are people! ”

"The Queen Mother doesn't have to be too sad." Xue Shao persuaded with a smile, "At noon, the Queen Mother drove all the way and hasn't eaten yet, right?" If you don't dislike it, the minister invites the queen mother to eat! ”

"Okay!" Wu Zetian agreed very simply, and said with a smile, "Song Jing, Xue Chuyu, this palace has never had a drink with you two talents, and today is a good opportunity - what about my son?" Tell her to come along! ”

"Okay."

Xue Shao answered, and then invited Wu Zetian to sit in the dining hall, and the officials waited for another banquet to serve, and then Xue Shao went to invite Princess Taiping.

Princess Taiping is pregnant, and guests at home generally don't show up, but Wu Zetian is an exception. Xue Shao came to the room and saw Princess Taiping sitting there eating alone.

"Hey, why are you alone and don't have someone to serve you?" Xue Shao stepped forward and sat down beside her, picked up a spoon and fed her chicken soup.

Princess Taiping took a sip and said, "I have hands and feet, why do I need someone to serve?" In the afternoon, the weather is hot and the mood is easy to be irritable, and I am quiet and quiet, which is good. ”

Xue Shao nodded with a smile and said, "Your mother is here and asks you to eat in the main hall together." ”

"Oh?" Princess Taiping was amazed.

It is the etiquette of the times that the female dependents do not go to the main hall, even if she is a princess, Princess Taiping rarely goes to the main hall to accompany Xue Shao to entertain guests, at most to entertain the female dependents brought by the guests. Moreover, Wu Zetian usually does not take Princess Taiping to attend occasions with political colors. There is such a big thing happening in the court today, Wu Zetian must have something to do with this matter, but he named Princess Taiping, which is really rare.

"Let's go!" Xue Shao smiled, "Didn't you fight to the death that day, and you should know and participate in everything big and small?" Come to think of it, your mother really took what you said seriously. No, I will call you by name today. ”

"Okay, I'll clean up a bit." Princess Taiping smiled happily and looked quite excited.

Xue Shao helped her up, and then called the maid to help her change her clothes.

Seeing her busy there, Xue Shao's heart was quite conflicted. First, Princess Taiping is a person with pursuits and thoughts, and it is unrealistic for her to be a professional housewife with nothing to do at home, and it is also a harsh and torture for her. However, the political system is a double-edged sword, and there are too many ugliness and dangers in the political system. Today, Wu Zetian took the initiative to call her, which can be regarded as sending a signal. Maybe later...... Princess Taiping is really about to enter the political arena of Datang step by step!

Is this a historical necessity?

Could it be that from the day Princess Taiping was born, the special political color she carried on her body had long been destined to be inseparable from politics in her life?

"Xue Lang, you are looking at me with straight eyes, what do you think?" Princess Taiping said suddenly.

Xue Shao came back to his senses and said with a smile: "To appreciate the beautiful women's dressing, your eyes must be straight and hooked!" ”

"Poof—" The two maids in the clothes were amused.

"Get out! You get me out! Princess Taiping exclaimed in shame, "Wait outside, I'll be fine in a while!" ”

After a while, Xue Shao and his wife arrived in the dining hall. As soon as Wu Zetian saw Princess Taiping, he smiled happily, and immediately stepped forward to help Princess Taiping, who was pregnant with Liujia, to sit beside him, and asked for warmth for a while.

Everyone can see that Wu Zetian's love for Princess Taiping is really not pretended.

When the meal came, everyone drank, but Princess Taiping replaced the wine with Qiongxiang honeydew, and the banquet began.

After three rounds of drinking, Wu Zetian said: "Taiping, did Xue Lang tell you what happened in the court today?" ”

"Nope!" Princess Taiping said curiously, "What happened?" ”

Wu Zetian laughed, "You don't know about such a big thing?" ”

Princess Taiping suddenly glared at Xue Shao angrily, "Xue Lang, why do you want to hide everything from me?" ”

"I don't want to hide it from you." Xue Shao smiled, "You didn't ask!" ”

"You, you, you!" Princess Taiping is gone.

"It's better for you to have a baby with peace of mind and not get angry." Wu Zetian smiled straightly, and personally told Princess Taiping what happened in the court today.

"Pei Yan is finished?" Princess Taiping was both surprised and delighted, "It's very happy, it's really happy!" ”

"Nonsense." In front of Song Jing and Xue Chuyu, Wu Zetian reprimanded Princess Taiping and said, "Pei Yanguan is in charge of the government. Now his sudden downfall is tantamount to breaking a pillar of the imperial court. Can it still be considered a good thing? ”

"Queen Mother, my Tang Dynasty is full of talents, why is there a lack of Pei Yan who deceives the king and grabs power?" Princess Taiping said disapprerovingly, "Even if he used to be a pillar, he is now a rotten piece of wood." Not only could he not support the court, but he could collapse and kill people at any time. Such a pillar is long overdue for replacement! ”

When everyone heard this, they all smiled understandingly. Princess Taiping's words are easy to understand, but they really hit the nail on the head!

"Now is not the time to discuss such a thing." Wu Zetian said, "It is imperative that we deal with the Yangzhou rebellion well. Xue Shao, your military talent is rarely matched. Hongu would love to hear it, what do you think? ”

As soon as Wu Zetian said this, the originally relaxed and lively atmosphere of the banquet immediately changed, becoming solemn and dignified - this was clearly discussing military affairs!

Xue Shao bowed his hand and said: "Queen Mother, the minister's thoughts are simply only eight words - the clan is in command, and the soldiers are fast!" ”

"Well said. Your thoughts really coincide with mine! Wu Zetian immediately praised and said: "Li Jingye, these traitors, raised an army to rebel under the banner of Kuang Fu Luling King. The imperial court should be in command of the royal clan and clearly order the banner to put down the rebellion. so that everyone in the world knows that he Li Jingye is unpopular under the banner of fake pretense. To tell you the truth, before coming here, I had already sent Cen Changqian, a squire of the military department and a subordinate of the Tongzhong Shumen, to Luoyang to issue a recruitment order, and the imperial court will recruit 300,000 heroic soldiers from the cashiers of the imperial court, and immediately wave the army to Yangzhou to quell the rebellion! ”

"Three hundred thousand?" Xue Shao was slightly startled, thinking to himself, the political intention of this move is probably far greater than the military intention!

"What, what do you think is wrong?" Wu Zetian asked seriously.

Xue Shao pondered for a moment and said, "It stands to reason that it doesn't take 300,000 horses to clean up a rabble like Li Jingye. But this can effectively promote the court's upright stance and tough attitude, so as to strengthen the confidence of the people of the world to still follow and be loyal to the Tang Dynasty - it is worth it, and it is necessary! ”

"Well, it's great to have your approval!" Wu Zetian nodded with a satisfied smile and said, "The reason why I ran to your house in person after chasing your feet is to ask for such peace of mind!" ”

Song Jing and Xue Chuyu, including Princess Taiping, were all secretly surprised, and thought in unison: Although the Queen Mother is shrewd and capable, she is a woman after all, and she is not so good at military affairs. It stands to reason that for such a major military event as quelling the rebellion in Yangzhou, she should discuss it with the Prime Minister Shangshu and the generals in the political hall. However, she was the first to come and ask Xue Shao in private. In this way, now her reliance on Xue Shao in the military is obviously beyond everyone!

"So who do you think is more suitable?" Wu Zetian asked again.

Princess Taiping was on the side, and she wanted to speak again.

Wu Zetian really understood his own daughter, and smiled at the moment: "You can rest assured, I won't let your Xue Lang go to Yangzhou to fight." First, it is inconvenient for him to walk away if you are pregnant, and second, today's Chang'an needs him even more. ”

"Hey, hey!" Princess Taiping snickered, very satisfied.

Xue Shao smiled and said, "Queen Mother, the minister thinks that this candidate for the commander must first have a high rank and reputation in the clan, and then the official position must not be too low. As for whether he has military talents, this is only secondary. As long as he can humbly accept the assistance and advice of his subordinates to use good soldiers, it is enough! ”

"Hey, why are your thoughts and thoughts all consistent with this palace?" Wu Zetian was a little surprised.

"Maybe that's what the hero sees!" Xue Shao slapped a sycophant with a haha, thinking that wasn't that what the Yangzhou counterinsurgency in history did? Although the details are different now, the general idea is still the same!

Wu Zetian laughed twice, and then said, "Then what do you think, how is King Huo Li Yuanliang?" ”

Xue Shao thought for a while, "King Huo is the son of Gaozu, and he is the grandfather of the current emperor, and his reputation in the clan is like Beidou Taishan. But...... The minister thinks that he is not suitable to lead the army to quell the rebellion! ”

"Why?" Wu Zetian asked.

Xue Shao smiled slightly and said two words: "Character." ”

It is precisely because his background is too noble, his seniority is too high, and his reputation is too grand, that Huo Wang Li Yuanliang's character is a little more arrogant and domineering. Previously, when the first emperor was seriously ill, he once led a group of clans to force the palace, so Li Yuanliang and Wu Zetian had a festival early, and this festival was not small. Xue Shao knew in his heart that Wu Zetian would never want such a person to go on the expedition, in case he really took the opportunity to rebel with Li Jingye, wouldn't it be a salary to fight the fire?

- She's just a temptation!

"It's also ......," Wu Zetian groaned lightly, and then said, "Then who do you think is suitable?" ”

Xue Shao pondered for a moment and said, "Shi Li Xiaoyi, the governor of the state capital, is suitable!" ”

Wu Zetian's eyes suddenly lit up, and he was even more shocked in his heart: Could it be true, the hero sees the same thing?

Xue Shao smiled secretly in his heart, don't look at me like this, the historical fact is that Li Xiaoyi is handsome! - Besides, I have dealt with Li Xiaoyi a lot in the past few years, how can I not know that he is not only a famous elder in the clan, but also a confidant of your Wu Zetian?

In line with the actual situation, although Li Xiaoyi is highly respected and has a big official position, he is humble and easy to get along with. He is far more able to listen to advice and appoint people than people like Li Yuanliang. Moreover, since I was asked to recommend the coach, I would naturally arrange a few good generals to assist. Li Xiaoyi and these people around me are not strangers, and for my sake, they should be able to cooperate happily.

——After repeated deliberation in public and private, Li Xiaoyi is the most suitable candidate for the commander of Yangzhou to quell the rebellion!

"Then Li Xiaoyi!" Wu Zetian almost without thinking about it, he immediately made a decision, and then said, "Don't bother the two masters, how about you choose a few more wise generals for me to assist?" ”

Xue Shao immediately smiled, raised his hand and pointed to Song Jing and Xue Chuyu in the seat, "Queen Mother, there are two of you here!" ”