A thousand-year-old family begins with one fighting against ten thousand.

Wei Shou shook his head. "Using ginseng to prolong life can extend it to some extent, but the Empress's body is too weak to tolerate such supplements. It can only add a little more to her lifespan."

"Thank you, sir."

Li Guangli bowed and said.

Wei Shou turned away from the greeting and handed the prescription he had just written to Li Guangli.

"This is a prescription I made with ginseng as the main ingredient. It can help Your Majesty live for three months. However, during these three months, Your Majesty will often suffer from tuberculosis and will be in great pain."

"Another prescription can alleviate Her Majesty's suffering, but she will only live for one month. I urge the General and Her Majesty to discuss it and make their own decision."

After saying this, Wei Shou left, and at the palace gate, he repeated his words to Emperor Wu of Han.

"Brother, you've come."

When Madam Li saw Li Guangli, she gave a haggard smile.

Li Guangli's heart tightened. Madam Li was now as thin as skin and bones, and there was no trace of her former graceful figure.

He now understood why Lady Li was unwilling to see Emperor Wu of Han.

She hoped to leave her most beautiful image in Emperor Wu of Han's memory, so that Emperor Wu would have pity on her and her brothers after Lady Li's death.

"I am sorry, brother."

If he had the talent of Wei Qing and Huo Qubing, or the power of the Wei family, his sister wouldn't have had to suffer so much and end up in her current predicament.

"Brother, please don't say that. Come closer, I have something to tell you."

Several days later, news spread throughout the palace that Lady Li had passed away.

Madam Li did not use either of the two prescriptions.

She couldn't possibly hold off Emperor Wu of Han for more than a few months; her early death would allow him to remember her more vividly.

It can be said that he sacrificed everything for his children and brothers.

Emperor Wu of Han was unable to see Lady Li until her burial.

"This Madam Li is indeed clever."

Wei Zhong praised Lady Li highly, thinking that she was a rare and intelligent person.

Despite the fear of death, she was still able to think calmly and make the judgment that was most beneficial to her.

"She's not simple, she's really not simple. No wonder she was able to fight her way out of the cruel harem and become the most favored woman in the palace besides Wei Zifu."

"Master, this is a letter from the Third Master."

In the study, someone handed Wei Guang's letter.

"A letter from the third brother?"

Wei Guang is the third son of the Wei family in this generation, and he currently serves as a general of the Imperial Guard in the palace.

"Is this witchcraft?"

Wei Zhong narrowed his eyes; this was likely to stir up a bloody storm in the palace.

The paper read that someone had reported that someone in the palace was using witchcraft to curse favored concubines, including Lady Li.

In addition, Lady Li had just passed away, and Emperor Wu of Han was in a state of grief.

Emperor Wu of Han would definitely have purged the harem, so who was responsible for this being exposed at this time?

Wei Zhong immediately began to suspect the deceased Lady Li, since the empress was in charge of the inner palace.

Given what happened, the Empress naturally bears some responsibility.

Given Madam Li's abilities, it wouldn't be difficult for her to make such an arrangement without anyone noticing.

Emperor Wu of Han was indeed furious and ordered a bloodbath in the harem, killing thousands of people.

This also implicated many people in the outer court. Enraged, Emperor Wu of Han raised his sword and executed all those involved.

Emperor Wu's actions gave some people an opportunity. They felt that witchcraft was a taboo subject for Emperor Wu, and that it might be possible to use it to bring down the crown prince and empress.

So they began to plot in secret.

The crown prince came of age, Wei and Huo gained power, his hair turned white, his alchemy failed, Lady Li passed away, and witchcraft cursed him.

These events during this period made Emperor Wu of Han extremely sensitive, and his already suspicious nature became even more pronounced.

He felt that the entire court and harem were untrustworthy.

So he began to use his political skills to create a check and balance.

First, Liu Quli was appointed as prime minister. Liu Quli was very close to Li Guangli and was a core figure in the Fifth Prince's faction.

Then Li Guangli and Li Yannian were promoted and given titles.

They also wanted to posthumously confer titles upon Li Ji, but the Wei family forcefully stopped them.

How can someone who was executed for harming the people receive a posthumous title from the imperial court?

Isn't this going against the natural order?

However, the Wei family's actions aroused Emperor Wu of Han's suspicion. Now that the Wei family could prevent him from posthumously honoring Li Ji, could they also prevent him from issuing decrees in the future? And disobey his imperial edicts?

If others follow suit, how can he continue to be the emperor?

After discussing it, the Wei brothers decided to take advantage of this opportunity to move from the central government to the local level, shifting their operations from the open to the covert.

The first step of the plan was Wei Lu's death.

That's incredibly filial.

Wei Lu's death had a significant impact on the Wei family's influence within the military.

As a veteran general, his prestige within the military was unparalleled.

Even if Wei Zhen, Wei Qing, and Huo Qubing were all combined, they couldn't compare to him.

In addition, Wei happy and Wei Zhen were comparable to him.

His passing meant that the Wei family could no longer hold absolute power within the military.

Although Wei Qing had passed away and Gongsun He had been dismissed from his post as prime minister, the court still had great generals such as Huo Qubing, Li Guang, and Zhao Ponu.

Although not as powerful as the Wei family, they already wield considerable influence within the military.

This allowed Emperor Wu of Han to breathe a sigh of relief.

The deaths of Wei Fu and Wei Lu greatly reduced the pressure the Wei family placed on Emperor Wu of Han.

Later, the Wei family used the pretext of developing local areas and promoting a peaceful era to disperse their influence from the central government to various parts of the country.

Faced with the Wei family's self-inflicted wounds, both Emperor Wu of Han and other factions applauded their actions.

They didn't know what had gotten into the Wei family, but the official positions they had been given were enough to make them ecstatic.

Taking advantage of this opportunity, Emperor Wu of Han also promoted many people who were loyal to him, as well as members of the Fifth Prince's faction.

This led to the rapid expansion of the Fifth Prince's faction, which began to rival the Crown Prince's faction.

Emperor Wu of Han also took the opportunity to reclaim military power from the Southern Army of the Imperial Palace Guards and the Northern Army of the Chang'an City Guards, replacing the Commandant of the Guards and the Commandant of the Central Army with his confidants.

Then, the Imperial Academy recruited a large number of scholars from various schools of thought to fill positions in the court.

These people disliked the Wei family's support for Taoism and their unification of all schools of thought, and would not easily side with the Wei family.

Emperor Wu of Han was also observing the Wei family's reaction, waiting for them to retaliate.

Waiting and waiting, waiting and waiting.

Emperor Wu of Han never got to see him again.

The Wei family obediently handed over most of their power in the court, leaving only the Grand Minister of Agriculture as their stronghold.

The rest were scattered throughout the country, putting their ideals into practice, striving for a peaceful and prosperous world for the benefit of the people.

The threat from the Wei family vanished just like that, leaving Emperor Wu of Han somewhat uneasy.

Emperor Wu of Han shifted most of his energy away from the Wei family and towards the Crown Prince's faction and the Fifth Prince's faction.

Through his political maneuvering, he maintained a balance of power between the two factions.

However, Lady Li had already passed away, while Wei Zifu remained the Empress.

After the initial surge, the Fifth Prince's forces inevitably fell into a disadvantageous position.

Only through Emperor Wu of Han's constant bias in favoring the enemy was it able to withstand the suppression from the Wei-Huo clique.