In my dream of returning to the Tang Dynasty, I snatched Wu Zetian from my lap.

This inspection lasted from the afternoon until nightfall.

Li Yuanchang rode his horse all over the hunting grounds to conduct an on-site survey.

He discovered that the twenty-mile hunting ground was just empty talk; these mountains and ridges bordered the desolate wilderness and had no end in sight.

However, the hunting grounds designated by the royal family were only about twenty li long, but in ancient times, there were actually no enclosures or fortifications.

In other words, this is hunting in the wild, without any boundaries.

For safety reasons, Li Yuanchang had no choice but to designate a large area on-site and then demarcate it as a military restricted zone.

Over the course of the night, he sketched dense lines on a huge sheet of Xuan paper, spreading them out like a Bagua diagram.

With sentry posts changing shifts and camps scattered throughout, all Tang soldiers enforced a strict rotation order, keeping the entire hunting ground under close surveillance.

Early the next morning, thousands of troops began to disperse under Li Yuanchang's command, with the sounds of felling trees filling the air as watchtowers rose from the ground.

"Whoa!!"

A cavalry unit charged up the mountain and hovered at the summit.

"Your Highness, this is the place. This is the southern end of the hunting grounds, separated by a cliff. The brothers searched it a few days ago and found no one except for some wild beasts," Cheng Chuliang said.

Li Yuanchang gazed into the distance, where layers of clouds and mist rolled and swirled. It truly was a sight to behold, a view from the summit of a mountain. The natural beauty of ancient times was indeed breathtaking.

He looked down and saw sheer cliffs that stretched across the sky and earth.

This was the last undefended area, and the people of Zhechong Prefecture didn't bother with it. After all, it was a sheer cliff, and who could climb up from here?

After thinking for a moment, he still said, "Send a detachment of infantry to garrison here."

"here?"

Cheng Chuliang and Yuchi Baoqi were surprised. This was completely unnecessary; it was a natural fortress.

"It's better to be safe than sorry."

"It's just a three-day hunt, making the best use of everything," Li Yuanchang said.

"yes!"

The two men clasped their hands in greeting and then summoned a contingent of about twenty soldiers from Lantian County, who were stationed at the edge of the cliff.

Once this final step is completed, the clearing and control of the area is essentially finished.

Looking down at the numerous hunting grounds scattered across the landscape, Li Yuanchang breathed a sigh of relief.

"I'll take a nap. Call me if you need anything."

Li Yuanchang lay down on the grass.

"yes!"

Li Yuanchang held his head in his hands as a pillow, with a blade of grass dangling from his mouth, looking as if he had something on his mind.

When he's busy, it's fine, but now that he's finished and has some free time, he can't help but think of Wu Zetian.

How did she get involved with Li Zhi?

It's one thing for her to be a businesswoman, but Wu Yuanqing and the other man clearly stated that Wu Meiniang is now quite powerful, having befriended and bribed many local dignitaries, and even big shots in Chang'an.

What does she want to do?

She failed to enter the palace, but how come this step is the same as in history?

Did she not know that Li Shimin had expelled the Wu family, and that she would be punished by Li Shimin for doing so?

Historically, Wu Zetian truly made her debut after Li Shimin's death and Li Zhi's ascension to the throne. This means that Li Shimin in history may have always been wary of this woman with dragon eyes and a phoenix neck.

It's a mess, a complete mess!

What has happened in the past few years? Is she still the same innocent and carefree woman who would blush even when holding hands?

Li Yuanchang couldn't understand it, his mind was in turmoil, and he couldn't help but close his eyes, his brows furrowed tightly.

A mountain breeze swept by, and the flowers and grasses remained silent.

He didn't know how much time had passed before Li Yuanchang fell into a deep sleep amidst a multitude of unanswered thoughts.

"..."

Changan.

As prosperous and dazzling as a poem.

A carriage slowly drove by and finally stopped at the Begonia Villa.

Guards immediately came to greet him, setting up a stool from which a handsome young man with rosy lips, white teeth, a slender figure, and distinctive phoenix eyes descended.

He glanced around and then strode into the courtyard.

Once the Begonia Villa returned to peace, eyes were cast upon it from the nearby alleys, streets, and even the shipping containers.

"Is it her?"

"It should be."

"That's not a man, it's a woman." Chi Lian stood by the window, staring intently at the Begonia Courtyard. As a woman herself, she could tell the difference from a distance.

Li Yi, dressed in black, said with a calm and indifferent expression: "It's a pity that Your Highness left early, otherwise we would have run into each other."

Chi Lian was about to take action.

Li Yi dodged to block him.

"Where are you going?"

Chi Lian's face was both beautiful and dangerous: "What else can we do? First, we need to control them."

"She might be the former Princess Consort of Han," Li Yi reminded him.

"I don't care who she is, the current Princess Consort of Han is Situ Lan."

"Her presence here will cause trouble for Your Highness."

"Moreover, she is no longer the Wu clan woman. She has gathered powerful clans in the north, competed with His Highness for business, and repeatedly entered His Highness's residence. Now she is even flirting with Prince Jin. Sooner or later, she will cause trouble."

Li Yi frowned and insisted, "We'll just follow His Highness's instructions and keep watch here. We'll talk about it again when His Highness returns."

Chi Lian was displeased, his brows furrowing.

"How can you be so dense!"

Li Yi forced an awkward smile: "Miss Chi Lian, don't act rashly. We can't give her this show of force."

Chi Lian's expression changed slightly after her thoughts were exposed, and she said nothing more.

At this moment, inside the Begonia Villa.

The villa occupied a vast area, but it was almost deserted and extremely quiet.

A small pavilion in the middle of a lake.

Wu Yuanqing and Wu Yuanshuang knelt on the ground, their foreheads touching the earth, as subdued as two servants with no status.

Ten steps away was Ling Shuang, also known as Wu Meiniang.

The saying "Thirty years east of the river, thirty years west of the river" has now become a reality.

Wu Meiniang held a letter between her slender fingers and read it one by one.

Her beautiful eyes, framed by long eyelashes, sparkled, conveying a complex mix of emotions.

During this time, Wu Yuanqing and his companion dared not even breathe loudly.

"So, Li Yuanchang now knows I'm back?" Wu Meiniang's voice carried a hint of amusement.

Wu Yuanqing and his companion trembled, exclaiming in panic, "Sister, we were forced into this!"

"The King of Han sent men to arrest us; they threatened to kill us if we didn't talk!"

Wu Zetian coldly replied, "Answer my question."

"Yes, yes!!"

"He knows, he also knows you will be returning soon, and he knows your background, including your association with the Prince of Jin."

"At that time, the King of Han held a knife to our necks and said that if we did not answer or deliver the message as he instructed, he would kill us. He also warned us not to think about asking the King of Jin for help."

He said he didn't take the Prince of Jin seriously at all.

Wu Meiniang asked again, her eyes serious: "Besides these things, what was his reaction after he learned that Ling Shuang was me and discovered the truth?"

"He...he...he..."

Wu Yuanqing and his companion both stammered.

"He was stunned for a long time, eager to know where you were, and kept pressing us for answers, but we didn't know at the time."

"Yes, that's right!" Wu Yuanshuang suddenly said.

"Little sister, after he found out about your close relationship with Prince Jin, his face darkened, he flew into a rage, and almost strangled my brother on the spot!"

"Yes!" Wu Yuanqing also testified.

I don't know if they're trying to gain sympathy or complaining.