Chapter 98: Anyone Is Possible

With a heavy heart, Princess Taiping spent a sleepless night.

At the first light of dawn, unable to calm her restless thoughts, she quietly pushed open the door and approached Wu Ning’s room, gently knocking.

“Ninth Brother, are you awake?”

...

“Come in,” came the response.

Clinging to a flicker of hope, she did not expect Wu Ning’s reply to be so straightforward.

Taiping entered and found Wu Ning still slumped exactly where he had been the night before, as if he had not moved all night.

“You didn’t sleep at all?”

Wu Ning rolled his eyes. “What a surprise. How could I sleep after what happened?”

Taiping thought it over and realized she hadn’t slept a wink either.

Sitting heavily on the edge of the kang, she asked cautiously, “You... you’re not really planning to seek revenge, are you?”

“Shouldn’t I?”

The dim morning light filtered into the room, casting shadows on Wu Ning’s somber face, making Taiping uneasy.

Wu Ning said quietly, “Mother died a cruel and mysterious death. As her son, shouldn’t I avenge her to prove my manhood?”

“But you must be sure who the enemy is!”

Taiping’s worry spilled out. “You’re facing the Empress Dowager. No one in Tang can stand against her!”

“Haha.” Unexpectedly, Wu Ning laughed. “See, last night you were still defending her. Deep down, you know it’s her, don’t you?”

“I...” Taiping was speechless. “That’s not true...”

“I...” Wu Ning interrupted, “It’s what you all think—Mother’s death was ordered by the Empress Dowager.”

He chuckled darkly, mocking Taiping’s flustered denial and her poor acting.

“Don’t worry, even if I accept this grudge, I won’t charge into the Eastern Capital and slaughter everyone like my uncle imagines.”

He shrugged. “How foolish would that be? That’s not my style.”

“Ah?”

Taiping was surprised. This was a complete shift from the murderous look in Wu Ning’s eyes the day before; it was as if he had reverted to his usual slick and oily self.

“Forget it!” Wu Ning sighed deeply.

Pointing to his backside, “I can’t get off the kang. Your Highness, please check if uncle is awake. Please call him here; I don’t want to answer your questions twice.”

“Oh, and bring Chen Ziang along too.”

...

Taiping didn’t quite understand Wu Ning’s intention, but it seemed he had something to say.

Without hesitation, she went out to call Helan Minzhi.

Fortunately, Helan Minzhi, Wu Ning, and Taiping had all been sleepless through the night. Soon, they gathered together in Wu Ning’s room along with Chen Ziang.

With everyone present, Wu Ning first shot Chen Ziang a glare.

Chen Ziang had been feeling guilty for plagiarizing his poem, but now it seemed he hadn’t plagiarized enough.

Without further ado, Wu Ning got straight to the point.

“I accept this grudge. It is my duty as a son!”

“But...” Helan Minzhi began.

Wu Ning interrupted, “But... I will resolve this in my own way.”

“During this time, none of you are to interfere!”

Helan Minzhi frowned. “Your way? What way?”

“Don’t worry about what my way is,” Wu Ning said impatiently. “In the end, I’ll give you all a result.”

“But before the real culprit is found, none of you are to make any moves!”

“What’s there to investigate?” Helan Minzhi snapped.

“This matter was the Empress Dowager’s doing. If you’re truly a son, then seek vengeance from her!”

Wu Ning furrowed his brow and lay back down on the kang.

“Keep your voice down. Aren’t you afraid someone might overhear?”

Rubbing his dry eyes, he continued, “It’s not as simple as you think.”

“The Empress Dowager is a suspect, and the prime one at that, but it’s not necessarily only her.”

“Oh?” Chen Ziang spoke up suspiciously, “Besides the Empress Dowager, who else fifteen years ago would have a reason to kill your mother?”

“Hah, many!” Wu Ning glared.

He had come to realize that none of the three in the room were fit for the task.

Helan Minzhi aside—if he were truly capable, he wouldn’t have nearly been pushed to death, nor remained clueless about the situation. If he had real skill, he wouldn’t pin all his hopes on himself.

Chen Ziang was no better. Though he had a heart of justice, he lacked the resolve to survive.

Taiping was even less so—a naive and sweet fool compared to what she would be in the future.

With such a band of bumbling comrades, how could he possibly seek revenge? He might not even know how he’d die.

After a moment’s contemplation, Wu Ning exhaled deeply.

“Let’s not rush into revenge. Let’s first piece together what happened all those years ago.”

“I’ll lay it out for you; see if it makes sense.”

“First, the Empress Dowager. She poisoned my mother to gain favor with the court. At that time, my mother was pregnant with me, and if she had given birth, the Empress Dowager’s position would have been unstable.”

“From this perspective, Empress Dowager Wu is indeed the prime suspect.”

“But things are never so simple. Let’s consider from another angle whether the Empress Dowager had the motive to poison my mother.”

Wu Ning had thought this through all night.

He couldn’t help but be cautious—after all, he was going against Wu Zetian herself. Anyone would think carefully.

Yet, the more he pondered, the less he understood why Wu Zetian would poison his mother.

From the sixth year of Yonghui to the first year of Shangyuan, when Lady Helan died, she had been Empress for nearly twenty years.

Add the years before becoming Empress, she had been struggling in the palace for almost forty years.

What palace intrigues hadn’t she witnessed? What enemies hadn’t she faced? What means hadn’t she employed?

But she had never used poison.

Moreover, she had poisoned her own niece in front of herself and others.

Frankly, the old lady had a thousand ways to kill someone without taking the blame. Was she really so reckless?

Also, consider Wu Zetian’s situation in the first year of Shangyuan.

At that time, Emperor Gaozong was seriously ill, and the Empress Dowager held absolute power.

Her focus was not on petty palace disputes but on factional battles in court and consolidating her position.

She would have welcomed anyone in the palace who could help stabilize Emperor Gaozong, not create trouble.

As for Lady Helan threatening her position—utter nonsense!

Ask any commoner, who could shake Wu Zetian’s position as Empress?

She was on the verge of usurping the throne, let alone her position as Empress.

And during this period, Wu Zetian desperately needed support in court. Why would she kill Lady Helan first and then discard Helan Minzhi, whom she had personally established?

Remember, this “ugly uncle” was not only handsome but also highly talented, with many supporters in court.

So, the idea that Wu Zetian poisoned Lady Helan is tenuous.

Of course, it’s not impossible that the Empress Dowager was so capricious that if she disliked someone, she’d simply kill them.

For now, she remains the prime suspect.

But does that mean no one else is suspicious?

Impossible!

In Wu Ning’s eyes, many had motives to harm Lady Helan.

“No way!”

Hearing Wu Ning’s words, Helan Minzhi was inexplicably agitated.

“Others?”

“Who else would go after a woman in the palace? Who would be so eager to eliminate her?”

“Don’t defend that venomous woman...” Helan Minzhi’s voice trembled.

“It must be her!”

“...” Wu Ning was speechless.

“Anyone!”

Wu Ning said seriously, “Any one of them could have a reason to harm my mother.”

“Why!?”

“Why?”

Wu Ning laughed bitterly.

“Because your whole family is just too incapable of handling things properly!”

...