Wu Zetian started out as a palace maid, and won the appreciation of Emperor Taizong of the Tang Dynasty for her theory of horse training, but was thrown into the cold palace because of her strong personality.
After Taizong died, she was sent to Ganye Temple to become a nun. It was not until the new emperor Li Zhi rekindled the old relationship when he paid homage to the late emperor that he recalled her to the palace.
In order to ascend to the throne, after she gave birth to Princess Andingsi, she framed the Queen and poisoned the baby girl. She took the opportunity to sow discord between the Emperor and the two concubines Wang and Xiao, and eventually became the Queen instead.
Then he won over the poor nobles and eradicated the powerful group headed by Changsun Wuji, thus starting the "Two Saints Coming to the Dynasty" situation.
After Gaozong became seriously ill, she took the throne and deposed her three sons one after another. Finally, she ascended the throne as emperor and changed the name of the country to Zhou.
After becoming emperor, he implemented palace examinations and martial arts examinations to select talents, and appointed Di Renjie and other capable ministers to promote economic development. However, there were also hidden dangers due to the rampant cruelty of officials and the monopolization of male favors.
In his later years, his male favorite Zhang Yi brought trouble to the palace, and he was forced to abdicate by the coup. He moved to Shangyang Palace and died alone.
Before her death, she erected a monument without words for future generations to comment on her merits and demerits, and the legend of a generation of queens came to an end.
