Enraged, he abruptly stood up and slammed his fist on the armrest of the dragon throne.

"Prince Pingxi, how dare you lead your troops into the Golden Palace!"

"I did this only to support the Empress Dowager and set things right! You want my tiger tally? You'll have to ask my soldiers if they're loyal!"

"I'm not convinced, I'm not convinced!"

He had hundreds or even thousands of men under his command, who blocked the main hall and responded to his every call.

They raised their weapons high, shouted in unison, and their imposing presence overwhelmed everyone.

"Hahaha, good! You guys are really something, aren't you afraid I'll chop off all your heads!"

"You incompetent prince! You're about to die, yet you're still putting on airs. We've been ruler and subject for so long, and I don't want to see bloodshed or make things too ugly. Empress Dowager, please read the late emperor's edict! Make him submit to it wholeheartedly!"

"That's right. If you can sincerely repent, we are willing to spare your life and even give you a fiefdom so you can live a carefree life as a prince on the frontier. But if you insist on resisting, don't blame my sword for being merciless!"

"Haha, read it, read it quickly! I want to hear what the late emperor's edict contained!" Li Shengyuan seemed to have gone mad, laughing maniacally.

Prince Rui was terrified.

"What do we do? Second Brother has so many men, and the Prince of Pingxi is there too. We definitely can't break out. Father hasn't been on the battlefield for so many years, I don't know if he can still hold a sword. We're doomed. They're willing to grant Father land, could they give me a piece?"

"Or we can wait until Father falls, then surrender. If they kill Father, they probably won't kill us."

"Shut up, or you'll die!" Li Changyu stared coldly ahead, too lazy to even look at him, let alone listen to his rambling.

That brat has always been useless; he panics whenever something big happens.

However, at this moment, there was another issue that concerned him the most: the whereabouts of Mi Shan.

Where did she go?

Little did they know, Mi Shan was right there, in the very center of the vortex, in the sack at the Empress Dowager's feet.

She huddled there, listening to the tense standoff between the group, feeling as if they were about to fight at any moment. The situation was extremely tense, and she couldn't even find a chance to escape.

And they couldn't move around, they had to wait and see what happened, curled up in this not-so-large sack, their legs and arms almost stiff and numb.

"The late emperor's edict states: If an emperor is unfilial, disrespectful, or fails to honor his mother, the Empress Dowager, or neglects his duties in government, he may be deposed and replaced by a more virtuous and capable one!"

"This imperial edict was written by the late emperor himself, and it is stamped with the imperial seal as proof!"

After the Empress Dowager finished speaking, she handed the imperial edict to Eunuch Zheng.

Eunuch Zheng held it high as he passed by the civil and military officials, allowing them to see it one by one.

"So that's how it is. It seems that Father has never truly trusted me, and neither have you, Empress Dowager. You have never treated me as a son, but rather as an enemy!"

"To seek a protective talisman for yourself, you even had the late king leave you an imperial edict with his last breath before his death, so that you could keep me in check in the future!" Li Shengyuan sneered in a deep voice, a hint of self-mockery flashing in his deep and weathered eyes.

"So what if it is! You are not fit to be emperor. Not only have you disappointed me, but also my sixth uncle, the prime minister, the Prince of Pingxi, and all the civil and military officials and ministers are dissatisfied with you!"

"Very well, you are all dissatisfied with me and think I am unworthy. Then let me ask you, besides me, who else in the whole world is worthy of being this emperor!"