The court has been turbulent and unstable recently.
The news spread that the prince was assassinated on his way back to the capital and was seriously injured.
Emperor Jinde was ill and had not attended court for three consecutive days. On this day, he finally attended the morning court and made public the evidence that Prince Dongping had sent someone to assassinate the prince.
"The Prince of Dongping assassinated the Crown Prince, embezzled disaster relief funds, murdered court officials, and secretly hoarded food, fodder, and weapons. What exactly is his motive?"
"He is truly a good minister of mine. Does he still see me as the emperor?"
"Will it not be long before the King of Dongping takes over the Great Xia Kingdom, and the Wei family becomes the ruler of the world?"
When the civil and military officials in the court heard this, they were both indignant and frightened.
The King of Dongping is so arrogant that he seems to be plotting a rebellion.
One after another, court officials came out to impeach Prince Dongping.
"Your Majesty, the Prince of Dongping has been commanding his own troops for a long time and has become increasingly arrogant. Now he even wants to kill the Crown Prince and control the imperial power. He deserves death."
"I implore Your Majesty to severely punish the Prince of Dongping and take back his military power."
The ministers were outraged, and Emperor Jinde naturally followed their wishes and ordered the Prince of Dongping to come to the capital and hand over his military power.
In the study.
Prince Kang looked displeased. "The assassination attempt on the crown prince failed, and my third uncle was caught with evidence. What should we do now?"
"If the emperor confiscates Third Uncle's military power, then Second Uncle will be the next one to be dealt with."
"Without military power, how can our Wei family survive? I'm afraid we'll become a toothless paper tiger, vulnerable to any attack."
He knew very well that Emperor Jinde summoned Prince Dongping to the capital just to set up a Hongmen Banquet and seize the military power from Prince Dongping. If Prince Dongping really went to the capital, he would probably never come back.
The Duke of Zhenguo's face was stern, and he shook his sleeves fiercely, "Take back the military power? Haha, absolutely impossible."
"Your Majesty's health is deteriorating, and the Crown Prince is seriously injured. He might die any day. This situation is favorable to us."
"Speed up and have His Majesty appoint a new crown prince."
As expected, someone proposed to change the crown prince at the morning court the next day.
"His Royal Highness Prince An is disabled and unfit to inherit the throne. His Royal Highness Prince Qin has been dispatched to his fiefdom and cannot return to the capital. Now, His Royal Highness the Crown Prince is in a coma and his life is in danger."
"I fear that Daxia will be in turmoil. I implore Your Majesty to appoint His Royal Highness Prince Kang as Crown Prince to stabilize the government."
"I believe that when His Royal Highness Prince Kang becomes the Crown Prince, Prince Dongping will voluntarily hand over his military power."
Opposition voices emerged again in the court.
"His Royal Highness Prince Kang has always been in poor health. It's unacceptable that the Crown Prince of a country is such a sickly person."
"I think we should wait until His Royal Highness wakes up before discussing this matter."
"Your Highness the Crown Prince is blessed with great fortune. Good fortune will always be with you. He will surely wake up and be safe."
"Yes, yes, the Crown Prince is the heir apparent to the throne. Changing the Crown Prince is not something to be taken lightly."
"Your Highness Prince Kang may have a good reputation, but he has no real achievements. He has always lived in seclusion and is plagued by illness. I'm afraid he is unable to shoulder the responsibilities of the Crown Prince."
Everyone was arguing endlessly.
Just then, a voice was heard in the hall.
"His Royal Highness Prince Kang has arrived—"
Everyone was stunned.
I saw the sickly Prince Kang in the past, now dressed in gorgeous clothes, with his hair tied up with a golden crown, his back straight, striding forward with his head held high. How high-spirited he was.
His eyes sparkled, his brows were bold and unrestrained, and he carried an inexplicable aura of a king.
How can you still be weak at all?
King Kang took in everyone's surprised expressions, with a barely perceptible smile on his lips.
He had been waiting for this day for a long time.
Finally, he could take off his disguise and appear before everyone with dignity and arrogance.
He is the eldest prince, the emperor's first son, and the future master of the world.
"Hiss, His Royal Highness Prince Kang, what is this..."
There were no fools present. After so many years in the court, how could they not see that His Royal Highness Prince Kang had been hiding his strength and lying dormant in the past.
I guess it’s for this day?
His Royal Highness Prince Kang deceived everyone.
Prince Kang: "Father, the Wei family is loyal to you, and Prince Dongping has no intention of disloyalty. I beg your Highness to understand this."
"The evidence accusing the Prince of Dongping may have been fabricated by someone with ulterior motives, hoping to sow discord between the Prince of Dongping and my father. My father, please do not be deceived by these treacherous ministers."
When talking about treacherous ministers and villains, King Kang glanced at He Zheng.
He Zheng looked calm and indifferent.
Prince Kang: "The situation is tense now, and I am willing to share your worries."
"If Your Majesty appoints me as Crown Prince, I will do my utmost to persuade the Prince of Dongping to hand over all military power to Your Majesty. Only then will the ruler and his subjects be united, the country will be stable, and the world will be at peace."
"Otherwise... I don't know whether the Prince of Dongping's troops will one day enter the imperial city."
His last sentence was basically saying that if he was not made the crown prince, the King of Dongping and the King of Longxi might send troops.
This is a threat to put pressure on Emperor Jinde.
"Cough, cough, cough..." Emperor Jinde started coughing, with a cold expression on his pale face.
He looked haggard, with his hands leaning on the armchair, squinting his eyes, looking at his son who kept pushing him.
For some reason, a chill ran down King Kang's back when he was looked at like this.
He quickly suppressed his anger, thinking that his father was terminally ill, and no matter how hard he tried, he was just a paper tiger and nothing to be feared.
Emperor Jinde said in a deep voice, "Replacing the crown prince is a serious matter. We will discuss this later. I will adjourn the court."
In the end, it did not go as King Kang wished.
Not only that, Emperor Jinde also ordered the Duke of Zhenguo to be under house arrest, not allowing him to step out of the Duke of Zhenguo's mansion, cutting off the Duke of Zhenguo's contact with the outside world.
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