Chapter 324 King Murder
The dead of night is usually the quietest time, but now it's noisy and chaotic.
The activity inside and outside the palace was different.
The commotion outside the palace was due to a suspected fire at the imperial tomb, drawing people from all sides. Inside the palace, however, a fierce battle was taking place.
Hearing the sounds of clashing weapons, the other concubines, like Consort Shu, stayed by their children's side if they had young children, while those without children hid themselves and waited timidly for dawn.
"Your Majesty, someone is knocking on the door!" A palace maid rushed into the room in a panic to report.
Consort Shu's face turned pale.
Why would you knock on her door?
Hearing the faint sounds of fighting, she was terrified, but deep down she held onto the hope that everything might be alright.
Even if there was a palace coup, wasn't that the new emperor's business? What did it have to do with them, mother and son?
She was already a concubine, and her son was only ten years old. What were these treacherous people doing here? They weren't going to slaughter all the princes and princesses, were they?
How many men does the enemy have to attack the palace and seize the new emperor, while also sending men to capture the other princes?
If there were enough troops to do these things, how could they be hidden away on ordinary days?
Consort Shu was not a dull person; she simply felt that this was very illogical.
"Goro, wait for me inside."
Consort Shu gave her son a few words of advice, then walked out with a pale face.
The knocking on the door grew louder and louder, like blows to one's heart.
There was no response for a long time. The knocking stopped and a deep voice came: "Please open the door, Consort Shu. We will not harm the Fifth Prince. We are here to invite the Fifth Prince."
"Who...who are you?" Consort Shu tried her best to suppress her fear, but her voice still trembled.
"The Dowager Consort Shu will inform you once she opens the door."
"I—" Consort Shu gritted her teeth, "What if I don't open it?"
There was a moment of silence outside the door, then the voice turned cold: "Then we will have no choice but to break down the door and apologize to Consort Shu and the Fifth Prince."
Consort Shu pursed her lips and remained silent.
With a loud crash, a huge impact resounded, and the courtyard gate shook violently. Although palace servants were blocking the way from inside, the gate was on the verge of collapse as the impact intensified.
Finally, after an impact, the door broke.
The palace servants who were blocking the door were thrown to the ground, revealing the true face of the person who had rammed the door.
The one leading the group was a familiar face. Consort Shu's pupils dilated, and she looked incredulous: "The Prince of Fu's Heir?"
Although the empresses and concubines lived deep within the palace, they still frequently met with members of the imperial family, such as the heir apparent of the Prince of Fu, at some palace banquets.
"Your Highness, Consort Shu." The Prince of Fu bowed respectfully. "Your nephew is hereby ordered to invite the Fifth Prince to move to the main hall."
"By imperial decree? What imperial decree?" Consort Shu subconsciously stepped back.
Seeing the blood-stained armor of the Prince of Fu before her eyes, she completely disbelieved his words.
The Prince of Fu bowed and said, "I am acting on the late Emperor's edict."
"What?" Consort Shu was so shocked that she swayed and blurted out, "How could there be the late emperor's edict?"
The Prince of Fu gave Consort Shu a deep look: "Of course."
Consort Shu immediately understood.
Prince Fu has already forced the emperor to abdicate and rebelled, so the late emperor's edict is obviously fake!
But why force her Goro to get involved in this mess?
Fear, despair... all sorts of emotions weighed heavily on Consort Shu, making it hard for her to breathe, but thinking of her son, she dared not collapse.
She bit her tongue hard: "It's late at night. Even if there's something to announce, it's not appropriate to do it now. Please ask Prince Fu to come at dawn."
The Prince of Fu smiled, his tone carrying a warning: "If Consort Shu disobeys the imperial decree, even if you are the Fifth Prince's mother, I, your nephew, will have no choice but to offend you."
In situations where not a moment can be wasted, all politeness and courtesy must take a backseat.
As soon as the Prince of Fu raised his hand, two guards immediately approached Consort Shu.
"I'll go with you, but please don't hurt my mother."
The Fifth Prince ran over and stood in front of Consort Shu.
Consort Shu, who had been holding back her tears, suddenly burst forth: "Fifth Prince, who let you out!"
The Fifth Prince looked up and stared straight at his cousin, whom he remembered as kind and friendly: "Prince Fu, please don't hurt my mother."
The Prince of Fu smiled warmly: "Fifth Prince, rest assured, as long as you obey the imperial edict, we will treat Consort Shu with utmost respect."
The Fifth Prince nodded vigorously: "Okay."
The Prince of Fu smiled and took the Fifth Prince's hand.
"Wulang!" Consort Shu cried out in anguish, trying to catch up.
The Prince of Fu's son swept his cold gaze over her: "The Dowager Consort Shu should also think about the Fifth Prince."
Consort Shu stopped in her tracks, watching helplessly as the Fifth Prince was pulled away by the Prince of Fu's heir and disappeared into the darkness. She staggered and fell to the ground.
A sudden, fierce wind rushed in from outside the courtyard gate, chilling her to the bone, as if she had fallen into an ice cave.
Under the cover of night, the most agile squad of imperial guards moved swiftly and with a clear objective, heading straight for the new emperor's bedchamber.
The new emperor was stopped at the entrance to his bedchamber.
"Yang Zhen, you—" The blood-dripping blade was extended in front of the new emperor, but the rest of the words were cut off.
Yang Zhen, the deputy commander of the palace guards, holding a knife, approached step by step. The new emperor, forced by the knife, retreated step by step until he returned to the palace.
Yan Rong, the eunuch who replaced Xue Quan, was a trusted advisor of the new emperor when he was still the crown prince. He angrily questioned, "Yang Zhen, how dare you rebel against your superiors!"
Yang Zhen glanced at him disdainfully: "What right do you, a mere eunuch, have to utter a word here? One more word and I'll send you to your death."
"you--"
"Yan Rong, step down."
"Your Majesty—" Yan Rong, his face pale, had no choice but to step aside.
It was already late at night, and there weren't many palace servants attending to the bedchamber; they had all been brought under control.
"Yang Zhen, do you know the consequences of treason?" the new emperor asked angrily.
"Treason?" Yang Zhen laughed. "I am utterly loyal to the late emperor and have no disloyal intentions whatsoever."
"Then what are you doing?"
"I am merely acting on imperial orders."
"By imperial decree? By what decree?" The new emperor asked the same question as Consort Shu.
"The late emperor's edict." Prince Fu walked in from behind Yang Zhen, and seeing the new emperor's sudden change in expression, he felt a great sense of satisfaction.
The fear and anxiety that had kept him up at night since ascending the throne before the Crown Prince's coffin were finally relieved at this moment.
"Where is the imperial edict?" the new emperor asked.
Prince Fu pulled an imperial edict from his sleeve and held it in his hand: "This is the late emperor's last edict, which I entrust to him for safekeeping. Once the late emperor passes away, the Fifth Prince will succeed to the throne."
When he, as a regent, cooperated with Zhu Xiang, who was in charge of all government affairs, it was extremely easy for him to produce a few blank imperial edicts with the seal already affixed.
One of the dishes was used on the day of the Immortal Banquet, but unfortunately, it failed to deceive the Crown Prince into committing suicide, which led to his passive situation later on.
Fortunately, this imperial edict does not need to deceive the short-lived new emperor; it will be enough to silence the officials afterward.
The new emperor's gaze fell on the imperial edict in Prince Fu's hand, and he said coldly, "Another forged edict. I wasn't fooled at the Immortal Banquet, do you think I'll be fooled today?"
"What if I don't fall for it?" Prince Fu revealed a confident smile and stroked his beard.
Yang Zhen, who was standing nearby, saw this pre-arranged action, raised his long sword without saying a word, and slashed at the new emperor.
Prince Fu was filled with delight.
Forcing someone to step down, taking things slowly, may seem like a good plan, but it's actually riskier. There's no need to say too much; getting rid of the person first is the most important thing.
(End of this chapter)
Continue read on readnovelmtl.com
