In the thirty-first year of the reign of Da Zhou, the usually healthy crown prince, Hua Li, suddenly fell ill.
At first, nobody paid it much attention.
After the physician-in-charge of the crown prince's health, Zhang Yuanpan, treated the crown prince, his condition improved. However, after autumn arrived, the crown prince's condition worsened, even to the point of falling into a coma on a certain day.
The emperor was furious, and the doctors from the royal hospital almost camped outside the East Palace. However, the crown prince's comatose state only extended day by day.
Was the crown prince's severe illness an accident or… a conspiracy?
Nobody dared to investigate further.
The emperor's five princes were all grown men.
The eldest prince, Prince Qin Hua Feng, 32 years old, was born to Consort Zhangde, the niece of the empress dowager. He had outstanding military achievements; his victory in the Northern Frontier War kept the area peaceful for ten years. He was conferred the title of General of the Valiant Cavalry. His princess was Zhang, Consort Zhangde's niece, and they have one son and three daughters.
The second prince, Crown Prince Hua Li, 30 years old, was the legitimate son of the empress. He currently participated in the governance of the Six Departments. His princess was Li, the daughter of the Left Minister; they had no children.
The third prince, Prince Zhao, Hua Yang, 29 years old, was born to Consort Li Xian, having good reputations among the literati through resources from his mother's family, which held three generations of power. His princess was Lady An, the daughter of Princess Changping, the emperor's elder sister, and they have two daughters.
The fourth prince, Prince Qi, Hua Huan, 27 years old, was born to Lady Wang, a palace maid. Although his maternal family was of low rank, his maternal grandfather had imperial merchant status, and through that, Prince Qi also established his own influence. His princess was Xiao, the daughter of the Minister of Rites, and they have two sons and a daughter.
The fifth prince, Prince Yan, Hua Ling, 23 years old, was born to Consort Ye, and due to the substantial age difference with his four brothers, he had a relatively distant relationship with them and was not well-regarded. He often roamed the streets and alleys of the capital, mingling with various people and animals, gaining fame as a playboy. His princess was Liu, the daughter of a vice censor, and they had no children.
Each of the princes had their own strengths, and they were all outstanding in their own ways. However, when the crown prince suddenly fell ill and couldn't get up, the other three princes saw it as an opportunity.
With a highly acclaimed older brother, a well-regarded third brother, and a competitive fourth brother, maintaining the position of second prince was not solely due to being the empress's legitimate son.
Unfortunately, nobody anticipated that the crown prince would be defeated by a "minor cold."
Whether it was conspiracy or accident, the entire capital awaited the crown prince's final breath with nervousness and unease. With the crown prince gravely ill, the previously bustling capital, due to the upcoming Ten Thousand Longevity Festival, suddenly became desolate. Previously held banquets and festivities disappeared as people waited anxiously. Some even chose to stay hidden, so as not to get embroiled in potential major troubles.
However, many influential families were active, especially the maternal families of the princes, except for the General's Residence of Prince Yan, Hua Ling. Instead of being shunned, the General's Residence became a target for networking from all quarters due to Prince Yan's notorious image.
Amidst an atmosphere of tension and uncertainty, even winter arrived later than usual.
While the crown prince counted his days, the emperor, on an ordinary day, could not help but cough in public.
Beneath the calm surface, turbulent undercurrents were stirring.
Amidst the upheaval, the General's Residence of Prince Yan continued as usual, seemingly untouched.
In Hua Ling's view, if the crown prince fell ill, showing concern by paying a quick visit and showing restraint from the usual lively activities would be giving the crown prince enough face. As for anything else, he would not bother with any unnecessary tasks.
As an untouchable playboy of a powerful family, Hua Ling always held grudges and has mostly retaliated against those who once bullied him.
As for the crown prince, it's not that he couldn't retaliate, but he shouldn't.
Due to several circumstances between the crown prince and him, along with the entanglement between his mother and the empress, Hua Ling always maintained a neutral relationship with the crown prince. This neutral relationship was evident in Hua Ling's way of visiting the crown prince.
When he said he would pay a visit, he meant it literally with just a glance.
After visiting the East Palace, Hua Ling decided to maintain a low profile for a while and went fishing with his princess, Consort Liu, at another manor on a beautiful, calm day.
Hua Ling never expected that his second brother would be defeated by a minor cold. Because the empress and the emperor jointly blocked the news, Hua Ling underestimated the severity of his brother's illness. When he saw him initially, his second brother still looked well, so Hua Ling didn't take it seriously. He never anticipated that the day after he visited with Consort Liu, his bedridden second brother would breathe his last.
Upon learning of the crown prince's passing, the emperor, grieving the loss of his beloved son, was too overwhelmed to catch his breath and fainted on the spot.
The queen who lost her son had no heart to manage the harem. She was immersed in the emotion of "losing her beloved son," and even the emperor fainted from the shock of such a major event, unable to respond in time.
- A golden opportunity.
The prepared Crown Prince, the King of Qin, and the Third Prince, the King of Zhao, took advantage of the chaos and led their troops into the palace.
They encountered no resistance along the way, but a dispute arose between the two over who should enter the Qianqing Palace first. Just then, the Fourth Prince, the King of Qi, who had gathered a group of troops under the pretext of rescuing the emperor, caught up with them.
The three factions gathered, leading to a chaotic situation.
During the melee, the King of Qi lost an arm to the King of Zhao, while the King of Zhao was beheaded and dismembered by the King of Qin.
After dealing with the King of Zhao, before the King of Qin could make a move on the King of Qi, the King of Qi quickly showed his allegiance and expressed willingness to protect his remaining followers and help the King of Qin ascend to the throne.
"Excellent! Excellent! Very good!" the King of Qin laughed three times. "My brothers do indeed understand the situation. They truly live up to being the sons of the beautiful queen." Putting down the knife he had prepared to strike the King of Qi, the King of Qin instead patted his brother's shoulder with a hand stained with blood, leaving clear red marks on the latter's white robe.
The King of Qi staggered, "..."
Looking at the head of the dead King of Zhao near the King of Qin's feet, the King of Qi slowly lowered his eyes, suppressing the last remnants of his resentment, and followed his brother behind to show his submission.
After the "small disturbance," the satisfied King of Qin, accompanied by the King of Qi and the long sword that had just struck down the King of Zhao, stepped into the Qianqing Palace.
However, upon their arrival, they were greeted by the composed figure of the emperor, sitting on the dragon throne in the hall, along with the armed imperial guards.
"Father? You...?" The King of Qin had not reacted yet, or rather, he did not want to.
Watching the agitated King of Qin, the emperor closed his eyes, concealing the complex emotions swirling within himself. When he opened his eyes, they showed only the cold and ruthless gaze befitting an emperor. "Eldest, you have disappointed me."
At the same time, the vice general Li Yu beside the King of Qin suddenly drew his sword and held it against the unsuspecting King of Qin's neck.
"Li Yu?!" The loyal Li Yu, holding the sword with steady hands, showed no sign of shaking. "Your Highness, I apologize for my offense." With an unchanged expression, he lowered his eyes, avoiding the King of Qin's gaze. "I have received benefits from serving you and am loyal to you."
"You?!" Betrayed by his vice general, the King of Qin finally realized what was happening—an emperor indeed, using even the untimely death of the crown prince for his own advantage.
Pressured by the crown prince for years, he became too impatient when he finally got the chance.
Without even a glance at the now-aware King of Qin, the emperor, who did not show any sign of illness, sat upright on the dragon throne. He looked at the King of Qi with a cool gaze devoid of any emotion, "Fourth, I did not expect to see you here."
The emperor had anticipated everything, but he did not anticipate human nature, nor did he expect the final result to be so tragic.
"Father! I... I..." The once elusive Fourth Prince, the King of Qi, revealed his thoughts at the final moment and was unable to explain himself. He directly knelt down, not daring to lift his head or utter a word of plea.
"I have committed a crime, father."
"Enough, since you have done it, you will pay the price you should." Closing his eyes and suppressing all emotions, the emperor gestured for the King of Qin and the King of Qi to be taken away, waiting for their punishment.
Once everything settled, sitting in the empty hall, despite the presence of a steward to keep him company, the emperor suddenly felt the loneliness of being "alone in the family."
Being alone and without assistance, alone in the family.
Ha.
In one night, the emperor lost four sons.
As for Huo Ling, who knew nothing about the turmoil in the capital, he returned to the city joyfully after a day of fishing, having been chosen as the emperor's next choice. He received the edict to become the crown prince and was commanded to move into the Eastern Palace on a chosen day.
Huo Ling: I was just fishing, how did I end up becoming the crown prince?!!!
It was like a pie falling from the sky and smashing Huo Ling, leaving him stunned.
Holding the scorching imperial edict, Huo Ling felt like he was facing a serious crisis. He hurried into the palace.
As Huo Ling had already been appointed as the crown prince, and with the palace having just gone through a major change, he was not hindered as he entered the Qianqing Palace.
Upon entering the hall, completely unaware of the kneeling King of Qi being scolded by his father, the emperor, when the emperor turned to look in his direction, Huo Ling's eyes immediately reddened.
"Father!"
Experiencing such a strong presence for the first time in front of the emperor, Huo Ling gathered his courage and rushed to embrace his father.
So fast that even the steward Ande beside him did not react, Huo Ling hugged the emperor's legs.
"Father, I'm innocent!"
Emperor: "Hm?"
King of Qi: "...?"
Steward Ande: "...???"
Huo Ling: ... As soon as he spoke, he realized he had said the wrong thing. However, his expression remained unchanged. He earnestly pleaded with his father, "Father, considering that in all these years, I haven't caused you much trouble, and you haven't noticed my existence much, please, pity me and revoke the decree!"
"I beg you, father!"
The emperor: "Hm? What do you want to tell me?"
"Father, I don't want to be the crown prince!"
Author's Note: This story is part of a writing event. Please don't turn against me with nutrients for being playful with the emperor! [Love you all (づ￣ 3￣)づ]
Important things need to be said three times - this text is fictional! Fictional! Fictional!
This is the first time I've written this type of story, so please forgive me if I make any mistakes.
Of course, only the author's illogicalities are considered bugs (serious tone).
This chapter's lucky number is 01, meaning that if the end digits of Little Angel's two-minute comments in this chapter are 01, a red packet can be obtained.
After a reminder from Little Angel, the author finally realized his own stupidity. There should not be a King of Yan in the Great Yan Dynasty. When I was thinking of the name [the author who is bad at naming can't take the hurt QAQ], I did it randomly. But after reading through my story again, I realized that changing the King of Yan to the King of Zhou would make the pseudo more authentic. So here I want to explain that the Great Yan Dynasty is changed to the Great Zhou Dynasty, and Huo Ling is still the King of Yan.
As for some of the following chapters, if there is a chance, I will change the Great Yan Dynasty to the Great Zhou Dynasty.
I apologize deeply for any inconvenience caused.