Chapter 1 Great Court Assembly

Great court assembly,

Inside the main hall,

At this moment,

Silence reigned.

Those who could stand beneath these golden tiles were the most intelligent people in Great Yan, and the vast majority of them had already figured out the answer.

After all,

At this critical juncture,

If a crow flying outside dropped a single feather, you'd subconsciously consider whether it was related to the succession struggle.

The scope of the answer had already been narrowed down, with only two princes in the hall. Even by reverse-engineering a few answers, one could quickly deduce the true one.

Four words,

Appeared in the hearts of many ministers:

The Crown Prince's moral failing.

In other circumstances, this wouldn't be a particularly serious offense.

The Empress's passing called for national mourning, that was true.

But most of the mourning was confined to officialdom families, who needed to pay close attention. As for the common people, a token gesture would suffice, and no one would hold it against them.

Furthermore, after the Empress's passing, the Yan Emperor had issued an edict, as there seemed to be renewed warfare brewing in Jin and Chu, to shorten the mourning period as much as possible to avoid disrupting the court's operations.

Even among officialdom families, those with muddled heads who hired opera troupes, took concubines, or engaged in other festive activities during the short mourning period would, at most, be fined, reprimanded, or demoted.

The Yan people generally took a more lenient view of etiquette than the strict ways of Qian and Chu.

But the problem was,

The Empress was the Crown Prince's birth mother,

And the Crown Prince was the heir apparent of the nation!

A moral failing in others would, at most, result in a reprimand, unless those above truly wanted to eliminate you and you had powerful enemies at court. In most cases, it would only be a flesh wound.

But the Crown Prince was different.

The ministers of Yan didn't have the same moral fastidiousness as the ministers of Qian; otherwise, they wouldn't have tolerated the existence of the Jingnan King.

And the Jingnan King was different from the Crown Prince. Everyone assumed that the Jingnan King would have a difficult end, and judging from his actions, he didn't seem to intend to have a good one.

Most importantly, this war god had won every battle and was of great use to the country. But even Tian Wujing himself had once said, if he were to rebel, how many in the court would be willing to follow him?

At most, he would lead a bunch of soldiers and completely shatter the order of Great Yan.

Because,

The Yan people,

Cared about face!

To sleep with a woman during the great mourning period and get her pregnant was a moral failing. If such a person were to ascend the throne, wouldn't one feel awkward kneeling before him?

If His Majesty only had one son, then so be it. For the sake of Great Yan's empire, everyone would grit their teeth and accept it.

But His Majesty had more than one son,

One as excellent as the Crown Prince, perhaps even more so, was right before them.

Everyone knew that the person who revealed this scandal in the succession struggle must be the Sixth Prince standing in the left ranks.

Everyone couldn't help but sigh inwardly,

The Sixth Prince's move,

Was truly ruthless,

A fatal blow!

As for whether anyone felt that such methods were too focused on power struggles, most people didn't think it was a big deal.

As long as the Crown Prince's moral failing was confirmed,

Such a major moral stain would be enough to make most courtiers unwilling to stand with him.

If the Sixth Prince's methods were sinister, so be it. Everyone was already accustomed to working under the Yan Emperor's rule; it would simply mean another generation of Yan Emperor.

After all, wasn't that what they were used to?

On the other hand, the core members of the Crown Prince's faction were extremely anxious.

They had been racking their brains for days, trying to plug loopholes and calculate where the Sixth Prince's faction would launch their attack, doing their best to make their defenses impenetrable.

But who knew,

That in the end, it was the Crown Prince himself who couldn't control his own belt!

The members of the Crown Prince's faction hated one thing even more, a feeling of disappointment that turned into anger.

Even if you couldn't control yourself, even if you really got that woman pregnant,

How could you let that woman leave?

Why not do things cleanly and eliminate the threat completely?

The grand cause was right before them,

The dragon throne was right before them,

How could you be so muddle-headed?

Because the Crown Prince was benevolent, so many officials chose to openly support him, not entirely for their own personal gain, but because, in their view, after the Yan Emperor, a great emperor throughout the ages, Great Yan should truly be allowed to rest and recuperate.

But now,

They hoped more than ever that the Crown Prince could have been ruthless and heartless!

A mere woman,

A mere child,

Compared to this golden palace,

What did they amount to?

The Crown Prince's benevolence towards women, where did it leave those of us who were determined followers?

Everyone, what we've wagered on you is not just our future, but even our lives!

And the people of the Sixth Prince's faction,

Were initially shocked,

Then more shocked,

And finally, at this moment,

Were ecstatic!

The core members of the Sixth Prince's faction knew that a major move was about to take place. It was obvious, and the wind had already shifted.

But no one knew exactly how it would be fought or where the attack would be launched. They simply assumed that the main point of attack wasn't here, and that before such an offensive was launched, it would be like deploying troops, requiring absolute secrecy.

Therefore, they didn't know, but they weren't flustered, just waiting for the offensive to begin before joining in.

But they really never expected that,

Their own Sixth Prince would use such a deadly move!

This deadly move directly bypassed all of the East Palace's defenses, making it impossible for the East Palace to abandon pieces to protect the general as it had done before.

Like a divine archer,

An arrow straight to the root of the East Palace!

All the ministers of the Sixth Prince's faction,

And those who hadn't been with them before but were now automatically siding with the Sixth Prince,

Couldn't help but cheer in their hearts for the Sixth Prince's stroke of genius!

From a purely strategic point of view, it was a desperate measure!

But precisely because it was so high-end, so direct, and so effective,

The ministers of the Sixth Prince's faction, who had been preparing to cooperate in the battle today, were unable to find a point of attack.

Look,

The Crown Prince's expression had changed. The Crown Prince was panicking, a clear sign that his mind had been shaken, unable to maintain even the most basic composure.

Look,

Their own Sixth Prince stood there with a calm demeanor, clearly confident of victory.

But the problem was,

This concerned the imperial bloodline,

At this juncture,

Although everyone was somewhat aware of what was happening, they couldn't stand up and attack.

Because,

They had to see His Majesty's intentions.

Factional strife, which dynasty hadn't had it since ancient times?

But while you fight, everyone must still agree on a path, a boundary.

Did you not want the imperial family's face?

This was a major scandal. Of course, the Crown Prince would be deposed because of it, but it couldn't be used as the crime, otherwise, how would history record it? How would future generations view the Ji imperial family of Great Yan?

His Majesty had just returned to the palace, and such a scandal had appeared in the great court assembly. The killing power was too great. Standing up to charge at this moment would shatter oneself as well.

It wasn't terrible to shatter oneself, but it could very likely implicate the Sixth Prince as well.

A prince who disregarded the imperial family's face for the sake of the throne, how could he truly sit in that position?

Therefore,

The Crown Prince's faction had nothing to say,

The Sixth Prince's faction had a bellyful of words but dared not speak,

The hall fell into a strange silence for a time.

However, everyone knew that this silence wouldn't last long, because things would continue to develop.

What everyone was waiting for was its development.

To see the Yan Emperor's intentions,

Whether he would wave his hand and cover up this scandal;

And to see the intentions of the Grand Clan Elder Ji Changwang,

Whether he would firmly continue to speak, poisoning this arrow and completely condemning the Crown Prince!

Although officials liked to say, "How can one block the mouths of the world?"

But in reality,

The owners of the mouths were afraid of death.

Once the Yan Emperor exerted pressure,

The Grand Clan Elder wouldn't be able to withstand the pressure, and he would change his tune:

"Oh, after investigation, this is the bloodline left outside by the First Prince, Fourth Prince, or Fifth Prince."

Then the Yan Emperor would punish these princes, and that would be that.

After all, although the Empress was the legal mother of all the princes, she wasn't their birth mother. A bit of absurdity could be accepted, history could accept it, and everyone could accept it.

In any case, it was already clear whose it was and who did it. The harm to the Crown Prince had already manifested.

After all, the Grand Clan Elder was surnamed Ji, the head of the Ji clan. It was unlikely that he would completely strip away the Ji family's face in this golden hall, in front of everyone.

What was the point?

"Oh, Grand Clan Elder, you may speak plainly. Which prince dared to commit such a senseless, beastly act?"

The Yan Emperor spoke.

Senseless, beastly.

Meaning that His Majesty was already angry.

When the elders at home were angry, you had to follow their wishes and coax them to calm down. Even deceiving them was a manifestation of filial piety.

If the monarch-father was angry, then it was even more natural to give him a way out.

Everyone understood that this was His Majesty reaching out, meaning that he wanted to cover up this situation, this matter, in a corner.

Factional strife,

Was something to be fought for.

His Majesty's attitude had always been clear; otherwise, he wouldn't have given the Sixth Prince the opportunity to rise. In the past, the Sixth Prince didn't know where he had been demoted to. It was His Majesty who had summoned him back with an edict and put him in charge of the Ministry of Revenue.

After that, it was out of control. The Sixth Prince's faction continued to grow, suffocating the East Palace.

But it was still His Majesty's edict that could completely knock the Sixth Prince back into the dust.

But His Majesty didn't. You could say that it was for the sake of war, for the sake of money and supplies, that he had done so, but now that the war was over, for the sake of the country, His Majesty shouldn't hesitate.

Therefore, this should be for balance, to balance the princes' struggles, and perhaps also to balance the devolution of imperial power.

Everyone had floated and sunk in the officialdom and understood that this was the factional struggle that His Majesty had tacitly approved.

His Majesty didn't want you to be harmonious, didn't want his subjects to be as close as a family.

For example,

If one day the Sixth Prince suddenly ran to the East Palace and swore allegiance to the Crown Prince, that would probably be the situation that His Majesty would least like to see.

Now, His Majesty had approved this move, and next, he had to control the impact.

However,

Under such obvious hints,

The Grand Clan Elder Ji Changwang knelt down,

And said in a deep voice:

"This subject, dares not speak!"

In an instant,

The hall was filled with many sounds of gasping.

Of course, it was impossible to actually make too much noise. It meant that many ministers leaned back slightly, with shocked expressions on their faces.

Even Marquis Zheng, who was standing in the widest area,

Was stunned for a moment.

Hmm?

Was he going to confront head-on?

At this time, shouldn't he take the opportunity to stop?

Confronting head-on would shatter even himself!

Ji Laoliu was standing opposite Zheng Fan,

At this moment,

He suddenly felt that Ji Laoliu was somewhat unfamiliar.

Could it be that,

Ji Chengjue, who had always been like himself, liked to develop secretly, knew that this was the final battle, so he directly chose to stage... a do-or-die situation?

Ji Laoliu noticed the gaze that Marquis Zheng, who was standing opposite him, was sending over,

However,

Just like Zheng Fan's gaze to him outside the city gate a few days ago,

Ji Laoliu's gaze happened to shift to the other side, perfectly avoiding it.

And the atmosphere in the hall was gradually fermenting, a silent fermentation.

To attack political enemies, one had to make a move, one had to attack, that was right;

But not stopping when the wind was right, but directly playing a trick of retreating to advance, was this to block all retreats and room for maneuver!

The Grand Clan Elder's move, and the move had been made, his role had been reflected.

Next,

The choice he should make was:

"After investigation, this is a certain prince's."

Then,

Regardless of whether it was the eldest, the fourth, or the fifth, they would all be dragged out and beaten, and take this inexplicable blame.

This matter would be settled like this.

The courtiers' hearts were as clear as mirrors, and His Majesty's heart was as clear as mirrors. Next, how to punish the Crown Prince, and to what extent, would depend on the real contest of strength between the two sides.

For example, the Sixth Prince's faction would then use a flurry of memorials to fiercely criticize the Crown Prince's mistakes when he was supervising the country. It might be possible to pick out some mistakes. After all, how could it be possible to be perfect when governing such a large country?

Even if the Crown Prince wasn't wrong, wouldn't the people of the East Palace be wrong? Wouldn't the people of the Crown Prince's faction be wrong?

Impossible.

These mistakes had only been superficial in the past, but next, the intention would be elsewhere. In any case, it was to criticize, to beat.

The criticism was of other things, but the purpose was to follow the "Crown Prince's moral failing" wound and tear it wildly, and ultimately pull the Crown Prince down, and change the position of the East Palace!

This was the correct operation, this was the political game.

And Ji Changwang's sentence:

"This subject dares not speak."

Meaning that he didn't want to send this blame to just anyone.

He wanted to speak out,

He wanted to speak out the truth that he had investigated.

To dare to say this, the evidence must be detailed to the point of being beyond compare, and the identity of the woman, and even the identity of that young girl, would certainly be ironclad evidence!

The Grand Clan Elder,

Was going to see blood directly in the court!

Many officials of the Sixth Prince's faction wanted to rush out at this time, cover the Grand Clan Elder's mouth, and force him to change his tune.

Teammate,

Comrade,

You've done enough, and you've done well enough. If you do it again, it'll be too much, it'll be too much!

And the Crown Prince's face,

Showed a desolate look,

His body was unstable,

And he actually took two steps back, Fortunately, he reached out and supported the railing, so he was able to steady himself.

His gaze fell on the Grand Clan Elder, and then, it fell on the Sixth Brother who was standing among the courtiers, somewhat, despairing.

Because the Crown Prince's position was standing on a platform above all others, so his every move was bound to be seen by the courtiers standing below.

Those who could get by in the court were all shrewd people, and they were bound to be able to read people's expressions. The Crown Prince's expression was not only being attacked, but also a kind of heartbreaking betrayal by his closest person.

Yes,

To be able to contact the Crown Prince during that time, and even have that kind of thing happen, must be an extremely close and trusted woman by his side, right?

To be able to not force her to take a contraceptive soup after that incident, and even not be directly killed to eliminate this hidden danger, must be because he really couldn't bear to, right?

Knowing that once this incident was exposed, it would shatter him to pieces, but still not doing so, obviously, that woman held an absolutely unusual position in the Crown Prince's heart!

But,

Crown Prince, you're confused.

The Yan Emperor's gaze slowly swept down,

He sat on the dragon chair in the golden hall, the highest position, and everything below was naturally taken into his eyes. The Crown Prince, who was closest to him, standing on the platform in front of him, his performance could naturally be seen more clearly.

Finally,

The Yan Emperor spoke:

"Speak out loudly, I, will pardon you!"

There was no dismissal of the court,

Nor was the matter forcibly interrupted with imperial family affairs.

Although, it had a bit of an ostrich-like meaning, but His Majesty, had this authority.

But,

He was, after all, a proud emperor,

He was more accustomed to facing things directly than to avoiding them, even, on this matter.

Marquis Zheng pursed his lips,

He was paying attention to the atmosphere at this time, and at the same time, he was thinking about the next development.

Ji Laoliu had told him to see how he would defeat his brothers.

Hmm,

Marquis Zheng had seen it,

It was truly wonderful,

Wonderful to the point of being miraculous.

But he had to consider one thing, that was, such a direct confrontation, in order to destroy the East Palace as much as possible, and thus completely anger the Yan Emperor, would Ji Laoliu have a good ending?

Could a prince who didn't know how to take the overall situation into account be recognized by the Yan Emperor, and have power handed over to him at this time?

The more Marquis Zheng thought about it, the more he felt it was a bit uncertain,

The Yan Emperor was proud,

And proud people often did things that were not in line with common sense, or rather, were not in line with the interests involved.

You, Ji Chengjue, dared to humiliate the imperial family's face like this, where was there any posture or awareness of being the head of the family?

If that was the case,

I'll just change a son to inherit the family business,

Could it be that you were sure that once the Crown Prince fell, I would have to choose you?

Marquis Zheng bit his lip, and couldn't help but feel a little worried in his heart, but at the same time, he also understood a little, because Su Riyan didn't know why the Yan Emperor was radiant today, but yesterday he had personally seen the Yan Emperor taking medicine. There must be something wrong with the abnormality, so, Ji Laoliu was because he thought that the Yan Emperor didn't have long to live, so he wanted to solve the problem once and for all to avoid long nights and many dreams?

Considering it this way, it was also right.

Even if he wanted to be calm, and wanted to plan for the long term, he had to see if he was given this time, otherwise, as long as the Yan Emperor died, and the Crown Prince was criticized by thousands of people, as long as he hadn't been expressly deposed from the position of Crown Prince,

Then,

He could still ascend the throne as a matter of course!

Ji Laoliu, might not dare to wait, and didn't dare to gamble.

"Thank you, Your Majesty."

Ji Changwang first thanked him,

Then his gaze,

Looked at the Crown Prince, who was standing on the platform, looking distraught,

And said:

"This subject has investigated the woman's identity and the details. As the Ji family's Clan Elder, it is my duty to point out, today, that the person who has committed this immoral act is precisely..."

At this time,

Ji Chengjue, who had been standing among the courtiers,

Walked out of the ranks,

Knelt down,

Forcibly interrupted the Grand Clan Elder's words,

His forehead against the golden hall's floor tiles,

And said loudly:

"It is precisely this son!"

——————

I write slowly because there are many places to think and consider, I want to write more interesting plots, so, it is bound to write not fast.

I hope everyone has more patience, more expectations, we will try our best to not be so slow but also be able to rush out fine work.

Then the original sixth place in the monthly ticket list, was burst to the seventh again, ask for monthly ticket support, hug everyone!