allonlinenovel Chapter 157 The battle for the throne
Chapter 157 The battle for the throne
In the capital city of the Qingyun Empire, Haojing, which should have been bathed in warm sunshine during the day, a sudden gloom appeared, completely obscuring the sun. The entire capital city darkened instantly, making people feel suffocated and unable to breathe.
In the streets and alleys, people gathered in groups, whispering to each other, looking very flustered. All sorts of rumors and gossip spread like wildfire.
Looking again at the majestic and magnificent palace, the city's defense troops were lined up in neat rows, three layers deep, surrounding the palace like an iron barrel, completely impenetrable.
The gleaming swords and spears stood upright in dense rows, their cold light flashing so bright it made one's eyes dizzy. The armor clashed against each other with a loud clang, echoing in the silent air, like an ominous dirge.
The atmosphere in the old emperor's palace was so heavy it felt almost icy. A few rays of sunlight managed to squeeze in through the carved window frames, but they couldn't dispel the chilling gloom that filled the room.
The eldest prince, his face filled with sorrow and his eyes red-rimmed, knelt before the old emperor's sickbed, his forehead pressed tightly against the edge of the bed, his shoulders trembling slightly, muttering, "Father, you must hold on..."
Her voice was trembling and tearful, so heartbreaking to hear, as if she was about to collapse at any moment.
Behind him, three senior officials knelt in unison.
Prime Minister Zhang Zemin, dressed in a gleaming purple robe, knelt on both knees with his back ramrod straight. His expression was so cold and stern that it could drop ice crystals. He gripped the jade tablet tightly in his hand, so tightly that his knuckles turned white.
The Imperial Censor Tao Yuan also knelt respectfully, his face solemn, his hands placed obediently in front of him. Every now and then, he would slowly shake his head and sigh softly, his eyes filled with worry as thick as an unyielding dark cloud. Grand Commandant Wang Yu, clad in heavy armor, exuded a heroic air even while kneeling, his posture as upright as a pine tree.
The chief eunuch, holding the imperial edict, had just shouted, "By the mandate of Heaven, the Emperor decrees..." when suddenly, with a loud crash, the door to the imperial bedchamber was kicked open, followed by a series of hurried footsteps approaching from afar.
Everyone shuddered in fright and turned their heads to look.
The second prince, dressed in black robes, strode into the palace with a menacing air. The sword at his waist clanged with each step, sounding like a death knell, sending chills down one's spine.
His eyes were like knives. As he entered the room, he quickly scanned everyone. When he saw the eldest prince, the corners of his mouth curled up slightly, revealing a hint of mockery that was almost imperceptible to others. His eyes seemed to say, "You good-for-nothing, you think you can succeed to the throne when Father Emperor is on his deathbed?"
Then, he looked at the dying old emperor on his sickbed, a complex emotion flashing in his eyes, a mixture of anger and resentment, as if he were blaming the old emperor for being biased, when he himself was clearly the most outstanding son.
"Second Prince, how dare you bring a sword into the palace? Are you plotting a rebellion?" Prime Minister Zhang Zemin reacted the fastest. He stood up abruptly, took a step forward, his eyes wide with anger, pointed at the Second Prince, and shouted at the top of his lungs. His voice was hoarse with anger, and the veins on his neck bulged as if he wanted to devour someone.
The second prince acted as if he hadn't heard a thing, not even lifting his eyelids, and walked straight toward the old emperor, sneering as he went: "Hmph, utter disrespect?" In the time it took to speak, he had already reached the bedside, looking down at the eldest prince, his eyes like two sharp swords piercing straight into the eldest prince's heart.
The eldest prince, who was originally grieving, was provoked by the second prince and suddenly stood up, his eyes bloodshot, and he roared through gritted teeth: "You traitor! The emperor is seriously ill, what are you doing entering the palace with a sword? Guards, seize this traitor!"
The second prince was not afraid of him at all. He put his hand on the hilt of his sword and burst into loud laughter.
"Of course, it's to take your life!" Before the laughter had even faded, the Second Prince suddenly made his move. With a "thud," the sword in his hand plunged into the First Prince's abdomen. Then, he gritted his teeth, decisively pulled it out, and delivered another blow. His movements were so fast that no one could even blink.
"My dear brother, you're still so naive! Go to your death in peace, you can rest assured about your sister-in-law and the Qingyun Empire!"
Grand Commandant Wang Yu, seeing that things were going badly, shouted at the top of his lungs, "Stop!" and tried to rush over to stop them, but it was too late.
The eldest prince, Murong Jin, stared wide-eyed, his face filled with disbelief. Looking at his younger brother, he managed to squeeze out, "You... will die a horrible death!" Then, with a thud, he collapsed to the ground, blood instantly spreading across the floor.
The second prince went berserk at this moment, suddenly pulling the sword out of the first prince's abdomen, and the blood on the sword splattered all over his face with a "whoosh".
He looked like a demon, brandishing his blood-stained sword, pointing it at the three ministers, and said fiercely, "Today I have eliminated one of the treacherous officials of the Qingyun Empire! I hope you three ministers will recognize the situation and not make a mistake!" After saying that, he strode to the dragon bed with his blood-stained sword.
"Guards! Eunuch Wang, pick up your pen again and have the Emperor issue a new edict!"
The Second Prince's shout sent the palace into chaos. Books and ornaments clattered to the ground, and eunuchs and maids screamed in terror as they scattered and fled. Some hid in corners, trembling, while others collapsed to the ground, too frightened to even get up.
The old emperor lay on his sickbed, his breath weak, his eyelids trembling slightly. He pointed at the second prince with one finger, as if he wanted to say something, but he was too weak to speak.
The imperial edict that the chief eunuch had previously held had long since been kicked away somewhere, and no one cared about it anymore.
The palace was in complete chaos. The two brothers were killing each other, and the three high-ranking officials were filled with fear: the Qingyun Empire had fallen into an abyss amidst all this bloodshed, and its future was uncertain!
The head eunuch trembled and hesitated for a long time, not daring to write a single word. The second prince, enraged, kicked him far away. "Useless piece of trash!"
"Mr. Li, come in and write!" the Second Prince called out to the door. A moment later, a middle-aged, elegant scholar entered.
"How could it be him! Isn't he the Crown Prince's strategist? How come..." The three old ministers were shocked when they saw the newcomer. This Mr. Li was named Li Congxi, and everyone said that he was among the top three strategists in the world.