With legs weak, the sickly stable boy became a mad regent.

Outside the sleeping quarters, the people of the Eastern Palace had begun to clear away the corpses, and the surviving Imperial Guards were disarmed and made to kneel on both sides of the palace road.

The emperor didn't look at the abdication edict on the ground; he stared at the crown prince, as if seeing his son for the first time truly for the first time.

"You think that by controlling my bedchamber, you can become emperor?"

"There are still imperial guards in the city, and troops in various places."

"As long as I live, they will not recognize you."

The prince's fingers tightened around his sword.

"Therefore, I have no intention of killing you, Father. As long as you are willing to affix your seal to the edict, you can still be the Retired Emperor after I ascend the throne."

"What if I refuse?"

The crown prince did not answer, but a woman's voice came from outside the bedchamber.

"His Majesty will agree."

The Empress entered, supported by her maids. She was dressed in her ceremonial robes, and her phoenix hairpins were neatly arranged, indicating that she had been preparing for some time.

When the emperor saw her, the last glimmer of hope in his eyes vanished completely. "You were involved too?"

"Your Majesty, I only have this one son." The Empress stood beside the Crown Prince, looking at the Emperor on the dragon bed. "Since Your Majesty cannot tolerate him, I can only fight for his survival."

"When did I ever say I wanted to depose the Crown Prince?"

The Empress paused for a moment.

The Crown Prince immediately took out the secret letter, which was half burned, from his sleeve. "Father, you don't need to lie to me anymore. Tomorrow you must summon the Imperial Clan Court to reconsider the position of Crown Prince."

Upon seeing the remaining writing, the emperor's expression suddenly changed. "I have never written such a secret edict!"

The prince stopped moving.

The Empress also looked sharply at the paper. "This letter was delivered by someone from the Imperial Household Department."

"I summoned the Imperial Clan Court tonight to discuss matters concerning the northern border," the Emperor said, his anger turning into a cruel laugh. "As for the Sixth Prince, I merely wish him to go to the ancestral temple to pray for blessings on my behalf!"

The bedchamber suddenly fell silent.

The prince gripped the letter, his knuckles tightening little by little.

The letter is fake.

Someone knows what he fears most and knows how to drive him to a dead end.

But now the palace gates are stained with blood, and the chief eunuch has died by his sword. Even if he knows it's a trap, he has no way out.

"Whether it's true or false is no longer important." The Empress was the first to regain her composure. She looked at the Emperor, her eyes unwavering. "As long as Your Majesty writes the abdication edict, everything tonight will still be under the protection of the Crown Prince."

"Impossible!" The emperor kicked away the silk on the ground. "Even if I die, I will not hand over the throne to a traitorous beast!"

The last trace of hesitation in the prince's eyes vanished completely.

He held the sword to the emperor's neck, the sharp blade cutting through the skin and drawing blood. "Then I can only ask Father to think it through slowly."

The crown prince turned his head.

"Seal off the palace. No one is to enter or leave without my order."

"Yes!" the people outside the hall answered in unison.

The heavy palace gates closed again.

The emperor was trapped in his own bedchamber, and only now did he remember the person he had personally sent to the northern border.

"Someone come here!!"

The emperor looked at the few remaining eunuchs and said, "Find a way to send a message out, to summon Prince Zhao back to rescue me!"

The crown prince seemed to have heard a joke.

"Father, have you forgotten? Xiao Yunzhao only led his troops out of the city this morning. By the time he received the news and rushed back, the matter between you and me would have already been settled."

The emperor's face turned ashen. He had gone to great lengths to strip Shen Ce and Qiu Lie of their military power, yet he worried that Xiao Yunzhao's presence in the capital would threaten him.

Therefore, even knowing that the war in the northern border was suspicious, they still sent away the only person who could suppress the Crown Prince.

Now the crown prince has truly rebelled. He has no one he can rely on.

Looking at the emperor's expression, the crown prince finally felt a sense of satisfaction.

"Does Father regret it now?"

"Unfortunately, it's too late."

Inside the Cining Palace, the same three alarm bells could be heard.

The palace servants were in a panic.

The Empress Dowager simply sat before the bronze mirror, letting her maidservant put a gold hairpin on her head.

"What's the panic?"

She looked at herself in the mirror and said calmly, "It's just that the Crown Prince couldn't hold back and made his move beforehand."

"Your Majesty, should we send someone to rescue you?"

"No rush." ​​The Empress Dowager slowly stood up. "If the Emperor can't even handle his own son, he should suffer some consequences."

She walked to the window and looked in the direction of the emperor's bedroom.

"Have someone guard the Sixth Prince."

"And that girl from the Shen family, none of them are allowed to leave Cining Palace."

She is waiting.

Once the Crown Prince has been convicted of treason.

They also waited for Xiao Yunzhao to hear the news and lead his troops back from the northern border.

Once that child steps into Chengtian Gate, the second imperial edict, which had already been written, will come into play.

Inside the Third Prince's bedchamber, all the palace servants were awakened by the sound of bells outside.

Changqing rushed into the inner room, "Your Highness, the Crown Prince has rebelled!"

Xiao Yunheng, lying on his sickbed, slowly opened his eyes.

He was still pale, with traces of blood from his cough still on his lips.

But the weakness that once filled those eyes was gone. "Where's the palace gate?"

"It's already sealed off. The Empress's men are searching all the palaces. There are also several more Eastern Palace guards outside our palace."

Xiao Yunheng glanced down at the dagger hidden under the blankets.

"Tell them that I am unconscious. Whatever happens outside, do not disturb me."

Changqing responded and withdrew.

Xiao Yunheng closed his eyes again.

He's waited so many years, he's not in a hurry for this moment.

Outside the imperial city, Xiao Yunzhao had already arrived at the former Prince Rui's residence.

Xiao Yunting stood beside the dry well in the backyard. The rubble around the well had been cleared away, and a faint light shone from below.

"If you go down from here, it will take half an hour to reach the palace library."

Xiao Yunting looked behind him. Besides Mo Bai, Xiao Yunzhao only brought a few guards. "Didn't your wife stop you?"

"She told me to come back." Xiao Yunzhao walked to the well.

"That's exactly what she would say," Xiao Yunting chuckled, but there was little ease in his eyes. "Blood has already been spilled in the palace. You can still make it in time if you go in now."

Just as Xiao Yunzhao was about to go down the well, hurried footsteps suddenly came from the front courtyard of the Prince's Mansion.

A royal guard, covered in blood, stumbled into the backyard.

"Your Highness!"

He knelt down and took out a piece of blood-stained red begonia fabric from his bosom.

The color was exactly the same as the dress Shen Nannan was wearing today.

"The princess has been attacked."

"Someone broke into the Prince's residence and took the Princess away!"