The room was warm and humid, with golden curtains. Although this room was called the study room, it was actually the room where doc.u.ments and edicts were composed. There were inkstones and quills placed all over the room.

The corridor outside was filled with several serving maids and eunuchs. Their footsteps were soft and light, as though they wore soft soled shoes.

Within the room were four eunuchs, they held onto horsetail whisks, as a symbol of their status within the palace. The Emperor sat at table behind them. Several bottles of medication stood atop the table, as one of the eunuchs stood beside the Emperor, waiting on him.

"Cough cough!" The Emperor drank a sip of water as he sputtered, using a napkin to wipe his mouth, "Get rid of these medications. I’m not taking any of these."

"Your majesty, if you don’t take the medication, how will you get better?" The eunuch coaxed.

"Ai, throw it all away. If the medication truly worked, I would’ve been better a long time ago." The Emperor sighed as he looked at the eunuch and swept the bottles away from the table.

"Arrival of the Crown Prince." The little eunuch by the door announced.

The Crown Prince was led by Liang Yuan Zi as they entered the study room and bowed to the Emperor. The Emperor then ordered, "Get the Crown Prince and Prime Ministers a seat!"

The Crown Prince was given a seat slightly lower than the Emperor, but had a cus.h.i.+on on it. Liang Yuan Zi sat atop a makes.h.i.+ft chair further away from the both of them.

As soon as Liang Yuan Zi sat down, he stood up and bowed again, "Your majesty, I’ve arranged for Doctor Chen to visit the Crown Prince. It seems like the Crown Prince had just suffered a minor shock. After hearing about your majesty’s concern for him, he insisted on coming to the palace to ease your majesty’s worries. Please forgive me for bringing him back."

"A son wishes to see his father, that’s natural. The Crown Prince has a pair of legs on him, if he wishes to see his father, is there anything you can do about it?" The Emperor laughed, before he coughed several more times.

"Emperor Father, how is your cold coming along?" The Crown Prince stood up and asked. Seeing the Crown Prince ask after his own health, the Emperor gave a warm look as he replied, "It’s much better than before."

"The Crown Prince came under an a.s.sa.s.sination attempt yesterday. Tell me everything that happened in detail." The Emperor asked.

Hearing the Emperor enquire about this matter, the Crown Prince recalled yesterday’s events as he trembled subtly. His face bore a look of immense fear as he even turned pale.

Seeing the Crown Prince’s reaction to this question, the Emperor’s expression turned ashen. The Crown Prince collected himself before he continued, "Yesterday, I wanted to pay the citizens a visit and grace them with my presence. As we were moving across Sky Road, a burst of fireworks rang out. However, the fireworks weren’t directed in the air. Instead, they were shot towards the group of people, and caused panic within the crowd."

"The Imperial Guards handled this affair rather well, as they obstructed the crowd from getting too near me, and tried to restore order to the panicking civilians."

"Soon after, the people who were performing the tiger and dragon dances placed down their equipment and broke through our formations and tried to get to me."

Hearing this, the Emperor slumped into his seat and leaned back, as if he was trying to picture the chaotic scene. Liang Yuan Zi was by the side and listened quietly as well, trying to match the details of yesterday with the Crown Prince’s version.

"Chen Hu, Li An Jun, and Ji Sheng, the three generals acted predictably as they rushed through the lines and seemed like they were defending me. General Chen Hu was shouting out, that his army was present to protect me. All of a sudden, his army started attacking the Imperial Guards. One of the guards tried to speak to him, but was murdered by General Chen Hu himself."

"Your humble son was truly shocked, but the Imperial Guards were brave. Thankfully Capital Magistrate Yin came to my aid, and thus I wasn’t harmed. I returned back home and had some soup to calm me down, and everything was fine. Emperor Father doesn't have to worry about me." The Crown Prince recounted the events which transpired yesterday before the Emperor.

The Emperor heard his description of the event, and noted that everything was clear and accurate. Even though he was startled, he didn’t lose his composure and wits. Comparing his account of the events to the reports, Liang Yuan Zi then spoke, "Your majesty, Chen Hu attacked the Crown Prince openly and boldly. That was indeed insane and unpredictable."

Hearing Liang Yuan Zi say this, the Emperor laughed, "Prime Minister, show the note to the Crown Prince!"

He then turned to the Crown Prince, "Do you think this was written by King Lu? And if it is, how should we handle this matter?"

Liang Yuan Zi acknowledged the command as he carefully took out the piece of paper and handed it over to the Crown Prince. The Crown Prince stood up to receive the note and looked at it before he revealed a startled look. Soon after, his face turned red, as if he was holding back his anger.

Liang Yuan Zi and the Emperor were both observing the Crown Prince as he crushed the note and flung it on the ground, "This is a pack of lies! A simple ploy!"

Hearing this, the Emperor paused in shock. The Crown Prince then picked up the note and apologized, "I was overtaken by anger and lost myself. I seek Emperor father’s forgiveness."

When the Emperor heard this, he sighed and muttered under his breath, "Crown Prince, tell me what you think."

"Many years ago, the entire world was in chaos. Emperor Father held his sword and restored order to the world and had been through many hards.h.i.+ps. Only then was you able to create a peaceful world for me."

"There are hundreds of thousands of people in this world, and yet only three of us brothers managed to survive."

"King Lu and I are flesh and blood, we are brothers and bear nothing but brotherly love for each other. How is it possible that he’s sent someone to kill me? This must be the work of someone else, trying to sow discord between us, trying to tear us apart from each other."

"Not only should we not believe it, we have to be decisive and weed out those who are responsible for this. Even before news can spread, we should act, and prevent those scheming guilty people from hiding. We have to remain united with each other, and be composed and rational about this matter."

The Emperor paused and looked at the Crown Prince and suddenly recalled how gently he was as a child. In the blink of an eye, he had grown up. The Emperor looked at him warmly and lovingly.

When Liang Yuan Zi heard this, he was taken aback as well, "The Crown Prince’s words are filled with wisdom. Ever since the Emperor has restored peace to the dynasty, the nation has flourished and prospered. As long as the royal family doesn't implode under such circ.u.mstances, you would be able to emerge victorious. Do not fall for the ploys of such scheming, evil men. This humble subject agrees with the Crown Prince."

The words spoken by the Crown Prince was very heartening to hear. He spoke of the brotherly love between himself and King Lu, and touched the heart of his father. The love and friends.h.i.+p between brothers would eventually bring prosperity to the nation.

The Emperor sat atop his dragon throne and nodded his head in approval.

The Crown Prince then continued, "But this matter shouldn’t be left as it is. The three Generals struck out and intended to kill. According to the laws of the nation, this is an act of rebellion. And yet bringing their armies out just because of a note only served to ruin the relations.h.i.+p between my brother and I. The amount of planning which went into this ploy is truly startling. These three Generals have to be punished."

The Crown Prince bore a sense of anger in his words. As he spoke, his face became red.

Seeing the Crown Prince act this way, the Emperor laughed. His eldest son had finally shown himself worthy of the crown.

The Prime Minister raised his head and saw the Emperor smiling. The Crown Prince then continued to speak, "I think we shouldn’t announce this matter and make it public, for it will cause unrest amongst everyone and might be bad for us."

"As for the three Generals, we should deal with them as soon as possible. We should leave the matter as it is, and not implicate anyone else. We must not drag King Lu into this matter as well."

"We also have to control the rumors that are being leaked now, and handle such negative talk spreading around."

"I’ve finished my piece, and I await Emperor father’s judgement."

The Emperor stood up and muttered under his breath before he spoke, "I have already decided. I shall execute the three Generals. As for Chen Hu, his entire family shall be killed as well. All the boys older than ten years old in his family will be put to death."

He then turned to the Crown Prince and laughed, "I know that you love and care for your younger brother. But King Lu’s actions have been inappropriate, and we mustn't brush it aside. I’ve demoted him to the rank of a Canton Prince, and grounded him for three months, where he has to remain within his palace and reflect over his actions. However, there hasn’t been an official edict from me. Now, I’ve made up my mind."

Seeing that the Crown Prince wanted to protest against this, the Emperor waved his hand, "This is my final decision. There shall be no need for adjustments. Handle it according to how I’ve instructed."

He then cleared his throat, "I’m tired, and the Crown Prince has seen enough hards.h.i.+ps for now. Go and rest!"

King Lu’s Palace

King Lu sat within his main hall, as several maids and eunuchs stood around him in silence. None of them dared to move or make a sound. Occasionally, a look of fear flashed past their eyes.

The Emperor had sent soldiers to surround the palace. There had even been rumors going around that King Lu was the one who made an attempt on the Crown Prince’s life, but failed.

This was a heinous accusation!

Snow drifted in the air before falling across the park, filled with trees and shrubs. King Lu’s servants were all extremely tense and fearful.

Outside King Lu’s Palace, soldiers in armor stood guard. They wore cotton and wool inner vests and cold hard steel for armor. The also had an outer coat which was draped around their plated armor. Each of them bore a certain stillness and fearsomeness.

King Lu wrote on a piece of paper, he appeared to be rather composed.

"King Lu, I’ve investigated the matter. The Crown Prince came under attack yesterday. All our men around the city have failed to return our messages and have all ignored our orders to report. As of today, we’re still in the dark without much information." Eunuch Liao stood by King Lu’s side and spoke.

"Now that we have the Emperor’s soldiers surrounding this palace, you’re forbidden from leaving. However, the servants are allowed to enter and exit the premises. The atmosphere within the entire palace is very tense. Several thieves had stolen gold and silver from around the palace and escaped. Some of them had been caught. There was even a low-ranking official who wanted to leave your service. How should we handle this?"

King Lu didn’t speak as he concentrated on his writing. Only after a long time did he stop. He picked up a tea cup which was decorated with inscriptions of flowers and took a sip. He then said, "Send the order out, if anyone within my palace dares to do anything which would hurt the morale of the others, they will be put to death. As for the servants who had fled, beat them to death."

"As for the lower-ranking officials who wish to leave my service!" King Lu laughed before he continued, "If they wish to leave, let them leave. But record their names down."

"Yes, Your Majesty." Eunuch Liao turned around to leave.

"Have mercy eunuch, please have mercy." The cries of many guilty men sounded throughout the execution grounds of King Lu’s Palace.

"Traitors begging for mercy. Die!" Eunuch Liao spoke before the agonizing cries of the guilty could be heard. After some time, when the cries had died down, several eunuchs dragged out the blood-stained bodies which had white cloths wrapped around them.

At this point, a guard rushed into the room and looked very anxious, "Your Majesty, an Imperial Edict has been sent."

"Prepare the necessary arrangements to receive the eunuch bearing the edict." King Lu instructed as he composed himself, before he welcomed the eunuch. The eunuch held the edict in both hands as he stood before King Lu, who hurriedly crouched to the ground, "The son of the Emperor is ready to receive the edict!"

The eunuch then started to read the edict, "King Lu’s actions have been inappropriate, and disturbed the peace within the country. He shall be demoted to Canton Prince, and be sealed up in his residences for three months to reflect!"

Although he was prepared for this, the edict still came as a huge blow. He could feel his vision going black as he remained crouched on the ground, "Thank… Thank you, Your Majesty."

The eunuch had always thought that King Lu was a tough and confident man, who had always been true and real to the high-ranking officials. At this point, he found it hard to believe that King Lu trembled while he received the edict, and his face was completely white. The eunuch was in full admiration of the Emperor for having such power over a man like King Lu. He then sighed. The next moment, King Lu stepped forward and s.n.a.t.c.hed the edict. The eunuch then fell to his knees, "This eunuch is only the messenger, delivering the edict without choice. King Lu, please contain your anger!"

"Give this eunuch 50 taels of silver." King Lu regained his senses and spoke, his face was pale. He had told himself earlier to remain calm so as not to lose himself. And yet when he received the punishment, he had been unable to control his anger and realized that his will wasn’t as tough as he imagined it to be.

He had only been demoted from a Price to a Canton Prince. However, what would happen if there was another incident like this, would he be demoted to a regular civilian? Or even be put to death?

The closer a person got to the authority of the Emperor, the more he understood that the authority was truly a frightening thing. There were thousands of people here in King Lu’s palace, and several hundred black robed a.s.sa.s.sins. Who would dare to defy him?

At this point, King Lu sighed.