Chapter 65: Death of the Second Prince

Chapter 65: The Second Prince Dies

Everyone watched as the Emperor spat out a mouthful of blood, then immediately collapsed unconscious.

Li Mingde, with lightning reflexes, lunged forward to catch him. The next moment, his anxious voice rang out across the palace gates:

"Get a doctor! Quick, the Emperor's coughing up blood!"

This scene not only stunned the civil and military officials and frightened the onlooking commoners, but even the Fifth Prince and his cohorts were stunned into silence.

After the initial shock, many quickly began calculating—what if the Emperor croaked right then and there? The edict of succession hadn't even been written yet!

So at this moment, whoever made the first move would win.

Duke Wang and others exchanged glances, each with their own schemes brewing. The Fifth Prince, throwing all caution to the wind, stormed up to Xie Chengan.

No matter who the old fool wanted as heir, the crown could only be his. If necessary, he'd have no problem killing him on the spot.

However, before they could make their next move, Imperial Physician Hu and Physician Zhang, who'd been lurking nearby unnoticed, sprinted over in a few quick steps.

Imperial Physician Hu quickly took the Emperor's pulse.

"The Emperor's rage has gotten the better of his heart."

With that, he dug his nail hard into Xie Chengan's philtrum.

And so, soon after, Xie Chengan slowly stirred back to consciousness.

Blood still smeared the corners of his mouth, and his eyes were glazed over.

The Fifth Prince and the assembled ministers crowded around, shocked and uneasy:

"Father, what's happened to you? Don't scare me like this!"

"Your Majesty, what's occurred? You must look after your health."

Duke Zhenguo, looking frantic, blurted out, "Your Majesty, speak up!"

"Your Majesty..."

The noise and chatter was giving Xie Chengan a splitting headache.

But what pained him more was that as his mind snapped back into focus, his eyes gradually focused, then widened more and more. His breathing grew hurried again, and his eyes darkened with barely contained fury.

"Quick... back... back to the palace..."

Everyone was baffled—could something have happened in the palace?

But what the hell could've happened in the palace?

Xie Chengan's face turned ashen. He glared fiercely at Li Mingde, his eyes promising to tear him limb from limb:

This idiot's to blame! Why couldn't he sneak in? Why couldn't he keep his mouth shut? Why couldn't he show some damn restraint!

But ripping that eunuch bastard apart now wouldn't fix anything.

He was frantic, but forced himself to stay calm.

"Everyone, out... ugh..."

Before he could even get the word "leave" out, Xie Chengan suddenly felt his throat clamp shut. To his horror, he couldn't make a sound.

No one noticed that just moments before, Physician Li, who had been standing beside Imperial Physician Hu, had slyly jabbed two needles into a spot on the back of Xie Chengan's neck.

With Physician Hu blocking the view, and everyone's attention fixed on Xie Chengan, nobody caught his sneaky move.

And it was precisely those two needles from Physician Li that made Xie Chengan lose his voice for the time being.

Xie Chengan, too panicked to even notice the sting in his neck, now tried to open his mouth to dismiss the crowd, only to find he couldn't make a sound.

He shot a desperate look at the two old docs beside him, but they just kept calming him down, acting like they had no clue he'd lost his voice.

"Please don't get angry, Your Majesty. You've got to take care of yourself and not get worked up."

"Indeed, Your Majesty. As long as I'm here, I'd die before letting anything happen to you. Nothing's more important than your health, Your Majesty."

Xie Chengan was furious beyond measure. He whipped his furious glare toward Li Mingde.

This damn servant had been with him for decades; he'd definitely get the hint.

The most important thing now was not to spread the matter—you don't air dirty laundry in public, and especially not the imperial family's. This was a massive scandal—not a word could leak.

Sure enough, catching Xie Chengan's death stare, Li Mingde immediately slapped on a look like he finally got it.

Xie Chengan breathed a sigh of relief, waiting for him to dismiss the crowd. But instead, Li Mingde spun around and bellowed:

"Move out to Shuyun Palace!"

In that instant, Xie Chengan's vision went black, and he nearly pitched forward.

Was he losing his mind?

Yet everyone was already scrambling, faster than ever.

The Emperor was coughing up blood—who'd dare drag their feet?

Xie Chengan simply stood there, jaw hanging open in disbelief, but he couldn't make a sound.

"Hurry, move faster!"

"Your Majesty, don't worry. We'll be there soon."

Li Mingde hustled him onto the palanquin, muttering reassurances. The two physicians walked on either side, and the palace attendants behind scurried to serve.

Nobody suspected a damn thing.

Xie Chengan's mind buzzed with noise. After a brief blank, recalling what Li Mingde had reported earlier, he tasted blood in his throat and coughed up another mouthful.

"Your Majesty! Calm down, Your Majesty, we're almost there..."

Li Mingde shrieked, yelling at the bearers to hurry up.

The two physicians also cooperated with Li Mingde, shoving the struggling Xie Chengan back down over and over, so that to everyone else, his thrashing just looked like he'd lost it after his rage fit.

Xie Chengan could only scream inside his head:

Idiots! Every last one of them is an idiot!

Behind the Emperor, the Fifth Prince, along with the civil and military officials led by Duke Zhenguo and Duke Wang, all trotted along behind him without a word.

No one knew what was going on, but the emperor was both anxious and furious, never having lost his cool like this before.

Faintly, those running ahead heard Eunuch Li's placating voice.

"Your Majesty, do not rush, take care of your health. The Second Prince may just be... just..."

The Second Prince?

The Second Prince went to Shuyun Palace?

But wasn't Shuyun Palace the residence of the most favored Consort Shu these days?

Such an explosive royal scandal—no wonder the emperor was so enraged he spat blood.

Everyone instinctively perked up their ears, their eyes filled with shock and uncertainty. Eunuch Li's ambiguous words only made them itch with curiosity, wishing they could fly to Shuyun Palace immediately to see what was happening.

Thus, their pace quickened, their curiosity burning hot.

As for Xie Chengan, no one noticed that he was clearly being forced.

How stupid must one be to lead the entire world to catch one's own son in flagrante with a favored consort?

His spotless reputation would be destroyed today. The Second Prince better not have done anything stupid.

Otherwise, he'd personally chop that bastard into pieces.

However, the situation was far worse than Xie Chengan could have ever imagined.

Just as the crowd was rushing toward Shuyun Palace, Empress Wang was seen leading a group of consorts and noble lords, hurrying there as well.

Clearly, Empress Wang had also received the news and was rushing over with the harem concubines, among them the Second Prince's birth mother—Virtuous Consort.

The two groups collided, forming an endless sea of people.

Xie Chengan felt his chest churn. By the time the massive crowd arrived at Shuyun Palace, the last shred of hope in his heart died.

"You ungrateful wretch... you disgraceful son..."

Xie Chengan spat out a few words weakly, his hoarse voice laced with immense fury and a helplessness born of utter rage. He staggered as if he might faint at any moment.

From behind the tightly shut doors of Shuyun Palace came faint, intermittent sounds of lovemaking, mixed with fragmented, sometimes soft, sometimes shrill, and utterly embarrassing obscene words.

For a moment, everyone was stunned, shocked, and unable to stop blushing.

"Unbearable to hear, unbearable..."

In broad daylight, a consort and a prince—how could they...

Everyone was dumbfounded.

"Oh, the Second Prince and Consort Shu—how could they dare..."

"This is too... treasonous... a total violation of decency..."

...

Virtuous Consort collapsed to the ground, her face deathly pale. After recovering, she scrambled frantically to Xie Chengan's feet.

"Your Majesty, it cannot be Zhang'er!"

"Zhang'er would never do something so treasonous, Your Majesty! Someone must be setting him up..."

But the more she protested, the emperor's face grew darker with fury, and the noises from inside became even more obscene.

He shoved Virtuous Consort away with his foot, and Xie Chengan, furiously charged forward and kicked the door open. What they saw next was even more shocking.

There, the Second Prince and Consort Shu were rolling around on the floor, half-naked... on the floor, of all places.

Clothes were strewn everywhere, along with intimate marks... and positions that defied description...

"Ah!!!"

Virtuous Consort screamed and fainted on the spot.

The scene before them was utterly revolting.

"You—disgraceful—son—!"

Xie Chengan's eyes blazed with fury.

Screams, gasps, cries of shock...

Mixed with the terrified shrieks of the two parties involved.

Pandemonium broke out.

The Second Prince, Xie Yuzhang, scrambled off of Consort Shu, frantically trying to kneel and beg for mercy, but the now-insane Xie Chengan had snatched a guard's long blade and swung it at him like a man possessed.

"Ah! Father... I was wrong, Father!"

One strike slashed Xie Yuzhang's shoulder, blood gushing out. He could only grit his teeth, kneel, and beg for mercy, his face stripped of all arrogance, replaced by sheer panic and terror.

"Unfilial son! How could I have fathered a beast like you? Go die!"

Xie Chengan swung the blade again.

"You're worse than an animal!"

"Ah! Father, it hurts!"

"Cheating in exams, forming cliques, corrupting the court, and daring to mess around in the harem! You piece of trash!"

Xie Chengan chopped and cursed at Xie Yuzhang.

"You little beast..."

Through the screams, everyone watched the emperor slash his own son a dozen times, until he was completely spent.

The Second Prince finally collapsed, lying motionless on the ground.

The scene was bloody and horrifying, with many consorts screaming in terror and the faint-hearted passing out on the spot.

In an instant, Xie Yuzhang was drenched in blood.

On the floor, the table, the bed, the screen—

Blood was splattered everywhere.

And the other party involved, Consort Shu, had already died in terror beneath Xie Chengan's frenzied blade moments before.

Xie Chengan finally collapsed into a chair, panting heavily, his gaze locked onto Xie Yuzhang, who lay writhing and wailing in agony on the ground.

After venting his rage, he gradually calmed down, yet his pitch-black eyes were like two dead pools.

"Beast, you've shamed the royal family beyond belief. How could you dare."

At this moment, his expression was even more terrifying than when he'd been in a frenzy.

Xie Yuzhang was barely holding on, drenched in blood that still oozed from his wounds, but nobody dared go near him.

A dead silence fell over the room.

——————

Soon after, word spread of the Second Prince's death.

It wasn't blamed on harem intrigue, incest, or sleeping with the emperor's consort, but rather on crimes like examination fraud, for which the emperor ordered his death.

No matter how they spun it, everyone knew the real story of how he died.

It was laughable—Xie Chengan was still clinging to his absurd royal dignity.

In Yuxiu Pavilion, Cheng Yi was playing chess with his young husband. Well, more like teaching him the game.

Cheng Yi was a patient teacher, guiding him step by step while also taking in Mo Zheng's report.

That day, Xie Chengan had lost control and hacked Xie Yuzhang to death in front of all the civil and military officials.

Everyone had backed away, and he'd calmly watched Xie Yuzhang take his last breath, sitting there alone for a long time.

When Xie Yuzhang's mother, the Virtuous Consort, woke up, she learned that her entire maternal family had been wiped out, her father beheaded, and the Lu family had completely collapsed.

And her son's mangled body lay right in front of her.

In the end, the Virtuous Consort smashed her head at Xie Chengan's feet, killing herself.

The Second Prince's faction had utterly collapsed.

Days passed, and rumors spread that the emperor had done the righteous thing, executing the mastermind of the fraud case, the Second Prince.

Moreover, the emperor had decreed that all spring examination results be thrown out, opening a special exam for everyone to retake.

But everyone knew what really happened.

It was laughable that Xie Chengan was still fooling himself.

Rumor had it that the emperor had fallen ill since that day, deeply shaken, and was reportedly drawing up a decree to name a successor.

Everyone of course assumed the emperor would appoint the Fifth Prince as Crown Prince—including the Fifth Prince himself.

After all, of the three capable princes, wasn't he the only one left?

Yet Cheng Yi let out a scornful sneer.

Even if he no longer wore a mask, people still didn't get this emperor—the most hypocritical of them all.