His Majesty's stubborn illness had not been cured, and the two princes fought fiercely for the throne.
In order to fight for the supreme position, the Eldest Prince and the Third Prince should have used all kinds of means and resorted to all kinds of means …
The fight for the throne had always been like this, and this was what the Eldest Prince and the Third Prince had done.
However, no one expected that the former Emperor would pass away in the palace in the evening after announcing a series of decrees in high spirits during the morning court session yesterday.
There was no precaution.
There was no edict of succession.
The Crown Prince was not in the capital.
Although the position of the Crown Prince of the Qi Kingdom was not as stable as that of the neighboring countries, the Crown Prince was the nominal heir to the throne. When the former Emperor suddenly passed away and there was no succession, it was reasonable for the Crown Prince to inherit the throne. This was the ancestral system.
However, the Crown Prince was not in the capital at such a critical moment.
The Third Prince was in the capital. The Third Prince, who had already grown his wings in the court, would definitely die if the Crown Prince succeeded the throne. There was no doubt about it.
It was the same the other way around.
It was already late at night, and most of the people in the capital had fallen asleep. However, when the bell that represented the death of the Emperor rang in the palace, everyone, from the dignitaries to the common people, was awakened from their sleep.
Fortune God Qian hurriedly put on his clothes. He did not even have time to button them up before he ran to the door and shouted, "Quick, prepare the carriage. We're going to King Feng's Mansion!"
At this time, the sedan chair of Minister of Revenue Cui Jiang had already stopped in front of King Feng's Mansion.
When Fortune God Qian arrived at the gate of King Feng's Mansion, there were already more than ten sedan chairs parked on both sides.
"Your Highness, you should restrain your grief and focus on the overall situation!"
"This is a great opportunity for us!"
"Your Highness, please give the order!"
…
When Fortune God Qian walked into King Feng's Mansion, the Third Prince was already surrounded by people. They all looked excited and kept urging him.
Soon after, countless figures hurried out of King Feng's Mansion and disappeared in different directions.
The Emperor had passed away, and the Crown Prince had left the capital. Only the Third Prince could take charge of the situation.
On the night of the former Emperor's death, the Third Prince went to the palace to make arrangements.
On the second day, all the officials gathered in front of the palace gate. The Minister of State took out a posthumous edict and read it in front of everyone.
It was an edict of succession.
The imperial edict stated that the Crown Prince, Zhao Zheng, did not cultivate virtue and conduct, and that he was disloyal and disloyal. For the sake of the people of the Qi Kingdom and the people of the world, the late Emperor had deposed the Crown Prince, Zhao Zheng, and passed the throne to the Third Prince, Zhao Yi …
Most people were skeptical about the authenticity of the edict.
Before the Crown Prince left the capital, the Emperor had greatly praised him. After a few days, how could such a posthumous edict appear?
But that was then and this was now. The capital was firmly under the Third Prince's control, and many of the ministers of the court respected him as their master. Even those officials loyal to the Crown Prince did not dare to step forward. The Crown Prince had left the capital at this crucial moment, and the Third Prince had taken advantage of this opening to enter. These people were like clay Bodhisattvas crossing the river, powerless to protect themselves …
The former Emperor had just passed away, and the Third Prince could not succeed the throne immediately. But with the edict of succession, he had obtained the military seal, which was enough to command the fifty thousand Imperial Guards in the capital. Moreover, there were too many ministers loyal to him in the court. In a short night, he had gained control of the entire capital.
The capital, which had been treacherous for several years, seemed to have ended all the chaos in the blink of an eye, and the dust had settled.
In Sheng Province, several hundred li away from the capital.
The Crown Prince, who had just wiped out the rebels of the Holy Religion, was riding on his horse in high spirits. When he received an urgent report from the front, his face instantly turned pale, his body swayed, and he fell off his horse.
The guards on his left and right hurriedly helped him up and shouted, "Imperial physician, summon the imperial physician!"
Fang Yu stepped forward and pinched Zhao Zheng's philtrum. Not long after, he coughed heavily and woke up.
Zhao Zheng's face was ashen, and he kept muttering, "It's over, it's over, it's all over …"
He had never imagined that his father would suddenly pass away when he was leaving the capital.
Zhao Yi had already gained control of the situation in the capital. Everything he had done, everything he had fantasized about, and the throne that he had coveted for a long time, had all become bubbles.
Fang Yu shook him heavily and said, "Your Highness, you can't give up!"
Zhao Zheng looked at him and smiled bitterly, "Zhao Yi must have controlled the Imperial Guards and the capital now. What can I use to fight against him? What can I use to fight against him?"
Pa!
Fang Yu slapped him across the face. Zhao Zheng was stunned as blood flowed from the corner of his mouth.
"The Third Prince only controls the capital, and only controls fifty thousand Imperial Guards!" Fang Yu looked at him and said angrily, "You are the Crown Prince, and the throne should have been yours. He is just a traitor, a traitor. There are fifty thousand Imperial Guards in the capital, but outside the capital, there are another one hundred and fifty thousand soldiers. How did you lose?"
Zhao Zheng was stunned for a moment, and then he finally understood.
There were two hundred thousand soldiers stationed in the capital, and only fifty thousand of them were in the capital. The other one hundred and fifty thousand were scattered in the various provinces of the capital. After his father passed away, his people rushed over. Zhao Zheng's reaction was definitely not as fast as theirs. If he could control all the soldiers in the capital, one hundred and fifty thousand against fifty thousand, and with the help of the Holy Religion, how could he not conquer the capital?
He immediately took out a token from his waist and stuffed it into Fang Yu's hands, saying, "Envoy Fang, hurry, hurry. We must hurry before that traitor!"
"Rest assured, Your Highness!" Fang Yu took the token and turned around to leave.
After walking a dozen steps, a cold smile appeared on his face. The capital must be conquered. At that time, there would be no need for Zhao Zheng to exist.
The Empress's plan was much simpler than directly helping Zhao Zheng to the throne.
… …
The disaster of war had erupted abruptly, and with the death of Emperor Xian, the Third Prince had seized the opportunity to ascend to the throne, taking control of the fifty thousand Imperial Army in the capital. Meanwhile, the First Prince had gathered more than one hundred thousand soldiers outside the capital and was directing his vanguard at the capital …
Although the Third Prince was in an important area of the capital, his retreat had been cut off. Faced with an army more than twice his size, he could only rely on the walls to barely hold out. If not for the fact that the capital was heavily stocked with provisions, he would not have been able to hold out for long …
The capital region, which had always been peaceful, became a land of war in a short period of time. Although the First Prince's army did not massacre the people like the foreign invaders, it was not uncommon for them to forcibly take food and fodder and forcibly conscript the people.
The entire capital region was in a state of panic …
In Victory Province.
A purple-clothed man walked into a camp and bowed. "Reporting to Protector, several armies have fallen under our control. Zhao Zheng is no longer of much use to us. Why don't we …"
Fang Yu waved his hand and said, "No, no, no. On the surface, we still need His Highness the Crown Prince as our cover. Otherwise, we'll have no justifiable reason to attack …"
Even though the Holy Religion had been operating in the Qi Kingdom for more than twenty years and had reached its peak after Zhao Zheng had delegated power to it, without Zhao Zheng, they were just like the Third Prince, rebels. With Zhao Zheng, they were the masters of justice …
As for whether the Crown Prince would die of an illness after conquering the capital, fall to his death on a horse, choke to death while eating … Only the heavens could predict this.
Fang Yu looked outside the tent and sighed. He muttered, "If there's a divine punishment, how hard can it be to conquer a city?"
The capital.
All the city gates in the north, south, east, and west had been closed. The drawbridge by the moat had been raised, and the entire capital was on high alert.
King Feng Zhao Yi had taken over the capital, but he had not moved into the Imperial Palace.
In King Feng's residence, the officials and strategists looked gloomy.
No one had expected the First Prince to move so quickly. In such a short time, he had gained control of most of the military forces in the capital region and surrounded the capital.
Although they had more than twice the number of soldiers, they still could not conquer the capital. However, the capital was isolated and without reinforcements. If they continued to waste time like this, the city would be exhausted one day if reinforcements did not arrive.
Now that he thought about it, the Crown Prince had left the capital, His Majesty had passed away, and the Crown Prince had led troops to surround the city …
It was as if there was a pair of invisible hands messing around with the whole thing …
…
When Li Yi received the news, he was also stunned for a long time before he recovered.
The Emperor of the Qi Kingdom had passed away.
Zhao Yi had taken control of the capital, but he was surrounded. It could be said that the First Prince had benefited from the disaster. He had only temporarily lost the throne. When Zhao Yi was exhausted, he would return to the throne sooner or later.
Of course, this was what others had predicted.
Li Yi had a rough idea of what Taoist Nun wanted.
They wanted the entire Qi Kingdom. Zhao Zheng and Zhao Yi were their pawns.
They might not be smart, but their influence was too great. A grandmaster had abandoned martial arts and started a cult for more than 20 years. No one knew to what extent they had infiltrated the Qi Kingdom …
If that was the case, perhaps Zhao Yi had forced them into a corner, and that was why they had pushed the Qi Kingdom into chaos …
Why did Zhao Yi have to force the other party to such an extent? She was committing a sin …
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