You stumble forward, landing on the floor behind the 7th Prince's wheelchair. Thinking quickly, you reach out and pull him backwards. As 11th Prince's sword whistles through the air, he did not manage to hit his target. A moment later several guards pounce on him, pinning him to the floor.
Emperor: [Shaking with fury] Murderer! Unrepentant dog!
11th Prince: Your Majesty, this swine mocked my lowborn mother every chance he got.
Emperor: If you have a grievance, you come to me! You don't take matters into your own hands!
11th Prince: [Skeptically] You would never give me justice, so I acted myself. In life, the meek got trampled.
Emperor: Blood traitor! Guards! Hand the 11th Prince over to the Ministry of Justice!
The night air is cold as water. The mid-Autumn Festival guests start to disperse. You call back Yin Zhi.
Xiu Ying: 3rd Prince, are you the one who pushed me just now?
Yin Zhi: Can you prove it?
And with that, Yin Zhi walks off without looking back, leaving you alone with your unruly thought.
The Ministry of Justice reaches a verdict very quickly. It was 11th Prince who dispatched assassins to the Mount Tianchi. He took a wound to avoid suspicion and shift blame onto the 6th Prince. You hear on the grapevine that the Empress and Noble Consort are petitioning the Emperor every day to punish 11th Prince. The Emperor is yet to act, and appears to be thinking it over very carefully.
Xiu Ying: (Strange. You have never known the Emperor to show any special fondness for 11th Prince. Why should he hesitate now? And if the Emperor continues to delay his punishment, will the 11th Prince ultimately be spared?)
Hu Ling: County Lady! Are you here to see the Emperor?
Arriving at the Hall of Mental Cultivation, you smile politely at Hu Ling.
Xiu Ying: I am. Could you announce me please?
Hu Ling: County Lady, he is not here.... The 11th Prince has poisoned himself.
You are rooted to the spot, your eyes widen at the news.
Hu Ling: 11th Prince's plan failed and he killed himself to avoid the consequences... Despite his crimes, the Emperor is deeply grieved by his passing.
Xiu Ying: (Killed himself to avoid the consequences? 11th Prince doesn't strike you as the kind of person to do that. It wasn't certain he would be executed in any case... so why would he take his own life?) [Coming back to your senses] Indeed. Take care of yourself.. I'd better be going.
Hu Ling: Thank you, County Lady. Take care.
The thought of 11th Prince's suicide rattled around in your mind. A lot has happened recently, much of it hard to explain. You can't seem to get your head around it all. You stop in your tracks. You almost walk into Empress Rong and Yin Zhen who are discussing something. They turn to look at you.
Xiu Ying: Greetings, Your Majesty, 4th Prince.
Queen Rong: [Half-smiling] You were most heroic, my Lady, pulling 7th Prince out of the way of the 11th Prince's blade. He could have been seriously hurt.
Xiu Ying: I was closest to 7th Prince. I just did what anyone would do.
Queen Rong: I hear 11th Prince took his own life to avoid punishment. Anyway I have matters to attend to. Please excuse me
She turns away and walks off, surrounded by a gaggle of doting maids. You frown, unconsciously.
Xiu Ying: (Why do I get the feeling the Empress is avoiding me?)
Yin Zhen: What are you thinking?
MC: I'm thinking... I should congratulate you. You proved 6th Prince was innocent. The Empress must be very grateful to you.
6th Prince had walked into the trap laid by the Emperor and now had little to no chance of inheriting the throne... but after being framed by 11th Prince for a far more serious crime, he would keep his life now, which is a cause for celebration. At least now the Empress and 6th Prince were less likely to plot against Yin Zhen, and might even help him out if the favor asked was not too onerous.
Xiu Ying: (Moving forward... their ambition was unlikely to lessen over time, but there was no point in worrying about at the moment.)
Yin Zhen: You should also be congratulated. I didn't ask you though, how did you know 11th Prince was the culprit?
Xiu Ying: I guessed.
Yin Zhen: [Laughing lightly] And if you guessed wrong, I would have been the one who looked foolish?
Xiu Ying: It was something 7th Prince said- to cripple someone is the act of a madman... which made me think of the increasingly erratic 11th Prince. His madness served him very well as an alibi. By attacking 6th Prince he made everyone think he was innocent and shifted suspicion onto the 6th Prince
Yin Zhen: In the end it was still a guess. Luckily I was ready to be made a fool of.
Xiu Ying: You're such a faker!
Yin Zhen: How am l a faker??
Xiu Ying: You also found lots of clues yourself pointing to 11th Prince! How else could you set such a perfect trap for him?
Yin Zhen: I hadn't found any clues pointing to him. That's why I listened to you.
Xiu Ying: Really? I don't believe it!
You pull a face, and before Yin Zhen can tap you on the forehead, you dash off. Yin Zhen smiles to himself and shakes his head, then follows along in your footsteps.
The first snow of the winter is falling. The Emperor has decided to name Yin Zhen Crown Prince. It looks like the dust is settling on this particular battle for succession. But the war for the throne isn't over. Indeed, it's just beginning.
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