Chapter 33：Curtain Opens

"Her Highnesses, Empress Yi An has arrived! Noble Imperial Consort Yong has arrived!"

Everybody in the hall rose to give the proper salutation to the two highest ranking ladies of Da Xia. But the Emperor was not with them.

"Rise! Ben gong[1] has to apologize. Because of the cold weather, bi xia's health has been delicate lately. His Majesty will be with us a bit later for this winter banquet."

The Empress then sat on her phoenix throne like usual.

Once the people heard this, they soon relaxed. It was indeed uncomfortable for his Majesty to move around in this cold weather. Bi xia was not that young anymore.

That was what the gullible ones thought of. But those who knew better weren't reassured with these words.

The merriment continued but some people couldn't help but be anxious as more time passed by.

Until a eunuch who was often seen among the Emperor's entourage slipped inside the banquet hall.

He went straight to the Empress' personal eunuch and passed on a message. Then, the eunuch went over the eldest prince's side to personally relay the same message.

Tension broke among the imperial family.

The first ones to stand were the Empress, Noble Imperial Consort Yong, the eldest prince and the third prince as they hurried off to one direction.

The guests were all bewildered by this. But the highest ranking attendants in the palace soon pacified the crowd.

"Beloved guests, a matter of utmost priority occurred. Unfortunately, the winter banquet will be postponed for now. But none of you can exit the palace as of the moment."

The officials all wanted to know what happened but the eunuchs were all tight-lipped. The servants didn't know either as they only received the instructions to keep the guests inside the royal palace until further notice.

One could only put two in two together. What thing could make the royal clan be this antsy? And who among them was the only one missing up to this moment?

Something happened to the Emperor!

The guests could only let their imaginations wander.

Maybe his Majesty had a secret fatal sickness. Or a treasonous fellow was caught! What about an assassination? Anything could happen but no one would dare make a scene in these royal grounds.

Especially when the mighty imperial guards in their red armors had appeared in the banquet hall!

A heavy silence automatically descended on the large room. But every man's foreheads had a trickle of sweat. Every woman slightly whimpered, holding each other or their young ones to share warmth in the suddenly desolate place of celebration.

Who wouldn't feel dread when seeing fearsome and stern men with deadly weapons in tow?

They were here to make sure that no one would dare force their way out of the royal palace. This meant that they would stay here until that matter of utmost importance was done. Who knew when would that be?

The presence of the imperial guards became more numerous, indicating that something really serious happened.

"Mother, what's going-" A young child whispered.

"Hush!" The lady next to him immediately covered his lips.

But the irony was... a sumptuous feast was still served.

Yet the festive atmosphere of earlier was gone with the wind.

Some of the guests reluctantly ate. Their stomachs felt hungry but their tongues couldn't taste.

Was this still a banquet?

The silence was shattered when a captain imperial guard entered and announced:

"All the first-ranking officials, a decree has been sent for you to follow this one."

The members of the royal family had long gone towards the Sacred Sky palace.

And now the top officials were ordered to follow. The hall erupted in soft buzzing.

The left and right prime ministers, the great generals of Da Xia's three major armies, the grand tutor and the heads of four ducal houses stood up.

Duke Yin and Lord Yin naturally were part of this group. Yin Fang Qi wasn't a standard first rank official but nobody complained upon seeing him. His standing in court wasn't something anyone could question now, especially when the captain of the imperial guards didn't say anything either.

Yin Hua Lei also came with them instead of with the imperial family. So she was the only lady in the group.

The captain led them to a familiar route.

The captain knew his place and answered politely. "Your Highness, during desperate times, some protocols need to be ignored."

Yin Hua Lei's face turned grim upon hearing that.

The top civil and military ministers who were with them also gained some understanding from this small exchange.

And the moment they stepped inside the Sacred Sky hall, the Empress' authoritative voice echoed.

"Arrest that venomous woman! Noble Imperial Consort Yong is convicted for the highest criminal offence of regicide!"

Everybody was stunned by this new series of events. Regicide?!

Imperial guards came and carelessly held the eldest prince's birth mother. The dignified palace woman was utterly pale and looked scared for her life.

"Empress! This is preposterous! This prince demands an investigation! No one is even allowed to enter Imperial Father's chambers yet! Please be careful of slandering this prince's Consort Mother!"

Xia Yu Sinen was outraged. His normally peaceful aura was long gone.

Who would be calm when their mother was being framed? Most especially, this was the crime of killing a sovereign!

They came here only earlier by a few moments.

When they got here, the imperial physicians all declared the Emperor to be deceased.

But no one was permitted to enter the dragon chambers. As per tradition, if the Emperor abruptly passed away, only his Majesty's personal eunuch and the Head Imperial Physician could enter.

This was to prevent the altering of the last imperial edict.

If someone forcibly entered, the imperial guards had the authority to shoot that person without warning.

"Elder Imperial Brother should be the one calming down. In the Royal Palace, who among us doesn't know that Noble Imperial Consort Yong is the one preparing Father Emperor's meals these past few days? Back when it was Mother Empress who did this job, there was no mishap but this suddenly happened now. How can this be explained?"

Third prince Xia Yu Sheng sneered.

"Si'er, Imperial Mother understands your sentiments but right now, your..." Empress Yi An's eyes were red from unshed tears, as though she was barely keeping herself together. Her elder daughter, the seventh princess was assisting her to stand up straighter. "Your Imperial Father's been like this... can we still afford the slightest mistake?"

All the other consorts and princesses were already crying by then. Maybe some were truly grieving, some were just scared of the bleak future. What would happen to them who were the ones without solid backing in this large royal palace?

But Xia Yu Sinen simply protected his mother who was now behind him.

The fourth prince chimed in a justified tone: "If Eldest Imperial Brother adamantly refuses for your consort mother to be taken away for interrogation, won't that make you suspicious too?"

This was like a bomb amidst this sea of crisis and taut emotions.

The people's eyes all looked at Xia Yu Sinen strangely.

If one were to think, where would a consort find the courage to harm the Emperor?

Of course, there would be someone behind the scenes!

And the eldest prince, no matter what was said, had a motive to do this.

"Elder Imperial Brother...?" Xia Yu Sheng asked in a righteous voice when the eldest prince failed to reply.

"Si'er, is this true?" The Empress was heartbroken and disappointed.

More imperial guards entered and surrounded the mother and son together with his family.

There were also guards around the second princess who was Xia Yu Sinen's full blooded sister.

But then, a gentle yet shaky voice uttered. "Imperial Brothers, what are we doing, accusing each other at this time? Please... Imperial Father is still the most important!"

No doubt, the ninth prince Xia Yu Heng's voice managed to catch every one's attention.

After all, who was he?

He was the chosen child of this world!

With this reminder, the third prince looked at his birth mother.

The Empress understood this look all too well. The top officials of Da Xia had long been here. They needed an explanation for all that was happening so she called the Head Imperial Physician over.

The arrest of the vile woman could be done later. In their eyes, Noble Imperial Consort Yong and the eldest prince couldn't escape.

"You may repeat your words just now..." She said, full of grief.

"Yes, your Highness. On the fifth day of the eleventh month, twenty sixth year of Du Liang Emperor's reign, his Majesty passed away due to a strong slow-acting arcanum poison[2], ingested for several days in a row."

The royal scribe who was in one of the corners quickly put these words in the records of Da Xia.

It was very sudden news. Although the officials could already guess what happened from the royal family's reaction, some of them still thought that maybe his Majesty was only bedridden.

But most of them weren't sad or in grief. Only questions along the lines of was this a good thing or bad thing for their faction filled their minds.

"May the deities of Da Xia travel with his Majesty in the afterlife!" Everybody kowtowed towards the dragon chambers, chanting three times.

The crying intensified because it was now official. The Emperor was gone!

The top officials who were present had uneasy expressions. This was a very crucial turning point of their lives. There was even a possibility of dying here today if their champion didn't win.

Duke Yin's old face was dark. No one dared to approach him. The three members of the Yin family present were the ones who genuinely looked like a close family member passed away. Their expressions were grim and solemn, appearing as soldiers who lost a comrade in battle.

Everybody here knew just how close the Yin clan was to the Emperor but no one offered words of consolation. After all, a question still remained. Who would be the next sovereign?

They all looked at Emperor Du Liang as some silly puppet; only the Yins treated his Majesty with utmost honor and respect.

After this ritual, the Emperor's personal eunuch must go out with the imperial edict in hand.

A fairly old eunuch came out of the dragon chambers holding a golden edict.

Yin Hua Lei's face dimmed further. It was not Eunuch Min Tong!

Just how absurd could this situation be? If somebody told her that this was not preplanned then she might as well curse that person.

"Hear ye! Hear ye! His Majesty's last will is here!"

The people all knelt to receive it. But when the Empress saw the golden scroll, her face became paler.

"Eunuch Lao! Is Eunuch sure that you're holding the last imperial will?"

The eunuch was confused with this question. What was wrong with the Empress?

"Da Xia's rules say that the last imperial edict have always been a red scroll. Eunuch Lao is holding a regular golden color." Empress Yi An couldn't help but subtly glare at a certain direction.

Yin Hua Lei didn't miss this and followed her gaze.

Imperial Consort Fa received the full brunt of the Empress' glare but she was calm.

"Jiejie, we shouldn't be caught up with the specifics now. There could only be one imperial will after all. What is jiejie worried about?" Imperial Consort Fa's voice had a soothing effect to everyone who was there.