A country cannot be without a ruler for a day, and this country had been without one for nearly a month. During this time, officials still attended court daily, with Chancellor Cao presiding over meetings. Besides major state affairs, they continuously discussed which prince should succeed to the throne.
Because the late emperor and crown prince had suddenly passed away without designating a successor, and women were forbidden from political interference (the former empress, now empress dowager, had no say in succession), no prince was significantly more powerful than the others, each having numerous supporters. The succession remained undecided and was repeatedly postponed.
However, it could no longer be delayed. During this month, one prince had been poisoned and nearly died, another had been assassinated, and one prince had entered the Grand Rectification Court for orchestrating poisoning and attempting to murder his brother. If the successor was not decided soon, the conflicts among the princes would escalate, potentially continuing until only one remained to take the throne.
The military, led by General Liu, largely supported the Second Prince Luo Ye, known for territorial expansion.
Minister Bao, highly respected in the court, and the scholarly officials supported the Third Prince Luo Zhan for his wisdom and stability. However, with Minister Bao’s death and some political maneuvering, some scholars had shifted to supporting Luo Ye. The Fifth Prince Luo Ding’s heroic act of taking a knife for Luo Ye had also won many hearts.
On this day’s court meeting, the officials debated endlessly about these three princes.
The Minister of Criminal Affairs suddenly proposed that after the investigation of the Second Prince’s assassination by the Capital Prefecture, evidence suggests that the Fifth Prince’s self-sacrificing rescue of the Second Prince was likely a deliberate scheme, which could even suggest something suspicious about the death of Minister Bao. As soon as these words were spoken, the court officials were in an uproar.
Shortly after the morning court session that day, Luo Ye learned of this news and hurriedly discussed it with Pan Xian.
