I slaughtered my way through the border at the start, I am the Great Ming's Night Raider!

"presumptuous!"

The Grand Princess abruptly stood up. "How dare you, Cao Jixiang, run wild in the Fengtian Hall!"

She slammed her hand on the armrest: "The Embroidered Uniform Guard!"

A group of Imperial Guards rushed into the hall. The leader was a middle-aged man with a stern face. It was Uncle Zhao. He had escaped danger at some point and had even changed into the uniform of an Imperial Guard.

"Greetings, Your Highness!" Uncle Zhao knelt on one knee.

"Commander Zhao, seize Cao Jixiang." The Grand Princess's voice was icy.

"yes!"

Uncle Zhao stood up, waved his hand, and the Imperial Guards surrounded him.

Cao Jixiang took a few steps back, his face fierce but his voice weak: "You dare! I am the Grand Master of Ceremonial, appointed by the Emperor himself! Without the Emperor's decree, who dares to touch me!"

"Your Majesty?" The Grand Princess descended the steps and approached Cao Jixiang. "Cao Jixiang, I ask you, how is His Majesty now?"

"Your Majesty...His Majesty is recuperating..."

The Grand Princess sneered, "I'm going to see the Emperor right now. Do you dare stop me?"

Cao Jixiang was speechless.

The Grand Princess ignored him and turned to the assembled officials: "All of you have seen it. Cao Jixiang forged an imperial edict, abused his power, embezzled public funds, framed loyal officials, and may even be involved in the deaths of Prince Zhao and Eunuch Qin. Such a treacherous official must be eliminated to uphold justice!"

She paused, then continued, "As regent, I hereby order: Cao Jixiang to be stripped of all his posts, imprisoned in the imperial prison, and interrogated rigorously! The Eastern Depot will be temporarily managed by other eunuchs from the Directorate of Ceremonial, with the Embroidered Uniform Guard assisting in the investigation!"

"Your Highness is wise!" Li Yan was the first to kneel down.

"Your Highness is wise!" The officials knelt down one after another.

Cao Jixiang looked at the officials kneeling on the ground, then at the Imperial Guards surrounding them, and suddenly burst into laughter: "Good! Good! Zhu Mingyue, you're impressive! But don't forget, the Ming Dynasty hasn't changed yet!"

He was taken away by the Imperial Guards. Before leaving, he glared fiercely at Chen Yuan, his eyes like those of a venomous snake, full of resentment.

The court session has ended.

As the officials gradually withdrew from the Fengtian Hall, the discussions lingered for a long time.

Chen Yuan stood there, watching Cao Jixiang being led away, but felt no joy of victory.

It went too smoothly, almost unreal.

Cao Jixiang had cultivated his influence for many years, and his cronies were spread throughout the government and the country. How could he fall so easily?

"Mingyuan".

The Grand Princess approached, her eyes filled with concern and worry. "You did very well today. But... be careful."

"What is Your Highness worried about?"

"Even a cornered dog will jump over the wall." The Grand Princess lowered her voice. "Cao Jixiang isn't alone; he has... others behind him."

"Who?"

The Grand Princess didn't answer, but looked at the gloomy sky outside the palace: "The weather is about to change. The real storm hasn't even started yet."

She turned and left, leaving Chen Yuan alone in the empty hall.

Uncle Zhao walked over and patted him on the shoulder: "Young master, you fought a brilliant battle today."

"Uncle Zhao, your injury..."

"It's nothing, just a superficial injury," Uncle Zhao said. "The Qinglong Society saved me and even helped me infiltrate the Embroidered Uniform Guard. Wei Qinglong is... no simple man."

Chen Yuan nodded.

He remembered the favor the Green Dragon Society had done for him.

The two walked out of Fengtian Hall.

Outside, the snow has started falling again.

Snowflakes fell thick and fast, covering the palace, the streets, and everything that had just happened.

But Chen Yuan knew that some things could not be covered by snow.

For example, hatred, power, and human nature.

Cao Jixiang has fallen, but the struggle has only just begun.

The real game is only just beginning.

He was already caught in the middle of it all.

In the distance, the bells tolled again. This time, they weren't for court assemblies, but... death knells.

Chen Yuan was shocked: "This is..."

Eunuch Li rushed in, his face deathly pale: "Your Highness! Your Highness! News has come from Qianqing Palace... The Emperor... The Emperor has passed away!"

The snow fell heavier and heavier.

It covered the entire capital city.

It also covered an entire era.

The death knell tolled throughout the Forbidden City.

Nine shots, then nine more, and then nine more.

This is the protocol for the emperor's death; the heavy, slow tolling of the bells is like a dull knife, cutting into everyone's heart.

The snow was still falling, but chaos had already broken out in the palace.

People were kneeling outside the Qianqing Palace.

Concubines, princes, princesses, eunuchs, and palace maids—a dark mass of people, their cries shaking the heavens.

But if you look closely, you'll see that some people are genuinely crying, some are just wailing, and some are looking down with their eyes darting around—all thinking about the same thing: The emperor is dead, what's next?

Crown Prince Zhu Qizhen was only nine years old.

How can a nine-year-old child be an emperor?

Chen Yuan stood under the corridor of Yongshou Palace, looking in the direction of Qianqing Palace in the distance.

He had just changed out of his court robes and back into his everyday clothes, but the smell of blood and intrigue seemed to have seeped into his very bones and could not be washed away.

"Young master, His Highness requests your presence."

Eunuch Li hurried over, his face paler than snow.

In the inner palace, the Grand Princess was staring blankly at a list.

Seeing Chen Yuan come in, she pushed the list over: "Take a look."

The list contained dozens of names: the three Yangs of the cabinet (Yang Rong, Yang Pu, and Yang Shiqi), the ministers of the six ministries, the commanders of the five military governorships, and several representatives of the princes in Beijing.

"This is..."

"These are the people who will be holding the funeral arrangements for the late Emperor tomorrow," the Grand Princess said, rubbing her temples. "They will also be the ones to decide who will serve as regent."

Chen Yuan understood.

With the emperor's death and the crown prince being too young, someone must assist in governing.

Who will provide support? How will they provide support? These are the questions that will be debated next.

"As soon as Cao Jixiang fell, all these people jumped out."

The Grand Princess sneered, "Yang Rong took money from Cao Jixiang and is now eager to distance himself. Yang Pu wants to be the Grand Secretary, and Yang Shiqi wants to reap the benefits. The Six Ministries are all acting independently, and the Military Governor's Office wants military power... And those princes, the remnants of the Prince of Han's faction are still around, and although the Prince of Zhao is dead, his son is still in his fiefdom..."

She paused, then looked at Chen Yuan: "Mingyuan, what do you think we should do?"

Chen Yuan pondered for a moment: "The most urgent task is to stabilize the situation. The news of the Emperor's death has already spread. The capital cannot be in chaos, and the border cannot be in chaos either. We should immediately issue an edict ordering the Commander of the Nine Gates to strengthen defenses and the Five City Garrison to patrol day and night. At the same time, we should send an imperial envoy to Xuanfu and Datong to appease the border troops and prevent the Tatars from taking the opportunity to cause trouble."

"Anything else?"

"And..." Chen Yuan looked at the list, "We need to clearly distinguish who among these people is usable and who is not. Although Cao Jixiang has fallen, his cronies are still around. We need to hold a meeting tomorrow to prevent them from launching a counterattack."

The Grand Princess nodded: "That's right. But there's something else that's more urgent."

"What is it?"

"Crown Prince."

The Grand Princess sighed softly, "The Crown Prince is currently in Kunning Palace, being cared for by Empress Sun. But Empress Sun is Cao Jixiang's person. Although Cao Jixiang has fallen from grace, she is still the Crown Prince's birth mother..."

Chen Yuan felt a chill run down his spine.

The crown prince is in the empress's hands; if the empress harbors disloyal intentions...

"Your Highness means..."

"I'm going to Kunning Palace to bring the Crown Prince to Yongshou Palace." The Grand Princess stood up. "You will come with me."

Just as the two were about to leave, Qin Xiang rushed in: "Your Highness, something terrible has happened! The Embroidered Uniform Guard has reported that... that Cao Jixiang has committed suicide by biting off his tongue in the imperial prison!"

"What?!"

The Grand Princess's expression changed. "When did this happen?"

"Just now," Qin Xiang said, "when the Imperial Guards found him, he was already dead."

Chen Yuan frowned: "What a coincidence? He committed suicide right after being locked up?"

"Yes," Qin Xiang said, "and...and before he died, he wrote a letter in blood."

"What did you write?"

Qin Xiang took out a piece of white cloth from her bosom, on which were written several words in blood: "Zhu Mingyue, you will die a horrible death! I'll be waiting for you down there!"

The handwriting was messy, but the resentment and malice were palpable.

The Grand Princess took the blood-written letter, read it for a long time, and finally sneered, "He's feeling guilty. He knew he couldn't survive, so he simply committed suicide, at least leaving behind a reputation for 'not fearing death.' As for this blood-written letter... it's nothing more than a pre-death display of verbal sparring."

She threw the blood-written letter into the charcoal brazier; the cloth ignited upon contact with the fire and turned to ashes.

"It's better that he's dead," the Grand Princess said. "It'll save us from any unforeseen complications. Qin Xiang, tell Uncle Zhao to dispose of Cao Jixiang's body properly, so as to prevent any future trouble."

"Yes."

"Also, investigate who had contact with Cao Jixiang before his death. Especially... people in the palace."

Qin Xiang accepted the order and left.

The Grand Princess then looked at Chen Yuan again: "Let's go to Kunning Palace."