Compared to others worrying about national mourning, Ding Yun in the Princess's mansion was more concerned about internal strife.
This was because Emperor Longsheng had died too suddenly.
He had not established a crown prince before his death.
If he had summoned ministers and royalty to appoint a successor, it might have been better, but he hadn't. He had died from accumulating poison due to excessive consumption of elixirs.
As for how Ding Yun knew this?
She had used the Peony Fairy Card. After using it, all the peonies in the land became her informants, and currently, her family's peonies were the most renowned in the capital.
The imperial palace was no exception.
Among the hundred new varieties of peonies previously exhibited, several had already been presented as tribute to Emperor Longsheng. They were also greatly favored by him and were placed in his imperial chambers.
Therefore, as long as Ding Yun wanted to know,
She could always find out what Emperor Longsheng was doing.
However, Ding Yun wasn't so bored as to constantly monitor others. It wasn't until she saw the capital under martial law that she contacted the peonies near Emperor Longsheng's quarters to understand the situation.
Ordinary peonies might not be able to transmit accurate and detailed information, but the peonies Ding Yun had offered as tribute to Emperor Longsheng were created by her using the Peony Fairy's abilities. They could not only transmit accurate information but also transfer memories of what had happened, presenting them to Ding Yun's mind in a video format.
Consequently, Ding Yun not only knew that Emperor Longsheng had died suddenly but could also watch the unfolding situation in the palace through the peony's real-time broadcast, witnessing the princes, royalty, and ministers drawing their swords against each other.
This was unavoidable. When Emperor Longsheng died, he hadn't designated an heir, and the Empress Dowager and Empress had already passed away, leaving no one to preside over the crucial affairs.
No one was willing to yield to another, and everyone wanted to become emperor.
There was no one who could suppress the situation.
Before long, Ding Yun's earlier worries became a reality. Emperor Longsheng's adult princes, along with the factions supporting them, had all, in unison, either contacted civil officials to build momentum or rallied military generals and nobles, mobilizing troops and preparing to seize the throne through a direct coup.
The most pitiable were the underage and unmarried princes. They had not yet left the palace and had no personal influence, so they were immediately excluded from the outset.
As the struggle between the princes intensified, even reaching the point of nearly falling out completely, the overall atmosphere in the capital became very tense. Families unwilling to get involved simply closed their gates, mobilizing guards to defend their residences while also seeking escape routes as a precaution.
Perhaps it was because they considered that the issue of imperial succession would become more troublesome if delayed, and it would be best to settle it before the news of the emperor's death fully spread.
Therefore, that afternoon, less than three hours after Emperor Longsheng's demise, a bloody battle began in the imperial palace. Countless lives were lost, especially as the fighting grew desperate. Whether they were civil officials, military generals, imperial consorts, young princes, or princesses, they were all treated the same.
A single strike was enough to end their lives.
The chaos even extended from the imperial palace outwards. Some princes attempted to control ministers by controlling their family members and descendants, indirectly forcing the ministers to recognize them.
Thus, some officials' residences were besieged.
Amidst the chaos, there were also looters and robbers.
As for the Imperial Guards maintaining order, generally, they only obeyed the emperor's commands, and in special circumstances, they would obey the crown prince's orders. However, the emperor was now dead, and the crown prince was unknown, so they were temporarily at a loss, unsure whom to obey.
Ultimately, some chose only to maintain order on the streets, some specifically retreated to areas where residents lived, and some were more proactive, working to help the households of capital officials resist those threatening them.
Ding Yun's Princess's mansion was also attacked simultaneously.
However, she was merely an aging princess with little influence, and her importance to the princes was far less than that of a civil or military official with a voice in court.
Whether the attackers at the Princess's mansion were acting under orders or were simply greedy and thought the Princess's mansion was an easy target was uncertain.
But regardless, they did not succeed.
It was a joke. Ding Yun had now merged with the Peony Fairy Card, and even if a fairy's combat power was weak, it was still beyond the reach of mortals. As they stormed the gates of the Princess's mansion, Ding Yun used her plant immortal arts to activate the vine armor on them, strangling them with their own armor.
To be honest, it was too simple and easy. Why would they wear vine armor? Wasn't that courting death?
If they had worn iron armor, Ding Yun might have had to exert some effort, but wearing vine armor made of plants and trees, no matter how they were processed, Ding Yun's plant immortal arts could activate the life force of the vine armor and attack them in return.
Concurrently, the situation in the imperial palace
was also nearing its end.
The First Prince was shot to death by nine arrows, the Second Prince was stabbed to death by two palace maids amidst the chaos, the Third Prince was hacked to death by several soldiers, and the Fourth, Seventh, and Ninth Princes, along with a series of other princes, all died in the melee.
The Fifth Prince had died of illness the previous year.
The Sixth Prince, who was about to become the final victor, was stabbed to death and taken away by Consort Qi, the Third Prince's birth mother, in a suicide attack just as he touched the dragon throne.
Thus, out of Emperor Longsheng's thirteen princes,
only the Thirteenth Prince, still in swaddling clothes, survived by hiding in the cold palace with his birth mother.
However, he was too young, and neither the royal family nor the ministers
were obviously very keen on him.
Therefore, after the chaos subsided, the palace once again fell into arguments. However, this time, the arguments were between the royal family and the ministers, with fewer princes present.
Who should inherit the throne?
It had to be said, it was peculiar. Their own family members had killed each other off, and the throne could only fall to a collateral branch.
Even the entire court and officials likely resented Emperor Longsheng for not listening to their advice. If he had listened and established a crown prince early on, none of this would have happened.
What was the purpose of establishing a crown prince?
It was to guard against unexpected deaths of the emperor!
Now, it was as if almost the entire family had perished. Out of dozens of family members, only the Thirteenth Prince, still in swaddling clothes, and a few married princesses had survived.
The Thirteenth Prince was still young, and whether he could grow to adulthood was a question. If the Thirteenth Prince also died prematurely, then Emperor Longsheng's lineage would be extinguished.
In the imperial palace, beside Emperor Longsheng's corpse,
the bodies of his children and concubines were almost laid out.
The royal princes and ministers were engaged in heated arguments nearby. Some believed that since only the Thirteenth Prince was alive, he should be enthroned. His young age didn't matter; the Empress Dowager could govern in his stead.
Others argued that a nation needed an adult ruler. The Thirteenth Prince was still too young. Frankly speaking, he could die from a slight accident at this age. Even if he survived and grew up, years of regency by the Empress Dowager would not be beneficial to the court.
The surviving brothers of Emperor Longsheng, the royal princes, were now even more agitated.
They were practically saying, "Let me do it."
After all, if Emperor Longsheng could not have his son succeed him, then the brother succeeding the brother was also quite reasonable.
Among the royal family, their bloodlines were the closest.
This debate lasted for more than three hours, continuing until the early morning of the next day before a compromise, which could barely be considered one, was reached. That was to have Prince Huiyang, who had only seven daughters and no sons, inherit the throne, and establish Emperor Longsheng's Thirteenth Prince as the crown prince.
This way, it was somewhat of a win-win situation, wasn't it?
There was an elder ruler, and the imperial throne of Emperor Longsheng's son was preserved. Prince Huiyang had no sons, so naturally, he had no reason to plot against Emperor Longsheng's Thirteenth Prince.
Moreover, he was already in his early fifties, and the probability of him having another son was very low, making him generally quite safe.
This was definitely safer than a prince with sons inheriting the throne.
And then establishing the Thirteenth Prince as the crown prince.
Although some people were dissatisfied with this, the majority agreed. Those who were unhappy could not say anything further.
Therefore, the matter was quickly settled.
And the next morning, an imperial edict was officially issued, announcing it to the world. However, they still had some pride, and did not dare to admit that the princes had killed each other. They only stated that a plague had broken out in the palace, and Emperor Longsheng, along with the princes, princesses, and concubines, had all died suddenly from the epidemic.
Although dying from a plague was not particularly pleasant,
it was still better than dying from elixirs or from killing each other.