"What method? Are you sure it will work?" the Second Prince immediately asked anxiously.
"Will that method harm Father Emperor's body? Father Emperor's body is already on its last breath. Will your method make him..." The Fifth Prince's words trailed off, unwilling to utter the word.
"Put away your pretense. Do you have a better method now?" the Fourth Prince sneered.
The Fifth Prince was silenced by the Fourth Prince's remark, not knowing what to say. This Fourth Brother had been sarcastic since his leg was broken, looking down on everyone.
"I think if Sixth Brother's method is really viable, it's much better than us arguing here." The Seventh Prince, being the youngest among them, had always lacked authority.
"I also support Sixth Brother's method. What do you need for your method?" The Second Prince had calmed down a bit by this point.
"This, I need to let someone in to treat Father Emperor. She should be able to make Father Emperor briefly conscious, but she can't do more than that."
Zhao Yan Xiang knew he couldn't tell them about his aunt, or even their soon-to-be-awakened Father Emperor.
After all, people were greedy. His mother's fate had already shown him how wicked human hearts could be.
"Then I will authorize that person to enter. What is your decision?" The Second Prince desperately wanted the Emperor to wake up quickly. As the eldest, he was rightfully supposed to take the throne.
"I agree as well," the Fifth Prince made his decision.
"Then I agree too. Whoever becomes Emperor makes no difference to me," the Fourth Prince said casually.
The Seventh Prince wanted to say something but swallowed his words and nodded.
"Then it's settled."
On the very day Zhao Yan Xiang brought Aunt Meng into the palace, the First Prince breathed his last in his residence. The First Prince's death, coupled with Prince Yingchuan's relentless pressure from outside, threw the court officials into a panic.
Several old ministers directly submitted memorials urging the Second Prince to ascend the throne, and some even knelt at the palace gates begging the Second Prince to ascend. Of course, there were other voices, but they were drowned out by the calls for the Second Prince to take the throne.
Not long after Aunt Meng entered the palace, the Emperor awoke. The awakened Emperor clearly did not understand what was happening. His memory was still stuck on the stab from the Third Prince.
"Where is that unfilial son?" the Emperor asked through gritted teeth.
"Father Emperor, are you asking about Third Brother? He is already dead. Just now, news arrived that Eldest Brother has also passed away."
"What, what happened?" Hearing that his eldest son had died, the Emperor's hands began to tremble involuntarily.
"Third Brother lured Eldest Brother into the palace..." The Second Prince explained in detail to the Emperor what had happened in the palace while he was unconscious.
The events of these past few days were hard for the Emperor to accept. Especially when he heard about Prince Yingchuan's rebellion, he was enraged.
"Kill, kill him for me!" the Emperor said with difficulty.
Now that the Emperor was awake, their conversations naturally lost their previous casualness. The Second Prince had many supporters, but he still sought legitimacy.
"Father Emperor, many ministers are waiting outside the palace. Do you wish to summon them?" the Second Prince asked cautiously.
They had to confirm the next successor to the throne as soon as possible. Sixth Brother had just said that the Emperor's lucidity could only last for at most three hours.
"Summon them in. I need to draft an edict." The Emperor also felt his strength waning. He felt that his end was truly near this time.
But she had clearly extended his lifespan by ten years.
"How did I wake up?" His gaze fell upon Zhao Yan Xiang, who was standing in the corner.