Chapter 502 - 481: First Update
As these words were uttered, everyone suddenly froze in place, momentarily unable to grasp the implications of Empress Dowager Yan Ping’s words. A deathly silence ensued, with those kneeling, standing, or facing away each harboring different thoughts.
Old Master Wen Kang looked toward Empress Dowager Yan Ping in horror. He had been vigilant against every move of Empress Xiao and Zheng Congyuan, how could he have forgotten this old cunning figure?!
Hadn’t this old cunning figure been feigning illness for a while? She had been quiet up till now, her mind filled with the late Emperor Jingzhi, mourning Emperor Jingzhi. Yet now, she stirred these troubled waters again.
"Impossible," Old Master Wen Kang immediately retorted as soon as Empress Dowager Yan Ping finished speaking. Surely nothing good could come from her words. The wills they had been injured to create were all forgeries, how could she possibly have a genuine will?
After speaking, Old Master Wen Kang thought, thankfully, he had a backup plan. After they had crafted those wills, they had switched the late Emperor Jingzhi’s private seal. If theirs were false, they would naturally be false.
"Old Master Wen Kang, what now? I am the Empress Dowager of Nanzheng. Would I falsify an imperial edict?" Empress Dowager Yan Ping wouldn’t argue with him about possibilities. Instead, she pinpointed the crux of the matter with a single sentence, being the Empress Dowager of Nanzheng, she was the most likely person to possess the will.
"Empress Dowager, since there is a will..." Prime Minister Lin said, more excited than others, yet the will in his hands was also genuine.
Empress Dowager Yan Ping stepped forward shakily.
"The Emperor had long left a will, not placed on that bookshelf, but above that plaque, He Ling..." He Ling paused slightly, clearly unaware, but quickly vaulted onto the beam. The next moment, he really did pull out a bright yellow package from behind the plaque, causing everyone in the great hall to gasp in shock. There really was one.
Prime Minister Lin hurried forward and pulled out the will, suddenly beaming with joy.
"This, this is also genuine, the Emperor’s will stipulates the Crown Prince to succeed the throne, heavens are open-eyed—" Prime Minister Lin’s voice raised a few notches, instantly passing the imperial edict around.