Chapter 497: No accidents, only human intervention

The heir to the throne, Prince Yan, suddenly fell into a coma, and the court ministers were instantly divided into two factions.

One faction believed that the election result was the only result. Since the throne belonged to Prince Yan, as long as he did not die, preparations for the enthronement ceremony should continue to ensure his smooth ascension.

If Prince Yan remained in a coma by the day of the ceremony, then they should simply appoint a Crown Prince, with the Crown Prince acting as regent. Although Prince Yan's eldest son had not yet reached the age of maturity, he was certainly capable of shouldering the heavy responsibility of Crown Prince. Moreover, with the Secretariat assisting in governance, everything could be guaranteed to be foolproof.

The other faction believed that Prince Yan falling into a coma immediately after learning he had won the election was a sign of great inauspiciousness, proving he was not the Son of Heaven and was not recognized by the heavens. This was a terrible omen. If Prince Yan were to inherit the throne, the Great Ming Dynasty would surely face disaster. Therefore, the election result must be annulled, Prince Yan's qualifications to inherit the throne stripped, and a new election held at another time.

Absurd!

Both factions thought the other was utterly absurd.

To let a person in a coma inherit the throne and then appoint a Crown Prince—it was like absurdity opening the door for absurdity; it was absurdity to the extreme.

To strip Prince Yan of the throne just because of a sudden illness was even more absurd.

Of course, there was a third faction mixed in. Their voices were very soft, but their words were deafening enough to make one's heart tremble with fear.

"Prince Yan has never had a history of epilepsy, yet he falls ill on the very day the succession is confirmed. Everyone, don't you think this is highly suspicious? Add to that the previous poisoning and coma of Prince Zhong, as well as the late Emperor's coma—everyone, in such a short time, three important figures of the imperial family have fallen into comas. Isn't this enough to warrant serious attention?

I cannot help but suspect that there is a conspiracy here, a massive conspiracy. This conspiracy is directly linked to the altar explosion. I have reason to suspect that the mastermind behind the altar explosion has intricate connections to these three comas. Their goal is already very clear: they are aiming for the throne. Ask yourselves, with Prince Zhong in a coma and Prince Yan in a coma, whoever is the ultimate beneficiary is the prime suspect."

"You aren't directly naming Prince Jin!"

"I am indeed talking about Prince Jin. Prince Zhong has fallen, Prince Yan has also fallen; who else is more qualified to inherit the throne than Prince Jin?"

"Nonsense! Prince Jin is innocent and clean. Just because of some baseless speculation, he is being burdened with the crime of harming his own kin. Absurd! This is slander and must be severely punished!"

"Don't you think this is too obvious? Prince Jin is not a fool; how could he place himself in such an obviously suspicious position? This looks more like a frame-up!"

"It is a frame-up! Someone must be framing Prince Jin. Prince Yan's sudden illness might just be an act."

"Fart! Prince Yan has already obtained the throne; why would he need to act? It's a superfluous move."

"The purpose of the act is, of course, to get rid of Prince Jin."

"Are you accusing Prince Yan and Prince Jin of fratricide? If you have no evidence, I will charge you with the crime of spreading demonic rumors to confuse the public!"

"Stop arguing! The most urgent matter right now is not to investigate the cause of Prince Yan's sudden illness—it's not that we won't investigate, but we can do it later. The most urgent thing now is, who should inherit the throne? Should we recognize Prince Yan, or hold a new vote? Everyone, make a decision."

"Let's vote! Vote now. Those who believe Prince Yan should inherit the throne, and if Prince Yan has any mishap, that a Crown Prince should be appointed to act as regent, please raise your hands. Each person can only raise their hand once; repeat raising of hands will be counted as abstention. Eunuch Qiu, please handle the registration."

As the Left Minister, Li Liangcheng had to step forward at this critical moment to stabilize the situation.

He was also very decisive.

Things had been back and forth, never smooth, with accidents appearing repeatedly. He knew clearly in his heart that there were definitely human factors involved; one could say there were no accidents, only human intervention.

But he could not be forced to interrupt the progress of the succession just because someone was playing tricks in the dark. Doing so would mean falling into their trap. He would be swift and decisive, holding firmly onto the throne election, and no matter what, he would see this through. He wanted to see exactly how many tricks the person behind the scenes had.

Once the throne was confirmed and the enthronement ceremony concluded, they could look back and investigate everything; sooner or later, they would drag the person behind the scenes out.

In his capacity as Left Minister, he pressured the ministers, ignoring everything else, cutting the Gordian knot.

Qiu Defu coordinated with him tacitly and began counting.

Many ministers hadn't even regained their senses before they had to raise their hands to vote; their hands went up and down, up and down... struggling painfully.

Until Qiu Defu shouted loudly: "Final moment, three, two... one, stop! Good, don't move! This is the result."

The young eunuchs quickly counted, and even recorded the names of the officials who raised their hands one by one.

"Next, those who agree to abandon Prince Yan and hold a new vote to determine the heir, please raise your hands!"

After the first round, the second round of voting was much more straightforward, with fewer people hesitating or struggling. Of course, some chose to abstain, not agreeing with either and choosing neither.

The on-site voting results came out quickly.

"The result is in. The side for abandoning Prince Yan and holding a new vote to determine the heir has won by three votes. Then, tomorrow, right here, we will hold the vote for the heir again. Please everyone..."

"I object!"

The doors of the great hall were suddenly pushed open.

Imperial Consort Gao, bringing several of Prince Yan's sons, stormed in, surrounded by a group of palace attendants and guards.

"Ministers, what are you gathered here discussing? You just elected Prince Yan to inherit the throne, and what, in the time it takes to drink a cup of tea, you want to depose my son, overturning the previous result? On what grounds? Is Prince Yan dead? Does Prince Yan have no sons? I tell you, I only recognize the previous result. Any other result is invalid to me!"

"Imperial Consort, this is the outer court; it is not a place you should be."

"You bully us, a widow and orphans, and won't even let me cry out against the injustice. Are you trying to force my son to his death, to force me to my death? You might as well issue an order now to have the Embroidered Uniform Guard surround the Prince Yan Prefecture and wipe out everyone inside."

"Imperial Consort, please calm your anger; we have no such intention. It is just that Prince Yan's sudden illness is truly a terrible omen, not a blessing for the world, and even less a blessing for the dynasty. For the sake of the world, we have no choice but to make a new decision..."

"Nonsense! As Prince Yan's birth mother, how would I not know if he suffers from epilepsy? He was clearly harmed by someone; he was clearly poisoned. You don't investigate the poisoner, you don't speak up for Prince Yan, and you hide here only thinking about stripping him of the throne. You are all criminals! If you want to bully us mother and son and strip my son of the throne, you will have to step over my dead body first."

Imperial Consort Gao, usually elegant and noble, now disregarded her dignity and status, transforming into a shrew, causing a scene in the court, swearing to protect Prince Yan's throne and never allowing anyone to snatch it away. ===== CHAPTER 498 =====