ITVCFITB CHAPTER 67

Chapter 67 — The Palace Coup

No one had expected that, under broad daylight, the Eldest Prince, the Emperor’s firstborn by Consort Lin, would dare to openly confine the Emperor inside the Imperial Study.

The Emperor of Tian Sheng had once fought for his own throne in his youth. So when he saw his eldest son stride in clad in armor, he only looked startled for a moment before regaining his composure.

He had long sensed the strangeness between the Eldest Prince and Consort Lin lately. Ever since the scandal with the Lin family. So this was their plan all along: to force him to abdicate. And they’d moved faster than he’d thought.

The Fourth Prince drew the folding fan from his waist and stepped protectively before the Emperor. “Eldest Brother, dressed like this and barging in without announcement. What are you doing!?”

The Eldest Prince laughed. “What I’m doing? You can’t tell? You traitor and to think I treated you well all these years.”

He looked past him, directly at the Emperor. “Father. What do you think?”

The Emperor’s tone stayed calm. He patted the Fourth Prince’s shoulder. “Peace, my son. Eldest, don’t tell me you mean what I think you mean.”

The Eldest Prince bowed his head slightly. “Yes, Father. You’ve ruled for so many years. You’re not as strong as before, and you’ve missed court more and more often. Your son only thinks it’s time for us, your sons, to share the burden of this empire.”

The Fourth Prince’s face burned with anger. “Eldest Brother! What you’re doing is wounding Father’s heart!”

The Emperor sipped his tea or what he thought was tea and nearly choked. It wasn’t tea at all, but milk tea, the new drink his third son, Li Mingjin, had sent back from the north. Barley milk tea from the grasslands.

He couldn’t help thinking of that son who had just won a battle in the north and comparing him with the one standing before him now. His heart twisted painfully.

The Eldest Prince was his firstborn. Back when he was still Crown Prince himself, he’d pinned his hopes on this child, raising him as the future heir. Even after ascending the throne, he still favored him, even paved paths for him. Yet this was how the boy repaid him, betraying his father for the throne.

The Emperor swallowed the milk tea, but despite the sugar, it tasted bitter.

He sighed and said slowly, “Do you really think sitting on this throne is comfortable? That ruling over life and death makes you free? Tell me, my son, what do you think power gives you?”

The Eldest Prince dropped to one knee before rising again. “Father, I am grateful for your love all these years. But you know how Mother and the Empress have never gotten along, how the Crown Prince and I have always been at odds. If you were gone one day, the Crown Prince would never spare me. I only want to live, to survive. Do you truly not care whether I live or die?”

“You could have spoken to me,” the Emperor said. “I am your father! You think I’d stand by and watch the Crown Prince harm you?”

The Eldest Prince’s voice hardened. “And what about my mother? When the Empress becomes the Empress Dowager, will Mother be left to rot in the Cold Palace?”

The Fourth Prince stepped in again. “Eldest Brother, it doesn’t have to go this far. It’s not too late to turn back!”

The Eldest Prince burst out laughing. “Too late! Far too late! Do you really think I could still turn back after the evidence you brought back from Tong’an? You’re one of the main reasons I’m standing here today, Fourth Brother. If you hadn’t insisted on digging so deep into Lin family affairs, would I be here confronting Father now?”

The Emperor’s voice turned sharp. “It’s Lin family I’m punishing, not you. Your brother did nothing wrong. He was upholding justice. You know as well as I do how much Lin family has stolen! Listen to me, Eldest. You are a son of the Li family, not Lin’s puppet. Think clearly, I’m giving you one last chance.”

The Eldest Prince shook his head. “Father, I’ve already thought this through. I don’t regret it. Whether I succeed or fail, I accept the outcome. I just want to live without fear.”

The Emperor’s eyes darkened. “You think I’ve been comfortable all these years? You think I enjoy being Emperor? I can’t even leave the palace as I please. Every meal is tested for poison, ten years without peace. You want this kind of life?”

“I wouldn’t know until I try,” the Eldest Prince said. “At least I wouldn’t have to die.”

The cries of battle outside were growing louder. Screams echoed from the halls, eunuchs and maids scattering in panic. At the door, the guards clashed with intruders in chaos.

Clearly, the Lin family had placed their people inside the palace long ago, or the Eldest Prince couldn’t have entered so easily. They wanted to seize the capital, and the palace was the first step. To the common folk outside, it hardly mattered who sat on the throne, they only wanted peace and full bellies.

But both the Emperor and the Fourth Prince knew the truth: the Lin family’s stolen wealth had gone to fund private armies. They had been planning this for years. The Eldest Prince was merely their pawn and he didn’t even realize it.

The Emperor’s voice trembled with fury. “All these years of teaching, wasted.”

The Eldest Prince smiled faintly. “Father, you said yourself this life isn’t easy. Why not let me ease your burden? Write the abdication decree. Become the Retired Emperor. Enjoy your twilight years with peace and grandchildren. I’d even be solving a big problem for you.”

The Emperor chuckled bitterly. “You’re eager indeed. But even if I handed you the throne, could you handle the court? The Lin family? You’d just be their puppet. You think I don’t know what your mother has been doing all these years?”

“Had you made her Empress,” the Eldest Prince snapped, “she wouldn’t have had to rely on her family!”

The Emperor sighed. “Everyone has their reasons. Their helplessness.”

The Eldest Prince straightened. “Then let me take care of you, Father.”

The Emperor sipped his milk tea again. It had gone cold, yet it suddenly tasted sweet. He wondered how his third son was faring in the north, that one son who held no selfishness in his heart.

The Fourth Prince stood quietly beside his father, listening to the clash outside, the argument within. He was unafraid. If needed, he would protect his father with his own body.

The Eldest wanted the throne, but whether he could keep it was another matter. He wasn’t the only one with plans. The Crown Prince was watching, and so was he. Back in Tong’an, they’d uncovered Lin family’s secret troops. If not for that, he wouldn’t have rushed back to the capital.

And indeed, barely had he returned with Shen Mingyun when the Lin family made their move.

Blood was shed throughout the palace. Outside, officials were seized; civil and military ministers locked in the side hall during court, their families watched by Lin’s soldiers. No one dared rebel.

The Emperor could barely take a step outside, let alone call for aid.

In the side hall, the trapped officials raged, cursing the heavens, the Lin family, the Eldest Prince. The loudest were the civil officials who normally quarreled over trifles; the military ones would have preferred to fight, but unarmed, they could only grit their teeth.

By dusk, the palace fell into eerie quiet after a day of chaos.

The officials were starving, weak, the air thick with stench.

Even so, the Emperor and Fourth Prince were unharmed, the Eldest had at least spared them, sending maids with food and braziers.

Yet after an entire day, the Emperor still hadn’t written the abdication decree.

As night fell, the Eldest Prince’s grandfather, Lord Lin Hongguang, and his bloodstained uncle swaggered into the palace. They found the Emperor pale but calm, and the Fourth Prince tired but steady, though they hardly spared him a glance.

Lord Lin bowed perfunctorily. “Your Majesty, this old servant is guilty.”

The Emperor’s eyes glinted. “Oh? What guilt do you speak of, Lord Lin?”

“You know it well, Your Majesty,” Lin Hongguang said smoothly. “We only ask that you issue the abdication edict and let Ze’er take over the affairs of the realm.”

“And if I refuse?” the Emperor asked mildly.

“Then,” Lin Hongguang smiled, “we can only invite Your Majesty to become the Retired Emperor.”

The Emperor wasn’t so frail yet. He would not yield so easily.

---

Meanwhile, in the fortress city of Gu, Li Mingjin was interrogating Prefect Zhu.

The man laughed wildly toward the south. “It’s done.”

Li Mingjin’s brows lowered. “What’s done?”

“The Eldest Prince’s plan, of course,” Zhu jeered. “Ah, no, I should already call him His Majesty.”

“You sound very sure,” Li Mingjin said coolly.

“Naturally.”

Li Mingjin’s lips curved faintly. “We’ll see.”

He had heard enough, it was clear who was behind all this. The rest could wait. Zhu would stay imprisoned while he observed how the capital shifted.

Whether his brother succeeded was another matter entirely.

The Crown Prince’s maternal family and the Fourth Prince wouldn’t stand idle. And General Wei was still in the capital. Lin family wouldn’t be allowed to rampage unchecked.

Later, he returned to the residence. Luo Shuyu had set the table, waiting.

“You’re back late tonight, Your Highness,” he said, helping him wash his hands.

“I was interrogating Prefect Zhu,” Li Mingjin replied.

“What did he confess?”

They ate alone, servants dismissed.

“He held out for a while,” Li Mingjin said, “but finally talked. Do you know why?”

Luo Shuyu paused with his chopsticks. “It’s about the capital, isn’t it?”

Li Mingjin nodded. “Smart. The capital’s in chaos. He said the Eldest Brother led a coup today. Looks like Father and the Lin family are facing off.”

“Are you worried for His Majesty?”

Li Mingjin smiled faintly. “Would you believe me if I said I’m not?”

“I would,” Luo Shuyu said, calm. “He’s got eyes and ears in Gu City. There’s no way he doesn’t know Lin family’s every move. For years he’s watched both the Yan and Lin clans closely. He’ll have known the instant they stirred. So, Your Highness, you really don’t have to worry.”

He picked up another bite, unbothered.

Li Mingjin’s eyes softened. “True. And the capital still has the Yan family, and our unassuming Fourth Brother. I thought his southern trip would achieve little, but it seems I underestimated him. Never judge by appearances.”

Luo Shuyu hadn’t expected the coup to come this soon, much earlier than in the “story.”

In that version, of course, the Eldest Prince failed.

But this world had shifted. Last time, it was the Fourth Prince who’d saved the Emperor. Who would it be this time?

Still, the Emperor wasn’t bedridden yet. He could still govern, read memorials. The dynasty still ran smoothly. There were three possible outcomes now: he’d save himself, the Crown Prince’s mother’s family would intervene, or the Fourth Prince would step up.

The first two were likeliest. The Fourth had no army of his own unless, perhaps, in Tong’an he had won over a general. Considering Shen Mingyun’s “protagonist’s luck,” it wasn’t impossible.

“What could the Fourth Prince do without troops?” Luo Shuyu asked.

Li Mingjin answered, “He doesn’t need them. All he has to do is stand before Father. Right now, what Father desires most is filial devotion. If a neglected son shields him at such a time, Father will remember it.”

“So if the Fourth Prince learned of the coup in advance, he’d stay close to protect him.”

Li Mingjin nodded. “That’s what I’d expect of him.”

Luo Shuyu thought of Shen Mingyun and his strange “system.” He was sure Shen had already warned the Fourth Prince. If so, when the coup failed, the Fourth would be the hero again, and the Emperor’s affection for the Eldest would transfer straight to him, just like last time.

So after everything, the result was the same.

Li Mingjin glanced at Luo Shuyu’s silence. “You’re thinking the Fourth will gain Father’s favor, aren’t you?”

Luo Shuyu raised a brow. “Isn’t that likely?”

Li Mingjin chuckled. “You don’t know Father as I do. He’s cold-blooded. The Fourth is too much like him. When he looks at him, he sees his own younger self. Do you think he’d favor him?”

“Maybe not favor,” Luo Shuyu said, “but he might trust him.”

“Perhaps,” Li Mingjin said. “But Father’s suspicious by nature. A sudden act of loyalty would only make him wary, though he might still be touched enough to promise something in the moment.”

“I see,” Luo Shuyu said softly. “I just hope Mother won’t be harmed. Others I can ignore, but if any fool dares hurt her, I’ll—”

Li Mingjin interrupted gently, “She’ll be fine. She can take care of herself.”

Reassured, Luo Shuyu finally let the matter go.

That evening, Physician Lin Yuan came to give Li Mingjin a follow-up examination.

He brought good news, the poison in Li Mingjin’s body had receded further.

That meant his chances of having children were growing stronger.

Later that night, Luo Shuyu lay beside him, his voice low and hoarse. “Your Highness, when do you want to have children?”

Li Mingjin murmured against his ear, “I’m already enjoying the process of making one.”

“…” Luo Shuyu had not meant that.

Only when he was half-asleep did he hear Li Mingjin’s quiet, earnest answer:
“Let it happen naturally.”

And indeed, that was best.

---

Five days later, news arrived from the capital.

Two reports:
One about the palace coup,
And another about Shen Mingyun.

---

Author’s Note：

Third Prince: Wife, I bought a very important book!

Luo Shuyu: What book?

Third Prince: A Complete Guide to Safe Positions During Pregnancy!

Luo Shuyu: …

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