Chapter 534: Interference

"I have heard that the Crown Prince has passed away, and I am deeply grieved. I would like to see him one last time."

"Would Her Majesty the Empress Dowager be willing to have someone open the prince's coffin so I may see him?"

Empress Dowager Yuan did not give a direct answer. She frowned and said disapprovingly, "The coffin has already been sealed, and the funeral rites have been performed. Wouldn't it be inappropriate to open the coffin now?"

"After all, Yi'er is the legitimate son of Emperor Chu. Opening the coffin would be too disrespectful to him!"

Yuan Jiuan raised an eyebrow, his tone still warm, "So, does Her Majesty think that burying the Crown Prince with the Empress is showing them respect?"

Empress Dowager Yuan: "..."

Empress Dowager Yuan: "!!!"

She hadn't expected Yuan Jiuan to throw that in her face.

Empress Dowager Yuan was angry, but she didn't let it show on her face.

"You've come a long way to the capital, and I welcome you, but this is my family's business after all. Isn't it inappropriate for an outsider like you to interfere?"

Yuan Jiuan smiled at her, "Her Majesty seems to have forgotten the privilege the founding emperor granted to successive Princes Chengxuan."

"If Your Majesty can't remember, I can help jog your memory."

As he spoke, he extended his hand, and the black-clad guard Ying Jue beside him immediately produced a scroll and placed it in his palm.

The scroll unfurled to reveal an imperial edict, slightly yellowed with age, but the ministers recognized at once that it was left by the late emperor and had been around for years.

Yuan Jiuan read it aloud right in front of everyone.

"By the grace of heaven, the emperor decrees: I, having inherited the heavenly mandate and governed all lands, mindful of the ties of kinship within the imperial clan, do hereby bestow upon Yuan Qing, head of the Yuan family, the title of Prince Chengxuan, to be passed down in perpetuity, enjoying the prestige of a prince. I grant successive Princes Chengxuan the privilege to purge evil from the court, to protect the peace of our dynasty, and to counsel me in state affairs. Respect this!"

After hearing this, Empress Dowager Yuan's face darkened, and anger surged in her eyes.

"Purging the court of evil" simply meant eliminating treacherous and petty people around the monarch, as well as those with malicious intentions.

Those who held this privilege could assist the emperor and could also act first and report afterward. In short, as long as everything they did protected the Chu imperial clan's royal interests, it was all justified.

She clenched her fists and said with a tight, forced smile, "It's true that you hold the privilege to purge the court of evil, but as far as I know, no Prince Chengxuan in history has ever meddled in royal affairs. Does Your Highness intend to get involved in these matters?"

Yuan Jiuan looked at her and said without flinching, "They are them, and I am me. In the past, the Chu imperial clan's people were at peace, and the court was stable, so there was no need for the Prince Chengxuan to get involved in such matters."

"But now things are different. If I don't step in, I'm afraid the royal family of the Xishu Kingdom will soon change its name and see a change of dynasty!"

These words provoked Empress Dowager Yuan. She could clearly tell he was accusing her.

She had thought he would be more tactful, but she hadn't expected Yuan Jiuan to be so direct.

He openly and covertly rebuked her in front of the ministers, without leaving her any face at all.

Empress Dowager Yuan immediately stopped being polite and said through gritted teeth, "Your Highness's words are quite interesting. Now that Emperor Chu is gravely ill, the Crown Prince is dead, and no heir has been left, the Chu clan has no successor. Surely someone has to inherit the throne?"

"I've been acting as regent for two years now, and I'm getting old. I can't hold this position forever. How would the people of the Xishu Kingdom think of me?"

"Changing the dynasty and establishing a new crown prince is simply a necessity of the times, and all the ministers have agreed to it. Does the Prince Chengxuan have an objection?"

After Empress Dowager Yuan finished speaking, some of the lower-ranking ministers looked at each other in bewilderment.

The Empress Dowager was going to establish a new crown prince? Why hadn't they heard of this?

But they quickly figured out the reason—if the old crown prince didn't die, how could a new one ascend?

Whether there was any foul play involved, only Empress Dowager Yuan herself knew!

Yuan Jiuan stroked his chin, appearing to be in thought, and after a moment, he nodded.

"Her Majesty the Empress Dowager is right. The Crown Prince is dead, and the royal family has no successor. It is fitting to establish a new crown prince."

"Then why not have someone open the coffin and let me see the Crown Prince?"

Seeing how persistent he was, Empress Dowager Yuan said no more and simply ordered her attendants, "Did you not hear that His Highness wishes to see? Go open the coffin at once."

Several guards stepped forward, lifted the coffin down from the hearse, and opened it.

Lying inside was unmistakably the charred, unrecognizable corpse of a man.

Ji Yuntang was also seeing this corpse for the first time. At a rough glance, the body in the coffin was nearly the same height as Hua Feixue.

But the build was much thinner than Hua Feixue's, making it difficult for anyone unfamiliar with him to tell the difference.

Ji Yuntang looked at Yuan Jiuan, wondering how he would distinguish it. To her surprise, he merely leaned in for a look, then plucked a very short strand of hair from the body, wrapped it in cloth, and put it away.

Yuan Jiuan spoke, saying to Empress Dowager Yuan, "With this strand of hair, I can return and report to my father. Her Majesty may now have someone close the coffin!"

Empress Dowager Yuan: "..."

She twitched her mouth, feeling that Yuan Jiuan must be out of his mind.

However, since he had not noticed anything amiss, the heavy stone in her heart was finally lifted.

Empress Dowager Yuan ordered the coffin to be sealed and placed back on the hearse. Just as she was about to head to the imperial mausoleum, Yuan Jiuan spoke again.

"Her Majesty, please wait. I have one more request."

Empress Dowager Yuan looked at him. "If Your Highness has a request, please speak freely."

Yuan Jiuan said directly, "The Xishu Kingdom upholds filial piety. It is the rule that children cannot be buried together with their parents, let alone when the ones being buried together are the Empress and the Crown Prince."

"Therefore, I ask Her Majesty to revoke the decision to bury the Crown Prince together with the Empress, and to find a separate burial site for the Crown Prince, so that both their spirits may rest in peace."

Empress Dowager Yuan clenched her fingers tightly. Throughout her conversation with Yuan Jiuan, she had realized that he was a man of his word who would not be swayed.

She did not wish to continue arguing with him, so she reluctantly said, "I grant your request. Let the Imperial Astrologer find a separate burial site for the Crown Prince."

With that, the hearse of the False Crown Prince was finally able to pass through unhindered.

Empress Dowager Yuan invited Yuan Jiuan to the palace and hosted a banquet in his honor. Yuan Jiuan did not decline.

After the banquet ended, Empress Dowager Yuan said, "Your Highness must be tired from the long journey. I will have someone arrange a residence for you to rest."

Yuan Jiuan declined, saying, "Thank you for your kindness, Your Majesty, but there is no need to go to the trouble. I have already had my men book lodging at an inn outside. Tonight, I will be staying outside the palace."

What Empress Dowager Yuan did not know was that there was a note hidden in Yuan Jiuan's sleeve—one that Ji Yuntang had slipped to him when no one was watching.

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