The civil and military officials were all a little numb.
By now, everyone looked like they were lying and messing with them.
"Fourth Prince, you... are you telling the truth?"
Since Fourth Young Master held Wu Xian's handwritten abdication edict, he was the rightful heir. That made his repeated refusals just now seem rather foolish. He could have spared himself a lot of trouble, so why had he kept it secret? The officials were somewhat suspicious of the edict.
Fourth Young Master was suffering in silence.
But he knew all too well that he still had a chance to climb down the steps now. If he turned back, he'd be thrown off the high platform and end up smashed to pieces. He could only grit his teeth and keep spinning his story. "Of course it's true! I didn't mention it only because the edict abdicating in favor of the youngest arrived first! As a son, how could I defy my biological father? As an elder brother, how could I bully my youngest brother? The country is in peril, and as a son and subject, I must put the stability of the realm above the pursuit of power. I truly didn't want to cause more trouble, so I decided to keep the news secret. Who could have guessed that people's hearts are unfathomable, and not everyone would see things that way..."
The "people's hearts are unfathomable" that Fourth Young Master spoke of was Fifth Young Master.
Fifth Young Master had lost his mind as soon as he heard that the throne would be passed to the youngest. He'd hastily rallied troops to force his way into the palace, launched a Palace Coup, and killed his own siblings and stepmother. His greed for power had reached its peak! He, on the other