Chapter 672 A Time For Mourning (Part One)


    Amidst the dreadful silence in the Tranquil Hall, the emperor''s body was lying on the bed. At the same


    time, Felix''s body fell to the ground while blood flowed all over him. The eunuchs and maids who were


    on duty to serve were also killed. Francis'' arm was injured and the imperial physician was covering it


    up with a cloth to prevent further infection and bleeding.


    "What happened?" Matthew calmly asked.


    "There were a lot of things which needed to be dealt with tonight. After I finished all of them, it was


    alreadyte at night so I went to the side hall to have a rest. However, in the middle of the night, I heard


    someone screaming for help. Confused, I rushed over and saw Felix killing our father. He was about to


    escape. Out of rage, I identally killed him." Francis could not help the grief from overwhelming his


    handsome face, as if he was too affected by the death of his father and brother.


    It was only then that Matthew''s eyes fell on Francis. He could see that Francis looked very


    disheartened, as if he had lost everything. There was nothing except sorrow on his face. No one would


    ever doubt his innocence. Despite this, Matthew was sure that it was Francis who killed the emperor


    and Felix. That foolish Felix must have been too furious to calm himself down. So he came back to


    question Francis. Francis must have killed him in a battle that he couldn''t have won in the first ce.


    "How are you going to tell the officials about the death of His Majesty?" Matthew abruptly asked.


    Francis looked down on the ground, seemingly in deep thoughts about how to answer that question.


    "Father had been in a critical condition recently. The imperial physician also said that he didn''t have


    much time. Although Felix killed our father andmitted a terrible crime, we are still brothers. Uncle


    Matthew, I want to tell everyone that Father died because of his illness. When Felix heard about this,


    he couldn''t handle it and took his own life. I will suggest that Felix''s funeral ceremony should be as


    grand as the crown prince''s. What do you think?"


    Although Matthew sneered in his heart, he didn''t object to his proposal. "Francis, it''s up to you."


    "Now that Father had suddenly passed away, the marriage for peace alliance will be dyed. Uncle


    Matthew, will you please escort Lilian to the Great Jade Kingdom after Father''s funeral?"


    "Okay, that sounds agreeable," Matthew briefly responded. Now that the emperor was dead, Lilian had


    to mourn for her father. And as the emperor''s younger brother, Matthew couldn''t run away from his duty


    as well. However, he didn''t understand why Francis would think that he could take the throne for


    himself after he killed the emperor at such a time like this.


    Due to the demise of the emperor, the civilians in the imperial capital took down every single object in


    their houses that represented joy. Then, they put on cotton and linen clothes to observe the mourning


    period for thete emperor. Moreover, festive events, music, and entertainment were not allowed within


    three months.


    Inside the pce, Francis was wearing a mourning gown while he arranged the funeral of the emperor


    in an orderly manner. Officials of the Ministry of Rites did not dare to ck in their efforts even by just a


    little bit. Everyone was busy running around, trying to get everything done perfectly. Soon enough, the


    Bureau of Astronomy calcted that the most suitable date for the funeral was seven dayster. As the


    weather grew hotter, the body could not be kept for too long. So the funeral would be held at the


    prescribed date.


    When everything was ready, the officials came to mourn for the emperor. Every woman in the imperial


    pce had been sent to grieve for him as well. But there was someone who was nowhere to be found.


    It was Prince Lucas and soon enough people started asking questions.


    "Do you know where Lucas is?" Francis inquired with so much suspicion in his tone.


    "Your Highness, Prince Lucas hasn''te to the pce so far. He''s not at his own mansion as well. I


    heard, um, I heard that he went to the brothel and hasn''te back yet."


    A frown instantly found itself on Francis'' face. To test his doubts, he decided to find Lucas himself.


    Eventually, he found his younger brother in the room of the brothel''s top courtesan. He didn''t know


    what to feel when he saw Lucas drunk as a skunk.


    The top courtesan, Yvette looked at Francis'' nonchnt face with a smile on her face. "Mister, we''re


    not open yet."


    Francis only ignored her while he grabbed a teapot on the table and threw the water inside it to Lucas.


    The man who had been sound asleep was suddenly drenched and awake. He frowned in annoyance,


    wiped his face, and snapped, "Bastard, who dares to—" But when he saw that it was his brother


    Francis, he immediately changed his tone. "Francis, what brought you here?"


    The frown on Francis'' face couldn''t get any deeper. Instead of answering Lucas'' question, he asked


    back, "Do you know what time is it? Why are you still sleeping here? You are just too—" Francis


    couldn''t finish his sentence because he was just too furious.


    "Francis, did you finally found out how much fun I have in here? Do you want to experience it as well?


    Well, Yvette is excellent. I have a great idea! How about—?" Lucas raised his eyebrow suggestively.


    But Francis'' handsome face was as cold as a stone. "Haven''t you heard the death bell?"


    Lucas was quite surprised. "Death bell? Who died? Why did they ring the death bell?"


    Francis looked at Lucas who looked so confused. In the Imperial Pce, the death bell would only be


    rung when a handful of people passed away. ording to the rules of the Bright Dynasty, the short list


    only included the emperor, the empress, and the empress dowager. The empress dowager had been


    long gone and the empress was just recently dethroned. Only the current emperor was left. How drunk


    was Lucas that he couldn''t remember the meaning of the death bell?This belongs to N?velDrama.Org: ?.


    "Who do you think is eligible for the death bell?" Francis seriously questioned.


    Sluggishly, Lucas answered, "It only rings on the asion that the emperor, the empress, the empress


    dowager..." His voice faded away. He then abruptly yelled when he finally realized what had happened,


    "What? Did our father pass away?"


    Immediately, the expression on Lucas'' face distorted. He was so surprised that tears streamed down


    his cheeks in an instant. No one would ever doubt how genuine his reaction was, especially when he


    grabbed Francis by his cor. "That''s impossible! You''re lying to me. How could he have died? I just


    visited him yesterday. Our father scolded me with so much enthusiasm. He even hit my head in anger.


    How could he pass away in one day? Francis, you''re lying to me, right? Please tell me this is a joke,


    please!"