king.

Chapter 760 Emperor's Death
Unable to obtain more useful information, Hudson, like many local governors, could only rush to the imperial city first.

Under normal circumstances, when the emperor dies, the crown prince will directly succeed to the throne, but the situation is different now, the prince is too young.

Theoretically, the son of Caesar IV is the first in line of succession, but there is another saying on the continent of Aslant: the country relies on the eldest son, and the throne will be passed on to the younger brother after the elder brother's death.

There have been precedents in the history of the Alpha Kingdom!

There is no doubt that this change of power that breaks the order of succession was not voluntary on the part of the monarch, but rather something he was forced to accept.

At the last court meeting, Caesar IV made it clear that the throne would be inherited by the young prince, and he also nominated five ministers.

Unfortunately, the appointment of assistant ministers was not approved due to opposition from the conservative camp, which created some uncertainty.

If someone in the royal family had an idea and gained the support of the majority of court officials, and used the principle of "the country relies on the eldest son and the younger son succeeds the elder brother" to ascend to the throne, it would also be legal.

In this context, if Caesar IV wanted his son to ascend to the throne smoothly, he could not just die in confusion. He had to announce his will in front of all his ministers in order to win more supporters.

Fortunately, we are living in a peaceful time. If we were unfortunately living in a chaotic time, even the emperor might not be able to help his son ascend to the throne according to his will.

……

"How is your Majesty's health?"

Hudson asked concerned.

Compared to the local governors, he, the dragon knight, arrived faster. At this time, the civil and military officials of the court, the princes and nobles of the imperial capital, had all arrived at the palace.

Most of them were not qualified to contact the emperor. Even the edict was only passed on after it was handed down, but it did not affect everyone's enthusiasm at all.

"Marshal, His Majesty is in a coma and is relying on medicine to keep him alive. Once he wakes up, he will die..."

After hearing the Prime Minister's answer, Hudson nodded slightly.

He knew how bad Caesar IV's health was. It had been nearly a year since the curse was expelled, so it was normal for him to be at the end of his life.

This account can only be attributed to the mastermind behind the scenes. Alpha I died, but the mastermind behind the scenes did not surface.

The establishment of the Alpha Empire made many forces feel threatened. Provoking internal strife within the empire became the common choice of many forces.

There are so many suspects who have the motive and the ability to plan all this that it is impossible to find them.

It was not only Caesar IV who was plotted against, but also Alpha I. Even Hudson suspected that Alpha I might have been targeted earlier than Caesar IV.

However, to plot against a Saint Domain expert, the means needed to be used were different. If you cast a curse directly, it would definitely be discovered immediately, so a more covert method was needed.

For example: arranging people to defect to Alpha I and inadvertently provoking conflicts. It doesn't matter if it happens once or twice, but it will definitely have an impact over time.

Or other covert means.

As far as Hudson knew, Alpha I was seriously injured in the last melee in the Sanctuary and almost died on the battlefield.

But it is meaningless to discuss this now. The people are dead anyway, and the mastermind got what he wanted.

The internal conflicts within the empire had indeed been provoked. Under the seemingly stable situation, there had actually been undercurrents.

The conservative camp is the only dominant one, and the other camps are just temporarily tolerating, which does not mean that everyone is willing to admit defeat.

With the resurgence of the merger wave, the contradictions between the great nobles and the small and medium nobles became increasingly acute.

Even though everyone got a taste of the spoils in this wave of mergers, the trust built during the war was gone.

In addition to these contradictions, there is another main contradiction hidden in the empire: the middle and lower class nobles who have not been well fed in the wave of expansion hope that the empire will continue to expand outward.

In the short term, the voices advocating war could be suppressed. However, the damage caused by the war was too great, and the civilian economy of the Alpha Empire was in a very bad state.

If economic problems are not resolved in time, they will sooner or later turn into political problems and ultimately lead the empire into a path of no return.

The territory exchange played by the local nobles was in itself a trap. Moving from the developed cultivated land to the uninhabited grassland would cause a large number of small nobles to go bankrupt.

In the past six months, the performance of the Near East Development Bank has been soaring, and the lending difficulty of other commercial banks has also dropped significantly, which explains a lot of problems.

Theoretically, noble loans are secured by territories, so there is no need to worry about the security of the loans.

However, reason tells Hudson that any group or individual has a limit to their debt-bearing capacity. Once the critical point is reached, it will explode.

In fact, the wave of aristocratic bankruptcy should have broken out long ago. The only reason it was delayed until now was because of the emergence of banks, which provided them with a financing channel.

Borrowing money delayed the outbreak of the crisis, but there was a limit. Hudson suddenly became panicked, and he had inadvertently become the biggest creditor of the imperial nobles.

What's worse is that the loans issued by the Near East Development Bank are mainly accumulated by printing gold bills and leveraging.

Because of the war, a large amount of domestic wealth flowed out, and the currency circulating in the Alpha Empire was generally insufficient.

One thunder, followed by another.

The Alpha Empire, which looks bright and beautiful on the outside, is riddled with holes on the inside. If you are not careful, there will be disaster.

Under this background, allowing the conservative camp to govern is actually beneficial to the recovery of the empire's economy.

It's not because of anything they did, but these old guys are conservative enough and won't mess around.

The atmosphere at the scene was very depressing. Even if one met an acquaintance, they would only communicate through eye contact.

It can be felt that everyone is in a bad mood.

Less than a year after the empire was established, there was an impending change in imperial power, which was definitely a bad sign.

Time passed minute by minute, and the governors of various provinces began to arrive one after another. Suddenly, the hoarse voice of the prime minister was heard.

"Your Majesty is awake, you can go in now!"

Upon receiving this news, everyone frowned.

Only half of the provincial governors had arrived when he summoned everyone inside. It was obvious that Caesar IV could no longer hold on.

Without any hesitation, Hudson walked past the crowd, came to the front of the team, and strode into the ward.

The scene of my first meeting with Caesar IV involuntarily emerged in my mind.

All the unpleasantness of the past has gone with the wind, and this meeting is a farewell forever.

"Your Majesty is not feeling well and cannot speak, so I will read the imperial edict on your behalf.

You have no objection, right? "

After hearing what Venerable Terran said, the scene suddenly fell silent.

Obviously, this result cannot satisfy everyone.

Judging from Caesar IV's mental state, he clearly did not have the ability to draft a will.

The so-called awakening was just the movement of the eyes, which was completely incapable of revealing one's true intentions.

If the edict was not prepared in advance, it must have been a forged edict fabricated by the royal family.

Even if you are prepared in advance, you cannot rule out the suspicion of tampering.

The matter was of great importance and no one was willing to express their opinion easily. The atmosphere at the scene suddenly became tense.

"Why don't you obey the king's orders when his majesty is still alive?"

After saying this, the Queen's tears started to flow, mixed with the prince's sobbing, making the ministers very embarrassed.

It’s really not that they are deliberately causing trouble, but for the will to be effective, it must first be confirmed that it is the emperor’s wish.

Even if the will was drafted in advance, there should be a photo stone record to stop the outside world from gossiping.

"Your Excellency, please read it!"

Hudson spoke up, breaking the silence.

After all, they were a king and his subjects, and he couldn't bear to see Caesar IV engage in another political game on his deathbed.

As for whether the will can play a role, it depends on the specific content.

If the core interests of all parties are touched upon, his face as a marshal will be of no use.

“Prince Caesar has inherited the throne;
The Queen is Regent;

The Grand Duke Hudson, the Duke of Becket and the Grand Duchess Madeleine were appointed as assistant ministers.

The above edicts were all dictated by Your Majesty."

As soon as Venerable Terran finished speaking, Caesar IV died on the hospital bed, and the whole place was filled with tears.

Everyone who was originally struggling with the authenticity of the edict began to shed tears.

After all, they were politicians, and after a brief moment of sadness, everyone recovered quickly.

The people believed the contents of the edict to be 70%. Even if it was not dictated by Caesar IV, it was his own opinion.

Caesar IV had expressed this at the last court meeting.

The only difference is that the five ministers were reduced to three, excluding the two who were strongly opposed by the conservative camp.

The prince's succession to the throne and the queen's regent are all in accordance with procedures and there is nothing to be controversial about.

Among the three ministers, Hudson represents the military, Beckett represents the government, and Madeleine represents the royal family.

At the last meeting, the conservative camp vetoed the appointment of Grand Duchess Madeleine, but at this time, they could no longer veto it.

Ministers always had to give face to the late emperor. Even if they were dissatisfied, they could only wait and find ways to get rid of him later.

The person who gave the six ministers the most headache at this time was not Grand Duchess Madeleine. Even though she represented the royal family, her influence in the court was ultimately limited.

What really worried them was Hudson. If it weren't for the wrong occasion, some people would have cursed him as a tyrant.

Since his debut, Hudson has left the impression on the outside world that he is: strong!
The army needs to obey orders and it is not a big problem if the commander-in-chief has the final say.

It’s different in the court.

The entry of a strong assistant minister into the central government is bound to lead to fierce conflict with the conservative government.

What's worse is that Hudson is not alone, he has supporters from the court to the local level.

It is easy to form a faction to compete with the conservative government headed by the six ministers.

In the short term, the formation of checks and balances in the court will definitely be beneficial to consolidating imperial power.

The trouble is that Hudson lives too long and can easily outlive a group of conservative bigwigs and then take power alone.

The conservative camp is unable to resolve this threat. Everyone is good at political struggle, but normal struggle cannot eliminate Hudson.

If Hudson plays tricks, he has the potential to overturn the table.

With the title of regent and Hudson's own prestige, he could just go to the imperial garrison camp and pull out the troops.

Maybe before they are exhausted to death, they will be driven back to their hometown by a coup d'état.

If the court becomes a one-man show of power or an unshakable dictatorship, the consequences will be absolutely disastrous.

Such personnel appointments are purely digging a hole.

……

“Grand Duchess Madeleine, Duke Beckett, the Queen is not in the right mental state right now and is temporarily unable to manage the affairs.

The three of us will divide up the work of arranging the funeral.

Grand Duke Madeleine will handle the funeral affairs within the palace, Duke Beckett will handle the funeral affairs outside the palace, and I will handle the international funeral affairs."

The emperor's funeral cannot be neglected, especially for a monarch like Caesar IV who had made outstanding achievements during his reign, the funeral must be held in a grand manner.

While the two were still not reacting, Hudson directly threw the most troublesome work out.

"it is good!"

Grand Duchess Madeleine agreed decisively.

Among the three great ministers, her prestige is the lowest.

Funeral is her chance to show her abilities.

Don't expect to establish prestige among the ministers, but at least establish prestige within the royal family and consolidate the basic base first.

With the support of the royal family, her position as an assistant minister is no longer just a figurehead.

"Just as the Marshal said!"

After a brief thought, Prime Minister Beckett nodded in response.

The government is definitely responsible for domestic funeral affairs. This is their responsibility and obligation.

A brief conversation to finalize the result.

The three great ministers began to divide the work and cooperate with each other, which also meant the beginning of a new era.

……

late at night.

The lights in the Prime Minister's Palace were brightly lit. Just as expected, Caesar IV's will was indeed causing them trouble.

This is the first time they have felt threatened since the conservatives came to power.

Compared with Hudson's troubles, all the previous twists and turns were minor disturbances.

Busy with arranging funeral affairs during the day and discussing the subsequent impact of political changes at night, the Duke of Beckett felt physically and mentally exhausted.

“Things have changed, and the worst has finally happened.

With Marshal Hudson entering the central government, the emerging aristocrats that we have suppressed will soon become active again.

Even the military aristocracy group that had been divided with great difficulty before might be reunited with him as the core.

Once these forces are integrated, the court will enter a polarized pattern.

When we were in power, we could barely suppress them.

Obviously, this situation cannot continue; we will all grow old.

While there is still time, we must strengthen the training of the next generation!"

Duke Beckett said in a deep voice.

He was not at all happy about getting the position of assistant minister.

Apart from the famous title, the actual power in his hands did not increase at all, and he put himself in an embarrassing situation.

The biggest problem: There is no clear regulation regarding the authority of assistant ministers.

The regent assists the monarch, and the six ministers in the court also assist the monarch, and there is a clear division of power among them.

Next, there will inevitably be a power struggle between the three assistant ministers and the six ministers over the issue of master and servant.

But the Duke of Becket was caught in the middle, being both the prime minister in the court and one of the regents.

Don’t worry about scarcity, but worry about inequality!

Among the six ministers, he is the only one who is the regent. Even if the others don't say it, they must have their own thoughts in their hearts.

In order to avoid conflicts within the conservative camp, he simply set a target first.

Grand Duchess Madeleine obviously does not have enough weight. Even though she is the emperor's sister and a powerful person in the Holy Land, she is still a newcomer in the political arena.

No matter how noble your status is, if the people below you don't buy into it, it's nothing.

If the six ministers wanted, they could ensure that Grand Duchess Madeleine's decrees did not leave the palace.

I had no choice but to bring up Hudson.

Not only is this heavy, it is also extremely heavy. If you put it on your body, it can crush you to death.

“Prime Minister, Hudson is not very interested in power in the court, and he rejected Your Majesty once last time.

Bai Tian accepted the appointment mainly because His Majesty used the imperial edict, leaving him no chance to refuse.

If there was a chance to leave with dignity, he would most likely withdraw from the court.

After all, when one reaches his level of cultivation, worldly power is already a burden, and what he pursues is immortality!"

Count Helven suggested.

The conclusion is not drawn casually.

Hudson became a hands-off manager when the emperor's funeral work had just begun.

Nominally he was in charge of international funeral affairs, but in reality he just threw the job over to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and ordered him, the Foreign Minister, to handle it with full authority.

The fact that everyone else is rushing to play a role in the funeral work, which has great political significance, and being so casual about it is enough to explain many problems.

“Your Excellency, Marshal Hudson’s position as assistant minister was appointed by His Majesty’s will. Out of the obligations between the monarch and his subjects, he must perform his duties.

Regardless of whether he is greedy for power or not, as long as he sits in the court, a new faction will be formed with him as the core.

This interest group will push him into a political struggle with us, which cannot be influenced by individual will.

After all, Marshal Hudson has a Koslow family behind him. He himself has achieved success, but his family still wants to make progress.

In a few years, when his sons grow up, more of them will want to make progress.

If we can let him leave the court on his own, why should we worry? "

Duke Richard said with disdain.

He put a lot of effort into the Hudson issue.

The Koslo family doesn't have much in common, except for the large number of its members.

More people means more variables.

With such a large base, there is bound to be no shortage of people who want to make progress.

All we need to do is encourage these people to take action and we can drag the patriarch Hudson into the water.

In the era of family rule, no one can exist in isolation.

"Your Excellency the Duke, all solutions are invented by humans.

With our strength, there is certainly no hope of driving Marshal Hudson out of the court.

But it doesn’t mean that others can’t do it!
What if the new emperor, or our queen, wants him to leave!
Do you think that Marshal Hudson, who is disappointed, will just go with the flow and give up his position as assistant minister?"

Count Helven said with a smile.

The Foreign Minister's professional qualities are not given for nothing. If a problem cannot be solved through direct confrontation, then he will resort to roundabout tactics.

"This is impossible!
The Queen would have to be crazy to drive Marshal Hudson away at this time."

Minister of War Duke Richard rejected it immediately.

He would not be surprised if the royal family and Hudson fell out.

As long as the nobles grow to a certain size, they will inevitably have conflicts of interest with the royal family, and even the best relationship will be broken.

However, this relationship broke down after Caesar V took power.

Before that, the Queen still needed the support of powerful officials like Hudson to consolidate her son's throne.

What's more, the relationship between the Moshi royal family and Hudson is also very close, and this relationship continued after the queen got married.

"Your Excellency the Duke, all the solutions are invented by people, I just provided a feasible idea.

It is indeed difficult to operate, but as long as the Queen feels that Marshal Hudson's existence has threatened her son's throne, then everything is possible!"

After listening to Earl Helven's explanation, everyone understood instantly.

"Praise to death" is a very old-fashioned method, but it is effective.

Hudson's prestige was already high. If they were willing to cooperate, a regent who was popular among the people would soon appear in the court.

No matter who is in a higher position, he would feel uneasy when seeing this scene.

(End of this chapter)