52, Betrayal

Prince Jing, Zhu Youxiao.

His mother, Consort Li, passed away early, and the young Prince Jing was raised under the wing of the current Empress Dowager, growing up alongside Emperor Ning as close as true siblings.

When Emperor Ning ascended the throne at the age of eleven, Zhu Youxiao was fourteen, and the Liu Family Empress Dowager held sway over the government.

Over the course of six years, Zhu Youxiao tirelessly worked to win over the Northern civil servants and the Imperial Censors for Emperor Ning, reducing the power of the extended royal family.

At the age of seventeen, Emperor Ning finally took the reins of power, and when he reached twenty-one, he conferred the title of Prince Jing on Zhu Youxiao.

Everything had been calm, but in recent years, Prince Jing had been improving the administration outside the palace, repairing rivers to aid in disasters, and preparing provisions for the border army, increasingly elevating his prestige.