"Haoran," said his Father wearily. "You would kill the Emperor, your own Father, to steal what isn't yours?"
"Hah!" the prince spat, "as if that isn't exactly how you took the throne from your own nephew, Father. He was the anointed Son of Heaven, the lawful heir. I, on the other hand, am the eldest son of the Emperor. The throne is mine by the rule of primogeniture. My birthright has been stolen from me by the collusion of the Prime Minister with my younger brother. My Second Brother married the Prime Minister's daughter all to satisfy that evil man's lust for power. How could you not see through their wicked plans, Father?" he asked, incredulous.
"Haoran," said the Emperor sadly, "son, of course I know that the Prime Minister lusts for power. Yicai knows that too. He sacrificed his own happiness in marriage to contain the Prime Minister for me… on my request."
The prince flinched at those words but quickly dismissed them as lies.
