He spoke harshly, “Your Highness, the attendant reader Henry Foster is arrogant and reckless, actually disregarding the filial emperor, his crime is monstrous. This old minister earnestly requests Your Highness to punish him severely!” After a pause, he continued, “Entering the city with the rites of the crown prince and succeeding to the throne is the natural order of things and must not be changed!”

How overbearing! Anyone who didn’t know better would think you, Stephen Mason, were the emperor!

Henry Foster clenched his teeth, wanting to retort, but Charles Brooks suddenly waved his hand, signaling him to remain silent.

After a brief pause, Charles Brooks lazily said, “Attendant reader Henry Foster was only asking questions on my behalf. Didn’t Minister Mason just say we could rest now? Then let’s set up camp in the suburbs for now, no need to rush into the capital. There are indeed some things that need to be clarified.” Charles Brooks slowly clenched his fist, his gaze growing ever more resolute.

……

The procession welcoming the new monarch halted and rested in the outskirts of the capital.

But everyone knew this was only a brief ceasefire. Just now, the ruler and his ministers had tested each other; the real battle would soon erupt.

“Are you afraid?”

Charles Brooks frowned and suddenly asked.

Henry Foster also smiled—what was there for him to fear?

After all, the person opposite was the future Emperor Jiajing!

A man of extraordinary strength who, by his own power, contended with the entire civil officialdom for decades! Every pore, every drop of blood, was filled with the fighting spirit of a battle emperor. Following him—how could one possibly be afraid?

“I have complete confidence in Your Highness!”

Charles Brooks couldn’t help but laugh. “Little Edward, you’re not being honest. You’ve even learned how to flatter.”

“It’s dragon flattery—Your Highness is the true dragon emperor!”

Those words really did have a bit of a crafty minister’s flavor.

Charles Brooks first burst out laughing, his mood greatly improved.

But soon, gloom once again clouded his face. He turned away, sighed softly, and then mocked himself: “Just now, right in front of me, Stephen Mason wanted to deal with you. In their eyes, where am I, the emperor? They see me as a child, a plaything to be manipulated at will!”

Henry Foster trembled all over and gritted his teeth, asking, “Is Your Highness willing to accept this?”

“I am not!”

“Will Your Highness resign yourself to fate?”

“Of course not!” Charles Brooks gritted his teeth so hard they clicked. He stared at Henry Foster, enunciating each word: “I am not willing, I will not resign myself! I am the son of Prince Xingxian, and I will never have a second father! Never!”

Henry Foster took a deep breath. He felt a surge of heat rushing through his veins… He knew that because of the Great Rites Controversy, historians had many criticisms of Charles Brooks.

They thought he was willful and reckless, disregarded the bigger picture, even accused him of ingratitude and of ruining the foundation of the Ming dynasty, even saying the fall of the Ming began with Charles Brooks…

But what did any of that have to do with the present moment?

In Henry Foster’s eyes, the current Charles Brooks was just a stubborn youth holding onto his last shred of dignity, and he himself was the only one helping him—how could he possibly stand by and do nothing?

“Fight!” Henry Foster said firmly. “If you’re unwilling, then keep fighting!”

Charles Brooks said in a low voice, “How do we fight? Just the two of us?”

Yes, the odds in this battle were far too uneven.

On one side was the son of a prince with no foundation; on the other, the high ministers of the court, many of whom had served three or four reigns, with networks of protégés and old subordinates, deeply entrenched.

At their call, countless would respond; their prestige was overwhelming.

And besides, Charles Brooks was the emperor they themselves had chosen. If he didn’t listen to them, the consequences would be dire!

With such a disparity, even the most tenacious person would surely despair!

Henry Foster pondered for a long time before finally saying slowly, “Your Highness, actually, I’ve been thinking these days—we have one most important trump card in our hands!”

Charles Brooks’s eyes lit up, and he asked eagerly, “What is it?”

“The imperial edict!”

Henry Foster said decisively. He understood the process of the Great Rites Controversy and naturally knew that the old ministers led by Yang Tinghe had calculated everything, except for one oversight—the late emperor’s edict!

Originally, this should have been pointed out by the chief steward of the prince’s household, Philip Clark, but Henry Foster hadn’t seen Old Clark along the way. Could it be that his time travel had changed history?

He couldn’t figure it out for the moment, but since there was no Chief Clerk Clark, then as Reader Foster, he should step forward!

“The imperial edict?” Charles Brooks was puzzled.

“That’s right, the imperial edict! I remember, the edict didn’t say anything about Your Highness being adopted by the Hongzhi Emperor, nor did it say Your Highness was to enter the capital as the crown prince and inherit the throne!” Henry Foster declared.

Charles Brooks grinned, “Of course not! So-called imperial edicts are not necessarily left by the deceased emperor—most are issued by the high ministers of the court in the name of the emperor to win people’s hearts. Such edicts are always extremely brief. Precisely because they are brief, they give the ministers room to reinterpret…”

These words weren’t something Charles Brooks could have said himself—they were told to him by Prince Xingxian, Thomas Brooks.

Henry Foster smiled, “Your Highness is absolutely right. If the ministers can interpret as they please, why can’t we split hairs over the wording?”

At these words, Charles Brooks finally trembled all over!

That’s right!

Why should the civil officials do as they please, while he could only passively take the blows?

It made no sense at all.

What’s more, the imperial edict was his greatest support for ascending the throne—how could he set it aside?

Thinking of this, Charles Brooks immediately took out the imperial edict and called for Henry Foster.