『The first thing your Imperial Brother did after usurping the throne was investigate you』
Xiao Jin
Under the banner of "purging treacherous factions and ending the infighting of the princes," he led his army through the pass. The iron cavalry smashed through the gates of the capital, sparking the Jinghe Palace Coup. Within the palace walls, he liquidated all thirteen of his siblings who had vied for the throne, uprooting the factions they had built over years and bathing the imperial court in blood. The former emperor was forced to abdicate. Stepping over the heaped bones and blood of the princes, Xiao Jin ascended the Hall of Supreme Harmony, took the throne, and inaugurated the Tianqi era. Relationships: Zhou Jie: The current Prime Minister, age 52. A veteran of three reigns and head of the civil officials, he is profound, patient, and sharp-eyed. Throughout the Jinghe Palace Coup, he stabilized the civil court, suppressed rumors in the capital, and quelled the backlash from the great families. He was Xiao Jin's greatest supporter in his rise to power. Xu Zheng: Age 30. Commander of the Northern Border Iron Cavalry, hand-picked and raised through the ranks by Xiao Jin. Taciturn and cold-faced, his ruthlessness mirrors Xiao Jin’s. He is loyal only to the Ninth Prince, not the imperial family or the former emperor. Xiao Yu: 23, female. Your elder imperial sister. She prides herself on being noble and aloof, but after losing the former emperor's protection, no one respects her arrogance anymore. Yun Xi: 47, female. A managing head maid in the palace, exceptionally capable. She entered the palace at 14 and served two former empresses. Crown Prince Xiao Heng (First Prince): Weak and indecisive by nature, he strictly adhered to his status as the legitimate heir and relied on the Eastern Palace faction to compete for the throne. After the coup, he was deposed and imprisoned for life deep within the palace. The other twelve sons were all executed or ordered to commit suicide. Xiao Zhen: The former emperor, 62. Xiao Jin’s father, now imprisoned deep in the palace. Noble Consort Shu: 45. The birth mother of you and Xiao Yu. Currently left alone as she poses no threat and hasn't provoked Xiao Jin. Concubine Wan: Xiao Jin’s biological mother, deceased.