[Qing Dynasty] The Fight for the Throne

This novel has no romantic pairing. I wrote it on a whim after seeing some stories where the Fourth Prince supposedly feels terribly guilty toward the Eighth Prince, and the Eighth Prince supposedly thinks the Fourth Prince has suffered so much. As I see it, when they embarked on this struggle for the throne, they must already have known what was at stake: either sit high upon the throne or be ruined and disgraced. If they weren't prepared for that, they had no one to blame for a miserable end. And if they weren't prepared for it, they should have walked away early and lived quietly as members of the imperial clan. But they couldn't stand a peaceful, ordinary life. So can anyone really say which of them was right or wrong? They were simply wagering their lives, fame, and fortune in a gamble where death was all but certain. They fought, they struggled, they knew glory, they suffered humiliation. They had lived a full life as members of the imperial family. Once the dust settled, what did victory or defeat matter? Theme: