Period of Troubles (Cedarin)

The Period of Troubles was a period of Cedarinian and Kensalan history comprising the years of political instability and chaos between the rebellion of Duke Gumei Bai in 6273 until the Scarlet Coup in 6282. The Troubles, as the period is often referred to, was essentially a time of conflict between various lords and powerful officials separated into two main camps - the so-called "liberal" camp, which consisted of those who wished to re-instate Lochuo and later Tianmei, or one of their close relatives, as the rightful Emperor of a liberal Cedarin; and the so-called "conservative" camp, which consisted of hardline reactionaries who believed the already conservative imperial government was not doing enough against the liberal thread.

Causes
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A Simmering Problem (6273-6276)
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Godai's Coup
Contrary to contemporary conservative depictions, the liberal movement in 6276 was very much splintered, as it already had been since Gumei's Bai rebellion, between the moderate and radical branches. In 6276, these two branches were more or less led by Lochuo, while the latter was led by his brother Godai. The attempted coup and rebellion that occurred in 6276 was the work of Godai and his radical supporters. Traditinoally, academics believe that Godai wished to overthrow Yusho I and crown Lochuo as Emperor. However, a healthy minority have argued - as early as the reign of Tianmei - that Godai in fact always desired to seize the throne for himself, or, perhaps even establish a fully republican government. Unfortunately, Godai's death during his coup, and his generally mysterious nature, leave this debate unanswered.

Preparations and Weak Conservative Countermeasures
Preparations for the coup had been underway as early as the execution of Duke Gumei Bai in 6273. The duke's younger brother and successor, Gumei Zojian, had met with Godai and Lochuo in the closing months of 6273, and several of Gumei Bai's former retainers fled to sanctuary in the Yuhanese mountains, where they kept constant communication with Godai and Lochuo. Lochuo, however, refused to entertain any thought of open revolt against Yusho I for several reasons: first, he never believed that any revolt would be successful, given the disappate nature of the moderate and liberal factions in the Cedarinian government; secondly, he legitimately feared for the safety of his family, having just lost his eldest son Shaju a year previously in what was probably an assassination. Lochuo was further convinced to refuse any attempt at rebellion when two of his children, Tianmei and Tianyi, were called to the capital as part of the alternate attendance system that Lochuo was oblidged to follow as a legal vassal of the Cedarinian emperor. It is likely that Lochuo suspected that the imperial government suspected of his association with revolutionary groups.

The split between Lochuo and Godai, as well as their respective moderate and liberal supporters, was made explicit in the spring of 6274 when Lochuo flatly refused Godai's final demands. Godai, realizing his brother and de jure superior would never support his rebellious aims, decided to take matter into his own hands. He and his supporters formed their own de facto group, informally known as the Cerulean Radicals (from the cerulean color of Godai's personal banner). While the "liberals" and "moderates" would still be known as one large "liberal" group, and Godai still, most likely, intended to seize the throne for Lochuo, the split between the two liberal groups was definite from 6274 onwards.

Godai was probably in contact with several foreign powers, hoping that they would provide funding and support for his revolt. In particular, Godai seemed to focus on Genais and Aidis as potential supporters, believing that their liberal monarchies would support the establishment of one in Cedarin; between 6274 and 6275, he made frequent trips to the two nations under the guise of business trips for Lochuo. Lochuo, it appears, was well aware of Godai's intentions, and warned him in several cryptic letters penned to his brother. Godai nevertheless ignored Lochuo's warnings, and continued lobbying the Genaisese and Aidisese who, to his dismay, were reluctant to take part in any large-scale operation, fearing the possibility of open war with Cedarin. Finally, Godai was able to secure a small amount of funding from both the Keintapan government (after falsely promising the enactment of several border treaties in favor of Keintapa) and the large community of Kensalan emigrees and expatriates in Aidis who were sympathetic to the liberal cause.

Internally, Godai secretly garnered the support of several opportunistic men, inculding several generals and high-ranking administrative officers and nobles. Prominent among these men was General of the South, Pa Wucai, and Minister of Rites, Aizo Ryotang. Some of these men were hoping for a share of power with the overthrow of Yusho I, but others were sympathetic to the liberal cause; most of the nobles who joined Godai were in fact former supporters of Gumei Bai. Most, however, were likely fearful of Yusho I's increasingly totalitarian tendencies and sought an alternative leader. By mid-6275, Godai appeared to be confident enough to make final preparations for a revolt. Meeting with Pa Wucai, Godai planned to spearhead simultaneous military mutinies in the middle months of 6276, along with Pa's troops seizing and securing the capital. Thereafter, Yusho I and his branch of the imperial family would be arrested; Yusho I would be forcibly overthrown, and Lochuo installed on the throne (even if against his will).

It is likely that during this time, Godai was being heavily monitored by the imperial government. While liberal circles were falsely led to believe that the government was keeping watch mainly on Lochuo and Tianmei, Yusho I and his secret service knew of the Lochuo-Godai split, and understood Godai to be the most dangerous of the brothers. However, Yusho I wrongly believed that Lochuo had the capability to stop Godai before any violence erupted; several attempts to contact Lochuo were met with failure, being easily intercepted by Pa Wucai's own informal secret service. Yusho's son and eventual successor, Yusho II, urged Yusho I to enact some moderate reforms and ease some of his totalitarian policies in order to appease the moderates and perhaps win over some of the more moderate members of the liberal camp, including possibly Lochuo. Yusho I ignored his son's demands, and may have even temporarily considered disinheriting Yusho II for perceived insubordination. Regardless, in the end, Yusho was too confident in Lochuo's ability to stop Godai, as well as the defenses and loyalty of his own men, and this is probably how he met his downfall.

Yusho I's Attempted Assassination
Although Godai's original plan was to merely arrest Yusho I, several of his subordinates and collaborators, including Pa, desired to outright assassinate Yusho I in order to ensure increased chaos among the ranks of the conservatives. Godai, however, revealed uncharacteristic caution on his part

Lochuo's Death and Tianmei's Exile
While ultimately a failure, Godai's coup was unique in that it united otherwise dissapate groups of military officers, administrative bureaucrats, noble landholders, as well as middle-class liberals under the liberal banner