The narrator tells the audience that the canal will be opened the next morning. He also tells them that the crown prince has been slandered and has been assassinated for disobeying the emperor's orders. The emperor has ordered the canal to be opened immediately, and the prince will be stripped of all his titles and powers. The narrator then tells the story of how the prince's father has tried to kill him, but the prince has refused to help him. The prince also reveals that the emperor is threatening him with death if he does not help him with the canal.