The First Marquis of Leisure

As time went on, almost all the upright and loyal officials in the court were slaughtered.

Only a few opportunists remained, and they all supported Zhao Xing's ascension to the throne!

The Imperial Guards were all killed, and the ground was covered with corpses and blood.

Only a few military officers—Bai Xinghe, Zhang Chunqiu, the Third Prince, the Eighth Prince, Zhao Sisi, Zhang Zhi, and Xiao Changqing—remained calm and composed.

The concubines in the harem all knelt on the ground in submission, but a few other princes stood up and rebuked Zhao Xing for being too vicious.

But Zhao Xing ordered them all to be executed on the spot without hesitation!

Zhao Xing was completely blinded by rage; once he took the first step in this kind of thing, there was no turning back.

"Father, have you thought this through? My patience is running out!"

Zhao Xing issued an ultimatum to Zhao Tianhe.

Zhao Tianhe's face had already turned deathly pale as he watched as his loyal ministers and generals, who had served him for many years, were all killed.

He was heartbroken, but powerless to do anything about it.

"You beast, I would rather die than abdicate in your favor!"

"Your Majesty, why must you do this? If you had abdicated sooner, these people wouldn't have died!"

Li Taibei said with a smile.

"Li Taibei, you old scoundrel, even as a ghost I will not let you go!"

"Enough!" Zhao Xing lost all patience and walked step by step toward Zhao Tianhe, knife in hand.

Unfazed, Zhao Tianhe roared, "You beast, how dare you kill your father and tyrant?"

Zhao Xing snorted coldly: "As long as I can ascend to the throne, I don't care."

"Besides, future history books will write that you were incompetent and foolish, and that you were murdered by Zhang Chunqiu, his third brother, and the Zhenguo Marquis's family."

"I merely managed to turn the tide in a time of crisis and save the Great Zhao from dire straits!"

"You beast, I will kill you!" Zhao Tianhe roared, his voice hoarse and strained.

"Since you refuse to step down, then you might as well die!"

Zhao Xing revealed his brutal side and stabbed Zhao Tianhe directly with a knife.

"His Majesty!"

"Father!"

The third prince and the other princes and princesses cried out in grief.

The other ministers who were forced to join Zhao Xing's camp also felt a pang of pain in their hearts, and unable to bear watching any longer, they closed their eyes.

Zhao Tianhe, the third emperor of the Zhao Kingdom, died just like that, at the hands of the crown prince whom he had personally appointed!

He died amidst endless resentment, regret, and anger!

Zhao Tianhe was never a brilliant and powerful ruler, but he was always diligent and conscientious throughout his life.

He is extremely patient, yet he never kills indiscriminately; he has the soft side of an ordinary person!

"Zhao Xing, you beast! Even if you become emperor, the people of the world will never submit to you!"

Zhao Feng roared.

Zhao Tianhe was not only the emperor, but also their father.

Zhao Xing, however, remained unconcerned, staring at Zhao Xing and saying, "My dear brother, since you are so filial, I will naturally let you go down to keep Father company!"

"Zhao Xing, you are a complete beast! If someone like you were to inherit the throne, the people of Zhao would suffer terribly, and the three generations of Zhao's legacy would be utterly destroyed!"

Bai Xinghe clenched his fists, looked at the bloodthirsty Zhao Xing, and angrily rebuked him.

"Ha!" Zhao Xing coldly stared at Bai Xinghe: "Bai Xinghe, I have never committed regicide or patricide; it is you traitors who have murdered the emperor!"

"Fuck your mother!" Bai Xinghe cursed angrily, never expecting Zhao Xing to be so insidious.

He wants to take all the blame upon himself, but he can't change anything for the time being.

"Your Majesty, this old minister is incompetent, Your Majesty!"

Zhang Chunqiu roared with heart-wrenching pain, tears streaming down his face, and knelt on the ground, trying to crawl to Zhao Tianhe's corpse.

Admittedly, he publicly denounced Zhao Tianhe as a tyrant, but Zhao Tianhe had indeed always treated him very well.

Zhao Tianhe was someone he watched grow up, and he was also his student!

"You treacherous Zhao Xing, I'll fight you to the death!"

Filled with grief and indignation, Zhang Chunqiu roared and dragged his aged body, determined to fight Zhao Xing to the death.

But he was quickly subdued by a soldier, and everyone was brought under control. The situation was now settled!

"Lord Li, the rest is up to you!"

Zhao Xing gave the order, and then led a group of armored soldiers into the Golden Palace.

Li Taibei sneered and waved his hand, saying, "Guards! His Majesty has decreed that all these traitors be thrown into the death row and executed by slow slicing on a chosen day. Furthermore, immediately send men to confiscate the Zhenguo Marquis's residence and imprison all its inhabitants in the death row!"

Bai Xinghe and the others did not resist, because resistance would be futile at this point.

Soon, a group of armored soldiers captured them all and took them to the death row!

Then, a large group of palace eunuchs were ordered to come and clean up the scene!

The remaining ministers followed Chen Feng, Zhao Feishuang, and the others into the Golden Palace!

Inside the Golden Palace, Zhao Xing sat on the dragon throne, a symbol of imperial power.

"Long live the Emperor! Long live the Emperor! Long live the Emperor!"

Lee Tae-beok led the way in kneeling and shouting "Long live the Emperor!"

Zhao Xing laughed wildly and began to lavishly reward his followers.

Then, imperial edicts flew out like snowflakes, their contents extremely cruel.

The entire imperial court was subjected to a bloody purge, with the former officials from Zhao Tianhe's era bearing the brunt.

Secondly, there were the third prince's trusted subordinates and all forces that posed a threat to him.

In an instant, the atmosphere was tense and fearful, and the armored soldiers of the Nine Gates Commander's Office turned into bloodthirsty thugs.

Panic gripped the court. Overnight, more than half of the officials were executed, and many officials and their entire families were slaughtered.

As the most meritorious minister who assisted Zhao Xing in ascending the throne, Li Taibei also took this opportunity to issue orders and purge ministers who opposed him.

The first to be affected were the ministers who had previously been close to Bai Tianque.

......

The capital was shaken overnight.

A rather explosive piece of news has been released, the most sensational event in the history of the Great Zhao.

Yesterday, Emperor Zhao Tianhe personally hosted a banquet for Bai Xinghe. However, Bai Xinghe, relying on his prestige and the remnants of Bai Tianque's former power, colluded with the Third Prince Zhao Feng, Zhang Chunqiu, and the Eighth Prince in an attempt to usurp the throne.

Caught off guard, Emperor Zhao Tianhe was assassinated by Bai Xinghe and his henchmen.

Crown Prince Zhao Xing stepped forward in the face of danger, turning the tide and, together with Prime Minister Li Taibei and Commander of the Nine Gates He Taiji, rescued the soldiers of the Commander's Mansion, turning defeat into victory and saving the Zhao Kingdom from dire straits.

Furthermore, they successfully executed the treacherous officials and captured Bai Xinghe and his cronies.

A country cannot be without a ruler for a day. Finally, on the advice of many ministers, Zhao Xing ascended the throne!

This news caused a huge uproar, and many people couldn't accept it for a while.

On the first day, Bai Xinghe was still the savior of the Great Zhao and the benefactor of the emperor.

How did he suddenly become a traitorous minister who plotted to usurp the throne and murder the emperor?

And what about Zhang Chunqiu, a great Confucian scholar who was deeply favored by the emperor and served as the tutor of three emperors? How could he also be involved in usurping the throne?

In no time, rumors and gossip were everywhere in the streets and alleys of the capital!

However, under Zhao Xing's immense pressure, even a very small number of intelligent people sensed that something was wrong.

But they were quickly killed on the spot by armored soldiers, and their entire family was also wiped out!

Right now, in death row!

Bai Xinghe, Zhang Chunqiu, the Eighth Prince, the Third Prince, Zhao Sisi, Zhang Zhi, Xiao Changqing, and everyone else were imprisoned here.

All the people in the Zhenguo Marquis's Mansion, the Eighth Prince's Mansion, and the Third Prince's Mansion were also arrested and brought in.

Not even a servant was spared; the prison was almost overflowing.

"Brother, I, Zhao Xing, am not afraid to live and die with you. My only regret is that I cannot help but kill Zhao Xing and Li Taibei, the rebels, to avenge my father!"

Zhao Feng was covered in wounds, clenching his fists and slamming them against the wall, his eyes bloodshot.

"Your Majesty, this old minister is incompetent, Your Majesty!"

Zhang Chunqiu seemed to have gone mad. Having witnessed Zhao Tianhe's tragic death, his heart was completely consumed by grief. From the time he was thrown into the death row until now, he had been constantly muttering "Your Majesty."

Seeing Zhang Chunqiu's defeated appearance, everyone sighed with pity.

Only Bai Xinghe remained calm.

But he couldn't think of a solution for the time being, and now he was in a situation where he was doomed.

Just then, several prison guards came in carrying food.

"May I ask, brother, what is the current situation in the outside world?"

Bai Xinghe took out a silver note from his pocket and handed it to the jailer, then asked what was going on.

The jailers handed over the silver notes and then sighed.

"His Majesty has issued a decree proclaiming to the world that you are all treacherous officials plotting to usurp the throne, and that you will all be executed by slow slicing in two days!"