Zhao Shiqing was dead.
He had died on the streets of the inner city.
The person who had died in the middle of the night had been spotted by a night watchman who was passing by. Ten-some of his attendants had also died, some shot to death by arrows, others hacked to death by sabers. Zhao Shiqing himself had been killed by a poisoned crossbow bolt, dying a miserable death.
The next morning, this news spread through the streets and alleys of the capital. It was said that a high-ranking official had been killed on the streets, causing the people of the capital to panic.
Soon after, the capital was put under martial law and all the city gates were closed. Well-equipped soldiers sealed the gates, and the common people were told not to leave their homes, or else they would be punished with treason.
At a quarter to seven in the morning, an order came from the palace to summon all the officials to the Imperial Palace.
The officials were even more shocked than the common people.
They had acutely sensed the deep background behind Zhao Shiqing's death and began to worry about their own fates.
When Xu Hongji heard the news, he was dumbfounded. No matter how he called out to his family, there was no response, scaring them into calling for a doctor.
Fifteen minutes later, Xu Hongji came back to his senses. He stopped his family from panicking and told them not to worry, but his complexion was still extremely unsightly. When the news came from the palace that the officials were being summoned, his complexion became even more unsightly. He had his family wait at home while he put on his official's robe and headed to the Imperial Palace.
When Zhu Yinghuai heard the news, he was at first stunned, but then he felt a bit of schadenfreude. After that, he felt a little worried, and then he felt relieved.
In truth, Zhu Yinghuai had disliked Zhao Shiqing for a very long time. Perhaps it could be said that many of the officials of the former Ming Dynasty who had not been put in an important position had disliked Zhao Shiqing for a very long time, such as those imperial censors of the Board of Education. All of them hated Zhao Shiqing to the bone.
There was a rumor that the reason Zhao Shiqing had been so heavily rewarded by the new emperor was because he had spoken ill of many people, causing many of the officials who should have been put in important positions to be abandoned. For the sake of his own glory and wealth, he had sold the evidence of everyone else's corruption. In the last four months, countless people had been secretly cursing Zhao Shiqing to die a horrible death.
Zhu Yinghuai was naturally one of these people. They were all officials of the former Ming Dynasty, so why was Zhao Shiqing and that Tsai Kuo-chen able to be put in important positions and wield real power, while they could only hang on to their empty reputations and wait for death? Although the Daqin court had given the officials a lot better treatment, how could it compare to the pleasure of having power in one's hands?
Zhao Shiqing really deserved to die. Now that he was dead, Zhu Yinghuai was naturally gloating.
But soon, he was worried again.
After all, this was the Minister of Revenue, a high-ranking official. He was killed on the street just like that, and it was even during the establishment of the new dynasty. Wasn't this equivalent to slapping the Emperor in the face?
Based on Xiao Ruxun's personality, wouldn't you be forcing him to take corresponding measures by killing his favorite minister on the street?
Zhu Yinghuai felt that these people were too impulsive and did not consider the consequences.
What if the Emperor was frightened? If the Emperor got angry and started an investigation, everyone would have a hard time, wouldn't it?
However, this was still better than watching Zhao Shiqing continue to strut around.
After the Emperor's summon was passed, Zhu Yinghuai put away his worries and hurried to the Imperial Palace after getting dressed.
When the news of Zhao Shiqing's death came, Wang Xijue was eating breakfast with his family. After hearing the news, his hand trembled as he was eating porridge. The spoon fell into the bowl and the porridge splashed all over the table. His family was so scared that they quickly cleaned it up for him.
After a while, Wang Xijue seemed to realize something. He took a few deep breaths and picked up the spoon again to continue eating porridge, letting his family eat together. When the Emperor's summon arrived, Wang Xijue had already eaten his porridge, put on his official robes, and was waiting to enter the palace.
Li Tingji had the same reaction as Wang Xijue.
Ye Xianggao was much calmer. After hearing the news, he continued to eat his porridge unhurriedly. After eating the porridge, he changed his clothes and unhurriedly went to the Imperial Court.
When Liu Huangshang heard the news, his reaction was different from the vast majority of people. He was a little surprised, and then his face paled. He wiped his forehead and drank a bowl of tea to calm his mind. After taking a few deep breaths, he seemed to realize something and calmed down.
When the Emperor's summon arrived, he calmly changed his clothes and left his residence.
The officials were either worried, gloating, dejected, or completely unmoved. Under the Emperor's order, they gathered toward the Imperial Palace, the center of the empire's power.
Inside the Extreme Emperor Palace, a group of officials stood. Outside the Extreme Emperor Palace, fully armed and solemn warriors guarded the palace meticulously.
The sky was overcast and somewhat hot. There was the faint rumble of thunder, as if a heavy rain was about to fall.
Xiao Ruxun had come, but he was not wearing a black dragon robe. Instead, he was wearing armor.
His appearance was the same as when he had fought his way into the capital.
Wielding the Emperor's Sword, he slowly walked toward the entrance of the Imperial Palace.
With every step he took, he would look at the officials to his left and right.
The officials who were swept by his sharp gaze lowered their heads, their bodies trembling unnaturally as beads of sweat appeared on their foreheads.
It was a short distance, and Xiao Ruxun would normally be able to cover it in a few breaths of time. But this time, he walked especially slowly.
They could all feel the Emperor's rage.
The emperor walked forward step by step, and the hearts of the officials sank bit by bit.
Those who were gloating began to feel that something was wrong. They felt that they had underestimated the Emperor's rage.
Zhu Yinghuai swallowed his saliva and wiped the beads of sweat off his forehead.
After an unknown period of time, Xiao Ruxun finally stood on the steps of the main hall, facing the officials.
But his sharp gaze did not stop there. It was like a knife stabbing into the bodies of the officials, making them feel uncomfortable.
They finally understood how uncomfortable it was to be treated as an enemy by Xiao Ruxun.
They were wrong.
Being treated as an enemy by Xiao Ruxun was not just uncomfortable.
The suffocating silence lasted for a while.
The Emperor, who was clad in battle armor and wielding the Emperor's Sword, spoke.
"Zhao Shiqing is dead."
His voice was deep and steady, but it was filled with anger.
"The Daqin's Minister of Revenue is dead."
His tone was slightly higher, and his anger was beginning to show.
"The Daqin's Minister of Revenue that I personally appointed has died in the inner city. A group of fifteen people, none of them survived. They died on the streets."
His tone was high, and his anger could no longer be suppressed.
"The Minister of Revenue, a rank two official, one of the six ministries of Daqin. He had a high position and was one of my important officials! But this important official died on the streets, right under my nose. Good, very good, very good!
Now that the Minister of Revenue is dead, will the next one be the Minister of War? Or the Minister of Justice? Or the Minister of Rites? Or the Minister of Personnel and Minister of Works? Or the First and Second Ministers of the Cabinet? Or … I myself? "
Xiao Ruxun said something shocking.
After a short period of suffocating silence.
"You dare to kill the Minister of Revenue today. Will you dare to kill me tomorrow?!!"
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