Long Xun's speed in taking control of the imperial court exceeded everyone's expectations.
Forcing someone to abdicate is something that would have endless consequences, but under his cruel methods, no one dared to raise any objections. So before the people could even figure out what was going on, the emperor was replaced by someone else.
However, who the emperor was was irrelevant to the lower and middle classes.
But Long Xun... his bloodbath did not stop.
For a whole month, every day the corpses of officials were dragged out of the court, every day eunuchs and palace maids were beaten to death, and every day people died tragically.
The upright and incorruptible Censor-in-Chief and the two dukes and three teachers were truly unafraid and offered their advice every day. Although Long Xun did not take action against these officials because they were genuinely good people, he was unwilling to listen to what they had to say.
Later, these elderly people beat their chests and stamped their feet in frustration, which made them fall ill.
But none of the people Long Xun killed were innocent. They were corrupt, lawless, disregarded human life, and formed cliques for personal gain. The souls of those dead court officials can attest to every single one of their crimes.
Apart from the Censor-in-Chief, Grand Commandant, Minister of Works, Grand Tutor, Grand Protector, and Grand Preceptor, who were worried that the emperor's excessive killings would destabilize the court, all other officials kept a low profile, feeling insecure and no longer daring to underestimate the young emperor in the court.
Some people wanted to resign to protect themselves, but it was no use.
After Long Xun promoted a loyal general to take charge of the Imperial Guard, the resigning official was brought to the court and, in full view of everyone, his head was smashed by a spear, his brains and blood staining the palace red and white.
A month later, the entire palace was filled with a strong smell of blood. Even though the palace maids and eunuchs washed it day and night, traces of dark red blood remained on the palace floor.
But Long Xun's killing spree finally came to an end.
None of these ministers were fools. In the past month, they had clearly seen that although the newly enthroned emperor was cruel, his spear had never been aimed at those who were truly virtuous, capable, and talented.
Otherwise, why would the two dukes and three teachers have offered their advice? And why would their advice have merely been to advise the emperor to be more lenient?
They tried to teach Long Xun that the way of an emperor is not only to win through killing, but in the end they were defeated by Long Xun's overwhelming strength.
After a large number of officials were killed, official positions became vacant. Those who were talented and virtuous but had offended people and could not get ahead were promoted one by one, while those who were obedient and honest were relegated to deputy positions.
When Long Xun stopped killing people and instead began bestowing official titles, the court officials were immediately flattered and filled with gratitude.
Blind pity and kindness are useless; they only breed greed. But after someone has been beaten bloody and mangled, the subsequent sweet treats can make people grateful to tears.
How ridiculously foolish.
When Long Xun took control of the court, a man in black appeared silently and knelt down in front of his desk while he was reviewing memorials.
These are secret guards established and left behind by the founding ancestor of the Tianlong Dynasty. They are loyal only to the emperor, and they will accept any imperial edict obtained by the emperor through improper means.
These secret guards had been aiding and abetting evil for the past month, helping Long Xun confiscate the property of countless ministers. Now that everything was settled, the head of the secret guards was going to follow tradition and take Long Xun to choose a personal assassin for him.
The secret guards belong to the emperor, while the assassins belong to individuals.
With the throne changing hands, the secret guards will no longer be loyal to the previous emperor, but the assassins will always be loyal to one person and will never betray him.
The Imperial Study was quiet, with only the occasional sound of Long Xun turning the pages of memorials. The head of the secret guards knelt with his head down, respectful and wooden.
As night deepened, Long Xun finished reviewing the memorial at hand before rising and strolling over to stand beside him. The head of the secret guards kowtowed to him and then led the way out.
As he walked, the dark imperial robes were replaced by the silver-gray Tian Ce Ding Guo suit. Long Xun followed him into a secret passage. When they came out, they had left the palace and arrived at a neat but unremarkable courtyard.
Inside the courtyard, ten guards dressed in black with white masks stood silently, their eyes cold and numb.
They varied in height, weight, and even gender, and were all quite young, the youngest being about fourteen years old and the oldest no more than twenty-five. The only thing they had in common was an aura of cold indignation emanating from each of them.
Long Xun's gaze swept over the people present, and suddenly he looked at the leading guard.
He wore a mask like the others, obscuring his face. However, unlike the others who exuded murderous intent, his aura was calm and restrained, conveying a sense of silent composure, like a reliable mountain.
He seemed no different from anyone else, and his aura was nothing special.
However... Long Xun would not doubt his own intuition.
He approached the guard, his dark golden vertical pupils narrowing slightly as he scrutinized him intently, as if trying to see through the man's very essence.
A faint killing intent leaked out, and the guards present reflexively released their own killing intent to counter it, but this guard alone did not react at all.
He was like a piece of wood, his eyes showing no emotion whatsoever.
The thirteen-year-old boy emperor, who was more than half a head shorter than the tall young man, suddenly spoke up in front of him: "What's your name?"
The leader of the secret guards respectfully replied, "Your Majesty, the secret guards have no names; instead, they are given the code names Yin and Shu. He is Yin Er, the strongest among the secret guards."
Yin Yi was naturally the leader of the secret guards.
If the position of leader of the Dark Guards wasn't solely based on strength, then the title of Yin Yi, representing the number one Dark Guard, would also have fallen upon this young man.
Yin Er... Yin Er...
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