The ministers begged me to ascend the throne

Zhao Yao originally planned to go to Mixier by sea, but since the King of Wei ascended the throne, he was worried about the safety of the King of Chu and the Li family, so he had to give up the plan of going to sea temporarily.

His worries were not without reason. Although Emperor Yong'an promised him to let the King of Chu and the Li family go, he did not say how long he would let them go. If he went out to sea, it was not impossible for Emperor Yong'an to take advantage of this opportunity to kill the King of Chu and the Li family.

Zhao Yao didn't want to think that Emperor Yong'an was so fickle, but Emperor Yong'an had always had a grudge against the King of Chu and the Li family. It was not easy for him to ask Emperor Yong'an for an order to keep the King of Chu and the Li family safe forever. If he asked, he would first suspect that Emperor Yong'an didn't keep his word, which would make Emperor Yong'an unhappy. Second, it would make Emperor Yong'an hate the King of Chu and the Li family even more.

At first, he did not bring the Li family to the Swamp House because he was afraid of displeasing Emperor Yong'an. Letting the Li family return to their hometown and stay under the eyes of Emperor Yong'an would be safer for their family, but now thinking about it, it is not safe.

It's not safe to bring him back to the Swamp House, and it's not safe to let the Li family return to their hometown to live in seclusion, alas...

What Zhao Yao was worried about still happened, and something happened to the Li family. By the time he received the news, the entire Li family had been wiped out.

In the study of the Prince of Han's mansion, Zhao Yao fell into silence after reading the secret letter sent by Secret Guard A.

Tongxi saw that Zhao Yao looked unhappy and felt a little worried. He asked with concern, "Your Highness, what's wrong with you? Is there any trouble in the capital?"

Zhao Yao burned the secret letter and said sullenly, "Something happened to the Li family."

"What?" Tongxi shouted in horror, "Something happened to the Li family. Did the emperor still kill the Li family members?"

"Kill them all. Leave no one alive." Zhao Yao felt sad. "Kill them for treason."

"Treason? How could the Li family rebel?"

"Local officials said that the Li family wrote anti-poems and were disrespectful to the emperor and the court. They also said that the Li family said that the eight-year-old brother was not worthy of being the emperor, and that the eight-year-old brother had taken the throne from the fourth brother." The Li family may really think that the eight-year-old brother had taken the throne from the fourth brother, but they dared not show it. They had finally returned from the gates of hell, so how could they dare to write anti-poems to satirize the eight-year-old brother and the court?

"How is it possible?" Even Tongxi thought it was ridiculous.

"If you want to accuse someone of a crime, you can always find a pretext for it." In order to kill the Li family, Mynah Brother really did use any means necessary, even coming up with such a ridiculous thing as an anti-poem.

Anti-poetry was not a big deal in previous dynasties. Even during the reign of Emperor Ling of Xia, when scholars and literati wrote poems and articles to curse the tyrant Emperor Ling of Xia, Emperor Ling of Xia did not order the execution of their entire family because of this.

In the previous dynasties, scholars often wrote poems or articles to satirize the court, officials, and even the emperor, and nothing would happen. After the founding of the Great Zhou Dynasty, there were also scholars who were dissatisfied with the court or officials and wrote poems or articles to scold them, but the emperor did not issue an order to punish these people.

During his reign, the emperor said that if the court or officials did not do well, it was normal for the people to curse and not to care. I didn't expect that when it was Emperor Yong'an's turn, he started to write anti-poems, which was really ridiculous.

"My dear, you really didn't care about your reputation in order to wipe out the entire Li family." My dear couldn't find any crime to blame for the extermination of the entire Li family, so he made up a ridiculous anti-poem incident. "My dear, if you do this, scholars all over the world will not dare to write poems or articles casually, and it will destroy the literary style of the Great Zhou."

"Your Highness, as for His Royal Highness the Prince of Chu..." Tongxi said with a worried look on his face, "If His Royal Highness the Prince of Chu knew, I'm afraid he would be too sad."

Zhao Yao also knew that the King of Chu was in poor health. If he were to learn that the entire Li family had been wiped out, it would be a huge blow to him and he would most likely fall seriously ill.

"Keep it a secret from Fourth Brother for now." Fourth Brother's body couldn't bear this heavy blow.

"Yes, Your Highness." Tongxi had just finished speaking when he suddenly remembered something and asked with a puzzled look, "Your Highness, even if the Li family really wrote anti-government poems, they shouldn't be executed so quickly. They should be taken back to the capital for a joint trial by three judges, and then convicted and executed."

"Myna directly ordered local officials to execute the Li family members instead of taking them back to the capital for interrogation." Zhao Yao let out a long sigh, "They didn't even conduct a trial. They directly convicted and executed them on the spot." It simply means they didn't want the Li family members to live.

After hearing this, Tongxi said with horror: "Your Majesty is taking this too far. Isn't Your Majesty afraid of being questioned by the world?"

Zhao Yao raised his hand and slammed the desk hard, "I should have brought the Li family back to Swamp House."

"Your Highness, I'm afraid the Emperor won't agree." Tong Xi said, "The Emperor clearly doesn't want the Li family to survive."

Zhao Yao sat dejectedly on the chair, his face full of sadness as he said, "Myna is still using the Li family to build up his prestige, but it's really unwise to do so."

"Your Highness, now that things have come to this, you don't have to worry too much."

"As a prince and a younger brother, I have to speak up about this matter." Zhao Yao planned to write a memorial to severely scold Emperor Yong'an. "Furthermore, we cannot allow anti-poetry to happen again, otherwise it will really destroy the cultural heritage of the Great Zhou."

"That's what His Highness said."

"Grinding ink."

"Yes, Your Highness."

Zhao Yao wrote a memorial, first scolding Emperor Yong'an, then discussing the harmfulness of anti-poetry, and finally asking Emperor Yong'an not to do such things again.

Some time later, Emperor Yong'an received the memorial written by Zhao Yao. After reading it, he was not angry but very happy.

When Zhao Yao received the reply from Emperor Yong'an, he learned that Emperor Yong'an had begun to target the aristocratic families in the capital.

The first-class families in the capital had been eliminated by the emperor, but the second- and third-class families were still there. Although these families were not as powerful as the first-class families, their combined power should not be underestimated.

Emperor Yong'an's methods of dealing with the aristocratic families were even more sinister and ruthless than those of the retired emperor, leaving no leeway.

The second- and third-rate families in the capital had been living in fear, and they had thought that their lives would be better after the new emperor ascended the throne. Unexpectedly, they became the victims of the new emperor's sword. The civil and military officials in the court were also frightened by the cruel methods of Emperor Yong'an. In the past, the emperor emeritus dealt with the families gradually, but Emperor Yong'an directly convicted them and then eliminated them.

Seeing that the new emperor's methods were so sinister and vicious, many ministers in the court became uneasy, fearing that they would be the next unlucky ones.

These ministers went to find Prime Minister He and Grand Tutor Liu and asked them to persuade Emperor Yong'an.

Since Emperor Yong'an ascended the throne, He Xiang and Liu Taishi rarely opposed Emperor Yong'an's decrees in the court. Before, Emperor Yong'an executed the Li family for anti-poetry, and they had persuaded him, but Emperor Yong'an did not listen to them.

When Emperor Yong'an was dealing with the aristocratic families, Prime Minister He and Grand Tutor Liu remained silent. They neither stopped nor supported him.

The court officials were worried that after Emperor Yong'an had dealt with the aristocratic families, he would proceed to deal with the meritorious officials.

There are many nobles in the court. They were all founding heroes who followed the late emperor and the emperor to build the country and made great contributions. Now in the court, although they do not hold great power, they still have some power.

The retired emperor treated these nobles who followed him to build his country very well, of course, on the premise that they abided by the law. In the past, some nobles relied on their merits, were arrogant and lawless, and were severely punished by the retired emperor. Since then, the nobles have become very well-behaved and dared not do anything wrong by relying on their merits.

In fact, before Emperor Yong'an ascended the throne, many nobles had fallen. These nobles supported the princes and participated in the fight for the throne. If the princes they supported failed, they would naturally not have a good ending.

Nowadays, some of the remaining nobles in the court remain neutral and do not participate in the fight for the throne among the princes. The other part supports Emperor Yong'an. Not only did they survive, but they also have the merit of following the emperor and are more powerful than before.

Among the nobles who remained neutral, some were loyal subjects of the retired emperor, while others did not want to cause trouble.

The loyal ministers of the retired emperor, such as Song Dekang and others, not only held military power, but also held important positions. Emperor Yong'an dared not easily touch them, but those nobles who did not want to cause trouble were not as powerful as Song Dekang and others. If Emperor Yong'an wanted to attack them, they would have no power to fight back.

In order to save their lives, these nobles came to Prime Minister He and Grand Tutor Liu, hoping that they could save them.

He Xiang and Liu Taishi had fought alongside these nobles before, so they would not sit idly by and watch them get into trouble. Besides, they had not committed any crime.

These nobles felt relieved when they saw that Prime Minister He and his men would not sit idly by and watch them.

At this time, in the study of the He Mansion, Prime Minister He was playing chess with Grand Tutor Liu.

"The ministers in the court are trembling with fear now. Is this what the emperor wants to see?" Liu Taishi frowned slightly, his face a little cold, "I have long said that the King of Wei is not suitable to be the emperor."

He Xiang said: "The emperor has now cleared out all the noble families in the capital. This is what the emperor wants."

"The Emperor has a very good plan in letting the King of Wei eliminate the Li family, the aristocratic families and the nobles." Liu Taishi mocked, "Let the King of Wei help the King of Han clear all obstacles. When His Royal Highness the King of Han ascends the throne, he can become a sage and benevolent monarch. The Emperor is really thoughtful."

"This is why the Emperor allowed the King of Wei to ascend the throne."

“The King of Wei is actually willing to do so?” The retired emperor has only used Emperor Yong’an from the beginning to the end. Now he wants to use Emperor Yong’an to remove all obstacles in the court and turn Emperor Yong’an into a mean, ungrateful, cold-blooded, sinister and vicious emperor.

"Of course he is willing, otherwise he would not be the emperor now." He Xiang stroked his beard and said, "The emperor himself will help the King of Han to remove these obstacles."

Although Grand Tutor Liu disliked Emperor Yong'an, he couldn't help but feel a little pity for him when he saw how he was treated by the retired emperor.

"Do you think the emperor is merciful or cruel?"

"He is both compassionate and cruel." He Xiang said meaningfully, "However, to His Royal Highness the King of Han, the Emperor is a kind father."

Master Liu sneered and said, "If His Royal Highness the Prince of Han was useless, do you think the Emperor would still make such elaborate plans for him?"

"Yes, but we will not let His Royal Highness the King of Han ascend the throne. We will arrange for His Royal Highness the King of Han to be a prince who lives a carefree life."

"Fortunately, everything is as expected." Grand Tutor Liu had been worried that there would be unexpected events in the plan of the retired emperor, and that he would need them to help clean up the mess.

"His Royal Highness the Prince of Han is the person the Emperor cares about the most. He will not do anything bad to His Royal Highness the Prince of Han." He Xiang sighed softly and said, "It's rare to still have family affection in the royal family."

Liu Taishi found He Xiang's words a little funny. "If the King of Wei had not been poisoned, was in good health, and could live for decades, do you think he would tolerate His Royal Highness the King of Han?"

He asked instead, "If the emperor had not been poisoned, do you think the emperor would have let him live?"

Master Liu said, "No."

"Since the Emperor was born, he has been treated as a chess piece and a knife by the Emperor Emeritus."

Master Liu was never a sentimental person, but at this moment he sighed: "The King of Wei is really a pitiful man."

"If you want to blame someone, blame him for having the blood of the Southern Wei people in his body." He Xiang sighed, "His fate in this life was determined when he was born."

"If the King of Wei had not been obsessed with the throne, he might not have died."

"Even if he doesn't want to be the emperor, the Southern Wei people around him will force him to fight for the throne." He Xiang added, "Everything is in the hands of the emperor." (End of this chapter)