Flatten?

Xia Houzheng was irked to see that his men were not listening to him. "I am the Emperor now! How dare you go against my words! Do you think you are right? No! Only my words are the ultimate end! If you say another word, I'll kill all of you without mercy!"

The retainer did not dare to speak again.

After that, their hearts turned cold. They had followed him for many years, and they had been planning for his success for many years, but all they received was banishment and death. 

…

When the people loyal to Qu Xiao saw that Xia Houzheng only had 20,000 to 30,000 men left in the capital to protect him, they saw this as a chance to act. Before this, they had already received a secret letter from their Emperor, asking them to take the opportunity to kill Xia Houzheng when they had the chance.