Chapter 18

"Thank you for the emperor's gift." Yang Lie said but inwardly he wasn't happy at all. Despite his unwillingness, he still had no choice but to kneel down and thank Zhao Hao.

 "Go and cut down the official in charge of the Inspection and administration department." Zhao Hao ordered.

"Slaying an official!" Yang Lie was startled.

"Hurry it up otherwise, I will immediately appoint a new Imperial Executioner and get rid of you."

"Your Majesty, don't...I'll do it."

Yang Lie's heart trembled, and he could only carry his sword and walk towards the official.

Hubu Shangshu was the official responsible for the inspection department.

"Why kill me?" Hubu Shangshu exclaimed.

"In the past ten years, you have promoted officials as per Li Tianba's wishes. Those who disagreed with Li Tianba have been demoted or even removed from office by you. With that said, is it still not right to down to cut you down?"

Hubu Shangshu couldn't defend himself and could only look at Yan Gang: "Prime minister, save me..."

Huang Diewu beside Zhao Hao stared at Yan Gang and squinted her eyes.

Feeling pressure from the bright eyes of Huang Diewu on the opposite side which penetrated straight into his bones, Yan Gang couldn't help taking three steps back.

Yang Lie gritted his teeth and moved to swing his sword down.

"I..."

Hubu Shangshu's face changed drastically, and his words got stuck in his throat.

Zhao Hao added: "After the scramble for the Dragon Veins, the country was in a slump and the people were poor, but Li Tianba's private warehouse was full of silver and gold. You Hubu Shang Shu were responsible for overseeing this injustice." With these words, Hubu Shangshu was already sentenced to death.

"Slash!"

Hubu Shangshu's head fell to the ground.

Zhao Hao set his sites on a second official: "Cut off the official responsible for the Etiquette and Rituals Department."

He didn't give the other party a chance to retort, "Officials dare to criticize the emperor, and the military officials even dare to use swords against the emperor but you as the minister responsible for etiquette kept silent. What's the use of keeping you?"

"Slash!"

With this sound, a head fell to the ground.

Zhao Hao didn't stop and instead pressed on, "The three armies inside and outside listen not to the emperor's orders. The Jade Seal grew long legs and left the Imperial Study Room. You let it run to the Grand Marshal's Mansion. War Department Minister, shouldn't you follow these two?"

"The Grand Marshal's mansion is even more magnificent than the imperial palace. The Ministry of Industry must be slacking off."

Zhao Hao stretched out his fingers to two first-rank officials in a cutting motion, and as he shouted, "Swipe" twice, Yang Lie's hand lifted his sword and dropped, and two heads fell on the ground.

"Zhao Hao, you tyrant." Of the six officials who stood in opposition with the prime minister, only one was left in the blink of an eye.

"I am a benevolent monarch. I'm just following the criminal law. The executioner of my predecessor would also have cut down these few officials."

Yang Lie looked back at Zhao Hao as if asking: "Your Majesty, who else should I kill?" He was terrified before, but after all, he was a general who had witnessed countless murders on the battlefield, after a while, he had calmed down.

"Zhao Hao, you've killed six officials. They are the pillars of the country and control the operation of the country." Six officials were killed and Yan Gang's position was completely crushed. He knew that Zhao Hao had become ruthless, but there was still nothing he could do.

"They are Li Tianba's pillars, not my pillars." Zhao Hao sneered. These people must be killed.

"...All the criminal laws prohibited in this country by Li Tianba have been restored."

"Oh my god..."

All the officials started chattering. All of them groaned in their hearts: The little emperor is too cruel!

Looking at the trembling officials, Zhao Hao was not done yet, and ordered: "Yang Lie, come forward and listen to this order."

"What's the emperor's order?" Yang Lie hurriedly straightened his waist and matched forward.

"I order you to hang the corpses of Li Tianba's family on the midday gate, to inform the world and whip the corpses in public for three days and three nights."

"Emperor..."

Upon hearing Zhao Hao's words, Yang Lie felt like screaming and lying on the ground. He wanted to cry in his heart.

Even if he was forced to be Zhao Hao's imperial executioner, Li Tianba's prestige still weighed down heavily on him. Asking him to whip the corpses of Li Tianba's family put him between a rock and a hard place. When Li Tianba he would be skinned alive.

"The emperor, Li Tianba's methods are so harsh, these young official really dare not take on this important task."

"Can he beat me in cruelty?" Zhao Hao narrowed his eyes, threatening Yang Lie.

Yang Lie's face trembled.

Indeed, I have never seen anyone crueler than you.

"Kang Dang."

Zhao Hao dragged out a swarthy iron pot and threw it on the ground, saying: "Yang Lie, the imperial executioner, I will give you a sip of the magic treasure iron pot. Take it and go complete the task immediately. "

The mysterious iron pot that killed Li Tianba's wife last time was always an eyesore in the system warehouse for Zhao Hao, and now he finally found a chance to get rid of it.

"I puff..."

Looking at the black iron pot on the ground, Yang Lie almost sprayed out a few liters of old blood. However, the dark light bursting from the pot made him feel that it was a solid defensive artifact, which was far stronger than the armor and shield he had. The iron pot seemed to be a magic weapon of profound quality, which was an absolute steal for Yang Lie. Its appearance was its only downside. It could make one look like a chef on the battlefield...

"Thank you Your Majesty." Yang Lie sadly put the iron pot on his back, and dragged Li Yao's corpse out of the hall to go complete his task.

From then on, he could only be determined to be loyal to Zhao Hao, otherwise he would have no way out.

The whipping of the corpses seemed abit above board but Zhao Hao felt it necessary to act as a deterrent and warning and to let the world know the fate of the guilty. He aimed to send a warning to Li Tianba and his accomplices. In addition, in the eyes of the outside world, his image as a "trash puppet" has been around for ten years. He must stand up in majesty and show abit of authority.

"Yan Gang, now it's your turn." Zhao Hao looked at Yan Gang again, his eyes filled with killing intent.