Ministers Begging Me to Ascend the Throne Chapter 1090 - 127: What

In the capital, every Southern Wei individual except Prince Wei faced arrest without a single exception. No advance warnings reached the Southern Wei before their capture. Utterly baffled during detention, they only grasped the situation after landing in the vast prison of the Imperial Court of Judicial Review.

Seized without warning, the capital's Southern Wei lacked any chance to alert their relatives in other places. Meanwhile, countless Southern Wei from various regions were also rounded up. Detainees' homes were routinely ransacked first. Then came swift justice: beheadings for the condemned to die, exile for those banished, and grueling labor for the rest.

Kou Nanyu's entire faction, the makers of the Divine Pill, fell completely into the grasp of the Dragon Guards. Dragged to the execution site at the marketplace entrance, they were publicly beheaded before the eyes of the capital's masses.

Once the capital's residents discovered these villains had crafted the deadly Divine Pills, rage boiled over as they pelted the criminals with rocks, eggs, and spoiled vegetable scraps, leaving them battered and drenched in blood.

Even at the execution block, Kou Nanyu's group couldn't comprehend the reason for their seizure. Their operations had remained deeply covert, evading detection even by their own kin. How had the court's trackers sniffed them out? Their profoundest bewilderment centered on the Court of Judicial Review's failure to hold a trial before issuing death sentences outright. Had the authorities long known their Southern Wei identity?

This ruthless court purge against Southern Wei has slashed their numbers in Great Zhou by fully half.

The surviving Southern Wei who evaded capture now cower in sheer terror, slinking in shadows with utmost caution, dreading they could be next on the list.

Southern Wei abroad in lands like the Western Regions and Annan reeled in profound shock upon hearing their Great Zhou kin had been seized and slain.

For years, Southern Wei had convinced themselves their concealment was flawless, fooling the Great Zhou Court entirely. Astonishingly, the court had known of them all along, shadowing their every step. If not, why the sudden mass arrests of their Great Zhou brethren?

Awaking to the reality of constant Great Zhou Court surveillance over the years, Southern Wei lurking in foreign realms such as the Western Regions and Johor seethed with fury, shock, and dread. They burned to rush back to Great Zhou and save their kin, yet trembled at the risk of capture upon return.

These recent days have plunged Southern Wei into a living nightmare. Those still free dare no longer flaunt their former arrogance, turning instead to extreme obedience.

In distant Swamp Prefecture, news of the Imperial Court's order to arrest Southern Wei prompted Zhao Yao to launch a purge of all hidden Southern Wei across Lingnan.

Song Dachuan, loyal to Zhao Yao for years, brimmed with profound gratitude for his fateful choice; otherwise, his head would long since have rolled.

His inland family had been seized as well, yet Zhao Yao's intervention spared them harm in the end. Still, this rescue carried a price: his whole family must serve him loyally. They persisted in closely monitoring Southern Wei activities on his behalf.

After tasting the horrors of the grand prison and skirting death's gate, Song Dachuan's family rejected any further peril for Southern Wei. To secure their collective survival, they gladly pledged to Prince Han, toiling for him with unwavering devotion.

With Lingnan's Southern Wei utterly eradicated, Song Dachuan could no longer remain in Swamp Prefecture. Zhao Yao thus staged his "escape" to Annan, embedding him among the Southern Wei there.

Song Dachuan's deception proved masterful, earning full acceptance from Annan's Southern Wei ranks.

At this very moment, within the capital's Prince Wei Mansion.

Kneeling on the floor, Wei Yan unleashed wails of utter despair, his cries so heartrending that even Yu Hai, who had always despised him, felt a pang of pity.

"My lord, our decades of efforts have been destroyed." Wei Yan had been fortunate; during the capital's sweep of Southern Wei, he was handling business in the Western Regions, dodging the calamity. Otherwise, he would have already joined his ancestors. "Decades of hard work ruined..." As he spoke these words, tears overwhelmed him completely.

Prince Wei showed no reaction to Wei Yan's anguished sobs and grief. In a frigid voice, he demanded, "Blame whom?"

Memories hit Wei Yan of how Kou Nanyu’s faction crafting the Divine Pill had triggered their latest disaster, instantly twisting his face into a savage glare.

"Kou Nanyu!!!" If the court hadn’t already executed Kou Nanyu and his followers, Wei Yan would have ripped them to pieces himself.

With a sarcastic edge, Prince Wei fixed a chilly stare on the furious Wei Yan: "You knew about Kou Nanyu making the Divine Pill."

Wei Yan stiffened at those words right away. His gaze shifted guiltily before he denied it swiftly: "My lord, I had no idea about this."

"No idea?" Prince Wei arched his brows with a frosty sneer and added, "Without your support, how could Kou Nanyu’s Divine Pill have reached the Western Regions?"