"According to the Ministry of Revenue's census, Jushi City originally had over five hundred thousand residents. After the deaths and injuries from the war, four hundred and twenty thousand remain... They have all been gathered in the southern wards, awaiting Your Majesty's arrangements. Now that the fighting has ended, we ask that you consider laying down arms and returning them to their fields to restore production."
The moment he finished, a military officer beside him stepped forward and dropped to one knee, his voice ringing like a great bell.
"Your Majesty! In this campaign, we captured over three thousand members of Southern Qi's royal family and officials, along with over five thousand surrendered soldiers and officers, all former personnel from the various regions. In my humble opinion, many of them could be useful. We might assign them to the various departments and allow them to redeem their crimes through service. This would both demonstrate Your Majesty's boundless grace and swiftly stabilize the regions, preventing unrest."
Having finished, both men lowered their heads and awaited Zhao Lingxiu's instructions.
The hall was silent, so silent that the wind outside could be heard.
The tapping of Zhao Lingxiu's fingers paused.
She raised her eyes slightly. Her pupils were no longer their normal black, but churned with flecks of dark red, as though steeped in blood.
"Kill them all."
Those softly spoken words drifted out lightly, as though she were discussing something utterly insignificant.
The entire Hall of Supreme Harmony instantly fell deathly silent.
The civil official jerked his head up, all color draining from his face. His mouth opened as though he wanted to remonstrate. Five hundred thousand commoners-that was five hundred thousand lives!
But when he met Zhao Lingxiu's blood-colored eyes, every word lodged in his throat, and his entire body turned