by Luo Guanzhong
18The guards forcibly led Tao out of the chamber. They were about to carry out his sentence, when a senior official yelled at them to stop, saying, "Take no further action, wait for me to advise the emperor." They all looked to see who it was. It was Minister over the Masses Chen Dan. He walked straight into the palace, and admonished the emperor, saying, "What crime has Advisor Liu committed that he should receive a death sentence?" The emperor replied, "He has slandered my closest attendants, and insulted me personally." Dan said, "The people of the nation want to eat the ten regular attendants for breakfast, yet Your Majesty reveres them like parents. They have done nothing of merit, and yet they have all been granted honorary marquis status. Not only that, Feng Xu was in cahoots with the Yellow Turbans, and was on the verge of wreaking havoc. If Your Majesty does not engage in some introspection right now, the country will be toppled for sure!" The emperor responded, "If Feng Xu was involved in wreaking havoc, I was not aware of it. Among the ten regular attendants, surely there must be at least one or two that are loyal ministers?" Chen Dan reiterated his opinion while banging his head on the ground in subservience. The emperor was outraged, and ordered him removed. Both he and Liu Tao were thrown in prison. That night at the prison, the ten regular attendants had them both murdered. They forged an imperial decree which made Sun Jian the governor of Changsha, so that he could prosecute Ou Xing.
Continued next week. Tomorrow's installment from Lays of Ancient Rome by Macaulay.
This is one of four great novels from China, published when it was the most highly civilization in the world. Map shows China at the time of this story.
Chapter Summary: Zhang Yide gets angry and whips the County Inspector; Royal uncle He plots the murder of the wretched eunuchs.
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This translation from Wikipedia. See license CC-BY-SA.
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