Daily Intelligence System: Don't Kill Me, Honey!

After hearing Tuotuo’s statement, the Imperial Censor stubbornly began to speak out against Tuotuo. However, before Tuotuo could respond, Tuotuo’s top War General and Minister of the Ministry of Personnel stepped forward and said, ”Absurd! Lord Prime Minister, borrowing Dharma Ba was also for relieving the nation’s worries. How could this be a crime? Although there were some mistakes in handling the matter, Your Majesty should consider that Lord Prime Minister is wholeheartedly devoted to public service and should not be overly criticized.”

”Otherwise, it would chill the hearts of all court officials.”

The Minister of the Ministry of Personnel’s faction stepped forward, and immediately a number of followers joined in, saying, ”We support this.”

”We all support this!”

The Emperor noticed Tuotuo’s ability to rally support and frowned slightly, feeling dissatisfied. He sensed that they were disregarding the Emperor’s authority completely—was this a coup attempt?

With that thought, the Emperor wanted to discipline Tuotuo and glanced at Old Hama.

Old Hama, however, did not take the opportunity to attack. After all, the charges he had against Tuotuo were much greater than simply unauthorized mobilization of the Emperor’s personal guard. At this time, he did not need to engage in petty disputes with Tuotuo over such details.

In fact, if he were to focus on this now, he might lose the initiative, allowing Tuotuo to turn the tables.

Tuotuo glanced at Old Hama, thinking to himself how difficult the old man was to deal with. Originally, Tuotuo had thought he could find a lesser charge for himself, allowing the Emperor to handle the situation, which would reduce the impact when Old Hama accused him again.

After all, since the Emperor had already dealt with it, could he really go to the extremes against Tuotuo?

But the old man didn’t take the bait, leaving Tuotuo in a difficult position. Everyone in the court was defending him, which would surely leave a bad impression on Your Majesty. If Old Hama seized the opportunity, things would become troublesome!

But now, Tuotuo was trapped with no easy way out.

At this moment, the Emperor’s expression was sour. Tuotuo’s influence in the court was making him very uncomfortable.

The Emperor thought for a moment, especially when seeing Old Hama’s behavior. He was displeased and said, ”Yes, Lord Prime Minister serves the nation and people, and indeed should not be overly criticized. Let this matter rest!”

Upon hearing this, the Minister of the Ministry of Personnel and others immediately clasped their hands and said, ”Your Majesty is wise.”

Hearing the phrase ”Your Majesty is wise” again, the Emperor frowned slightly, as if the phrase was slapping him in the face.

At the same time, he thought of Old Hama. Could this man have allied with Tuotuo?

With this thought, the Emperor waved his hand and said, ”Today is my birthday. If there is no urgent matter, let’s end the session here, dismiss!”

The Emperor thought to himself that he still needed to find a way to discipline Tuotuo properly, while waving to dismiss the court.

Mr. Zhao then shouted, ”Those with petitions come forward, others dismiss!”

Upon hearing this, everyone prepared to leave the court. But suddenly they heard Old Hama’s voice saying, ”Your Majesty, this old servant has a petition!”

Old Hama then formally knelt on the ground, causing everyone to be stunned. The Emperor was also taken aback, turning to look at him and said, ”What is your petition?”

Old Hama then said, ”I accuse Left Minister Tuotuo of forming factions for private gain, abusing power, deceiving the Emperor, issuing unauthorized decrees to consolidate power, and conspiring to rebel!”

What!

The Emperor stood up abruptly and looked at Old Chancellor Hama, saying, ”What did you say? Consolidate power? Consolidate what power!”

Old Chancellor then said, ”Your Majesty, you are still in the dark. Tuotuo has detained the Ruyang King in the capital and has issued decrees to take over the Five Routes of Jiangnan Eighty-One Prefectures, causing great hardship for the people of Jiangnan. The adoptive son of the Ruyang King is outside the hall, requesting Your Majesty summon him!”