Empress Song decreed the flogging to death of Eunuch Lu. All were taken aback, yet none stepped forward.
Seeing the crowd unresponsive, Empress Song's face flushed in anger, she shouted, "What, do I now lack the authority to command you all? You wretched slaves, I'm merely under house arrest and yet you dare humiliate me so!"
"Her Majesty the Empress, as the saying goes, even when beating a dog one must consider its master. I am someone close to the Emperor, do you dare bypass the Emperor to flog me to death? To act beyond your station indeed! Whether I live or die is for the Emperor to decide, not Her Majesty." Failing to find anything in his search, Eunuch Lu was already irate, and upon hearing Empress Song's words, could not resist a biting retort.
