LiuLiu's verbal duel with the Chief Minister held the officials' rapt attention, their faces shifting between schadenfreude and indignant frustration. After all, even the Chief Minister seemed to have been left speechless by LiuLiu's questioning, they would also likely end up being outsmarted by her.
The emperor felt greatly entertained. "Look at you lot," he thought, "I told you to let it go, but you insisted on rejecting my decision to dismiss the court. Now she has backed you into a corner, hasn't she?" He hadn't expected LiuLiu's tongue to be so sharp, even intimidating the old Chief Minister until he looked ready to drop dead. Indeed, just as LiuLiu had suggested, it was probably time for him to resign on account of his failure.
