When Han Sui saw that the letter had been exposed, a trace of shame appeared on his face.
His daughter Han Qi's correspondence with Yuan Xi, this private connection, had been Han Sui's fallback.
But now that Ma Chao had publicly exposed it, there was no way to explain it away.
Han Sui could only say, "My daughter did not reveal any military intelligence in her letter, nor did she collude with Yuan Xi. I have not betrayed our alliance!"
Ma Chao snorted. "This letter did not mention military intelligence. What about the other letters?"
Han Sui stubbornly insisted that there had only been this one letter.
Ma Chao flew into a rage and drew his sword to kill Han Sui. Pang De grabbed Ma Chao's arm and advised, "The main forces of the Western Liang Army are now divided between the Young General and Governor Han. If Governor Han is killed and his subordinates cause trouble, it will inevitably lead to internal strife! How will we resist Yuan Xi then?"
Ma Dai also hurriedly urged, "Han Sui is our uncle, and we are the younger generation. Killing our uncle would be a grave violation of filial piety and righteousness."
Ma Chao suppressed his anger and said, "If we spare this old traitor, he may defect to Yuan Xi at any moment!"
Ma Dai said, "Why not detain Han Sui in the main camp for now and keep the news from leaking? Then, in his name, send trusted officers from our own ranks to seize his military authority."
Ma Chao followed Ma Dai's plan. He ordered trusted soldiers to secretly detain Han Sui, then found a small personal seal on Han Sui and forged orders, sending trusted officers to Han Sui's camp to take control of his forces.
Even