Chapter 154: Ju Shou: I Regret Advising My Lord to Install a False Son of Heaven!
Thunder and rain alike were the sovereign's grace.
Yuan Xi finally understood what it meant to serve a sovereign as though accompanying a tiger.
A single rebuke had struck more fear into him than Yuan Shao ever had in his rage.
After bowing respectfully to Liu Xie, Yuan Xi withdrew from the Xuan Room with his back bent.
He had neither the confidence to face the Son of Heaven nor the prestige to hold him hostage.
His request for an official appointment had been refused. However unwilling he felt, he dared not show the slightest trace of it.
Especially now that he had committed the evil deeds of murdering his younger brother and imprisoning his father. If he offended the Son of Heaven as well and was branded disrespectful, the situation he had only just managed to stabilize would collapse in an instant.
Ju Shou and the others waiting outside the hall had also heard Liu Xie's angry rebuke.
Seeing Yuan Xi withdraw with a displeased expression, they guessed the outcome of his request for an appointment.
"To think he actually refused Yuan Xi..." A complicated look flashed through Ju Shou's eyes.
He had thought that, given Liu Xie's fawning character, he would agree to Yuan Xi's demands without hesitation once he learned that Yuan Shao was under house arrest.
Yet the truth was the opposite of what he had expected.
Not only had Liu Xie refused to grant Yuan Xi an additional office, he had outright berated him and sent him away.
"The Grand General is trapped in desperate straits, yet this fellow's loyalty remains unchanged. Could I have misjudged him before?"
Ju Shou sank into thought, beginning to doubt his earlier judgment.