"The Internal Guard Bureau has always handled matters well, deserving commendation, so let's award each person twenty taels of silver, and if this task is done well, there will be more rewards."
Cao De immediately quieted down. If it meant being called Xiao Dezi by the Emperor and His Consorts, so be it. The Emperor was the Son of Heaven, what was the big deal if they called him Xiao Dezi? Yelling out the term wouldn't cost him a shred of flesh; seeking silver for the Internal Guard Bureau was the righteous path.
However, these louts have become increasingly stupid; upon their return, each person would first be rewarded with a sound beating of five sticks to smarten them up, then given the Emperor's silver as a sweetener – a stick followed by a treat.