Wang Mang then ordered the palace secretary to issue an article of impeachment against Dong, accusing Dong of failing to attend to Emperor Ai when he had been ill. Dong was prohibited from entering the palace, and was relieved of his post the next day. After knowing of his dismissal, Dong and his wife committed suicide, and were buried that night. Wang Mang disinterred him to make sure that he was in fact dead, and then had him reburied within a prison. The entire Dong clan was exiled to Hepu (合浦, in modern Zhanjiang, Guangdong) and their assets forfeited to the imperial treasury.
