At 100 years old, he joined the army in place of his granddaughter, and became a national war god.

Inside the hall, candlelight shone brightly.

All eyes were on the masked man.

A black cloak, a veil covering her face, a long sword hanging at her waist, and a slender figure.

He knelt on one knee in the center of the hall, holding a thick envelope aloft with both hands, remaining motionless.

Xiao Jingyu frowned and whispered to Su Mu, "Elder Su, who is this person? I've never seen him before. How could he have evidence of the Prime Minister's treason?"

Su Mu smiled and gently shook his head.

"Your Highness, this man is an old friend of mine, named Liu Yuzhou."

"Liu Yuzhou?" Xiao Jingyu was taken aback.

"He is a close friend I met in the North. He has been secretly helping me during my time in the capital."

"At the same time, he is also a member of the Listening Wind Pavilion."

Xiao Jingyu's pupils contracted slightly, and he was secretly surprised.

Listening Wind Pavilion, the largest intelligence organization in the martial arts world, has informants all over the world.

If it really was them who made the move, Li Yuan's background would probably have been completely exposed.

……

Emperor Xiao Jinghuan took the envelope, tore open the seal, and pulled out the letter inside.

His gaze swept from the first line to the last, his expression growing increasingly grim and unpleasant.

He recognized the handwriting on the letter.

That was Li Yuan's handwriting.

He had read memorials in the imperial court for decades; how could he not recognize the Prime Minister's handwriting?

"Li Yuan!"

"Explain this to me! What exactly is going on?"

Li Yuan's face turned deathly pale. He knelt down with a thud, his voice shrill and his whole body trembling.

"Your Majesty, Your Majesty! This letter must be a forgery!"

"Your humble servant has never written such a letter!"

"This is a frame-up! This is a setup!"

"This person must have deliberately forged the letter to try and kill me! Your Majesty, please investigate!"

Crown Prince Xiao Yunfeng also stepped forward quickly, cupped his hands and said, "Father, the Prime Minister is right. The origin of this letter is unknown and its authenticity is hard to determine. I suspect that this person deliberately forged it to sow discord among the court officials."

"Perhaps this person is trying to frame the Prime Minister to achieve some ulterior motive!"

As he spoke, his gaze swept over Su Mu, seemingly intentionally or unintentionally.

Xiao Jingyu's face darkened, and he was about to retort when Liu Yuzhou sneered.

"Prime Minister, if you don't want people to know, then don't do it in the first place."

"You colluded with the Blood-Clad Tower, persecuted loyal officials, kidnapped the granddaughter of a meritorious minister, and framed the General of the North. Did you think you could get away with it? The net of heaven is vast, and though its meshes are wide, nothing escapes it!"

Li Yuan suddenly turned around, glaring at Liu Yuzhou with eyes that seemed to spit fire.

"You! Who are you? I have no grudge against you, why are you framing me?"

As he spoke, Li Yuan rushed towards Liu Yuzhou, grabbed Liu Yuzhou by the collar, got very close, his eyes wide with rage, gritted his teeth, and he seemed to want to devour Liu Yuzhou alive.

Liu Yuzhou ignored him, and with a slight lift of her hand, slowly took out a black pendant from her bosom.

The pendant is crescent-shaped, entirely black, with a ferocious blood-red ghost head carved on it, and dense patterns engraved on the back.

He held the pendant high above his head with both hands, his voice steady.

"Your Majesty, this is the communication document between the Blood-Clad Tower assassin organization and its long-term business partner."

"Each employer and Blood-Clad Tower has such a token, which is split in two, with each party holding one half."

"The Prime Minister also has one; only by combining the two can the complete Blood-Clad Token be formed."

He raised his head and looked directly at Xiao Jinghuan.

"If Your Majesty does not believe me, you may send someone to search the Prime Minister's body."

"Li Yuan,"

"Didn't you say you were innocent? Since you are innocent, let Han You search you. If you are upright, you have nothing to fear. If you search me, I will believe you."

Li Yuan took a deep breath and said loudly, "Alright, then let's search them."

After saying that, Li Yuan opened his arms and looked coldly at Liu Yu, saying, "You bastard, if you can't find anything on me, I will make sure you die a horrible death."

"Han You!" Xiao Jinghuan shouted.

"Your subordinate is here!" Han You strode forward.

"search!"

Han You walked up to Li Yuan, clasped his hands in greeting, and said, "Prime Minister, please forgive me."

He reached out and carefully searched Li Yuan's sleeves, waist, and chest.

A moment later, Han You's hand stopped on the inside of Li Yuan's left sleeve.

He reached in with his finger and pulled out a cold object from the hidden compartment.

Upon closer inspection, it was a crescent-shaped black pendant, jet black and shiny, with a ferocious, blood-red ghost head carved on it.

It is exactly the same as the one in Liu Yuzhou's hand.

Han You put the two pendants together perfectly, forming a single token.

On the back of the token are engraved two large ancient seal characters: "Blood-stained Robe".

The hall was deathly silent.

Li Yuan's pupils constricted, utterly astonished.

"What's going on? How did this thing get in my sleeve?"

"Impossible, this isn't mine."

"Your Majesty, I am innocent!"

Crown Prince Xiao Yunfeng's expression also changed. He subconsciously took a step back, avoiding Xiao Jinghuan's gaze.

Xiao Jinghuan stared at Li Yuan, his eyes filled with anger.

"Li Yuan, what else do you have to say? You colluded with the Blood-Clad Tower, harmed loyal officials, kidnapped the daughter of a meritorious official, and framed General Su. What is your punishment?"

Li Yuan's body trembled violently, and he raised his head, his eyes filled with terror.

"Your Majesty...Your Majesty...This humble subject...This humble subject..."

Liu Yuzhou sneered, took out another document from his pocket, and handed it over with both hands.

"Your Majesty, these are the transaction records of Blood-Clad Tower in recent years."

"It records in detail all the dealings between Prime Minister Li Yuan and the Blood-Clad Tower, including the year, the month, who was killed, and how much silver was spent, item by item, clearly."

"Lord Xue Yi died at the hands of the Blood Robe Tower because he impeached the Prime Minister for corruption and abuse of power in court, thus blocking the Prime Minister's path."

Xiao Jinghuan took the document and flipped through it page by page, his expression growing increasingly grim.

His hands were trembling slightly, and his eyes were blazing with anger.

"Li Yuan! You! You! How dare you! I have treated you well, appointing you as Prime Minister and elevating you to the highest position in the court, and this is how you repay me?"

"You colluded with assassin organizations, harmed court officials, and framed my meritorious ministers—what are your true intentions?!"

Li Yuan collapsed to the ground, his vision went black, and he almost fainted.

Xiao Jinghuan turned around abruptly and shouted orders at Han You.

"Han You! Seize Li Yuan! Throw him in the imperial prison and interrogate him thoroughly! I want to find out exactly how many people he has harmed!"

"Yes, sir!"

Han You waved his hand, and two Imperial Guards stepped forward and dragged Li Yuan up from the ground.

Li Yuan's legs were no longer under his control; he was being supported, like a lump of mud.

He kept muttering "Your Majesty, spare me! Your Majesty, spare me!" His voice grew fainter and fainter, fading into the distance.

Crown Prince Xiao Yunfeng stood to the side, his face pale, his head bowed, not daring to utter a sound.

He thought to himself, "This is bad. What if Li Yuan can't withstand the interrogation and confesses?"

Xiao Jinghuan didn't look at him, but turned around and walked to Su Mu.

The anger on his face gradually faded, replaced by a deep sense of guilt.

"General Su..."

"I listened to slander and almost harmed you. I... I am so sorry."

Su Mu knew when to stop and didn't give the emperor a hard time.

"Your Majesty need not blame yourself. There are treacherous officials in power in the court, and Your Majesty has been deceived by their schemes."

"General Su, rest assured, I will definitely investigate this matter thoroughly and give you an explanation."

Seeing the somewhat heavy atmosphere, the Third Prince Xiao Jingyu quickly stepped forward to smooth things over, cupping his hands and smiling, "Your Majesty, the truth of this matter was able to come to light entirely thanks to Your Majesty's wisdom, martial prowess, and keen insight."

"The true colors of the treacherous officials have been revealed, and General Su's injustice has been redressed. This is a blessing for the Great Qian Dynasty and a boon for the nation!"

Xiao Jinghuan nodded, the gloom on his face gradually dissipating. He looked at Su Mu and said solemnly, "General Su, I wish to reward you with ten thousand taels of gold, a thousand bolts of silk, and a hundred acres of fertile land..."

"You have recovered the northern border for me and brought the Northern Barbarians under your control. I cannot treat you unfairly."

He paused, then looked at Su Qingxue standing behind Su Mu, a hint of gentleness flashing in his eyes.

"And your granddaughter, I hereby bestow upon her the title of Princess Anning."

May she live a peaceful and tranquil life, free from disaster and hardship.

Su Qingxue was stunned for a moment, then looked up at her grandfather.

Su Mu nodded.

Then Su Qingxue immediately knelt down, her face flushed with excitement.

"Qingxue thanks Your Majesty for your kindness!"

Xiao Jinghuan laughed heartily and waved his hand.

"Get up, get up. From now on, in the capital, if anyone dares to bully you, I will back you up."

Xiao Jinghuan then looked at the Third Prince and instructed, "Third Brother, hurry up and get General Su's residence ready."

"General Su has made unparalleled contributions; he shouldn't be without a decent place to live."

Xiao Jingyu clasped his hands in a fist salute: "Your Majesty, rest assured, I will certainly handle it well."

Su Mu stepped forward, cupped his hands, and said, "Your Majesty, this old minister has a request."

"General Su, please speak."

"Your Majesty, this old minister has already had enough of a general's mansion."

"Your Majesty, I humbly request that the gold and silk bestowed upon you be given to the soldiers in the northern border."

"They followed the old minister through thick and thin, recovered the northern border, and were utterly loyal to the Great Qian Dynasty. They deserve these rewards even more."

Xiao Jinghuan was stunned.

Looking at Su Mu's wrinkled face and his cloudy yet sincere eyes, he felt an indescribable surge of emotion.

"Good! Good! Good!"

"General Su, I agree!"

"I will allocate a separate reward for the soldiers in the North. You should also take the one given to you; it is what you deserve."

Su Mu did not refuse again, but nodded in thanks: "Thank you, Your Majesty."

Xiao Jinghuan then looked at Tuoba Lie, pondered for a moment, and said, "The matter of the Northern Di's submission is of great importance. Tomorrow morning at court, I will formally sign an alliance with the King of the Northern Di in front of all the civil and military officials."

"Firstly, to announce to the world and demonstrate the power and prestige of the Great Qian Dynasty."

"Secondly, it also shows that I respect the Northern Barbarians and am not using my power to oppress them."

Tuoba Lie clasped his hands and bowed deeply.

"Your Majesty is wise; Tuoba Lie obeys."

Xiao Jinghuan laughed heartily, in a great mood.

"Alright! Let's call it a day for tonight."

"Third brother, make sure you take good care of General Su and the King of the Northern Di. I'm returning to the palace."

"Best farewell to Your Majesty."

Xiao Jinghuan strode out of the palace gate, followed by the Crown Prince and Consort Xu.

The crown prince followed behind with his head down, his expression shifting between anger and uncertainty.

He glanced at Su Mu, a hint of resentment flashing in his eyes, but ultimately dared not say another word, and quietly followed the emperor into the night.

……

The hall finally fell silent.

Xiao Jingyu let out a long breath, turned to look at Su Mu, his eyes filled with emotion.

"Old Su, we've finally survived this ordeal."

"It's a pity that His Majesty didn't get to punish the Crown Prince."

Su Mu smiled and said, "After all, the Crown Prince is the Emperor's own son. Even if we really produce evidence that the Crown Prince was involved, the Emperor will not punish him severely."

"However, with Li Yuan gone, the Crown Prince lost an arm."

"His influence in the court has been severely weakened. He won't be able to cause any trouble in the short term."

Xiao Jingyu sighed, a look of joy in his eyes.

"Yes, at least we can finally have some peace and quiet for a while."

"However, since ancient times, those who do many evil deeds will surely perish. With the Crown Prince's actions, I believe it won't be long before he suffers the consequences."

Su Mu nodded and said nothing more.