Starting with being handed over to the Imperial Concubine, building a family with a thousand-year hi

"If Elder Su is truly Su Qingshan's man, then the cultivation resources he possesses can be explained," Wei Zhongxian said slowly. "However, these two letters are insufficient as evidence, and His Majesty will certainly not believe them."

"We must investigate secretly and find concrete evidence," Xiao Changshan said in a deep voice. "This matter must not be made public for the time being, and we must not alarm Elder Su. Unless we are absolutely certain, we must not report it to the Emperor."

The royal family is currently most concerned about the identity of the mysterious expert who fought against Situ Jing on the day of the sacrificial ceremony. As for Su Mu, we can observe him for the time being.

Meanwhile, in an inconspicuous restaurant in the capital, Su Qingshan had just returned from the palace, a triumphant smile on his face.

"Su Mu, I'd like to see how you'll manage to stay in the palace this time!"

A sinister smile curled at the corner of Su Qingshan's lips. Over sixty years of experience had given him an intimate understanding of human nature.

He had long anticipated that even if the Xiao royal family harbored doubts, those two letters would create a rift between them and Su Mu—trust is inherently fragile, and a little provocation can sow the seeds of suspicion.

The contents of the letter were not entirely fabricated; most of them were true. He had already laid a backup plan. If the Xiao royal family investigated secretly, they would surely find "evidence," which would be key to forcing Su Mu to leave the palace and also bargaining chips to reveal Su Mu's true identity.

"To be able to kill a Grandmaster of the Duanmu family, he does have some skill. He is indeed worthy of being my son, Su Qingshan." Su Qingshan muttered to himself, a complex emotion flashing in his eyes, including resentment, calculation, and a hint of barely perceptible expectation.

He knew that killing a Grandmaster who was sealed was no easy task, and Su Mu must have had a fortuitous encounter—which was why he didn't want Su Mu to die in the palace and wanted to win him over to the Divine Judgment.

His plan was simple: first, he would use a scheme to sow discord between Su Mu and the Xiao royal family, forcing Su Mu into a corner; then, he would use blood ties as bait to lure Su Mu into joining the Divine Judgment. If Su Mu refused to submit and died at the hands of the Xiao royal family, it would be a great loss for the Great Xia, which suited his wishes perfectly.

"They must have already sent out another piece of 'evidence' in Gaoyi." Su Qingshan picked up the tea on the table, took a sip, and a hint of regret flashed in his eyes.

He knew that Gao Yi had most likely perished after infiltrating the palace—it was not easy to cultivate a strong person for the Divine Judgment, and Gao Yi's death was a significant loss for him.

As for who killed Gao Yi, he had no way of knowing. Perhaps it was Su Mu, perhaps it was a master from the Xiao royal family, or perhaps it was someone from the Shangwu Bureau.

"Su Mu, if you know what's good for you, you'll submit to the divine judgment. Otherwise, all that awaits you is death," Su Qingshan murmured, his tone full of threat.

He sneaked into the palace today but didn't see Xiao Anxun or Xiao Yuanhou. He couldn't help but wonder, "Could it be that Xiao Yuanhou has already perished in his battle with Situ Jing?"

On the day of the sacrificial festival, he watched from afar and did not see the battle clearly. He only knew that Xiao Yuanhou and Situ Jing fought fiercely, and then the two withdrew. Now that he thought about it, Xiao Yuanhou was old and perhaps already exhausted. After such a battle, he probably could not have survived.

"If Xiao Yuanhou dies, then the Xiao royal family will be even less of a threat." A hint of smugness flashed in Su Qingshan's eyes.

Just then, the restaurant manager pushed open the door and bowed, reporting, "Sir, Wang Hu has not returned."

Su Qingshan nodded calmly, not surprised: "I expected it."

Tonight, he and Wang Hu split up, each carrying an iron box to infiltrate the palace, but he didn't tell Wang Hu what was inside. Wang Hu was only at the Innate Realm level; in the imperial city, if he were discovered, he would have no chance of escape.

The reason he sent Wang Hu along was to make Wang Hu stay behind and "take the blame," to prove that the letter was sent by divine judgment, and to deepen the Xiao royal family's suspicion of Su Mu.

"Sir, there is one more thing," the shopkeeper said. "The East Sea Japanese and the Duanmu family have arrived and sent someone to find you, saying they have important matters to discuss. However, that person has already left the city and did not discover our stronghold. They only managed to contact our people through special means."

"The Japanese? The Duanmu family?" Su Qingshan raised an eyebrow, a hint of doubt flashing in his eyes. "Let them into the city and bring them to see me."

"Yes, I will arrange it immediately." The shopkeeper bowed and withdrew.

Su Qingshan sat in his chair, lost in thought: "The Grandmaster of the Duanmu family is dead, leaving them leaderless and easy to control; but the Japanese have always been cunning and greedy, why would they suddenly come to the mainland to get involved?"

He vaguely suspected that the Japanese might have learned of the dire situation on the Great Xia's borders and the weakness of the imperial city's defenses, and wanted to take advantage of the chaos to gain a share of the spoils. What worried him even more was that the Japanese might also have a Grandmaster in command, and he had to be extremely careful if he wanted to form an alliance with them.

"Alright, let's deal with them for now. If we can use their power to overthrow the Xiao royal family, it wouldn't be a bad idea." A calculating glint flashed in Su Qingshan's eyes, and he already had a plan in mind.

Meanwhile, in the Fenghe Hall, Wei Zhongxian was standing respectfully before Lin Wen.

Although Lin Wen did not hold a coronation ceremony, she had already moved into the Fenghe Palace as ordered and taken charge of the affairs of the six palaces ahead of schedule.

Wei Zhongxian came under the pretext of inspecting the palace and checking the assassins' tracks, and handed the two letters to Lin Wen. He knew that Lin Wen disliked Su Mu, and this was a good opportunity to curry favor with Lin Wen and join forces to bring down Su Mu.

"Your Majesty, Elder Su was once your personal eunuch, but now he has been targeted by the Divine Judgment. This old servant is worried that this matter will implicate you, so I have come here specifically to report this." Wei Zhongxian spoke respectfully, but secretly provoked.

Lin Wen took the letter, quickly glanced through it, and trembled with rage. She shouted, "That Su Mu! No wonder he could suddenly break through to the Grandmaster realm, no wonder he dared to disregard me! It turns out he's a member of the Divine Judgment!"

"Your Majesty, please calm down," Wei Zhongxian quickly advised. "Li Lianqing believes this might be a conspiracy by the Divine Judgment, intended to sow discord between the royal family and Elder Su. The Yangxin Palace has also instructed that this matter should not be publicized for the time being, and that concrete evidence should be found before reporting to the Emperor."

He paused, then added, "The Emperor is currently preoccupied with the border wars and the matter of Situ Jing, and is under immense pressure. It is not advisable to let him worry about this matter any further."

Lin Wen took a deep breath, suppressing her anger, a glint of ruthlessness flashing in her eyes: "Eunuch Wei, I know you are capable. This matter is entrusted to you to investigate. You must find evidence as soon as possible and expose Su Mu's true colors!"

"This old servant will certainly not fail in his mission!" Wei Zhongxian bowed and accepted the order, overjoyed—Lin Wen's attitude had already shown that she was willing to join forces to deal with Su Mu.

With Lin Wen's backing and the discovery of "evidence," Su Mu, no matter how powerful he is, will have no chance to escape!