The Empress Kneels in Her Palace to Admit Her Mistakes After Slaying Her Ways in the Female-Oriented

These words struck like a thunderbolt.

The steward immediately knelt down: "Master, the Third Miss did indeed hang herself that day. All the elders, maids, and servants in the clan witnessed it with their own eyes. There is absolutely no falsehood in this story."

"He was buried and laid to rest according to the rites for an unmarried woman who committed suicide."

"Everyone saw it with their own eyes, how, how could it be faked?"

Su Hong nodded. He also believed that these people would not lie. Besides, he had indeed asked them more questions at the time, and they all said that he had hanged himself on his way back to his hometown.

Later, he was hurriedly taken back to his hometown, and was only buried peacefully when his letter arrived.

So...

There is no possibility that others could falsify the information.

There are only two possibilities.

Either Su Jin was mistaken, and it was just a false alarm.

Or perhaps, what secret is hidden in the coffin?

Su Hong was decisive and immediately said, "Go to the ancestral grave, open the coffin, I want to perform an autopsy."

The clan elders who rushed over were instantly shocked and immediately tried to dissuade him: "Su Hong, are you crazy?"

"What are you trying to do? Your older brother took such good care of you back then, and now his child is dead, and you actually want to open the coffin?"

"Su Hong, you absolutely mustn't! Li'er has already committed suicide and should be laid to rest. To open the coffin and disturb the body would be extremely ominous!"

……

Su Hong remained expressionless, but his tone was extremely cold.

"An ominous sign? Is this a sign or an ominous sign? If Jin'er's message is correct, our Su family in the Northern Frontier is facing annihilation!"

"Our entire family is gone, so what's the point of talking about bad luck?"

Su Hong's decisiveness and these words made the elders realize that there must be something fishy going on. In addition, Su Hong's status in the clan was at its peak, and he was a favorite of the Duke, so no one dared to say anything more.

They were all swarming together, following Su Hong to the ancestral tomb.

The frozen soil was dug open shovel by shovel, and the coffin was slowly lifted out.

The black lacquered coffin was intact, and the seals were still on.

As Su Hong watched this scene, his eyes welled up with tears, and he almost shed a tear. The image of his elder brother's three women playing around him seemed to reappear before his eyes.

But now, I've hardened my heart.

"open!"

He gave the order.

The iron nails were pried open, and the coffin lid was slowly lifted, instantly releasing a faint smell of decay and earthiness. Inside lay a female corpse, whose clothing, appearance, height, and hairstyle were almost identical to Su Li's.

However, Su Hong suddenly stopped!

His body trembled slightly.

He even went up to the corpse himself and lightly touched the woman's fingertips, but he couldn't find the scar that Su Li had accidentally gotten when she was a child.

Su Hong stopped, all his sadness vanished, replaced by a surge of anger.

"Okay, okay, Su Li, Su Li, you're so nice!"

"While your second uncle's care for you over the years may have been somewhat lacking, you... don't have to torment him like this, do you?"

"If you don't fake your death, your second uncle will take care of you for the rest of your life."

"Even if you really want to fake your death to escape the chaos of this world, your second uncle can grant your wish and find you a paradise on earth, but you..."

"But why would you do something that endangers your entire family?"

"Has our Su family wronged you so much?"

"Can't you see even the slightest lesson from your second sister, Su Xiu's, experience?"

Su Hong's eyes were slightly red, and he was beginning to lose control of his emotions.

The clan elders finally understood.

After all, the coroner was right there and could tell at a glance that the ligature marks on the female corpse's neck inside the coffin were very shallow, obviously added after death.

In other words, even if Su Li is dead, it is absolutely impossible that she committed suicide by hanging!

So... it's almost a certainty that Su Li isn't dead!

"Su Hong, what should we do now?"

"Has Li'er committed some heinous crime? Su Hong, you're currently a favorite of the Duke, your power is immense, you must protect Li'er!"

"Su Hong, say something! What should we do now?"

……

Su Hong took a deep breath, put on a smiling face, and said, "Although Li'er's matter is not insignificant, my Su family in the Northern Frontier is now quite powerful. Elders, you are all getting old, so there is no need for you to worry about it so much. Go back to your homes."

"I will definitely handle this matter well."

Only after Su Hong said this did everyone feel relieved.

Su Hong had already taken out three letters from his pocket, destroyed two of them, and handed the remaining one to a servant.

"Remember, send it to Kyoto as quickly as possible, to my niece Su Jin."

"Furthermore, I told my eldest niece not to make any rash decisions and to act in accordance with the instructions in the letter."

The servant obeyed and left, but Su Hongxin was still uneasy, because his letter, though lengthy, contained only one sentence at its core.

"Tell the Duke the truth. His decision on whether you live or die is entirely his. You must not conceal anything, disobey him, or plead for mercy!"

Su Hong placed his hopes on Ren Tianye's character.

Based on his understanding of Ren Tianye, if he explained the reason, Ren Tianye might not pursue the matter, but if he was discovered after hiding, it would inevitably create a rift between them.

But ultimately, this is a gamble.

It's not a perfect solution!

The fate of the Su family remains in the hands of his niece, because if his third niece, Su Lizhen, were to attempt an assassination, even if Duke Ren Tianye is magnanimous, his subordinates might not be as magnanimous as General Wang Ming.

With a sigh, Su Hong did not wait for the result.

This matter is urgent, and he has to do something about it.

Immediately, he found the people who had returned to their hometown with Su Li and questioned them one by one to find out the details of what had happened. Soon, Su Hong pieced together something unusual.

"On the way back, was there a woman who deliberately approached Su Li?"

"That's obviously the person who helped Su Li fake her death."

"Who are they?"

The butler spoke quickly, saying, "Master, that woman is from the Tongxin Alliance!"

"The Alliance of Unity?"

"Yes, sir, don't you know? There are many members of the Alliance of Hearts, quite a few even in our Northern Frontier." The steward said with some longing, "They are a sect that teaches people how to love others."

"Take love as your path, and the heart as your principle."

"Ordered by emotion, guided by truth."

Regardless of gender or financial status.

"Without distinction of rank or difference."

"If you have something in your heart, you can go to it."

"When you have something to care about, you can be at ease."

"Uphold sincerity and harmonize with kindness."

"With one heart and one mind, we will live in harmony for generations to come."

May all people in the world find what they love.

May all human affections find their proper end.

The steward recited the slogan of the Tongxin Alliance in one breath, his admiration barely concealed in his eyes: "Master, the Tongxin Alliance is a martial arts sect that everyone admires. We all want to join, but unfortunately, we've never had the chance."

Su Hong's expression suddenly changed.

He had actually heard of this Alliance of Unity!

……