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

Just as Su Mu and Xiao Anran were chatting quietly, each lost in their own thoughts, a painful scream suddenly came from the room next to the study. This was followed by the sounds of him rolling on the floor and slamming his head against the tables and chairs. Su Mu and Xiao Anran exchanged a glance and immediately rushed over. Pushing open the door, they saw Zheng He curled up on the floor, his hands tightly clutching his chest, his face ashen, veins bulging on his forehead, cold sweat streaming down his face, and he repeatedly uttering heart-wrenching cries of pain—a truly pitiful sight.

Xiao Anran's heart stirred, and she secretly pondered: This boy lacks willpower, and his martial arts aptitude is merely mediocre. It seems that Xiao Ping'an's deliberate selection of such a young eunuch was likely a test of Elder Su's abilities, to see if this powerful eunuch could mold such a mediocre person into a capable individual. She wanted to see for herself what Su Mu's skills were that allowed him to cultivate such an incapable person into a useful one.

Time passed slowly, and in the blink of an eye, two hours had gone by. Zheng He's pain gradually subsided, and he lay on the ground, exhausted, panting heavily. His face was still pale, and his eyes had become unfocused. As soon as he finished speaking, he closed his eyes and fell into a deep sleep, with a trace of lingering pain still on the corner of his mouth.

Looking at him like this, Xiao Anran couldn't help but laugh and cry, shaking her head helplessly: "This child can hold on, but he's too weak."

"Never mind him for now, let him rest well, he'll be fine when he wakes up." Su Mu said calmly, then turned and walked outside, his expression still calm, as if he had already expected this scene.

The moment Su Mu turned around, a pungent, fishy, ​​and medicinal stench wafted from Zheng He, making Xiao Anran wrinkle her nose and cover her mouth. Without lingering, she quickly followed Su Mu out, closing the door to shut out the pungent smell.

……

Laifu Inn, the most inconspicuous mid-range inn in the Great Qian Imperial City, is actually one of the secret strongholds of the Divine Judgment in the Imperial City. Inside the guest room, Su Qingshan was sitting at the table, slowly flipping through the secret letter that had been sent to him. His brows were furrowed, his expression was solemn, and his fingertips tapped lightly on the table, making a soft "tap tap tap" sound. The atmosphere in the room was so oppressive that it was hard to breathe.

Some time ago, due to the rebellion during the festival of gods, the palace was under extremely tight security. The spies planted within the palace by the divine judgment had no opportunity to transmit intelligence and could only lie in wait, patiently awaiting their chance. Until today, with the Queen's coronation celebration banquet being held in the palace, the guards relaxed somewhat, and the spies finally seized the opportunity to secretly pass on the latest news from within the palace.

Su Qingshan looked at the contents of the secret letter and muttered to himself in a low voice, his tone heavy with a hint of surprise: "The chief steward Wei Zhongxian is dead. The royal family claims that he died from a qi deviation while trying to break through to the Grandmaster realm, but in reality, he was killed by that loyal eunuch Su Mu."

He paused, his fingertips tracing the words on the secret letter, and continued to ponder: "Su Mu's ability to kill the trapped Duanmu Ping might have had an element of luck, but his ability to personally kill Wei Zhongxian is a genuine demonstration of strength. It seems that this little eunuch's strength is even greater than we expected."

"Now he lives in the library, rarely venturing out of the palace. He also loves to adopt sons, and many eunuchs in the palace have joined his ranks. It seems that he wants to secretly cultivate his own power in the palace."

Su Qingshan sighed softly, a look of frustration on his face: "It seems my plan has failed. The Xiao royal family not only doesn't suspect Su Mu, but still trusts him completely and entrusts him with important responsibilities. This is not a good thing for us, the Divine Judgment."

"Also, Xiao Yuanhou didn't attend the Empress's victory banquet today. Judging from the previous news, he should have been severely injured and killed by Situ Jing's Overlord Spear during his fight with Situ Jing." Thinking of this, Su Qingshan's expression softened a little. Xiao Yuanhou was the only Grandmaster of the royal family. With his death, the Xiao royal family completely lost its most powerful backer, which was a good thing for their plan to destroy the Xiao royal family.

But the next second, his expression turned serious again, and his tone was tinged with worry: "However, the sixth elder of the Tianwu Sect, who is also Lin Wen's grandfather, Lin Zhengying, has also arrived in the imperial city. I heard that the Tianwu Sect found many precious treasures in the treasures of the ancient sects, and Lin Zhengying has already successfully broken through to the Grandmaster realm while in the imperial city, becoming the newly promoted Grandmaster of the Tianwu Sect."

"This is bad, this is troublesome." Su Qingshan's heart sank, and he thought to himself - Lin Zhengying is a member of the Tianwu Sect, and the Tianwu Sect has always been on good terms with the Xiao royal family. He must have come here to protect the imperial city. With such a grandmaster in charge, it will undoubtedly be much more difficult for them to take action.

Just as Su Qingshan was frowning and deep in thought, a soft knocking sound came from outside the door. The rhythm was even, clearly a pre-arranged signal.

"Come in." Su Qingshan snapped out of his thoughts, his tone returning to calm as he spoke in a deep voice. His voice wasn't loud, but it was enough for the person outside the door to hear. With his current level of divine sense cultivation, he had already sensed the aura of the person outside the door and could naturally identify who it was.

The door was gently pushed open, and a thin man dressed in black walked in. He bowed to Su Qingshan and reported respectfully, "My lord, the Second Prince of the Japanese tribe, Mori no Uehara, and the current head of the Duanmu family, Duanmu Rong, have come to visit you. They say they have an important matter they wish to discuss with you."

Upon hearing this, Su Qingshan's eyes flashed with understanding. He then nodded slowly and ordered in a deep voice, "Please invite the two of you in. Also, this is none of your business. You may leave now and stand guard outside the door, making sure no one approaches."

"Yes, sir!" The man in black bowed and responded respectfully. He then turned and left, gently closing the door behind him. He stood guard outside the inn's guest room, vigilantly observing the surroundings.

The innkeeper, having already received instructions, hurriedly came out of the next room and quickly went downstairs to greet the Second Prince of the Japanese tribe and the head of the Duanmu family. A short while later, the two figures followed the innkeeper into the guest room. Upon seeing this, Su Qingshan immediately stood up, a polite smile on his face, and stepped forward to greet them.

"Your Highness the Second Prince, Patriarch Duanmu, it is an honor to have you here. I, Su Qingshan, have failed to greet you properly. Please forgive me." Su Qingshan bowed to the two of them, his tone polite and appropriate, neither overly humble nor disrespectful.

"You're too kind, Elder Su." The first to speak was the second prince of the Japanese tribe, Mori no Uerou. He was thin with a round head and his black hair was combed into a small braid that stood straight up, making him look somewhat comical. However, he had a hint of arrogance on his face and looked to be only in his thirties, but his eyes held a sinister glint.