After gazing at Xue Xing and Dugu Bo for a moment, a sharp glint flashed through Emperor Xue Ye's eyes. He waved his hand, dismissing all the palace maids who had been standing by in the bedchamber.
It wouldn't have mattered if Dugu Bo hadn't seen anything unusual. But if he had noticed something, that news must never be leaked. Otherwise, the Heaven Dou Empire could very well plunge into chaos.
"Poison Douluo, I trouble you."
Emperor Xue Ye nodded toward Dugu Bo.
"As a guest elder of the imperial family, this is merely my duty."
Speaking humbly, Dugu Bo closed his eyes and released his spiritual power, carefully examining Emperor Xue Ye's physical condition.
If possible, Dugu Bo didn't want to change employers.
Whatever else could be said, Emperor Xue Ye handled matters with considerable competence.
Of course, in Dugu Bo's view, the Crown Prince Xue Qinghe was also a decent man.
But Xue Qinghe was still young. Although they were acquainted, their relationship wasn't especially close. What things would be like once he ascended the throne there was no telling.
Very soon, as he examined Emperor Xue Ye's condition, Dugu Bo furrowed his brows, and his expression turned exceptionally grave.
"Poison Douluo, how is Royal Brother's condition?"
Seeing Dugu Bo's knitted brows, Xue Xing immediately had a bad premonition and hurriedly asked.
Dugu Bo didn't answer right away and continued investigating.
A while later, Dugu Bo finally opened his eyes. He looked at Xue Xing, then at Xue Ye, and said in a deep voice, "Your Majesty, you have been poisoned by an extremely subtle and unknown compound toxin.
Though the toxicity itself isn't especially potent, the level of complexity is high. Ordinary detoxification methods are mostly ineffective. Moreover, the poison has already taken deep root. Forgive this old man's incompetence."
As a poison expert, Dugu Bo could naturally tell whether or not Emperor Xue Ye had been poisoned.
But he had never seen this type of compound poison before. Furthermore, his skills lay more in poison deployment than detoxification, so he was completely at a loss.
"How dare he! Truly unworthy of being called a son!"
As soon as the words left Dugu Bo's mouth, Xue Xing exploded in fury.
Upon hearing this, Dugu Bo's pupils shrank sharply.
Unworthy of being called a son?
Goodness~ this was explosive news!
Emperor Xue Ye had three living children: Crown Prince Xue Qinghe, Fourth Prince Xue Beng, and Princess Xue Ke.
Xue Ke was a princess, Xue Beng was a famously useless fool. Judging by Xue Xing's words, was he suspecting... no, confirming that the mastermind behind the poisoning was Crown Prince Xue Qinghe?
That... couldn't be, right?
After all, Xue Qinghe's position as heir was extremely secure. He also had the support of the Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Clan. Once the aging Emperor Xue Ye passed, Xue Qinghe was guaranteed to ascend to the Heaven Dou throne without resistance. Was there really any need to commit such an act of rebellion?
At this moment, Emperor Xue Ye raised his right hand with a grim face, stopping Xue Xing's curses. "Do not jump to conclusions. We must investigate thoroughly first."
Just like what Dugu Bo was thinking, Emperor Xue Ye didn't believe his good son Xue Qinghe would poison him either.
Even though the shadow behind the deaths of the Second and Third Princes pointed to Xue Qinghe, Emperor Xue Ye still held that belief.
Why? Because it wasn't necessary.
Eliminating the Second and Third Princes could be seen as Xue Qinghe removing competitors.
After all, born into the imperial family, things like brotherly affection were practically nonexistent.
But he, Emperor Xue Ye, was already old. Xue Qinghe had long been named Crown Prince. Even if he didn't make any moves, he'd still be able to ascend the throne within ten years at most.
And Xue Qinghe was only in his mid-twenties. Clearly, he wouldn't be so impatient that he couldn't wait just ten more years. Not to mention, if the matter were exposed, he'd lose any chance of becoming emperor.
The risks far outweighed the gains. With the intelligence Xue Qinghe had demonstrated, he absolutely wouldn't commit such a foolish act.
Emperor Xue Ye turned to Dugu Bo and asked, "Poison Douluo, can you determine the source of the toxin within me?"
Dugu Bo shook his head. "This old man cannot say for certain. Your Majesty was poisoned by a compound toxin. The source might be from food, or it could be from some other item Your Majesty has come into contact with."
"Xue Xing, I order you to investigate Qinghe's every move in secret. Report everything to me immediately. But do not act on your own."
After a brief pause, Emperor Xue Ye sternly instructed Xue Xing.
"Yes, Your Majesty."
Xue Xing's expression became serious as he quickly responded.
"You may go~"
Emperor Xue Ye waved his hand.
"Your Majesty, this old man shall also take his leave."
Dugu Bo spoke.
Emperor Xue Ye nodded. "Mm, Poison Douluo, take care."
After Xue Xing and Dugu Bo had left, Emperor Xue Ye coldly called out toward the seemingly empty palace bedchamber, "Shadow Guards, show yourselves!"
The Shadow Guards were a secret force established by the royal family, composed entirely of orphaned children selected at a young age, with no other means of entry. They pledged loyalty to one person alone—His Majesty the Emperor.
Perhaps the overall strength of the Shadow Guards wasn't very high, inferior to the group of royal guest officials made up of experts and genius soul masters who voluntarily served the empire. But they were a force Emperor Xue Ye could place his absolute trust in.
"Your Majesty."
Soon, a black figure appeared in front of Emperor Xue Ye's bed.
Emperor Xue Ye ordered, "Investigate the connections between all the royal guest officials, officials from the court's various departments and provincial administrations, as well as military commanders, and the Crown Prince. Focus particularly on the powerful individuals who joined the guest official group and high-ranking officials who were promoted in the past ten years."
"Yes, Your Majesty."
The black figure accepted the order and immediately vanished from the bedchamber.
Three days later, the intelligence gathered in secret by the Shadow Guards was laid out before Emperor Xue Ye.
The more he read, the more shocked Emperor Xue Ye became.
It was for no other reason than that in recent years, the rate of promotion among court officials, regional administrators, and military commanders had become overly frequent. Moreover, the number of powerful individuals joining the royal guest official group had increased significantly compared to the past.
Among them, a good number of the promoted high-ranking officials and generals had already been confirmed to have advanced rapidly through connections with Crown Prince Xue Qinghe and the Crown Prince's faction.
If one had not been paying close attention, these details wouldn't have seemed particularly conspicuous at first glance.
Because those officials with questionable promotions were all deputies in various departments, regions, and military branlost none of them were department heads or main generals in the army.
However, if all these unusually promoted officials were indeed under Xue Qinghe's control, and if he harbored intentions of rebellion, he would only need to remove the top leaders and army commanders. Then, by letting these deputies take over, he could gain complete control of the empire's court, provinces, and military without causing too much unrest.
Of course, if that were the extent of it, it wouldn't be enough to truly terrify Emperor Xue Ye.
From the standpoint of an emperor of the empire, the idea of Xue Qinghe rebelling was indeed infuriating.
But from the perspective of a father, he would feel gratified to have fathered such a capable son with such skill and foresight, the empire would surely usher in a brilliant and heroic sovereign.
Yet, within the intelligence gathered by the Shadow Guards, Emperor Xue Ye discovered something amiss something deeply serious. So serious, in fact, that if he was not careful, the royal Xue clan's reign could be lost.
For additional chapters
Versatile mage {40 chapters}
Douluo Dalu:This Soul Master is to Weird {30 Chapters}
Patreon. Com/ALLISWELL123