"Sister Xue, don't be so stubborn," Li Xun said with a faint smile, noticing Qian Renxue's puffed-up cheeks. "I'll list them out for you one by one."
"Heh, I'm waiting," Qian Renxue replied with a dangerous smile. "But if your reasons don't convince me, you'll be in trouble."
"What kind of logic is that? I'm helping you identify gaps, and that's not enough? Fine, I won't bother since there's no benefit anyway," Li Xun said, exasperated as he looked at Qian Renxue.
"Junior Brother, didn't you want to be second to none? If my plan has flaws, you might miss your chance."
Qian Renxue rested her chin on one hand, crossed one leg over the other, and tilted her head to look at Li Xun. "I'm not entirely unreasonable. If you admit your mistakes properly, I might just forgive you."
"Heh, what if I'm right?" Li Xun glanced at her indifferently.
"What? Aren't the two beauties from the Seven Treasure Glazed Tile School enough for you?"
Qian Renxue rolled her eyes at Li Xun, quickly straightened her posture, and sat properly on the sofa. "If things are indeed as you say, I can agree to one condition."
"Deal."
Without paying her much attention, Li Xun picked up a pen and swiftly wrote out a contract. Then, he took out an ink pad from his Soul Guiding Device and handed both to Qian Renxue. "Sign it first."
Qian Renxue took it, feeling a bit speechless, but since it concerned her years of hard work, she decided it was better to be safe than sorry.
The moment Qian Renxue signed the paper and pressed her fingerprint, Li Xun snatched it back.
"First, what exactly are you keeping Xue Beng and Prince Xue Xing around for?" Li Xun carefully stored the paper and spoke calmly.
"What about those two good-for-nothings?"
Qian Renxue was taken aback. She hadn't expected the flaws Li Xun mentioned to involve the two people she despised the most. "They're incompetent and have no real power. How could they be a flaw?"
"Is it possible that while they may not be strong, they're not as useless as they appear?" Li Xun chuckled. "If they managed to deceive even you, would you still call them good-for-nothings?"
Qian Renxue frowned, her willow-like brows knitting together as she began to recall Xue Xing and Xue Beng's usual behavior.
And indeed, she noticed some inconsistencies.
Xue Xing and Xue Beng were unusually fixated on the Heavenly Dou Royal Academy. Moreover, despite Xue Beng's playboy demeanor, he had never caused any disturbances within the academy. The people he bullied were mostly ordinary civilians.
Seeing her expression, Li Xun knew she had caught on. "If it weren't for Rongrong and me being at the academy, you probably wouldn't have paid attention to that place, would you?"
"The most important academy in the empire, and you didn't think to control it. Instead, you let others go around recruiting the new generation of nobles and civilian elites. I don't know if you're confident or just arrogant."
"I admit I underestimated them. But in the face of absolute power, what can those two do even if they manage to recruit some nobles? It's just futile resistance."
"You don't think they have the ability to surpass me and inherit the throne, do you?"
Although Li Xun made some valid points, Qian Renxue remained confident in her ability to control the situation and wasn't overly concerned about this flaw.
"Good that you're confident. Let's skip this one for now, and I'll tell you about the second point."
Li Xun smiled and shook his head, his gaze meaningful as he looked at Qian Renxue: "You've been undercover in Heaven Dou for so many years, have you managed to place any of your people in the military?"
"Do you have any confidants in the Royal Guards?"
Qian Renxue hesitated for a moment: "Not exactly, but once Emperor Xue Ye dies and I inherit the throne, even without my own people in the military, they will still obey me, as they are the emperor's personal guards. Is there a problem?"
Li Xun wasn't angered by Qian Renxue's response; instead, he smiled. Wasn't this exactly the kind of puppet he wanted? If the other party were too clever, it would be more troublesome for him.
"Let me ask you a third question, have you taken control of Heaven Dou's finances?"
"No, the finances have always been in the hands of Emperor Xue Ye and the Minister of Finance, who deal directly with each other," Qian Renxue shook her head.
"Alright, I've said my piece."
Li Xun gave a faint smile, sizing up Qian Renxue: "You've been undercover in the Heaven Dou Empire for so many years, are you planning to outlive Emperor Xue Ye with your youthful vigor?"
"What do you mean?" Qian Renxue narrowed her eyes: "It's just not the right time to act yet. If I wanted to, Emperor Xue Ye could have passed away long ago."
"Besides, I haven't been idle. Haven't I already killed the First Prince, the Second Prince, and the Third Prince?"
"Then you're doing great," Li Xun clapped with a smile: "Then why didn't you kill the Fourth Prince as well?"
"Now let me help you connect all the dots. Think about it, if one day your identity is exposed, and the Heaven Dou military and the Royal Guards rally behind Xue Beng to make him king, what would you do?"
"They're just some low-level Soul Masters and ordinary people. As long as I send someone to eliminate the leaders, the common folk won't risk their lives for these nobles," Qian Renxue pondered for a moment before speaking with certainty.
"What if there's external interference? For example, if the Blue Lightning Tyrant School and the Clear Sky Sect suddenly intervene to protect Emperor Xue Ye, could your decapitation strike still succeed?"
Li Xun wagged his finger: "You should know that the Clear Sky Sect has quite a few top-tier fighters, and the old dragon isn't bad either."
"The Clear Sky Sect has sealed its mountain, your assumption doesn't hold," Qian Renxue shook her head.
"You should know that the Clear Sky Sect has only sealed its mountain, not been wiped out. Given the enmity between our Spirit Hall and the Clear Sky Sect, would they just stand by and watch you annex the Heaven Dou Empire?"
Li Xun scoffed: "Since you're planning to usurp the throne, don't harbor any illusions. You must prepare for the worst."
Qian Renxue frowned slightly, her mind beginning to weigh the pros and cons.
After a long while, she took a deep breath and looked up at Li Xun: "You're right, what should we do next?"
Seeing Qian Renxue yield, Li Xun grinned: "Kill, kill until heads roll."
"First, make Emperor Xue Ye seriously ill and turn him into a vegetable. Then, Xue Beng and Prince Xue Xing must die. That way, you'll be the sole authority in the Heaven Dou Empire."
Li Xun took out paper and pen, starting to list the death roster: "Empire Marshal Ge Long, Royal Guard Roxsen, Minister of Finance Julian, and so on. These trash nobles are no good anyway, none of them should be left alive."
"Once the initial tasks are completed, have the cabinet ministers retire, except for the few who remain loyal to you."
Upon hearing Li Xun's words, Qian Renxue's heart trembled. Although she had some political acumen, she had never imagined that annexing Heavenly Dou would require so many deaths. "Junior Brother, isn't the number of people to be executed a bit excessive? Could it disrupt the empire's operations?"
"Trust me, with these people gone, more capable individuals will take their places. Sometimes, it's not the head that determines the seat, but the seat that determines the head."
Li Xun pushed the list in front of Qian Renxue. "Apart from the first few actions that need to be swift, the rest can be taken care of gradually. Consider it an opportunity to train some subordinates."
"Especially in the military, if you truly lack personnel, you could even promote a stablehand if necessary."