"Senior Dugu, I heard that you are currently a guest elder of the imperial royal family?"
"That's right."
"I wonder how much you understand about this Crown Prince of the empire?"
Dugu Bo looked Su Cheng up and down, somewhat unconvinced by what he had just said. "I don't know much about Xue Qinghe. This old man only became a guest elder for Xue Xing's sake."
Su Cheng glanced at him and hesitated slightly. "That Xue Qinghe seems to be an expert in using poison. Does the Tian Dou royal family also research this area?"
"What?!" Dugu Bo was shocked. These words were somewhat terrifying to think about deeply. "What do you mean by that?"
"I have done a lot of research on medicinal substances." Su Cheng frowned tightly, looking puzzled. "Although His Highness the Crown Prince hides it very well, when I met him last time, I smelled an extremely faint scent of herbs on him. These herbs themselves are harmless, but if mixed in a certain sequence and proportion, they can be harmonized into a slow-acting chronic poison."
These words sounded extremely convincing, but in fact, he was purely making things up.
Qian Renxue had been lurking in the Tian Dou Empire for so long and was extremely careful with details. It was impossible for her to expose such a flaw.
But none of that mattered. Su Cheng's purpose was simply to induce her political enemies to think more.
The key point was that these words were not entirely slander. Using poison had indeed been one of Qian Renxue's common methods for eliminating dissent over the years.
Even the second prince and third prince had successively died from martial soul poison.
If one continued investigating along this line, some things would inevitably be dug out.
And once this matter spread and was slightly guided, Qian Renxue's situation would definitely become much more difficult.
"By the way, I heard that His Highness the Crown Prince's style of conduct has changed significantly in recent years?"
Dugu Bo thought for a moment and nodded. "It does seem to be the case. I don't really care about royal affairs, but Xue Xing has complained about it several times."
"It seems there are quite a few people who feel even more uncomfortable than I do." Hearing this, Su Cheng instantly felt much more relieved.
He looked at Dugu Bo meaningfully and said, "I heard that the empire's second prince and third prince both died from poison outbreaks."
Dugu Bo frowned even more deeply. "You're quite young, yet you know a lot. Are you tired of living?"
Su Cheng ignored his sarcasm and continued speaking on his own. "Emperor Xue Ye may not have never suspected this Crown Prince. It's just that competition for the throne is inevitably bloody. He probably knows but pretends not to know. After all, there is only one qualified successor left now."
"Since you understand this, don't think too much about royal struggles anymore. This isn't something someone your age should be considering." Dugu Bo snorted coldly.
As a Title Douluo, he actually did not care whether these things were said or not—he had strength as his backing. His attitude now was mainly for Su Cheng's sake, thinking that he should not get too deeply involved.
"But what if this Crown Prince is not his son?" Su Cheng looked at Dugu Bo.
"That's impossible!" Dugu Bo raised his brows. "Even if body shape and appearance can be disguised, what about the royal family's inherited martial soul? How could he disguise that?"
"That's hard to say." Su Cheng sneered lightly. "Soul masters have many methods."
"Do you have evidence?" Dugu Bo asked suspiciously.
"No." Su Cheng shook his head. "But he has hostility toward me. I can't remain so passive."
"I say, kid, wouldn't it be enough for you to just avoid him? And I'll also secretly protect you. There's no need for you to provoke trouble because of this, right?"
"Senior Dugu, aren't you on good terms with Prince Xue Xing? If Xue Qinghe really inherits the throne in the future, that prince won't have an easy time either, will he?"
Su Cheng did not respond to Dugu Bo's question but instead spoke of his own thoughts.
"Who wants to always live in fear? Actually, now is a good opportunity. I'm just providing a bit of direction.
"Xue Qinghe's temperament has changed drastically in recent years. This will inevitably cause unrest among his subordinates.
"Senior, you should know that when a person's personality changes, regardless of whether such change is beneficial in the long run, in the short term it will definitely create considerable psychological pressure on others. That's where a lot of room for maneuver appears.
"People who become emperors are always suspicious. When many people discuss certain things, they might eventually be treated as facts."
Dugu Bo's expression shifted slightly as he stared at Su Cheng. "What do you want to do?"
"There's no need to do anything. Just tell all these clues and speculations to Xue Beng, and he won't be able to resist making a move.
"I've seen him several times in the academy. He still has ambition and hasn't been completely frightened out of his courage.
"Xue Qinghe now has deep foundations, but Xue Beng is different. He has no way out. The longer time drags on, the more passive he will become. If Xue Qinghe ascends the throne, with the fate of his two brothers as precedent, Xue Beng's life can already be counted down in advance."
Su Cheng stared at Dugu Bo and said in a deep voice, "Now, it depends on whether His Highness the Prince has other thoughts."
Does Prince Xue Xing have thoughts?
Dugu Bo understood in his heart that Xue Xing indeed had thoughts.
Otherwise, he would not have repeatedly tested him with words.
Dugu Bo simply did not want to participate in royal disputes, but that did not mean he understood nothing.
"I see it now." Cold light flickered in Dugu Bo's green eyes, and his face instantly darkened. "You were probably waiting for me to come find you from the very beginning, weren't you? That bottle of medicine was also deliberately given to Yan Yan to drink?"
His facial features returned to the slightly stiff expression he had when they first met, and his aura also began to fluctuate, bringing enormous pressure to Su Cheng.
"I should have thought of it earlier. With your medical skills, you probably saw at first glance that Yan Yan was poisoned, didn't you?"
Su Cheng smiled and neither denied it nor showed fear or guilt because of Dugu Bo's gaze and pressure.
"That's indeed the case, because I am confident that I can cure Senior Sister's poison, and I also know that Senior Dugu is a person who clearly distinguishes gratitude and grudges."
"Hmph! You really know how to talk." Dugu Bo's anger subsided, and the muscles on his face relaxed again. "Not very old, yet full of schemes. I wonder if Xue Qinghe, if he knew your current thoughts, would regret showing hostility toward you earlier."
"Regret?" Su Cheng sighed inwardly. "Regret my ass. I'm the one who regrets it! If I had known Qian Renxue would inexplicably show killing intent toward me, I would definitely have stayed far away from her."
He looked at Dugu Bo. "So, Senior, are you planning to get involved?"
"Since you can cure the poison on Yan Yan's body and say you can treat me, I naturally can't just stand by and watch."
At this point, he also sighed. "Xue Xing is indeed under quite a bit of pressure now. Perhaps you're right—maybe the later it gets, the more passive it becomes. Are you sure there's something wrong with Xue Qinghe?"
"At the very least, he's an expert in using poison, his identity is suspicious, and he's extremely good at disguise. None of these can be fake. To say something disrespectful, Senior, even your skill in using poison is inferior to his."
~~~~
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