At the same moment, the National Preceptor of Shu, who had been invited to the next room by the officials from the Ministry of Rites, was growing impatient.

The National Preceptor of Shu knew nothing about Daoist practices. His current mission in Da Xia was purely a case of being thrust into the role, so he had no intention of paying any real attention to the officials from Xia’s Ministry of Rites. He just wanted to go through the motions.

But he never expected that after stopping him, the Xia officials would ask such an impudent question.

“Do you resent Shu?”

“If you are willing to help us by passing on some information, we can help you leave the Shu imperial palace.”

The National Preceptor of Shu thought they were insane, so he mocked them, “You actually want to incite the National Preceptor of Shu to resent Shu?” He even tapped his temple, adding, “The person who came up with this idea must have suffered some injury here, right?”

However, before the mocking smile on his face could fully form, the next two sentences from the officials completely shut him down.

—”You dared to kill the previous National Preceptor, so what’s stopping you from resenting Shu?”

—”You wouldn’t want your affair with your sworn brother to be discovered by the old emperor of Shu, would you?”

The National Preceptor of Shu’s muscles tensed up: …

Sweat poured down his face.

At this moment, the only two people in the world who truly understood each other were the National Preceptor of Chen, whom he despised, and himself.

—The intelligence apparatus of Da Xia is truly terrifying.

…

Meanwhile, the only one left to his own devices was the Grand Preceptor of Chu, who was leisurely chatting with the palace maids and eunuchs, trying to extract information.

Although the maids and eunuchs were tight-lipped, the Grand Preceptor of Chu still managed to glean some details from their words, such as the fact that Yuan Ruan had a particular fondness for jade.

Just as the Grand Preceptor of Chu was preparing to dig for more clues, he saw the officials from Xia’s Ministry of Rites warmly and kindly escorting the National Preceptors of the other two nations into the room.

Strangely, both National Preceptors looked distracted, their movements betraying a subtle mix of resistance and reluctant acceptance.

The Grand Preceptor of Chu narrowed his eyes, stood up, and proactively asked, “Gentlemen, do you also have questions for this old Daoist?”

This was his usual opening line for fishing for information.

However, to his surprise, the Minister of Rites did not take the bait. Instead, he replied with an air of mystery, “There will be, but the time is not yet right.”

The Grand Preceptor of Chu was slightly taken aback, not expecting to hear such a familiar line of evasion.

He cupped his hands and said, “I hope the Minister can give me some guidance.” With that, he skillfully handed over a money pouch.

The Minister of Rites instinctively reached out but, remembering that the little National Preceptor had recently been paying close attention to the affairs of these Daoists, quickly withdrew his hand.

He declared righteously, “The timing is determined by heaven. Just wait patiently.”

With that, the Minister of Rites hurried away.

The Grand Preceptor of Chu: …

So this is how annoying it is to deal with someone who speaks in riddles.

Suddenly, he understood why some people had looked at him with “I want to hit him” expressions in the past.

After the Minister of Rites left, the Grand Preceptor of Chu first approached the National Preceptor of Chen and said, “About this matter, you…”

However, the National Preceptor of Chen simply yawned, turned away irritably, and said, “The journey has been exhausting. I’m going to rest now. As for how to cooperate with Da Xia for the spring sacrifice, you two can discuss it. I’ll go along with whatever you decide.” With that, he quickly left.

The Grand Preceptor of Chu: ???

He was a bit stunned.

Was this still the same arrogant, boastful National Preceptor of Chen?

He then turned to the National Preceptor of Shu, only to see the latter frowning and pinching the bridge of his nose.

The National Preceptor of Shu said coldly, “My methods of performing rituals are different from yours, so I won’t participate in the discussion. As for what you—oh, right, what you fellow Daoists need me to do, I’ll go along with it.”

With that, the National Preceptor of Shu also strode away with a dark expression.

The Grand Preceptor of Chu: …

He stroked his chin, feeling a deep sense of wariness toward Da Xia for the first time.

…

At Da Xia Guest House

The Grand Preceptor of Chu sat in his room and pondered for a long time. He then wrote several things on the desk, summoned a Chu soldier to bring him a carrier pigeon, and an hour later, he released the pigeon.

The pigeon had just flapped its wings past the corner of the wall when it was caught in a large net.

The Imperial Guards retrieved the copper tube tied to the pigeon’s leg and hurried to the side hall of the Emperor’s study.

At this moment, the Emperor, the Crown Prince, Minister Li, and Minister Wang were reviewing the gathered intelligence, engaging in a heated but reasoned debate.

The captain of the palace guards, who had taken the pigeon from the Imperial Guards, reported, “Your Majesty, the carrier pigeon sent by the Grand Preceptor of Chu has been intercepted.”

The Emperor said, “Good, bring it here.”

The captain of the palace guards quickly presented it. The Emperor opened it, glanced at the contents, and frowned slightly.

He then handed it to the Crown Prince.

The Crown Prince, seeing his father’s displeased expression, initially thought the contents would be troublesome, but to his surprise, it was just the Grand Preceptor of Chu’s overestimation of Da Xia’s intelligence system and a warning to the Fourth Prince.

The Crown Prince handed it to Minister Li and Wang.

After reading it, both ministers also wore grave expressions.

At this point, Minister Li suddenly stroked his chin and said, “Your Majesty, the Grand Preceptor of Chu is known as a master strategist. Would he really risk sending out such low-value intelligence?”

Minister Wang said, “Your servant believes this is a trick. Should we kill the pigeon?”

“No, make some preparations and then release the pigeon,” the Emperor waved his hand. “Of the four nations, Chu is the strongest and has the greatest expansionist ambitions. They’ve had their eyes on our Da Xia for a long time. Now that the two nations are not yet at war, I also want to take this opportunity to probe their intentions. Crown Prince…”

The Emperor said, “Summon the official who is best at imitating handwriting. Have him write something else, then release the pigeon.”

The Crown Prince nodded slightly.

The Emperor added a few more details, then waved to the others, “Come, let’s continue here. What do you think of the information the National Preceptor of Chen revealed about the Chen court? And how much credibility do you give to the National Preceptor of Shu’s claim that the old emperor of Shu is trying to collude with Chu to incite our feudal lords against Da Xia?…”

The court officials pondered intently, and the debate began anew.

…

At the same time, in the Guest House.

The Grand Preceptor of Chu sat with his eyes lowered, calmly sipping tea as he listened to a Chu soldier whisper, “The carrier pigeon was intercepted. Should we…”

The Grand Preceptor of Chu gently pressed his hand down, “It’s fine. There was nothing important in it anyway. This was just a test. You may go.”

Although the soldier was confused, he obediently left.

The Grand Preceptor of Chu meditated for a while, then stood up and, in the dead of night, knocked on the door of the National Preceptor of Chen’s room.

After a while, the National Preceptor of Chen, disheveled, opened the door a crack and said unhappily, “Oh, it’s the Grand Preceptor. What brings you here so late at night?”

The Grand Preceptor of Chu gave him a deep look and suddenly said, “Has Da Xia discovered the matter of the Sect Leader’s son?”

The National Preceptor of Chen’s hand slipped, and his head slammed into the doorframe with a loud “thud.”

His pupils shook violently: !!!

Wasn’t this an absolutely forbidden secret?!

How does everyone know about it?!

Dad!

Did you send me down the mountain because you didn’t want to be Sect Leader anymore?!