70: I must know the last two lines of the poem first!

“That…”

Li Shengyuan stammered, unable to answer. He quickly calmed down; if his Senior Sister knew about this, there was only one possibility.

Someone near him had conveyed everything happening here to the Divine Phoenix Empress Senior Sister through a top-tier communication artifact similar to the Peeping Void Mirror.

And to do so without him noticing, their ability to conceal their aura must be extraordinary!

The Peeping Void Mirror and the Cangsheng Brush could conceal their own auras but couldn't sense the presence of others.

After a brief thought, an answer surfaced in Li Shengyuan's mind.

Xuanyi Guard!

This was a secret organization that completely obeyed the Divine Phoenix Empress Senior Sister. Its members might not be exceptionally strong in cultivation, but their ability to conceal themselves and gather intelligence was extraordinary!

The Xuanyi Guard was similar to the Embroidered Uniform Guard of the Great Ming Dynasty in Li Shengyuan's previous world, Blue Star.

Because it had only been established for a few years, the Xuanyi Guard was not well-known, and not many people knew about this organization.

Moreover, the identities of its internal members were mysterious; Li Shengyuan only knew a few of them.

Only the Divine Phoenix Empress knew all of them.

Most of the members were dispersed throughout Great Gan, gathering intelligence on officials at all levels and local situations.

The conclusive evidence used to kill Xu Mingzhi and the others initially was collected by the Xuanyi Guard.

Although Sun Ruian, whom he had killed, also had some evidence, it was only partial.

Clearly, the Divine Phoenix Empress had been preparing for this trip to the Northern Territory for many years!

Perhaps she had already been thinking of overthrowing the Yanwang since her ascension to the throne...

The Divine Phoenix Empress looked at her deeply engrossed Junior Brother with a cold expression, radiating an intimidating aura without anger. Her calm phoenix eyes, however, held a hint of annoyance.

Since she had already laid her cards on the table, she naturally wasn't afraid of Li Shengyuan guessing that she had people following him.

Nor was she afraid of Li Shengyuan overthinking, because after seeing Li Shengyuan present a poem to Pei Shuyun, she had already overthought first!

How to explain it afterward was a matter for later; now, Li Shengyuan should explain to her first!

Seeing Li Shengyuan not respond, the Divine Phoenix Empress gritted her silver teeth and said:

"Clouds want clothes, flowers want faces; the spring breeze brushes the railing, and the dew is thick with splendor."

Hiss...

Li Shengyuan couldn't help but gasp again. If she knew what poem he had composed, then wouldn't his Senior Sister also know about him personally measuring Pei Shuyun's three sizes?

Finally, Li Shengyuan gave an awkward smile and said, "Senior Sister, you already know about it..."

The Divine Phoenix Empress merely gazed at Li Shengyuan calmly, making his heart pound with unease.

Li Shengyuan's face was grim as he took a deep breath and said, "Senior Sister, I'm not..."

"This poem is very good."

He was interrupted by the Divine Phoenix Empress Senior Sister, but Li Shengyuan wasn't annoyed; instead, he was somewhat taken aback.

Senior Sister said my poem is very good? What does that mean?

The Divine Phoenix Empress Senior Sister's next words made Li Shengyuan's eyes widen even further in astonishment.

"Once you compose the remaining two lines of the poem, you must tell me immediately. Only after I approve it can you spread it and tell that woman!"

"Huh?"

Li Shengyuan stared blankly at the Divine Phoenix Empress Senior Sister, wondering if he had misheard.

But he quickly trembled and nodded with a serious expression.

"Senior Sister, don't worry, I promise that besides me, you will be the first to know the entire poem!"

"Mm."

The Divine Phoenix Empress Senior Sister's red lips curved slightly, and she nodded gently, emitting a faint hum, a hint of satisfaction appearing on her face.

Seeing this, Li Shengyuan's face showed a hint of surprise. Was the Divine Phoenix Empress Senior Sister angry and jealous?

Although Li Shengyuan hid it very well, this fleeting expression was still noticed by the observant Divine Phoenix Empress Senior Sister.

The satisfied shallow smile on her jade-like face instantly vanished, replaced by a hint of coldness.

Then, with a cold expression, she looked at Li Shengyuan and explained, "I just want to check your poetry skills. I don't want you to casually compose two lines to fool people and then ruin the first two lines."

Li Shengyuan nodded repeatedly, saying, "Understood. I believe Senior Sister's poetic appreciation skills can certainly find the shortcomings in my verses. At that time, I will need Senior Sister's guidance."

"It's good that you understand," the Divine Phoenix Empress's expression softened slightly.

Li Shengyuan, expressionless, secretly wondered in his heart, somewhat strangely, what was it about seeing a hint of exasperated embarrassment on Senior Sister's face just now?

Was something he had exposed?

And judging by Senior Sister's attitude towards him, she probably didn't know that he had perfectly measured Pei Shuyun's three sizes on their very first meeting.

Thinking this, a smile couldn't help but appear on Li Shengyuan's face.

He also didn't know who had been monitoring and protecting him before. If he had a chance to meet them, he would definitely add chicken drumsticks to the Xuanyi Guard brothers.

Fearing that his Senior Sister would become embarrassed again, Li Shengyuan didn't dwell on the poem but instead reported to her about the Yanwang's crimes.

"Senior Sister, I now have sufficient evidence of the Yanwang colluding with the Demonic Cult and secretly communicating with the Demon Barbarians. We can now justifiably send troops to capture the Yanwang!"

Looking at her Junior Brother's serious expression, the Divine Phoenix Empress's demeanor gradually became solemn.

"Mm, Junior Brother, you must not leak this out. Mu Yunxiao's forces in the Northern Territory are complex. If he knows you have evidence against him, he might jump the gun and attack you first!"

"The army will be assembled soon. Before that, you must protect yourself!"

Li Shengyuan smiled and nodded in agreement, confidently saying, "Don't worry, Senior Sister. With my strength, and with Ye Hangzhou and the Sky-Air Battleship recently developed by the Imperial Observatory, there will be no problem!"

"Besides, my father, Li Mu, is also in the Northern Territory. He can't just stand by and watch his only son be dealt with by the Yanwang, can he!"

When the Yanwang truly dealt with him, the Demon Barbarians from outside would certainly not sit idly by. They would definitely bring their armies to pressure from outside and inside, attacking together with the Yanwang.

And the Demonic Cult certainly wouldn't miss such a good opportunity!

So, dealing with the Yanwang couldn't be delayed; he was a ticking time bomb!

Before, there was no concrete evidence, making it difficult to openly deal with the Yanwang. After all, the Yanwang was the Previous Emperor's full brother and had outstanding military achievements, holding great prestige in the army. There had to be a suitable reason to take action against him.

Otherwise, officials and royal nobles in the imperial court would definitely not agree!

When a portion of the Northern Territory's military power was initially allocated to Li Shengyuan's father, Li Mu, to command, it faced strong opposition from many people.

It was only through the Divine Phoenix Empress's forceful suppression, using the reason that the Yanwang had contributed to the nation for decades and was surely tired, allowing him to retire in Yanwang City, that Li Mu was difficultly allowed to command the Northern Territory border army.

If they acted against the Yanwang without reason, it would inevitably cause national unrest.

At that time, if the Yanwang raised the banner of 'Obeying Heaven and Quelling Chaos' and waved his hand, who knew how many people would respond to him and follow him into the capital.

They couldn't act rashly against him, but they also couldn't let him develop until his wings were full-fledged.

Now was the best time!

After the general discussion of matters was concluded, it was already deep into the night.

The Divine Phoenix Empress Senior Sister's face showed no fatigue; instead, there was a hint of excitement.

Since her ascension to the throne, the major problem that had plagued her for many years could finally be resolved!

Next, it was just a matter of mobilizing strong individuals!

A smile also reappeared on her face, and she said gently:

"Junior Brother, it's getting late. You've been busy all day, so get some good rest."

"Mm, you too, Senior Sister!"

"Oh, and the latter two lines of the poem must be known by Senior Sister first, otherwise..."

Li Shengyuan: "..."