"Young Master, since you have no intention of carrying on the King's legacy, why force me to stay?"

Looking at He Lian, who had taken the scimitar, Li Ru questioned him with a disappointed expression.

"Sir, I was wrong. I have failed my father's expectations and your teachings. Please, sir, never leave me!"

Seeing Li Ru looking at him with disappointment, He Lian felt very sad and pleaded sincerely.

In He Lian's eyes, Li Ru was not only his father's most trusted confidant, but also a good teacher who had always sincerely taught him.

Now that his father is dead, the only one who can help him carry on his father's legacy and preserve the Xianbei bloodline is Li Ru.

If even Li Ru leaves, then I will truly have nothing left.

Faced with He Lian's attitude, Li Ru's expression softened: "Has the eldest young master come to his senses?"

"Sir, you are right. Now is not the time to grieve and despair. I should stand up, take up my father's legacy, try to preserve the Xianbei bloodline, and then plan for the future!"

He wiped away the tears from the corners of his eyes and said firmly.

"Very well, since the young master is so willing, I am willing to serve him wholeheartedly!"

Seeing He Lian regain his fighting spirit, Li Ru immediately bowed deeply to He Lian with a solemn expression.

"Sir, please rise!"

He Lian quickly stepped forward to help Li Ru up, and then asked, "But what should we do now?"

Li Ru sighed and said solemnly, "The first thing you must do, young master, is to inherit the throne, and then settle accounts with those primarily responsible for this defeat in order to stabilize morale!"

He Lian was slightly taken aback: "Who is responsible for the defeat?"

"good!"

Li Ru nodded and said with a solemn expression, "Now that the King is dead, our army has suffered a great defeat, morale is low, and the troops may collapse at any time."

"My lord, you must find someone to take responsibility for this defeat in order to appease the morale of the soldiers!"

"What you say is true, sir. Let's make an example of Han Sui!"

Upon hearing Li Ru's suggestion, He Lian immediately thought of Han Sui, who had always been by Tan Shihuai's side.

“Young Master, he was one of the King’s most trusted advisors during his lifetime. Wouldn’t it be inappropriate for you to kill him?”

In my opinion, it would be best to shift the blame onto Mika. After all, Mika is already dead, so it's entirely up to you to say what you think!

Upon hearing that He Lian was going to target Han Sui, Li Ru was secretly delighted, but he still put on a nice face and spoke up for Han Sui.

"Sir, there's no need for further explanation."

He Lian raised his hand, then said with a grim expression, "I've long suspected that Han Sui has something going on. No matter what, he must die!!"

Li Ru's expression shifted: "A problem? What problem?"

"Sir, look!"

As he spoke, He Lian pointed to Tan Shihuai's corpse: "As you know, my father has always been physically strong and has an indomitable character."

This crushing defeat, though a severe blow to our forces, could not possibly have caused my father's sudden death. Therefore, I suspect that someone poisoned him, leading to his unexpected demise!

Li Ru frowned: "This... does the young master suspect that Han Sui poisoned the king?"

“That’s right. I am my father’s own son, and I know his condition best. Although my father appears to be in good health, I can sense that his foundation is much weaker than before the expedition against the Yuwen tribe.”

Therefore, I suspect that my father's health must have deteriorated during the campaign against the Yuwen tribe.

The only one who had the opportunity to strike was Han Sui, who had always been by his father's side!

"The reason Han Sui did this was because he felt threatened by you, sir. He planned to kill my father, support my brothers to seize power, and then kill you and me to eliminate any future troubles..."

He Lian was also clear-headed and filled in the blanks with the whole process and motives of Han Sui's assassination of Tan Shihuai.

"What you say makes a lot of sense, young master!"

Hearing He Lian's analysis so logical and reasonable, Li Ru nodded in agreement.

"Someone come here!!"

Upon seeing that Li Ru also agreed with his deduction, He Lian immediately turned around and shouted towards the outside of the tent.

"What are your orders, young master?"

Two of He Lian's personal guards walked in from outside the tent and asked in unison.

He Lian said coldly, "Go, bring that Han Sui to me by binding him!"

"yes!"

The two agreed and then quickly left.

"What are you doing? What are you doing?"

A moment later, Han Sui's panicked voice came from outside the tent.

"Shut up and get inside!"

Two guards shouted angrily and pushed the bound Han Sui into the tent.

"Young Master, what have I done to deserve this treatment?"

Upon seeing He Lian inside the tent, Han Sui asked with a blank expression.

"Hmph, what is it? You plotted against my father, causing our army to be defeated, and you still have the nerve to ask me what I have done wrong?"

He Lian snorted coldly, his gaze towards Han Sui filled with icy killing intent.

"What...what makes you say that?"

Upon hearing this, Han Sui's expression changed instantly, filled with fear and confusion.

He Lian said coldly, "Tell me, did you poison my father and then try to support my younger brothers to seize control of the royal court?"

"No...no, His Majesty has been incredibly kind to me, how could I possibly harm him?" Han Sui shook his head in panic, denying the accusation.

"Hmph, even now you still dare to be stubborn!?"

He Lian snorted coldly, then looked at the guard beside him: "Go, fetch the king's personal physician!"

"yes!"

The guard agreed and then quickly ran outside.

Before long, the physician who served Tan Shihuai was also brought in, bound hand and foot.

Helian glared fiercely at the physician: "Tell me the truth, did my father die from poisoning?"

The doctor nodded: "Yes!"

He Lian then asked, "What kind of poison?"

"This poison is called 'Spirit-Dispelling Powder,' a slow-acting poison. Those who are poisoned appear no different from ordinary people, but it easily causes them to suffer from intense internal heat, and they will vomit blood and die after only a few doses..."

He gritted his teeth and asked sharply, "Where did this poison come from?"

The physician hesitated for a moment, then said, "It was given to me by Mr. Han Sui. He approached me and said that after the king's death, he could bring my whole family to the royal court, where they would enjoy endless wealth and honor...!!"

"Han Sui, what else do you have to say?"

No sooner had the doctor finished speaking than He Lian grabbed a curved knife and pressed it against Han Sui's chest.

"Injustice...I've been wronged, young master!"

Han Sui was also startled and trembled, then looked at the doctor with resentment: "I have no grudge against you, why do you want to harm me?"

"Mr. Han Sui, you used my family to blackmail me, so why are you saying today that I harmed you? Now that the truth has been exposed, neither of us is going to survive, so why bother with the pretense and do something so futile?"

The doctor gave a bitter smile, as if resigned to his fate, and spoke with great indifference.