First annul the engagement, then sever ties with the empress; the empress reigns supreme.

What Su Li said does need to be considered, but Gu Junxi would absolutely not allow Su Li to return to the Five Poisons Pool.

Gu Junxi glanced at Mu Lingye and Murong Yuan.

Murong Yuan clearly shared the same idea as Gu Junxi.

He hugged Su Li tighter and gritted his teeth, saying, "Since there is no way to remove the curse and we cannot kill Qingyanzi for the time being, then we will pretend to be thieves and burn down this dilapidated Imperial Preceptor's mansion."

With the mansion on fire, it's likely that Qingyanzi's service to the Five Poisons will no longer be concealed. Even if Qingyanzi is still favored by Emperor Sheng, he will still face a wave of public criticism.

Moreover, with the Five Poison Pool destroyed, Su Li no longer needs to suffer such inhumane punishment.

The only drawback of doing this might be that it could easily arouse Qingyanzi's suspicion about Mu Lingye, causing trouble for Mu Lingye.

Gu Junxi could think of it, and so could Mu Lingye. He said nonchalantly, "I'm fine with anything, it's all up to you."

“Alright, let’s do it this way.” Gu Junxi made up her mind. This emperor is ruthless now. He has been on the throne for too long. It’s time to bring him down. What’s wrong with showing some strength now?

Su Li wasn't stupid; on the contrary, she was very smart. She was fully aware of the risks that Gu Junxi and the others were taking by doing this.

Overwhelmed with emotion, Su Li weakly revealed Qingyanzi's secret once again.

“Sister, Qingyanzi is very ambitious. He has been maintaining close ties with court officials and has been giving them lavish gifts of elixirs. I have examined them privately, and all of them contain deadly poison. I suspect he is trying to control the court officials with these elixirs. If you need, I can provide a list of the elixirs he has given to them.”

This is an important discovery.

“Of course we need to,” Gu Junxi replied immediately, then added with some concern, “Is your body still able to handle it? Don’t force yourself. We can find another time to write the list.”

Su Li shook her head: "I'm fine."

A disciple in blue robes nearby eagerly offered, "Senior Sister, I'll go get you some brush and ink right away."

As he spoke, he ran towards the dark room.

As long as it could help deal with Qingyanzi, these disciples would cooperate fully, both for Su Li's sake and for their own.

Gu Junxi wrote the account, and Su Li dictated it. A total of thirty-six officials had taken the pills given by Qingyanzi.

In other words, thirty-six officials have been taken into custody by Qingyanzi.

Although these thirty-six officials were not high-ranking officials, they were all in important positions in the Six Ministries.

Fortunately, Su Li had this list, giving them an advantage. Otherwise, they would have been in a very passive position once Qing Yanzi made his move.

"Little sister, don't worry, I will definitely find a way to remove the curse from your body. It's just... I'll have to trouble you for a while longer."

Gu Junxi brushed away the hair that was stuck to Su Li's cheek.

With the list in hand, it's time to leave.

The thought of leaving Su Li alone in hell again felt like a sharp knife cutting into her heart.

"Mm." Su Li nodded slightly.

From her perspective, she couldn't say the words "it doesn't matter".

In such a scene, it's inevitable that everyone would feel down.

The two disciples in green robes stepped forward and took Su Li from Murong Yuan's hands: "Your Highness, please go ahead. We will take care of Senior Sister."

Qingyanzi was dreaming at this moment, and he smiled happily, for no one knew what he was dreaming about. Beside him were two beautiful young girls in the prime of their youth.

"Go away!"

"Go away!"

Suddenly shouts came from outside the courtyard, followed by a noisy uproar.

Qingyanzi suddenly opened his eyes. The two girls beside him had already sat up in bed, their faces full of fear. Before they could even make a sound, Qingyanzi rudely pushed them off the bed.

Qingyanzi hastily threw on an overcoat and left the room.

The fire outside was growing bigger and bigger, with courtyards connected to courtyards and gardens connected to gardens, making it impossible to put out. Besides, those disciples in blue robes who were putting out the fire were only doing a superficial job.

When no one was paying attention, they even fueled the fire.

Thinking of the Gu worms he had refined over the years, as well as the various pills he had made, Qingyanzi hurriedly ran to his study's secret room.

However, the fire in the study was much fiercer than the one in the dormitory. As soon as Qingyanzi stepped into the room, he was forced out by the raging fire.

It burned off most of his beard and eyebrows.

Enraged, he yelled, "Qingyan, Qingmiao, where are they? How could a fire suddenly start?"

Su Yan and Su Miao are also Qing Yanzi's apprentices, and they usually manage the affairs of the mansion.

All the disciples in blue robes worked together with remarkable tacit understanding, without communicating with each other.

The two disciples in blue robes exchanged a glance, then ran forward to bow to Qingyanzi. One of them said, "Master, please forgive us, the cause of the fire has not yet been determined. We believe it was caused by the dry weather."

Qingyanzi lifted his dark robe and roared, "Such a big fire, caused by dry weather? Do you think I'm a fool?"

Everyone present was so frightened that they shrank back and dared not utter a sound.

Another disciple in blue pursed his lips and said with a forced smile, "Master, rest assured, your disciple will investigate thoroughly. If any villains have done this intentionally, we will definitely find them."

Qingyanzi, his face grim, roared a few times, releasing some of the anger that had been building up in his chest, and his emotions calmed down somewhat.

He waved his hand, having reached a conclusion: "No need to investigate further, go and bring your senior sister here first."

Su Li was covered in blood and was dragged and supported by two disciples in blue robes to Qing Yanzi. As soon as the two disciples let go, Su Li knelt down on the ground.

Qingyanzi stepped forward and forcefully lifted Su Li's chin: "Tell me, who came to see you tonight?"

Su Li weakly raised her eyes: "Master, I don't know what you're talking about. I've been reflecting in the quiet room."

Qingyanzi didn't believe it and glanced at the two disciples in blue robes who had brought Su Li.

These two disciples in blue robes were the same ones who had been captured and questioned by Gu Junxi earlier. They agreed on their story and knelt on the ground to give their reply.

“Master, when we arrived at the meditation room, our eldest sister was still in the Five Poisons Pool, and there were no signs of anyone breaking into the secret room. It was just that the fire had affected the Five Poisons, causing them to go berserk and flee out of the mansion.”

"What did you say?" Qingyanzi realized with a start that something terrible had happened. He couldn't even care less about Su Li anymore, and only ordered his men to lock her up again. He then organized his men to personally capture the Five Poisons who had escaped.

But now that things have progressed this far, it's too late to make amends.

"Oh no, there's a snake!"

"A spider, a huge black spider."

"This gecko is poisonous. And there's a giant centipede too. Quickly report this to the authorities! How could so many poisonous animals have escaped into the city?"

The neighboring houses of the Imperial Preceptor's residence also began to commotion. Some were shouting to report to the authorities, while others were organizing their servants to capture him.

In the end, the source of the poisonous insects was found.

That night, people throughout the capital had different opinions about the new imperial advisor, who had a dignified and otherworldly demeanor.