Chapter 1563: Purple Mountain

Zu An was a bit depressed. After barely surviving his time with the demon race, he had just returned, hoping to spend a couple of leisurely days with Chu Yan. Instead, he was immediately ordered to do more work. Even a production team's donkey wouldn't be worked this hard.

"Can I refuse?" Zu An wondered. None of the tasks the emperor assigned him seemed easy, so he was naturally reluctant.

Zhao Hao was stunned, completely unprepared for such a reply. Usually, his ministers wouldn't dare breathe heavily in his presence, let alone bargain with him like this. This boy's courage had clearly grown considerably lately.

"No!" Zhao Hao's Rage points +244+244+244...

However, since he was about to assign Zu An a task, Zhao Hao didn't lash out. Instead, he said directly, "The Gold Badge No. 7, who was in charge of intelligence in the State of Yan, suddenly died. Zhu Xie Chixin is not around right now, and the other Gold Badge Embroidered Envoys are all busy with their own duties. Go and investigate what happened."

Zu An immediately gathered several key pieces of information: Zhu Xie Chixin was indeed not in the capital, and it was unknown what he was doing or why he hadn't returned for so long. Furthermore, the other Gold Badge Embroidered Envoys were likely dispersed throughout the empire, each responsible for a region, constantly busy, unlike his own relative idleness.

"Wait a minute, why does 'Gold Badge No. 7' sound so familiar?" He finally remembered who it was: On the way to Yunzhong Commandery with the imperial envoy delegation, they had passed through the fiefdom of the King of Yan. A local Gold Badge Embroidered Envoy had contacted him, and they had even fought side by side. At the time, the man had seemed constantly worried, as if he had a premonition of impending misfortune. He had also mentioned investigating something, but hadn't dared to speak freely without evidence. Now, his mysterious death seemed to confirm that what he had been investigating was likely true, and he had been silenced.

Many thoughts flashed through his mind in that instant, but he did not report them to the emperor. Regardless of his loyalty to the emperor, it was best not to create expectations for others when something was still uncertain. Otherwise, any future accidents could easily lead to resentment.

"Alright," Zu An agreed. Firstly, he and Gold Badge No. 7 had fought side by side and could be considered friends, so he couldn't stand idly by. Secondly, he wanted to investigate the hidden truth behind the death, and if he could uncover any forces opposing the emperor, he might as well try to establish contact.

The emperor continued, "There's another matter. In Yi Commandery, there's a Purple Mountain. Before long, the imperial court will hold the Fengshan Ceremony there. You should go ahead and make preparations, eliminating any potential hidden dangers."

Yi Commandery was where the State of Yan was located, and Purple Mountain was the most famous mountain in Yi Commandery, and even the entire empire. At dawn, when the sun rose, the mountain peak would be faintly shrouded in a purple mist, echoing the auspicious saying "purple energy comes from the east," hence its name. Everyone believed there was a great treasure on this mountain, but for thousands of years, countless skilled individuals went to investigate and found nothing. Eventually, people generally agreed that the mountain was extraordinary, a relic left by the heavens. The imperial families throughout history had made much of this, so Purple Mountain's status grew, becoming the undisputed choice for the Fengshan Ceremony and offering sacrifices to Heaven.

Zu An had heard of it before, but as a transmigrator, he didn't share the native inhabitants' mystical reverence for Purple Mountain. His current thoughts were more on Zhao Hao's hypocrisy: Earlier, during court discussions, when his ministers suggested he perform the Fengshan Ceremony, he had humbly claimed he was unworthy. Yet, now he was instructing someone to prepare for it.

"I'm afraid I can't handle all of this alone," Zu An said, somewhat reluctantly. Investigating the mysterious death of Gold Badge No. 7 and managing the security for the Fengshan Ceremony were both arduous tasks.

Zhao Hao casually tossed him a token: "All Embroidered Envoys in the State of Yan will obey your commands. You can also use this token to summon local officials to cooperate. However, local officials are subordinate to the King of Yan, so you must distinguish priorities and not use it lightly."

"Understood," Zu An replied, fiddling with the token in his hand, thinking that having this would make things much easier.

Seeing Zhao Hao fall silent, Zu An knew he had been dismissed. He bowed and took his leave.

Just as he reached the door, he was suddenly called back: "I hear you've been visiting the Empress frequently lately?"

Zu An's heart nearly leaped into his throat; it was truly a case of "speak of the devil." However, having been through many trials, he quickly replied, "Yes, Your Majesty summoned me to inquire about matters concerning the demon race and the Land of the Unknown."

Zhao Hao frowned, yet found no fault. He had recently questioned Zu An about his previous closeness with the Crown Princess. A normal person would certainly feel guilty, and if they had something to hide, they wouldn't dare approach the Empress again. Thinking this, Zhao Hao felt somewhat relieved.

"I see. You may go."

After leaving the palace, Zu An secretly wiped a cold sweat. The Empress was truly an extremely dangerous woman; she was fun, but it was easy to gamble away one's life.

Not long after leaving the imperial study, two guards approached from a distance. "Lord Zu, Lord Zu~" Looking closely, Zu An saw it was Pu Duandiao and Jiao Sigun. He chuckled, "Oh, what a coincidence."

Both men immediately looked crestfallen. "Coincidence? No, we came here specifically to wait for you, sir."

Zu An paused, pointing towards the East Palace. "Are they looking for me over there?"

They both nodded, then Pu Duandiao leaned in and whispered to Zu An, "The Crown Princess has been in a bad mood lately, Lord Zu. You should be careful."

Jiao Sigun also quietly added, "Rong Mo, the maid by the Crown Princess's side, has been speaking ill of you a lot. If you don't go back and apologize soon, I'm afraid you'll run into big trouble later."

Zu An felt a warmth in his heart. The two truly considered him a friend to confide such things; otherwise, if even a hint of their words leaked out, they wouldn't be able to remain in the East Palace.

Zu An smiled. "It's fine. A trip to the East Palace will naturally resolve it."

Both men looked skeptical.

Zu An offered no explanation and simply followed the two men to the East Palace. First, he went through the proper procedure to pay his respects to the Master of the East Palace, the Crown Prince. The fat man, who seemed to only care about playing all day, casually dismissed him, as if afraid Zu An would delay his playtime. Zu An secretly mused that ever since he destroyed the emperor's separated soul within the Crown Prince in the Western Quanqiu Secret Realm, the boy seemed even dumber than before.

He soon entered the inner chambers. Bi Linglong was seated at her desk, working. Her back was straight, and her posture was impeccably proper, exuding the demeanor of a future empress. However, a closer look revealed a subtle bit of laziness: it seemed she was secretly using the desk to support the heavy burden of her chest...

Bi Linglong acted as if she hadn't seen him, focusing intently on the official documents in her hands. Zu An didn't mind and simply watched her silently. After an unknown amount of time, a faint blush rose on Bi Linglong's neck. She clearly couldn't bear his intense gaze any longer.

"Lord Zu certainly wields great authority," Bi Linglong said, still not looking at him, and writing her opinions on the document with her brush, a hint of annoyance in her voice. "It's been so long, and you still needed someone to specifically summon you before coming."

Zu An sighed. "I came here to say goodbye."

Bi Linglong's heart skipped a beat. The brush in her hand trembled, spilling a large blot of ink onto the document. She suddenly looked up at him, her usual composure completely gone.