Chapter 635: Fatal Blow

The chaos caused by the assassins earlier was one thing; no one was paying attention to this area then. But now the Crown Prince and Crown Princess are in a nearby room, people from the Eastern Palace are outside, and Eunuch Lu and the others are guarding the door. How dare he!

Yet, for some reason, the oppressive closeness of the other person gave her a completely new experience. While rationally she strongly rejected, even detested, his presumptuousness, every cell in her body seemed to be cheering. Both her body and mind had been calm for far too long. This man made her feel a sensation similar to when she first entered the palace and saw the Emperor.

She took a deep breath, dispelling the alluring thoughts in her mind. Trying to keep her voice from trembling, she asked, "Do you know what you're doing?"

Zu'an said indifferently, "Just helping Your Majesty understand the nature of our relationship. If you keep calling me a dog servant every other moment, I won't be so polite."

The Empress's breathing quickened, her full chest rising and falling dramatically. Her normally majestic eyes seemed about to overflow. "How exactly do you plan to be 'not so polite' with me?"

Zu'an's breath caught; he genuinely didn't know the answer to that. He had only intended to scare her into gaining some leverage, but her reaction was far too extreme.

The Empress's smile was dangerously alluring. "Little man, don't pretend you can actually do anything to me. Even if I lay here and let you do as you please, would you dare?"

For some reason, as she said this, a faint hint of expectation stirred within her. Realizing this, she was startled and thought of suppressing this feeling.

Zu'an: "..."

He had to reluctantly admit that he truly didn't dare do anything to her. The Emperor was simply too powerful; he could kill him with a single thought. Although the Emperor didn't frequent the imperial harem much nowadays, there was no such thing as an airtight wall in this world. With his divine senses, anything that truly happened would certainly not escape his notice.

Although the Empress was as tempting as a ripe peach, he wouldn't risk so much. After all, he still had a whole forest waiting for him.

Seeing him stunned, the Empress chuckled and pushed his hand away. "Bluffing in front of me is useless. Let's keep our separate ways from now on. Just keep that matter sealed, and don't breathe a word of it. And certainly don't expect to use it to manipulate me."

This was actually all Zu'an had wanted. But admitting it now felt a bit embarrassing. Indeed, mature women were not as easy to fool as young girls. Oh dear, why did it feel like he was being teased back? How awkward.

Just then, someone suddenly walked in through the doorway. Zu'an and the Empress immediately straightened up, increasing the distance between them.

The Empress looked displeased. "What are you doing in here?"

It was Eunuch Lu who entered, his sinister gaze fixed on Zu'an. "Your Majesty, should this old servant dispose of this fellow?"

Zu'an's heart skipped a beat. The man was a ninth-grade master. At such close proximity to the door, if he intended to investigate, it would be hard to conceal what had happened inside the room. He had been careless! However, he wasn't particularly scared. With his current cultivation, although he couldn't defeat the old eunuch, self-preservation wouldn't be a major issue. Furthermore, the Empress wouldn't want to blow this matter out of proportion, so she naturally wouldn't call for others to help.

The Empress gave him a slightly surprised look, not expecting his expression to remain so composed. She shook her head. "No need. This palace has its own way of handling things." Then she glared at the eunuch disapprovingly. "Didn't I tell you to wait outside? Who told you to take it upon yourself to come in?"

Eunuch Lu's sinister expression instantly changed into a fawning smile. "Your Majesty, it's mainly because I heard some important news outside and wished to inform you."

Zu'an watched, speechless. This guy's face changed too quickly. A bootlicker is truly impressive; just keep licking, and in the end, you'll have nothing.

"Speak," the Empress said, regaining her initial languidness and leaning back on the couch.

Seeing her graceful curves, Eunuch Lu's eyes immediately grew fervent. Unfortunately, a thought seemed to strike him, and his gaze quickly dimmed again. He then turned to glance at Zu'an, his expression somewhat hesitant.

"It's fine. Master Zu will be considered one of us from now on," the Empress chuckled. She didn't mind making a good impression on such minor matters to improve their relationship.

Seeing Eunuch Lu cast a hostile glance his way, Zu'an felt speechless. Brother, you're a eunuch. Why see everyone as a romantic rival?

Only then did Eunuch Lu speak. "Reporting to Your Majesty, General Cheng Xiong of the Left Guard is leading men to thoroughly investigate the Embroidered Uniform Guards in the palace."

"Investigating the Embroidered Uniform Guards? Has he lost his mind?" The Empress looked stunned. The Embroidered Uniform Guards were the Emperor's personal confidants; where did Cheng Xiong get such audacity?

Zu'an's heart, however, skipped a beat. He subconsciously felt this was a conspiracy targeting him.

Eunuch Lu replied, "It seems he received intelligence that an assassin, disguised in an Embroidered Uniform Guard's uniform, slipped out of the palace yesterday. So today, they are investigating the number of uniforms each Embroidered Uniform Guard in the palace possesses. Some of the Embroidered Uniform Guards are displeased and are confronting him."

Zu'an felt a bucket of cold water pour over his head. He immediately realized that this was indeed aimed at him! Presumably, Cheng Xiong had returned empty-handed last night and, unwilling to give up, had launched another attempt. This time, his investigation was extremely thorough, even uncovering the fact that Zu'an had used an Embroidered Uniform Guard's uniform to get Xue'er out of the palace gates. Although he was ostensibly confronting other Embroidered Uniform Guards, he was actually waiting to deliver a fatal blow to Zu'an.

Yun Jianyue was still hidden in his room, having narrowly avoided detection last night. If they searched again today, it might not be so easy to conceal her. What should he do? What now?

His mind raced, and at the same time, he felt some regret. He had still underestimated the intelligence of people in this world; they weren't like the NPCs from novels or games. Every single person who could rise to a high position was intelligent.

He urgently pondered a solution. His first thought was to enlist the Empress's help. But how could he bring it up? If he didn't reveal his identity as an Embroidered Uniform Guard, why would the Empress help an irrelevant one? But if he told her his other identity, how would he explain taking the assassin out of the palace? She would likely guess that he knew the assassin, which would only create more trouble. Moreover, her influential backing was the Liu family. If she knew his identity as an Embroidered Uniform Guard, there was no guarantee she wouldn't reveal it to her family. That would make it even more dangerous; neither the Emperor nor Prince Qi would tolerate him.

Should he notify Zhu Xiechixin then? He certainly wouldn't stand by and watch his subordinates be bullied. And yesterday, they had a very amicable conversation... No, absolutely not. If an old fox like Zhu Xiechixin found out he had released an assassin, it would be even more trouble.

As he was thinking, the Empress, reclining on the soft couch, said with a smile, "Cheng Xiong is one of Prince Qi's faction. He's worried the Emperor might use this opportunity to remove him from his crucial post, so he's acting desperately. Never mind, let him and the Embroidered Uniform Guards fight among themselves like dogs."

Zu'an's heart stirred. Cheng Xiong was one of Prince Qi's faction? No wonder he was so diligent in this investigation. Wait, I think I have a plan.

"Your Majesty, since there's nothing else, I'll take my leave," Zu'an said, bowing to the Empress. In front of others, one still had to maintain proper decorum.

"Eunuch Lu, see him out," the Empress waved her hand. She seemed disinclined to be alone with Eunuch Lu.

"Yes~" Eunuch Lu led Zu'an out, his expression rather grim. Zu'an thought that it was normal for the eunuch to feel some resentment, having inadvertently touched his goddess whom he longed for day and night. It seemed he had thoroughly offended this fellow.

Once outside, Eunuch Lu casually closed the door. Then, with a hesitant expression, he finally spoke. "You truly have the heart of a thief but lack the guts. Are you really that afraid of the Emperor finding out?"

Hearing his tone, which implied he was frustrated at Zu'an's lack of initiative, Zu'an was dumbfounded. This was completely different from what he had imagined. Why did it feel like Eunuch Lu was actually encouraging his recent actions? Besides, hadn't he always admired the Empress? Why would he encourage another man to approach her? And his eyes even looked rather excited. Eunuch Lu... was he secretly enjoying this?