Chapter 708: Huge Losses

The Crown Princess consort explained, "There are several maids inside; I need you to knock them out as quickly as possible."

She herself was absolutely incapable of doing this with her cultivation level.

"Your own maids—why do you want to knock them out?" Zu'an asked, surprised.

The Crown Princess consort replied, "How can such an incident be known to others? Would I entrust my safety to someone else's loyalty? Moreover, I can't guarantee that these maids aren't spies placed by other factions, so it's better to knock them out."

Zu'an nodded inwardly. This woman was indeed born a leader; her perspective on problems was completely different from ordinary people. He had to admit, her plan was far more secure.

The Crown Princess consort leaned in and peered through a tiny, hidden peephole. "There are two maids chatting in the southeast corner, one maid tidying things up on the west side, and two more guarding the entrance outside."

Zu'an clicked his tongue in amazement. He thought to himself that she wasn't even in the room, yet so many maids were on guard. The Crown Princess consort was indeed the Crown Princess consort.

Zu'an also leaned in and observed for a while, firmly memorizing the positions of all of them.

The Crown Princess consort stepped back a little, her face slightly flushed. Fortunately, it wasn't very noticeable in the darkness. That fellow had just leaned so close that his face almost touched hers.

However, she immediately recalled when Zhuxie Chixin had been there earlier—it wasn't just his face close to hers, he had even kissed her...

Thinking of this, her face alternated between green and red, and her eyes deepened.

"Alright, I've got a clear idea. How do we open the mechanism?" Zu'an asked.

The Crown Princess consort walked to the side. "When I count to three, you immediately rush out and subdue them. You absolutely cannot let them have a chance to alert the guards outside."

"Okay!" Zu'an composed himself, listening as the Crown Princess consort counted beside him. As she reached three, a patch of light suddenly appeared overhead.

In that instant, he darted out. The nearby maids, hearing the commotion, turned around in surprise. Unfortunately, they only saw a blur before their pressure points were struck, and they fainted.

The two maids by the door tried to run, but Zu'an decisively used his Great Wind teleportation ability to appear behind them, knocked them out, and dragged them back into the room.

At this point, the Crown Princess consort also climbed out of the secret passage. Only then did Zu'an notice that the entrance to the passage was actually in the bed. However, on second thought, this was to be expected; it allowed for immediate escape if an assassin attacked while she was sleeping.

"Fortunately, I didn't fail the mission. It's also fortunate that your personal maid, Rong Mo, isn't here, or it wouldn't have been so easy," Zu'an said, letting out a sigh of relief.

The Crown Princess consort replied, "She accompanied me to the Hundred Flowers Palace and has been guarding outside. She must be searching for me everywhere now, which is why she's not here."

Zu'an nodded. Given such a major incident involving the Crown Princess consort, it would be strange if Rong Mo *wasn't* looking for her.

Glancing at the unconscious maids on the floor, he couldn't help but say, "You're not going to kill them to silence them, are you?"

The Crown Princess consort frowned. "Did they see your face just now?"

Zu'an shook his head. "No, they didn't."

"Then there's no need. Why would I kill them?" the Crown Princess consort snorted. "Do you think I'm some kind of cold-blooded devil in your eyes?"

Zu'an gave an awkward smile but said nothing.

The Crown Princess consort removed the mask from her face, then found a set of robes from a nearby chest. She said in a low voice, "Come here."

"What for?" Zu'an was a bit puzzled, but he still walked over.

"Help me get dressed," the Crown Princess consort said lightly, as if stating something trivial.

Zu'an was immediately dumbfounded. "Help you get dressed?"

For a moment, he even wondered if she was a child, needing help to get dressed. *She and that idiotic Crown Prince really are a pair,* he thought.

As if she had read his mind, the Crown Princess consort said, "My clothes are always intricate and complicated. Ordinarily, I need several maids to help me put them on. I can't manage by myself."

Zu'an made an "oh" sound, realizing his misunderstanding. He walked over to her side and asked, "How can I help with this?"

The Crown Princess consort glanced at him, then directly untied her sash, letting her robes slide down her satin-smooth skin, revealing her glowing white body.

Zu'an's breathing quickened. For a moment, he was bewildered. *What was happening?*

"Didn't you already see everything there was to see earlier, whether you should have or not? What kind of expression is that now?" The Crown Princess consort's tone was calm, but her slightly rising and falling chest proved that her composure was not as complete as it appeared.

Zu'an gave a wry smile. "That was just an accident earlier."

The Crown Princess consort spread her arms. "Get the clothes from over there and help me put them on."

Zu'an felt as if he was being teased, but given the circumstances, he found it difficult to say anything. So, he obediently picked up the palace attire.

He had to admit, the clothes were beautiful, but they were indeed very elaborate; putting them on properly by oneself was almost impossible.

Zu'an silently helped her put on the elaborate attire. Throughout the entire process, the Crown Princess consort's face was flushed.

After a moment, the Crown Princess consort parted her red lips. "I don't want anyone to know about what happened today."

Zu'an hummed in agreement. "Okay, I won't tell anyone about this."

"I hope you'll forget about it too," the Crown Princess consort said, taking a deep breath.

"Okay!" Zu'an was not as flippant as usual. He knew she took this very seriously, so it wouldn't be appropriate to joke around.

"In the future, I will do my best to promote you and give you more resources in return for your help today. As for anything else, you shouldn't think about it. I am, after all, the Crown Princess consort; our statuses are different..." The Crown Princess consort's eyelashes fluttered slightly, evidently her emotions were in turmoil.

"Okay!" Zu'an continued to nod.

The Crown Princess consort showed a hint of hesitation. After a moment, she suddenly said, "The Crown Prince and I have no marital intimacy."

Zu'an was stunned. "Why are you telling me this?"

The Crown Princess consort turned her head away, seemingly annoyed. "Nothing."

At this moment, Zu'an's heart was also in turmoil. Although he had vaguely suspected this before, it was only a guess. Now, to hear her admit it personally, the feeling was different.

What made him even more curious was why she would tell him this.

Could it be that after his heroic rescue today, her heart had been captured, and she had developed strong feelings for him?

*That makes sense,* he thought. *With my character, appearance, and abilities, I completely outshine that fat pig. It's perfectly normal for her to like me.*

Still, something felt a little off...

As she saw him half-kneeling, tightening her waist sash, his back of the head slightly exposed to her, the Crown Princess consort, who had been shyly arranging her hair, suddenly flashed a cold glint in her eyes. She directly took out a golden hairpin and fiercely stabbed it towards the back of his head.

The golden hairpin emitted a faint blue glow, clearly having been steeped in potent poison for years; a strike from it would undoubtedly be fatal.

However, the golden hairpin did not stab into the back of Zu'an's head as intended. Instead, it stopped an inch away from his skull.

It wasn't because she held back, but because it had been caught between two firm fingers.

The Crown Princess consort's expression changed. "How did you know I was going to kill you!"

At such close range, with her deliberate intention against his supposed unawareness, it should have been virtually impossible to defend against, unless he had been fully vigilant the entire time.

Zu'an flicked his wrist, sending out a gentle force that snatched the golden hairpin from her hand, then slowly stood up.

"To be honest, I really was fooled at first," Zu'an said, tossing her hairpin aside with a sigh. "A beautiful, noble Crown Princess consort undressing completely in front of you—tell me, what man in this world could resist such temptation?"

"Even the most rigid person would probably think that the Crown Princess consort had feelings for them, which is why she would undress in their presence. They might even start to fantasize about a romantic connection with her."

"Especially when you emphasized that you and the Crown Prince had no marital intimacy, it would further fuel those fantasies, making one believe that with the right timing, they could replace the Crown Prince and become your actual man."

"Then why did you become suspicious?!" This was what baffled the Crown Princess consort the most. According to her intelligence, this man was a typical lecher, fond of women. It made no sense for him to see through such a significant honey trap she had set.