Chapter 713

"Missing?" Zu An raised an eyebrow. He actually found this quite expected. How could such a crucial person remain there to be investigated?

As for whether they were truly missing or had been silenced, he even leaned towards the latter.

Unfortunately, he was currently imprisoned and couldn't be in two places at once, nor could he entrust such an investigation to others.

"Oh, by the way, do you know anything about Concubine Bai of the Hundred Flowers Palace?" Zu An asked urgently.

Chu Chuyan's autumn-water-like eyes showed a hint of apology: "Time was too short, and it's a matter deep within the palace. I didn't have time to investigate."

Zu An held her hand. "I was too impatient. You don't need to worry about this. Let's wait for news from the Empress."

"What exactly is your relationship with the Empress? Why..." Chu Chuyan's cool eyes were full of bewilderment. "Why did her expression become so strange after she learned I came for you? Especially after hearing that remark from you, she not only wasn't angry but became even more cordial towards me."

Zu An smiled faintly. "The Empress probably owes me a favor from before, so she'll find a way to save me this time. Don't worry too much."

Chu Chuyan sighed in relief. "That's good then."

After they talked for a while longer, Chu Chuyan quickly took her leave. She understood what was important and knew that staying there was pointless. She needed to go out and use her connections to find a way to save him, not place all her hope solely on the Empress.

While touched, Zu An reminded her not to act desperately and fall prey to manipulative individuals.

He also assured her that he had a trump card and would likely overcome this crisis.

After all, having watched too many melodramatic TV shows in his previous life, he didn't want Chuyan to do anything foolish to save him.

Chu Chuyan, being exceptionally intelligent, immediately grasped his meaning. Blushing, she scoffed, "What kind of nonsense are you thinking?"

Immediately afterward, a smile like melting snow appeared on her face. "I know you're worried about me. Don't worry, I've managed the Chu family for years and seen all sorts of schemes and tricks."

Only then did Zu An relax. "I completely forgot my dearest wife is a heaven-favored daughter capable of handling everything on her own, haha."

Since there were still some jailers nearby, Chu Chuyan, with her tender reputation, couldn't quite handle being called "dearest wife" and fled as if escaping.

A group of jailers, looking envious, rushed over to ask him about the art of managing a wife. Zu An, while bragging to them, also inquired about palace affairs.

"Concubine Bai? Concubine Bai has always lived a reclusive life; few people know her current situation."

"However, I heard her personal maid has been missing for several days."

"Not necessarily. With such a major incident in the Eastern Palace, the Hundred Flowers Palace naturally needs to keep a low profile. It's quite normal for a personal maid not to appear."

"Speaking of which, if something truly happened to the Crown Princess, Concubine Bai would be the most likely candidate to become the next Crown Princess."

Hearing the jailers' discussions, Zu An became pensive.

After a moment, he asked again, "What's the current situation with the Crown Princess? Heh, this question is a bit sensitive, as she and I are both involved in the case. If it's inconvenient to answer, you don't have to."

The jailers exchanged glances, and then one of them laughed, "Lord Zu, you're too polite. We all know you and the Crown Princess are innocent. There's no harm in telling you this."

"That's right, yesterday, the palace had nannies examine the Crown Princess. There were no signs of her being violated by a man."

"Not only that, but I heard the Crown Princess is still a virgin."

"That's impossible, isn't it? The Crown Prince and Crown Princess have been married for so long; how could she still be a virgin?"

"Our Crown Prince..."

If it were just about him saving them during the prison break, they might not have dared to say so much. The main reason was the news that the Crown Princess was innocent, which made them feel bold enough to discuss these matters with him.

Zu An coughed. "Gentlemen, please be careful with your words. This is likely malicious gossip spread to defame the Crown Prince. You must not fall for it."

The jailers realized with a start. "So that's it! Lord Zu, you've saved us again."

The group thanked him profusely, clearly relieved. Zu An gave a few perfunctory replies before falling into deep thought.

He hadn't expected the Crown Princess to be telling the truth; after so many years of marriage, she was indeed still a virgin. However, exposing this news at such a time would likely cause her a lot of trouble later on.

Surely the Emperor wouldn't be so foolish as to reveal her virginity?

Could it be Prince Qi's faction? But wouldn't that clear her of suspicion in this incident?

He thought for a while, and the more he thought, the more his head spun. He had a strong feeling that there was more to it than met the eye.

Time passed unnoticed. The chatty jailers had long dispersed, and Zu An sat alone in his cell, contemplating the entire affair.

"Mealtime! Mealtime!" A jailer approached, set down a food box, and turned to leave.

He hadn't expected to eat prison food so soon. Zu An looked at the large bowl before him. Since the Heavenly Prison held no ordinary criminals, the food wasn't bad.

At least there was plenty of white rice, some vegetables, and a sparse amount of meat.

After a night of rushing about, he was genuinely hungry. Zu An picked up the bowl, ready to devour its contents.

Suddenly, a thought flashed through his mind. He looked up at the receding jailer. "Wait!"

"What is it?" The jailer turned back, his tone slightly impatient.

Zu An scrutinized him. "Why do you look unfamiliar? I haven't seen you before."

The jailer grunted, "I've just been transferred here."

Zu An smiled faintly. "Would you mind calling General Guo for me, young man? I just remembered some important information I need to report to him."

The jailer impatiently replied, "Just eat your meal. General Guo has no time to see you."

With that, he muttered curses and walked away.

Zu An looked down at the food in his bowl and fell into deep thought.

He didn't know how much time had passed when General Guo Zhi of the Right Guard arrived with a group of men. "Brother Zu, Lord Zongzheng and the others want to interrogate you."

Zu An lay motionless in his cell.

Guo Zhi called out several times without a response, and his expression instantly changed. "Something's wrong!"

He hurriedly unlocked the cell door, rushed to Zu An's side, and seeing his face bruised and purplish, he urgently cried, "He's poisoned! Summon the imperial physicians quickly!"

The jailers rushed out, while Guo Zhi quickly circulated his internal energy, trying to force the poison out of Zu An.

At this moment, Zhen Xueyi, Jiang Boyang, and Murong Tong also arrived, having heard the commotion.

"What happened?"

"Zu An poisoned?"

"What are you people doing?!"

The voices of the three old men, filled with shock and anger, rang out.

Just then, Zu An, who had been lying on the ground, suddenly sat up. "I'm fine."

"Huh?" Guo Zhi looked bewildered. Wasn't this guy on the verge of death just a moment ago?

Zu An offered him an apologetic smile. "Thank you for saving me, Brother Guo. What I just did was out of necessity."

He had been suspicious the moment he saw that unfamiliar jailer. After the incident where he saved the cult assassins, he knew almost all the jailers in the Heavenly Prison. They had spent time together bragging and joking, and their relationship was quite good.

Even if a new jailer had truly arrived, it was impossible for such an important prisoner as himself to be handled by a newcomer.

That person definitely had an agenda!

Zu An's first reaction was that someone wanted to silence him, but he wasn't sure who it was.

In fact, General Guo Zhi was the biggest suspect. After all, the Heavenly Prison was his territory, and no one was better positioned to act.

Therefore, he dared not make a sound at the time and could only feign poisoning.

When Guo Zhi entered, Zu An was already on high alert, just in case Guo Zhi saw he wasn't dead and decided to finish him off.

As the other man tried to force the poison out, Zu An secretly activated his Gluttonous Heaven Devouring Art, ready to instantly absorb all of Guo Zhi's cultivation should his *qi* attempt to harm him. However, he was surprised to find that Guo Zhi's *qi* was pure and gentle, indeed attempting to expel the poison.

Even so, he didn't dare to be careless. He waited until Jiang Boyang and the others had also arrived before getting up.

Now, he couldn't trust anyone. Relatively speaking, Jiang Boyang was slightly more trustworthy, given his connection to the beautiful headmistress.

Of course, he wouldn't fully trust him just for that reason. His main consideration was that these three Grand Ministers represented different factions, supervising and balancing each other, which prevented anyone from making a move.

Murong Tong immediately frowned. "Zu An, what exactly are you playing at?"

Zu An sighed, pointing to the bowl of rice buried in the straw pile in the corner. "Someone tried to poison me."