Chapter 784: Reveal the Cards

As soon as he thought of this, Ma An's breathing quickened. He paced restlessly around the room, seemingly weighing something.

"No, this is just my guess. If I report it and it turns out to be wrong, it will affect my image in the master's eyes. Hmm, I should investigate thoroughly first," Ma An muttered to himself.

He quickly recalled Zu An's recent achievements. If Zu An truly was Gold Medal Eleven, his cultivation would only be higher than what he showed. Even as the Supervisor of the Imperial Academy of Medicine, Ma An wasn't confident of victory.

However, he wasn't worried in the slightest. He went to the innermost part of the room, moved a cabinet, and pulled out a dark ceramic bottle from a secret compartment behind it.

As the saying goes, medicine and poison are inseparable. As a renowned physician, when would he ever need to personally engage in combat to kill someone?

Holding the black ceramic bottle, a smile of confident assurance spread across Ma An's face.

After Bi Linglong handed the medicinal ingredients to Zu An, although she had much more to say to him, she realized that their identities made it inappropriate to appear too intimate, especially within the palace. So, she cautioned him with a few words before turning and heading towards the East Palace.

Zu An had initially thought of trying to refine the pills nearby in the White Sand Courtyard, but he worried that too much commotion might draw the Emperor's attention, which would be troublesome. Therefore, he decided to leave the palace and return home.

He hadn't walked far when he suddenly encountered a group of palace maids and eunuchs. Some cleared the path, others held umbrellas, as they slowly escorted a noble lady in palace attire.

Dressed in luxurious robes, the noble lady's stunning figure was still evident, especially the full expanse of alabaster skin revealed by her low-cut dress, and her voluptuous, graceful swaying hips as she walked, enough to ignite desire in any man.

However, her status made it impossible for anyone to harbor improper thoughts. Even the young eunuchs beside her, despite having been castrated, dared not cast a second glance.

An older eunuch beside her was an exception. Following behind the noble lady, his gaze occasionally darted towards her plump, rounded hips, revealing a fleeting look of eagerness, then profound regret.

How much sorrow can one have? It's like eunuchs visiting a brothel.

"Greetings, Your Majesty the Empress!" Zu An recognized him as Eunuch Lu. Who else could the beautiful lady in front of him be but Empress Liu Ning?

Eunuch Lu also saw him, and his first reaction was a furious rage, clearly recalling what had happened that day.

Enrage points from Lu Qi +588 +588 +588...

However, it wasn't long before he seemed to remember something else. His anger gradually dissipated, replaced by rapid breathing and red-rimmed eyes, seemingly with a hint of satisfaction.

Zu An had been warily observing him, so the other party's reaction did not escape his notice.

He couldn't help but sigh with emotion. This Eunuch Lu was truly a peculiar character. He and the King of Wu must have a lot in common.

At this moment, the Empress saw Zu An, and her sharp phoenix eyes softened slightly. "So, it's Sir Zu. I heard the Crown Princess gave you leave; why are you still in the palace?"

Zu An's heart tightened. This woman was indeed well-informed about his whereabouts. He quickly replied, "I came to the Imperial Academy of Medicine to get some medicine."

He dared not say that the Crown Princess had brought him. As a 'sea king,' preventing one woman from knowing about another's existence was basic protocol.

The Empress said, "That's perfect. This Empress also has many healing elixirs in her possession. They've been sitting in the palace for years, doing no good. Sir Zu has worked hard and contributed greatly recently, so they can be used to heal your injuries."

Zu An's heart inwardly rejoiced. "Thank you, Your Majesty."

He was currently in need of various medicinal ingredients for pill refining.

"Then come with this Empress back to Kuning Palace." The Empress subtly licked her lips, and a hint of moisture appeared in her normally majestic phoenix eyes.

Eunuch Lu, standing nearby, had a complicated expression. He ultimately sighed inwardly, saying nothing.

Zu An: "..."

So, offering me medicine and caring about my health was fake; desiring my body was the truth.

Although he wouldn't mind a few 'friendly matches' with this beautiful and voluptuous Empress—after all, that night's experience had been incredibly exhilarating—he knew that personal strength was paramount and didn't want to get lost in beauty.

Moreover, he now knew that she sought him to absorb his vital essence for healing, so he naturally had some reservations.

"Thank you for your grace, Your Majesty, but I have urgent matters to attend to outside the palace. I will come to Kuning Palace another day to apologize to Your Majesty," he said, then hastily made his escape.

"Another day?" The Empress watched his hurried departure, a subtle smile playing on her lips. His words were brave, but she wondered if that one night had already exhausted all his courage.

She interpreted his current panicked escape as fear of the Emperor discovering their liaison, so she wasn't too concerned. Instead, she pondered how she could find an opportunity later to make him feel at ease to visit Kuning Palace.

So, she secretly sent a voice transmission to Eunuch Lu beside her.

Eunuch Lu's face flushed crimson. To help another man devise plans to 'play with' the woman he loved most in his life—that feeling was truly humiliating and exasperating.

However, in the next second, an unusual sense of excitement and anticipation washed over him. He then transmitted his voice, filled with vital energy, to the Empress, discussing, "You could do this and that..."

Zu An breathed a sigh of relief after leaving the palace. Mi Li's playful voice came to him: "Oh, you actually refused an invitation from a beautiful woman? That's not like you at all."

Zu An retorted grumpily, "Do you think I'm the kind of person who neglects important matters for the sake of women?"

"In my heart, yes, you are," Mi Li said, nodding with certainty.

Zu An: "..."

"Hmph, that Empress is far too brazen, inviting you to do such scandalous things in broad daylight," Mi Li's voice was filled with displeasure. "For such a woman to be Empress, it truly lowers the overall image of empresses."

Zu An knew she held a grudge about this, and couldn't help but chuckle, "Didn't you say she was just doing it for healing?"

"Isn't needing to 'bestow' her body for healing still worthy of my contempt?" Mi Li snorted, about to say more, when she suddenly frowned. "Hmm, there's someone hidden in your house."

A warmth spread through Zu An's heart. Although she had said she wouldn't help him anymore and that he should rely on himself, she still couldn't resist offering guidance when something happened.

"Is it a man or a woman in there?" Zu An asked, his mood lightened.

"A man, of course," Mi Li rolled her eyes. "What on earth goes through your mind? You'll die in a woman's bed someday!"

Hearing it was a man, Zu An immediately dropped his smile and became fully alert.

He entered the house and found that all the maids and servants were gone. He frowned, thinking they had met a bad end, but then he quickly noticed faint, even breathing coming from the side rooms, suggesting they had merely been knocked unconscious.

He sneered inwardly. 'Looks like a clumsy thief. Knocking out all the servants makes it easy for me to notice something's wrong as soon as I return.'

He carefully opened the door, but contrary to his expectations of a sudden ambush from behind it, a figure was sitting leisurely inside, drinking tea as if at home.

Seeing the person clearly, Zu An was somewhat surprised. "Sir Ma?"

He genuinely hadn't expected the Supervisor of the Imperial Academy of Medicine to be in his home, let alone to meet him in such a manner.

Ma An placed his teacup on the table and smiled slightly. "Sir Zu, you're finally back. I've been waiting for you for a long time."

Zu An asked in a low voice, "What exactly do you mean, Sir Ma?"

It seemed the defensive array in his house was too basic; it couldn't stop a true master. He hoped Xie Daoyun would become a powerful runemaster at the academy so she could replace the array in his courtyard later.

"No need to be nervous, Sir Zu. I merely wish to have a chat with you," Ma An said with a smile.

Zu An glanced at the slowly burning candle on the table and said blandly, "Breaking in uninvited and knocking out the servants hardly suggests you're here for a chat."

"Don't worry, they'll be fine after a good night's sleep," Ma An said. "The main reason is that I'm sure Sir Zu wouldn't want others to overhear the content of our conversation."

"What do you wish to discuss, Sir Ma?" Zu An asked in a deep voice.

Ma An crossed his legs, looking Zu An up and down. "Sir Zu, your vital energy is abundant, and you're as strong as an ox. You don't look injured at all."

"That's none of your concern," Zu An said, using the jade cong's ability to summon nearby small animals. After checking around and finding no one else ambushed, he breathed a slight sigh of relief.

"Even if you don't admit it, I can guess," Ma An paused, then continued, "The medicinal ingredients you requested at the Imperial Academy of Medicine today have no healing properties. On the contrary, they are mostly raw materials for refining pills that help one break through in cultivation. I didn't expect Sir Zu to be skilled in pill refining!"

Zu An didn't bother with pleasantries. "What exactly do you want to say?"

Ma An wasn't annoyed. "Since Sir Zu intends to refine breakthrough pills, you must be on the verge of a cultivation breakthrough recently. Everyone in the capital believed that Sir Zu was able to defeat the Prince of Qi's heir and draw with Han Fengqiu, the ninth-rank guest elder of the Prince of Qi's manor, because a mysterious master was secretly assisting you. But today, I understand that mysterious master doesn't exist at all. Or rather, that mysterious master is you, isn't that right, Sir Gold Medal Eleven?"

---During my road trip, I visited a public restroom near Dalong Lake in the southern section of Duku Highway, and I truly saw what a 'mountain of excrement, sea of excrement' looks like. It was an old-fashioned squat toilet with a cesspit beneath, and the waste had piled up like a small mountain, almost level with the squatting area. I was utterly horrified at the time; I couldn't bear to look again after a single glance and had to cover my nose with a wet wipe. I wished I had just relieved myself in the wild instead. Even now, the memory of that sight still makes me gag...