Chapter 981: Revenge

Everyone turned around, wondering who was audacious enough to say such words to Sun Xun on Yi Commandery's territory.

Sun Xun's face was grim, his facial muscles twitched slightly, and killing intent was already visible in his eyes.

"The guests at your Carefree Pavilion truly are a remarkable lot," Sun Xun said, glancing at the fat Venerable and sneering.

The fat Venerable felt completely overwhelmed today, wondering why all these vexing matters were piling up.

He looked at the person who spoke, noting that they were wearing an ordinary mask and walking up from the second floor, not one of the building's most distinguished jade token guests. Only then did he secretly sigh in relief. "Gentlemen, please don't be impulsive; what's happening here has nothing to do with you."

He had already scanned them with his cultivation; the qi fluctuations from their bodies indicated they were only at the sixth rank. Both Sun Xun and he could crush them with one hand, and he couldn't understand where they got their confidence.

He then thought of 'No. 333' and wondered if all sixth-rank cultivators were so arrogant these days.

He thought that by giving them an out and revealing his cultivation, they would wisely leave. Instead, the two didn't even glance at him and walked straight towards Sun Xun.

"Did you just say you *are* the law?"

Sun Xun frowned and immediately ordered his subordinates, "What are you standing around for? Do I have to spell it out?"

As a dignified Grandmaster and the prime minister of a vassal state, it was already beneath him to have spoken so much with 'No. 333' just now. He couldn't be bothered to deal with these two at all.

Sensing their master's displeasure, the guards immediately pounced on the two like hungry wolves.

But at that moment, the other party took out a gold medallion and declared, "Who dares!"

The guards all froze, and the entire third floor fell silent, because everyone clearly saw the words on the gold medallion: "Imperial Guard."

"From the Imperial Palace?" Not everyone had the right to use the character "御" (imperial), and everyone quickly realized the significance.

Those familiar with official ranks immediately realized that this must be the waist token of an Imperial Forest Guard from the palace, specifically tasked with protecting the Forbidden Palace. How could it be here?

The guards looked to Sun Xun for help, and Sun Xun's expression also changed, because he suddenly remembered intelligence he had received a few days ago: the imperial envoy's retinue had seemingly also arrived in Yi Commandery.

Earlier, the Yi Commandery Governor and officials from the Yan Kingdom had specifically gone to welcome them. However, although the imperial envoy met with them, he claimed to have caught a cold and did not disembark. Everyone immediately understood that the envoy was burdened with important matters and had no interest in getting involved with the officialdom of Yi Commandery.

This made the officialdom of Yi Commandery breathe a sigh of relief. After all, what place didn't have some unsavory secrets? Although the imperial envoy's trip was aimed at Yunzhong Commandery, if he accidentally uncovered something about Yi Commandery, who knew how many heads would roll.

Sun Xun never expected that he would encounter someone from the imperial envoy's mission in the Carefree Pavilion. He immediately put on a completely new demeanor; a warm smile appeared on his grim face. "Generals, you've come a long way. I, Sun, failed to properly welcome you. My apologies, my apologies."

If they were merely the imperial envoy's guards, he naturally wouldn't need to be so courteous. The main reason was that Imperial Forest Guards were generally the sons of meritorious families from the capital, each backed by powerful clans. He certainly didn't want to accidentally offend those influential figures in the capital.

"You are too kind, sir; we truly don't deserve such courtesy," they replied. These two were, of course, Pei You and Gao Ying. One was red-faced from losing at the casino, while the other was sweating profusely on the second floor. As commotion continuously spread from the third floor, neither of them could concentrate on what they were doing and could only angrily rush up to see what was happening.

As soon as they saw Zu An being harassed, they thought, "Good heavens, how could this be tolerated?" They immediately stepped forward to help.

Hearing the mockery in their tone, Sun Xun was secretly furious but showed not a single trace of it on his face. "Today, my son was robbed and murdered. I am investigating the case here, and due to the pain of losing him, I spoke impulsively and without thinking. I hope the two generals will not take offense."

The words he had just spoken were fine to say in Yi Commandery, but if they were truly spread back to the capital, there would be considerable trouble.

Although the imperial court wouldn't do anything to him over such a minor matter, leaving a bad impression on the Emperor or the powerful figures at court would affect his future.

"Oh?" The two had rushed over and didn't know what had happened, so they walked straight to Zu An to ask him. Zu An then briefly explained.

"So they know each other!" Sun Xun saw this, his brows furrowed tightly. This would be difficult to handle now.

The fat Venerable also widened his eyes, then subconsciously looked at Tang Tian'er and transmitted his voice with qi, "Didn't you say he was from the Sea Race?"

Tang Tian'er also looked bewildered. "I don't know either. Does the Sea Race have ties to the imperial court now?"

"It's not impossible." But the fat Venerable had no time to think about this now. The thought that even the imperial envoy and palace guards were now involved made him deeply worry about the negative impact on the Carefree Pavilion. Afterward, his superiors would likely punish him for mishandling the situation.

After Pei You and Gao Ying finished listening to Zu An's account, they unhappily looked at Sun Xun. "Lord Sun, since all the evidence proves he is innocent, why are you still trying to arrest him?"

Although Sun Xun's cultivation was high, he was still a subject of the Great Zhou. Pei You and Gao Ying were now carrying out duties by imperial decree. Moreover, having often seen powerful figures in the capital and even having masters of Sun Xun's level in their own families, they certainly didn't hold him in high regard.

"This..." Sun Xun hesitated for a moment, then changed his tone. "It seems I was not thorough in my consideration."

The other party was connected to the imperial envoy's mission, and this was not something he could mess with using his authority.

At this moment, Zu An spoke. "To correct one's mistakes is the greatest good. Lord Sun, in the future, you must sincerely serve the common people and never abuse the power granted to you by the imperial court."

Sun Xun was speechless.

*Give him an inch, and he takes a mile!*

Being reprimanded in front of so many people, he found it hard to save face. "May I ask, what is your official position?"

Zu An calmly said, "I hold no official position. The principles I just spoke are things any common person in the world would say. Does Lord Sun believe there's anything wrong with them?"

Sun Xun's breath caught. It took him a long while to finally exhale. "You are absolutely right."

His face ashen, he left a single remark and then turned and strode away.

Only then did the other people in the Carefree Pavilion sigh in relief, but they still looked cautiously at Zu An and the others. After all, this place was a gray area, and the capital background of these individuals made them deeply uncomfortable.

The fat Venerable hurriedly approached with a fawning smile. "Honored guests, please come in. We were truly blind just now and neglected you. Please don't take offense."

He wanted to seize the opportunity to build good relations with them. After all, imperial envoys were also human and naturally had their weaknesses, and the Carefree Pavilion had hosted its share of imperial envoy guests over the years.

Zu An smiled. "No need, we have other matters to attend to, so we won't trouble you."

"Young Master An, are you leaving already?" Tang Tian'er looked at him with reluctance. If Zu An hadn't seen her use her charm-smoke trick before, he might have actually believed she was truly affectionate towards him.

"I'll come visit you again another day, young lady." Zu An lightly patted her backside and then left with a hearty laugh.

Gazing at their retreating figures, Tang Tian'er's face flushed pink. "That guy actually took advantage of me!"

She suddenly realized that after all this time, she didn't even know his real name or identity. For years, she had excelled at singing and dancing, effortlessly manipulating men of all kinds. Today, for the first time, she felt like she had been played.

"Was he really charmed by me earlier?" Tang Tian'er's delicate brows slightly furrowed, but she quickly broke into a smile. "An interesting man, I like it."

On the other side, the fat Venerable personally escorted Zu An and his party as they left. He had initially worried about how to make them comply with the Carefree Pavilion's entry and exit rules later. To his surprise, Zu An willingly entered a closed carriage, and he couldn't help but feel grateful.

Due to Sun Ji's incident, he personally saw them off near the docks before leaving.

"Why are we leaving so early? I haven't had enough fun yet." With no one else around, Pei You could finally voice his frustration.

Zu An laughed. "Aren't you content that they didn't make you pay earlier?"

Pei You said with a grin, "How can I compare to Brother Zu? In such a short time, you managed to charm the most beautiful woman in the Carefree Pavilion. I heard on the second floor that Tang Tian'er is widely considered the Carefree Pavilion's top beauty."

Gao Ying nodded. "I also heard many people talking about her on the first floor. She's the Carefree Pavilion's most famous courtesan, moving among men as if in her element. Brother Zu, you should be careful. Indulge your desires, but don't fall in love."

"Thanks for the reminder." Zu An knew he meant well, but having seen Tang Tian'er's methods earlier, he suspected those men were all being played by her, and no one truly gained any advantage.

Seeing that he didn't seem to heed the advice, Gao Ying sighed, thinking that he was young and vigorous, and indeed, it was hard to resist the temptation of such a stunning beauty.

He no longer tried to persuade him and directly changed the subject. "Brother Zu, was there a deeper meaning to calling us back so urgently?"

Zu An nodded. "Of course. Sun Xun won't just let this go."

Pei You raised an eyebrow. "What? Does he dare to lay a hand on us?"

"Why wouldn't he dare?" Zu An sighed, looking towards a certain direction in the distance. "They're already here, aren't they?"