Chu Youzhao immediately rushed over to Zu An’s side. “Brother-in-law, be careful!”

She thought that King Qi's faction was back for revenge. However, Murong Qinghe saw who they were and said quietly, “They’re from the Eastern Palace.”

Chu Youzhao froze, and the horsemen quickly surrounded the three of them.

A carriage came into view behind the horses. A eunuch moved the curtains aside, and a lavishly-dressed woman slowly walked out. Her golden headdress and jade jewelry were dazzling in the sunlight, giving her an elegant and stunning appearance.

“I greet the crown princess!” Chu Youzhao and Murong Qinghe were both individuals who had grown up in the capital, so they naturally recognized Bi Linglong. Even though they belonged to a different faction, they had to admit that this woman was beautiful, and the noble air around her made her truly exceptional. Her lavish outfit merely accentuated her beauty further.

The crown princess nodded slightly towards the two of them. She wasn’t inclined towards those from King Qi’s faction, so she only showed them the most basic courtesy.

Then, she walked towards Zu An, casting her gaze over him. When she saw that he’d suffered nothing major, she sighed in relief. “I heard that something happened to you, Lord Zu, and I happened to be in the area. They didn’t do much to you, did they?”

As she spoke, she directed a puzzled look at Chu Youzhao and Murong Qinghe. Wasn’t King Qi’s faction being a little too careless, sending these two to deal with Zu An?

Zu An said quickly, “You’re mistaken, Crown Princess. They are my friends.”

“Friends?” The crown princess raised her beautiful brows. This fellow is actually friends with these people from King Qi’s faction? Interesting…

Murong Qinghe sighed in relief. “We still have things to take care of back in our clans. We will take our leave.”

The Murong clan had opposed the crown prince from the start, so she didn’t feel comfortable staying here.

She also dragged Chu Youzhao with her. Chu Youzhao was unwilling to leave, but she knew that she couldn’t really say anything with the crown princess around. Furthermore, she’d lived in the Qin Estate for a long time, and their relationship with the Eastern Palace had never been good. Being surrounded by the Eastern Palace’s people was rather uncomfortable. As she left, she gave Zu An a look, as though she’d been wronged.

The crown princess had no reason to keep them. As she watched their retreating figures, she couldn’t help but say, “It looks like your relationship with your little brother-in-law isn’t that bad.”

Chu Youzhao’s parting expression hadn’t escaped her notice. She was a little surprised. Didn’t the Chu clan chase Zu An out at the crucial moment? Why were the two sides still on such good terms with each other?

Zu An smiled. “Apart from being handsome, another of my virtues is that I get along with people easily. People who hang around me for a while can’t help but like me.”

The crown princess had no reply.

Why did she feel like beating him up whenever she saw his smile?

“If there’s nothing else, let’s head back to the Eastern Palace.” With a sniff, she returned to her carriage.

“Very well.” Even though the crown princess’ words seemed a little harsh to Zu An, he knew she wasn’t a bad person. She’d come over immediately when she learned that something had happened to him. Even though she wasn’t too happy right now, she was still worried that those from King Qi’s faction might take action against him, so she was escorting him back to the palace.

They didn’t say anything to each other along the way. With so many people, there was no way for Zu An to head over to her carriage to talk to her, no matter how good he was with words.

It didn’t take them long to return to the Eastern Palace. Zu An was surprised to discover Piao Duandiao and Jiao Sigun kneeling at the entrance, clearly being punished. “What are you two doing?” he exclaimed. “Who dares treat the guards of the Eastern Palace this way? It’s absolutely preposterous!”

“I was the one who punished them,” said the crown princess, walking up behind him. Piao Duandiao and Jiao Sigun both smiled bitterly towards Zu An, and continued to kneel with their heads down.

“Crown Princess, why did you punish them?” Zu An couldn’t help but ask.

The crown princess looked at them disdainfully. “They dragged you into the government brothel, and didn’t return with you. They even caused you to fall into the trap laid by King Qi’s Estate. Fortunately, you made it through this affair. If not, this would not be the end of their punishment.”

Piao Duandiao and Jiao Sigun were slightly aggrieved. It was clearly Zu An who had brought them to the government brothel. When did they become the ones who had dragged him along to that place?

However, Zu An had given them a treat, and had fallen into danger as well, so they couldn’t bring themselves to correct her.

Zu An was stunned. He didn’t expect her to care so much about him.

The crown princess saw the intensity in his gaze and froze, her face turning red. “You’re thinking too much. As crown princess, I would do my best to rescue any member of the Eastern Palace if they are being targeted by King Qi’s Estate. It isn’t just you.”

Zu An smiled. “Thank you, Crown Princess. This subordinate will work diligently and conscientiously for you until my death.”

Piao Duandiao and Jiao Sigun felt their eyes widen. Look at how good he is at flattery! He is truly worthy of being our big brother.

The crown princess’ eyes lit up. She never expected him to borrow a line from classical literature. Her respect for him rose a notch. As expected of the man who had caused both King Qi and his son to suffer in succession.

Wasn’t this kid a little too brazen, though? How dare he stare at her like this?

Hmph, if I avert my gaze now, wouldn’t that show that I’m scared of him? How will I control him in the future?

What a joke!

She decided not to avert her gaze, but to wait for him to do so. However, Zu An was as shameless as a person could get, and had no such intention.

The two of them continued to stare at each other. The crown princess finally couldn’t take it anymore, and a faint hint of red slowly spread across her fair neck.

The people around them wore weird expressions. Why did it look as though the crown princess and Lord Zu were staring at each other like lovers? How was that possible?

Suddenly, a chubby fellow came over to them. “What’s a government brothel?”

The crown princess finally snapped out of her daze and withdrew her gaze. She gave the crown prince a look of annoyance and said, “It’s a dirty place. You’re not allowed to go.”

“Oh…” He shuddered, frightened by her sudden reaction, causing his fat to jiggle. Clearly, this wife of his scared him.

The crown princess left quickly. She felt her cheeks growing warm. What was up with her today? She’d actually made such a huge mistake. She had to make sure this Zu An got a good beating in the future.

According to the information she received, though, this kid could fight toe-to-toe with King Qi’s heir. He really was a rare genius. The Eastern Palace had been in a long, steady decline. She needed a powerful general like him to face King Qi’s Estate. What could she use to rope him in, though?

When she left, the crown prince quickly pulled Zu An over and asked quietly, “Tell me, tell me. What sort of place is the government brothel?”

Zu An looked at him strangely. “Didn’t the crown princess just tell you?”

“I know she won’t tell me the truth!” The crown prince pouted, as though recalling the two years of oppression he had suffered under her. “Hurry up and tell me! Otherwise, I’ll tell someone about how you were staring at Linglong earlier!”

Zu An was taken aback. Was this fellow really stupid? How had he managed to figure that out? Had he been acting this whole time?

However, he quickly realized that the fact that he could momentarily control the crown prince truly meant that he was stupid. His intellect was about the same as that of a ten-year-old child.

“Ahem, the government brothel is a… a place where people go to exercise.” Zu An had to think hard to describe it tactfully. He did not want to brave the crown princess’ wrath when she found out he had divulged to the crown prince what sort of place it was.

“A place where people exercise?” The crown prince frowned. “You’re lying to me. If it’s just exercise, then it’s definitely no fun, but you and the two guards were there for an entire night.”

As a fatty, he had a natural revulsion towards any form of exercise.

Zu An had a weird look on his face. “Who said that exercising isn’t fun? That place is heaven for men.”

The crown prince immediately grew interested. “So it’s a fun place! You have to bring me next time.”

“Uh…” Zu An felt a headache coming on. He could only say half-heartedly, “Sure, next time, next time.”

The crown prince left, satisfied that he had extracted this promise.

A lesser eunuch came to pass him a message. The emperor had invited Zu An to his study for an audience.

The crown princess watched as Zu An hurried off, surprise evident in her beautiful eyes. The imperial concubines in the palace only met the emperor a few times a year, yet this kid seemed like he was visiting him practically every day.

Such a person is definitely worth investing in. But how am I going to rope him in?

This fella seems to be quite the pervert, so honey traps will probably work. But his wife is a famous beauty! He probably wouldn’t notice an ordinary girl…

Hm… I can’t get personally involved, can I?

…

As the crown princess struggled with her dilemma, Zu An arrived at the imperial study. The emperor was giving off an imposing aura. He looked at Zu An with an expression of foreboding. “This emperor gave you the task of infiltrating the Devil Sect. Have you found any traces of Yun Jianyue yet?”