Chapter 1711: Exposed
Zu An coldly said, “Please rethink this, Sir Zhao. There are some things that are better left unknown for your sake.”
Zhao Yuan’s expression changed a bit. As someone who worked in the Imperial Palace, he naturally knew that the imperial family had many secrets that couldn’t be known by outsiders. He knew that what Zu An said wasn’t a joke.
However, when he looked at Zu An, after some hesitation, he felt that it was most likely a bluff. As such, he said with a smile, “Sir Zu speaks too seriously. I am merely doing my job. Furthermore, I have not received any orders regarding anyone carrying something with them to carry out a mission.”
Zu An’s expression became unpleasant. He replied, “Are you suggesting that I am lying to you?”
Zhao Yuan smiled and said, “What is Sir Zu saying? You are also a general who manages the Armed Escort Division. You should know about the responsibilities of Imperial Guard leaders. It will be better for everyone if we do the checks properly.”
Zu An looked at him coldly. Actually, Concubine Bai was wearing Nanny Ping’s clothes, so she’d look just like her for the time being. As such, he didn’t actually fear an investigation. Still, explaining Nanny Ping’s corpse would be another huge headache. If things stalled, Pin Ru’s Wardrobe could lose its effects.
Furthermore, Zhao Yuan was clearly troubling him, and there were so many soldiers watching. If he backed down here, then the Armed Escort Division wouldn’t have any pride left. It would become more difficult for him to operate in the palace too.
“Then what if I refuse?” Zu An scowled and replied bluntly.
Zhao Yuan’s expression turned cold as he said, “Then don’t blame me for taking action.”
Afterward, the soldiers all drew their blades and surrounded Zu An. A battle seemed to be on the verge of erupting.
Still, what kinds of dangerous situations had Zu An experienced? He naturally didn’t treat these people as a big deal. Once he released Concubine Bai, there wouldn’t be any proof left. He could just come up with any old excuse to deal with the emperor after.
Suddenly, a sharp and thin voice coughed and asked, “May I ask what is going on here?”
“So it was Eunuch Wen,” Zhao Yuan said. His expression also became a bit more respectful when he saw the eunuch. He said, “This general was conducting a routine investigation, but Sir Zu refused. That is why my comrades acted out of suspicion…” He described what happened, but exaggerated the situation. Anyone who heard his explanation would feel that there was something wrong with Zu An.
Eunuch Wen gave Zu An a look, and his gaze landed on the chest in his hands. Zu An keenly sensed a wave of energy locking onto the chest and thought, Thank goodness I fed Concubine Bai that Fake Death Pill.
Eunuch Wen clearly believed that it was Nanny Ping’s corpse and thought that this kid had acted pretty quickly. Still, the conflict with Zhao Yuan had almost caused a disaster. He cleared his throat, then said casually, “His majesty indeed sent Sir Zu to carry out a task. It is this one who forgot to let General Zhao know.”
Zhao Yuan’s expression changed. He immediately put on a smile and said, “So there were arrangements from his majesty! Why didn’t you tell me earlier, Sir Zu? It’s a misunderstanding, definitely a misunderstanding.”
Zu An watched him put on an act before retorting coldly, “I said it earlier, but wasn’t it you who didn’t believe me and kept arguing noisily?”
Zhao Yuan’s smile immediately froze. He thought, I said that so everyone would have a way out of this situation! Little b.a.s.t.a.r.d, why aren’t you acting like how a normal person would?!
Zu An ignored him. He exchanged a few more sentences with Eunuch Wen, then left.
As he watched Zu An leave, Zhao Yuan scowled.
…
Meanwhile, Zu An took Concubine Bai several hundred li away before stopping. He found a secluded forest to release her.
Inside the chest, she was still curled up into a ball. Perhaps because of the Fake Death Pill, her fair face was now even more deathly pale. And yet, it only made her seem even more lovely.
Zu An was suddenly a bit stunned. He remembered that when Ji Xiaoxi had given him the Fake Death Pill, she hadn’t told him how to use it. He didn’t even know how long it would take for her to wake up again. What if it took a few days? He didn’t have that much time to watch over her!
Still, his cultivation was very high and his knowledge had developed greatly as well. He roughly understood the principles of the Fake Death Pill. As such, he helped improve Concubine Bai’s blood circulation to stimulate her body into waking up earlier.
He was worried that she would feel really uncomfortable and considered laying her body flat first. But after trying several times, he discovered that her arms and legs were tightly bound around each other. If he used too little strength, nothing would happen, but if he used more strength, he could hurt her. As such, he didn’t try anymore and tried to just wake her up first.
Just like that, under the powerful circulation of his ki, a bit of color gradually returned to Concubine Bai’s face. Then, her seemingly stopped heartbeat began again, albeit weakly. After a while, she started breathing lightly too.
Concubine Bai gradually woke up with a groan, batting her eyelids gently.
Zu An sighed in relief, asking, “You’re awake?”
Perhaps because Concubine Bai was in a near-death state, her mind was still a bit blank. She stared at the man in front of her in a daze, her thoughts unclear. She was briefly stupefied. Zu An was startled. He quickly waved his hand in front of her face, for fear that the pill had turned her into a human vegetable.
Concubine Bai finally snapped out of it. She said in embarra.s.sment, “I’m fine. I was just a bit muddle-headed after waking up again.”
She wanted to get up, but she was shocked to discover that she was still curled up in her special stance. She pleaded, “Can you help me a bit? I can’t undo it right now.”
If she were in her usual state, there would naturally be no problem. But right now, she was still sealed by the emperor, and she had been in the fake death state for so long. Her body had become much stiffer.
When he saw her troubled condition, Zu An couldn"t help but laugh. He wondered what he would have to do to get her to teach this technique to his other sweethearts. Yun Jianyue and Qiu Honglei surely wouldn’t be too difficult to convince since they all came from the Devil Sect, but with Yun Jianyue’s nature, she wouldn’t necessarily be willing to learn it. Meanwhile, Yan Xuehen’s side would be even harder…
When she recovered, Concubine Bai got up and sorted out her clothes. Then, she bowed and said, “Young master has saved my life. This humble one…” She trailed off as she suddenly remembered the joke he had told her before. At that moment, she didn’t even know what to say.
Zu An clearly realized that as well. He coughed awkwardly and said, “You’re treating me like a stranger with our relationship. I believe that if I were in your situation, you would help me too.”
Concubine Bai felt warm inside when she saw him try to console her. At the same time, she became a bit mischievous, saying, “That’s hard to say though. Even though we were friends, I wouldn’t necessarily have taken such a huge risk to save you.”
When she saw Zu An’s expression stiffen, she giggled and said, “But after this, forget about saving the young master, as long as you need anything, you only need to give the word. I’ll be willing.”
Zu An had a strange expression as he thought, Is she hinting at something, or did she say that unintentionally? The Devil Sect’s women all seem to be really good at saying things that toy with others’ feelings.
He quickly gathered his thoughts and asked, “What kind of plans do you have next? Return to the Devil Sect?”
Concubine Bai shook her head. She said dejectedly, “That place merely treats me as a tool too. What’s the point in returning…” She realized that the statement was inappropriate midway through her sentence and stopped. Instead, she said, “I plan to make a trip to the capital. I want to see my child.”
Zu An said with a frown, “It’s too dangerous to go back with your current ident.i.ty. Furthermore, you still have a seal on your body…”
Concubine Bai said with a smile, “Young master, don’t worry. I know what I’m doing. I won’t expose myself and put the young master in danger. As for the restriction, it’ll gradually undo itself after some time. I am from the Devil Sect, after all, and with the pill I took before, I have the ability to protect myself.”
Seeing as she had already made up her mind, Zu An couldn"t say much else. As a mother, Concubine Bai’s love for her child seemed to surpa.s.s all worries of danger.
After giving her some things to protect herself with, Zu An returned to the emperor’s procession. After all, if he didn’t come back, that would be suspicious. He planned to show himself before returning to Violet Mountain. Being around big sis Yan and Yun was much more fun than being near the moody emperor.
However, when he arrived at the giant army again, he discovered that everyone with some importance in the court was present. When they saw him arrive, all of them had extremely inscrutable expressions.
Zu An wondered what they were doing. They all had weird looks on their faces. He planned to just blend in with the crowd after greeting the emperor respectfully, but to his surprise, Zhao Han suddenly said with a sneer, “You’ve really pulled the wool over my eyes, Fiend Races’ Regent!”