The crown princess had assumed it was just some thugs when she saw that he was fine, but when she heard that there had been deathsworn soldiers, a siege crossbow, and even three military experts at the peak of the seventh rank, her expression greatly changed. “Yet you’re still saying it wasn’t a big deal? How could you only be a bit injured from such a huge scheme?”
Zu An chuckled and said, “I was hit by the siege crossbow, but none of my vitals were hit. It felt pretty terrible back then, but I’m fine now.”
“Huh?” The crown princess subconsciously wanted to check the wound where Zu An had been hit by the siege crossbow. But when she thought about how so many people were watching, it really wasn’t appropriate. She could only say, “Have someone call over a physician to treat Sir Zu.”
Zu An waved his hand. “It’s fine, I’ll just pay the hospital a visit later myself.”
Piao Duandiao and Jiao Sigun were incredibly stunned. Everyone knew just how powerful a siege crossbow was! He had been hit by a siege crossbow, yet he still looked fine apart from being a bit pale. Sigh, he really is a brave and tough man!
The crown princess hurriedly asked, “What are you still doing here if you were injured so badly?”
Zu An replied, “I was worried that the crown princess would misunderstand. Besides, I wanted to tell you about the most recent developments in the case.”
The crown princess was startled when she saw Zu An’s scorching gaze. This person was normally pretty smart, so why was he sometimes so clueless? Can’t you just send someone to tell me the details?
However, when she sensed his sincerity, her heart still couldn’t help but soften. Even her voice became more gentle. “I’ll let you have a day off today… Ahem, no, you don’t need to come in for the next few days either. Just focus on your recovery.”
“Thank you, crown princess!” Zu An really was spread a bit too thinly. Having this vacation would help a lot.
The crown princess thought to herself for a bit, and then she said to the maid beside her, “Little Mo, bring Sir Zu that spiritual root.”
Rong Mo exclaimed nervously, “That thousand year spiritual root is incredibly precious! It’s something needed for the crown princess’ future breakthrough!”
The crown princess shook her head. “No matter how precious it is, it isn’t as precious as a person. Sir Zu is the Eastern Palace’s chamberlain, and he was injured while investigating my case. This medicine is perfect for helping him with his recovery. What, could it be that you want me to fetch it myself?”
“This humble one doesn’t dare!” Rong Mo bit her lip. She could only unwillingly enter the inner room.
“Tsk tsk, this little girl is pretty interesting in terms of how she treats you.” Mi Li said in Zu An’s head. She seemed to have emerged because of her amusement.
Zu An ignored her and instead bowed to Bi Linglong. “Thank you, crown princess!”
Mi Li marveled, “Look at how shameless you are! You aren’t even refusing something this precious and are just going to accept it?”
Zu An replied, “That’s where you’re wrong. There’s a trick back in my hometown called ‘borrowing books’. Once you borrow something, you have to return it. That way, you don’t even need a reason to meet again, and both of you will start to get along. If I refuse her, I’m only gaining favor once; I won’t obtain any tangible benefits. On the contrary, by accepting her gift, our good impressions of each other will rise by another level. Furthermore, this thing seems extremely important for her, so I’ll just return it when she needs it. Won’t I gain her favor once again then?”
Mi Li was completely stupefied. Only after some time did she harrumph and say, “What kind of place is this hometown of yours? There’s actually so much thought behind something like this.”
Zu An replied with a wistful expression, “It’s a place full of people with outstanding skills, a magical place…”
By then, Rong Mo had already emerged. In her hands was an embroidered case resting on a red cloth. Even though the spiritual root was stored inside the case, Zu An could still feel the thick natural ki it emitted. He thanked the crown princess again.
A bit of gentleness appeared in the crown princess’ eyes. “You should take some time to rest. Leave the Shi clan’s matters for me to settle.”
Zu An knew that she was implying that she would use this chance to completely eliminate that future worry. He signaled with his eyes that he understood.
The crown princess’ face turned red. She quickly looked around, and then sighed with relief when she saw that no one else had noticed. This guy really is brazen! He dared to publicly tease her! Hmph, I’ll let you off today because you’re wounded.
…
Zu An exited the Eastern Palace. The crown princess sent Piao Duandiao and Jiao Sigun to escort him to the physician’s courtyard. Along the way, the two of them sighed in praise.
“I’ve never seen the crown princess treat anyone so well in these years…”
“Exactly! I’m even starting to wonder if big bro Zu and the crown princess have an affair.”
Zu An was stunned. He asked, “Are you courting death? You even dare to utter such things?”
“We brothers are just joking around in private, come on! Besides, the crown princess is still treating big bro Zu this way, even after that happened. That means she has a clear conscience.”
“I guess you’re right. However, if not for the crown princess’ special status, I really would rather believe that she was together with big bro Zu. The crown princess had really had it hard these years. The crown prince can’t do anything for her and instead needs her to protect him.”
“What the hell? Why are you blaming me then!? You’re courting death too!”
In the end, Zu An was beginning to develop a headache, so he made them leave. His injuries had already practically healed. Wouldn’t he be exposed if he went to the imperial palace now? He didn’t feel like leaving the palace, so he returned to his Embroidered Envoy residence and rested for two hours.
Soon afterward, he received news that Shi Jun had been arrested. Zu An changed into his Golden Token Eleven uniform and headed to the Embroidery House. He had many suspicions that needed to be confirmed with Shi Jun.
His status in the Embroidered Envoy was now quite high. Even though this case was no longer under him, no one would be so senseless as to stop him. Either way, Sir Zhuxie was currently interrogating Shi Tong regarding the siege crossbow and military experts.
Shi Jun sat in the prison with disheveled hair. His entire being looked listless, and he no longer carried his past arrogant appearance. When he heard that someone had come, he said weakly, “Please don’t ask me anything more… We have a Death Pardoning Token, I won’t say anything…”
Zu An chuckled. “But you don’t have that Death Pardoning Token on you right now.”
Shi Jun jumped in fright when he heard the voice. His eyes immediately narrowed when he turned around and saw the familiar figure it belonged to. He still had nightmares about his previous experience with Zu An.
Zu An’s smile faded as he said, “I don’t want to waste time either. I ask the questions, you answer. Otherwise, feel free to have a taste of what it feels like to wish you were dead.”
“Okay, okay, okay, sir, please ask,” Shi Jun immediately said with an apologetic smile. A wise man knew when to choose his battles. I’ll deal with this monster first, and then my father will definitely have a way of saving us!
“How did you meet Xin Rui?” Zu An asked.
Shi Jun was hesitant, but he still replied, “I’ve served as the Huang Gate’s Assistant Minister for years, so it was easy for me to move within the palace. One day, I ended up accidentally bumping into a frightened maid around a corner. She continued to apologize to me. When I saw her weak and alarmed expression, I couldn’t bring myself to punish her. Later on, she brought me some Hundred Flower Tea to thank me. That was when I learned that she was the Hundred Flower Palace’s maid, Xin Rui…”
There was a bit of tenderness in Shi Jun’s eyes when he recalled the events of the past. His time with that lovely maid was clearly a joyful period.
Zu An quickly asked, “Was she the one who bumped into you, or did you bump into her?”
Shi Jun frowned. “I’m in charge of inspecting the etiquette of officials to begin with, why would I be so impudent? However, why does it matter who bumped into whom?”
“Forget it.” Zu An smiled and continued, “So that’s when the two of you started to get along?”
Shi Jun nodded. “She was just a maid at first, but all of the women in the palace belong to his majesty, so I didn’t dare to touch her. However, she told me that she had worked in the palace ever since she was really young. But now, she’s almost of age, so she’ll be able to leave the palace. I had some good feelings toward her as well, so I thought that I could take her as my wife. That was why our relationship got better and better as time went on.
“Then, I learned that she had a mother and younger brother in the countryside, so I helped bring them to the capital and get them settled there. But for some reason, she fought with me over this matter,” Shi Jun explained, seemingly confused. “Even so, our relationship improved again, and we began to happily dream about the future.”
Zu An said mockingly, “You make it sound great, as if you’re describing a man deep in love. But unfortunately, you had other motives for approaching her. You probably favored her for her status as the maid of Concubine Bai, knowing that one day, you’d be able to make use of her. Sure enough, later on, you sent her to frame the crown princess and Zu An. As for bringing her mother and younger brother, I reckon you were just using them as hostages.”
Shi Jun’s expression changed. “I have no idea what you’re saying!”
Zu An chuckled. “There’s no need for you to deny it. It’s already meaningless now. Either way, the Shi clan is finished.”
Shi Jun knew that what the golden token envoy was saying was the truth. Not only had the assassination failed, everyone involved was instead captured. The situation was looking extremely grim. Now, his only hope was to see if the Death Pardoning Token could save his own skin.
He gritted his teeth. His expression was extremely vicious as he said, “It’s all that damn little brother’s fault. If it weren’t for the fact that he loved gambling and ended up being found by the Embroidered Envoy, why would we be pushed so far as to use force?”
“For the sake of Hua Bao, you had no choice but to sacrifice that casino boss. I already guessed a long time ago that the Shi clan was the one backing that casino. After all, you guys supported the Plum Blossom Sect in opening a casino in Brightmoon City.” Zu An sighed.
Shi Jun revealed a look of surprise. He thought to himself that the Embroidered Envoy’s information network truly was extensive, if they even knew about that.
Zu An said, “That’s why you all colluded with King Wu, and drew Zu An to Xin Rui’s home. You wanted to kill him there, then push all of the blame onto him. Then you would silence him, as the dead cannot testify.”
“King Wu? What King Wu?” Shi Jun asked, bewildered.
Zu An was surprised when he saw that the man’s expression wasn’t feigned.