Chapter 2528: Conditions

After discussing the details of the operation with a few Silver Embroidered Uniform Guards, Zu An left in a hurry.

Instead of returning directly to Purple Mountain, he first made a trip to the Prefect's mansion.

It must be said that this Prefect's mansion seemed much more heavily guarded than others, though he wasn't sure if it was due to Prince Yan's influence.

Of course, these guards were still no match for those at Prince Yan's palace. Since Zu An was already very familiar with such infiltration, he quickly made his way outside Prefect Zhang's bedroom.

"Who's there!" Zhang Jie, being a prefect of a commandery, immediately sat bolt upright in bed, his gaze fixed warily on the window. Zu An hadn't deliberately hidden his presence, which contributed to Zhang Jie's alertness.

Zu An glanced at the alluring young woman beside him and thought, 'This guy certainly enjoys himself, quite the "pear blossoms pressing on crabapples" situation.'

However, in this world, which high official didn't have several concubines?

Therefore, he didn't pay much attention to it and said in a low voice, "Golden Badge Eleven!"

Zhang Jie was startled and quickly got up: "Please wait a moment, Sir Eleven."

The concubine, who had initially been annoyed at being woken in the middle of the night, immediately fell silent after a glare from him.

Zu An did not enter, choosing instead to stand in the courtyard and gaze at the moon.

Fortunately, Zhang Jie didn't make him wait long and soon emerged, having thrown on a robe.

"Sir Eleven, your late-night visit... does it signify an imperial decree?" Zhang Jie asked cautiously.

Zu An didn't answer directly, but instead counter-questioned, "Prefect Zhang, what is your opinion of Prince Yan?"

Zhang Jie hesitated for a moment before replying, "Prince Yan is loyal and dedicated to the country, guarding a region for the imperial court..."

Seeing him resort to platitudes to appease him, Zu An sneered, "But according to my investigation, you and Prince Yan have been at odds for a long time. Doesn't that prove your disloyalty to the imperial court, even hindering Prince Yan, who guards a region for the throne?"

Zhang Jie panicked slightly: "This humble official is terrified! The truth is, Prince Yan is arrogant and tyrannical, frequently overstepping his bounds in this region. This humble official is loyal to His Majesty, and finding such behavior unacceptable, I have had many conflicts with him."

"What sort of transgressions are these? Tell me," Zu An said noncommittally.

Zhang Jie hesitated, then asked, "Sir Eleven, is His Majesty also planning to reprimand Prince Yan?"

"Don't ask what you shouldn't ask," Zu An retorted directly.

As expected, Zhang Jie didn't seem too surprised. He then respectfully recounted several instances of Prince Yan's overstepping of authority over the years.

"Do you have any evidence?" Zu An asked.

Zhang Jie shook his head slightly: "There are some witnesses, but relying solely on these incidents, it would be difficult to convict Prince Yan of a major crime. Instead, it would only damage relations between the local authorities and Prince Yan's palace, making future work even more difficult."

Zu An smiled faintly: "It seems Prefect Zhang is quite eager to see Prince Yan convicted of a major crime."

"This humble official is terrified!" Zhang Jie exclaimed, frantically wiping cold sweat from his forehead.

"Tomorrow, find an excuse to lure Prince Yan out, the further from his palace the better," Zu An stated, revealing his true purpose after probing Zhang Jie for a while.

Zhang Jie's heart leaped. As an old fox, he naturally guessed what was happening: Was Sir Eleven planning to infiltrate Prince Yan's palace?

But having learned his lesson, he dared not ask further. Instead, he said with a troubled expression, "Sir Eleven, this humble official has been on very bad terms with Prince Yan for years; I might not be able to get him to come out."

Zu An said indifferently, "As the prefect of a commandery, you've contended with Prince Yan for so many years without falling. Don't tell me you have no way."

Zhang Jie once again pulled out a handkerchief to wipe the cold sweat from his temples: "This humble official will try his best to find a way, try his best..."

Zu An knew that such an "old fox" saying this meant he had already agreed. He nodded and vanished into the night sky.

Watching the direction he had left, Zhang Jie muttered to himself, "The Golden Badge Embroidered Uniform Guards are indeed unfathomable, and Sir Eleven is even more so..."

After leaving the Prefect's mansion, Zu An immediately headed towards Purple Mountain.

He had dealt with too many matters that day. Even with his Wind-Fire Wheels to speed him along, it was already well past midnight when he returned to Purple Mountain.

Instead of returning to his own quarters, he hesitated for a moment before going directly to the residence of Yan Xuehen and Chu Chuyan.

It wouldn't be good to announce his presence directly in the middle of the night; rumors would surely spread afterwards.

So, he quietly slipped inside.

The moment he opened the window, a gleaming, cold sword appeared at his throat, and a voice as cold as ice rang out: "How audacious!"

Zu An instinctively recoiled. His opponent was clearly surprised by his quick reaction and thrust the sword forward accordingly.

"Sister Yan, it's me!" Zu An whispered, identifying himself as he dodged backward.

Hearing his voice, the longsword paused, and a voice asked, "It's you?"

The voice immediately grew even colder: "Shameless!"

Fury value from Yan Xuehen: 777777777...

After the arena competition earlier that day, Yan Xuehen felt quite unsettled, so she spent the entire night cultivating and meditating.

Just then, she had sensed someone peeking and assumed it was some audacious pervert from one of the Nine Daoist Sects engaging in scandalous behavior. She never in a million years expected it to be Zu An.

This fellow, sneaking over in the dead of night to find Chu Chuyan, and specifically choosing the time just before dawn when people are in their deepest sleep — his intentions were obvious.

"You've misunderstood, I didn't come for Chu Chuyan, I came specifically for you," Zu An said, gazing at Yan Xuehen in the moonlight. The moonlight bathed her white robes, as if covering her in a hazy, light veil. He had to admit, Sister Yan looked beautiful even when angry.

Hearing that he had come specifically for her, Yan Xuehen paused in surprise, then her face flushed with a mixture of shame and anger: "What do you want with me in the middle of the night? Get out!"

With that, she turned and walked back into the room.

Fury value from Yan Xuehen: 777777...

Seeing her completely shut him out, Zu An grew anxious and quickly reached out to grab her: "I have something important to tell you."

"There's nothing for us to talk about," Yan Xuehen said coldly, pulling her hand away from his grasp. "I believe I've made myself quite clear to you before."

"This time, it's truly urgent," Zu An said, momentarily unsure how to explain himself.

For some reason, both of them spoke in remarkably hushed tones, as if afraid of being overheard.

Yan Xuehen glanced into the room, then hesitated before saying, "Let's talk outside."

With that, she walked straight out.

Zu An was delighted and quickly followed her.

They soon arrived at a bamboo grove outside the courtyard. Only then did Yan Xuehen stop and say, "Alright, speak. What's so urgent that you had to come looking for me in the middle of the night?"

Zu An's expression was strange: "You don't seriously think I came here in the middle of the night to launch a sneak attack on you, do you?"

A faint blush flashed across Yan Xuehen's pale cheeks. "Get to the point if you have one; otherwise, I'm leaving."

Zu An hastily said, "It's like this, I need your help with something."

He then briefly explained that the magic array in Prince Yan's study needed someone skilled in that field to deactivate it.

Compared to Xie Daoyun, Yan Xuehen was a more suitable candidate. After all, they had cooperated several times before and were intimately familiar with each other. Moreover, both she and Yun Jianyue knew of his identity as an Embroidered Uniform Guard.

"You're going against Prince Yan?" Yan Xuehen's delicate brows furrowed.

"It's not specifically to target him," Zu An said gravely. "Mainly, it's about the death of Golden Badge Seven. I need to investigate something. Golden Badge Seven once helped me. Although we weren't friends, I can't just stand by knowing he died mysteriously."

Yan Xuehen fell silent. "Prince Yan's status is unique, and I am the Mistress of White Jade Capital. A slight misstep could trigger a major crisis."

Her tone remained cold and indifferent, seemingly treating him no differently than how she would dismiss others. Zu An couldn't help but feel a little disheartened: "If that's the case, then I won't force it. I'll find another way."

With that, he turned and began to leave.

Yan Xuehen said coolly, "The magic array in Prince Yan's study is no ordinary one. Where will you find a solution in such haste?"

"That won't trouble Mistress Yan," Zu An said, waving his hand, his steps not faltering.

Sensing the calmness in his tone, Yan Xuehen's heart trembled. She bit her lip, a conflicted expression on her face. Finally, seeing him walk further and further away, she couldn't help but call out, "I didn't say I wouldn't help!"

That brat didn't even try to coax me with a few more nice words; he just walked away like that.

Fury value from Yan Xuehen: 222222222...

Zu An paused, then turned around, somewhat disbelievingly: "You're really willing to help?"

If she was willing to help, why did she seem even angrier than before?

Yan Xuehen scoffed, "I can help you, but I have one condition."

"Don't just say one condition; I'll agree to ten. You can even ask me to commit myself to you," Zu An exclaimed, overjoyed, and rushed back to her side.

"Dream on," Yan Xuehen retorted, spitting lightly. She felt her heart beating three times faster than usual. "How did you manage to get Pei Mianman to repeatedly draw byes today at the Golden Summit?"

Zu An was taken aback: "That's your condition?"

"Isn't that enough?" Remembering the earlier scene, Yan Xuehen's delicate brows furrowed slightly. Her heart had felt like it was being scratched by a cat since the afternoon, and she hadn't been able to bring herself to ask before.

Meanwhile, in the distance, Wang Wuxie shrank further back into the shadows of the trees, his expression utterly shocked: "How did those two end up together?"