Chapter 633: Crash

"What the...?" Zu An opened his eyes, bewildered. He'd thought danger was near, but his tense body relaxed slightly once he saw it was Yun Jianyue. "What are you doing?!"

"How dare you be so disrespectful to me!" A blush flashed across Yun Jianyue's face, but she quickly composed herself. She secretly congratulated herself for acting first; otherwise, if he had woken up and seen her holding him like that, it would have been utterly mortifying.

Noticing where her gaze was directed, Zu An angrily retorted, "That's a man's natural reaction upon waking! You're staying in my room, sleeping in my bed, and then you hit me? Isn't that a bit excessive?!"

Yun Jianyue, feeling a bit guilty, snorted, "That kick was merely a woman's instinctive reaction."

Zu An was speechless.

This woman was surprisingly shameless, as if she had learned directly from me.

Yun Jianyue also felt a little awkward, and her voice softened slightly: "Thank you for saving me. My injuries have recovered somewhat, so I won't trouble you any further."

After all, she was a woman, and it was ultimately inconvenient to be under the same roof as a man. The thought of sleeping in the same bed again tonight made her extremely uneasy; it would be mortifying if he discovered her sleeping posture.

Zu An said in a deep voice, "You're so heavily injured; how much could you recover in just one night? Moreover, the entire palace is now under strict lockdown, the protective array is active, and even a wisp of the Emperor's divine sense is within the palace. How do you expect to get out?"

Yun Jianyue fell silent. She knew all this perfectly well but couldn't possibly explain her personal reasons aloud. "My followers have either fled or died. They must be leaderless in the imperial city now, so I need to find a way to contact Hong Lei and have her proceed with the established plan."

Zu An thought for a moment and said, "It's inconvenient for you to leave the palace, so I'll help you notify her."

He also held the title of Crown Prince's Attendant and had to report for duty daily. He couldn't go directly from here to the Eastern Palace because all entries and exits at the palace gates were recorded. If someone with ill intent checked, they would discover that as a Crown Prince's Attendant, he had no entry record, which could easily expose his identity.

Yun Jianyue hesitated for a moment, then didn't insist further. "Then thank you," she said.

Zu An took out a large pile of pastries and food from the Glazed Pearl. "I'm going out of the palace for a bit. You should stay here and recuperate, don't go out. Have some dry rations for now; next time, I'll bring some better food."

"Thank you." In fact, with Yun Jianyue's current cultivation level, going without food for ten days to half a month wouldn't be a big problem, but feeling his kindness, she didn't refuse.

"Oh, right," she added after thinking for a moment, "if possible, please buy me a hammock." Since she chose to stay, she had to seriously consider the sleeping arrangements for the night. She certainly couldn't sleep in the same bed again, nor could she sleep on a rope, so she could only ask him to bring a new bed.

Ordinary storage rings have limited space, and it would probably be difficult to fit a bed, but a hammock, which can be crumpled into a ball, shouldn't be a problem.

"Okay," Zu An replied. He felt a pang of regret. He had clearly intended to fake sleep last night, but how had he accidentally fallen asleep? He had wasted such a good opportunity and behaved like a fool.

Seeing him walk to the door, Yun Jianyue, feeling a bit apologetic, asked, "Are you still in pain?"

Zu An was startled at first, then a smile appeared on his face. "So, big sister still cares about me after all," he said.

"Pah!" Yun Jianyue spat. "I'm just worried that if you're injured, no one will be able to run errands for me."

Zu An laughed heartily and left in high spirits.

After a night of strict inspection, the palace gates were now reopened; after all, officials still needed to attend court and conduct business, so it was impossible to keep it locked down indefinitely.

As a Gold-Medal Embroidered Uniform Envoy, Zu An could naturally leave the palace freely. He noticed that the palace guards had strange expressions when checking his waist token, which puzzled him. He secretly raised his guard and, sure enough, discovered someone secretly following him.

Could it be that rascal Cheng Xiong, still plotting against him?

Zu An sneered. With his current cultivation, how easy would it be to tail him?

He circled a few times within the inner city, and after completely shaking off his tail, he found a hidden corner to change his clothes before heading towards his mansion in the inner city.

As soon as he returned to his mansion, his body tensed up, and he suddenly attacked to the side.

Just then, a lantern was raised, and a graceful figure also attacked him.

The two instantly recognized each other and quickly stopped:

"Hong Lei!"

"Ah Zu!"

Zu An was both surprised and delighted. "It's great to see you're alright! Yesterday, the Emperor sent General Wei Liu Yao and General Youji Zhao Yuan to search the entire capital, and I was afraid something might happen to you."

Qiu Hong Lei smiled, pressing her lips together. "After all, I've been roaming the jianghu for so many years; how could I possibly be caught by those imperial hounds?"

As she spoke, she suddenly realized her mistake and quickly apologized, "Ah Zu, I wasn't talking about you."

"I know," Zu An said with a slight smile, leading her inside by the hand. "Let's talk inside, lest someone see us."

"Mm." Qiu Hong Lei subconsciously tried to pull her hand back, but he held on tightly. She bit her lip and let him.

Zu An thought that the girl was now quite accustomed to intimate contact like holding hands, and hugging seemed fine too. It was a pity about that darn cultivation method she practiced, which prevented further progress.

Huh, wait a minute. Although their cultivation method prevented them from losing their virginity before mastery, there were still ways to enjoy themselves without going that far. Had all those "textbooks" from Japanese "teachers" on his hard drive in his previous life been for nothing?

"Ah Zu, did you find my master later?" Qiu Hong Lei asked anxiously. She had been raised by her master since childhood and taught all her skills, so she truly respected her from the bottom of her heart. Now that her master's fate was unknown, she was worried to the extreme.

"Found her, and we slept together," Zu An answered subconsciously, his mind still elsewhere.

"Huh?" Qiu Hong Lei was utterly shocked.

"Ahem..." Zu An's face flushed, and he quickly explained, "I rescued her yesterday and then brought her to my residence in the palace."

"How is Master?" Qiu Hong Lei excitedly grabbed his hand.

"Uh, where is your master old with that appearance?" Zu An asked, surprised.

Qiu Hong Lei stuck out her tongue. "I just respect her a lot." She recalled being beaten by her master several times for calling her that before. It seems women are indeed very concerned about their age. However, with Master's appearance, outsiders would only mistake her for my elder sister.

Zu An replied, "She injured her soul in a battle with the Emperor... Don't worry, I've already found Five-Essence Spirit Ganoderma to heal her. She's fine; nothing serious. She's worried about you all now and asked me to tell you to proceed with the plan."

"That's good," Qiu Hong Lei sighed in relief. "After we escaped the palace, we went into hiding. Our capital branch has been operating for many years, so hiding a few people is not a problem. The most pitiable are those brothers who were captured last night."

She was especially saddened that one elder had been trapped inside while trying to save her.

She hesitated, wanting to speak but holding back. She had originally wanted to ask Zu An to help rescue those people, but then she thought about how difficult it would be to rescue imperial criminals. He had already taken a great risk to save her master; how could she put him in such a dangerous situation again?

"Ah Zu, you've helped us so much; I don't know how to thank you," Qiu Hong Lei said, gazing at him tenderly.

Zu An laughed heartily. "We're all family; saying such things makes us seem distant. Of course, if you really want to thank me, why not give yourself to me?"

As he spoke, he pulled her into his arms. He wanted to test whether Yun Jianyue had lied to him earlier.

Sitting in his arms, a blush flashed across Qiu Hong Lei's face. "Ah Zu, the cultivation method I practice is a bit special; I cannot lose my virginity for now."

Hearing her words, Zu An secretly sighed. So it was true.

Qiu Hong Lei thought he was a little disappointed. She bit her lip and then suddenly said softly, "Ah Zu, although I can't give myself to you, I've seen the methods of those girls at the Immortal Abode before. I can serve you in a different way."

Zu An's heart immediately pounded. Qiu Hong Lei's small face became even redder. As she sat in his embrace, his instantaneous physical reaction did not escape her notice.

At this moment, a few streets away, a beautiful woman in flowing white robes and a handsome young man were walking towards them. Their striking attractiveness caused street vendors to repeatedly turn their heads.

"Sister, these people's gazes are so annoying."

"You're in a man's appearance now anyway, so what are you afraid of?"

"Hmph, it's uncomfortable, anyway," the young man secretly added. "Speaking of which, brother-in-law's gaze is also similar..."

"...but it doesn't seem as annoying."

"Where is your brother-in-law's residence?" the fairy in flowing white robes asked, her voice losing its usual coldness and becoming a little eager.

"Just two streets ahead, not far," the young man replied. Seeing his sister's appearance, the scene he had witnessed that day couldn't help but resurface in his mind, and a flush spread across his pale cheeks.