Chapter 641: Awakening from a Dream

After Cheng Xiong left with his men, the Crown Princess turned around. Her originally stern expression, with eyes like a phoenix glinting with anger, immediately softened, and her majestic gaze gained a touch of tenderness. "Are you alright, Master Eleven?" she asked.

Zu An's mind still replayed the imposing aura and prestige she had displayed while scolding Cheng Xiong. He thought, 'That was truly impressive.'

Seeing her smiling at him so gently, he was momentarily stunned.

"Master Eleven?" The Crown Princess's face flushed slightly as she noticed his fixed gaze, and she quickly cleared her throat to prompt him.

It was strange, she thought. Zu An had looked at her with a similar gaze before, but back then she found it annoying and even chastised him. Yet, with Master Eleven looking at her like this now, her heart immediately began to pound.

*Sigh*, what was wrong with her?

Zu An finally snapped out of it. "Thank you for your help, Crown Princess. I'm fine."

The Crown Princess was still somewhat worried. "Last time at the Imperial Hospital, you mentioned injuring your spiritual core. Now that you've just fought Cheng Xiong, will it aggravate your injury?"

Zu An smiled. "A mere Cheng Xiong can't hurt me."

"Master Eleven, your cultivation is truly profound and admirable." Seeing his confident demeanor, the Crown Princess thought, 'Now *this* is a man.'

Zu An cupped his hands in a respectful gesture. "This is also largely thanks to the medicine you gave me the other day, Crown Princess. Otherwise, I wouldn't have recovered so quickly."

The Crown Princess's face flushed slightly. "I'm glad I could help you."

After speaking, she avoided his gaze and quickly added, "You saved the Crown Prince and me before, and we haven't had a chance to thank you properly. The Crown Prince was startled and finds it inconvenient to come himself, so he specifically asked me to bring Master Eleven some gifts. Please don't decline them, Master."

She then waved her hand, and a group of palace maids and eunuchs brought forth trays of gold, silver, and jewels, including some rare medicinal ingredients.

Zu An thought it must be difficult for her. Even though she was angry with the Crown Prince inwardly, she still had to maintain her husband's dignity outwardly.

Seeing the gold, silver, and jewels, Zu An didn't act coy. "Thank you, Crown Prince and Crown Princess, for your generous gifts!"

He wasn't as high-minded as many protagonists in TV dramas. Money was a good thing; the more, the better.

Seeing him accept the gifts, the Crown Princess's heart, which she had been holding, instantly relaxed. She had been worried he might refuse her goodwill. Now that he had accepted, they had formed a good relationship. Although she was a noble Crown Princess, the Golden Emblem Embroidered Uniform Guard's status was also very special. Gaining his friendship would greatly benefit the Crown Prince in the future.

*Hmm*, this was the purpose of her visit, nothing else, she kept telling herself. She then smiled and nodded at Zu An. Her status made it inappropriate to speak too much with other men, so after presenting the gifts, she slowly departed.

Zu An then collected all the gold, silver, and jewels into the Glazed Orb, and quickly vanished from the spot.

Inside the room, Yun Jianyue, who had been waiting for him to enter, couldn't help but stamp her foot. "That scoundrel!"

Meanwhile, Zu An found a secluded spot, quickly shed his Embroidered Uniform Guard attire, and then caught up with the Crown Princess's entourage.

Seeing him approach, the Crown Princess's delicate brows furrowed slightly. "Where did you just go?"

Zu An gave a casual laugh. "I had an upset stomach just now, so I went to relieve myself."

The Crown Princess was speechless.

Every time she saw this fellow, he was going to the toilet. Was there something wrong with his health? And why did he have to tell her such details? How disgusting.

Compared to the cold and arrogant Master Eleven, he was truly a world apart.

She subconsciously took a step back, as if worried she would be contaminated by being too close to him. "The Crown Prince is resting today, and the Crown Prince's Junior Tutor is recovering from his injuries. There's nothing else happening in the palace, so you may return first."

Zu An was just fretting about not being able to be in two places at once. Seeing this, he was overjoyed. "Thank you, Crown Princess."

The Crown Princess waved her hand dismissively and departed with her attendants, a look of disdain on her face.

Zu An quickly returned to his courtyard. Yun Jianyue was lying on a silk ribbon suspended in mid-air, swaying back and forth. It seemed as though she had grown fond of sleeping there.

Although it was easy to fall off if one truly fell asleep, there was no problem dozing off while awake during the day. *Hmm*, lying here felt very elevated and cool. She decided she'd set one up like this when she returned to the main headquarters.

"Sister Sect Master, you're truly in high spirits. I was almost scared to death just now," Zu An said with a grin as he sat down beside her. He poured himself a cup of tea to moisten his throat. Running around like that was really too much trouble. *Sigh*, if only he knew the Monkey King's hair transformation technique.

However, drinking tea while quietly observing the graceful figure before him was quite pleasant and refreshing.

Yun Jianyue snorted softly. "The Crown Princess has such a good relationship with you. With her protection, how could anything happen to you?"

She recalled how she had just offered to help him, only to be unhesitatingly rejected. Yet, he immediately turned to rely on another woman. *Hmph*, did she, the Sect Master, have no dignity?

Zu An explained, "It's mainly because I saved her before, so she's simply reciprocating. There's no private relationship between us."

In front of one woman, it was best not to admit any special relationship with another. This was a "sea king's" self-cultivation.

Who knew this would still irritate her? Yun Jianyue abruptly sat upright. The silk ribbon tightened, making her hips appear even fuller. "Speaking of which, it makes me furious! If you hadn't interfered, we would have already killed the Crown Prince and Crown Princess, successfully framed Prince Qi, and wouldn't have had to confront the Emperor directly, and I wouldn't have been injured..."

At first, she was just speaking casually, but the more she spoke, the angrier she became.

Anger value from Yun Jianyue: 555555555...

Zu An felt he had poked a hornet's nest. He quickly said, "Actually, I still don't quite understand your approach. The struggle between Prince Qi and the Crown Prince is fierce right now. If you eliminate the Crown Prince, wouldn't that just benefit Prince Qi? No matter how furious the Emperor gets, he wouldn't immediately take Prince Qi's life. Once he calms down afterward, he'll definitely notice something suspicious."

If Prince Qi takes the throne in the future, he would be far more powerful than the foolish Crown Prince. The Demonic Sect's survival would only become more difficult then.

Yun Jianyue snorted. "You don't need to concern yourself with that; we have our own reasons."

Zu An frowned. "But now the Emperor and the others already know your identity. Your plan to frame Prince Qi has completely failed."

"Isn't my identity exposed all because of you?" Yun Jianyue gritted her teeth slightly. "And so what if the Emperor knows my identity? Who says the Sacred Sect can't side with Prince Qi?"

Zu An's expression was odd. Are all pretty women so scheming? Prince Qi was truly taking a huge blame this time.

Sensing her resentment towards him, Zu An quickly said, "I already met Hong Lei when I left the palace earlier and conveyed your message to her. Also, this is the hammock I bought for you."

Seeing him bustling about for her, and recalling his life-saving grace, Yun Jianyue's anger subsided considerably. "Is Hong Lei alright?"

"She's fine, just a little sad thinking about some comrades being implicated and captured," Zu An replied.

Yun Jianyue hesitated for a moment, then finally spoke. "It seems you're doing quite well in the palace. If possible, please help rescue the captured members of the Sacred Sect. If you can't save them, it would be good to give them a quick end to spare them suffering."

Zu An rolled his eyes. "I can barely protect myself right now, where would I find the time to save others?"

Yun Jianyue snapped, "I told you long ago to strike first, but you didn't take it seriously."

"How was I supposed to strike first? That's easier said than done." Zu An was a bit displeased.

Yun Jianyue sneered. "Idiot, didn't the Emperor ask you to investigate who leaked the information about his absence from the palace to me? With that imperial sword, you can't handle a mere Cheng Xiong?"

Zu An's face lit up. "Cheng Xiong was the one who informed you? Uh, no, that's not right."

However, he immediately dismissed that guess. If Yun Jianyue's insider was Cheng Xiong, she would never have said that.

Yun Jianyue gave a half-smile and retorted, "Do you think the Emperor sent you to investigate without having a suspect in mind? And who do you think he suspects the most?"