Chapter 734: Knocking

He had been tricked once before at Hundred Flowers Palace, and now he was truly once bitten, twice shy.

So, he quickly used his jade cong to control the small animals around him. As cats were most numerous at night, he used their eyes to monitor any disturbances.

After confirming there were no apparent ambushes in the palace, he quietly snuck inside.

Suddenly, his heart skipped a beat, and he hastily stopped, hiding completely behind a large tree.

Through the cats' eyes, he saw a group of people approaching. The bright yellow figure in the center was none other than Emperor Zhao Hao!

Zu An's hair stood on end. What did the Empress mean by this? She invited him here, and now the Emperor had arrived too. Was she trying to kill him?

He dared not breathe a sound, simultaneously activating Mingjing Feitai to make his presence increasingly faint.

The Emperor and his entourage passed by. The others showed no signs of anything unusual, but the Emperor suddenly stopped.

"Your Majesty, what's wrong?" Eunuch Wen stepped forward from the side to ask.

The Emperor turned his head and looked towards Zu An's hiding spot, his gaze incredibly sharp. "Who goes there, a mere ruffian, daring to trespass into the deep palace at night!"

No sooner had he spoken than the large tree in front of Zu An shattered. He instinctively tried to dodge but found the air around him had become incredibly viscous, as if an invisible force was restraining him.

A thought crossed his mind: last time he was immobilized like this, he couldn't move at all, but now it didn't seem so exaggerated.

However, he did not dodge. Instead, he stood his ground and spoke, "Greetings, Your Majesty!"

Only then did the imperial guards beside the Emperor react. They all drew their long sabers and quickly surrounded Zu An, though they hesitated slightly upon seeing his Embroidered Uniform Guard attire.

The Emperor frowned. "It's you?"

Although Zu An was wearing a mask, for someone with the Emperor's level of cultivation, recognizing people no longer required seeing with his eyes.

"Why are you here?" His gaze remained incredibly sharp.

Zu An hastily replied, "Your Majesty previously dispatched me to investigate a case, so I came to look for some clues."

The Emperor snorted. "You've investigated up to the Empress? Do you suspect her?"

"This humble servant dares not," Zu An replied. "Precisely because I dare not suspect Her Majesty the Empress, I came secretly to avoid others misunderstanding that Her Majesty is involved in this case."

"No decorum," the Emperor said, glancing at Eunuch Wen beside him. "An imperial attendant trespassing into a consort's bed-chamber at night—how should he be punished?"

"According to the law, he should be beheaded!" Eunuch Wen glanced at Zu An, thinking, 'Is this Embroidered Uniform Guard out of his mind, risking his life for an investigation?'

Zu An's heart skipped a beat. "Please forgive me, Your Majesty. I am new here and unfamiliar with palace rules. Furthermore, with the deadline for solving the case approaching, I acted rashly..."

He knew that the Emperor still needed him for many important tasks and would certainly not kill him for this. However, in front of others, he still had to maintain appearances, at least to give the Emperor a way to save face.

Sure enough, the Emperor nodded. "Very well. Considering your extenuating circumstances, I shall spare your life this time. However, though the death penalty is waived, punishment for the living cannot be escaped. Guards, take him away and give him fifty strokes of the rod, as a warning to others."

Zu An was both shocked and enraged. This guy was actually serious!

Damn it, ever since he arrived in the capital, the Emperor had been forcing him to do all sorts of things. Even a donkey in a production team wouldn't be worked this hard.

The key was that he had only been given a hollow title of "golden token envoy," and there were no other "carrots"—only "sticks."

He wanted to say something else, but the Emperor had already turned and entered Kuning Palace, giving him no chance to explain himself further.

Zu An was speechless.

Immediately after, Eunuch Wen approached him with a group of fierce-looking guards. "My apologies, sir."

Eunuch Wen had always been benevolent in appearance, and even in this situation, he didn't want to casually offend anyone. After all, the Emperor had spared his life even after he trespassed into the deep palace at night, proving this person was certainly extraordinary.

But extraordinary or not, the Emperor's orders must be carried out.

Several guards forced Zu An to the ground and then began beating him with sword scabbards as rods.

Zu An's face remained calm, but a surge of anger flared within him.

In truth, this beating did him no harm at all; it could even increase his cultivation.

However, this sense of humiliation was utterly infuriating. Since arriving in the capital, he had been living a life where his fate was in others' hands.

Although he was broad-minded and optimistic, usually carefree and didn't take things to heart, negative emotions had accumulated within him.

Today's incident became the last straw that broke the camel's back.

The Emperor clearly still needed his help with several major tasks and clearly wouldn't kill him, yet he still feigned mercy by pretending to spare his life, then casually ordered him to be beaten.

In the end, he was simply too weak. In the Emperor's eyes, he was probably just a servant to be ordered around at will, or even just a dog—and not a very obedient one at that.

That's why the Emperor constantly used various methods to put him in his place during this time. This was actually a normal imperial machination. If it were anyone else in this world, they would have long been filled with trepidation, feeling the Emperor's power was unpredictable, and would then diligently serve the Emperor with fear and trembling.

But as a transmigator, Zu An had been taught the concept of equality since childhood, the idea that no one is inherently superior, as encapsulated by the saying, "Are kings, nobles, generals, and chancellors born to be so?" Furthermore, he himself had been an emperor in the secret realm. How could he tolerate such treatment?

I must become stronger!

This thought was clearer and stronger than ever before.

Meanwhile, inside Kuning Palace, the Empress, accompanied by Eunuch Lü, came to greet him. "Your humble consort greets Your Majesty!"

The Emperor looked her over with some surprise. "It's been a while, Ning'er. You're becoming more beautiful."

The Empress seemed to have deliberately dressed up today, with exquisitely shaped eyebrows, plump, luscious red lips, and a very form-fitting dress that perfectly accentuated her voluptuous curves.

Although the Emperor had seen countless beauties, he still felt a trace of admiration at this moment.

The Empress's cheeks flushed. "Thank you, Your Majesty!"

Eunuch Lü secretly glanced at the Emperor, thinking, 'Was he planning to stay overnight in Kuning Palace today? Tsk tsk tsk, he hadn't been here for so many years, and yet he chose today. Was it truly fate?'

Seeing her eyes, limpid as autumn water, the Emperor did not respond. Instead, he looked around. "Hmm, why are there so few people in Kuning Palace today, and why is it so dimly lit?"

Eunuch Lü's heart skipped a beat, and he looked at the Empress with some concern.

The Empress, however, was very calm. Her expression unchanged, she replied, "After the Crown Princess's incident a while ago, everyone in Kuning Palace was busy investigating various matters and became exhausted. Now that things have settled, I gave them leave to rest."

The Emperor smiled slightly. "The Empress cares so much for her subordinates; you are truly a model for the imperial harem. Guards, reward everyone in Kuning Palace with half a year's salary."

The Empress hastily bowed. "Your humble consort thanks Your Majesty on their behalf. By the way, what made Your Majesty think of coming to Kuning Palace today?"

The Emperor replied, "I had a whim today. I happened to be passing by and decided to drop in. Oh, and your injuries still haven't improved?"

The Empress lowered her head, looking dejected. "This humble consort has resigned herself to fate."

The Emperor said, "I will search the world for miraculous medicines and will certainly cure your old internal injuries."

"Thank you, Your Majesty!" The Empress bowed with a look of pleasant surprise and gratitude, but in her heart, she secretly sneered. A few years ago, she might have believed this. But after all these years, he always fobbed her off with mediocre remedies. She had already understood that the Emperor most likely didn't want her to recover, for the sake of balancing the power of her maternal relatives.

In that case, she would have to find a way herself.

"By the way, I just heard a commotion outside. I wonder what happened?"