However, she had already opened her eyes and seen the situation before her, and her smile immediately froze on her face.

There's no big brown bear, it's clearly Brother Zu!

Last night I was worried that the other person would sleep in an irregular way, but now they are sleeping properly on the edge of the bed, and their posture is exactly the same as when they first started sleeping yesterday.

On the contrary, she was clinging to him like an octopus, with her arms around his neck and her legs wrapped around his waist in a very ungraceful way.

Ahhh!

How embarrassing!

She carefully lifted her leg, afraid of disturbing the other person.

While slowly moving around, he secretly raised his head to look at Zu'an, thinking, "Please don't wake up, please don't wake up, please..."

She froze, because when she looked up, she met a pair of bright eyes.

Zuan smiled and said, "You're awake?"

"I'm not awake!"

Xie Daoyun recoiled as if electrocuted, shrinking back into the blankets beside her, wishing she had a big stick to hit her hard and knock her unconscious.

Zu An got up and straightened his clothes, saying softly, "Sister Ling'er, don't worry about it. You caught a cold last night and unconsciously moved closer to the heat source while you were sleeping. It's normal. I suppose you usually sleep very gracefully."

Xie Daoyun was deeply moved. Her brother Zu had even thoughtfully come up with a reason for her. How could she stay hidden under the covers any longer? She poked her head out and said softly, "Thank you for your understanding, Brother Zu."

Then his gaze froze.

Zuan also felt a little awkward, and got up to walk outside: "I'll go pack my luggage first, sister, you can wash up by yourself."

After saying that, he hurriedly bent over and ran away.

Xie Daoyun's face was flushed; the other person didn't have any luggage to pack.

She finally understood what the big brown bear had been poking at her all night.

I don't know how Miss Chu's delicate body could withstand it...

...

Before long, the two arrived at the foot of the capital. The city gates were now open, and the city was bustling with people, with all sorts of people carrying vegetables, traveling merchants, and transporting goods.

Looking at the majestic city walls, Zu An thought to himself that he had returned to this place.

He first sent Xie Daoyun back to the academy, because only there would she be safe from harm by various forces.

He then went directly into the palace.

He was initially worried that Bi Linglong was attending court, since the emperor had left the capital to assist the crown prince in overseeing the country, and he was supposed to handle the court affairs on a daily basis.

Upon entering the palace, he saw guards Pu Duandiao and Jiao Sigun, who seemed to have been waiting there.

"Lord Zu!" The two men were overjoyed and bowed to him.

Seeing this pair of clowns, Zuan couldn't help but smile.

After exchanging pleasantries for a while, Jiao Sigun said, "The Crown Princess knew that Lord Zu would arrive in the next few days, so she sent us brothers to wait here every day. She even canceled court sessions at the East Palace to wait for you these past few days."

Park Dan-diao also remarked with emotion, "In all my years of serving in the palace, I have never seen the Crown Princess value someone so much."

Zu An was taken aback, then felt a warmth in his heart. He was surprised that a career-driven woman like the Crown Princess could go to such lengths, and he could feel how much she cared about him.

The group chatted as they arrived at the East Palace. From afar, they could hear the Crown Prince shouting and yelling, clearly playing games with the eunuchs and palace maids.

Zu'an first went to pay his respects to the crown prince. Although everyone knew he was foolish, with so many eyes watching, he still had to show proper courtesy.

Zhao Ruizhi's eyes lit up when he saw him, and he stretched out his chubby hand in front of him: "You've been gone for so long, did you bring back any fun gifts for this Crown Prince?"

Zuan: "..."

"I apologize, Your Highness. I was in a hurry and had important matters to attend to, so I forgot to prepare a gift for you. I will make it up to you next time I visit the palace."

Having risked his life so many times, he had no time to think about such things.

"What do you mean, 'if it's comparable to my gift'? If you didn't even have a gift, why did you come back? Guards, hold him down and give him thirty lashes to teach him a lesson, then expel him from the Eastern Palace!" The Crown Prince cried and pointed at Zu An, raging.