After discussing some details, Fu Yue hurriedly left to make arrangements.

He also suggested that Pei Mianman inspect the three thousand warriors he had brought from the vassal state, as this would be beneficial for the subsequent expedition.

Zu'an originally wanted to go as well, but Fu Yue reminded him to stay in the palace to guard against any disloyal intentions from various factions.

Pei Mianman gave him a reassuring look: "Azu, you don't need to worry, I will act according to the situation."

Zu An realized that even before she met him, she was a prodigy, a genius admired by all, and that his worries were indeed unnecessary.

After giving her a few words of advice, he agreed to let her leave.

Seeing Fu Yue's somewhat excited expression of being trusted, Zu An chuckled. To be honest, if he hadn't known Fu Yue's background—that he was a loyal minister of Wu Ding and even one of the ancient sages in history books—he might not have felt comfortable letting Pei Mianman leave alone.

It's easy to imagine that the couples who entered this unfamiliar trial were extremely cautious. When they suddenly heard Fu Shuo suggest separating them, they would definitely suspect him of having ulterior motives. They might then interrogate him, refuse to separate, or the man might insist on staying with him, which would inevitably lead to a bad end in the story.

Of course, this trial doesn't necessarily require knowing this history. Even someone who knows nothing can learn about the relationship between Fu Yue and Wu Ding through conversations and other channels. However, most people find it difficult to obtain enough information in a short period of time, which makes the difficulty increase exponentially.

No wonder the previous couples couldn't pass the trial; I seriously doubt they'll be able to pass this one.

Zuan's mind raced. He was already treating this trial as an open-ended game, pondering all sorts of possible ways to play.

If Fu, who appears on the scene, is meant to help the trial participants, then there must be an opposing force...

When he opened the door, Zuan noticed the maid standing outside. He had an idea and decided to call her over to ask her a question.

"Greetings, Your Majesty and Queen." The maid knelt on the ground, her body trembling slightly. She was clearly frightened by Zu An earlier and had not yet recovered. She did not know why he had suddenly called her again.

Zuan scrutinized the girl closely. He had to admit that although she wasn't a stunning beauty, she was still quite pretty and delicate. In particular, her slender waist and long legs exposed to the air, along with her fair skin that had a hint of honey-like radiance, gave her an aura of primal, wild beauty.

What's your name?

The maid was taken aback, thinking that the king had even forgotten her name, but she dared not question him at this moment, and hurriedly replied, "This servant's name is Xiao Tuo."

"Xiao Tuo?" Zu An thought the name was strange, but then he remembered that in ancient times, everyone's names were odd, and even the names of the Shang kings were very casual, so he understood. "Xiao Tuo, where are you from?"

Pei Mianman, who was about to leave, had a strange expression on her face. She transmitted her voice through her spiritual energy and said, "Grandpa, what time is it? You still have the mind to flirt with a young girl?"

Zu An laughed and said, "What, are you jealous?"

Pei Mianman snorted: "Anyway, you are the king now, so you can flirt with whoever you want. Just remember that this is a trial, so don't mess it up."

Clearly, coming from a prominent family, she didn't mind men flirting, her only concern being that it might affect the trial.

"Don't worry, I know what I'm doing. There's something wrong with this maid," Zu'an replied telepathically.

A strange light flashed in Pei Mianman's eyes. She subconsciously glanced at the maid, who looked so pitiful that it was hard to imagine that she had any problems.

However, she knew that Zu'an wouldn't make things up without reason. Seeing that he wasn't actively flirting with the other woman because of her looks, she was completely relieved. After reminding him to be careful, she left with Fu Shuo.

The maid replied softly, "I am from the country of Tuo."

"Tuo Kingdom?" Zu An was taken aback. He had never heard of this country before, but he thought that there were indeed many small countries with strange names in ancient times, which had long been lost to the river of history.

He reached out and helped her up, then took her hand and led her to a table nearby: "Where is Tuoguo? Can you roughly draw it on a map?"

The maid blushed slightly, clearly embarrassed that the man was holding her hand.

She hurriedly replied, "The State of Tuo is located southeast of the State of Shang, roughly in this location."

She circled a spot on the sheepskin map the other person had just drawn, and then easily shook off his hand.

Zu An's smile deepened: "Xiao Tuo, tell me about some of the customs in your hometown." As he spoke, he put his arm around her shoulder in a lecherous manner.

What a joke! How could an ordinary maid have the skill of drawing maps? She just glanced at it casually and was able to accurately mark the former location of the Tuo Kingdom. Obviously, she has undergone rigorous training to acquire this knowledge.

He had deliberately taken her hand, pretending to be lecherous, which indeed made her flustered and unaware that she had inadvertently revealed her true colors.

Moreover, this wasn't the only flaw. You see, for a maid, gaining the emperor's favor was an absolute chance to rise to the top. Yet, she had just stiffened, clearly subconsciously resisting my touch.

She then made up an excuse to shake off his hand. Although the excuse was reasonable, she still made many mistakes because she was suspicious.

This woman resisted the king's physical contact, either because she harbored deep hatred for the Shang king, or because she still had a lover in her heart, so she subconsciously resisted. Which one is it?

So he wanted to talk to the other person more to see if he could find any clues.

The maid was surprised that he no longer cared about national affairs, but was curious about his hometown, and even used this as an excuse to hug her. She thought to herself that he was indeed a lustful and foolish ruler.

My dear reader, there's more to this chapter! Please click the next page to continue reading—even more exciting content awaits!