An Honghan, who was also aware of the problem, frowned and said, "When I ask, you only need to nod or shake your head."
After thinking for a while, it seemed that this was the only way, so Xi Xizhi nodded to him.
"Is there something hidden in this bracelet?" An Honghan's unique, magnetic voice enveloped Xi Xizhi's ears.
The bracelet carries evil energy; in other words, evil energy is hidden inside it.
Xi Xizhi nodded solemnly.
"Harmful to the human body?"
Xi Xizhi continued to nod.
"Only you and I can feel it?" Judging from Lynn's reaction just now, this bracelet is nothing special in their eyes. However, once An Honghan holds this bracelet, he can feel the extremely yin energy of the bracelet.
If it were someone with some cultivation or someone who was born with the ability to see ghosts, they would also be able to see the abnormality of the bracelet.
Xi Xizhi thought for a moment, shook her head, and then chirped and shouted a lot of things.
An Honghan couldn't understand its words at all, but judging from its busy explanation, he guessed a bit: "Besides you and me, there are other people who can sense it, but there are very few of them?"
This time, Xi Xizhi nodded.
An Honghan had been on the throne for many years. In the past, when vying for the throne, some of his brothers would always invite sorcerers back to help them secretly punish each other. An Honghan didn't believe in ghosts and gods before, because such things were too ethereal, and it was more effective to use his own methods to fight for the throne. It wasn't until he encountered certain events later that An Honghan began to believe in them to some extent.
An Honghan had already grasped the general truth of the matter. The Left Prime Minister was always willing to use any means necessary, but he hadn't expected him to resort to such a tactic. Presumably, the evil energy in this bracelet was deliberately added by someone, solely to harm the Right Prime Minister's grandson.
An Honghan wasn't interested in the power struggles between the two prime ministers. However... the arrival of a sorcerer in the capital was enough to make An Honghan take it seriously.
Humans possessing magical abilities are extremely rare. They are generally divided into two factions: one faction possesses noble qualities and their own beliefs, usually consisting of monks and Taoist priests; the other faction consists of low-quality sorcerers who specialize in harming others.
The two schools of thought practice vastly different magical arts. The former takes helping others as their mission, but this school has many members, and those who truly possess the arts are often highly accomplished monks; while the latter, for the sake of money, engage in activities that harm others for their own benefit.
Seeing An Honghan's expression turn serious, Xi Xizhi wisely shut her mouth and stopped making noise.
After a long pause, An Honghan suddenly raised his head and called out, "Shadow Guard."
The voice wasn't loud, but the instant the words left his lips, two dark figures darted into the room through the window.
Two men in black brocade robes knelt down and bowed, saying, "Greetings, Your Majesty."
Xi Xizhi turned her chubby body around and stared directly at the two shadow guards.
This was their second meeting, and Xi Xizhi was still very curious about the 'Shadow Guard'.
If the Shadow Guard is available at a moment's notice, then wouldn't they have overheard its conversation with An Honghan?
"Take ten shadow guards and secretly observe the situation at the Right Prime Minister's residence. Remember not to let anyone discover you. Also, find out who the Left Prime Minister took with him to Fengzhou when he left."
While the sorcerer's magic is insufficient to threaten An Honghan's safety, there are many ministers in the court. If the sorcerer were to target them, things would spiral out of control. It would be best if Situ Feiyu didn't have such intentions; otherwise, no matter how talented he is, An Honghan will surely dismember him.
"Yes, Your Majesty." After receiving the order, the shadow guard jumped out of the window again.
Xi Xizhi's eyes remained fixed on him, unblinking...
"Everyone's gone, what are you still looking at?" An Honghan frowned, displeased that Xiao Diao was staring at other people, and forcefully turned Xiao Diao's head back.
"Chirp chirp..." Xi Xizhi voiced her doubts, pointing to her own mouth one moment and then to An Honghan's mouth the next.
Xi Xizhi increasingly felt that there was a problem with the communication between the two. Fearing that An Honghan would not understand her meaning, she tried her best to use gestures.
"Are you worried that our conversation might get out and be leaked?" An Honghan stroked the little mink's fur with his fingers; the soft, fluffy touch seemed to melt away the coldness in his heart.
Seeing that An Honghan finally understood, Xi Xizhi nodded emphatically.
"There's no need to worry about that. The Ninety-Nine Shadow Guards are loyal to the reigning emperor for life. From the moment they are born, they receive secret training and never come into contact with anyone other than the emperor. Moreover, they take the Yin Xin Pill from a young age and need to use it to prolong their lives every three months."
The Yin Xin Dan is a royal secret medicine. Apart from pharmacists who only know how to refine it, no one else has ever seen the recipe for Yin Xin Dan. This pill, more or less, provides a guarantee for the loyalty of the Shadow Guards.
Upon hearing these words, Xi Xizhi felt genuine sympathy. Wasn't the life of the shadow guards too tragic? To live their entire lives in the shadows, at the beck and call of the emperor.
An Honghan instructed the eunuchs to serve him his meal. After finishing his meal, he took the little sable to bathe, washing away the dust from his body, and then lay down on the dragon bed to sleep.
Moonlight streamed through the open window, casting silvery shadows on the floor. Lanterns hanging in the long corridor outside emitted a faint, yellowish glow, their flames flickering and dancing.
The night was pitch black and completely silent.
The little ferret, who should have been fast asleep, suddenly opened its bright blue eyes, nudged next to An Honghan, quietly lifted the quilt, climbed out, glanced back at the soundly sleeping An Honghan, and Xi Xizhi jumped and landed steadily.
She sprinted towards the outer hall, and with great effort, managed to push the door open just enough for it to pass through. Dozens of guards were on night watch outside. Xi Xizhi tiptoed out.
Taking advantage of her small size, Xi Xizhi ran all the way out of Panlong Palace.
Little did they know that the moment it left, the other person on the bed had already opened their eyes.
An Honghan saw all of Xiao Diao's strange behavior. He sat up and looked at the outer hall gate, a barely perceptible smile appearing on his face.
This is getting more and more interesting...
How could a mere ferret, possessing only basic human instincts, know so much? It knew there was evil energy in the bracelet. It also knew who could see that evil energy. And when answering the questions, the ferret didn't hesitate or consider anything, as if the answers were already etched into its very bones.
Even the smartest ferret cub, only a few months old, couldn't possibly learn these things on its own. An Honghan took an outer robe and put it on, then disappeared silently through the window into the dark night without alerting anyone.
The more secrets Xi Xizhi learned about the palace, the more uneasy she became. To put it bluntly, she now depended on An Honghan for survival; if An Honghan ever lost interest in her, Xi Xizhi would have no way to live.
With no spiritual energy protecting its body, An Honghan could easily take its life.
Within the palace, only Qingyuan Pool possessed the most abundant spiritual energy. Therefore, taking advantage of the night, Xi Xizhi jogged all the way to Qingyuan Pool, as cultivating as quickly as possible and restoring her spiritual energy was the most urgent matter.
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