"Him?" Zu An was taken aback. Someone had even spoken on his behalf? He couldn't even tell if the person was talking about a man or a woman. Could it be Chu Chuyan? But she shouldn't have enough influence to get close to the emperor.
The emperor's expression suddenly turned melancholy. He walked to the window, gazing at the distant sky, his previously sharp eyes now softening with a hint of tenderness: "I owed her a favor back then..."
His voice trailed off towards the end, his face filled with reminiscence, it was hard to tell whether he was reminiscing about the past or about the person he was talking about.
Seeing his expression, Zu An immediately understood. Judging from the situation, it was obviously a former lover or something, and why did the emperor's expression look so much like that of a sycophant?
Is there really a woman in the world he can't have?
The gossip spirit of Zuan is burning fiercely. I am very curious about the identity of this woman. What is even stranger is that such a woman would speak up for me.
When did I come to know such a person?
He listed all the women he knew, but no matter how hard he thought, he couldn't remember who they were.
At this moment, the emperor turned around: "By the way, how has Wanru been lately?"
"Wanru?" Zu'an looked bewildered, and it took him a while to realize who he was talking about. "My mother-in-law hasn't been doing well lately. She's been working incredibly hard dealing with all sorts of crises in the Chu family these past few days."
At the same time, he was incredibly gossipy. Did Qin Wanru have a relationship with the emperor? Why did he suddenly feel like his father-in-law was being cuckolded?
Could it be that she was the one who pleaded for me?
But that doesn't make sense. She can't even protect the Chu family, so how could she possibly protect me?
"Are you standing up for her?" the emperor snorted. "It's all because she chose to marry that Chu Zhongtian guy back then. Otherwise, she would be a royal concubine now, and she wouldn't have all those messy troubles."
Zuan: "..."
He was truly shocked. Although he had guessed that the two might have some connection, he never expected that Qin Wanru had almost become an imperial concubine back then.
My father-in-law was really something back then, managing to snatch a woman from the emperor. No wonder the Chu family has suffered so much in recent years.
"It's not what you think," the emperor snorted as if he had seen through his thoughts. "How could I be the kind of person who would fight over a woman? The reason I'm dealing with the Chu family is mainly because they are nobles from the previous dynasty and leaders of a large group of old nobles. Their fiefdoms and wealth are not under the control of the court, just like a country within a country. How could I tolerate that?"
"Understood, understood." Zu An's expression was somewhat strange. He thought to himself that even so, you definitely had the intention of retaliating against your rival in love. Otherwise, why would you specifically target the Chu family when there were so many nobles of the same level to choose from?
The emperor frowned, clearly unwilling to continue the discussion: "Although I promised that person I would spare your life, the condition is that you hand over the Phoenix Nirvana Sutra, otherwise don't blame me for not showing any mercy."
Zuan: "..."
"Didn't you say you looked down on that illusory pursuit of immortality?"
"What may be a vague concept to other emperors is now right before my eyes. How can it be considered vague?" the emperor sneered.
Zuan was speechless for a moment. It turned out he was just pretending to be magnanimous. I had admired him for nothing.
He feigned hesitation: "But that's my only trump card. Who knows if handing it over will lead to my death?"
The emperor said calmly, "A ruler's word is law. I promised an old friend I would spare your life, and I will. Do not test my patience."
Zuan gritted his teeth, took out the "Forgiveness Hat" from his pocket, and handed it over: "The Phoenix Nirvana Scripture exists in the form of divine thought within this hat. After wearing it, you can perceive the specific text of the scripture."
He was betting that the emperor had never seen the true form of the "Phoenix Nirvana Sutra," since Old Man Mi had silenced everyone in his party back then, and it was even less likely that he himself would report the news of the "Phoenix Nirvana Sutra" to the palace.
The later-sent Grand Eunuch Wei Dan also failed to see the "Phoenix Nirvana Sutra," so the emperor could not possibly know what the real sutra was written on.
Of course, he didn't have the ability to leave a divine mark on the hat of forgiveness. Those were all Mi Li's doing. Only her cultivation and knowledge could create such a realistic effect.
Upon receiving the hat, the emperor frowned instinctively, not putting it on immediately, as it was entirely green.
"I heard that at the Sang family's wedding in Mingyue City, you also gave the Sang family's young master a green hat?" The emperor's expression was somewhat dangerous.
Zu An's heart skipped a beat. He hadn't expected the emperor to know such details. He had no choice but to answer honestly, "It is true, but the hat is different from this one. The other one was just an ordinary green hat, but this one is inscribed with the Phoenix Nirvana Sutra."
The emperor frowned: "I still can't understand why you would give Sang Qian a green hat, and it even has the same design as your most precious 'Phoenix Nirvana Sutra'. According to intelligence, it seems that you and Sang Qian do not have a harmonious relationship."
Zuan broke out in a cold sweat, never expecting that a joke from the past would now become a flaw: "I didn't think of anything else at the time, I just didn't want to give him any expensive gifts, so I just picked a cheap hat at random. It was a coincidence, purely a coincidence."
"Is that so?" The emperor sneered. "I thought giving someone a green hat meant that you had seduced their wife or daughters."
Given his powerful intelligence network, it's not hard to guess the relationship between Zu'an and Zheng Dan.
Zuan: "..."
He dared not admit it, otherwise the emperor would think that was his intention, and he would lose several lives.
It is well known that what emperors fear most, besides threats to their throne, is women in their harem having affairs with other men.
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