Hearing this, Xiao He and Xiao Xu looked on with suspicion. This guy must be bragging. The Junior Tutor used to teach the Crown Prince a lot, but not only did the Crown Prince never learn, they were also completely confused when they listened.
The Crown Princess was also known for her intelligence. She secretly tutored the Crown Prince, but still couldn't teach him anything. She was so angry that she refused to teach him anything anymore.
Where did this guy get the audacity to say it's simple?
At this moment, Zu'an sat down opposite the prince and began to explain the rules using the chessboard and black and white pieces on the table.
"Huh, so you only need 5 pieces connected in a line to win? It's that simple! Those guys always pretend to be so mysterious, making me think it was so difficult." The prince was excited, as if he were a genius.
However, he was quickly routed by Zu'an and lost face: "Alright, alright, you go ahead and do your own thing. Xiao He and the others come keep me company for a bit."
Xiao Hezi and Xiao Xuzi also stared wide-eyed, thinking that Go was so simple. They had learned it just by watching. However, they dared not be as ruthless as Zu An and secretly let him win on the board, making the prince grin from ear to ear.
While the fighting raged outside, Zu An took the opportunity to go to the inner room to see the Crown Princess.
The Crown Princess was sitting in front of the dressing mirror, pressing the back of her hand against her cheek, as if to feel how hot her face was.
Upon seeing Zu An enter, she immediately dropped her girlish infatuation and cleared her throat, resuming her usual dignified and noble demeanor: "What is the Crown Prince doing outside? It's so lively."
"Oh, they're playing Go," Zuan added in his mind, "but it's a simplified version of Go—Gomoku."
"Go?" The Crown Princess snorted softly, clearly recalling some unpleasant things from the past.
She didn't want to waste her energy on the Crown Prince and asked directly, "What do you want with me?"
Zu An replied, "I just went to the Heavenly Prison to ask, but I didn't find out anything new."
He dared not tell her that the King of Qi had sent people to "rescue" the assassins, otherwise she would take this opportunity to incite the Crown Prince's faction to deal with the King of Qi at the court meeting, and things would escalate in a way he did not want.
The Crown Princess hummed in agreement, clearly indicating that she hadn't held out much hope for the matter.
"By the way, why did the Emperor suddenly summon you?" the Crown Princess couldn't help but ask. From her perspective, she really couldn't think of any reason why the Emperor would want to see her.
Zu An replied, "When His Majesty heard about the Prince of Qi's visit to me, he summoned me and gave me a few words of encouragement, instructing me to do my best to serve the Crown Prince and Crown Princess."
The Crown Princess was startled: "Your Majesty really said that?"
“How could I dare to deceive you?” Zuan replied. “Even if the Emperor hadn’t said that, I would still have devoted myself to the Crown Prince and Crown Princess until my dying breath.”
"To devote oneself to the cause until death..." The Crown Princess murmured these words, her eyes suddenly lighting up. She hadn't expected this guy to have some talent; she had underestimated him in the past. However, she didn't believe him easily and instead asked with burning eyes, "Why do you do this?"
Zu'an met her gaze without flinching: "Of course it's because of you, Crown Princess..."
Upon hearing this, the Crown Princess's expression changed drastically, but before she could react, she heard him continue, "Because you, Crown Princess, withstood the pressure from Prince Qi to protect me, although I haven't read many books, I understand the principle of repaying kindness, and I will do my best for you in the future."
The Crown Princess was relieved: "It's rare to find someone so loyal. As long as you serve the Eastern Palace well, the Crown Prince and I will not treat you unfairly."
For some reason, she felt that the man in front of her spoke in a similar way to the Eleventh Lord, but she quickly dismissed the thought. How could that be? The two were worlds apart.
Thinking of Lord Eleven, her heart suddenly pounded, wondering why he would say such a thing.
Was he flirting with me?
But how dare he? I am the Crown Princess, and he is the Embroidered-Robed Envoy protecting the royal family… How could he do this…
Or am I overthinking it? Or did he not actually mean that?
Thinking of this, she hurriedly called out to Zu An, "Wait a minute!"
Zuan turned around and looked at her with a puzzled expression.
The Crown Princess's cheeks flushed slightly: "I have a friend who has been troubled by a question, but unfortunately she has no answer, so I would like to ask Lord Zu for advice."
Zu An was taken aback. What would this woman ask me? "Princess Consort, please speak freely."
Little did he know that the Crown Princess found it inconvenient to ask those close to her about this issue, as she always felt it would be a death sentence. Moreover, those around her were either eunuchs or palace maids, and the only one who seemed normal was an idiot, so no one would even ask her. On the contrary, Zu An was not very familiar with her, and since he came from the common people, he might be able to offer a different perspective.
The Crown Princess paused, seemingly considering how to phrase it: "My friend, really is my friend..." As if afraid the other party wouldn't believe her, she deliberately looked into his eyes to emphasize this point.
Zu An suppressed a laugh: "Alright, alright, I know it's definitely not you, Crown Princess."
The Crown Princess blushed, and then continued, "She met a man and always had a good impression of him, but one day that man suddenly said some strange things to me... cough cough, my friend said some strange things, and I don't know what he meant."
Zuan's heart skipped a beat: "What strange thing did that person say to you... your friend?"
"It's just...it's just..." The Crown Princess hesitated for a moment, but still relayed what Eleventh Gold Medal had said to him, and then added, "My friend is of noble status, and it's destined that he and that man can never be together. He knows this very well, so why did he say such a thing? How dare he say such a thing?"
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