Zu An's heart skipped a beat, but he didn't show it on his face at all: "Today, Jin Pai Eleven had a conflict with Murong Luo at Chongwen Gate. Chu Chuyan was also there at the time. I learned about it from him. Why would the Crown Princess have such a strange idea?"
The Crown Princess's cheeks flushed slightly. She didn't understand why she blurted it out. When she met Eleventh Gold Medal before, she always felt a strange sense of familiarity with him. Occasionally, for a moment, she would think of the scene where Zu An hugged her.
In her heart, there was even a faint thought that she hoped that Zuan, who had been intimate with her, and the Eleventh Lord were the same person, so that he wouldn't have to worry about certain things.
However, she herself might not be able to figure out what she was thinking, and she only asked that question on impulse.
She was incredibly embarrassed by Zu An's gaze. What was wrong with her? How could she associate this lecherous guy with the Eleventh Lord? The Eleventh Lord was aloof and domineering, and inexplicably handsome, while this guy was always grinning and joking, showing absolutely no resemblance to him.
Thinking about this, she gradually calmed down, coughed lightly, and said, "It's nothing, I was just asking casually. That Gold Medal Eleven seems to have appeared out of nowhere, and I'm just curious about his identity."
Zuan gave an "oh," but secretly wiped a cold sweat from his brow. These women's sixth sense was just too accurate.
The Crown Princess was in a state of confusion and didn't want to look at his face. She hurriedly summoned a maid: "Someone, please summon Prince Liang, Lord Meng, Lord Bi, General Liu... to come here."
Zu'an asked curiously, "Does the Crown Princess have any plans?"
These people are all staunch supporters of the emperor's faction, each holding high positions and wielding great power. Gathering them together must mean something big is about to happen.
"This is not something you should ask!" The Crown Princess frowned, but thinking of her special relationship with him, her tone softened unconsciously. "Ou Wu is Qi Wang's man, and the Murong family behind Murong Luo is also from Qi Wang's lineage. If I don't take this opportunity to purge a group of Qi Wang's forces, what kind of Crown Princess am I?"
Zu An thought that now that Ou Wu had disappeared, only Murong Luo was left. Although the Crown Princess hadn't said anything specific, it was easy to imagine that Murong Luo would most likely be imprisoned and severely tortured by the Crown Prince's faction. Even if he was truly innocent, he would be forced to confess and implicate the Prince of Qi's faction.
Oh, Brother Murong, you're really in a terrible situation.
Zuan felt deeply sympathetic, but why did the corners of his mouth unconsciously turn up?
Seeing that she was about to meet with a powerful figure, Zu An got up to take his leave. The Crown Princess nodded, but when he reached the door, she suddenly called out to him, "By the way, do you have a plan for getting rid of Consort Bai, as I asked you before?"
Zuan clicked his tongue in amazement. These women were truly frightening to men when they got ruthless. He could only reply, "Not yet. After all, the other party is of noble status and has lived in the palace for a long time, so it's difficult to make a move against them."
The Crown Princess knew he was telling the truth, but she still said, "Although there's no need to rush, we mustn't forget to think about it slowly over this period of time."
Zu An gave a perfunctory reply, then left the study. He was about to say a few words to the Pu brothers to thank them for their reminder when a eunuch came to summon him to the imperial study to meet the emperor.
The other members of the Eastern Palace all looked on with envy:
"Lord Zu is truly favored by the Emperor; he is frequently summoned by the Emperor."
"Not only that, even the Crown Princess values him highly."
"We also need to maintain a good relationship with him."
...
A group of people hurriedly went to ask Pu Duandiao and Jiao Sigun for advice, as everyone could tell that they were the closest to Zuan.
The two men looked at the eunuchs with sympathy: "I'm afraid you gentlemen won't be able to learn our method."
The three most unbreakable bonds in life: studying together, fighting together, and...
Do you think these eunuchs can learn from this?
How much sorrow can one have? It's like a group of eunuchs going to a brothel.
Compared to their envy, Zu'an knew his own bitterness. What was wrong with the emperor? He was more eager to see him than to see his concubines.
Thinking of how he had spent the whole night with the Empress's noble body just yesterday, he felt a little guilty about going to see the Emperor now.
Upon arriving at the Imperial Study, the amiable Eunuch Wen at the door indicated that the Emperor seemed to be in a good mood, which made him breathe a sigh of relief.
"Greetings, Your Majesty!" Every time Zu An came to the Imperial Study, he felt a strange sense of worry and fear. Looking at the person on the dragon throne, he always felt that he was high above, like a god scrutinizing him.
But now, looking at him again, although the other party still exudes the same aura, he can now see the other party's face clearly.
The wrinkles at the corners of his eyes and the faint white hairs at his temples showed that although he was the strongest person in the world, he was ultimately no match for the power of time.
"What are you staring at the top of my head for?" The emperor frowned, keenly sensing the strangeness of the other's gaze. He subconsciously touched the top of his head, but there was clearly nothing there.
Zu An thought to himself, "I'm looking at the green hat on your head," but of course he dared not say it aloud. He hurriedly said, "Your Majesty, I am impressed by your imposing presence. Even though you are just sitting there in plain clothes, it seems as if you are wearing an invisible crown."
The emperor's expression softened slightly with a smile. No matter how powerful he was, he was still a human being, and what human wouldn't enjoy flattery?
"It's no use flattering me now. How's the investigation into the Crown Princess's case going? If it's not solved by the deadline, I won't make an exception." Although the Emperor was pleased, he didn't show it at all, and just snorted with a stern face.
Zu'an had already figured out his tactics and was no longer as worried as before: "Your Majesty, we have made some progress in our investigations these past few days..."
He then told him what Ou Wu, Murong Luo, and others had discovered, but he didn't mention Xinrui's brother for the time being.
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