Upon arriving at the East Palace, the Crown Princess was inside discussing matters with the ministers, while Zu An was outside chatting and joking with Pu Duandiao and Jiao Sigun.
"Hey, why do you two look so preoccupied?" Zu'an noticed their low spirits and asked curiously.
Park Dan-diao cautiously looked around, and seeing that no one was paying attention, he lowered his voice and said, "The Crown Princess just informed us recently that the Crown Prince will be taking us to the imperial examination. Although it is only right for us, as guards of the Eastern Palace, to share the Crown Prince's burdens, but... but..."
Jiao Sigun, standing to the side, snorted: "Pretentious. We're all family here, why are you saying these platitudes? The main thing is that everyone knows this big test won't be so simple. Prince Qi will definitely not let this opportunity pass. Although we won't be in dire danger this time, it will definitely be fraught with peril, and we're worried that we might not come back."
Zu An patted the two on the shoulders and said, "You both have families, so it's only natural to have these worries. Don't blame yourselves. By the way, has the format of the Crown Prince's examination been finalized?"
The emperor had previously asked him to come up with a solution, but he had ignored him for some time now. Since that night in Kunning Palace, he no longer felt the same fear of the emperor.
Moreover, the emperor did not urge him during this time, seemingly having forgotten about the matter, so he was naturally happy to play dumb.
"It's settled, but we don't know the specifics," the two said, shaking their heads.
Just then, the ministers who were discussing things inside began to emerge one after another. A eunuch came to summon Zu An in, and Zu An patted the two men on the shoulder: "Don't worry, I'll protect you when the time comes."
Watching him leave, Park Duandiao looked at him strangely and nudged his companion with his shoulder: "Where do you think Brother Zu gets such confidence?"
Jiao Sigun also said, "Yes, although his cultivation is not bad, this time King Qi will definitely send out all his experts, and I don't know how many of them are more powerful than him."
"Forget it, I won't damage his confidence."
"Yes, I think so too."
...
At this moment, Zu'an had already arrived at the study. The Crown Prince was not in the study; the fat man was playing games with the eunuchs outside. However, there was a beautiful Crown Princess in the study.
"Your Highness has become even more beautiful in just a few days," Zu An said with a smile.
Bi Linglong blushed slightly: "Lord Zu still speaks so casually. If others heard this, it would probably cause a lot of gossip."
Zuan said nonchalantly, "We are upright and honest, so why should we be afraid of what others say?"
"A scene of perfect harmony?" Bi Linglong couldn't help but imagine the two of them embracing naked in her mind, and she secretly spat inwardly, thinking, "This guy really has the nerve to say that."
"I heard the Crown Prince's examination has been decided?" Zu An asked.
Bi Linglong nodded: "That's right. In three days, the National Royal Academy will open the secret realm in the back mountain. The Crown Prince will go in and kill the Azure Moon Dragon to prove his ability."
"The Azure Moon Dragon of the Heavens?" Zu An was taken aback; this name sounded ominous.
“It’s a seventh-grade ferocious beast, much weaker than a dragon, but far more powerful than ordinary ferocious beasts.” Bi Linglong said with a worried expression.
Zuan looked completely bewildered: "Isn't this sending him to his death?"
He had been to several secret realms, and almost every time he had a near-death experience. Of course, those secret realms he visited involved unknown places, which were different from the common secret realms in this world. But even the most common secret realms have a lot of dangers.
The Crown Prince, to put it nicely, is simple and honest; to put it bluntly, he's an idiot who can't take care of himself. If you send him into the secret realm and he does nothing, he probably won't come out, let alone kill a seventh-grade ferocious beast.
Although a seventh-rank official isn't high, could the Crown Prince possibly handle him? He'd be more suited to being someone's snack.
Bi Linglong said, "This was the initial idea of the ministers on King Qi's side. Naturally, we didn't agree. Some people pointed out that the Crown Prince is the future ruler, not a general charging into battle. He shouldn't be fighting alone. What's more important is his ability to manage his subordinates. So we proposed forming a team led by the Crown Prince to complete the mission."
“You guys are quite clever,” Zuan couldn’t help but laugh. “But Prince Qi certainly wouldn’t agree to this, otherwise you could send some top experts to protect him throughout the process, and the Crown Prince would be able to complete the mission easily.”
Bi Linglong nodded and said, "That's right. That's what he said too. He felt that this would defeat the purpose of testing the Crown Prince's abilities. So there was a lot of heated debate between the two sides, and finally a compromise was reached. Prince Qi agreed to let the Crown Prince bring others in, but the cultivation level of these people must be restricted to below the seventh rank, and they cannot be embroidered envoys or soldiers who have undergone strict training and know how to cooperate with formations."
Zuan nodded secretly: "That makes sense."
It's important to understand that the cultivation levels of ferocious beasts and humans are not equivalent; a seventh-grade ferocious beast is far more powerful than a seventh-grade human.
The Crown Prince's cultivation level cannot exceed the seventh rank, but he has the advantage of having a large number of people. When selecting people, they will definitely ensure that everyone has a special skill. Although it is dangerous for them to hunt down the Azure Moon Dragon together, it is still within a controllable range.
No wonder the Crown Prince's side agreed to this.
"Would Prince Qi be so kind?" Zu An couldn't help but ask. This assessment was of great importance. If the Crown Prince could pass the assessment, then Prince Qi's faction would no longer have any grounds to question his abilities.
From any perspective, the Qi King's faction would not easily agree to this assessment, which appears to be fair on the surface.
“We also felt that they would definitely tamper with the secret realm, but we couldn’t figure out how they would do it,” Bi Linglong said with a furrowed brow. “This time, the opening of the secret realm was presided over by the Grand Master, and he would only let our people in as agreed. Moreover, the Emperor was also watching, and even Prince Qi’s people couldn’t get in. How exactly did they tamper with it?”
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