Chapter 899, Part 2: Unexpected Judgment

Zu An received the sachet. There was a faint fragrance coming from it. Those girls all had their unique smells, matching well with their personalities.

“What are you in a daze all of a sudden for?” Jiang Luofu reached out and waved her hand in front of his face. “The gift Daoyun gave you is inside.”

Zu An was stunned. He saw that what was inside was a talisman as well, but it was different from the talisman Chu Youzhao had received from the temple. It was a talisman created by a real rune master. He felt a frigid aura just from holding it in his hand.

Jiang Luofu explained, “This is a Calming Talisman Xie Daoyun personally crafted. Whether it’s in your recovery or cultivation, carrying it on you will allow you to become more focused. This will help you to increase your cultivation and recover faster. She was worried that carrying the talisman on you all the time wouldn’t be too convenient, so that was why she used this sachet to store it properly.”

“I’ll have to trouble big sis principal to thank her for me then.” Zu An put the sachet away. Unfortunately, he wasn’t really injured, and his cultivation path was different from most people’s, so the talisman wasn’t all that useful to him. However, he could feel the sincerity, so he naturally had to take care of it well.

Bi Linglong looked away when she saw him put the sachet away. She didn’t know why she was getting so annoyed either. The two of them shouldn’t have anything to do with each other, and yet she just didn’t feel good at all. It was as if her toy had been ruined by someone else.

Jiang Luofu said with a smile, “You can just thank her later yourself. I don’t think she wants to hear it from me.”

Bi Linglong pricked up her ears. Didn’t this sound as if there really were something going on between them? Damn this womanizer! Why does he have so many girls around him?

Zu An quickly changed the topic when he saw another string of Rage points. “Haha, so many people gave me gifts. Big sis, are you not going to give me anything?”

“Is a visit from this big sis not enough as a gift?” Jiang Luofu replied with a smile. “Furthermore, they already took care of everything with their gifts; I really can’t think of anything to give you. Let’s just say that I’ll owe you one.”

Zu An was stunned. “You make so much sense, I can’t even argue against you.”

Jiang Luofu got up and said, “Alright, I’ve already paid you a visit, and I’ve already delivered the messages. I won’t disrupt your rest anymore.”

Zu An said, “Actually, I wouldn’t mind chatting for a bit longer, you know?” He wasn’t really recovering in the palace, so he was already bored out of his mind.

Jiang Luofu couldn't help but laugh. “Your status is special. Normally speaking, you can’t take visitors. I’m only here while sharing the crown princess’ spotlight. I can’t trouble her with that. We’ll meet again once you finish recovering.” She waved her hand after speaking, then walked out with long strides.

“Ms. Jiang, I’ll see you out.” Bi Linglong followed behind her without even giving Zu An another look.

Zu An was quite sullen. Even though they couldn't act too close in front of others, he still felt that the crown princess was going a bit overboard…

…

While Zu An was bored stiff in his room, the emperor was sitting in the imperial study playing Go with himself.

Zhuxie Chixin stood to the side without uttering a word, scared that he would disturb the emperor. He felt deep admiration. His majesty had clearly been a bit preoccupied these past few days, but he now seemed to have already calmed down fully, recovering his former steadiness.

A while later, the emperor finally said, “Who has Zu An met with during the past two days?”

Zhuxie Chixin replied, “He visited the Eastern Palace, then when he returned to the guard room, Piao Duandiao and Jiao Sigun visited him. Then, the empress visited him.”

“The empress?” The emperor frowned. The chess piece he had been about to play remained in midair.

Zhuxie Chixin explained, “The empress didn’t only visit him, but also several of the guards, giving them some medicines as a gift and giving them some encouragement.”

The emperor thus nodded. These people had saved the crown prince. As part of the royal family, it made sense for her to give them her gratitude. But of course, the reason he didn’t suspect anything was because on the surface, Zu An and the empress had nothing to do with each other.

Zhuxie Chixin continued, “The Royal Academy’s Jiang Luofu paid the crown princess a visit, then the crown princess brought her to meet with Zu An.”

“Jiang Luofu? The Jiang clan can be considered neutral. Furthermore, with the libationer’s background, it’s not too big of a deal for her to enter the palace.” The emperor thought of something interesting, then grinned. “I seem to recall that Linglong didn’t get along with her, as the first candidate for the crown princess was actually Jiang Luofu. It was only because Jiang Luofu ran away that she was chosen instead. This matter has always bothered Linglong, and yet the two of them actually did something together this time.”

Zhuxie Chixin said, “Those are already things of the past, after all. The crown princess looks at the bigger picture, so why would she let something like this bother her?” As the emperor’s trusted aide, he knew that the emperor was very satisfied with this daughter-in-law. He obviously had to take the chance to praise her.

The emperor nodded with a smile. “Indeed, Linglong is slowly developing the traits of the mother of a country. Her performance in the dungeon this time has been excellent.”

Zhuxie Chixin shivered. His majesty’s evaluation was extremely high! He quickly took the chance to add some more praise.

A bit later, the emperor suddenly said, “Right, did Jiang Luofu ask anything about the dungeon when she visited Zu An?”

Zhuxie Chixin replied, “She didn’’t. She only visited him as a friend, and also delivered some small gifts for Chu Youzhao and Murong Qinghe.” There had been so many people in that group, so he had naturally had eyes and ears there.

The emperor was stunned. “This Zu An is actually that close to so many people? He’s mixed in with all sorts of different sides… Just what is he trying to do?” His voice had become extremely cold.

Zhuxie Chixin gestured fiercely with his hands when he heard those words. “Should this subject use this chance to… Since he’s already seriously injured, and it’s already been announced that his condition is terrible, I don’t think it’ll draw any suspicion.”

Even though he did share friendship with Zu An, as the emperor’s trusted aide, he had already sensed the emperor’s killing intent several times. He naturally had to emphasize his innocence to avoid bringing trouble onto himself.

“There’s no need for now.” The emperor stopped him. “That kid still has some other uses.”

“Understood!” Zhuxie Chixin lowered his head. He understood the emperor too well. What he was saying was that once Zu An lost his value, he would then be immediately removed.

“Enough, you can leave.” The emperor waved his hand. He stared at the chess pieces on the table and sank into his thoughts.

A while after Zhuxie Chixin left, a voice came from the room. “I would rather turn my back on the people than let the people turn their backs on me!”

…

A few days passed. Zu An wasn’t ill, but he was about to be from boredom. The empress didn’t visit him again. He didn’t know if it was because she was already satisfied, or if she was worried about being exposed.

Zu An had tried to visit Bi Linglong and talk to her, but the secret tunnel was always locked from the other side. Helpless to do anything else, he could only play some games with Piao Duandiao and Jiao Sigun to pass the time.

Today, he received news that he could freely leave the palace.

“But you all need to remember this well; you can’t tell anyone about anything that happened in the dungeon. Especially what happened with King Qi Manor’s experts,” Zhuxie Chixin personally warned them.

“Why?” Piao Duandiao couldn't hold himself back from asking. He and Jiao Sigun were the only two who had survived among all the guards who entered. The others had all died because of King Qi Manor’s deathsworn soldiers. They obviously wanted revenge for their friends.

“That’s not something you all need to know; you just need to obey. You’ll receive the reward you are due, but!” Zhuxie Chixin said coldly, “If I hear any rumors floating about, not only will you die, your families will be buried along with you. The only reason you’re all still alive is because of your service in saving the crown prince and princess’ lives. You’d better get it into your heads; think about what’s good and bad for you.”

Piao Duandiao and Jiao Sigun exchanged a look. They clearly felt a bit lacking in confidence.

Zu An couldn't help but ask, “But what if we aren’t the ones to leak it out, but someone else who learned of it from a different channel?”

Zhuxie Chixin said indifferently, “All of you will still die.” He left immediately afterward

Zu An and the others were left speechless. They soon understood why Zhuxie Chixin was so serious, however. News of all kinds of rewards and penalties was already circulating through the palace.

Because of Zu An’s outstanding achievement in protecting the crown prince and princess, he was promoted from a baron to a viscount, and gained a corresponding increase in territory. He was to continue as the crown prince’s chamberlain, while holding the concurrent post of Armed Escort Division Commander. He was awarded a thousand taels of gold and twenty chests of silk and fabrics.

Piao Duandiao and Jiao Sigun respectively rose three ranks, rising up to become the leaders of the Eastern Palace guard. They were awarded a thousand silvers and other assorted things.

Gao Ying, Pei You, and the others also received corresponding rewards. Even the deceased Zhao Xi, Liu Xian, Meng Pan, and the others were conferred posthumous titles.

As for the other deceased clan members and imperial guards, their names were all recorded and commemorated on a monument.

The Shi clan’s Shi Tong had sneaked into the troop and plotted against the crown prince. The Shi clan master Shi Miao had known about but didn’t inform the emperor, so he was accused of treason. The Death Pardoning Token was revoked, and their clan was searched and eradicated. The branch families were all banished.

The Gu clan brothers Gu Heng and Gu Xing had plotted against the crown prince in search of glory. Nine generations of the Gu clan were completely eradicated.

But what was unexpected was that King Qi and the deathsworn soldiers were never mentioned from start to finish, as if they had never even appeared in the dungeon.