The First Lackey Under The Empress

Under the moonlight, crows still circled overhead.

On a grave in the burial grounds, the former Grand Preceptor of the Great Yu Dynasty, Guhuo Zhenren, sat on his coffin lid.

He was first blankly stunned for a moment before he finally heard the other party's words, then he shook his head, bewildered, and said, "I don't know."

"Don't know?" The slovenly man slung the long sword made of copper coins onto his back, clicking his tongue in wonder:

"Then it seems that after you died, your spirit was never recovered by the Rampaging God. Heh heh, there are quite a few in the capital who can block the Rampaging God. That female emperor, Zhang Yan Yi, and that Xuan Yin Great Monk who rarely shows his face but possesses unfathomable strength… all can do it."

Saying this, the leader of one of the three great evil organizations in the martial world, the 'Nether Sect', said:

"I have long warned you that going to the capital is extremely risky. Three Celestial Humans are crammed into that one city. Are you crazy to go looking for trouble? Who do you think you are? Wu Xiankui from the Broken Cliff of Green Mountain in the East Sea?"

Guhuo Zhenren looked annoyed, and retorted with a sneer:

"This poor Taoist is different from you people hiding in the shadows. This poor Taoist is going to do great things."

"Mm-hmm, yes, doing great things." The Nether Sect leader nodded perfunctorily.

Unwilling to argue with this guy whose brain was filled with intense desire, he sneered:

"You will be devoured by your own desires sooner or later. As an evil cultivator who is reviled by everyone, you insisted on becoming a Grand Preceptor. The old emperor was muddleheaded and gave you two years of cheap advantage, which should have been enough.

You should have taken advantage of the old emperor's impending death to leave quickly, so as not to be purged by the newly appointed crown prince.

But you were so good, greedy for the position of Grand Preceptor and reluctant to give it up, going to support Xu Jianwen and participate in palace infighting… You died once, and you still haven't learned your lesson, coming back again."

Guhuo Zhenren was mocked and retorted with a sneer:

"You speak so beautifully, but why are you willing to cooperate with the Kuangfu Society? Don't tell this poor Taoist that you are just purely making money. Aren't you also eyeing the imperial tombs? Greedy for the Yin energy that has been nurtured for six hundred years?"

The slovenly dressed Nether Sect leader did not refute, but smiled:

"What are you planning to do next?"

"Hide and recuperate," Guhuo Zhenren did not hide his intention to recuperate:

"And then find Zhuang Xiaocheng and have him find out clearly how this poor Taoist died this time. Hmph, this hatred, this poor Taoist has remembered it!"

When he said these words, the old Taoist's face was ferocious and terrifying, as if he would not rest until he killed his enemy.

The red-clothed, slovenly man turned to leave, tossing the copper coin in his hand, and said:

"I must remind you, if you die again, even if you can afford the price, I can't guarantee that I can pull you back."

Guhuo Zhenren said nothing, sitting on the grave mound, expressionless.

What he didn't say was that although he didn't know who killed him.

But this time, relying on the connection between the two spirits, he vaguely sensed that the person who killed him possessed something that made him extremely fearful and extremely eager and greedy.

"This poor Taoist has set his sights on you."

The old Taoist looked at the bright moon overhead and said softly.

… …

… …

One night passed, the darkness receded, and the east once again revealed a fish-belly white.

When Zhao Du'an woke up from his sleep, his first reaction was that his whole body was burning with pain.

"Hiss… Ah…"

He moved slightly and was in so much pain from the wound that he bared his teeth. He barely sat up and found in bewilderment that he was still in the warm hall of the palace.

The tea table and other objects in front of him had been overturned, as if they had been hit by heavy objects many times.

He looked down and found that the clothes on his body had been torn into strips… His chest was full of scratches, and on his stomach, there was also a strange bruise…

"… …" Zhao Du'an's expression was dull, not understanding what happened last night.

"You're awake?" Suddenly, a clear, cold voice came from his ear.

Xu Zhenguan yawned and walked out from the "inner room".

She was still wearing that gauze skirt, no different from before she went to bed last night, except that her face was a little tired, as if she hadn't slept well.

The pseudo-Celestial Human Realm still cannot get rid of the need for sleep. Although she always looked energetic in the past, she still slept for at least two hours at night.

But last night… her sleep quality was very poor!

"Your Majesty… I was last night…"

Zhao Du'an showed a strong desire to know, with doubts about the wounds on his body.

Xu Zhenguan glanced at him and said lightly:

"You lost control of your mind last night and were very restless. I could only stop you."

This was said elegantly, but translated, it meant that you were beaten… Zhao Du'an complained, while also curious about what madness he had gone through to be beaten like this…

He tried to recall, but last night's memory only remained before he fell asleep.

"I see, thank you, Your Majesty, for taking action!" Zhao Du'an got up and saluted, and then found that his legs were also limping.

He was beaten and still had to thank her… Xu Zhenguan twitched the corner of her mouth, and felt a little guilty.

Although this guy's indomitable spirit last night really made her itch with anger, among the six desires, there was no appetite or greed for money, only one kind of desire…

From this point of view, he was quite dedicated…

"Someone, bring external wound medicine, take back Lord Zhao's clothes, and send some food over." Xu Zhenguan ordered towards the door.

At this time, the sky was already bright, and the doors and windows were white.

This difficult night had finally passed. Zhao Du'an understood that he had survived the "sequelae", and only pure "soul power" that could be absorbed by him remained in his body.

When it was slowly digested, it would be time to advance to the middle rank of the Divine Chapter.

As for the Death God statue and the candle magic tool, the female emperor didn't intend to give them to him.

Unsurprisingly, for "evil path suppressants", the imperial court has always destroyed or hidden them in a safe place to avoid them falling into the outside world.

After a while.

The palace door was pushed open, and accompanied by the coolness and morning mist of the autumn morning, palace maids came in carrying trays.

When they saw the obviously chaotic warm hall that had undergone a "great battle", and Zhao Du'an's clothes that had been torn into strips, especially the bloodstains scratched on his chest.

Even though they had all undergone professional training, the expressions of the palace maids serving the female emperor obviously became extremely subtle.

Even horrified.

As palace maids in the bedroom, they knew more about the relationship between His Majesty and Lord Zhao than outsiders.

They also mostly knew that the so-called "male favorite" had never spent the night in the bedroom, which was probably fake.

Therefore, after seeing this scene, they were particularly shocked.

The way they looked at Zhao Du'an was different.

So crazy?

The palace maids' meager imagination could not imagine the possibility of "scratching oneself", and instinctively thought it was scratched by His Majesty.

"Lord… Lord Zhao… please change your clothes." The palace maid's voice stammered.

"Put it down, I'll do it myself." Zhao Du'an showed a warm man's smile.

After a group of palace maids retreated excitedly, the female emperor also avoided suspicion and walked back to the inner room, leaving Zhao Du'an to apply the wound medicine and change back into his original robes.

After dressing neatly, the two of them simply ate something in the room to suppress their hunger. Xu Zhenguan put down her bowl and chopsticks and said lightly:

"There is still an early court today, I should go. You can go back by yourself."

"Your subject obeys." Zhao Du'an also put down his bowl and chopsticks.

Xu Zhenguan glanced at him, her eyes strange, and suddenly said:

"It has been a long time since you let Zhuang Xiaocheng go."

Zhao Du'an nodded seriously and said:

"Your subject was just about to report to Your Majesty that Zhuang Xiaocheng is hiding in the martial world and his whereabouts are difficult to track. This time, your subject arrested the rebellious party in Beijing overnight, both to give him a heavy blow and to take the opportunity to make some arrangements."

Xu Zhenguan glanced at him, did not ask further, and said calmly:

"Whatever you want to do, go ahead and do it, I approve."

These words were extremely heavy, meaning that the female emperor delegated power to him to do some unconventional things against the rebellious party.

Zhao Du'an stood up, solemnly acknowledged, and then turned and took his leave.

When he pushed open the carved wooden door of the palace and walked out, his face was splashed by the morning air, and the warmth and fragrance that had lingered on his body all night quickly faded away.

At this time, he heard the bell from the Meridian Gate through the layers of palace walls.

The court officials were entering the palace.

… …

… …

When the court officials, wearing official robes, passed through the Meridian Gate and entered the Hall of Supreme Harmony, they stood firm on the left and right.

They found that His Majesty had not arrived in time today. According to the rules, as long as His Majesty did not come, the court meeting would not be considered convened, and they could whisper and chat.

At this time, a group of ministers naturally discussed the matter of the "Grand Preceptor's return".

A full day had passed since the Grand Preceptor appeared, but the events of last night had not yet spread, and people were not yet aware that the Grand Preceptor had been captured.

On the contrary, the encounter of Kong Hanlin and the other three last night was of great concern and spread in the Golden Luan Hall.

"Kong Hanlin is really dead? It is said that he hanged himself in the study?"

"It is said that the Deputy General of the Thousand Bulls is also crazy, setting fire to his home, and the fire is soaring. The Deputy General killed people indiscriminately and was controlled by the officials of the Zhao Yamen. It is said that he is still waiting for his sanity to recover."

"Zhao Shenguan of the Heavenly Master's Mansion lived in a private residence last night. It is said that he was also injured and was taken back by the disciples of the Heavenly Master overnight, but there was no major problem."

There was a lot of discussion!

And with the spread of this news, the faces of the ministers in the hall became ugly, accompanied by anxiety and a faint fear.

They were not too afraid of martial arts masters, because they could be seen and touched, and they could be protected by guards.

But this kind of weird術法 was really inevitably frightening, especially in the case of one death, one madness, and one injury overnight.

Everyone was in danger!

Some people went to find Ma Yan to verify the news, but found that Ma Yan had not attended court today.

Only Yuan Li and Li Yanfu, these two people who were like Dinghaishenzhen of their respective factions, had normal complexions, but they had excellent skills in cultivating Qi, and they were not without fluctuations in their hearts.

"Silence! His Majesty has arrived!" Suddenly, a eunuch walked in and shouted at the top of his voice.

In an instant, the ministers returned to their positions and all fell silent.

Shortly after.

The female emperor, who had changed into a dragon robe and wore a crown, stepped onto the dragon chair. Xu Zhenguan smiled:

"What are you discussing? I heard it outside."

Yuan Li said: "Reporting to Your Majesty, your subjects are discussing how to deal with that evil Taoist. The evil Taoist is harming the country and cannot be kept for long."

Xu Zhenguan nodded lightly, expressing her approval, and glanced over the officials below, and said lightly:

"I am about to tell you that last night, Zhao Du'an, the Jishi of the Zhao Yamen, led his subordinates to remove the Kuangfu Society's branch, encountered the evil Taoist, and killed him on the spot."

In an instant, the court was quiet.

… …

Misspelled words will be corrected after updating.