The First Lackey Under The Empress

Doesn't want to see me… doesn't want to see me?

The smile on Zhao Du'an's face gradually froze, and a string of question marks slowly floated above his head.

Wait… what does this mean? You were the one who asked me to come to the palace to see you, and now you don't want to see me.

Zhao Du'an, maintaining a cautious attitude, tentatively asked:

"Is Your Majesty seeing a guest? Or did you see someone after returning to the palace?"

The palace maid serving in the bedroom shook her head and said in a soft voice:

"Neither. Your Majesty just doesn't want to see you."

After saying this, the palace maid's bright eyes looked around, and she carefully reminded him: "It seems that Your Majesty is angry with you, sir."

Zhenbao is angry?

Zhao Du'an had a bit of a headache, but although he lacked romantic experience in his previous life, with his EQ, he knew that he absolutely could not really leave just because the Empress was being "insincere."

Fake anger—clearly telling you that she is angry and expecting you to coax her.

Real anger—he wouldn't even be able to enter the palace; he would be stopped by the Imperial Guards at the palace gate.

At this time, he should give full play to his subjective initiative… Just as Zhao Du'an was pondering how to act, he happened to see a small eunuch from the Imperial Kitchen hurrying over with a tray.

On it was the lotus seed soup, served on time every day to nourish qi and blood.

"Eunuch, please stop!"

Zhao Du'an stepped forward and, without allowing the latter to react, took the soup in the eunuch's bewildered gaze. Then, amidst the palace maids' deliberate leniency and feigned obstruction, he strode into the bedroom.

The Empress's bedroom was an entire courtyard, with palace maids stationed everywhere. Following the directions, Zhao Du'an quickly arrived outside a familiar door—the room where he had stayed the night last time after killing the bewitching Imperial Advisor.

That is, the Empress's boudoir.

"Knock, knock." He gently knocked on the door, and only after hearing a cold "Come in" did Zhao Du'an push the door open with a creak, amidst the tacit blindness of several palace maids and eunuchs.

…

Entering winter, curtains were hung on the door. Zhao Du'an, holding the tray, stepped over the threshold, and a warm air current rushed towards him.

What met his eyes was still the luxurious "warm hall" where he had slept last time. The floor was covered with a thick cashmere carpet, and beside the antique shelf, opposite the daybed, was a beast-shaped incense burner.

He didn't see a brazier because the house had pipes connected underneath, and someone constantly burned charcoal to continuously import heat from underground—an ancient version of floor heating.

Xu Zhenguan was facing away from the door, holding a pair of black scissors in her hand, personally and attentively pruning the vines of an unknown variety of flowers planted in a celadon glazed dragon vase in front of her.

From this angle, she was slightly bent over, her round buttocks raised, her narrow waist and wide hips, and even through her regular clothes, he could vaguely see a clear, upward curve on her back.

Her black hair was coiled up, with a lock of hair hanging down on each side. As her fair wrist turned, the verdant excess branches fell with a "snip, snip."

Zhao Du'an was stunned. It was the first time he had seen the Empress in such a "domestic" scene.

In the past, even when the two of them dined and drank alone, there was always a sense of official business between superiors and subordinates.

The Empress even "devoured" her meals, as if she was racing against time, as if she was either dealing with government affairs or on the way to dealing with government affairs.

Personally pruning flower branches… this kind of "entertainment" activity, which was very common among ladies in the capital, was especially rare on the Empress.

"Your Majesty… the soup has arrived." Zhao Du'an swallowed and said softly as he came back to his senses.

"Snap—" The scissors, which were interspersed among the green branches, suddenly stopped. Xu Zhenguan straightened up, turned her head, and looked at him expressionlessly: "Who let you in?"

Acting, just keep acting… If it weren't for Your Majesty deliberately giving the green light, would those servants in the bedroom dare to let me sneak in…?

Woman, your name is "hypocrisy"!

Zhao Du'an cursed wildly in his heart, but on his face, he wore a humble expression:

"I happened to encounter the Imperial Kitchen delivering the soup on the way. In such cold weather, I was worried that they would be slow and the heat would escape, so I boldly…"

Xu Zhenguan kept a straight face, looking very angry. She grabbed the sharp black scissors in her white hand and pointed at the door: "Get out."

Zhao Du'an looked disappointed, turned around, and retreated with the tray.

After taking two steps, he heard an annoyed voice from behind: "Where are you going?"

Zhao Du'an pretended to be at a loss and turned back: "Didn't Your Majesty want me to leave?"

"I told you to leave, but I didn't tell you to take the soup with you…"

As Xu Zhenguan spoke, she suddenly seemed tired. She walked to the daybed in the warm hall, sat down, and said helplessly:

"Forget it, bring it here."

Zhao Du'an smiled slyly, walked to the sandalwood coffee table in front of the daybed, put down the tray, skillfully washed the cup, opened the earthenware pot, scooped a bowl of hot, milky white meat soup, and handed it over.

The Empress looked at him quietly, without saying a word, just looking.

Zhao Du'an blinked, tentatively scooped up a little with a spoon, then gently blew away the heat with his mouth, and handed it over:

"Your Majesty?"

The Empress's stern face finally livened up a bit, but she didn't drink it. Instead, she asked quietly:

"Do you know your crime?"

Zhao Du'an pretended to be at a loss.

The Empress said annoyedly:

"Why didn't you inform me in advance that you were going to debate Buddhism today? Have I been too lenient with you, too tolerant, that you are presumptuous because of my favor? Such an important matter, acting on your own without reporting."

It's as if I'm doing this for the first time… You weren't angry before, so this time it's a bit fake, isn't it… Zhao Du'an put down the porcelain bowl, feeling ashamed:

"I know my crime! However, I am not being presumptuous. In fact, Your Majesty banned Buddhism because of me. Recently, at home, I often heard believers in the city slander Your Majesty. I am very ashamed, and I was not entirely confident that I could suppress those bald donkeys in the debate…

I was worried that if I informed Your Majesty first, this matter would be connected to Your Majesty. If I did it privately, and if I was lucky enough to succeed, I would be overjoyed to save Your Majesty from being slandered by the ignorant people.

If I unfortunately lost, and the bald donkeys wanted to pursue the matter, it wouldn't involve Your Majesty. At that time, I will bear any blame myself… If Your Majesty wants to punish me, I will accept the punishment without complaint!"

Heh… without complaint… What are you saying all this for?

Xu Zhenguan snorted in her heart, listened to him quietly, her expression softened, and she took the opportunity to say:

"It's good that you know."

After a pause, she glared and said: "Why haven't you served the soup yet?"

One side was lying through his teeth, concocting reasons; the other side took the cue and forgave him at lightning speed… It was also a tacit understanding between the monarch and his subject.

Zhao Du'an was pardoned and handed the soup to the Empress's lips.

The latter looked at him, opened her lips slightly, and slowly swallowed a spoonful.

After that, as if she felt that this feeding posture was too ambiguous, the Empress raised her hand and took the soup bowl, drinking it herself.

After taking two sips, seeing Zhao Du'an staring at her eating, Xu Zhenguan's cheeks inexplicably heated up a bit.

She put down the soup and casually asked him to sit down and talk, then suddenly asked:

"Tell me, what's going on between you and Prajna?"

Zhao Du'an had just pulled over a low stool from the side and sat down next to the coffee table. His butt had just touched the stool when he almost jumped up.

He said in astonishment:

"Why does Your Majesty say this? I can't even avoid that shameless old nun fast enough. Where would there be any involvement?"

Xu Zhenguan sneered: "No?"

"Absolutely no connection!" Zhao Du'an said righteously, then couldn't help but say:

"Your Majesty, can you put down the scissors when you talk?"

"…" Xu Zhenguan threw the scissors in her hand on the coffee table, moved her body backward, casually leaning on the backrest of the daybed, and said lightly:

"Then how do you explain that the so-called Buddhist teachings you proposed today are similar to the ideas held by Prajna?"

Wait… so the core reason why you were suddenly inexplicably angry today is because of this?

Zhao Du'an remembered the last time the Empress stayed at her house for a night, and it happened that Bodhisattva Prajna came to visit.

So much time has passed that he had almost forgotten, but the broad-minded Empress still remembered it…

"Your Majesty, I have absolutely no interaction with that old nun. This debate was entirely for the sake of the public…"

Zhao Du'an hurriedly explained all his thoughts.

The general reason was not much different from what Yuan Li had guessed. This was also the method that Zhao Du'an had been racking his brains to come up with in the past two days, the method that would maximize his interests.

It would not only vent his anger and disgust the people of Shenlong Temple and the Western Regions, but also weaken the authority of the temple and support Prajna in sharing the power of Xuan Yin from multiple aspects.

Although there was also the major drawback of helping Buddhism to take a step further and making it easier to spread, he weighed the pros and cons and felt that the advantages outweighed the disadvantages.

Xu Zhenguan listened quietly, without interrupting.

Lying sideways on the ancient sofa, she unconsciously grabbed an embroidered colorful phoenix pillow in her hand, gently holding it in her arms, her beautiful eyes staring at Zhao Du'an as he analyzed the situation logically.

She hardly listened to the content of what he said, but instead found his anxious appearance of trying to clear his relationship with Prajna very interesting.

The trace of resentment in her heart, which was not much to begin with, disappeared, and was replaced by a more complex emotion.

She had inexplicably gotten angry…

This kind of thing should not have happened to her.

Whether it was in the three years since she ascended the throne, or even before that, during the period when she was the Third Princess, from the time she came of age, in the eyes of her father, brothers, and sisters, in the eyes of the courtiers and those few uncles, she was an image of wisdom, calmness, and not inferior to a man.

If viewed from a rational point of view, Zhao Du'an's debate today, even if there was indeed an act of recklessness, the result was ultimately good.

Therefore, from the perspective of controlling his subordinates, she could have completely used a gentler, better way to reward or knock him into shape.

Instead of using this childish method of making "small tempers," which was no different from ordinary women…

Thinking of this, Xu Zhenguan felt a burst of annoyance, wondering what she had done just now? It would be a laughing stock if it spread out.

But… she just inexplicably did it, just like when she was very, very young, when she felt that she was gradually losing her father's favor, she had also tried to attract her father's attention by not eating.

Just like those concubines in the harem who competed for the Emperor's favor.

Xu Zhenguan stared blankly at the lotus seed soup in front of her, her eyes filled with a trace of inexplicable "distress."

Although she didn't want to admit it, what she had done just now… seemed… possibly… probably… maybe…

To the man in front of her…

"Competing for favor"…?

Thinking of this possibility, she was a little lost.

"Your Majesty?"

Until Zhao Du'an's voice woke her up.

—

Next chapter will be updated before midnight

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