The First Lackey Under The Empress

How did you know that I am a "god walking in the world"...? The "holy monk" of the Western Regions also said the same to me. Is this a special way of complimenting people in this world...? Seeing that Zhenbao was not angry, Zhao Du'an's heartstrings suddenly relaxed, and he relieved the embarrassment by complaining in his heart.

The study fell silent for a moment.

Clearly, the monarch and his subject were "at daggers drawn" just now, but when there were no outsiders watching, and only each other remained, the atmosphere suddenly became strange.

"Ahem," Zhao Du'an finally broke the silence, he explained:

"I implore Your Majesty to allow me to recount my trip to Fengcheng and the reason for feigning death and deceiving the Emperor."

That's right, I'm here to interrogate him... Xu Zhenguan was reminded, and her expression was a little strained.

Forcibly maintaining the persona of an emperor, she simply sat down on Zhao Du'an's chair, staring at him with bright eyes, as if to say, 'Let's see how you try to justify yourself.'

Zhao Du'an smiled sheepishly, pondered slightly, and pulled a chair from the corner of the room, tentatively sitting across from the desk.

While making this movement, he kept glancing at Zhenbao's expression, and seeing that she only raised her small eyebrows, tacitly agreeing to his transgressive action, the corners of Zhao Du'an's mouth slowly rose, and he began to organize his words in his heart.

"Reporting to Your Majesty, this matter must start from when my party arrived in Binhai Road..."

Zhao Du'an's narration was very detailed and slow, starting from when the Prefect Luan surrounded him and his party in Fengcheng, exposing his identity.

He strived not to omit any details.

Although Luan Cheng's memorial, sent in advance, also recorded the general outline, it was very brief. Now, with the narration of Zhao Du'an, the person who experienced it firsthand, the details of the story became fuller and more vivid.

Xu Zhenguan listened to the story quietly. Similar reports from the monarch and his subjects had happened many times, but each time, the guy in front of her could bring her freshness and surprises.

When she heard that Luan Cheng was misled and led the government officials to arrest Zhao Du'an, the female Emperor shook her head, sighing that although Prefect Luan was a capable minister, his intelligence was ultimately inferior to Zhuang Xiaocheng's.

Upon learning that Zhao Du'an ordered the soldiers and horses to flatten the Zixiao Taoist Temple, encountered Lu Zhengchun's resistance, and arrested him, her eyebrows were full of anger, and she coldly snorted and scolded the "traitorous Taoist" for betraying the late Emperor's grace.

When she heard that Zhao Du'an used "beheading" as a trap, launched a series of real and false games against Zhuang Xiaocheng, and finally used the spy he had planted earlier to gain Zhuang Xiaocheng's trust, thereby obtaining the location of the main altar.

Even though Xu Zhenguan already knew the result, her eyes still lit up, and she almost exclaimed in admiration.

This kind of intelligence contest, the game between the chess players from afar, was indeed wonderful, especially when she thought that Yunxi, who played a key role, was kept by Zhao Du'an as early as last year.

Suddenly, there was a sense of laying out a plan for a thousand miles...

"Could it be that when you were almost killed by Zhuang Xiaocheng last year, you already had a plan in mind? Otherwise, why would you value that female rebel so much?" Xu Zhenguan asked curiously.

Zhao Du'an's heart was alarmed, and without hesitation, he looked righteous:

"Your Majesty is wise! At that time, this subject did consider that Yunxi was a disciple Zhuang Xiaocheng brought with him, and that she might be turned against him, so I imprisoned her separately."

What a joke!

It would be troublesome if Zhenbao misunderstood that he had other ideas about Yunxi.

The female Emperor looked at the righteous Zhao with suspicion, pretending to believe him for the time being:

"In that case, this Yunxi has indeed made a great contribution. I reward and punish fairly. Although she was once a member of the rebel party, she has now repented and captured the thief with her own hands. I can grant her a special pardon."

Zhao Du'an was stunned, and his heart warmed.

The female Emperor could have waited until after going out to tell Yunxi about the decision to pardon her, in order to show the Emperor's vast grace.

Now, telling him privately was to give him this "favor."

From this, it could be seen that the female Emperor really did not mean to be jealous. But thinking about it, how could a dignified monarch of a country, a female Emperor whose glorious chapters would be left in the history books, take a female prisoner to heart?

If he didn't even have this confidence, what kind of monarch would he be?

"Your Majesty is benevolent, the rebellious woman will surely be grateful," Zhao Du'an said sincerely, and then, not hurriedly, he told about Zhuang Xiaocheng detonating the formation and collapsing the mountain peak.

At the critical moment, he once again asked Pei Niannu for help and fabricated the process of feigning death in order to conceal his whereabouts.

After listening to this last section, even though the female Emperor had vaguely guessed it in her heart just now, a surge of surprise still rose in her heart, like a stone falling into the sea of her heart, rippling in circles.

Xu Zhenguan leaned forward subconsciously, her eyes sparkling: "Zhuang Xiaocheng... was really captured alive by you?"

Zhao Du'an smiled and said: "Absolutely true."

Even with the art of the Emperor's heart, she still couldn't restrain her joy. If she wasn't worried about being unseemly, she even had the urge to laugh.

Captured alive!

The rebel leader, who had given the entire court a headache, the remnant that she regarded as a thorn in her side and a thorn in her flesh, was actually captured back by him.

And just as he had publicly agreed with Li Yanfu at that time, it only took three months.

Most of the time was wasted on traveling back and forth.

If someone else had said this, she would have suspected it, but if it was Zhao Du'an, who had created countless miracles, in addition to the surprise, she vaguely had a mentality of "it should be so."

It should be so... When did she have such confidence in him, almost regarding him as a "god"?

It was not achieved overnight, but the impression created in her heart by too many past victories, as if any difficult problem, things that others could not do, as long as the person in front of her took action, it would be solved in a light and breezy manner.

And after carefully considering the process, she had to admire that the victory was by no means accidental, but almost inevitable.

"Where is this thief...?" Xu Zhenguan regained her senses, gathered her thoughts, and temporarily suppressed the emotions between men and women.

"He is at my mansion, should I bring him here now?"

"Good."

Zhao Du'an got up and went out. After a while, the door was pushed open again. He carried a large box with rivets on the handle with one hand and walked into the study.

Under the female Emperor's strange gaze, he opened the large box inlaid with rivets, revealing Zhuang Taifu, who was curled up inside, bound all over, with a "sleeping talisman" attached to his forehead.

Zhao Du'an lifted Zhuang Xiaocheng out of the box, threw him on the ground, tore off the yellow paper talisman from his forehead, and sneered:

"We've arrived. Wake up, Zhuang Xiaocheng, open your eyes and see who is in front of you?"

Zhuang Xiaocheng's eyelashes trembled, and he slowly opened his eyelids, revealing a dazed look.

The haggard old scholar first looked around the environment, tried hard to sit up, and then saw the white-clothed female Emperor sitting upright behind the desk, condescendingly overlooking him.

"Your Highness the Third Princess..."

Zhuang Xiaocheng's pupils shrank, his heart shook, and a moment of panic appeared on his old face.

However, perhaps he had rehearsed too many times on the way back to the capital, and after a brief moment of panic, he quickly calmed down and smiled bitterly:

"Long time no see, Your Highness the Third Princess, whose talent was no less than that of the princes back then, is now very different."

Xu Zhenguan withdrew her gaze from outside the door, first glanced at Zhao Du'an, and then turned her gaze to the former old minister kneeling on the carpet, who was much older than she remembered.

Or rather, teacher would be more appropriate.

The duty of "Taifu" was to teach all the princes. Zhuang Xiaocheng and Dong Xuan were both the Third Princess's teachers, but Zhuang Xiaocheng at that time openly favored the Crown Prince more, and privately became increasingly close with the Second Prince Xu Jianwen.

As for the former Third Princess, although he also admired her talent, he never put too much effort into her because of her status as a woman.

Especially after Xu Zhenguan grew older, the late Emperor repeatedly tried to marry her off, but Xu Zhenguan resolutely refused, and in accordance with the ancestral rules, any royal children who had achieved success in cultivation could remain unmarried, which led to a strained relationship with the late Emperor, and Zhuang Xiaocheng became increasingly distant from her.

But she never expected that it would later evolve into the enemy they were today.

"Taifu has indeed aged a lot," Xu Zhenguan did not fly into a rage, but sighed with a complicated expression.

Zhuang Xiaocheng smiled self-deprecatingly:

"Laboring in the Jianghu is ultimately not as leisurely as teaching in the palace in the past."

Xu Zhenguan said sarcastically:

"What Taifu has been laboring over is how to oppose me every day, how to fabricate history, how to slander me, whitewash Xu Jianwen's evil deeds of rebellion, and bewitch people's hearts? Doing such an unkind thing is indeed a lot of work."

Zhuang Xiaocheng was silent.

Silence fell in the room. Just as Zhao Du'an was about to speak, Zhuang Xiaocheng finally sighed and said, "The victor is always right. If Your Majesty feels that scolding this old man a few times will ease your grievances, then I shall bear it."

Zhao Du'an chuckled, and said coldly:

"Scolding a few times… what, do you think a few scoldings are enough to compensate for the crimes of the Kuangfu Society against the country and its people? Or are you still convinced that you were right?

Heh, I come from a military background, haven't read much, and am not one of you Confucian scholars, but I also know that the Confucian saints never taught their disciples to usurp the throne. Nor would they disguise their greed for power and higher positions as some noble and righteous 'greater good'!"

Zhuang Xiaocheng closed his eyes and said calmly:

"We are but fish on the chopping block. This old minister's bloodline was severed three years ago, and I am nothing more than a lonely ghost in this world. Your Majesty can kill or dismember me as you please."

He adopted a completely "the victor is always right, I am at your disposal" attitude.

Seeing him like this, Xu Zhenguan suddenly felt bored and waved her hand.

The meeting after three years was not thrilling, but only revealed clearly defined positions and an irreconcilable determination.

Zhao Du'an slapped the yellow paper talisman back on, and Zhuang Xiaocheng re-entered the "sealed" state, before he was thrown back into the box.

After doing all this, he looked at Zhen Bao, who was silently staring at the bookshelf, and tentatively asked:

"Your Majesty, this traitor, should we throw him into the imperial prison for severe torture?"

Xu Zhenguan was silent for a long time before suppressing the complex emotions surging in her heart and gently sighed: "You already have an idea, don't you?"

Zhao Du'an gave an "En" sound, and said:

"This minister believes that with Zhuang Xiaocheng's tenacious mind, it will be difficult to extract anything through interrogation. We can probably only try to use magic to spy on him after his death, but with this old dog's cunning, I'm afraid he has already made preparations…

Therefore, this minister believes that this traitor's greatest value lies in his identity as the leader, and not in anything else.

It would be best to create momentum in the capital, and execute this person publicly according to the law, to deter the world… but more importantly, to use his death as an opportunity to try to reverse the rumors about the Xuanmen coup that this traitor has long slandered and fabricated."

There were two versions of the Xuanmen coup.

The first is the official version, which is also relatively close to the truth, that is, the story of Xu Jianwen's rebellion and the Third Princess quelling the rebellion.

Although some details have been embellished, it is largely true.

The second is the wild history spread by the Kuangfu Society, that is, the one who rebelled was Xu Zhenguan, and the Second Prince Jianwen was the one who was killed for trying to stop her… mainly fabricated.

However, under the Kuangfu Society's relentless smear campaign, the latter version is more widely spread, which is also an important reason why the legitimacy of the Empress's regime is questioned outside the capital.

"How do you want to clarify the truth?" the Empress asked curiously.

Zhao Du'an shook his head and said:

"Clarification is useless. Your Majesty should know that rumors are fiercer than tigers. Throughout history, all rumors have spread widely, but no one cares about refuting them. How can we solve this?

This minister believes that the most critical point is that rumors are more in line with the people's expectations. Only rumors that the people are willing to believe can spread.

Conversely, if the people are unwilling to believe the rumors, even if they are spread again, they will not be very effective.

The Kuangfu Society's smear campaign was successful simply because many people in the folk are unhappy with Your Majesty ascending the throne as a woman, and are even less willing to believe that Your Majesty was the one who defended the throne. Therefore, refuting and clarifying may not be very useful."

Xu Zhenguan was thoughtful: "Then what do you want to do?"

"Fight poison with poison," Zhao Du'an smiled:

"The people actually don't like the corrupt Confucians in the court either. The common people are already disgusted with this group of officials.

Therefore, we only need to provide enough dirty scandals about his private life when we publicly execute this traitor.

For example, let Yun Xi accuse Zhuang Xiaocheng of plotting against her as a female disciple… she will definitely be willing.

En, it would be best to wait until those rebellious parties escorted by Luan Zhifu arrive in the capital before trying to co-opt them, so that these people can stand up to expose and accuse him. Doesn't Zhuang Xiaocheng want to be remembered in history and have a good reputation? Then let him be disgraced and completely reduced to eternal shame!

In this way, his private scandals will surely spread widely. As long as the Kuangfu Society represented by Zhuang Xiaocheng is dirtier, uglier, and more untrustworthy, his slanderous remarks against Your Majesty will be defeated without being attacked."

The Empress was stunned, and the look in her eyes became strange:

"I suddenly believe the rumors that you are insidious and cunning."

This method was a bit vicious.

What writers care about most is their reputation, and Zhao Du'an simply wanted to disgrace Zhuang Xiaocheng.

Especially the point of smearing his private life… the ministers in the court may not have thought of it, but no one would publicly propose such a suggestion, as it would make them seem too sinister.

But Zhao Du'an dared to bring it up, anyway, his reputation was already ruined…

"Then do it according to your idea. You caught him, and he almost killed you back then. I'm relieved to let you handle him." Xu Zhenguan felt that she couldn't intervene in such a dirty matter and decisively passed the buck.

Zhao Du'an said:

"This minister has another idea. I hope Your Majesty will help this minister conceal the news of my survival for the next few days, and don't expose Zhuang Xiaocheng's existence. Let's wait until Luan Zhifu's team arrives in the capital. During this period, Your Majesty can try to suppress the 'Li Party'."

Xu Zhenguan was stunned: "Suppress the Li Party?"

Zhao Du'an smiled brightly:

"After this minister returned home, I chatted with my aunt and learned that Li Yanfu publicly inquired about my situation a few days ago, and he was the one who jumped out during the Lunar New Year's Eve. This debt should also be settled. If I'm not mistaken, because of the 'news of my death,' the Li Party must be celebrating these days.

At this time, if Your Majesty finds fault with the Li Party under the pretext of venting anger, Li Yanfu will most likely not resist, and the entire Li Party will not resist either…

No one wants to offend Your Majesty who has lost her mind in anger… Moreover, they will also feel that it is acceptable to exchange a little loss of benefits for this minister's life."

Xu Zhenguan opened her mouth, and had a deeper understanding of this guy's "vindictiveness" and "insidiousness". She said quietly:

"You wouldn't have been planning to do this when you were planning your fake death, would you?"

"How could I? This minister only thought of it recently." Zhao Du'an said with a clear conscience.

Xu Zhenguan looked at him suspiciously, and believed him for the time being:

"…Alright, I will try it as you said."

Zhao Du'an nodded in satisfaction: "This minister has one more thing…"

"…" Xu Zhenguan's eyes really changed this time. Two consecutive "vicious plans" made her a little stressed and she was really afraid that this guy would come up with some immoral methods again.

Zhao Du'an said seriously: "This minister feels that something is wrong. Your Majesty, what do you think of Zhuang Xiaocheng's intelligence?"

"Naturally, it's outstanding."

"That's right. This minister has been thinking on the way back to the capital that since Zhuang Xiaocheng had a plan to die with this minister early on, then with his talent, he must have also arranged in advance the operation of the Kuangfu Society after his death."

Zhao Du'an said in a serious tone:

"In the Battle of Fengcheng, the rebel party suffered heavy losses, but after all, there are still many remnants entrenched.

I'm afraid Zhuang Xiaocheng has already found a 'successor' to continue to lead the club after his death, and he is willing to die in order to kill this minister, which also means that he believes that the successor is enough to make up for the loss caused by his death."

Xu Zhenguan was stunned and fell into thought.

After his reminder, the Empress also realized this blind spot.

Zhao Du'an asked: "Who does Your Majesty think is likely to take over in the Kuangfu Society?"

Xu Zhenguan pondered for a moment, then shook her head and said:

"In the Kuangfu Society, there is almost no second person who has enough reputation and ability to take charge.

Neither Qi Yuchun nor Ren Kun can do the job. As for Jianwen's widow, the Princess of Wen is weak in nature, and the little prince left by my second brother is too young to exist only as a banner."

Zhao Du'an said: "So, no one can take over?"

"No, you're right, Zhuang Xiaocheng couldn't have left a mess and must have chosen a successor." The Empress stood up, paced around the study, and thought for a moment:

“But I really can't think of anyone suitable, unless the entire Kuangfu Society loses its independence and becomes affiliated with one of the eight princes. But that doesn't seem like Zhuang Xiaocheng's personality... But besides that, who else could there be? Unless Xu Jianwen is resurrected, the Kuangfu Society will inevitably fall apart...”

Zhao Du'an was stunned for a moment, and a flash of inspiration suddenly flashed through his mind. He looked at Zhenbao in surprise:

“Jianwen resurrected… Does Your Majesty think there is such a possibility?”

Xu Zhenguan was also stunned, she laughed and cried: “I'm just making an analogy.”

However, Zhao Du'an seized the inspiration in his mind, frowned, and shook his head:

“No! It's not an analogy… I'm thinking, if Zhuang Xiaocheng has really completely submitted to a certain prince, it's likely to be Prince Jing or Prince Mu… It's not important.

The point is, if he really submitted, then the assassination of me shouldn't have been done solely by the Kuangfu Society. Zhuang Xiaocheng would definitely use the society as a bargaining chip to exchange for the support of a strong person from a certain prince.

In that case, with the help of the prince, he wouldn't have to die with me…”

“So, he probably didn't sell himself. Then is it possible that Jianwen is really alive? Or rather, he didn't die in the first place?”

Zhao Du'an said this somewhat shocking guess. Although it was outrageous, when all possibilities were eliminated, logically, this was indeed the most "reasonable" conclusion.

The Empress was also stunned and said:

“I personally witnessed Jianwen's death in the chaos of the army, and the corpse was carefully examined…”

Suddenly, she thought of something and suddenly closed her mouth.

Zhao Du'an stared at her with burning eyes and said:

“Bewitching Taoist! That Imperial Advisor! I remember that the Imperial Advisor also died in the coup, and also left a corpse, but the fact proves that he did not really die! But is still alive!

That day in the palace, it was just his '替身'! And Bewitching Taoist was Jianwen's retainer and participated in the coup!”

Xu Zhenguan opened her mouth:

“Are you saying that the Bewitching Taoist also used secret methods to help Jianwen escape his inevitable death? That the person who launched the coup in the palace that day was not 'all' of Jianwen?

No… your guess is groundless. The Bewitching Taoist can achieve resurrection because of the gods he cultivates, which is extremely rare…”

Zhao Du'an interrupted her:

“Yes, precisely because it is rare, can Your Majesty guarantee that he cannot help others create a 'clone'? When Jianwen launched the coup that day, wouldn't he also be thinking of leaving a way out for himself?

Besides, doesn't Your Majesty think that Zhuang Xiaocheng gathered the remnants too smoothly? What gave him the confidence to lead a group of Jianghu people to fight against the imperial court?

Just because he is unwilling? If he is really unwilling, then why would he be willing to die with me? Isn't this self-contradictory?”

Xu Zhenguan was speechless after being refuted by him!

Her mind couldn't help but be a little confused.

It wasn't that she hadn't suspected whether Jianwen was really dead, but Jianwen's body in the imperial palace had been repeatedly checked and was not a disguise.

Moreover, Jianwen had never shown his face in the past three years.

But…

If it was really done by the Bewitching Imperial Advisor, then this "three years of disappearance" can also be explained… The Bewitching Taoist also disappeared for nearly three years.

Because the creation of a clone requires tearing apart half of the soul.

When the clone dies, the remaining half of the life will fall into long-term weakness. Even the Bewitching Taoist hid to recuperate for two years.

Then Jianwen hid to recuperate, putting Zhuang Xiaocheng on the surface, wouldn't that also make sense?

“I… I… need to go back and carefully review the files from that time, looking for clues.”

The Empress was silent for a moment, her eyes sharp:

“If Jianwen really made this arrangement, there wouldn't be no trace left.”

Too many people were involved in the coup that year.

After the coup, the Empress ascended the throne and killed too many people who participated in the usurpation, leaving countless confessions, files, and materials.

It would be a big project to re-examine it, but even if she thought it was absurd, she had to do it.

“I'm just making a bold guess, without any basis, and it is indeed incredible.”

Zhao Du'an comforted her when he saw her appearance.

Xu Zhenguan glanced at him, noticed his thoughts, and suddenly smiled calmly, the room seemed to light up:

“I don't need you to worry. Let alone Jianwen is dead, even if he is still alive, what can he do? Does this criminal dare to stand up? How many chips does he have in his hand?

I was able to quell the rebellion alone when he had many soldiers and generals. Now he only has a group of remnants, so what is there to fear?”

Zhao Du'an was stunned for a moment, confirmed that Zhenbao really thought so, and smiled self-deprecatingly: “I was alarmed.”

They had solved so many enemies and difficulties, what did another Jianwen who was eking out a living matter?

They smiled at each other.

The tense atmosphere in the study disappeared.

After finishing the serious business, the two looked at each other silently, and the atmosphere became a little ambiguous.

They hadn't seen each other for more than two months, and Zhao Du'an inevitably felt a little reluctant at this moment, and Xu Zhenguan didn't take the initiative to let him out.

He had the mind to take the initiative to flirt and say some sweet words, but Zhao Du'an glanced at the old dog lying in the box and felt awkward again.

“Come here.” Suddenly, Xu Zhenguan said softly.

“Ah?” Zhao Du'an was at a loss, a little dazed.

Xu Zhenguan couldn't help but smile when she saw the little Imperial Guard, who had come up with so many poisonous schemes just now, looking so stupid and cute.

She was generous, beckoned him over, casually threw away the pile of "肖像画" on the table, re-laid the white paper, personally ground the ink, and said with a serious expression:

“Your painting skills are too bad. I'm in a good mood today, so I'll teach you how to paint. Will you learn?”

Traditional Chinese painting?

I have to learn that! I have to learn traditional Chinese painting!

Zhao Du'an seemed to be possessed by President Hou, and he leaned over as if possessed by a ghost, a little at a loss: “How do I do it?”

Xu Zhenguan glanced at his tall and burly figure, and guessed that she couldn't imitate the posture of a teacher teaching young children to paint, so she simply reversed it and said:

“You stand behind me, hold the pen later, and I'll guide you once.”

“Oh…”

Zhao Du'an walked behind the Empress, saw her sitting down lightly, began to skillfully adjust the ink, skillfully selected a brush from the brush rack, and after absorbing the ink, Xu Zhenguan's white wrist in the circle chair lifted, and a section of her sleeve slipped down.

Her jade hand, carved like white jade, held the slender brush in a standard posture, suspended over the rice paper, and said:

“Hold the pen.”

“Oh… oh oh…”

Zhao Du'an adjusted his posture a little awkwardly, standing behind the Empress, bowing slightly, leaning down, this posture was like hugging her.

His nose could smell the familiar vanilla scent from her body, and Zhao Du'an's cheek slowly approached the Empress's swan neck.

He noticed that with his approach, a layer of fine fluff stood up on Zhenbao's fair neck, swaying gently with his breath.

Her neck visibly began to blush, but she didn't dodge, more like an acquiescence.

Zhao Du'an became more and more daring, his posture became more intimate, he only hated that there was a circle chair separating the two… He wrapped his right hand around the Empress's shoulder and reached for the brush, his eyes slyly looking down along her collar.

Immediately, he disappointedly found that the collar was so tight that there was no gap at all. He could only see a piece of emerald jade stone on the necklace, vaguely hidden in the exposed swan neck.

The right hand holding the pen suddenly touched a piece of soft coolness.

“……”

“……”

“Where are you holding? Hold the pen! Not the hand!”

“Oh… oh oh…”

He hurriedly let go of the big hand covering the small hand and grasped the upper end of the pen shaft.

The Empress sighed helplessly, simply broke open Zhao Du'an's hand, helped him adjust the posture of holding the pen, and then…

Her slender little hand wrapped around the big hand holding the pen.

The first drop of ink fell on the rice paper.

—

Seven thousand word chapter