The crown princess stared at Zu An’s broad back, in a slight daze.

She had always been the one protecting the crown prince, but as a woman herself, she subconsciously needed a strong man to protect her as well. Unfortunately, because of her current status, she was forced to hide this side of her deep within herself.

Now, she was being protected from a powerful assassin by this man.

She knew that this was a master rank assassin. Not even Minister of War Shi Miao was her match. How could this golden-token envoy possibly stop her?

Despite this, he continued to stand in front of her, putting his life on the line.

The crown princess remembered something she had read in her romance novels: No woman could resist a man who was willing to sacrifice his life for her. Back then, she had scoffed at that quote, believing it to be the author’s personal wish alone. Now that she had experienced it herself, this statement resonated deeply within her.

She didn’t know what drove this individual to protect her. Was it his duty, or was it something else? She wasn’t sure, and she didn’t want to be, either. She only knew that she would never forget this man’s tall, upright figure.

Suddenly, a terrifying voice filled the air. “Which scoundrel dares to cause trouble in the imperial palace?!”

She saw a figure dressed in dark red swiftly approaching. The morbidly pale skin and ice-cold eyes… Zhuxie Chixin!

The crown princess sighed in relief. The man who was protecting her did not need to die.

Zu An also sighed in relief. Bro, what took you so long? If you didn’t show your face, I would have been left wondering who my enemies really were.

He had only put on this valiant act because he had received news of Zhuxie Chixin’s arrival. 

Won’t this grant me a promotion?

Of course, he never expected his actions to unintentionally bring about a different effect.

Zhuxie Chixin moved extremely quickly, immediately exchanging a blow with the long-haired woman. Both of them were shaken by the force. The long-haired woman flew backwards, while Zhuxie Chixin staggered.

“Huh?” Zhuxie Chixin was surprised. Her cultivation was not the same as a normal master rank cultivator!

Despite this, he wasn’t worried. After all, he was the terrifying leader of the Embroidered Envoy. Not only was he a loyal subject of the emperor, he possessed tremendous strength as well.

He was at the peak of the master rank, and had even gained some new insights recently, which elevated him just outside the grandmaster rank.

The emperor and King Qi aside, not many dared claim to be more powerful than him.

“Seeing someone at your age with such high cultivation leaves me beyond surprised. You had great prospects ahead of you, but you’re now going to lose your life because you invaded the imperial palace.” Zhuxie Chixin sighed, as though he felt sincere pity.

The long-haired woman chuckled. “I’ve heard that Chief Commander Zhuxie Chixin’s strength leaves the entire imperial court in awe. Now that we’ve met, I can tell that you are as formidable as the rumors say, though you are, unfortunately, a little too arrogant. Do you truly believe you can defeat me?”

Zhuxie Chixin remained unfazed. “The time for words is over.”

After saying this, he shot forward like a streak of lightning. It seemed even faster than Zu An’s instantaneous movement skill.

His entire body erupted with scarlet flames, as though he had become a phoenix.

Zu An clicked his tongue. He had always assumed Zhuxie Chixin was an ice element cultivator, given his cold exterior. He actually wields the fire element?

More than that, it now looked as though he was the one who cultivated the Phoenix Nirvana Sutra! He truly looked like a reincarnated phoenix.

Zu An found himself feeling slightly jealous. Even though his own Phoenix Nirvana Sutra was rather amazing, it didn’t look that badass in a fight!

The crown princess’s gentle voice sounded. “Kind sir, are you wounded?”

Zu An was stunned. The few times he’d met her, the crown princess had always been distant, acting and speaking fiercely. He had never seen her speak to anyone in such a gentle voice.

He clasped his fist towards her. “Thank you, crown princess, for your concern. I have only suffered a few minor injuries.”

Zu An actually wasn’t injured at all, but if he admitted it, he would never receive the recognition that he deserved.

The crown princess’ red lips parted slightly as she looked at this tall, burly figure in front of her. This is a true man among men, who sheds no tears! He’s nothing like that stupid crown prince who cries if he accidentally bumps into a desk corner.

To Zu An, things only seemed to be getting stranger. Why was this crown princess staring at him dumbly without saying anything?

He coughed lightly. “Crown princess, are you injured?” he asked quickly in return.

The crown princess blushed and shook her head. “I’m fine.”

She was wounded, but how could she let this man know?

“I’m injured, I’m injured!” cried the crown prince. “I got a huge bump on my head when I hit that pillar! It’s swelling badly!”

The crown princess resisted the urge to hit him.

She was utterly furious. Look at this man, and now look at my own husband!

She was exhausted.

Zu An smiled and said, “Crown prince, you need not worry. This minor injury will heal once the imperial physician applies some medicine.”

“But it hurts really bad,” said the crown prince, pouting. He looked over at the crown princess. “Mom always blows on my injuries when I get hurt. Linglong, can you blow on it for me? It might get better faster.”

The crown princess was about to explode. Bloody hell! Am I your wife or your mom?

“Blow on it yourself!” she yelled with an angry huff.

“Oh…” Her constant abuse left the crown prince cowering in fear. He dared not say anything else, and tried his best to blow air across the bump on his head.

This exchange left Zu An speechless.

I was definitely seeing things earlier. The crown princess is definitely very fierce.

The crown princess moved over to his side, her voice suddenly gentle again. “What should I call you, kind sir? Have we met before?”

The golden-token envoys were mysterious, and rarely appeared in public. However, she was the crown princess, so she had met a few of them. Even though all of them wore masks as well, she knew that the one in front of her wasn’t one she had come across before.

Zu An picked up his command token and flipped it around, showing her the number. “I am Eleven.”

Golden-token envoys did not give out their true names, but referred to themselves by their numbers. There was no need to hide this.

Besides, he wanted to be rewarded after this, so he had to make sure that the crown princess knew who had saved her and the crown prince.

It was the crown princess’ turn to grow shocked. “Eleven? Weren’t there only ten golden-token envoys?”

“Ah, I was recently promoted.” Her reminder left Zu An slightly deflated. From what he knew, every single golden-token envoy had many silver-token envoys beneath them, and countless bronze-token envoys below these. He was the only one with merely a command token.

Of course, he knew what the emperor was up to. He had only been granted this token so that it would be easier for him to conduct certain affairs, and for him to trick King Qi. He wasn’t planning to give Zu An any real authority.

“You were recently promoted?” The crown princess blinked. “You are truly a promising young man.”

“The crown princess is too generous with your praise.” Zu An was used to seeing her haughty and arrogant appearance, and found it hard to adjust to this gentle side of her.

The crown princess smiled when she heard what he said. She had mentioned this as a test. For some reason, she was secretly hoping that this embroidered envoy was not a middle-aged man, or even an elder.

Zu An was stunned. The crown princess possessed great beauty, but the fierce expression she often wore spoiled her image. She really was much more charming when she smiled.

“Linglong, your smile is so pretty. Why haven’t I ever seen you smile before?” The crown prince stopped blowing on his wound, his eyes wide. Even though he was stupid, every human being was naturally drawn towards beauty.

The crown princess glared at him in annoyance. Do you really have no idea why I never smile around you?

Qiu Honglei’s sword suddenly thrust out. She loathed this scene. Was this crown princess working in a brothel? Now that she felt slightly safer, she was already back to seducing other men, even with her own husband beside her!

The other assassins rushed in as well, determined to take down the crown prince. Any losses were acceptable, as long as they accomplished their goal.