Zu An gave a frightened start. He was just about to scold the one who dared to act so brazenly, but he was confronted with an icy-cold face instead.

“Principal… Jiang?”

All of the students in the classroom recognized her, and began chatting among themselves. Some male students even whistled excitedly.

“Wow! I’ve only seen the principal a few times on campus! I didn’t expect to be able to get this close to her today!”

“Those legs are really too much! I can die a happy man if I could be squeezed between those legs just once!”

“That’s way too much information, bro. I really didn’t need to hear about your weird fetishes. For me, I just want a pair of used stockings.”

“Huh?!! You’re the damn pervert here!”

…

Zu An’s face darkened from all this chattering. Aren’t these fellows getting a little too cocky? They thought that they were being quiet, but he could hear everything! If even he could hear them, how could they escape Jiang Luofu’s ears?

Unexpectedly, the principal paid no attention to them at all. She only said, “This class is changed to self-study. Teacher Zu, follow me.”

With no further explanation, she immediately dragged Zu An out of the classroom.

The classroom broke into an uproar immediately.

“Holy shit! Teacher Zu even got his hands on Principal Jiang? He is a bloody legend!”

“How long has it even been since he first came here? Why does every single girl on the list of top beauties seem to have something to do with him? What’s so special about him, anyway? I don’t feel like he’s better than me at all!”

“Heh, keep dreaming. From what I’ve heard from the participants who went into the dungeon, Teacher Zu has a length of…”

The female students in the class had been looking at the male students in disdain, but this bit of information made them all perk up their ears.

“Are you serious?” They all covered their mouths in shock when they heard this, and their faces became completely red.

Meanwhile, Zu An, who had been dragged out of the classroom by Jiang Luofu, was enjoying the feeling of her soft hand around his. He couldn’t help but say, “Principal Jiang, there’s no need for you to be in such a hurry! You could have just said the word and I would have come rushing over. Barging in like that in full view of all the other students will surely stir up some unflattering rumors. I am a married man after all…”

Jiang Luofu had no patience for his bullshit.

“Can you do something about that rubbish mouth of yours already? Something major happened to the Chu clan, and you’re still here fooling around.”

Zu An’s expression froze immediately. “Something happened to the Chu clan? What happened?”

Didn’t they just manage to settle that huge fiasco not too long ago? Even Chu Zhongtian has returned. What else could go wrong?

Jiang Luofu had a grave expression. “Earlier this morning, the general of the Imperial Guard led a contingent of cavalry into the city and headed straight for the Chu clan. They seem to be investigating the accumulated losses incurred by the salt commissioners and the Chu clan’s bribes.”

She gave him a rough explanation of Liu Yao’s status and strength, as well as the significance of the yellow-armored cavalry.

Zu An’s expression flickered as he listened. He finally understood what had happened. This was surely another of Sang Hong’s schemes!

Jiang Luofu continued, “They are going after people from the Chu clan one after another and arresting them right now, so they’ll probably be here soon. I advise you to go into hiding first. Bring Chu Second Miss with you as well.”

“Okay. Thank your principal!” Zu An said seriously.

“Don’t mention it. We are pretty much friends now. Moreover, the Chu clan has always had a good relationship with the academy. Even though there is only so much I can do, I will still do whatever I can.” Jiang Luofu paused. “Right, do you have a place to hide in?”

Zu An hesitated. “The only place is probably Hidden Dragon Mountain.”

The Whale Gang’s old hideout wasn’t bad, as it was pretty well-hidden. The crimson dragon’s cave was a decent choice as well. If they went there, however, he wouldn’t have much access to news in the city…

Jiang Luofu said, “The mountain isn’t a good choice, for various reasons. You might as well continue to stay in the staff residences.”

Zu An was hesitant. “Wouldn’t that bring the academy more trouble?”

“Don’t worry, the academy has always enjoyed a respected status. Not even the general Liu Yao would dare to barge in unprovoked,” said Jiang Luofu. “Of course, you and Huanzhao cannot go out and wander about. It’ll be hard for me to keep the two of you hidden if that happens.”

“Thank you so much, gorgeous principal.” Zu An didn’t refuse this offer. He did indeed require a safe hiding spot right now. He would have taken a chance if it had been just him alone, but there was also Chu Huanzhao to think of.

He quickly went to the Black Class to fetch Huanzhao. She was horrified when she heard about what was going on in the Chu Estate, and insisted on going back.

“Huanzhao, please calm down. Everyone in the estate is being captured right now. If you go back now, you’ll just be surrendering yourself pointlessly. That’s completely meaningless,” Zu An said in a low voice.

Chu Huanzhao raised her head and said, “But we can’t just sneak off and continue living as though nothing happened! I would rather stand together with mom and dad during this crisis!”

Zu An was stunned. This kid was always causing trouble, but she was quite steadfast and strong-willed. “Don’t be in such a rush. I’ll go out and take a look first. We’ll gather information and think of a plan.”

Chu Huanzhao’s mood instantly improved. She hooked her arms around his neck and said, “Brother-in-law is the best! If you’re going to do something about it, I’m sure everything will turn out okay!”

Zu An smiled bitterly. He didn’t know why Huanzhao had so much confidence in him. He didn’t even have much confidence in himself this time.

After settling her down in his staff residence and instructing her to pay attention to certain things, Zu An headed to the Sky Class to find Zheng Dan. This was definitely the work of Sang Hong. He wanted to confirm whether she knew anything about this or not.

However, Zheng Dan was nowhere to be seen. Instead, he was greeted with hisses of displeasure.

Wu Qing’s voice was the harshest of them all. “Teacher Zu, I know you think Miss Zheng is pretty, but that doesn’t mean you can always come looking for her! Don’t you care about her reputation at all?”

Pan Long immediately spoke up in agreement. “Indeed! You’re already married! You should learn how to act like a proper married man.”

“What the heck are you trying to do here? Miss Zheng is going to get married tomorrow!”

Only now did Zu An remember that Zheng Dan had already stopped coming to the academy a while back. He left quickly. He had no time to bicker with these people.

He deliberately presented himself at the gates of the academy, making it seem as though he had left. This would make it easier for Jiang Luofu to cover for him.

He headed straight to the Zheng Estate. The entire clan was decorated with lanterns and banners. The congratulatory messages, which were hung everywhere, were especially piercing to him.

With a cold snort, he walked straight up to the main entrance.

The gatekeeper stopped him when they saw his arrival. “The first miss is getting married tomorrow. She won’t meet with another man at this time.”

Zu An’s face darkened. “I’m sure you remember the last time I was here. Tell her that I am looking for her, and she will agree to see me.”

“This…” This gatekeeper really did remember the previous incident. This person seemed rather important to their first miss.

Zu An tossed over a silver ingot. That gatekeeper was immediately overjoyed. “Please wait here, young master. This humble one will send a message.”

Soon afterwards, someone invited him inside. Zu An was slightly entranced when he laid eyes on the familiar Zhuluo Residence.

“Ah Zu, why did you come here?” Zheng Dan dismissed her servants and looked at him with pleasant surprise.

Zheng Dan was already dressed in luxurious red wedding clothes, clearly in preparation for the next day’s wedding.

She looked absolutely enchanting in her dress. However, her eyes were slightly red. It was obvious that she had been crying not long ago.

“You look really beautiful today.” Even though he’d come carrying anger within his heart, her appearance was truly breathtaking.

Zheng Dan pursed her lips. Her eyes suddenly became red. “I’m starting to regret all this. Perhaps you should just take me away with you now.”

Zu An sighed. “I fear that’s not possible.”

“What happened?” Zheng Dan asked at once. Something was clearly wrong with his expression.

Zu An explained the events that had taken place in the Chu Estate. He looked at her intently. “Sang Hong lied to me. Were you involved as well?”

Zheng Dan was biting her lip so hard, it seemed as though she was about to draw blood. “If you don’t believe me, I’ll go with you right now to stand against the Sang clan!”

She grabbed his hand and began to walk out.

The clan master of the Zheng clan, Zheng Yutang, happened to be standing at the entrance. “Dan’er, what are you trying to do?”

He frowned when he saw their tightly-locked hands.

“Father, I need to pay the Sang clan a visit.” Zheng Dan said in a low voice.

“You’re going to cause trouble!” Zheng Yutang immediately got angry. “You’re marrying Sang Qian tomorrow! Who goes to their fiancé's house at such an hour? That’s bad luck!”

“I don’t care! I must pay the Sang clan a visit!” Zheng Dan said through clenched teeth.

“No. You are not allowed to go anywhere today! Dan’er, you have always been obedient since you were little. What happened to you today?” Zheng Yutang looked at Zu An. “Did this guy bewitch you?”

He was aware that his daughter had previously approached him to steal the promissory note from the Silverhook Casino. Why did it seem like her act had somehow turned into the real deal?

Damn this Zu An! Does he specialize in stealing the hearts of girls from major clans or something?

You have successfully trolled Zheng Yutang for 432 Rage points!

“I have nothing to do with him…” Zheng Dan quickly explained.

Zu An cut her off. “Enough, I trust Miss Zheng’s words. I still have other matters to take care of. I won’t disturb you any further.”

With that, he took off in a hurry.

Zheng Dan chased after him, but her father stopped her. His expression grew dark. “Dan’er, shouldn’t you tell me what is really going on here?”

…

After he left the Zheng clan, Zu An took the time to compose himself. Confronting Sang Hong right now was completely meaningless. He might even be walking straight into a trap. His top priority was to find a way to get the Chu clan out of this mess.

An idea came to him, and he took out the recording mirror to call Chu Chuyan.