Zu An couldn’t be bothered about these Rage points right now. He watched Pei Mianman leave with a deep sense of frustration.

“Stop looking already, she’s gone.” Chu Chuyan appeared at his side. Her voice wasn’t as calm as before.

Zu An chuckled. “Are you jealous?”

“Who would be jealous of you?” Chu Chuyan snorted and left.

Zhuxie Chixin walked over. “We’re returning to the capital. Bind him up with Soul-Reaping Chains.”

Chu Chuyan, who was just leaving, immediately returned to her husband’s side. “He decided to come back on his own, which showed that he has no plans of running. Why are you still restraining him with those chains?”

Zhuxie Chixin frowned. “It is merely a precaution. We won’t be able to always keep watch over him.”

Chu Chuyan was undeterred. “He’s had many chances to run away already. If you insist on binding him with Soul-Reaping Chains, then we’ll just fight to the death here! Either way, he’s dead when he gets to the capital anyway. What difference does it make?”

Zhuxie Chixin’s brow tightened further, but King Liang stepped in. “Commander Zhuxie, we may still face many dangers along the way. If we are all held up, and someone tries to kill him while he is powerless to defend himself, things will go poorly for us.”

This was exactly what had happened to him. Strictly speaking, even if Zu An escaped, it would still be better than for him to die to his assassins. If he got away, they would still have the chance to recapture him. If he died, that would be permanent. Where would the emperor find another Phoenix Nirvana Sutra then?

Zhuxie Chixin snorted. “Now that I’m around, that won’t happen.”

Despite his words, he did not insist on tying Zu An up.

Zu An was finally put into a special carriage. Even though it wasn’t as splendid as Liu Yao’s carriage, it was much better than a prison carriage. After so many assassination attempts, they didn’t dare place him in an open prison carriage. The walls of this carriage had been carved with special formations that could block the arrows of any potential assassins.

Chu Chuyan demanded to be placed in the carriage as well. Zhuxie Chixin’s first reaction was to refuse.

What kind of joke is this? How can a criminal be allowed to freely interact with others?

When Zhuxie Chixin learned that Zheng Dan and Zu An had shared the same carriage, he secretly wished death upon his former jailers.

Absolutely preposterous! Putting a man and a woman together like that… If something happened, it would shame the entire court.

Seeing Chu Chuyan’s cold expression, though, he figured that that was the least of his worries. However, since the emperor himself had ordered this arrest, it was still best to prevent others from interacting with him.

Unexpectedly, it was Zu An’s turn to kick up a fuss. He railed about how this was his final journey, and that it was inhuman not to allow a husband and wife to spend their final moments together. He threatened to fight to the death instead of allowing himself to be escorted to the capital.

Zhuxie Chixin felt his head begin to throb. He was finally experiencing King Liang and Liu Yao’s earlier frustrations for himself.

“I can protect him inside and serve as a final line of protection,” Chu Chuyan said.

Zhuxie Chixin pondered it over, and finally agreed. Even though he believed that he had brought enough men to deal with any situation, it was still better to be safe than sorry.

He was also aware that there could be spies among their party. If they found an opening and attacked Zu An, things would become truly dicey.

He might suspect anyone else, but there was no way Chu Chuyan would collude with any other powers.

...

Their group set out. Outside the carriage, the guards were extremely vigilant. On the contrary, it was much more peaceful inside.

“Why are you staring at me?” Chu Chuyan asked. She touched her own face, feeling slightly uncomfortable under his gaze. She thought that she had something on her face.

“My wife, it’s been too long. You’ve become prettier and prettier.” Zu An said with a chuckle.

Chu Chuyan’s face froze. “Who are you calling your wife? We’re already divorced.”

She didn’t want to cause trouble while Pei Mianman had been around, but now that they were alone, she did not need to worry about that.

Zu An was unfazed. “Even though you say that, I know you still care about me. You helped me out by convincing Zhuxie Chixin to agree to this arrangement.”

Chu Chuyan sighed. She knew as well that now wasn’t the time to get jealous. She sent him a ki transmission. “I argued for this arrangement because I wanted to give you a chance. I’ll help you escape when a good opportunity presents itself.”

Zu An looked at her. “But if we do that, what about you? What about the Chu Clan?”

Chu Chuyan became quiet. After a long silence, she said, “I can’t be bothered with all of that now, given how things stand. The emperor cannot destroy our clan over this matter, even if he wants to. Our clan still has some connections. We didn’t have time to use them in Brightmoon City, but we definitely will not submit so easily this time.”

Zu An shook his head. “There is no need for you and the Chu clan to take that risk. I’ll just go to the capital. I might still be spared.”

Chu Chuyan was curious. “Just what kind of plan do you have?”

Zu An shook his head. “I actually don’t have that much confidence in it. If I talk about it now, I’ll only lower the chances of success.”

“Then I won’t ask about it anymore.” Chu Chuyan bit her lip. “I’ll seek someone out once we reach the capital. If he’s willing to help, he might be able to free you from the emperor’s hands.”

Frightened, Zu An quickly said, “Please don’t do anything foolish! You aren’t allowed to sacrifice your own purity for my sake!”

All the stupid TV dramas he’d watched had left him with lasting trauma. For the sake of the male lead, the female lead would beg the villain for mercy. The villains would inevitably demand that she offer her body as payment, to which she would agree…

Did the directors make up all that garbage because it was their fetish, or did they do it to mess with society?

Chu Chuyan’s fair cheeks blushed when she understood what he meant. “Hmph! What kind of nonsense are you thinking of? I was going to ask my grandfather for help!”

Zu An was surprised. “Who is your grandfather? Is he really amazing?”

After all, the emperor wanted to get him to hand over the secrets to immortality. He really couldn’t picture a single man persuading someone like that to let him go.

After a slight hesitation, Chu Chuyan said, “There is no point in hiding it from you at this point. My grandfather is Qin Zheng, the Vanguard General. His brother, my granduncle, is Qin Se, the Defense General.”

Qin Zheng, Qin Se?[1]

Zu An was just about to mock them for their weird names when he suddenly remembered what Shang Liuyu had said about these positions, back in Brightmoon Academy.

The Vanguard General was in charge of the six armies to the north. The entire dynasty’s elite troops were under his command.

The two guard armies that the cocky Liu Yao commanded were part of these six armies. He served under the Vanguard General.

The Defense General was in charge of all of the mid- and high-level military officials. He also managed the troops in the outskirts of the capital.

In the army, the Great General and White Rider General held the highest ranks, but these were more positions of honor rather than real authority.

On the contrary, the Vanguard General and the Defense General were active members of the military. To a certain degree, her two grandfathers were considered the number one and number two officers in the military.

Zu An was rather stunned. “Your grandfather’s clan is so powerful! Why are there so many people in Brightmoon City bullying your Chu clan?”

Chu Chuyan sighed. “It’s an old story. Back then, my grandfather did not agree to my mother’s marriage to my father, and arranged a different marriage for her. Later on, my mother chose to elope with my father, leaving him furious. He severed all ties to her.

“Both my grandfather and my mother are stubborn and unyielding, and they haven’t contacted each other, even after all these years. Only in recent years did they slowly begin to reach out to one another because of her children. Even then, it was only out of concern for us.

“Grandfather hates my father. The fact that he hasn’t tried to do anything to my father is already a blessing. Why would he step in to help the Chu Clan?”

Zu An laughed, and then clung to her thighs. “I never expected this at all! I ended up marrying the most awesome Miss Perfect in the entire country, as well as the granddaughter of the most badass officials! I definitely have to cling tightly to these thick thighs.”[2]

Chu Chuyan tried many times, but just couldn’t push him away. In the end, she had to let him do what he wanted. Her face was beet red. “What nonsense are you spouting? There are so many girls with similar or better backgrounds in the capital! I’m nothing like what you describe. Furthermore, strictly speaking, it was I who married you… Also, what do you mean when you say my thighs are thick?”

Are they chubbier than Pei Mianman’s? Of course, she was too embarrassed to ask him that.

Zu An now remembered that he was a drafted son-in-law, but he didn’t care. “Either way, we’ve already divorced, so the past doesn’t count. I’ll just have to court you again this time.”

Chu Chuyan’s cold and emotionless exterior shattered instantly when she sensed his hands inching up her thighs. Her face flushed red. This fellow really is a rascal through and through

1. These are musical instruments.

2. Clinging to someone’s thighs is slang for mooching.