Zu An felt goosebumps when he heard those words. He really had been too careless this time! He had been appreciating Concubine Bai’s scent just now, yet he was getting punished for it so soon afterward.

However, he had already been through many tough situations, so he reacted quickly as well. He immediately said with a sigh, “I think it’s the fragrance of that southern border expert Jia Sili. Her Spirit Master technique really is hard to deal with. I was almost done in by her illusion!”

“Spirit Master?” Sure enough, Chu Chuyan’s attention was redirected as she said, “Spirit Masters are a kind of expert found in the southern border, and they’re unpredictable and hard to deal with. They’re capable of silently taking a life.”

“Indeed, when our Great Zhou fought against the southern border in the past, we suffered severe casualties because of their Spirit Masters,” Murong Qinghe said. She had spent a lot of time in the army, so she knew some of these things. “The name Jia Sili sounds a bit familiar. I think she made the court’s experts suffer considerably. Big brother Zu, you were actually able to survive after facing her?!”

Her eyes sparkled. She had always revered the strong. Whether it was the time she had faced Zu An herself or his various accomplishments as of late, all of it left her in awe.

If big brother Chu were strong like this, how great would that be? Murong Qinghe thought to herself. Ah! What am I thinking? Big brother Chu is best just the way he is, pretty and gentle. I’ll do all of the fighting and dirty work.

Chu Chuyan quickly asked Zu An about his battle against Jia Sili. Zu An gave them a rough summary of what had happened, because he was worried that she might be at a disadvantage if she faced a Spirit Master in the future. That was why he emphasized Jia Sili’s attack methods. Of course, he changed the female lead Yun Yuqing to Chu Chuyan. Sigh, I need more practice cultivating the playboy arts…

Sure enough, when she heard that Zu An had made the entire world his enemy in the illusion, and that he had even fought against the emperor, Chu Chuyan was incredibly moved.

Chu Youzhao’s face was red from excitement. My brother-in-law is so awesome! He’s the best and strongest person in the world!

Even Murong Qinghe’s eyes began to be dazzled, darting toward Zu An from time to time, and then back to Chu Chuyan. A slightly conflicted expression flickered across her face momentarily.

Zu An secretly wiped his cold sweat. He had worried that these girls who were raised as faithful patriots would feel that his behavior was disgraceful. But he hadn’t expected these types of love stories to be so potent against women. No wonder Yun Yuqing had been so moved when she had heard such stories back then… Pah pah pah! Why am I still thinking about other girls right now? I’m fucking trash!

Zu An suddenly noticed some luggage off to the side. He was stunned and asked, “Why do you have all of this with you? Are you going on a trip somewhere?”

Chu Chuyan’s expression grew sad as she answered, “It’s not a trip; I have to go back to Brightmoon City.”

“What?” Zu An exclaimed, agitated.

Chu Chuyan said, “I just received news from my mother that something major happened back home in the Chu clan. That’s why I have to go back and take care of it.”

Chu Youzhao added, “Even though there wasn’t much time left, big sis still wanted to say goodbye to you first. When she heard that something happened to you, she could no longer remain calm and was pacing back and forth nervously here. I’ve never seen her so nervous in my life!”

Chu Chuyan harrumphed. “She’s exaggerating.”

Zu An laughed, and then pulled her over by the waist. “Isn’t it natural for a husband and wife to be worried for each other? Give me a kiss.”

Chu Chuyan’s ears turned red. “There are still people here.”

“Go, leave, get out of here. Stop getting in the way of our lover’s world.” Zu An waved his hands, impatiently chasing away the two third wheels.

“You guys are so embarrassing!” Chu Youzhao and Murong Qinghe giggled as they ran out. Despite having said that, they were actually jealous of such a relationship.

They had seen many cases of husbands and wives treating each other with superficial respect their entire lives, acting proper and courteous. There was nothing wrong with that; it was what they had been taught growing up. However, as women, they always felt that such relationships were missing a bit of passion and affection.

On the contrary, Zu An’s entirely different style was extremely fresh to them. They could sense the passion and brilliance of life emanating from him.

The two peeped into the room after walking out of the door. Murong Qinghe couldn’t help but ask quietly, “Say, do you think your brother-in-law is going to do that to your sister…” A pink blush appeared on her tanned skin halfway through her sentence. It was clear that the scene she had accidentally seen that night had left her with quite the impact.

She often dreamed about that scene at night. Only, the female lead would sometimes be Chu Chuyan, and sometimes herself. The male lead would sometimes be Zu An, and sometimes Chu Youzhao… She became extremely embarrassed whenever she thought about it. Why the hell would I dream about another man? I can’t let big brother Chu know…

Chu Youzhao also had a strange expression. “Probably not, right…?” She wasn’t so sure, though. She knew what kind of pervert her brother-in-law was.

“Should we go and take a look?” Murong Qinghe was rather bold to begin with, so she was eager to give it a try.

Chu Youzhao jumped in fright. “You’d better not! No way!” She wasn’t worried about her big sister, because they were all girls, so she didn’t care if Murong Qinghe saw that. She just felt it would be really bad if Murong Qinghe saw her brother-in-law.

…

While the pair was whispering outside, the two inside weren’t doing what they had imagined. Instead, they were just embracing each other affectionately.

“Chuyan, what’s so important that you have to go back?” Zu An asked reluctantly. Once Chuyan left, he really would feel like a complete foreigner here.

Chu Chuyan leaned against his chest. “I don’t know exactly either, but mother definitely wouldn’t speak without thinking. Something major has definitely happened back in the Chu clan.”

Zu An’s voice rose as he asked, “Is someone targeting the Chu clan? For better or for worse, I’m a rising star in the capital. Just let me know and I’ll get rid of them.”

“I know, you’re amazing.” Chu Chuyan couldn’t help but laugh. “But as for what it is exactly, I’ll only know once I go back and take a look myself.”

“Okay. I really can’t bear to see you leave…” Zu An looked at her sadly.

“Ah Zu, I don’t want to leave you either.” Chu Chuyan looked back reluctantly.

The two kissed each other passionately, as if they wanted to completely assimilate the other party into themselves.

…

By the time Zu An saw Chu Chuyan out of the city outskirts, the redness on her face still hadn’t faded. She said, “Ah Zu, I’ll come back to see you as soon as I finish what I need to do in Brightmoon City.”

“Okay. Let me know as soon as you return. I have some resources I can use in the capital now, so we don’t have to be bullied like before anymore,” Zu An reminded her.

Chu Chuyan voiced her acknowledgment. Then, she said to her little sister, “Youzhao, you have to take good care of your brother-in-law while I’m gone.”

Zu An was stunned. “Aren’t you getting the order wrong?”

Even Murong Qinghe was confused. Her big brother Chu was a gentle and beautiful man. Why did he have to take care of this thick skinned fellow?

Chu Chuyan shook her head. “Youzhao grew up under the care of his grandfathers, and he has Qinghe to help him as well, so I’m not too worried about him. But you’ve always been in danger during your time in the capital. You won’t be so lucky every time.”

Chu Youzhao became excited. She stuck out her chest and said, “Big sis, don’t worry! I’ll definitely take care of brother-in-law.”

Zu An smiled. He took Chu Chuyan’s hands into his own when he sensed her concern. “Chuyan, thank you.”

…

They had originally planned to separate in the city outskirts, but they walked another several dozen li together beyond that. In the end, they still had to separate.

When he returned to the capital, Zu An’s mood wasn’t too great. Chu Youzhao knew that he wasn’t in a good mood, so she didn’t bother him either and left with Murong Qinghe to give him some space.

Zu An sat on his bed in a stupor. Big Manman had left, Snow had left, Zheng Dan had left, Qiu Honglei had left, and now Chuyan had also left. He felt all alone in this world.

“Do you need someone to drink with?” said a chilly voice by the window.

Zu An turned around. The first thing that met his eyes was a pair of long, stunning legs. “Principal Jiang?”