Chapter 1325: Surprise Attack Zu An gave the Second Empress a look. He suddenly felt that this woman wasn’t as great as he had thought. Why had they come to search her own chambers so quickly? The Second Empress clearly felt a bit embarrassed too. She first gestured for Zu An to stop Qiao Xueying from making any sound, then said coldly, “If you are all going to search for the assassin, then go look for him. What are you coming to this empress’ chambers for?” Zu An was a bit troubled. Qiao Xueying was still affected by the poison, which made her groan and pant for air from time to time. Sweet moans also emerged from her throat every so often. In her current state, it would be useless even if he spoke to her; still, he was reluctant to cover her mouth with his hand, worried that he might hurt her. After thinking about it, he bent down and kissed her. The half unconscious Qiao Xueying groaned, as if her passion had instantly been ignited. Then, she wrapped herself around him like an octopus. The Second Empress was speechless. What kind of place are these two treating this palace as?! The worst part was that she knew that Zu An was doing so to stop Qiao Xueying from making any noise, so she couldn't really say anything either. A guard called out from outside, “Second Empress, please do not be offended. This is the Fiend Emperor’s decree; we must find the assassin even if we dig up three feet across the entire palace. Even all the concubines’ residences, as well as the princes’ and princess’ residences, are being searched to prevent that assassin from disturbing the nobles.” Even though his words were flowery, both sides knew that the main reason for the search was suspicion that someone inside the palace was hiding the assassin. The Second Empress harrumphed. “Would this empress not know if an assassin were hiding in my own territory? Go search somewhere else.” “Um…” The guard was quite troubled. The empress’ status was special, so he didn’t dare to offend her too badly. However, there had been an absolute order from above telling them to check every single place. How would he explain things later if he overlooked an area? “What are all of you gathered around this place for?” a loud and clear voice called out. Another group of soldiers seemed to have arrived. “General Niu, you came at a good time. This is the situation…” The guard gave him a rough summary of what had happened. Zu An was startled. General Niu was probably the Right General Niu Dao, whom Kong Qing had mentioned. Niu Dao called out, “Second Empress, that assassin’s cultivation is profound, and he has seriously injured the crown prince. Not only that, he even successfully broke free after taking a blow from Elder Wu. There was not the slightest reaction from the imperial palace’s outer defenses at all, so it is easy to see how powerful his stealth technique is. If someone like that wanted to remain hidden, I fear it would be difficult for the Second Empress to notice his existence. Please let us enter and carry out a search, as that will also guarantee your respected self’s own safety.” The Second Empress frowned. She could only say, “I have already gotten into bed to rest. Now is not a good time to receive guests.” She thought that would be enough to make them back off, but Niu Dao said with a serious tone, “The Fiend Emperor has issued the decree that every single corner must be searched. I hope that the Second Empress will not trouble us. This humble official will only come in with a few subordinates, and we will leave after a simple search. We will definitely not hold up the empress’ rest.” He gestured with his hands as he spoke. As an experienced Guard General, he was already suspicious; he worried that the Second Empress was being threatened by someone, making her continue to refuse their search. The Second Empress noticed their reaction through the window. She knew that her own cleverness had simply made the other side more suspicious. That would make things troublesome. She had never expected the Fiend Emperor to give such an order, one that included even her chambers in the search. She would have made the two of them return to the secret passage, but the sound of the passage opening definitely wouldn’t escape the ears of those outside. If that passage were revealed, she would really be done for. As such, she quickly got up, gesturing for Zu An to bring Qiao Xueying with him and hide on the bed. Zu An was shocked, but the situation was dire. He couldn't be bothered to worry too much, picking up Qiao Xueying and leaping toward the bed. He was quite curious, though. Wouldn’t they be easily discovered if he hid on the bed? What was this Second Empress trying to do? Thank goodness I have Hidden in the Dark. No one can sense anything if I hide under the covers. He held Qiao Xueying in his arms. He was about to use Hidden in the Dark when the covers suddenly moved, and another warm body also made its way in. Zu An was speechless. “Do not think too much of it. I simply do not want you to be exposed,” the Second Empress said. Perhaps Zu An had misheard, but her tone was no longer ambiguous the way it had been before; rather, she sounded a bit embarrassed. Then, after some hesitation, the Second Empress removed her dress, only leaving behind a thin personal garment. Even the skin underneath was vaguely visible. She leaned to one side to make the covers swell up, making it easier to cover Zu An and Snow beneath them. “Come closer!” the Second Empress said through ki. It would be difficult for others to see that she was hiding them if they were farther away from the door. Thankfully, she was the master of the harem, so everything was up to the highest standard. From the bed to the covers, everything was the largest possible size; that made them just about adequate to deal with the situation. At the same time, a cold glint flickered through her eyes. If things really were exposed, she would just say that she had been forced by him. At that point, it would be best if the two were silenced on the spot. How could Zu An know that she was hiding such killing intent? He simply felt a bit apologetic. Not only had she saved him, she had even sacrificed so much. In order to avoid arousing suspicion, he didn’t lean directly against her, but instead pushed Qiao Xueying between the two of them. Fortunately, Snow’s body was petite, so there was enough room to hide her between them. A look of surprise appeared in the Second Empress’ eyes. She hadn’t expected this guy to be such a gentleman. However, her attention quickly shifted to the young lady behind her. Because of the drug, Qiao Xueying body really was heating up a lot. That heat made the Second Empress feel some concern. Niu Dao called out again. “Second Empress, please forgive this humble one’s actions. I am coming in!” He really was worried that the Second Empress was being threatened, so he didn’t wait for a reply and pushed open the door, barging in with several subordinates. Once they entered, the Golden Crow Guards began to carefully examine any spots that could hide anything. Only a few people had been brought in, but they were all carefully selected experts. After searching the surroundings, they gradually pressed in. Soon, they saw the Second Empress staring coldly at them, reclining on her side. They were all alarmed. The Second Empress was the most beautiful woman in the imperial palace, and always looked like a work of art created by the heavens, one that seemed to embody seduction itself. She had appeared in the dreams of countless guards. Once, a guard had begun talking in his sleep in the middle of the night. With a rustle of the covers, he had mumbled the words ‘Second Empress’. Afterward, the guards had found that his covers were a wet mess. That guard was quickly executed. From then on, people only dared to hide such thoughts at the very bottom of their minds, not daring to express them in the slightest. And yet now, they had actually been able to enter the Second Empress’ chambers and even see her resting posture. Their hearts that had been still for so long began to pound crazily. “Niu Dao, you are truly brazen. You even dare to barge into this empress’ chambers?” the Second Empress scolded him. Niu Dao really was as his name implied[1]. He had a pair of sharp horns on his head, and his nose was large and rough looking. When he heard that, he broke out into a cold sweat as he said, “Your highness, please forgive us. We are acting on the Fiend Emperor’s orders.” “Do not try to use the Fiend Emperor to convince me. Did he really tell you all to barge in and watch me sleep?” the Second Empress retorted, her expression cold. Even though her voice was still soft and charming, a layer of killing intent filled the air. She was still the empress of a country. Even though she wasn’t as strong as the Fiend Emperor, she wasn’t that weak. “This humble one does not dare!” Niu Dao replied, even as he saw the Second Empress’ chest rise and fall. Even though she was angry, her cheeks had a rosy blush, and her eyes were large and bright. Even though he was usually straightforward in nature, he felt his body heat up a bit. He didn’t dare to look too much and quickly said, “We will leave right after we finish our inspection.” Things had already reached this point, so he had to at least do his job. Otherwise, he would have offended her for nothing. He immediately smacked some of his subordinates in the backs of their heads to wake them up, reminding them to quickly finish the inspection. The guards were elites from the Golden Crow Guards, so their skill was naturally unquestionable. They quickly searched every corner of the room, but they didn’t find any suspicious signs. “This humble one does not dare to disturb your highness’ rest, so I will leave now,” Niu Dao said. He waved his hand and led his subordinates away. Many of them were a bit reluctant, because they would likely never be able to see the Second Empress in bed again. Even though they hadn’t seen anything, just the thought alone was stimulating. Suddenly, however, the Second Empress began trembling, and reflexively cried “Ouch!” Even though she quickly caught herself, it was already too late. Niu Dao and the others quickly turned around and looked at the bed. 1. Niu means ox. ☜