The Empress's No.1 Lackey

Chapter 1042 - 579: Unmasking (Part 1)

"Your Majesty, here are the confidential battle reports from Xiping and Iron Pass." Sun Lianying, wearing a Python Robe and with frost-white temples, said softly as she lightly pushed the exquisitely carved door of the Imperial Study Room.

The Empress, who had just put down her brush and was rubbing her twitching eyelids, responded with a simple "Hm": "Leave it aside."

Sun Lianying crossed the threshold and placed the reports on the desk covered with golden silk cloth, looking at the Empress with concern: "Is Your Majesty still worried about the Huai River battle?"

Xu Zhenguan glanced at the loyal old eunuch, sighed softly, and his eyes were filled with anxiety: "Indeed, I cannot put my mind at ease."

Ever since Zhao Shixiong pledged allegiance to the court, the Huai River battle focused mainly on the western front, with the southern campaign against Mu starting. Countless eyes across the court turned towards the south, eagerly waiting for the developments in the war.

Xu Zhenguan was initially not anxious, believing that if there were significant changes, Zhao Douan would certainly return via the Stone Wall to the Capital and report to her.

However... the situation developed unexpectedly.

Several days had passed, and Zhao Douan still hadn’t returned, but what truly worried Xu Zhenguan was that two nights ago, she vaguely sensed celestial phenomena fluctuations from the direction of Huai River.

It was far less clear than when Zhao Douan had stopped the burning city.

The Empress hurried to the Heavenly Master Mansion that night to seek answers, but was met with closed doors. She was informed by Gongshu Tianyuan that Zhang Yan Yi was not in the Capital and advised her to be patient and await good news.

Xu Zhenguan did not know exactly what had happened, but found it difficult to leave her duties and personally travel south.

In the following two days, Zhao Douan still did not return.

And the latest intelligence on the southern conflict was still en route due to the short time.

Thus, Xu Zhenguan was particularly restless these two days, unable to sit still. But within this anxiety, she couldn’t differentiate whether it was for the war or for Zhao Douan.

"Your Majesty, please be at ease; good news may already be on the way." Sun Lianying comforted.

Facing the old eunuch who accompanied her since childhood, Xu Zhenguan forced a smile: "I understand."

Sun Lianying wanted to say something more but ultimately chose to remain silent, bowed, and exited the study.

Once the person left, the Empress picked up the reports on the table, opened them and reviewed them. There were no major surprises, and after some thought, she annotated them with a red brush and handed them to a female official to be sent to the Xiuwen Pavilion.

Then, feeling agitated, Xu Zhenguan once again stepped out of the Yangxin Hall and headed to the third floor of the old building behind the Martial Arts Hall.

These past two days, she almost personally checked every few hours.

This time, just like before, there was no change; the "Zhao Douan" puppet remained seated cross-legged beside the Stone Wall, motionless, nearly covered in a light gray.

"Alas..."

Standing inside the building, the Empress’ eyes dimmed as she sighed softly and shook her head.

She simply sat cross-legged on the meditation cushion once more, contemplating World.

...

The city’s night is as usual.

In urban woman’s attire, Xu Zhenguan opened her eyes to find herself in a park under the breezy night. From outside the park, the headlights of the cars speeding along the road swept in, illuminating her beautiful face.

"This time, things must be done."

Xu Zhenguan rose from the park bench, deep in thought.

Last time she came, she wanted to find some poems, but soon after entering, the body she left outside sensed the fluctuations of heaven and earth.

She had to end her contemplation early and go find Zhang Yan Yi... then temporarily set aside the search for poems, as it was not a matter of consequence.

Walking out of the park, Xu Zhenguan stood on the sidewalk, lost in thought.

Searching for ancient poems in this world should be easy, yet for a native like her, there remained some challenges.

She reached into her pocket for her "phone," lit up the screen, looked at the lock screen, and then turned it off.

Without a password, she couldn’t use it.

Of course, she could casually find a store and borrow someone else’s phone, or computer to use... Even without mana and imperial identity, her appearance would allow her to do that.

But the Empress’ pride made her unwilling to do so.

Moreover...

Though she had basically learned the language of this world and could converse with others, she was still not proficient with its written characters.

To search on her own was still challenging.

"I will find someone to help me check, then." Xu Zhenguan thought and headed towards the nearby Taiqing Palace.

Like many previous entries, the doors of the urban temple were closed, but there was still a small door.

Xu Zhenguan raised her hand to knock, and shortly after, the door opened, revealing a kind-faced, middle-aged female temple priest dressed in a blue Daoist robe.

Xu Zhenguan had interacted with the female temple priest many times before, even obtaining the name "Zhang Hui" from her initially.

The Empress habitually thought of her.

Unfortunately, the female temple priest did not have stored memories. First surprised, she warmly welcomed Xu Zhenguan inside after expressing her loss of memory and asking for assistance with a police report.

Inside the unchanged room, the desk still had a signing cylinder, and the courtyard windows still had a marriage tree covered in cloth strips.

"Can you help me search for a few poems? From... the internet." Xu Zhenguan directly expressed her purpose.

The female temple priest was momentarily stunned, though she found the request odd, she considered Xu Zhenguan’s amnesia and smiled gently: "Sure, what would you like to search for?"

With that, the female temple priest pulled a phone from her robe...

What poems to search for? Xu Zhenguan hesitated, she hadn’t thought about it, which brought her trouble. Then naturally, she recalled the poem Zhao Douan once gave her.

The Empress’ lips slightly curved as she spoke softly: "Search for your most famous Mid-Autumn Festival poem, yes, preferably a lyric."

She thought to herself, if this world also has a Mid-Autumn Festival, it would certainly have related poems.