The Empress's No.1 Lackey-Chapter 185 - 164. The First Hand-Hold with the Empress

"Your Majesty…" Zhao Douan’s heart suddenly skipped a beat, and he subconsciously shrank back.

Fearful.

"…" Xu Zhenguan couldn’t help but feel exasperated, thinking to herself that Zhao was usually so bold. Back in the palace, he even dared to confess his feelings for her.

His eyes weren’t that honest either, so why was he turning into a coward today?

"I order you to come and sit beside me," she said, stressing her words.

Zhao Douan had no choice but to steel himself, stand up, and sit down on the small couch next to the Empress, keeping a certain distance.

"Come a bit closer," Xu Zhenguan sighed and patted the spot beside her.

"Oh." Zhao Douan grew even more suspicious, sensing that today’s Empress was a bit strange.

His nerves tensed as he carefully shuffled closer and sat down by her side.

Being too close, as soon as he sat down, he acutely felt a wave of heat.

That was the heat emanating from the Empress’s body, mingling with a faint fragrance in the stifling heat of a summer day, creating an indescribable atmosphere.

The two sat upright and proper, yet incredibly close to each other.

Staring straight ahead, they resembled a couple from a period drama, sitting side by side in a photo studio, facing the camera.

Except there was an element of stiffness.

"Your Majesty…" Zhao Douan was nervous as hell, always feeling as if a disaster loomed, but he couldn’t afford to let his thoughts wander.

Though the Empress appeared calm and composed on the outside, her subtle movements betrayed an inner turmoil not reflected by her exterior.

She said,

"You’ve broken through to a higher cultivation realm quite some time ago. Just now, I noticed that your aura seemed impeded, and I fear that you might have encountered a deviation in your cultivation. Today, I shall personally examine you."

Of course, this was just a made-up excuse to serve as a plausible reason.

"Thank you for your grace, Your Majesty…"

Zhao Douan felt that there was something insincere about her words, but he lacked evidence. With cautious probing, he asked,

"Your Majesty, can’t you observe my physique with Divine Thought?"

Xu Zhenguan replied indifferently,

"Divine Thought has its limitations. shortly, I will infuse my internal energy into your body to inspect your meridians."

Another lie.

Today, she primarily wanted to verify whether there was any mutual influence between her and this Little Forbidden Army soldier in their cultivation.

Naturally, Divine Thought could not be used as a substitute.

Of course, as Eunuch Hai had mentioned, she definitely wouldn’t attempt the Yin-Yang Great Joy Poem used by high monks from the Western Regions Buddhism here in the carriage…

Thus, she only prepared for a slight test. But even without attempting "Dual Cultivation," physical contact was inevitable.

Verification would be clearer that way.

"Oh oh." Zhao Douan panicked even more, feeling like the Empress must have noticed his secret.

But unable to resist, he hesitated, then asked,

"Do I need to visualize anything?"

He figured that if he visualized during the procedure, he could avoid speaking to Xu and better conceal his secret.

"There’s no need," Xu Zhenguan was oblivious to the little Martial Artist’s thoughts beside her:

"Just the transfer of internal energy is enough. Afterward, you shall breathe in and out, circulating the energy in the usual manner, no need for visualization."

Zhao Douan let out a silent sigh of relief, thinking perhaps he had been mistaken.

Was she just checking his meridians, not the secrets of the Martial God Map?

Seeing that he hadn’t moved, Xu Zhenguan sternly said, "Your hand."

"Ah?"

"…For the transfer of internal energy, we need to have palm contact."

Hmm?

A question mark slowly rose above Zhao Douan’s head. If he hadn’t misunderstood…

He turned his head and glanced involuntarily at the delicate hand of the Empress in white robes.

Inside the royal carriage, the Empress, with her crown removed, sat up straight. Her naturally perfect skin was like ice and jade—just sitting there, she was already a magnificent scene to behold in the world.

Her hands were slightly curled up, resting on her thighs in a particularly stiff pose, marked with deliberateness and unnaturalness.

On the left side, the side closest to him, her fair and slender fingers slowly unfolded.

Resting on her thigh, palm up and fingers spread, she thought for a moment and then lifted it, suspending it in the space between them.

"… Look ahead," commanded Xu Zhenguan.

Zhao Douan sharply turned his head, sitting shoulder-to-shoulder with her, staring at the motion of the light-yellow curtains accompanying the carriage’s movement.

As if he needed the instruction.

He opened his well-proportioned right hand, palm facing down, his heart beating a little faster:

"Should I… now?"

"Stop with the nonsense," Xu Zhenguan seemed annoyed, "A doctor’s examination, nothing more. You need not worry."

A tone filled with propriety and righteousness.

"Oh…"

That’s what you asked for... Zhao Douan thought. Without needing to look, guided by memory alone, his hand naturally covered hers.

Contact made, adjusting the position, fingers interlinked.

Silence.

How to describe it?

Zhao Douan wanted to find an elegant line of poetry to describe the feeling but came up blank, only sensing a softness that seemed boneless. In the sweltering heat of summer, it surprisingly held a hint of coolness.

It made the small boat in his heart’s Qi Sea sway slightly.

"…" Xu Zhenguan stiffened for a moment. Though her gaze didn’t wander, she could cheat—her invisible Divine Thought had already enveloped their surroundings.

The first thought that crossed her mind was,

Was her hand always this small?

It didn’t seem that different normally, but now the contrast seemed so pronounced…

Then, an indescribable subtle sensation.

A Great Cultivator of the Heavenly Human Realm, who could face thousands of troops without flinching, felt a flutter in her composure.

It shouldn’t have been like this, as she had said, it’s merely a doctor’s examination—there shouldn’t be any other thoughts.

But perhaps it was because of what Eunuch Hai said the other day, giving her a subtle hint.

Together with the exchanges over the past period and the intentionally released "rumors," these things slightly stirred her composure at this moment.

Nonetheless, the Empress quickly regained her composure and began transferring her internal energy.

Zhao Douan also closed his eyes, clearly feeling a cool stream flowing into the palm of his hand.

A stream of pure golden, noble turbulence flowed out from the Empress’s meridians, entering the interior of her body.

The Qi Sea within was much more insipid in color, and the Qi within reacted instinctively, trying to resist, but it was easily suppressed without stirring up the slightest ripple.

If the inheritances were different, the collision of Qi flows would inevitably cause damage.

But at this moment, the two Qi flows, from the same origin and lineage, merged immediately into one.

Then, Zhao Douan distinctly felt that the Qi within his body was completely out of control, slowly flowing through his meridians under the Empress’s manipulation.

It was as if he had activated an idle mode, where his body cultivated on its own.

After a complete cycle through the meridians, the combined Qi of the two returned to the Empress’s meridians, also completing a cycle.

When it cycled back again, Zhao Douan faintly perceived that the Qi had grown slightly more robust.

But he didn’t think much of it, merely assuming it was due to the Empress’s strength, a mere leak.

Xu Zhenguan’s sensations, however, were much clearer.

She discovered, without a doubt, that the speed of her breathing and cultivation increased a bit with the merger of their two Qi flows.

A very minor extent, but it indeed existed!

The Empress was stunned, so, Mr. Hai was telling the truth... It had nothing to do with the Primordial Ancestor Temple, but only with this Little Forbidden Army.

But... why would that be?

Though few cultivate the Royal Martial Arts, she was not the only one.

Not to mention those eunuchs, but even the Crown Prince, the Second Prince, and other members of the Royal Family had not experienced such effects when they cultivated together as siblings.

Could it really be a matter of compatible constitutions?

She wasn’t certain and tried another round, then a third.

Unconsciously, as they completed more cycles, Zhao Douan felt increasingly hotter, and his usually calm spirit became inexplicably restless and irritable.

Xu Zhenguan felt the same way, but she knew it was caused by the method of cultivation.

Once the Qi of Yin and Yang met, they would tend to draw nearer to each other.

She decisively stopped her breathing exercises, opened her beautiful eyes, and said,

"Fortunately, it might be due to the heat of summer, your Yang energy is fervent; it’s nothing serious."

Zhao Douan also opened his eyes and nodded:

"Thank you for the diagnosis, Your Majesty."

Xu Zhenguan’s mouth twitched helplessly and she said,

"Then why are you still holding on to it... We’re approaching the Imperial Court, you should get down."

"Oh, right." Zhao Douan reluctantly withdrew his hand and stood up to take his leave.

The Empress ordered the stopping of the Royal carriage and watched Zhao Douan leave.

Only when the spacious carriage was left with her alone did she let out a deep breath, lifted her hand, and looked at the sweat in her palm, somewhat distracted.

It really could work... But...

It was of little significance.

The gap between their Cultivation Realms was too great.

Which meant that although a boost in cultivation existed, it was... quite limited.

As for the enlightenment received that night in the Primordial Ancestor Temple, today there was none.

With the Empress’s current level of cultivation, the little enhancement Zhao Douan provided was not meaningless, but it was also extremely minimal.

Considering the cost...

"Sigh, that’s a relief." Xu Zhenguan unexpectedly breathed a sigh of relief.

But, an involuntary thought emerged in her mind:

He was of little use at the Mortal Realm, but what about when he reaches the Worldly Realm?

Would it be different?

"Forget it, entering the Worldly Realm is no easy task. Even with the Royal Cultivation Technique, it requires a decade of hard work..."

Xu Zhenguan shook her head.

In any case... it was still early.

Instead of contemplating this, it would be better to search for the "Dragon Essence" left by the ancestors.

She always suspected that the Dragon Essence might still exist in the World, possibly even hidden within the Imperial Palace.

But she had never been able to find it, uncertain of its location.

Shaking her head, Xu Zhenguan called for Mo Zhaorong, who was following behind:

"Tonight, I shall enter seclusion for some days; it won’t be long, about half a month.

If there are no urgent matters, do not disturb me. With the Xiuwen Pavilion established, you and Grandmaster Dong can make decisions. If unsure, wait for my seclusion to end."

She had been preoccupied with state affairs and had not sequestered herself for cultivation in a long while; she was finally relieved.

As for new policies, they could not be immediately finalized. With Grandmaster Dong presiding, all she needed was to review and finalize them in the end.

Mo Zhaorong nodded in acknowledgment: "Understood."

As the yellow curtains of the carriage fell and the carriage resumed its journey towards the Imperial Palace, Mo Chou stood in place, her expression uncertain.

With a woman’s keen intuition, she sensed that something about Her Majesty was off today.

...

...

"Phew, I finally escaped."

Nearby, at the mouth of a street alley, Zhao Douan exhaled deeply, his expression odd.

Just now in the carriage, he had been sincerely cultivating, his mind clear, but later on, inexplicably, his thoughts came unbidden, and Little Zhao stirred restlessly.

"This isn’t normal! There’s something strange!"

Zhao Douan rubbed his face, circulated his "Frost Qi," calming his mind, but couldn’t understand the reason no matter how hard he thought.

"This is so strange..."

Zhao Douan was puzzled, not understanding if he had exposed anything.

After pondering for a while, he shook his head, casting aside the doubts to avoid mental exhaustion.

Composing himself, he stepped out of the alley with his stomach growling even louder, hungrier than before.

Glancing around, he decided to find something to eat first.

However, as he was deliberating what to have for lunch,

Suddenly, an elegant, unadorned carriage slowly stopped before him.

The carriage curtain lifted,

Revealing "the Capital’s number one literary gentleman," Han Zhou, with his gentle and moist face:

"Lord Zhao, we meet again."

...

This content is taken from fгeewebnovёl.com.

ps: In the past, I’ve been flagged by the censor, leading me to write scenes involving the male and female leads with much trepidation. This level shouldn’t trigger the censor, right?