"You two, leave first." Eunuch Zhao frowned, seeming to find this troublesome, but he still told the two young eunuchs standing nearby, "It is getting late. Go rest."
This was the Imperial Palace, not outside. Eunuch Zhao was not afraid that anyone would try to assassinate him here.
Besides, given his current situation, even Ma Shunde, who had always regarded him as a thorn in his eye and a barb in his flesh, would not go out of his way to do such a needless thing.
The two young eunuchs answered respectfully and withdrew.
Once they had left, Eunuch Zhao looked at the young eunuch before him with a smile that was not quite a smile. His usually kindly-looking face carried a trace of surprise as he asked, "Who sent you?"
The young eunuch's expression changed at once. Clever and composed, he kowtowed. "This servant is naturally one of Talent Liu's people. However, someone asked this servant to convey a question to you."
He Zhang-ed his mouth, but his voice turned hoarse and low. "Do... do you still remember the grace shown to you by this palace and the Crown Prince?"
"You..."
The instant those words came out, Eunuch Zhao's calm expression changed. His face turned blue-white as he sprang to his feet and glared at the young eunuch like a tiger eyeing its prey. The candlelight flickered bright and dim, making his features seem savage, and he said in a chilling voice, "Grace? What did you say?"
The young eunuch knelt before him. Though he had prepared himself, he lacked experience after all, and his body trembled. Yet it was already too late to change his words. He prostrated himself and kowtowed. "In answer to Your Excellency's question... do you still remember the grace shown to you by this