After hearing that the Yuan and Meng court actually proposed such generous conditions in order to appease the Ming religion, Hu Long shook his head and laughed. He raised his wine glass and said to King Ruyang:
"The poor Taoist spends his leisurely life drinking wine and traveling around the world. Is he working so hard on this rebellious business just to win a royal title? Unless you, Yuan Meng, are willing to voluntarily withdraw from the flowery world of the Central Plains, otherwise there will be no relationship between us. There’s nothing left to talk about!”
King Ruyang saw that he was smiling but his words were categorical with no room for maneuver. He also suppressed the smile on his face and said solemnly: "Isn't Taoist Master afraid that many people will be killed immediately because of your wrong thoughts?"
Hu Yuan's face also turned cold, and he said calmly: "If the prince wants to use the people from various martial arts sects you captured to intimidate the poor man, he is paying the wrong attention. Since ancient times, there is nothing wrong with changing one's actions for the better. Bloodshed and sacrificed? At worst, in the future, poor Taoists will kill a hundred times a thousand times the people of Yuanmeng to avenge them."
The words were calm, but the awe-inspiring murderous intent contained in them made people shudder.
King Ruyang's expression changed several times, and he forced a smile and said: "Taoist Master, please don't misunderstand, I have no intention of doing so. It's just that since Taoist Master has arrived in Dadu, he doesn't want to come back empty-handed. I have a plan here, so we can How about those guys making a big bet for the money?"
Hu Long's expression remained unchanged: "I wonder how the prince wants to gamble?"
King Ruyang said: "Right now, I have placed those people in the Wan'an Temple in the West City, and the Taoist priest can use all his means to rescue them. If the rescue is successful, the Taoist priest can go and make earth-shaking changes at will. I think those people will also become Taoist priests." Please help; if the rescue fails, I urge the Taoist priest to accept the imperial decree and withdraw all the Mingjiao forces in the Central Plains to the Western Regions, so that from now on, there will be no harm in the river."
Hu Long said with a smile: "Although this bet is interesting, it is a bit petty and far from being a big gamble. There is another gambling method here in Pindao..."
Having said this, he reached his right hand into his left sleeve, pulled out a dark, heavy sword, and placed it gently on the table in front of him under the astonished gazes of the four people opposite him.
"Does the prince recognize this sword?"
"Of course I know it."
King Ruyang smiled bitterly in his heart. Ten years ago, after he and Tuotuo adopted Wu Zhifang's plan, they personally took out the "Dragon Slaying Sword" stored in the palace treasure house and threw it into the rivers and lakes, with the intention of inducing the heroes of the rivers and lakes to kill each other. Regardless of his superiority, he went against the imperial court.
Seeing this sword again at this moment, while complex emotions surged in his heart, he also had a vague feeling of something bad.
Hu Long stroked the blade with his fingers and said coldly: "This sword is called 'Dragon Slayer', but it should not live up to its name. I bet that I can use this sword to cut off the head of your emperor tonight." . If you can't do it, you don't have to use your court to make kings. Pindao will disband Mingjiao himself and never mention anti-Yuan things in his life. If you can do it, you will hand those people over to Pindao to take them away in the future. We will see victory and defeat on the battlefield.”
King Ruyang suddenly changed his color and shouted: "Taoist Hu Long, you are too presumptuous. Do you really think that you can do whatever you want because of your high martial arts skills?"
The little girl next to him also stared at Hu Long with two big black eyes, like a little wolf.
The old man and Toutuo who followed King Ruyang leaned forward slightly, as if they were just waiting for their master's order to attack with all their strength.
Hu Long's fingers caressing the blade turned into tapping, and the blade made a clanging sound: "Although it seems a bit arrogant to say this, in fact, those with strong martial arts can do whatever they want. Therefore, since Pindao proposed the bet, the prince has no Room for rejection.
"If the prince can try to threaten Pindao with the life and death of those people, Pindao guarantees that he will spend ten or eight years to assassinate you one by one, from the emperor of Yuanmeng to the princes and nobles below - But I wonder if the prince dares to compete with me?"
Looking at the leisurely and natural Hu Long, King Ruyang's eyes almost burst out with fire. After a long silence, he said in a deep voice: "Okay, I will accept this bet, and tonight I will see what the Taoist master holds." 'Dragon Slaying Knife', does it really have the means to slay dragons?"
After saying that, he took his daughter's little hand, turned around and walked out.
The old man and Toutuo also followed closely as guards.
Hu Long had already had enough wine and food, so he also collected the "Dragon Slaying Knife" and returned to his room to recuperate.
The owner of this inn didn't know the purpose of King Ruyang's visit just now, but this man was able to make King Ruyang pay a visit in person, so his status was certainly of great importance, so he didn't dare to neglect the slightest care.
On the other side, after King Ruyang left the inn, he ordered Natoutuo to escort his daughter back to the palace, and he took the old man to the Prime Minister Tuotuo's palace.
After meeting in Tuotuo's study, King Ruyang recounted the previous situation, and finally sighed helplessly: "Hu Yuan is a monster with a ruthless temper, which is completely different from Zhang Sanfeng. In the past, we could use the life and death of the Wudang sect to force him to make a promise. He has made a promise that he will never enter the metropolis in his whole life, but he cannot be coerced by the same method."
Tuotuo said: "Looking at what this person has done since he was born, he has always made decisions and then acted. It does not seem like he will be controlled by others. But this is not a big deal. The left and right are just arrangements for us. Wan'an Temple Moved to the palace. This may also teach our Majesty, who was bewitched by the villain Hamana and obsessed with the 'acting Huo'er' method taught by the demon monk of the Western Heaven Sect, to be more alert. He knows that the Great Yuan Dynasty is now in danger, and it is far away. It’s not time to enjoy things in peace!”
King Ruyang and Tuotuo had known each other since childhood, and knew each other very well. They knew that what he said after that was a negative remark, and would never seriously put the emperor in danger, so he advised: "Your Majesty, your whole life will not affect the stability of the Yuan Dynasty. There is a slight mistake. Among the strange people under my command, there are also those who are good at the art of disguise. When the time comes, I can use the 'Li Dai Tao Zhan' strategy..."
Tuotuo nodded: "Although this plan is wonderful, I'm afraid that Your Majesty will not be willing to avoid such a reckless person with the dignity of ten thousand chariots. You and I need to advise Your Majesty together. But let's just talk about Taoist Hu Yun's intention to assassinate. That bet There is no need to mention anything. Otherwise, even if Taoist Hu Yun proposed this bet, His Majesty will inevitably turn his anger on you."
King Ruyang nodded to express his understanding, and then hurried out of the house to the palace with him.
As dusk grew darker, Hu Long, who was sitting quietly in the room, suddenly opened his eyes. At the same time, the door automatically opened inward without any wind: "Envoy Fan is here, please come in!"
A figure flashed in from outside the door. It was Toutuo who had been accompanying King Ruyang before, that is, Fan Yao, the right envoy of the Ming Dynasty who had been missing for many years.
As early as a few years ago, Hu Long had already contacted this person and regained him with kindness and power, but stayed with King Ruyang as an internal agent.
"Master, you must not go to the palace tonight."
After Fan Yao came in, he didn't bother to salute and spoke anxiously.
