The Marquis, seeing the crowd had already gone far away, couldn't help but roar to the sky. His long sword shattered countless stones before he rushed back to the East Palace...

After venting his anger, the Marquis still felt unsatisfied and felt he had to make Li Zhu suffer as well!

who is he?

The head of New Tang's secret service quickly came up with an idea...

Upon returning to the East Palace, Li Zhu stared speechlessly at the still-under-repair palace. Every time he saw it, he was reminded of Consort Ming and Eunuch Wei, and the thought of them filled him with a desire to kill the Second Prince…

"Brother Zhu, don't worry, one day you will stand at the pinnacle of this world, and no one will dare to touch your sore spot..."

Perhaps sensing Li Zhu's inner pain, Xiaolongnu comforted him.

"You're right, one day I will make all my enemies tremble at the mere mention of my name..."

Li Zhu also said with a confident expression!

"You are Li Zhu?"

A discordant voice suddenly rang out, making Li Zhu, who had just vowed to make all his enemies tremble, look rather grim...

I thought to myself, I am, after all, the Crown Prince of the new Tang Dynasty. Don't you understand basic respect?

He wanted to see who dared to be so arrogant with him. Even if his adoptive father, the emperor, came, he would have to treat him with utmost respect today, let alone anyone else…

Li Zhu was stunned the moment he turned his head; all his anger vanished instantly, replaced by a smile as he spoke.

"Gentlemen, you must be tired. Please come and sit in my reception room. I'll have someone make you some tea..."

It turned out that the Taoist priests Li Zhu wanted had arrived. Looking at the Marquis who was secretly following behind the group of Taoist priests, he immediately understood that this guy was behind it all, his purpose being to see him make a fool of himself...

This was retaliation for him using him as a target yesterday. He had no choice but to try to distract Xiaolongnü in order to appease her, and since the Marquis had offended him, he was the perfect target for his anger…

He just hadn't expected the other party to be so vengeful. He didn't know what he had said to these Taoist priests, or what he had done that would incur divine and human wrath. The way these Taoist priests looked at him seemed like they wanted to devour him...

"What tea are you talking about? You've stolen our home, how can we be in the mood for tea?"

"Stealing a house?"

Li Zhu was completely bewildered, having no idea what had happened...

"Don't play innocent here. We Taoists go down the mountain to travel every year, but when we went back this year, we found that you had requisitioned our Taoist temple and set up a checkpoint, saying that you have to pay a toll to enter and exit. Did you do this?"

"We were just traveling down the mountain, and you all have no sportsmanship! I have to pay a toll to get back to my own home, why don't you just rob me?"

The leading Taoist priest was furious, wishing he could jump up and point his finger at Li Zhu's nose to curse him...

"Fellow Daoists, I think there must be some misunderstanding here..."

"Misunderstanding? Should we block the gates of the East Palace, demand a toll, and then tell you it was a misunderstanding?"

Li Zhu clicked his tongue, thinking to himself, "I really thank the Hou and Wang families. This is indeed dishonest. Isn't this like stealing from someone's home?"

"Little monkey..."

Li Zhu shouted, intending for him to come out and explain, but after waiting for a long time there was no response. Clearly, they were hiding in the shadows, waiting to see Li Zhu make a fool of himself!

"You actually called us monkeys? You've gone too far! How are we like monkeys at all..."

The Taoist priest was so angry he was jumping up and down, which made Li Zhu look completely innocent. He wanted to explain, but there was no way to explain it in the current situation...

"Can I say this is a misunderstanding? I actually wanted to ask you for help..."

"Is this how you invite us? Do you think we'd believe that?"

Li Zhu could tell from the way the Taoist priests looked at them that they didn't believe him...

"Ahem... Esteemed Daoists, since you're already here, why don't you stay and work for me? I promise you won't be shortchanged on wages..."

In this situation, Li Zhu could only reveal his purpose and see how these people reacted...

Bang!

The leading Taoist priest stomped his foot forcefully, and the floor tiles immediately shattered into pieces. This was granite flooring, a full five centimeters thick, yet it was so easily broken by the opponent's force. This person's strength was at least at the Ming Jin level, or even a Hua Jin level master...

"Uh... Daoist Master, there's no need to be angry. I sincerely invite you all to work at my Eastern Palace..."

Bang!

Then, the group of Taoist priests stomped their feet together, and the next moment, all the paving stones in the palace square shattered...

This made Li Zhu feel a pang of heartache; this was all money! Just polishing these marbles would take who knows how long, not to mention the subsequent transportation and construction...

But now he was even more certain that this group of Taoists was not to be trifled with; they were all masters of internal energy cultivation. In the martial arts world, such people would be big shots, let alone the fact that there were thirty or forty of them gathered here at once…

"Your Highness, what are your true intentions in humiliating my Taoist sect like this?"

The leading Taoist priest coldly questioned him!

"How did I humiliate you? I just wanted your help..."

Li Zhu asked, looking completely bewildered!

"We monks regard money as dirt. Don't think that just because you're a prince, you can humiliate us like this. If we wanted to, we wouldn't hesitate to take your life..."

The leading Taoist priest said coldly!

Li Zhu's only thought was "Holy crap!"

He just wanted to hire these people to do his work, but not only did they not give him face, they also accused him of trying to humiliate them with money? What kind of logic is that?

"If you're unwilling, that's fine, I won't force you..."

Li Zhu could only say helplessly!

"Hmph! This matter isn't over yet. Our Taoist temple was forcibly requisitioned by you, and you have to compensate us for the losses incurred and our travel expenses..."

Upon hearing the Taoist priest in charge say this, Li Zhu couldn't help but widen his eyes. Just now they said they couldn't be humiliated by money, but now they're asking him for compensation all the time. What happened to not being bothered by money?

"That's easy to say. As long as you're willing to stay and help me, you name your price..."

Li Zhu couldn't help but invite him again!

"Shut up! We have principles. What belongs to us, we will take; what doesn't belong to us, we will never force..."

The leading Taoist priest spoke righteously and solemnly!

This made Li Zhu realize once again what hypocrisy truly meant, and these people were incredibly disrespectful, refusing his invitations time and again...

"Since you Taoist priests are unwilling, then I will compensate you for the losses incurred..."

After saying that, Li Zhu reached into his pocket for money, but as he took out his money pouch, he accidentally pulled out a token along with it...

The token landed on the ground, making a clinking sound...