noon.
The hotel hosted a grand banquet to entertain Xiao Feng and Duan Yu.
Although Li Huan was the "leader of the martial arts alliance," the Western Xia Kingdom was far from the Central Plains, and Li Huan's reputation had not yet spread to Lingzhou.
Therefore, Minister Zhao and Vice Minister Tao of the Ministry of Rites believed that Li Huan was Duan Yu's attendant.
Li Huan didn't mind this, and besides, he had already told Duan Yu and Xiao Feng to try not to reveal his identity and to keep a low profile by selling boxed lunches at a stall.
Pretending to be weak to catch a strong opponent can often produce surprisingly good results.
The atmosphere in the hotel lobby was lively.
The four brothers, Li Huan, Xiao Feng, Duan Yu, and Xu Zhu, sat at a table.
Azhu, Abi, Mu Wanqing, and Zhong Ling sat at a table.
Murong Fu, Wang Yuyan, Bao Butong, Feng Bo'e, Deng Baichuan, and Gongye Gan sat at a table in a relatively secluded part of the hall.
At this moment, Murong Fu's expression was displeased.
Bao Butong said indignantly, "This is outrageous! The young master also gave a generous gift, and it was a precious golden toad holding a pearl! The Minister of Rites took the benefits but did nothing, and actually let us sit in this position!"
Feng Bo'e said, "Young Master, your name is renowned throughout the martial world. How are you inferior to Xiao Feng and Duan Yu?"
At this moment, eight Tibetan warriors entered the hall, surrounding Prince Zongzan and Kumārajīva.
Their table was located in the main area of the hall.
Li Huan understood that Prince Zongzan had also bribed the officials of the Western Xia Kingdom, and the gold and silver jewelry he sent far exceeded that of Duan Yu and Murong Fu!
"Hahaha... You mere mortals, wanting to be the son-in-law of the Western Xia prince and trying to marry the Western Xia princess, are simply toads trying to eat swan meat, daydreaming!"
Prince Zongzan arrogantly laughed and mocked, looking down on the distinguished guests in the hall.
Suddenly, Prince Zongzan saw Xiao Feng and Li Huan and glared at them angrily.
Yesterday on the street, Prince Zongzan was choked by Xiao Feng, utterly humiliating.
Xu Zhu said, "This prince of the Tubo Kingdom is sitting in the most prominent position in the hall, clearly receiving better treatment than my eldest brother and fourth brother."
Duan Yu laughed and said, "He spent more gold than me, so naturally he gets better treatment! The Tibetan emperor has spared no expense in coming here to propose marriage to the Western Xia Kingdom!"
Li Huan deliberately said, "Fourth brother, you are a prince of Dali Kingdom. In terms of status and position, you are no less than Prince Zongzan. The two of you are evenly matched, and there will definitely be fierce competition tomorrow."
Xiao Feng laughed and said, "Judging from the appearance of the Tibetan prince, his martial arts skills are not high and his internal strength is not strong. The reason why he is so arrogant is entirely due to his status and the fact that the Tibetan emperor is backing him up!"
Suddenly, Prince Zongzan raised his hand and threw a bone at Duan Yu!
Li Huan secretly used his "Finger Flicking Divine Skill" to strike the bone, which then reflected back and accurately hit Prince Zongzan's nose, causing him to scream in pain and bleed from his nostrils!
Kumārajīva was greatly alarmed and instinctively looked at Li Huan.
He knew that the person with the highest martial arts skills in the hall was none other than Li Huan.
Li Huan pretended to drink and eat, and then reached out and picked a grape from the plate, eating it with relish.
Duan Yu poured himself a cup of wine and said, "That person overestimated himself and shot himself in the foot. How laughable, how laughable!"
Prince Zongzan stood up, covering his nose, and shouted angrily, "Who plotted against me? Who was it?"
Damn it, Pigsy is turning the tables on us.
Murong Fu said loudly, "Alliance Leader Li, your self-created 'Bone-Shaving Vajra Finger' is indeed sharp. I admire it to the extreme!"
Holy crap!
Murong Fu is too cunning. By publicly praising Li Huan, he was essentially telling Prince Zongzan that he had been "ambushed" by Li Huan.
Seeing that Murong Fu was being deceitful, Li Huan retorted without hesitation.
"Murong Fu, which of your dog eyes saw me use my self-created 'Bone-Shaving Vajra Finger'? Stop spouting nonsense!"
Murong Fu's face darkened.
The phrase "dog's eyes" is extremely insulting.
Prince Zongzan had only heard of Li Huan's martial arts prowess from Kumārajīva, but he had never witnessed it firsthand, nor had he noticed Li Huan making a move just now.
Therefore, Prince Zongzan could not contain his anger and pointed at Li Huan, cursing him!
"You shameless scoundrel! How dare you ambush and assassinate Xiao Wang! You've got a death wish!"
Upon hearing this, Kumārajīva was so frightened that he quickly tried to dissuade Prince Zongzan.
"Your Highness, please calm down! You must not provoke Alliance Leader Li! Your Highness is going to a banquet at Xihua Palace tomorrow to propose to the princess!"
Prince Zongzan wiped the blood from his nose with his sleeve and shouted, "Grand Preceptor, why are you afraid of Li Huan? He is young, unremarkable, and doesn't have three heads and six arms! Grand Preceptor, don't diminish your own prestige and boost the enemy's morale!"
Kumārajīva hurriedly said, "Although Alliance Leader Li is young, his martial arts skills are extremely high, far surpassing Xiao Feng's!"
Prince Zongzan immediately fell silent, a hint of fear on his face.
He was nearly killed yesterday when Xiao Feng grabbed his throat, and he is still shaken by the experience.
Then, Prince Zongzan raised his head and said defiantly, "So what if you have high martial arts skills? Tomorrow we'll go to the banquet at Xihua Palace to apply for the position of imperial son-in-law. There's no question of who has the best martial arts skills!"
As soon as he finished speaking, the crowd erupted in cheers.
"Really not going to have a martial arts contest? Did I hear that right?"
"It's better to compare martial arts! Your Majesty is wise! So wise!"
"It's only fair if we don't have a duel! Otherwise, how can we possibly be a match for Alliance Leader Li and Xiao Feng?"
"In that case, tomorrow's literary contest suits me perfectly! It suits me perfectly!"
"When it comes to writing essays, I'm definitely not inferior to any of you here, hahaha..."
...
Everyone was excitedly discussing it, chattering away.
It is obvious that Prince Zongzan learned the inside story of recruiting a prince consort by bribing officials of the Western Xia Kingdom and palace maids and eunuchs.
This was undoubtedly fantastic news for Murong Fu!
If it came down to a martial arts contest, he knew he was no match for Li Huan, Xiao Feng, or Xu Zhu, and couldn't even defeat Duan Yu, who was proficient in the Six Meridian Divine Sword!
"Hehehe..." Murong Fu laughed triumphantly, picked up his wine cup, and drank it all in one gulp.
Bao Butong said happily, "Since we're not going to compete in martial arts, with your handsome appearance, elegant speech, extraordinary temperament, and outstanding literary talent, you're sure to win the heart of the Western Xia princess!"
Feng Bo'e quickly poured wine for Murong Fu: "Young master, you will surely win. Come, have a few more drinks!"
Murong Fu was overjoyed and downed the wine in one gulp, exclaiming sincerely, "Good wine, good wine!"
Wang Yuyan gazed at Murong Fu, her delicate brows furrowing slightly, her eyes revealing disappointment and sorrow...
Duan Yu looked at Wang Yuyan and hurriedly said loudly, "It's just what I wanted to do that there's no martial arts competition tomorrow! I figured the Princess of Western Xia was kind-hearted and didn't like fighting!"
"If I'm not mistaken, the princess is interested in poetry, music, chess, calligraphy, and painting!"
"Coincidentally, I have been well-read since childhood, and I love poetry and prose. I am also quite knowledgeable in music, chess, calligraphy, and painting. I am sure I can have a pleasant conversation with the princess and feel like we've known each other for a long time..."
Duan Yu spoke eloquently and fluently, his purpose being to comfort Wang Yuyan...
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