Chapter 509: Conflict between Righteousness and Profit (I)

"boom!"

In the afternoon, the crisp sound of a teacup breaking instantly broke the tranquility of the Longxiangshan Villa.

In the main hall, Yun Zhuiyue's face was as gloomy as water, his eyes were cold, and he crushed the broken pieces of the teacup into powder with his left hand. He let the scalding tea soak his sleeves, but he was completely unaware, as if he was worried about something.

Tang Xuan, Li Haitang, and Si Wudao, who was still seriously injured and had a pale face, stood respectfully in the hall, letting the depressing atmosphere hit them, and no one dared to speak rashly to persuade them.

At this time, Yun Zhuiyue was furious for two reasons.

First, in the morning on the top of Mount Huashan, Xiao Zhirou took action on behalf of Luo Tianjin to become his enemy, which made him disheartened and jealous.

Secondly, Tang Xuan had just reported that the Mongolian army had besieged Huashan, which made him shocked and angry.

Both of these things made Yun Zhuiyue feel very upset. He felt that he was being played and deceived again and again, and he suddenly became angry and felt indescribably aggrieved.

"Luo Tianjin is eloquent but despicable! Yan Wuji is hypocritical and untrustworthy!" Yun Zhuiyue gritted her teeth and said, "These two are more treacherous than each other, and they deserve to die more than each other."

After saying that, Yun Zhuiyue clenched his five fingers tightly again, and the few remaining pieces of the teacup rubbed and squeezed in his palm, making a sharp "squeaking" sound, which made Tang Xuan and others frown subconsciously.

"Where's Ping'er?"

Suddenly, Yun Zhuiyue changed the subject and asked Li Haitang, "Where is Ping'er?"

"Reporting to the Holy Lord, the young lady is still in the villa of Jueqing Valley. Last night, I went to ask for her, but was turned away by the people of Jueqing Valley." Li Haitang replied, "Valley Master Xiao said...she will personally report this matter to the Holy Lord."

Hearing this, Yun Zhuiyue's eyes darkened quietly, and he nodded vaguely without saying anything more.

"Xu Ren has something to report!"

Suddenly, Xu Ren's voice sounded from outside the hall, immediately pulling the minds of several people in the hall back from their trance.

"What's the matter?"

"There is a man who claims to have an important matter to discuss with the Holy Lord."

"Important?" Yun Zhuiyue was stunned and said hesitantly, "Let him in."

"Yes!"

Before he finished speaking, Xu Ren had already walked into the hall with a ragged middle-aged man.

Upon seeing this person, Yun Zhuiyue couldn't help but be suspicious, but Tang Xuan's eyes lit up and he hurriedly said, "Didn't you just go up the mountain with Pang Xiaohu..."

“That’s right.” The man waved his hand to wipe the blood off his face, revealing a rough face. He then bowed to Yun Zhuiyue and said, “Actually, I am not in the same sect as Pang Xiaohu and the others. I just mixed in with them so that it would be convenient for me to go up the mountain to pay my respects to Saint Yun.”

Yun Zhuiyue's eyes sparkled, and she asked quietly, "Who are you? What do you want from me?"

"I am here on the orders of General Sui to go up the mountain to deliver a letter to Saint Yun."

"General Sui?" Yun Zhuiyue was secretly shocked, but pretended to be confused and asked, "Which General Sui?"

The man was stunned and replied, "General Xijing, Sui Zuo."

"Bring the letter here."

Hearing this, the man quickly took out the letter from his arms, raised it with both hands, and carefully handed it to Yun Zhuiyue.

When Yun Zhuiyue's left hand was about to touch the envelope, he suddenly paused, and then looked the man up and down, and asked curiously: "From your appearance, you don't seem to be Mongolian?"

"Saint Lord Yun has a good eye." The man complimented, "I am from Xiangyang, and I am fortunate to be promoted by General Sui. Now I serve under the general."

"Can Han people also serve in the Mongolian army?" Yun Zhuiyue showed curiosity.

"To be honest with you, Saint Yun, most of the elite troops of the Mongolian headquarters have been ordered to march west. Currently, seven or eight out of ten of the troops left in the various camps in the Central Plains are Han soldiers who were added later. Even many of the generals in charge are Han Chinese."

"understood."

"Oh!"

Before he finished speaking, Yun Zhuiyue suddenly raised his hand and swung out a stream of energy. The man was caught off guard and his face collapsed, with blood gushing out of his seven orifices.

He stared at Yun Zhuiyue, who had no expression on her face, with a pair of incredulous eyes, as if he wanted to ask her why. But as soon as he opened his lips, a stream of blood foam gushed out. His throat whimpered, but he could no longer make any sound.

"If you were a Mongolian, I would reward you handsomely." At the moment when the middle-aged man fell on his back, Yun Zhuiyue took the letter and opened the envelope with two fingers, saying casually, "But you are a Han Chinese, so you deserve to die. I let you die so easily, which is already a bargain for you. Drag you away and don't dirty my place!"

After saying that, Yun Zhuiyue threw the torn envelope on the corpse, then opened the letter, squinted his eyes, and read it carefully.

From the beginning to the end, Yun Zhuiyue acted calm and composed, but in fact, Tang Xuan and the others knew that he was killing to vent his anger and calm his inner anger.

After a moment, Yun Zhuiyue's eyes flashed with a hint of amusement, and she murmured meaningfully: "It seems that Yan Wuji and Sui Zuo... still have some sense of morality."

"Holy Lord, this letter..."

"They already know the news that I failed in my bid for the leader of the martial arts world." Yun Zhuiyue said to herself, "The letter said that Sui Zuo has dispatched 30,000 troops to surround Huashan, and vowed to kill everyone on Huashan. Except... us." "This..." Tang Xuan and others looked at each other, not knowing whether to be happy or sad.

"Sui Zuo left a gap in the southeast of Mount Huashan, and asked us to sneak down the mountain at midnight tonight. If we are intercepted by Mongolian soldiers, we only need to give a secret signal and they will let us pass smoothly."

"What's the secret code?"

“When you think there is no way out, you will find another village when you turn around.”

"That's great!" Si Wudao continued, "If we can use the Mongols to get rid of Luo Tianjin and others, the world of Jianghu will be the Holy Lord's."

After a moment of hesitation, Yun Zhuiyue's expression suddenly changed, and he hurriedly said, "Quick, send someone to invite Valley Master Xiao and Clan Leader Teng..."

"No need to bother! I have come here uninvited."

Accompanied by a voice full of anger, Teng Sanshi, who walked like a dragon and a tiger, and Xiao Zhirou, who had a complicated expression, walked into the hall one after another.

Xu Ren and other disciples of Longxiang Mountain surrounded them with panic in their eyes, as if they wanted to stop them, but they were very afraid of them, so they did not dare to act rashly.

As soon as he saw Xiao Zhirou, the strange look in Yun Zhuiyue's eyes disappeared instantly, and was replaced by an indescribable entanglement and melancholy.

Seeing the two of them barging into the hall, Tang Xuan couldn't help but look displeased and scolded: "Chief Teng, Master Xiao, you really don't know the rules..."

"Shut up!" Yun Zhuiyue interrupted with a heavy tone, "Everyone retreat!"

"But……"

"Get out!"

Before Xu Ren could finish his words, Yun Zhuiyue's eyes suddenly turned cold. He was frightened and trembled immediately. He hurriedly told all the disciples to leave the main hall.

Seeing this, Tang Xuan, Si Wudao and Li Haitang didn't dare to say much. They bowed to Yun Zhuiyue and filed out.

In a blink of an eye, only Teng Sanshi, Yun Zhuiyue and Xiao Zhirou were left in the hall.

At this moment, Teng Sanshi opened his eyes wide and glared at Yun Zhuiyue angrily. Yun Zhuiyue, on the other hand, stared at Xiao Zhirou bitterly with a mixture of love and hate. As for Xiao Zhirou, she looked at her nose with her eyes, her mouth with her nose, and her heart with her mouth, seemingly unmoved.

"Since we are all family, there is no need to hide anything!" Teng Sanshi took the initiative and sat down, saying straight to the point, "I never thought that the three of us, father and son, would meet again under such circumstances after such a long separation."

Seeing Teng Sanshi's angry eyes and raised eyebrows, Xiao Zhirou couldn't help but feel worried. She turned to look at Yun Zhuiyue who was in a trance, and hesitated for a long time before slowly speaking: "Actually..."

"Rou'er, there's no need to talk about the past." Yun Zhuiyue seemed to be afraid that Xiao Zhirou would open up the wound again, so she interrupted hurriedly, "For what happened this morning, I... don't blame you. I know that you and my adoptive father don't want me to go my own way and get myself into a desperate situation. It is precisely because I think of your kindness that I sent Tang Xuan to the villa of the Xianwang Mansion, which can be regarded as a concession in front of Luo Tianjin. Are you satisfied with my doing this?"

Looking at Yun Zhuiyue's "shaky" right arm and hearing the bitterness and helplessness in his words, Xiao Zhirou immediately felt guilty and shook her head, "Actually, we came here..."

"Godfather, Rou'er, you came just in time!"

Before Xiao Zhirou could explain, Yun Zhuiyue suddenly changed her tone, walked to Teng Sanshi with great interest, half-knelt on the ground, and handed Sui Zuo's letter to him, saying excitedly: "The Mongols sent 30,000 troops to besiege Huashan. Those who remain on the mountain are doomed to die. This is Sui Zuo's handwritten letter. He has arranged a way for us to survive. We will leave at midnight tonight..."

"Snapped!"

Before he could finish his words, Teng Sanshi suddenly raised his hand and slapped Yun Zhuiyue hard, almost knocking the mask off his face.

This action not only made Yun Zhuiyue dumbfounded, but also shocked Xiao Zhirou.

"Good!" Teng Sanshi pointed at Yun Zhuiyue and cursed, "I haven't even asked you yet, but you confessed! It seems that what Luo Tianjin said is true. You are indeed a traitor and collude with the Mongols."

"What?" Yun Zhuiyue was caught off guard, his eyes filled with confusion.

"Still dare to act stupid?"

Furious, Teng Sanshi snatched Sui Zuo's letter, tore it to pieces without even reading it, and threw the scraps of paper fiercely on Yun Zhuiyue's face, scolding: "I never thought that after all the hardships I have raised a shameless thief who stole the country! I once taught you loyalty, filial piety, benevolence, and righteousness, and the relationship between monarch and minister, and father and son, have you forgotten everything?"

"Father..."

"Don't call me foster father!" Teng Sanshi was filled with grief and indignation, and was furious. "This old man... this old man doesn't have a foster son like you who is so heartless and cannot tell right from wrong!"

After that, Teng Sanshi pointed at Xiao Zhirou and said, "Du Xiang, do you know why Rou'er had to endure shame and humiliation and help Luo Tianjin without caring about her dignity?"

Yun Zhuiyue's eyelids trembled violently. He looked at Xiao Zhirou thoughtfully and murmured, "Why?"

"Because she has long known that your real purpose of participating in the martial arts conference and competing for the position of martial arts leader is actually to recruit soldiers for the Mongols!" Teng Sanshi's face turned red with anger, and spit flew everywhere. "If Rou'er hadn't taken the overall situation into consideration and wanted to save the face of the Xiangxi Teng clan, how could she put aside her hatred for Luo Tianjin and go against her conscience to help him?"

"This……"

It was only at this moment that Yun Zhuiyue suddenly realized that because of his obsession, he spoke without restraint and made rude remarks, causing Xiao Zhirou to suffer great injustice and humiliation.

However, didn't he also endure humiliation and make compromises?
With this thought in mind, Yun Zhuiyue suddenly collapsed to the ground, looked up to the sky and laughed, his laughter was filled with sadness and madness.

……

(End of this chapter)