Chapter 1809: Chapter 421: Tuotuo: Chen Jiusi, Commandery Princess—Do You Still Want Her?

Didn’t he say he’d treat me like his own flesh and blood?

Now he won’t even come to trade himself for me—what kind of "flesh and blood" is that? Liar, he’s a big fat liar!

Thinking this, Little Ming King watched as Liu Futong was about to vanish from sight, and Tuotuo shouted, "Liu Futong!"

Liu Futong’s steps paused, and Tuotuo said, "Heh, I don’t care what’s going on in that head of yours. Since you’re not willing to trade, then get ready to collect the corpse of your Little Ming King."

"A month from now, I’ll be representing the court in holding a Demon-Slaying Conference in the Great Capital. By then I’ll invite the heroes of the realm to come watch in the Great Capital, haha... I’ll let you see what happens when you oppose the court. Even someone like Han Shantong can’t protect his descendants."

"I’ll make the whole world know that to stand against the court is to doom your line—no heirs, your entire clan wiped out."

"As for our Meliqi Clan, hahaha, if you want to kill, then come. Let’s see if I fear you!"

Tuotuo shouted at Liu Futong, then turned to shout toward Chen Jie’s side as well: "Chen Jiusi, you’re a young hero, I think very highly of you. If you’re willing to come over to the court, wealth and glory—take your pick!"

Hearing this, Chen Jie said, "Heh, thanks for your great favor, Lord Prime Minister, but wealth and glory—Jiu Si has no taste for them!"

"What about Yaya Timur then?"

Tuotuo called out a name. Chen Jie’s steps halted. In that moment he really wanted to turn around, but he held himself back.

Tuotuo looked at Chen Jie and said, "You went through quite a lot together in Mianshui County, in Huangzhou Prefecture. And she’s of noble birth, the legitimate daughter of the Ruyang King. If you’re willing, nothing else is needed—I’ll decide it for you, petition the Emperor to issue a decree and bestow her to you in marriage. With such boundless grace from above, your heart wouldn’t be moved?"

An imperial decree of marriage is practically heaven’s grace for an ordinary person. Even for the Ruyang King it’d be a colossal favor—after all, who doesn’t want their daughter to marry openly and properly?

Is she supposed to carry the stain of "eloping" forever? Is the Ruyang King not supposed to care about his face?

If the court really did bestow this marriage, and Chen Jiusi could even serve the court, then as a son-in-law he’d be more than satisfactory. Calling him a "dragon-riding son-in-law" wouldn’t be an exaggeration at all.

In the end, the Ruyang King is loyal to the court; he wants to uphold the court’s rule.

After all, his surname is of the Borjigit Clan; he’s a descendant of the Heavenly Khan, bound to safeguard their own family’s rule over Daqian.

At this moment he almost blurted out, "Good son-in-law, hurry up and agree!"

But Chen Jie’s stride didn’t even noticeably slow. Still with his back to Tuotuo, he headed up the mountain and said, "Heh, Yaya Timur, is it? How could a Han man like me marry a Mulan woman? Lord Prime Minister, your sincerity isn’t exactly overflowing."

With that, Chen Jie turned and left without the slightest hesitation. Hearing his words, the Ruyang King’s face almost turned purple with rage. This bastard—this bastard, I’m going to give you a proper beating someday! What do you take Yaya for!

Tuotuo hadn’t expected Chen Jie to say that and felt a bit puzzled. Could their information be wrong? Could it be that Chen Jiusi and Princess Xiangning don’t have that kind of relationship everyone imagined?

Seeing this, King Qi Li Siqi laughed and said, "Cha Han, your son-in-law doesn’t seem to take that precious jewel of yours very seriously!"

The Ruyang King’s face was dark as ink. "They never had any relationship to begin with. Why do you insist on saying that my Yaya has something with him?"

Li Siqi laughed. "I used to think you were just protesting too much. Now I’m actually starting to get confused!"

Meanwhile, Chen Jie walked step by step up the mountain, muttering, "A trap, a trap. In this world, love is something you fight for yourself. Since when is there love that’s bestowed?"

"And even if it’s bestowed, can you still call it love?"

"Yaya, I’m sorry. With things as they are, this is all I can do. What else can I do?"

Muttering, Chen Jie followed Peng Yingyu and the others and continued up the mountain.

Watching them leave, Tuotuo kicked Little Ming King over and snarled, "Useless trash. Men! Throw this waste into a prison cart. Assign three units, guard him in shifts around the clock. If anything happens to him—exterminate the clan of whoever’s responsible!"

"Yes!"

Hearing this, none of the men below dared slack off. They immediately stepped forward one after another and directly seized Little Ming King.

They watched as Little Ming King was taken away and shoved into a prison cart. Tuotuo then said, "Inform the Treasure Elephant Army Commander, the Ruyang King, and King Qi to come to my tent for council!"

"Yes!"

The subordinates went to notify them at once, and soon the three big shots arrived in Tuotuo’s military tent.

Tuotuo had already changed back into his scholar’s robes and held a teapot in his hand, filled with fine tea.

Tuotuo saluted the three of them, then evenly poured the good tea into their cups and said, "Gentlemen, please have some tea."

The three took their cups and drank a few rough sips. It was the Ruyang King, with his not-so-deep scheming, who looked at Tuotuo and said, "Lord Prime Minister, you called us here for some matter?"

Hearing this, Tuotuo said, "Mm, of course there’s a matter. In this campaign to encircle and suppress the Zoroastrian Sect, you all contributed greatly. Although we didn’t take Bright Peak, catching the Little Ming King still counts as a Triumph."

"This way, that lot back in the court can finally shut up."

Tuotuo spoke, and the three in the tent said nothing. Tuotuo went on, "But you all know how important this Little Ming King is. I absolutely must transport him safely to the Capital."

"However, those people from the Zoroastrian Sect surely won’t be willing to accept this. The road will not be free of troubles. So I was hoping, Ruyang King, King Qi, that the two of you could assist me on this journey, escorting him to the Capital. That way, I can be at ease!"

"This..."