The Beacon of Kyushu

It was the first time for the imperial guards to see such a polite and strong man. They looked at each other in bewilderment and forgot to protect the emperor. They let Zhang Xubai walk slowly to the sedan chair. "Your Majesty, please... please get out of the sedan chair." Zhang Xubai bowed deeply to the sedan chair, then gently lifted the curtain with his hands, and his expression was as respectful as a eunuch waiting for the queen to get out of the sedan chair.

Yang Yun'e was stunned for a moment when she looked at Zhang Xubai, who was young and polite, beside the sedan chair. She didn't come back to her senses for a long time. Wan Jianfeng saw that Yang Yun'e didn't get off the sedan chair, so he jumped off the donkey with a smile and walked slowly along the alley where Zhang Xubai was walking. "Little Taoist priest, if you ask the queen to get off the sedan chair like this, she won't want to. It seems that I have to trouble you to do it yourself to make her succeed!"

Wan Jianfeng had a smile on his face, and seemed to be more amiable than Zhang Xubai. Unexpectedly, he suddenly thrust his long stick into the sedan chair and put it on Yang Yun'e's neck without hesitation. At this time, Yang Yun'e came to her senses and screamed. The imperial guards also realized that the two men in front of them were not good people, but it was too late to draw their swords to protect the emperor. They could only watch Wan Jianfeng kidnap Yang Yun'e from the sedan chair and take her to the direction of Baiding Temple.

Yang Yun'e was a woman who didn't know martial arts, so Wan Jianfeng slowed down her pace a lot, but Yang Yun'e still felt exhausted. However, she had a thick and long wooden stick across her neck, so if she walked a little slower, there was no guarantee that Wan Jianfeng would not harm her. Fortunately, Zhang Xubai repeatedly reminded Wan Jianfeng to slow down a little, and Yang Yun'e was able to keep up.

But in this way, the group walked for a long time before arriving at the Baiding Temple, which was not far away. There were many soldiers standing in front of the Baiding Temple, including the Quyue troops brought by Li Huan and the Song Dynasty imperial guards led by Gao Chujun. Although the two countries had been fighting for months and were almost at loggerheads, the soldiers of the two countries privately hated each other to the point of fighting without orders.

Everyone was stunned and at a loss when they saw Wan Jianfeng and Zhang Xubai kidnapping Yang Yun'e. Wan Jianfeng was too lazy to answer these soldiers. Without saying a word, he took Yang Yun'e straight to the temple hall. The temple hall was supposed to be a place for worshipping Buddha, but now the Buddha statue has been temporarily removed and arranged as a simple reception hall. Before the three of them got close, they heard Wang Shize in the hall say, "Lord Li, even though your Qu Yue has strong soldiers and horses, after all, the territory is small and the country has not been established for long. How can it be a match for my Song Dynasty? If the king knows the current situation and is willing to agree to the request of the Song Dynasty officials and shake hands with the Song Dynasty, he will be a wise king. But if you insist on not complying, and even try to use the few people in your hands to get involved in the mountains and rivers of my Song Dynasty, in the end Qu Yue will only be destroyed, and the king will be a sinner for all ages!"

Gao Chujun also said: "Lord Li, you are a master of military tactics, and you must understand the war situation better than me. Imagine that if you really use the whole country of Quyue to compete with the Song Dynasty, are you really not afraid that there will be traitors in the country who will take the opportunity to start a rebellion, or that there will be remnants of the Ding Dynasty who intend to restore the country? To put it another way, even if Quyue is united and everyone is committed to destroying the Song Dynasty, the fisherman will benefit from the quarrel between the snipe and the clam. In the end, you will only make wedding clothes for the Liao Kingdom, the Dangxiang, Dali, and Tubo countries. Is this what the Lord wants to see?"

Li Huan smiled coldly and said, "Lord Wang, General Gao, how could I not know what you said? But your Song State is too bullying, taking advantage of the civil strife in Quyue, you want to swallow up my territory. You are so cruel, if I live in shame, how can I face the people of Quyue? How can I face the emperors of Quyue a hundred years later? Besides, the quality of soldiers is more important than the number, and the wisdom of the general is more important than the bravery. Even though Quyue has a small population and a small country, it may not be impossible to destroy your Song State, right?"

Gao Chujun was furious when he heard what Li Huan had said. "Lord Li, are you determined to be an enemy of the Song Dynasty? If that is the case, there is nothing for us to talk about. I hope that when the heavenly soldiers arrive, you can remain calm and not regret your mistakes today!"

Gao Chujun was about to stand up and leave when Wan Jianfeng, holding Yang Yun'e, walked into the hall with a big laugh. "General Gao, who said there is nothing to talk about? The Queen of Qu Yue is in our hands. We can talk about whatever we want and however we want. Otherwise, I will risk my life against the golden bell and exchange it with the life of this extremely noble Queen Yang. I'm sure that once Queen Yang dies, the old ministers loyal to the Ding Dynasty will not let this gentleman surnamed Li go easily."

Yang Yun'e usually hated Li Huan, and she slept with him every day just to save the lives of mother and son. But at this moment, in her heart, Li Huan was no longer a traitor who raped her and forced her son, but her only protector. "Your Majesty, save me!" Yang Yun'e shouted to Li Huan in Quyue language, hoping that Li Huan would save her once for the sake of their past relationship.

Li Huan looked at the threatened Yang Yun'e, his eyes became like two majestic volcanoes, and his steel teeth clenched with a "crackling" sound. Does he love Yang Yun'e? Yes. But in Li Huan's eyes, the love between men and women is far less than his love for the vast mountains and rivers. If he can exchange Yang Yun'e for the entire Song Dynasty, he will give up this woman without hesitation. Unfortunately, if Li Huan wants to sit firmly on the throne, he must rely on Yang Yun'e and Ding Xuan, and must rely on the support of the old ministers of the Ding Dynasty, otherwise he, the emperor, will become overwhelmed and powerless in an instant. So in the face of Wan Jianfeng's threat, he seems to have no other way except to compromise.

“Wan Jianfeng!” Li Huan gnashed his teeth and spoke word by word, “Whatever you want, come at me, Li Huan, and let go of my Yun’e! I think you don’t want to see everyone present here today turned into dust!”

Wan Jianfeng smiled and said, "Of course, if Lord Li can agree to a few of my conditions, let alone let me release the people, I will even kowtow to you and confess my guilt. But if you don't agree, then we will be sentenced to death when we go back to see the emperor. It's better for us to perish together with you. At least before we die, we can drag the emperor down with us, and our death will not be unjust!"

Li Huan said: "What do you want? Tell me now!"

Wan Jianfeng said: "First, you must make peace with the Song Dynasty, and the two countries will live in peace and enjoy eternal peace. Second, you must release the several detained ministers to me, and not a single one can be left behind. Third, you must hand over the antidote for the Thousand Poisons and Heartbreak Powder. Fourth, you must let us return safely and not kill us along the way. Finally, you must order that the Chaos Cult is not allowed to preach in the Song Dynasty again. How about it, can you do it?" (End of this chapter)