The palace on the dragon carriage was located at an extremely high position, overlooking the Meridian Gate. It was a high platform that was divided into different areas by the technique of containing Mount Sumeru within a mustard seed.
On the phoenix throne, Empress Chu Ge raised her wine cup, only to find that Emperor Jingtai was looking in a certain direction, right where Li Mo was.
With her stunningly beautiful and elegant face, she smiled and asked:
"What is Your Majesty looking at?"
"Hehehe..."
Emperor Jingtai sighed, "That was the little girl who took the Heavenly Human Divine Sword from the Heavenly Human City a few days ago."
As he spoke, he subtly withdrew his gaze from Jiang Chulong.
"Is it because of her that Yu'er borrowed the Six Harmonies and Eight Desolations Seal from His Majesty?"
Empress Chu Ge had an expression that suggested she was completely ignorant of everything, having lived in the deep palace for so long.
Emperor Jingtai shook his head. "The one who wielded the divine sword was that boy beside her."
"Without His Majesty's approval, how could the Heavenly Human City have appeared?"
Empress Chu Ge squinted and asked again.
Not only will the Heavenly Human City not appear, but the repossession of the divine sword is also merely a matter of Emperor Jingtai's word.
But he didn't. When Ying Bing called for the divine sword, he manifested the Heavenly Human City and watched as the sword ended up in Li Mo's hands.
"Do not inquire about matters of the court."
As Emperor Jingtai spoke, he looked at the eunuch beside him and said:
"Bring the gold and pearls."
"Yes."
The eunuch brought in an exquisite box containing exactly one hundred small gold beads.
"Your Majesty, how about I draw the lots?"
Empress Chu Ge suddenly removed her finger cot and looked down at her.
At this moment, she hardly resembled an empress, but rather a sentimental young woman, playfully teasing her lover.
Emperor Jingtai remained expressionless, his voice low and deep:
"If you don't make that disgusting face."
"... His Majesty truly dotes on his concubine the most."
Queen Chu Ge seemed to have just heard a love confession, and her tenderness only intensified.
Then, under Emperor Jingtai's increasingly disgusted gaze, she reached into the box and pulled out a handful of gold beads.
"Her Majesty the Empress personally drew the lots, and the list is out!"
As the words fell, lines of names appeared on the Map of Mountains and Rivers, which hung high in the sky and covered the Inner City.
All eyes in the Imperial Capital converged on that line, and the first line read:
[Jiang Chulong versus Jiang Yuyang]
Princess Little Jiang is quite conspicuous on the Hidden Dragon Ranking now, because she has the lowest cultivation level among all the Hidden Dragon prodigies, and so far she has only reached the Three Apertures of Divine Observation.
Under the canopy of the princes and nobles, all was silent.
"How come she really... came back?"
"And why didn't Father order the Heaven Patrol Guards to arrest him, and even allowed him to come to the Hidden Dragon Assembly?"
"How could we possibly fathom Father's intentions?"
Jiang Yu suddenly spoke calmly.
After saying that, he looked at Princess Yuyang but said nothing.
Princess Yuyang was startled by the double pupils and quickly said:
"Crown Prince, for the sake of the royal family's reputation, and for the sake of Mother, I will definitely win."
Princess Yuyang and Jiang Yu were born of the same mother, both born to Empress Chuge.
"Elder brother, there's no need to worry. I have no idea how Yu Yang could have lost."
The fourth prince's maternal clan was weak, and he had always relied on the crown prince for support.
"In terms of cultivation level, Yu Yang is four apertures higher."
"In terms of resources, Yu Yang has been favored by his father since childhood and has used countless heavenly materials and earthly treasures."
"In terms of swordsmanship, Yu Yang has followed a famous master since childhood. No matter how profound the sect's foundation is, how can it compare to the imperial court? She probably learned some self-taught techniques from who-knows-where."
Yes, that's quite reasonable and well-founded!
The nobles and royalty also agreed that this was correct.
Just as Zhong Zhenyue was about to speak, a prince beside him said:
"Young Marquis, you should worry about yourself first."
[Zhong Zhenyue to Zhao Jing]
Jiang Chulong clutched the hem of her skirt with her small hands.
The difference between her State of Mind in the Imperial Capital and at the Xi Yangyang Hotpot Restaurant was stark. There, she only needed to face Jiang Yu, and with Big Brother Li backing her up, she felt bolder.
Now...
"Huh, Jiang Chulong and Princess Yuyang are ranked about thirty places apart on the Hidden Dragon Ranking, right?"
"It's not unheard of for someone to turn the tables, but this disparity is a bit too hopeless..."
"The Fourth Prince's Thousand Gold Casino is now open! Odds are 1 to 8!"
"Is this calculated based on the win rate?"
"I'll place a bet too, even a small amount is still money..."
Under the other canopies, several onlookers left together.
"Big Brother Li... um?"
Princess Little Jiang heard these sounds and subconsciously turned around, but she didn't see Li Mo.
He said he'd be right back.
Ying Bing patted her head gently.
In his past life Little Jiang joined the Drizzle Pavilion (细雨楼), where he became a notorious assassin. He severely injured four Heavenly Killer-level assassins, then betrayed the Drizzle Pavilion, building his own power base. When they met again, Little Jiang was already second on the Heavenly Ranking, inspiring fear in all who heard of him...
Who would have thought that she would now be a timid little girl who wears sunglasses to hide the fear in her eyes and loves collecting trash?
"What did Big Brother Li go to do?"
He said he would bankrupt the fourth prince.
"??"
Princess Little Jiang understood: Big Brother Li had spent a lot of money betting on her to win.
That should be enough money for her to collect trash for a long time...
She immediately gained confidence, waved her hand, and walked onto the stage with the other people who were going to go on stage in the first round.
The competition was a 50/50 contest.
Princess Yuyang was already standing on the stage, a head taller than Jiang Chulong, exuding pride and confidence.
She intended to be overbearing and make the other party hesitate.
But then they noticed that Princess Little Jiang, who had walked up, was wearing sunglasses, had a blank expression, and looked a little arrogant and a little cool.
"You actually dare to fight me?"
"..."
Jiang Chulong turned her head and glanced at the audience. Big Brother Li had returned, holding a document and waving it around nonchalantly.
Just now, Li Mo caused a commotion at the Qianjin Gambling House. Someone said:
"The Divine Hammer Little Overlord Profound Crystal now... bet 500 Xuanjing and two Jinshan, betting on Jiang Chulong to win."
"Huh? What the hell is this unit of measurement? How much does that cost?"
"Is this all he has left? He couldn't even scrape together this by selling an entire prefecture-level sect!"
"If they really win, even if the Fourth Prince mortgages the gambling den to Li Mo, it probably won't be enough."
"Holy crap, does Jiang Chulong have some kind of secret weapon?"
Those present were initially skeptical, but now they were genuinely starting to doubt.
Where did Li Mo get the confidence to gamble his entire fortune?
Actually, Li Mo wanted to give Little Jiang confidence.
He looked at Princess Yuyang, who was holding Ice Block's hand, a mysterious smile curving his lips, and let out a low laugh:
"Hehehe..."
"!"
Princess Yuyang's body trembled, and she suddenly felt uncertain.
What on earth is he up to?
What makes him think I'm bound to lose?!
If it were just Li Mo, then so be it.
Ying Bing was standing right beside him, her cold, Cold Fairy had a captivating air about her, as if she had everything under control.
But no one would know that, despite her seemingly calm and collected demeanor, Cold Fairy herself was also unaware of what she was doing.
It was simply that the Best Actress chemistry allowed her to cooperate with Leonardo DiCaprio.
"Li Mo, why are we doing this?" Ying Bing asked softly.
Li Mo's expression remained unchanged. "If I can't beat her to death, I'll scare her to death first."
The value of the King of Brawling's Secret Technique is still rising!
Therefore, the Divine Hammer Little Overlord and the Cold Fairy remained expressionless and extremely cold.
On stage, Princess Little Jiang wore sunglasses, exuding a mysterious confidence, but also a cool demeanor.
Princess Yuyang was numb and a little frantic.