Li Yuncong's answer caught Hu Xiaotian off guard. "I believe it!"
Hu Xiaotian shook his head, meaning that he did not. This era was constrained by its level of technology, after all. Even someone as extraordinarily intelligent as Li Yuncong could hardly avoid believing such absurd talk of immortality.
The gaze in Li Yuncong's lone eye was firm and certain. "His Majesty has poured untold sums into the Imperial Mausoleum over the years. The reason he places such trust in Hong Beimo is certainly not that Hong Beimo controls the Heavenly Secrets Bureau or has rendered him great service. It is because Hong Beimo secretly refines Immortality Pills for him."
Hu Xiaotian said, "Perhaps he merely uses that to cater to His Majesty's desires and deceive him." History was full of people who had hoodwinked emperors with promises of immortality. Hu Xiaotian did not believe a word of it. If modern science could not accomplish such a thing, how could it possibly be achieved in an age of cold steel?
Li Yuncong shook his head. "His Majesty may be old, but he is not the least bit muddleheaded. With his intellect, even if Hong Beimo could deceive him for a time, he could never deceive him for this long. Hong Beimo and His Majesty have always been using each other. He needs His Majesty to supply him with money, while His Majesty needs him to prolong his life. Have you noticed how much stronger and younger His Majesty looks compared with last year?"
Recalling what Yin Zheng had just told him, Hu Xiaotian frowned and said gravely, "He does seem to have grown a little younger."
Li Yuncong said, "If Hong Beimo had not grasped the secret of immortality, why would His Majesty obey his every suggestion? Hong Beimo, in