In Wikipedia, it is mentioned that Hulagu Khan sent the following letter to Sultan of Egypt, Saif ad-Din Qutuz in 1260:
From the King of Kings of the East and West, the Great Khan. To
Qutuz the Mamluk, who fled to escape our swords. You should think of
what happened to other countries and submit to us. You have heard how
we have conquered a vast empire and have purified the earth of the
disorders that tainted it. We have conquered vast areas, massacring
all the people. You cannot escape from the terror of our armies. Where
can you flee? What road will you use to escape us? Our horses are
swift, our arrows sharp, our swords like thunderbolts, our hearts as
hard as the mountains, our soldiers as numerous as the sand.
Fortresses will not detain us, nor armies stop us. Your prayers to God
will not avail against us. We are not moved by tears nor touched by
lamentations. Only those who beg our protection will be safe. Hasten
your reply before the fire of war is kindled. Resist and you will
suffer the most terrible catastrophes. We will shatter your mosques
and reveal the weakness of your God and then will kill your children
and your old men together. At present you are the only enemy against
whom we have to march.
Sultan killed the envoys who brought that letter in rage.
I read the page on the Sultan's life but I can't find any mention of the Sultan meeting the Mongols in battle before Battle of Ain-Jalut so It doesn't make any sense for Hulagu to claim that the Sultan had fled before to escape from Mongol swords (Unless of course Wikipedia is incomplete, that's why I am here).
In Sultan's life account however it is mentioned that he was captured and sold as a slave by Mongols when he was a child:
Qutuz was of Turkic origin. Captured by the Mongols and sold as a
slave, he traveled to Syria where he was sold to an Egyptian slave
merchant who then sold him to Aybak, the Mamluk sultan in Cairo.
According to some sources, Qutuz claimed that his original name was
Mahmud ibn Mamdud and he was descended from Ala ad-Din Muhammad II, a
ruler of the Khwarezmian Empire.
Is this what Hulagu's insult was referring to? If yes, How can he accuse Qutuz of fleeing when it was the Mongols who sold him in the first place? If no, Which armed confrontation did Qutuz take part in against Mongols before the above mentioned letter and subsequent Battle of Ain Jalut?