Chapter 113 - 113: A Farce
After playing chess for the entire afternoon, when the sun set in the west, the Chu family got ready and went to the county restaurant to eat.
Ning Yuting’s legs were still injured, so he stayed at home.
However, before Li Qingyu left, she heated up the food for him and prepared a lot of snacks before leaving.
Shuiyun County.
The golden light of the setting sun shone on the rows and rows of buildings, making them look coated with a layer of gold paint.
The wide street paved with bluestone was bustling with traffic.
Today, Shuiyun County was several times livelier than usual. Every shop was filled with customers.
The front door of the shop was hung with calamus and wormwood. Even the air was filled with the faint fragrance of wormwood. It was refreshing and filled with a happy festive atmosphere.
In this joyous festive atmosphere, a farce was playing out at the entrance of Hongyan Restaurant.
In order to attract customers, the Hongyan Restaurant hung a notice outside, on which an unfinished couplet, a riddle, and a zither score were written. Everyone had one chance. As long as they could answer the latter half of the couplet, guess the riddle, or play the zither score, they would be allowed to eat for free today.
This gimmick attracted a lot of people. Now, the entrance of Hongyan Restaurant was crowded. All the scholars were prepared to give it a try. However, the question was too difficult and no one had answered it yet.
At this moment, an extremely sharp voice sounded from the crowd. “Hey, isn’t this Second Young Master Rong?”
Hearing this, everyone’s attention was instantly diverted.
It was a natural reaction because the news about Rong Yupeng was too wide-spread. After many days, the discussion about him in the county still did not die down.
Rong Yupeng had been hiding at home for a few days. On this day, he could not stand being alone in the house and came out to take a walk. He had already dressed very low-key, but he was still recognized.
Rong Yupeng was the young master of a big family after all, and he was usually arrogant. However, at this moment, his face had already begun to turn red.
“Are you surprised to see me?”
Sheng Jiaping’s gaze moved down and landed on a certain part of Rong Yupeng’s lower body. “Hey, how did it feel? Tell us about it.”
He was an ignorant and incompetent second-generation heir who was at odds with Rong Yupeng. Now that he had an opportunity, he naturally would not give Rong Yupeng an easy time.
Everyone looked at him with disdain. Rong Yupeng had never been treated like this before. His eyes darkened as he shouted, “I was set up. The rumors are fake.”
“Fake?” Sheng Jiaping laughed. “Many people saw your miserable state. Who would believe you if you told us that it was fake?”
Rong Yupeng staggered. A strong sense of humiliation enveloped him. He was about to faint from anger.
One of Sheng Jiaping’s friends said, “I even heard that you were in tattered clothes that day.”
“I said it’s fake, it’s fake. Don’t push me!!!”
“Aiyo, why are you refusing to admit it. Actually, this is not a big deal.”
“Yeah, we understand if you want to try something new, but we just didn’t expect you were actually into men.”
Rong Yupeng roared, “I said it’s fake! It’s fake!”
“Hahaha, you’re angry because we’ve hit the nail on the head, right?”
“Young Master Rong, it’s really not a big deal. It’s just seeking fun. Every man does it. But the price you have to pay is kind of heavy.”
“I heard that Yunfei School wants to remove him. They said that they can’t let such a student ruin the school’s reputation.”
“Doesn’t that mean that he won’t be able to take the examination and become an official in the future?”
“That’s right. Hahaha, the price of seeking fun is too high.”
“Hahaha, hahaha…”
When Rong Yupeng heard that he had been expelled from the school and lost his future, he was so angry that he spat out a mouthful of blood and fell to the ground.
“Tsk, tsk, tsk. He fainted from anger…”
When the servant hiding at the side saw that his young master had fainted from anger, he hurriedly took out a mask and covered his face before dragging his master to the side.
“I told you not to come out, but you insisted. Great, now, you also made me feel humiliated.”
“Forget it, let’s end the master-servant relationship today. I’ll go and resign tomorrow. It’s too embarrassing to be your servant.”
After Rong Yupeng was dragged away, people quickly forgot about him.
Chu Qingzhi stood outside the crowd and watched this scene with interest. Her lips curled up into a mocking smile.
Tang Jinghong stood beside Chu Qingzhi and turned to look at her side profile. The light of the setting sun shone on her face, making her look exquisite.
Rong Yupeng would probably never have thought that he would be ruined by a little girl.
Li Qingyu looked up. “Why are there so many people here?”
Chu Qingzhi replied, “Mother, the boss of the restaurant put up a notice, saying that as long as anyone can answer one of the questions correctly, the meal will be on him.”
Li Qingyu immediately encouraged her sons. “Xuyuan, Xuyao, go and try.”
The two little boys replied, “Okay.”
At this moment, a clear voice came from the side. “I’m Xu Guannan. Greetings, Miss Chu and two junior brothers.”
Xu Guannan was 20 years old. He was handsome, scholarly, and thin. He was the youngest and most talented scholar and was deeply loved by the dean. At this moment, he was studying in the school and teaching.
He was from a poor family. It was all thanks to his father who sold the land to pay his tuition that he could study. Later, the dean of the school discovered his talent and waived his tuition fees. Only then could he continue studying.
Now, not only was he deeply trusted and nurtured by the dean, but he could also work at the school to earn some money. He was an example of someone who relied on knowledge to change his fate.
Everyone looked at Xu Guannan..