"I don't believe other saints won't stop it!"
"They are semi-saints. The saints are dead."
"There is always a way out. I believe things will turn around."
"I hope so. Since Lord Feng went to find Master Jianmei, then Master Jianmei will definitely find a way to help Fang Yun."
"Master Jianmei is only a university scholar after all. Even if he becomes a great scholar, he cannot stop the sub-sage family. However, if the imperial examination inspection of the Holy Academy really breaks the rules, Master Jianmei will probably not sit idly by."
Prefect Dong said in a deep voice: "If that day really comes, there is no need for Lord Jianmei to take action. I will control the luck of the prefecture and kill him on the spot. After that, I will commit suicide in front of the Holy Temple to let the world know that the scholars of Jingguo cannot be bullied!"
"Brother Dong is so righteous!" Although all the officials praised and admired him, they all felt sad in their hearts.
Jingguo is too weak.
By the river, Tong Li looked at the joyful smiles of the crowd and listened to the ubiquitous shouts. A slight regret emerged in his heart, but that regret was immediately torn apart by the deep humiliation. The holy page was gone, but as a descendant of a famous family and the grandson of a third-rank minister, he could not tolerate kneeling down and kowtow to Fang Yun in public.
"Qing country's trash!" Tong Li's low voice squeezed out from his throat.
The imperial guard said, "Local officials will host a banquet at Jinghai Tower to entertain the dragon boat racers. My son will also go. You should come with him."
Tong Li didn't dare to refute at all. He took heavy steps and moved towards Jinghai Tower step by step. As he walked, he thought about how to turn the bet around and avoid being insulted. If it was unavoidable, he would think of a way to wash himself clean.
It took Tong Li a full quarter of an hour to finally enter Jinghai Tower.
At this moment, the celebration banquet in Jinghai Tower has been held, and it is more grand than any previous year.
The scholars in Yuhai City already knew what Fang Yun said to Mr. Qian, and everyone was moved. Anyone who had been dissatisfied with Fang Yun before drank a bottle of wine to apologize.
The most prestigious old scholars in Yuhai City also came over to toast and express their gratitude to Fang Yun. The attitude of these famous elders was clear: anyone who dared to speak ill of Fang Yun would need to consider the consequences.
Those who had originally been optimistic about Fang Yun were extremely pleased. From now on, Fang Yun would be able to gain a foothold in Yuhai City. If the people of Yuhai City were able to decide on the number of places in Shushan, they would force it on Fang Yun even if he did not want it.
Tong Li splashed the dirty water at Fang Yun without hesitation, and all of it went to waste without leaving a single drop.
The people of Qing sat at the same table as usual. In previous years, the celebration banquets had occasionally been toasted by the people of Yuhai City, and then ended hastily. But today, apart from Prefect Dong who said a few polite words, no one came. The people of Qing drank together in silence. If they were not afraid of being accused of not being able to afford to lose, they would have left long ago.
Especially Shi Dehong, who was drinking while looking at Fang Yun who was surrounded by people, his eyes became redder and redder.
Yan Yukong drank and ate leisurely, as if it had nothing to do with him.
The people of Qing Dynasty were just like the flowers in the pots, completely just decorations. Even the mugwort and calamus of the Dragon Boat Festival were more eye-catching than them.
When the imperial guards appeared with Tong Li, Jinghai Tower quickly became quiet. Some people sighed, some stayed away, especially those who hated evil and made no effort to hide their disgust for Tong Li.
Tong Li's face was filled with shame, not because he had done something wrong, but because he had lost.
Zhao Zhuzhen put down his wine glass and stood up, looking at Tong Li, and said, "Tong Li, now is the time for you to fulfill your promise. You said that if Fang Yun won the first place in the Dragon Boat Festival, you would not only present a holy page with both hands, but also kowtow and kneel on the Dragon Head Bridge, and then give up this year's provincial examination, right?"
Tong Li lowered his head and said nothing.
"What? You had the guts to slander Fang Yun, but now you don't have the courage to admit it?" Zhao Zhuzhen asked with a sneer.
Tong Li knew Zhao Zhuzhen's temper best. He had violated her taboo by favoring Qingguo. If he regretted it in front of her, he would be humiliated even more. He gritted his teeth, faced Fang Yun, knelt on the ground, kowtowed, and then stood up immediately.
"Fang Yun, I was wrong! I will have someone present the holy page tonight, and I will also clarify the slander against you before, and at the same time give up this year's provincial examination!" Tong Li clenched his fists as he spoke. Even though he was filled with endless hatred for Fang Yun, he did not dare to show it.
"Let's just forget about this matter." Fang Yun nodded. Although he didn't like Tong Li, since Tong Li had fulfilled the bet, he let it go.
Just then, laughter came from the table where the Qing people were sitting.
"You are Tong Li, right? I just heard that you want to compete for the title of Maocai? With your courage, what can you use to compete for the title of Maocai? I can conclude that if you cannot defeat Fang Yun once in the future, your Wen Palace will be shaken. Not to mention the Juren exam, you may not even pass the Xiucai exam. The higher Fang Yun's future achievements, the more likely your Wen Palace will collapse. If you give up the prefectural exam today, it is equivalent to giving up your ambition, and giving up your holy way!"
"You..." Tong Li glared at Shi Dehong, his body shook, and then his face changed drastically, because his Wen Palace was actually shaken by this.
Fang Yun didn't expect Shi Dehong to be so thoughtful. He not only plotted against Tong Li, but also against him. He immediately looked at Shi Dehong and said coldly, "Why, you lost the dragon boat race and you want to harm the people of Jing again and frame me? Do you think that you can destroy his Wen Palace and bring disgrace to mine with just a few tricks?"
Many people glared at Shi Dehong.
Shi Dehong smiled and said, "I am just telling the truth. Confucius said: repay grievances with justice, repay kindness with kindness. Although you are tolerant of him, he only thinks it is in exchange for shame, not your kindness, so he will not repay you with kindness. Since he thinks you hate him, he must repay grievances with justice, that is, use what he thinks is the right means to resolve the grievances between the two of you. Tong Li, am I wrong?"
No one on the sidelines objected. As they were all juren, they did not have the strength to refute Shi Dehong. Moreover, those who became jinshi were all very old. If they rebuked Shi Dehong with the classics, it would be bullying the weak. If it led to a debate with Shijun, the consequences would be disastrous.
Although many people in Qing were dissatisfied, they could not help but secretly sigh that this man was worthy of being the disciple of the Lord of Poetry. Not only was he good at writing poetry, he was also very good at judging people and his quotations from classics were straight to the point.
Fang Yun sighed, knowing that this matter would not end well. If Tong Li was a Jinshi, he might be able to refute Shi Dehong, but he was just a student, and could not stand Shi Dehong's bewitching. Now, unless a great scholar came to wake up the world, no one could dispel Tong Li's thoughts.
Tong Li lowered his head, his knuckles creaking slightly when his hands were clenched. Shi Dehong's words touched his heart. He still harbored resentment towards Fang Yun. He did not dare to repay Fang Yun with evil, nor could he repay evil with kindness. He could only repay evil with justice.
Shi Dehong saw Tong Li deeply involved, and smiled and said: "Tong Li, you may not be as good as Fang Yun in the imperial examination, but you are from a famous family, you must have learned a hundred arts, and you have a huge advantage in the Book Mountain. I think you might as well make another bet with Fang Yun, not the imperial examination, but the Book Mountain! The two of you compete in the Book Mountain, and the one who is better wins. The loser will destroy the Wen Palace, how about it?"
An old scholar was furious: "How dare you! I think you are a junior, so I will tolerate your nonsense. If you dare to harm the scholars of Jingguo again, I will kill you in Jinghai Tower!"
Many literati in Jing State were also angry. Before, Shi Dehong could only be considered as an instigator, but later he simply instigated the two people to kill each other, which gave the Jinshi an excuse to take action.
Shi Dehong immediately shut up. He would not give others the opportunity to kill him.
Tong Li suddenly raised his head, looked at Fang Yun and said, "Fang Yun, I admit that you are the best poet among all the students in Jiangzhou, and you are the best in the world in asking for sage words. I am definitely not as good as you in the prefectural examination. However, as Master Shi said, I may not lose to you in the mountain of books! I want to make another bet with you! You and I will compete on the mountain of books, whoever climbs higher will be the winner! The loser will destroy his own palace of literature, how about that?"
Fang Yun looked at Tong Li quietly and said slowly: "Tong Li, you and I originally had no grudges. If you didn't want the talent from Yuhai Prefecture, you could have told me, and I could have returned to Dayuan Prefecture to take the exam. But you first went to General Gan's house to slander me, and then spread the news all over the city, and finally asked other students to block me in the Academy of Literature. It was you who personally cut off the way for us to negotiate."
"Today is the Dragon Boat Festival. You spoke ill of me for the first time when we met, and then forced me to race the dragon boat. You personally added a bit of resentment to your heart! In the end, you blamed everything on me. You yourself have been broken in your will and heart, so don't implicate me! As a scholar in front of the emperor, why should I bet with you, a student, that I will break the palace of literature? Who gave you the confidence! You have already given up participating in this year's prefectural examination, so how can you take the examination for the scholar? If you can't pass the examination for the scholar, how can you bet with me on the mountain of books!"
Fang Yun finished speaking and drank his tea calmly.
Prefect Dong said, "Tong Li, Minister Tong and I are old acquaintances, and I know his temper very well. If you harm Fang Yun, he will certainly destroy you with his own hands. If Fang Yun destroys your palace, he will probably give up everything to avenge you. Your choice now is not just about your future, but about your entire Tong family! Don't be deceived by others and lose your mind!"
Zhao Zhuzhen said contemptuously: "When you were in the capital, I thought you were just a famous playboy, but now I know that you are a fool who doesn't know how to advance or retreat!"
Tong Li's face flushed red, and his determination was shaken again.
Shi Dehong suddenly said, "Fang Yun, you said that a mere Tongsheng is not worthy of betting with you on the Suiwen Palace, so how about I, a Juren, bet with you?"
Everyone stared at Shi Dehong intently, and several Jinshi were ready to kill him with verbal attacks if he said anything harmful again.
Fang Yun looked at Shi Dehong and said, "Oh? Mr. Shi means that as long as I climb higher than Tong Li in the Book Mountain, you will destroy the Palace of Literature?"
Shi Dehong laughed and said, "Of course not. You bet with Tong Li, and I will bet with you at the same time, but the conditions of our bets are different. After I passed the examination for the scholar, I entered the Book Mountain, broke through the second mountain and the third pavilion, and stepped into the first pavilion of the third mountain. My condition is that if you can surpass me and step into the third mountain and the second pavilion, then I will destroy the Wen Palace myself. If you can't, then you can destroy the Wen Palace yourself. How about it? Gentlemen of Jingguo, I am not harming him, right? I bet the Wen Palace of the Juren for his Xiucai Wen Palace, so he got a big advantage!"
"Fang Yun, do you dare to gamble? Do you dare to let me take part in this year's provincial examination?" Tong Li shouted.
This book will be on the shelves tomorrow and will explode in popularity.