Chapter 4

For Lu Zheng's challenge, Ye Yu was not at all surprised; instead, he took out a finely crafted white porcelain bowl from his sleeve. At this moment, Qiulan had already taken out the wine pot from the room and, at Ye Yu's indication, poured the wine into the white porcelain bowl.

"Master Lu, please!" Ye Yu's expression remained calm as usual, gesturing for Lu Zheng to sit down and drink.

After the previous incident, Lu Zheng had already raised his guard. Seeing Ye Yu so composed, he repeatedly muttered to himself, pondering whether Ye Yu would use a homophone trick again: "One hundred bowls... one hundred bowls... one white bowl!"

When Lu Zheng's gaze locked onto the white porcelain bowl on the table, he suddenly realized the trick. He then gave a cold laugh, took out yesterday's written agreement from his sleeve, and said with a sneer, "Ye Yu, you just used a homophone to deceive me. I underestimated you. Since the agreement does not specify the details, I will consider you to have passed..."

Just as Lu Zheng said this, he suddenly changed his tone and continued with a sneer, "However, the agreement clearly states 'one hundred bowls of wine,' not just one white porcelain bowl. I saw the characters 'one hundred' and 'white' clearly, and the agreement is written in plain and clear terms!"

Ignoring Lu Zheng's sarcasm, Ye Yu picked up the bowl of wine, took a sip, and then smiled awkwardly, "Master Lu, you are overthinking it. I had no such intention!"

"Then are you conceding defeat?" At this moment, Lu Zheng's words were no longer as firm as before, as he felt that this Ye Yu was not simple.

"No, Master Lu, you misunderstood!" Ye Yu waved his hand and then said solemnly, "If I am not mistaken, Master Lu must already know my background!"

"Hmph! So what if I do? You are just a defeated dog!"

"You!..."

Qiulan, standing nearby, immediately glared with her almond eyes, ready to retaliate for her young master, but was stopped by Ye Yu's words.

Ye Yu, who wore a bitter smile, also wanted to retaliate, but he was well aware of his current situation. As Lu Zheng said, he was indeed a defeated dog, and even a cripple with broken legs.

However, these humiliations meant little to the current Ye Yu. Once a soldier in uniform, he was betrayed by his comrades and ended up in prison, experiencing the bitter and sweet of life.

"Since Master Lu already knows, I will save the trouble of explaining. The Ye family is the leading merchant in this province, involved in many industries, but especially in porcelain..."

As Ye Yu spoke, he reached out to play with the porcelain bowl containing the wine and continued, "Porcelain in the Song Dynasty is distinctly divided between the north and the south, hence the saying 'Southern green, Northern white.' Among the southern regions, Jingdezhen is particularly famous. Chuzhou is in the south, so white porcelain is more valuable here..."

"Hmph! I naturally know this! You are just going around in circles. What is your point?"

"Years ago, my father saw the potential profit in this and invested a large sum to set up a porcelain kiln. However, things did not go as planned. Out of ninety-nine sets of porcelain, none were satisfactory, except for the last set of bowls which met the standard.

To commemorate the hundredth set of porcelain, my father had a character engraved on one of the fine porcelain bowls, symbolizing the hard-won success of the Ye family's kiln!"

Ye Yu finished recounting the past and then drank the wine in the bowl, turning it over. When Lu Zheng looked at the bottom of the white porcelain bowl, he saw a 'hundred' character engraved there!

Ye Yu pointed to the 'hundred' character on the bottom of the bowl and said calmly, "My father gave this to me before he passed away, hoping that I would be resilient in the face of adversity. Ninety-nine setbacks, but there will always be a smooth path ahead! This is not a precious item, but it has benefited me for life..."

When Lu Zheng saw the 'hundred' character on the bottom of the bowl, he knew he had no way to counter. With a bowl called 'hundred bowls,' it was indeed one 'hundred' bowls of wine!

Lu Zheng sat helplessly on a nearby stone bench, unsure of what to say. Being tricked by Ye Yu repeatedly, he was both angry at Ye Yu's cunning and self-mocking for being played like a fool.

Seeing Lu Zheng's sullen face, Ye Yu said in a deep voice, "Master Lu, I hope this matter can be settled here. I hope you will not cause any more trouble! If you continue to be aggressive, I am willing to take this matter to court. The jade kylin was deliberately smashed, not accidentally broken by Qiulan! Master Lu, do you think I don't know?"

"You!... Hmph! Ye Yu, I will not let this go!" Lu Zheng glared at Ye Yu and then stormed off, his sleeves flapping in anger.

Watching Lu Zheng and his servant leave, Ye Yu felt a sense of helplessness. Although the crack on the jade kylin he saw yesterday was a new one, from the degree of damage and the angle, Ye Yu was certain it was not caused by a fall but by someone throwing it to the ground.

For Ye Yu, who was proficient in mechanics, he had already noticed the signs at the time. However, he did not want to cause more trouble and did not want to provoke any more conflicts at this moment, but life is unpredictable.

Although he had cleverly dealt with Lu Zheng, the grudge had been planted. No one could predict how Lu Zheng would seek revenge in the future, and the only thing he could do was to wait and see.

"Master, you are so smart!" The happiest person after Lu Zheng's defeat was Qiulan.

Ye Yu shook his head without comment and then took out the drawing he had made the previous day from behind the chair, saying, "Qiulan, take this drawing to Carpenter Shen and have him make a wheelchair!"

"Wheelchair?" Qiulan tilted her head, looking at the complex lines on the drawing, her curiosity growing. She had heard of wheelchairs but had never seen one.

Ye Yu nodded gently, "Yes, with a wheelchair, I can help with household chores and also go out to see the world when I have time..."

Ye Yu was not surprised by Qiulan's curiosity. Although the earliest records of wheelchairs date back to the Northern and Southern Dynasties, they were not widely used or improved. Moreover, the drawing he had made was based on the design of modern wheelchairs, making it much more practical than the current ones.

Ye Yu looked up at the sky, feeling it was time to see the outside world after being confined in the courtyard for so long.

Time flowed like water, and before they knew it, the day was sunny. Qiulan pushed Ye Yu in the wheelchair towards Yong'an Street. Along the way, Ye Yu observed the ancient streets and taverns, his eyes filled with both curiosity and a sense of expectation.

A new life, a new beginning!

Before they knew it, they had arrived at the street corner. Qiulan stopped the wheelchair in front of a tailor's shop. Ye Yu looked up at the signboard, which read 'Xiu Yi Yang Shen' in elegant and powerful characters, reminiscent of the style of Liu Gongquan from the Tang Dynasty.

Ye Yu had studied ancient history extensively, especially the Song Dynasty. The tailor's shop and the fabric store were closely related. The fabric store mainly sold fabrics, while the tailor's shop was where clothes were tailored and sold.

Ye Yu gestured for Qiulan to continue, but she did not move. Confused, Ye Yu turned his head to ask.

"Master, your clothes are already worn out. Why don't we go in and get a new set?" Qiulan spoke before Ye Yu could say anything.

Ye Yu smiled without a word, "You have already spent a lot on this wheelchair. The household expenses now rely entirely on your washing. It's better to reduce expenses!"

As he said this, he tried to move the wheelchair forward, but no matter how hard he tried, it did not budge because Qiulan was holding the back of the chair, pulling it back.

"Master, the fabric has already been bought. If you don't get new clothes, wouldn't it be a waste?"

"What? Already bought? Why didn't I know about this?" Ye Yu was taken aback and stared at Qiulan, needing to know what had happened.

Qiulan, looking nervous, lowered her head and explained the situation to Ye Yu. After hearing her, Ye Yu felt a mix of emotions, unsure whether to blame or comfort her.

During Ye Yu's illness, Qiulan had been washing three times the usual amount of clothes every day. Seeing her young master depressed, she knew it was because of his legs. She hoped to save enough money to hire the best doctor in the city to treat his legs.

Now, seeing Ye Yu no longer depressed, Qiulan decided to get him new clothes. Since she did not know how to sew, she bought the fabric from the fabric store and stored it at the tailor's shop to avoid his complaints. With the remaining money, she could pay for the tailor's work, so she explained the situation to Ye Yu.

"Master, Qiulan knows she was wrong, but your clothes are already worn and wrinkled..." Qiulan, seeing Ye Yu silent for a long time, thought he was angry at her decision and explained with a worried heart.

"That day, when you came to Yong'an Street, was it to buy fabric for my new clothes?" Ye Yu's voice was low and his expression complex as he asked Qiulan.

Seeing Qiulan not responding, Ye Yu already knew the answer and said guiltily, "I'm sorry, I misunderstood you. Let's go in and take a look..." His voice was low and soft, and he lowered his head, not speaking again.

Qiulan pushed the wheelchair towards the shop, introducing the tailor's shop to Ye Yu as she went. According to Qiulan, this newly opened tailor's shop offered a variety of styles at low prices, making it very popular among the city's residents. Despite its small size, it was always bustling with customers.

When they entered the shop, they found the atmosphere unusual. There were no customers in the hall, but instead, a few menacing thugs. The leader, dressed in blue, was lean and had narrow eyes, coldly staring at an old man.

The lean middle-aged man then smiled and clasped his hands, saying, "I've heard that Master Su's skills are unparalleled. Anyone's clothes can be made, so today I have brought someone here. I hope Master Su will make a set of clothes for this old friend!"

Master Su returned the gesture and smiled warmly, "Master Li, you are too kind. We are both in the same trade. Since this is your old friend, there's no need for me to show off my skills."

"Ah, Master Su, you are too modest. Who doesn't know that your skills are the best in the county?" The lean man waved his hand and then pretended to be humble, "I admit my skills are not good enough to make clothes for this old friend."

Without waiting for Master Su's response, he clapped his hands, and a few servants brought in a woman tied with ropes. As soon as she stood, a strong, unpleasant odor spread, and the servants immediately covered their noses and moved away.

Ye Yu, watching from the side, frowned. The strange smell made him feel nauseous. However, he was curious about the woman wrapped like a mummy.

Ye Yu was very interested in how this man surnamed Li would make things difficult for Master Su. It was rare to encounter such a confrontation, so he instructed Qiulan to push him to a corner and watched the scene with interest.

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