Chapter 50

Li Mo's words made Ye Yu's follower, She Tongcheng, instantly furious. In one stride, he came close and grabbed Li Mo by the collar, frowning and angrily rebuking, "My elder brother is invited here as a guest! If you keep nagging and blocking the way, do you believe I won't throw you into the river to feed the fish?"

At this moment, Pan Zhisuo and Shen Jinchuan tried to mediate. Although Li Mo's face was pale, he still tried to maintain his composure and said, "You... Pan Brother, Shen Brother, did you see clearly? I was just giving a personal suggestion! This fellow is so vicious..."

As Li Mo spoke, he turned his head and pointed at Ye Yu with his fan, shouting, "Ye Yu, make your servant back off!"

"Didn't you hear that my friend calls me elder brother?" Ye Yu did not listen to Li Mo but raised an eyebrow and asked Li Mo in return.

"Fine! Make your friend let go! A gentleman uses words, not hands. If you don't know when to back down, don't blame me for disregarding our old school friendship!" Li Mo swallowed and said with a red face.

After Li Mo finished speaking, Pan Zhisuo also came forward to persuade. Only then did Ye Yu signal She Tongcheng to release Li Mo. Li Mo's family was quite influential in Lian Prefecture, and the two had studied together for two years in the past.

However, although their academic performance was comparable, Ye Yu had a slight edge over Li Mo. This is why Li Mo had always been不服 (unconvinced) in the past.

After Ye Yu's family suffered a tragedy, leading to his disability, Li Mo's competitive thoughts with Ye Yu came to an end.

But when Pan Zhisuo praised Ye Yu on the boat, the jealousy and resentment that had faded resurfaced. Especially now that Li Mo had passed the imperial examination and Ye Yu was still a commoner, these thoughts spread rapidly.

It was precisely because of these thoughts that Li Mo deliberately mocked and challenged Ye Yu.

Li Mo rubbed his neck, glared at She Tongcheng, and muttered, "Brute, truly, birds of a feather flock together! A disgrace to the literati!"

She Tongcheng, with his excellent hearing, heard Li Mo's continued insults and was about to step forward to teach him a lesson, but Ye Yu stopped him.

Ye Yu looked at Li Mo, who had retreated to a distance, and then said solemnly, "Since Brother Li says this is the way of the literati, we should follow it! But what way are you referring to?"

"Brother, don't be upset, come on board with me!" Pan Zhisuo rarely saw Ye Yu speak so seriously. He could see that Ye Yu was already displeased.

Ye Yu waved his hand to interrupt Pan Zhisuo and then said, "Brother Pan, don't worry. If I can satisfy Brother Li, I will board the boat. If I can't, it means I don't have the qualifications to board, and I will leave to avoid tainting this elegant gathering with my copper stench!"

"This..." Pan Zhisuo didn't know what to say. The situation he didn't want to see had finally happened.

Shen Jinchuan also felt that Li Mo was being unreasonable today. Such a challenge was clearly inappropriate, so he pulled Li Mo aside to persuade him.

But Li Mo laughed coldly, unmoved, and taunted Ye Yu, "Two years have passed, and you're still so straightforward! Fine, since Brother Ye is so sensible, I won't be polite!"

As Li Mo spoke, he looked around, thinking of a difficult challenge to keep Ye Yu, who was equally knowledgeable, off the boat. When he looked around, he saw hope in the northeast direction. He pointed to the northeast and smiled, "The challenge is there!"

Ye Yu and the others followed Li Mo's gaze and saw two women by the riverbank. Ye Yu didn't understand Li Mo's intention and asked, "Use them as the subject?"

"Exactly. Literati have always been known for their elegance, but true elegance is not vulgar. If Brother Ye can make one of these two women bend down and willingly offer a kiss, I, Li Mo, will not only let Brother Ye board the boat but also apologize publicly!"

After saying this, Li Mo paused and then opened his fan, saying coolly, "If Brother Ye can't do it... don't blame me for being deliberately difficult!"

Is this not being deliberately difficult? Pan Zhisuo and Shen Jinchuan exchanged glances and then gave Li Mo a look of disdain.

Since both sides were determined to confront each other, Pan Zhisuo and Shen Jinchuan could only stand aside and watch.

The one who felt the worst was undoubtedly Pan Zhisuo. In a few months, it would be the spring examination in Lin'an. Because of the long journey, he had to prepare to leave for Lin'an soon.

Pan Zhisuo knew that this trip would take at least half a year, regardless of success or failure. He wanted to take this opportunity to have a good time with Ye Yu before going to the capital for the examination.

But the situation seemed to be out of his control, and he was worried that Ye Yu would hold a grudge over this. Therefore, Pan Zhisuo's expression was very complex, and he was very displeased with Li Mo's deliberate challenge.

Faced with the different gazes of the three, Ye Yu lowered his head and thought in silence. After a moment, he touched his chin and looked at Li Mo expressionlessly, "Fine! Let's make a deal!"

"Li Mo said it must be voluntary and willing!" Li Mo frowned slightly, reminding him with a hint of surprise.

"Of course! Threats and inducements are cheating, and I, Ye Yu, would never do that! Everyone can watch. Tongcheng, let's go..." Ye Yu bowed to the three and wheeled himself toward the two women.

Watching Ye Yu's departing back, Shen Jinchuan couldn't help but mutter, "Brother Li, your challenge is truly malicious. Although Ye Yu is handsome, making a woman offer a kiss voluntarily is like a fairy tale! After all, men and women should not be too intimate, and they wouldn't do it easily..."

"Eh, how can Brother Shen blame me? It's Ye Yu who is being overly competitive! We just need to watch the show!"

"Hmph! He is a guest I invited, and Brother Li is being so difficult. Can't you tell the difference between host and guest?" Pan Zhisuo sneered and then fell silent, standing aside and looking in the direction Ye Yu had gone.

"..."

Ye Yu wheeled himself to the riverbank. Initially, he thought they were strangers, but the closer he got, the more familiar they seemed.

When he got closer, he realized he knew these two women. The one in the black cloak was Liu Qianyu, the courtesan of Zui Chun Lou, and the one behind her was her maid, Xiao Huan.

Ye Yu was very surprised to see these familiar women. He wondered why Liu Qianyu, who usually stayed at Zui Chun Lou, would be by the river.

This seemed unreasonable, but no matter how much he thought about it, he couldn't figure it out. He decided to put it aside and focus on the current challenge.

Although they had met before, Ye Yu didn't think that Liu Qianyu or Xiao Huan would offer a kiss just because they were familiar, especially in an era where men and women should not be too intimate.

Moreover, Liu Qianyu had always been a performer, not a prostitute. Making her offer a kiss would not be easy. At this moment, Ye Yu thought of Mei'er and wished she were here to make things easier.

"Miss Qianyu, what a pleasant surprise to meet you here! It's a great honor for me!" Ye Yu wheeled himself closer and greeted Liu Qianyu politely.

Liu Qianyu's eyes flashed with surprise at seeing Ye Yu by the river, but she then forced a stiff smile and bowed, "Meeting you here is also an honor for me! Why are you so leisurely today, visiting the river?"

"Ah, a friend invited me, so I had to come," Ye Yu said, feeling a bit helpless.

Hearing this, Liu Qianyu's beautiful eyes brightened, and she said with a hint of jealousy, "I invited you several times, but you always declined, saying you were busy! Is the friend you mentioned a beauty, or you wouldn't have come here yourself..."

"Miss Qianyu, you misunderstand. It's just a gathering of literati who passed the examination this year. I'm just here for the fun. As for beauty, you are already a beauty, who could compare?"

"Is that so?" Ye Yu's words made Liu Qianyu feel much better. Her pale, stiff face finally showed a hint of redness.

Ye Yu smiled strangely, "Of course, but you stole the garlic sprouts I planted. What do you think should be done?"

Liu Qianyu, who was just feeling happy, was confused by Ye Yu's words, "What are you talking about? When did I steal your garlic sprouts?"

Ye Yu raised an eyebrow, pointed to a row of garlic sprouts nearby, and said seriously, "I clearly saw you stealing my garlic sprouts from a distance. How could I falsely accuse you?"

Following Ye Yu's finger, Liu Qianyu indeed saw a few garlic sprouts pulled out, with the damp soil clearly visible.

"This... Sir, you must have seen wrong. I did not steal anything. Please don't misunderstand..."

Liu Qianyu wanted to defend herself, but there was no one else around except her and Xiao Huan. Even if she wanted to deny it, she couldn't explain. Moreover, Ye Yu insisted he saw it with his own eyes, making it even harder for her to defend herself.

Seeing her mistress being misunderstood, Xiao Huan, with her hands on her hips, puffed her cheeks and accused Ye Yu, "Hmph, Sir Ye, you are falsely accusing! Even if my mistress wanted to steal, she wouldn't steal such a spicy vegetable. You, unreasonable brute, have wasted my mistress's concern for you!"

"Ah..."

"Xiao Huan, don't speak rashly!"

Although lying made Ye Yu feel a bit evil, he had to do it to achieve his goal.

He then looked at Liu Qianyu, whose face was slightly red, and cleared his throat, "There's a way to see if I'm falsely accusing or not!"

"Please tell me!"

Although stealing garlic sprouts was a trivial matter, if it spread, it would damage her reputation. Therefore, Liu Qianyu was eager to prove her innocence.