Chapter 58

After the formalities were completed, Ye Mingzhi finally turned his gaze to Ye Yu, and then said with a light snort, "Ye Yu, you don’t show respect to your elder brother. Isn’t that a bit too arrogant?"

Ye Mingzhi’s words immediately sparked a flurry of discussion among the crowd. Most of the guests knew the underlying secrets, but there were also many who were unaware of the reasons.

Even Liu Quan, who had been impatient earlier, could not say anything after hearing these words, because this was ultimately a matter of the Ye family. It would be inappropriate for an outsider to comment. For a moment, everyone’s eyes were fixed on Ye Yu.

"I am here to see the gifts, not to recognize kin. When you and your father drove me out of the Ye family, you should not have the audacity to claim kinship in public today!" Ye Yu replied with a cold laugh, his eyes narrowing as he looked at Ye Mingzhi.

"You!..."

Ye Mingzhi was speechless at Ye Yu’s blunt and harsh words. He then suppressed his anger, fanned himself, and said with a smile, "Never mind! Everyone has their own aspirations, and one cannot force them. Today is your grand opening, and I have been entrusted by my father to present you with a couplet as a gift!"

Ye Yu raised his eyes to look at the two servants behind Ye Mingzhi, seeing that each held a square brocade box. He then smiled, "Oh? Since Young Master Ye brought two couplets, why not give them to me at once?"

Ye Mingzhi ignored Ye Yu’s suggestion and opened the brocade box from the left-hand servant, taking out the couplet and saying with a cold laugh, "This is your choice, so receive the couplet!"

"Cheng, open it!" Ye Yu immediately understood the deeper meaning of these words. Since he had already refused Ye Mingzhi’s olive branch, he had to face this couplet with a challenging meaning.

When She Cheng and the others opened the couplet, only four characters were visible to everyone:

The top line read: "Long and short"

The bottom line read: "Deep and shallow"

The couplet had only four characters in total, which was indeed quite unusual. Each line, though only two characters long, was neatly balanced, a rare feat.

While everyone was discussing the couplet, Ye Yu’s face remained cold and silent. His previously fair and rosy complexion turned ashen.

Ye Mingzhi, looking at Ye Yu’s sullen face, said with a mocking smile, "I wonder if this couplet meets the satisfaction of Mr. Ye? I spent a lot of time thinking about it to come up with this excellent couplet!"

"This couplet is not simple..." Liu Yuanshan, after reading the couplet, glanced at Ye Yu with a thoughtful look.

Liu Quan, who understood some aspects of couplets but was ultimately a military man, could not see the deeper meaning. He leaned over to Liu Yuanshan and asked, "This couplet is not complicated. Why do you say it is not simple?"

Liu Yuanshan did not respond, but Yue Lin nodded slightly and muttered to himself, "This couplet seems simple, but it is actually a deliberate slight, with ill intentions!"

Among the guests, there were those with deep literary knowledge. After reading the couplet, one of them said with a darkened face, "On the surface, the top line refers to the length of the cloth in the dyeing workshop, and the bottom line refers to the color of the cloth. It seems reasonable, but it subtly mocks Mr. Ye!"

"Oh? How so?" someone asked, not understanding.

"Ha, didn’t you notice that Mr. Ye has a leg disability? If he doesn’t use a wheelchair or a cane, doesn’t he walk with a limp? And the uneven footprints left by his weak legs, aren’t they deep and shallow?"

As someone asked, someone else answered. For a moment, everyone suddenly understood the deeper meaning, and various expressions and attitudes filled the scene.

Su Yueyun, standing behind Ye Yu, naturally saw this. She glared at Ye Mingzhi with fiery eyes and then tugged at Ye Yu’s sleeve, whispering, "Brother Yu, we shouldn’t accept this gift!"

"Wow! Tsk tsk tsk, I really didn’t expect that after so long, you still have beautiful women by your side. Truly enviable!" Ye Mingzhi only then noticed the beautiful woman standing next to Ye Yu, and he was momentarily distracted, feeling a bit jealous.

Ye Yu, however, said indifferently, "Since someone has come to congratulate, how can we refuse their gift? Bring me ink, paper, and a brush!"

Following his order, someone soon brought ink, paper, and a brush, and placed a simple table in front of Ye Yu.

Once everything was set up, Ye Yu began to write in front of everyone. However, he did not start a new sheet but added a few characters to the couplet given by Ye Mingzhi!

Then Ye Yu muttered to himself, "Since it’s a couplet, how can it be without a horizontal scroll?" As he spoke, he wrote a horizontal scroll on the existing paper.

After Ye Yu finished rewriting, everyone looked at the couplet again and could not help but show a strange expression, for this couplet was indeed unique.

The top line read: "Entering, no distinction between long and short"

The bottom line read: "Taking out, looking at the depth and shallowness"

The horizontal scroll read: "Lustful ones come!"

The onlookers were all drawn to this couplet, and there was much debate about its content.

Some said it was extraordinary and profound, with a unique perspective; others said the words were too lewd, evoking thoughts of unspeakable matters between men and women...

Seeing this couplet, Su Yueyun’s face turned red to her neck. She glanced at Ye Yu, not knowing what to say, and then blushed and lowered her head, no longer looking.

Regardless of the meaning of the couplet, the fact that Ye Yu could write a new couplet based on the original was a rare feat. Therefore, the crowd now had a new appreciation for Ye Yu’s talent.

Ye Mingzhi looked at the revised couplet and laughed heartily, "Mr. Ye is indeed well-versed in the ways of men and women. Even this couplet is so deeply meaningful, truly admirable.

However, isn’t this dyeing workshop now like a brothel? Hanging a sheep’s head to sell dog meat, using the name of a dyeing workshop to run a brothel, such despicable behavior is truly despicable!"

Most of the people standing under the gatehouse were well-read, and though they had come to congratulate the opening of the dyeing workshop, they all looked down on such vulgar and obscene language, especially when it was so explicit. Thus, the crowd erupted in indignation, criticizing Ye Yu for his immoral behavior.

"Brothel? Ha! Young Master Ye, you are truly blind! This couplet is based on your original, and I don’t see anything wrong with it!"

"Hmph! In broad daylight, who is blind is obvious. Ye Yu, you are nothing more than that!" Ye Mingzhi looked at Ye Yu with disdain and then coldly snorted.

Ye Yu waved his hand dismissively, "This couplet is based on the dyeing process. When the raw cloth is put into the dye vat, there is no distinction between long and short! Even if the cloth is put into the vat, it can be dyed together regardless of its length. So how can my top line ‘Entering, no distinction between long and short’ be lewd?"

"This..."

When these words were spoken, the crowd was stunned, and gradually, some began to accept this explanation.

"Then, when the cloth is taken out to check the color, to determine if the dyeing is successful, if the color is too light, it is put back in. Young Master Ye, the bottom line ‘Taking out, looking at the depth and shallowness’ is also correct. The horizontal scroll ‘Lustful ones come’ means those who like well-dyed colors are welcome to the Chinese Dyeing Workshop. What is wrong with my couplet?"

"..."

This explanation changed the crowd’s perception. After some thought, they indeed found it to be as Ye Yu said. As a result, they praised the couplet as excellent while feeling a bit embarrassed about their earlier misconceptions.

"Even so, misleading the public with a couplet is... still against the principles of education!" Ye Mingzhi could not let it go and came up with this reason.

Seeing that Ye Mingzhi was still relentless, Ye Yu said with a cold snort, "Any article or phrase containing the word ‘color’ is not necessarily about the relationship between men and women! The word ‘color’ can also mean the original appearance, profession, or industry. Even the term ‘original color’ is recorded in the ‘Book of Jin’ and the ‘Tang Code’. Were the sages also using obscene language in their writings?"

At this point, Ye Yu paused and looked around the crowd, "If what Young Master Ye says is true, what are we, the descendants, learning? Are we learning a filthy and corrupt education? If we have the mindset of the sages, how could we have such absurd thoughts?"

"!"

Ye Yu’s sharp response left the crowd speechless.

After Ye Yu’s explanation, no one could say anything, as his arguments were well-founded. Even Ye Mingzhi was left speechless, not knowing what to do.

Yue Lin looked at Ye Yu in amazement, his mind blown by Ye Yu’s quick thinking.

Moreover, though the couplet was somewhat vulgar, it was deeply meaningful. More importantly, Ye Yu’s ability to turn the tables on his opponent was truly remarkable.

"This young man is quick-witted, truly remarkable!" Yue Lin stroked his beard and praised Ye Yu.

Liu Yuanshan, however, shook his head, "It’s a pity for such talent..."

"Ah, Old Liu, you are mistaken. There are many paths in life, not all of which lead to the court. This young man’s business acumen benefits the people, which is far more practical than the scheming of officials in the court."

Yue Lin’s words enlightened Liu Yuanshan, who then felt ashamed, "You are right, I was shortsighted!"

At this point, Ye Mingzhi had nothing more to say. The crowd’s criticism made him very embarrassed, and he bowed to the two officials before leaving in shame.

Ye Yu watched Ye Mingzhi’s retreating back, lost in thought. He knew that today’s incident was Ye Mengxin’s doing. Sending his son Ye Mingzhi here was to test his stance.

It seemed that the conflict with Ye Mengxin was now inevitable, but this was something Ye Yu had long anticipated.

Ye Yu turned around and saw Su Yueyun’s blushing face, knowing that she had misinterpreted the couplet. He teased her, "Yueyun, I didn’t know you understood so much!"

Su Yueyun’s blush deepened, and her face turned even redder. She playfully stomped her foot and hit Ye Yu with her fist, "Pah! You’re the one thinking too much!" She then covered her face and ran away as if fleeing for her life.

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