Chapter 97

When he returned to the inn, the counter manager handed Ye Yu a note. Ye Yu recognized Xiao Guoliang's handwriting and, after reading the content, learned about the banquet at Zhuangyuan Tower. He then changed into a simple outfit and headed to Zhuangyuan Tower according to the address.

As he arrived at Zhuangyuan Tower, Ye Yu was about to enter when a young waiter blocked his way.

"Why are you blocking my path?" Ye Yu asked the waiter politely.

The waiter, a young man, sized Ye Yu up and down. Seeing that Ye Yu was dressed simply and was a disabled person, he showed a look of disdain: "Sir, today is the day when all the candidates gather. You should come another day!"

"You have no eyes! My brother is also a candidate for this year's examination. Move aside quickly!"

Although Ye Yu had repeatedly warned She Tongcheng to restrain his thug-like behavior, as this was not Chuzhou but Lin'an, the capital, where one could not act recklessly, if trouble arose, it would be hard to resolve.

She Tongcheng had been more restrained in his words and actions recently, but the waiter's disdainful attitude made it hard for him to suppress his anger. He then shouted in anger and pushed the waiter aside.

"You, how can you be so rude!?" The waiter was pushed aside by She Tongcheng and almost fell flat on his face.

She Tongcheng hated being called rude the most. Hearing this, his eyes widened in anger, and he approached the waiter, grabbing him by the collar and shouting, "My brother was invited to have a meal. Why are you blocking him? Haven't you heard that a good dog doesn't block the way?"

"Hey! Hero, are you looking for trouble?" The waiter, who seemed to have seen this kind of thing before, was not intimidated by She Tongcheng's fierce appearance. Instead, he mocked him with a cold, disdainful look.

"Come on, guys, there's a troublemaker outside!" The waiter, not at all nervous, shouted into the tavern.

Shortly after, two burly men walked out from the tavern, standing on either side of the door like two towers. The waiter, seeing that the two men were not moving, impatiently complained, "What are you waiting for? Quickly get rid of this troublemaker!"

The two burly men, who had just woken up, opened their eyes. One of them extended his thick hand to grab She Tongcheng. Although She Tongcheng was intimidated by their presence, he was not a coward.

First, he threw the waiter a meter away, then transformed his right hand into a fist and met the approaching hand. The burly man, seeing that his opponent was a trained fighter, his eyes suddenly lit up, and he let out a cold snort, mustering all his strength to punch back with a powerful fist.

Bang!

A not-so-big collision made She Tongcheng retreat three steps. His face turned red with the surge of blood. The burly man, however, remained standing like a mountain, and it was clear who was the stronger of the two!

But neither of them moved. The waiter, who had fallen on the stone street, got up, holding his bleeding forehead, and shouted hysterically, "Get rid of this rascal for me! Hurry up!"

The other burly man, who had been watching, frowned slightly and said in a deep voice, "We are not your henchmen. You don't get to boss us around! Get lost!"

"Fine, fine, fine! You wait, I'll go find Master Liu to settle this!"

The waiter scrambled into the tavern, and soon a middle-aged man in gray brocade came out. The middle-aged man, standing at the door, said arrogantly, "Who is causing trouble here? Don't you know how many heads you have?"

"Manager, your Zhuangyuan Tower is open for business. I was invited to have a drink, but your people chased me out. Is this how you treat your guests?"

Seeing that the main person had arrived, Ye Yu signaled She Tongcheng to step back. He could see that She Tongcheng was no match for the two burly men and would only get hurt if he continued to fight.

The middle-aged man, known as Master Liu, looked at Ye Yu and then said in a deep voice, "Didn't the waiter tell you that the tavern only serves this year's candidates today?"

"He did!"

"Since he told you, why don't you leave?"

Ye Yu found this amusing: "Why should I leave? Manager, do you think I don't have the qualifications to enter?"

"Are you a candidate for this year's examination?" Seeing Ye Yu's calm demeanor, Manager Liu seemed to realize something.

At this moment, the candidates inside the tavern were attracted by the commotion outside and came out to see what was happening. When some of them heard that Ye Yu was a candidate for this year's examination, they burst into laughter.

"His disabled appearance, and he claims to be a candidate for this year's examination. Is he crazy?"

"What a strange story..."

Hearing these people mock Ye Yu, She Tongcheng was indignant and shouted at them, "If my brother, Jieyuan Lang, is not a candidate, what are you all?"

"Ha ha! This master and servant must be crazy! I have never heard of a disabled person becoming a Jieyuan, let alone such a young one!"

"That's right. Even if this year's examination does not discriminate against appearance or disability, I have never heard of a disabled person becoming a Jieyuan! This master and servant are truly arrogant. Manager, please get rid of them to avoid disturbing our scholarly gathering!"

"You are right. We, the noble scholars, cannot be in the same place as these madmen!"

"Manager, please get rid of them to avoid tarnishing your tavern's reputation!"

"..."

The crowd was agitated and demanded that Ye Yu be driven away. She Tongcheng, seeing that these people were unreasonable, was furious. If it weren't for the two burly men at the door, he would have beaten up these scholars.

"Go back and continue your daydreams!"

"Brother, why do you daydream?"

"If you don't daydream, how can you talk nonsense in broad daylight?"

"Ha ha!"

Another round of mocking laughter erupted, causing the crowd to burst into laughter.

At this moment, Yue Chen, Meng Tong, and Xiao Guoliang heard the commotion and came down from their private room. Meng Tong, pushing through the crowd, realized that the person being mocked was the Ye Yu they had been waiting for.

Hearing the mocking words, Meng Tong felt as if he himself was being insulted. He stepped forward and shouted at the crowd, "Brother Ye is the Jieyuan of Chuzhou this year. I, Meng Tong, can vouch for him. Are you all gathered here to mock the Jieyuan of Chuzhou? Do you think the candidates of Chuzhou are weak and can be bullied?"

Sigh!

Meng Tong's words were like a thunderclap, stunning everyone into silence. They looked at each other, their faces showing surprise.

However, after a brief silence, one of the candidates questioned, "Just because you say so, what proof do you have?"

"That's right. Even if he is a candidate for this year's examination, it seems that Chuzhou has no talented people, allowing a disabled person to become a Jieyuan..."

"Ha ha ha! This is getting more interesting! It seems Chuzhou is a unique place! I heard that in the previous examination, two people from Chuzhou won the second and third places. Now, a disabled Jieyuan has emerged. Is Chuzhou a place of literary prosperity?"

"You!..."

Meng Tong, angered by these people, was speechless. He glanced at Ye Yu, thinking, "Ye Yu, you usually argue well, why are you silent now?"

Ye Yu, with a grim face, did not speak. He coldly watched the mocking crowd, knowing that whatever he said would be useless.

At this moment, Yue Chen and Xiao Guoliang had pushed through the crowd. Yue Chen was about to vouch for Ye Yu, but Ye Yu spoke first, his eyes cold and indifferent, "Brother Yue, it seems Ye Yu is not qualified to attend this banquet today. Goodbye!"

Without waiting for Yue Chen to explain to the crowd, Ye Yu signaled She Tongcheng to push him back to the inn.

"Brother Ye!..." Watching Ye Yu's cold back as he left, Yue Chen slapped his thigh in anger and pointed at Manager Liu, "Liu Lao San, you lowlife, this matter is not over between us!"

At this moment, Yue Chen no longer had the gentleness of a scholar but exuded a killing aura, making Manager Liu pale. Manager Liu, sweating, apologized to Yue Chen, but Yue Chen had no interest in listening and chased after Ye Yu.

"Brother Xiao is also here, everyone. This is the real Jieyuan of Fuzhou this year!"

One of the young candidates from Fuzhou recognized Xiao Guoliang. Seeing that Xiao Guoliang was about to leave, he grabbed his sleeve and introduced him to the crowd.

The crowd's eyes lit up, and they surrounded Xiao Guoliang, their attitudes changing completely from the mocking faces they had shown to Ye Yu at the door.

Seeing that he was the only one left, Xiao Guoliang, in a hurry, pushed the crowd away and bowed, "If you all look down on the Jieyuan, why are you doing this?"

"Brother Xiao, what do you mean?"

"Earlier, that was the Jieyuan of Chuzhou, Ye Yu, and his knowledge is not inferior to mine. Your mocking and ridiculing a Jieyuan shows that you all have high standards and would not respect someone like me. I am just a Jieyuan, and it seems I am not worthy of your respect. I will take my leave!"

Xiao Guoliang smiled coldly and left the tavern, ignoring the sycophantic candidates.

The tavern door was now completely silent. If there were still doubts about Meng Tong's words, Xiao Guoliang's words hit the crowd hard. They never expected that the person they had mocked so enthusiastically was indeed a real Jieyuan.

Recalling Xiao Guoliang's words, the crowd's faces turned red, feeling the sting of being slapped. They looked at each other, their faces flushed, and left in embarrassment.

Manager Liu did not pay attention to the candidates but regretfully slapped his forehead, "Oh, why didn't I see it?"

"Yes, that disabled person was very good at hiding. I didn't see it either..."

"Go to hell, you bastard! You've really messed me up this time! Offending this little tyrant who is returning to the capital, will I have a good time in the future? Get lost, I don't want to see you again!"

Manager Liu, furious, cursed and kicked the waiter repeatedly.

"Master Liu, please, for the sake of the time your mother and my mother were close, spare me! You are like a father to me..."

Pfft!

The two burly men at the door, hearing the waiter's words, couldn't help but laugh. Manager Liu, hearing this, was even more furious and beat the waiter even harder.

"Dog, are you biting people? Drag him aside and beat him hard!"

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