This scene quickly spread throughout the city.

Laughter erupted along the palace walls.

“What did I tell you? Entertaining, isn’t it?” Xie Yanlai folded his arms and laughed heartily. “Quite a spectacle!”

If the girl had just kept losing, it would have been boring. A contest between two people was only exciting when there was winning and losing on both sides. The other Imperial Guards nodded in agreement.

“Lady Chu’s provocations have truly angered the scholars,” described one guard who had witnessed the scene firsthand. “The fighting is fierce—what’s that expression? Battling with words sharp as swords! Not a shred of elegance remains.”

“That sounds great!” “It’s the first time I’ve seen scholars fighting like this.” “Worth checking out.” “Can anyone enter?”

The other guards asked with interest.

The guard who had been there replied, “Anyone can enter, absolutely anyone. There are more and more people now. If you go late, you won’t get a spot up front, and then you won’t enjoy it as much.”

So the guards called to each other, eager to go, but Xie Yanlai remained leaning against the wall, not moving.

“Aren’t you going?” others asked. “Don’t you love watching spectacles the most?”

He had been talking about the scene at the restaurant for days.

“It’s too noisy. I find it irritating,” Xie Yanlai said lazily.

“What’s this?” someone thought of something and laughed. “The Third Young Master Xie is still in the capital, so Young Master Yanlai can’t enjoy himself freely.”

The others also realized this and began laughing.

“Indeed, since Third Young Master arrived, Yanlai hasn’t even left his quarters.”

“He doesn’t drink anymore, doesn’t visit the brothels anymore.”

“I heard from your household staff that you were recently beaten and punished by the Third Young Master?”

“The Third Young Master keeps himself pure, so you household members can only suffer along with him.”

“Though I don’t know how I would choose,” one guard frowned pensively. “I also want an older brother like the Third Young Master, but when I think about being restrained, I’m quite unwilling.”

The others spat in derision, “Keep dreaming!” “Your family won’t produce someone like the Third Young Master for generations.” “Don’t bother yourself with such worries.”

They continued to encourage Xie Yanlai: “What are you afraid of? We’ll go secretly, the Third Young Master won’t know.” “Even if he finds out, it’s just a beating. Have you become such a coward, Yanlai?”

But no matter how they teased, Xie Yanlai remained unmoved, firmly insisting that he didn’t like watching such spectacles. “A bunch of men competing with a woman—she’s not even a woman, just a girl. I don’t want to see it.”

The guards laughed: “It’s precisely because it’s unprecedented that we should go see it. A group of men competing with a girl—if we miss this opportunity, who knows when we’ll see such a thing again?”

So they all left together in a crowd. While mounting their horses outside the palace gate, they looked back and saw the phoenix-eyed youth standing alone on the city wall.

“He’s not a proper young master after all,” one guard said softly, with a hint of mockery in his eyes. “I see the other young masters of the Xie family do whatever they please. When the Third Young Master beats or scolds them, they don’t cower like this.”

“It’s already his good fortune that the Third Young Master acknowledges him as a brother,” another guard said. “He gives him the dignity of a Xie family young master, but if he doesn’t know how to appreciate it, then he truly is beyond help.”

A guard laughed and cracked his whip: “This lump of mud is only fit for plastering walls.”

The Imperial Guards urged their horses forward with loud calls, riding swiftly along the Imperial Road. Soon they reached the bustling streets, with people making way for them.

Being Imperial Guards stationed at the Imperial City, they were all sons of noble families, drawing countless envious glances.

Though they wore military uniforms like Zhang Gu and his men, the uniforms of these Imperial Guards were incomparable, not to mention their appearances and bearing.

Those were men who served in the Imperial City. Zhang Gu and his men watched them gallop past with a touch of envy.

“I heard A-Jiu was originally meant to be an Imperial Guard. I wonder if his punishment has been lifted,” a postal soldier said. “Is he now as heroic as they are? It’s a pity we haven’t seen him.”

Another postal soldier curled his lip: “Even if we saw him, we wouldn’t recognize him. Once A-Jiu puts on those clothes, he would be completely transformed.”

Another postal soldier nodded, his expression somewhat nostalgic: “A-Jiu was good-looking. Even when he wore tattered clothes with us, he was extremely handsome.”

How much more beautiful would he be in fine attire?

Beautiful—Zhang Gu thought, perhaps that was why Lady Chu remained infatuated with him.

“In any case, if we see him, we should still greet him,” he said softly.

These days, he had been trying to get acquainted with the Imperial Guards to inquire about someone named A-Jiu, but he hadn’t had the opportunity.

“Chief Zhang, A-Jiu must be very happy now,” the earlier postal soldier said. “With so many noble young men as companions.”

Those young men came from good birth and family background, and must be able to associate with A-Jiu, sharing interests and becoming close friends. They certainly wouldn’t bully A-Jiu—

Zhang Gu spat: “You dare say that? It was people like us with humble origins who dared to bully A-Jiu. You were the worst troublemaker back then. That snake in A-Jiu’s bedding was your doing.”

That postal soldier snickered and shrank his neck: “I didn’t know! If I had known he came from a good family—” he drawled, “I would have put two snakes in his bedding!” After saying this, he ran ahead.

Anyway, A-Jiu’s revenge was putting three snakes in his bedding.

He wasn’t afraid of snakes at all.

Zhang Gu and the others laughed heartily as they chased after him through the bustling market.

Imperial Guards came and went along the palace walls, seeing the phoenix-eyed youth standing alone. Some greeted him enthusiastically, others nodded with a smile.

Xie Yanlai’s expression remained arrogant, neither acknowledging nor responding.

He knew these sons of noble families looked down on him, but they wouldn’t mock or bully him. Instead, they would enthusiastically play with him, drink and joke with him.

Because when they joked and played with him, they weren’t interacting with him, but with his identity.

His identity, besides bringing him this false warmth, only brought him trouble.

Xie Yanlai folded his arms and looked into the distance. What right did he have to watch others’ spectacles, especially that foolish girl’s?

She was foolish enough to regard him as her lifeline.

……

……

While the Imperial Guards were rushing through the streets to watch the entertainment, Liang Qiang from a grand household was also hurrying to leave.

Liang Qin and several girls stopped him.

Liang Qin asked, “Hasn’t that Chu Zhao admitted defeat yet?”

Liang Qiang laughed heartily: “Admit defeat? Lady Chu is growing more fierce with each battle, and she’s not losing every time anymore. She’s starting to win now.”

Qi Leyun stepped forward: “How is that possible!”

Standing at the back, Chu Tang nodded: “There must be mediocre talents among so many competitors.”

If Chu Zhao could defeat the mediocre Chu Ke, she could naturally defeat other mediocre talents. The world was full of mediocre scholars, many not even as good as herself.

“How long will she continue competing?” a girl asked. “It’s fine if she keeps losing, but if she wins, won’t it be harder to end this?”

Many people can’t stand losing, especially to a girl. Wouldn’t that make things endless?

Liang Qiang nodded with a smile: “Indeed, now even more people are going to Chu Garden, and the competition is becoming more intense.”

What did “intense” mean? The girls exchanged glances.

“It means they are no longer polite to Lady Chu,” Liang Qiang said, sighing lightly. “Before, they would stop at making their point, but now they insist on venting their frustrations, making her lose face.”

It was truly heartbreaking. What was wrong with a young girl being a bit arrogant? Being bullied like this was too much.

“I won’t say more,” he said. “I must go immediately to support Lady Chu.”

With that, he hurried away.

The girl admired him, and if he stood nearby now, she would feel reassured when she saw him.

Alas, this was all he could do for her. Regarding marriage, he had no say.

Liang Qin and the girls called after him several times, but couldn’t stop him as the young man rushed off like his heels were on fire.

“Will this matter never end?” Qi Leyun said, looking sympathetically at Chu Tang. “So you still can’t return home.”

How pitiful that because of this sister, Chu Tang couldn’t go home.

“It’s fine, just stay comfortably at my home,” Qi Leyun said generously, happy to bestow kindness on someone who despised her.

Chu Tang shook her head, appearing thoughtful as she said, “I think we should also go and see.”

Go to such an occasion? The girls looked at each other uncertainly. They all knew Chu Zhao, and it would be embarrassing to be implicated.

“Don’t you feel,” Chu Tang looked at everyone, her eyes bright, “that this competition is gaining momentum? Doesn’t it resemble the Little Wangchun Garden Literary Meeting?”

……

……

Night enveloped the capital, which remained as vibrant as daylight. Amidst this splendor, the Xie residence was unremarkable.

Where the Third Young Master Xie stayed was like a solitary island, isolated from the world’s brilliance.

“Little Wangchun Garden Literary Meeting?”

Xie Yanfang put down his brush and looked at the elderly servant before him, his elegant eyebrows showing slight surprise in the lamplight.

“That Lady Chu still hasn’t admitted defeat?”