Chapter 289: The Chrysanthemum Defense Battle

Willing your head!

Du Ruo was speechless to the extreme.

What was the difference between this bunch of guys and those passersby in her past life who would clap wildly when seeing someone propose, shouting "Agree to him"? Seriously, they didn't know anything and were just blindly stirring up trouble.

"Young Master Duan, isn't it bad to force people like this?" Du Ruo finally couldn't help but speak up.

Of course, she changed her voice to avoid being recognized by that lunatic Shen Jing Bin.

Duan Xiu smiled slightly. "What Elder Sister-in-law Jiang says is true. I have no intention of forcing A-Zhan. If he really doesn't want to accept this wager, he is free to refuse."

Refuse?

Du Ruo scanned those excited and eager faces, sneering in her heart.

Heh, her intuition was indeed correct. This Duan Xiu looked like a humble gentleman, but in reality, he was an out-and-out villain.

He spoke nicely about having no intention to force anyone, but he was clearly using public opinion to build momentum and using the situation to pressure people.

Once Jiang Zhan stood up to deny this wager, everyone would conclude that he didn't dare to accept the challenge and was fleeing before the battle.

Labels like coward, wimp, and scaredy-cat would be stuck on his forehead for the rest of his life.

Even if Jiang Zhan performed well in the future, even if he rose to prominence, when people talked about him, they would only remember this old laughingstock.

Damn it!

"Since A-Zhan isn't speaking, I'll take it that you've agreed." Duan Xiu looked at Jiang Zhan, smiling brightly.

Jiang Zhan twitched his mouth. "Do I have a choice?"

Duan Xiu stood up, walked to Jiang Zhan, patted his thin shoulder, and comforted him, "Don't worry, A-Zhan, you won't necessarily lose."

After saying this, he turned and left.

His companions cast pitying glances at Jiang Zhan and followed after him.

Shen Jing Bin, however, was in no hurry to leave.

"Kid, don't think about it. You. Are. Going. To. Lose!"

He leaned close to Jiang Zhan, his tone full of schadenfreude. "I'm not afraid to tell you, A-Xiu has always been taught personally by his grandfather, the old Lord Duan. Do you know who the old Lord Duan is? He is a great Confucian of this age, personally appointed as the top scholar by the late Emperor!"

"Not only that, A-Xiu is outstanding in mathematics and even spent a whole year studying the past math exam questions of my uncle... of the chief examiner, Lord Su, thoroughly. If he doesn't win the Prefectural Top Scholar title, then the heavens must be blind."

"So, what do you have to compare with him?"

Jiang Zhan's gaze was heavy, and he didn't speak.

Shen Jing Bin straightened his body, the corners of his mouth hooked up, looking smug. "I advise you to wash your butt clean early and wait to admit defeat."

He laughed loudly and walked toward the stairs with the gait of a second-generation heir.

The servant behind him followed closely.

After going downstairs, the waiter immediately ran over eagerly. "Leaving, Heir Apparent?"

"Your young master has already left, why would I stay?" Shen Jing Bin rolled his eyes at him. "It's not that I'm complaining, but your Duan family's Scholar Restaurant has been a brand for over a decade. Can't you change the chef? Eating the same few dishes over and over, there's no freshness at all."

This kind of thing was not something a mere waiter could decide.

The waiter smiled all over his face. "Yes, yes, the Heir Apparent is right. Later, I will definitely bring this up to the manager and let him consider it carefully."

Shen Jing Bin ignored him and walked out of the Scholar Restaurant with his nose in the air.

There were originally several carriages parked at the entrance, but now only one remained, bearing the emblem of the Commandery Prince's Mansion.

This bunch of guys, they ditched him again...

Shen Jing Bin kicked the servant next to him in frustration. "It's all your fault for walking so slowly. Did the Commandery Prince's Mansion not feed you?"

The servant Wen Liu expressed that he was very wronged.

If the Heir Apparent hadn't insisted on dawdling and making threats to others, would they have failed to catch up with Young Master Duan and the others?

However, as a servant, naturally, whatever the master said was the truth; if you talked back, you were in the wrong.

"It is this servant's fault. This servant's legs are slow and couldn't keep up with the Heir Apparent's pace."

Wen Liu glanced at Shen Jing Bin and suggested timidly, "Or, next time, let Xun Hua follow instead. Xun Hua runs faster than this servant and is also smarter than this servant..."

Shen Jing Bin kicked him again. "I'll let whoever I want to follow. Are you teaching me how to do things?"

Did he think he didn't know Xun Hua was smarter?

Last time at Magistrate Lin's mansion, he was schemed against by that woman Du Ruo, not only making a fool of himself in public but also having a piece of flesh bitten off Xun Hua's ear. Now, whenever he saw Xun Hua, he would remember that unbearable scene, so he simply sent Xun Hua to the vegetable garden to shovel manure.

This Wen Liu really knew how to touch a sore spot.

Shen Jing Bin sat in his carriage in a bad mood, leaning on the soft couch to close his eyes and rest.

The carriage drove all the way to Wulin Street with a clatter-clatter-clatter.

As they got closer to the busy downtown area, the shouting, hawking, and laughter all poured into the carriage, making Shen Jing Bin feel even more irritable.

He suddenly sat up and lifted the curtain. "Wen Liu, didn't you eat, or did the horse not eat? Driving so slowly, do you believe I'll deduct your monthly wages?"

The coachman looked bitter. "Heir Apparent, this is the main street. If we accidentally hit and kill someone..."

"Even if we hit and kill someone, I'll be the one paying the money. What are you afraid of? Make it run!"

"... Yes, understood, Heir Apparent."

The coachman whipped the horse hard, and the horse snorted a long breath in pain before galloping wildly.

Pedestrians on the road screamed and dodged.

Several people almost became souls under the horse's hooves, pointing at the back of the carriage and criticizing them.

"Pah, what kind of thing is that? Relying on a little dirty money at home to act like a bully."

"Oh my, keep your voice down. That's someone from the Commandery Prince's Mansion. Be careful they don't come looking for trouble with you!"

"I'm not afraid of a bird. Our Prefect is a good official and won't shield bad guys..."

Saying was saying and scolding was scolding, but in the end, no one dared to step forward to argue.

The street was in chaos, a mess. It was fast, but Shen Jing Bin didn't feel very good either, because it was too bumpy, and he felt a bit like vomiting.

Just as he was about to shout for them to stop, the coachman's expression suddenly changed, and he pulled the reins hard.

The horse roared, its hooves lifted high, and it finally managed to brake just in time.

Bang, bang.

Due to inertia, Shen Jing Bin and Wen Liu in the carriage hit the carriage wall heavily, and a big bump immediately rose on their heads.

"Trash, how are you driving!" Shen Jing Bin poked his head out in a rage.

The coachman hurriedly explained, "Sorry, Heir Apparent, someone is blocking the way in front..."

Blocking the way?

Shen Jing Bin frowned. Actually, he was just talking big; he really didn't have the guts to just hit and kill someone on the street.

Paying money was a small matter, but his uncle, Su Qingyao, would definitely punish him.

If he got angry, he might just throw him into the Prison Bureau for a few months, and that would be suffering.

Who on earth was so blind that they dared to block his way?

Shen Jing Bin looked forward unhappily.

He saw two women lying on the street, wailing and rolling around, with a group of men surrounding them, cursing and swearing. The scene was a complete mess.

"Go see what's going on." Shen Jing Bin was actually a bit curious.

The coachman responded and jumped off the carriage to run over.

Not long after, he came back. "Heir Apparent, it's people from the Yongning Gambling House. They said someone gambled against them, lost, and had no money to pay, so they used their wife and daughter to pay the debt. Who knew that the mother and daughter were both tough characters and refused to go with them no matter what? That's why they're making a scene."

So that was it.

Shen Jing Bin immediately lost interest. This kind of messy business was too common; there was nothing strange about it.

He sat back in the carriage and sneered mockingly.

Gamblers are gamblers, always thinking they can turn things around next time. Unfortunately, nine out of ten bets are lost. Where in this world is there a sure-fire gamble...

Wait, no!

A sure-fire gamble might not be impossible.

Shen Jing Bin suddenly became excited. The more he thought about it, the more he felt his flash of inspiration was reliable. "Wen Liu, who do you think will win the wager between Young Master Duan and that pretty boy just now?"

"Naturally, Young Master Duan." Wen Liu said.

"You also think Duan Xiu is sure to win, right?"

Shen Jing Bin was extremely excited. "Such a good opportunity to make money, if I let it slip by for nothing, wouldn't I be a big fool?"

He rolled his eyes and ordered, "Like this, you go down now and spread the word about the bet between Duan Xiu and that pretty boy. Also, tell everyone in the city that I've opened a gambling house: one-to-one for Duan Xiu, one-to-three for the pretty boy. Everyone is welcome to come and place bets."

Hearing this, Wen Liu was shocked.

"This, this might not be appropriate, right? If too many people place bets, where will you get so much money to pay them, Heir Apparent..."

"Pay your big head!" Shen Jing Bin slapped the back of his head, furious. "You're a crow's mouth before it's even started. Duan Xiu can't possibly lose, so I'm naturally sure to win! If you talk nonsense again, do you believe I'll cut out your tongue?"

Wen Liu shrank his head and said 'oh' in grievance.

"Yes, this servant will go do it right away."

"Then why aren't you going!"

After arranging for Wen Liu, Shen Jing Bin impatiently urged the coachman, "Alright, alright, let's take a detour and go back to the mansion quickly. I'm in a hurry."

He had to get people to set up a few sheds at the entrance of the Commandery Prince's Mansion as soon as possible and pull some people over to help receive the gamblers who came to place bets.

Thinking that he would soon be rolling in money, Shen Jing Bin felt his blood boiling.

With this income, he could use it to pull strings.

By then, he could become a real, famous, and powerful General of Benevolence and Courage!

Hahahaha!

Shen Jing Bin was happy, but on the second floor of the Scholar Restaurant, the mood of Du Ruo, Jiang Zhan, and the others was not very pleasant.

None of the four moved their chopsticks; they were silent.

Bian Dou Dou looked at this one, then at that one, his chubby face full of apology. "It's all my fault. I shouldn't have been so loose-lipped and caused A-Zhan such big trouble."

It was too late to say these things now; the most important thing was to think of a strategy.

"Second brother, are you confident you can beat him?" Du Ruo asked.

Jiang Zhan pondered for a moment and then shook his head. "Not really. That Young Master Duan has famous teachers at home and is diligent and eager to learn himself. Since he could become the County Top Scholar of Fentao County, his strength is likely not below mine."

Hearing this, Bian Dou Dou became anxious. "Then what should we do?"

Jiang Zhan himself wasn't too worried and smiled. "When soldiers come, block them with generals; when water comes, cover it with earth. Even if I lose, I assume that Young Master Duan won't make any excessive requests."

Du Ruo didn't think so.

Given Duan Xiu's status and position, for him to pester Jiang Zhan, a farm boy, and insist on a wager, there were only two possibilities.

Either it was to motivate himself, so he was looking for an evenly matched opponent;

Or, he was after something.

After what?

Money? Power? Women? Jiang Zhan had none of these three things that men loved most.

Then what did Jiang Zhan have?

Du Ruo's gaze wandered back and forth over her second brother-in-law, finally settling on that face that was more beautiful than a woman's.

Could it be... that he was after him as a person?

No way??

Du Ruo felt a great shock in her heart. Sure enough, boys need to protect themselves when they are out, especially good-looking boys; one moment of carelessness and they might encounter a bad person.

For the sake of Jiang Zhan's purity, it seemed this Chrysanthemum Defense Battle had to be won!

"Let's go, back to the county hostel." Du Ruo slapped the table and stood up abruptly. "Isn't that guy surnamed Duan best at mathematics? Go back and dig out all the exam questions Lord Su set in the past, and let me see them."

There were only three days left. Writing essays relied on one's usual foundation; cramming at the last minute wouldn't be of much use.

But mathematics, well, that could still be crammed. ===== CHAPTER 290 =====