Chapter 178: The scholar from Xiuwen Academy arrives and the identity of Zhao is revealed

The bustle in a corner of the outer garden pavilion attracted more and more guests' attention.

Therefore, when Zhao Duan said this calmly, there was discussion outside the crowd, especially among the scholars who had gathered there, and their expressions varied.

Eugene Hua and her daughter's pretty faces changed instantly, realizing that the damage was done and it was too late to undo it.

The leader of the "Four Young Masters" who had been domineering and arrogant just now was stunned, and his eyes showed joy instead of anger.

Zhao Duan took in all the changes in his expression and said:

"In fact, I know your intention. You are using this crude method to try to provoke me and use verbal provocation to make me act out of line.

Especially in this place, where today the high monk of Shenlong Temple invited all the celebrities of Kyoto to gather together."

The dandy young man with a defiant face and a birthmark on the side of his face was stunned for a moment, and his expression changed slightly:

"What nonsense are you talking about..."

Zhao Duan ignored it and continued calmly:

"You and I had a grudge in the past, and many people know about it. So your provocation can be interpreted as seeking revenge, which fits your 'personality'—well, the image you have in the eyes of outsiders.

But you're still too rough. If you wanted to cause trouble for me after all this time, why didn't you come before? Why did you choose today?"

Dong San opened his mouth: "Because..."

"Because it happened? Because the Dong family has been so strong lately? That gave you so much confidence?"

Zhao Duan pierced through his lies, looked directly into the eyes of this number one playboy, and shook his head.

"No, neither of those. This is just an excuse for others to see. Although your brain isn't very good, you shouldn't be so stupid.

Let me think... Is it to please Dong Xuan? To please your Grand Master... This is the only reason that makes sense.

Zhao Duan said calmly:

"Dong Xuan is quite displeased with me and even went to Your Majesty to advise him to stay away from me, a villain... This is no secret in the capital.

Especially recently, it has been widely rumored that this is why so many scholars dare to offend and criticize me...

Oh, among the scholars, there are indeed some who are of strong character and dare to speak out, but more are just those who are greedy and despicable.

It was fine to criticize me in the past, but I just deposed one of the Nine Ministers not long ago... Aren't they afraid of provoking my revenge?"

Around them, some scholars' expressions changed slightly, as if their secrets had been exposed, and they were about to speak:

"when……"

"Of course I'm afraid," Zhao Duan said.

“But they still dare, both because the law does not punish the masses, and also because there are rumors that Grand Tutor Dong dislikes me.

And you, as the third generation grandson of the Dong family, are also disliked by Dong Xuan because of your lack of discipline.

Then it makes sense that he jumped out to deal with me and tried to lead me to take action in the Shenlong Temple Zhaiyuan in order to please Dong Xuan.

Therefore, from the beginning to the end, your words were only unclean, and even from the beginning to the end, you only targeted my Zhao family and did not involve anyone else at all.

If it's just a verbal provocation, even if you get scolded or punished, it won't be a big deal.

Haha… If I were to take action here today, I would not only offend the Shenlong Temple, but also embarrass the officials in the court. Who knows, I might even be accused of disrupting the relationship between the court and the Shenlong Temple…

This will give those scholars behind you something to talk about... and ultimately achieve your goal of forcing His Majesty to distance himself from a villain like me."

Zhao Duan sighed softly.

He glanced at the dandy young master, whose expression had completely changed, and said:

"I'm a little curious now. Who gave you this bad idea? You're being used as a pawn, and you're still so proud of it?

It seems that Dong Xuan is indeed old and has no energy to teach you third-generation juniors.

You know, the last person who implicated his family because of his younger brother's playboy behavior was Pei Kaizhi... Don't you remember this? Oh, you may not know this at all..."

As he finished speaking, the atmosphere in the room changed subtly.

Young Master Dong lost all his arrogance and domineering spirit and felt only chilled.

All hits!

Zhao Duan predicted all his thoughts!

At this moment, feeling the complicated gazes of the people around him, a surge of anger rose up in his body.

But I knew in my heart that the plan could no longer be implemented, and I was suddenly in a dilemma.

Since the other party has made it so clear, how could I be fooled?

But the next second, Zhao Duan seemed to see through his thoughts and suddenly smiled:

"It's a crude way of provoking someone, but if it succeeds, it's an effective calculation."

Sure enough, the false political schemes are a battle between masters, with layers of calculations, subtle clues and hidden veins for thousands of miles.

The real political conspiracy is the ambush of swordsmen at the Hongmen Banquet and the reckless charge of brainless soldiers.

"but……"

Just when everyone thought the excitement was about to end, Zhao Duan suddenly said with a smile:

"But I really fall for it."

What?

Before Dong San could come to his senses, he saw fine frost suddenly spreading on the table in front of Zhao Duan. It was the energy that had turned into ice and was boiling and spreading.

Zhao Duan slowly stood up, and the Golden Crow Flying Knife in his sleeve suddenly extended and turned into an ancient short sword covered with cold air.

Take a step and walk towards the other person.

There were exclamations all around and the crowd retreated in fear.

Dong San was stunned where he stood, feeling the real murderous intent.

He didn't understand why Zhao Duan, who had clearly seen through everything, would still attack? Moreover, why did he start with a knife?

Who gave him the confidence? Wasn't he really afraid of his grandfather's wrath?

"Da Lang..." Eugene Hua and her daughter also looked terrified, but they didn't dare to pull him.

At this moment, a shout suddenly came from the outside of the crowd:

"What are you doing?!"

The crowd made way for them, and they saw Dong Da, who had just returned from the toilet, looking towards them with a dark face.

Young Master Dong shuddered, turned around and looked, and immediately looked like a mouse seeing a cat:

"elder brother……"

Zhao Duan's expression suddenly became strange.

The others could not hide their surprise either.

Brother? There was probably only one person who could make the Third Young Master of the Dong family bow his head so low and call him brother...

"I'm asking you! What are you doing here...?"

Dong Da walked over with a sullen face, and only then saw Zhao Duan standing in front of the two women with a sword in hand.

At this moment, due to the heat, the cold fog had dissipated, and Zhao Duan also suppressed his aura. Dong Da saw this and thought he was just carrying an ordinary sword.

"He is your brother?" Zhao Duan looked strange.

Dong Da bowed with shame:

"Brother Zhao, my younger brother lacks discipline. I wonder if this is..."

Zhao Duan said "Oh" and said calmly:

"I offended him before, and he came here and insulted the reputation of my aunt and sister."

Dong Da's face suddenly changed and he looked at his brother in disbelief.

Instantly fill in the whole plot:

It must be the naughty younger brother who came to cause trouble. He was tempted by her beauty, and Brother Zhao was unable to stop him and was forced to draw his sword to resist.

As soon as he saw Dong San's guilty expression, he knew that what Zhao Duan said was true.

His eyes widened with anger, a surge of blood rushed to his head, veins bulged on his forehead, and he was raging with rage:

"You...you won't change your bad habits, you won't change your bad habits!"

“Brother…I…”

"Shut up!"

After hearing the angry rebuke, Dong San really lowered his head and kept silent.

Dong Da suppressed his anger and bowed to Eugene Hua and her daughter with a face full of shame to apologize.

Then he turned around, picked up a stick from somewhere, and looked at his brother with disappointment:

“Kneel down!”

“Brother, I…”

"I told you to kneel down!"

"Bang!"

A stick hit him on the back, and the No. 1 playboy, who was famous in the capital and no one dared to offend, fell to his knees in front of everyone.

It was obvious that his physique was much stronger than Dong Da, who looked like a weak scholar. He also practiced martial arts, but he didn't dare to fight back.

Dong Da was furious at his lack of fighting spirit:

"What did you say to me last time? You said you'd reform and make Grandpa look at you with new eyes. Is this how you look at me with new eyes?"

At this moment, Dong Shusheng was extremely disappointed.

Scolding his brother in public like this would undoubtedly have a very bad impact on the Dong family's reputation, but he still did it.

It can be seen that he was extremely disappointed and would rather let outsiders laugh at him than not teach his third brother a lesson that he would never forget.

The dandy young man kneeling on the ground wanted to explain, but seeing his brother's expression, he couldn't bring himself to speak.

Seeing this, Zhao Duan put the Golden Crow Flying Knife into his sleeve, as if he was no longer needed.

"Mr. Dong, calm down!"

Suddenly, a man stepped out from the crowd and shouted:

"Third Young Master may have been a bit reckless, but he did it for a reason. Why would the eldest young master do this and humiliate his own family?"

The person who spoke was a scholar of about 27 or 28 years old, with extraordinary manners and conversation.

"Xu Hanlin is right. We should not let outsiders hurt the relationship between our brothers." Another scholar seconded the suggestion.

"Young Master, even if you're angry, you should at least ask for the reason. The Third Young Master's words may be harsh, but our Zhao Jisi is completely merciless and has no respect for the Grand Tutor. He even called him by his name and threatened to draw his sword to strike at the Third Young Master..."

More scholars stood up, ostensibly to dissuade, but actually to cause trouble.

Seeing this, how could Zhao Duan not notice something was wrong?

He looked at Xu Hanlin. Well, he was the vanguard who attacked him these days. A member of the "Li Party"?

Did it finally jump out... He was not panicked at all and watched the performance of this group of people quietly.

"What? Zhao Jisi?"

Dong Da was stunned. He also understood what happened from the chatter of the crowd. He looked at Zhao Duan in astonishment:

"Brother Zhao, you are..."

Zhao Duan nodded gently and smiled, "It's me."

Dong Da was confused.

His mind was suddenly filled with a thousand thoughts. He wanted to ask, why did you go to have sex with Miss Xiaoya...

But considering the occasion was not right, I endured it.

Then, thinking about how he had just talked about the insults against Zhao Duan in front of the other party, he suddenly felt extremely embarrassed and his anger subsided a little.

Then, belatedly, I realized that the Brother Zhao in my memory was different from the cruel official in the rumors who was even uglier than my third brother...

Very different.

"So the eldest master doesn't know his identity?"

Xu Hanlin was shocked, turned his gun around, and sneered:

"Master Zhao, you're so good! You concealed your identity and approached the eldest son of the Dong family. I wonder what you're up to? Fortunately, the Third Young Master caught you today. Otherwise, wouldn't you have succeeded? It would be bad for the Dong family? It would be bad for the Grand Tutor?"

What a nice hat... Zhao Duan wanted to applaud his quick wit.

He guessed that the people who instigated Dong San to cause trouble for him were the "Li Party", a group of scholars.

The other party had been "lying in ambush" nearby, waiting for him to counterattack and then jump out, but he didn't expect any complications to arise.

Now that Dong Da appeared, he had to change the excuse temporarily.

"No..." Dong Da wanted to explain, this matter is a bit complicated...

But the scholars around him who were already rubbing their hands and ready to strike did not give him a chance. They immediately started to criticize Zhao Duan:

"What were you trying to do when you drew your sword and attacked? Do you really think the Shenlong Temple and the Zhaiyuan are places where you can run wild? Where do you place the Shenlong Temple? Where do you place the dignity of the gentlemen in the back garden?"

"Who assigned you to do this? Whose orders did you follow?"

"You even falsely accused the Third Young Master in public... saying he was deliberately provoking you. This is truly shameful..."

The public was outraged.

Scholars are good at speaking. At this moment, scholars led by Xu Hanlin spoke up and angrily denounced the thief Zhao.

Zhao Duan said nothing, just looked at them coldly.

"Chen Daru is here!"

Suddenly, someone shouted, and an old man dressed as a scholar came from the distance, as if attracted by the noise here.

It was Chen Zhengru, one of the Grand Secretaries of the Hanlin Academy.

Zhao Duan was not familiar with this name. It was the first time he heard it. Dong Da had told him about it not long ago.

Chen Zhengru walked closer, frowned, and shouted:

"Shut up! Shouting in the garden is disgraceful! What's going on?"

Xu Hanlin was overjoyed and said hurriedly:

"Teacher, you are here..."

Then he quickly described what had happened. In his narration, Dong San's evil deeds were lightly glossed over, described as "saying a few strange words."

Zhao Duan's behavior was severely criticized.

As if it were an unforgivable crime.

"How could this happen?" Chen Zhengru was furious. He looked up at Zhao Duan and said coldly:

"I've long heard that a capable official has emerged in the capital. Seeing him today, I can see that his reputation is well-deserved. On the day of the Zhongyuan Festival, in this quiet and peaceful place of Buddhist fasting, he dared to resort to violence. He wanted to kill people just because of a few words. He even dared to insult the current Grand Tutor and deceive the young master of the Dong family...

What a capable official, what a great envoy Zhao! Today, I have truly broadened my horizons. There are actually lunatics like you in the capital...

I previously heard someone compare you to Han Banshan, and I thought you were quite someone. Now it seems that comparing the two of you is an insult to Han Zhou, an insult to the young scholars of Xiuwen Academy, and an insult to the dignity of the Grand Tutor.

Zhao Duan drooped his eyelids:

"Are you done?"

Seeing his indifferent attitude, Chen Zhengru frowned:

"This child is incorrigible. What do you have to say?"

Zhao Duan was about to speak and end this farce.

Suddenly, outside the crowd, there was a commotion from the direction of the Zhai Garden entrance, and someone was shouting the name of "Scholar of Xiuwenguan".

Gradually becoming clear.

People then realized that the scholars from Xiuwenguan had arrived.

In an instant, many people who were watching the excitement turned their gazes away, stretched their necks, and looked at this group of upstarts curiously.

Chen Zhengru, Xu Hanlin and others showed joy on their faces, thinking that they had come at the right time to confirm the matter.

They are not afraid of making a big fuss, they are just afraid of not making a big fuss.

"Grandpa and the others are here?"

Dong Da's face changed slightly, and he didn't know how to end it for a moment.

The third young master, who was kneeling on the ground, quietly got up and moved out stealthily. Today's incident was too big and beyond his expectations.

"Han Banshan! I've heard so much about you..."

"Guo Jieyuan, do you still remember me?"

"Prince Wang...how is your father doing these days?"

Many people came over and greeted him with smiles.

The bustle over there was in stark contrast to the tense situation on Zhao Duan's side.

At this time, a group of scholars from Xiuwenguan who had just completed the new policy and came to attend the meeting were also attracted by the crowd gathered here.

I couldn't help but walk over curiously to find out what was going on.

Chen Zhengru smiled slightly and gave his student Xu Hanlin a look. The latter understood and took the initiative to step forward with a smile:

"Brother Banshan..."

Han Zhou walked over in confusion, and frowned slightly when he saw Grand Secretary Chen Zhengru and his colleague Xu Hanlin.

Then, his eyes fell on someone in the pavilion, and a friendly smile suddenly appeared on his face.

Walk straight towards me.

Outsiders only thought that it was the friendship between Han Zhou and Xu Hanlin, and they couldn't help but envy them.

Xu Hanlin was a little surprised. He and Han Zhou only had an average relationship, so why was he so enthusiastic?

However, the next second, he knew the whole story.

Han Zhou just passed him by without even looking at him.

Instead, he came to Zhao Duan, cupped his hands and said with a smile:

"Master Zhao, just now we were trying to guess where you might be, but unexpectedly, we found you the moment we entered the house."

…

(End of this chapter)