Soon, someone came to invite Zhu Yunwen to sit in the depths of the Hundred Garden.

Zhu Yunwen stood up without fear.

All the young men and women present looked at Zhu Yunwen's back; the girls clearly admired this third prince.

Not only was he handsome, but he was also incredibly talented in poetry, which was quite different from the rumors.

A person with such status, background, talent, and good looks is hard to avoid being targeted by these ladies from prominent families.

Clearly, regardless of Zhu Yunwen's situation with the older generation of literati, he will at least become a leading figure among these younger literati.

Although Li Sanxia and other literati were very disappointed and somewhat unhappy about this.

But he was a scholar after all; what could he do if he was unhappy?

You have to produce decent work to truly outperform others; that's what real skill is.

Otherwise, any other displeasure would be in vain.

As Chen Ye walked deeper into the Hundred Flowers Garden, his back exuded a kingly aura that the scholars and literati behind him could hardly match.

Perhaps this will become the real difference between them.

At the same time, no matter how much the young ladies from prominent families looked at Zhu Yunwen with admiration, they would never have the slightest chance.

Although they may have had decent backgrounds in the capital, they were still worlds apart from Zhu Yunwen.

Deep inside the garden, there is a small wooden building.

Several elderly people were sitting next to the wooden building, drinking tea and playing chess.

These elderly men were highly respected scholars in the capital. They had achieved unparalleled success in the fields of literature and knowledge.

But Zhu Yunwen couldn't even muster the slightest sense of awe or respect for them.

Since these great Confucian scholars have become embroiled in court infighting, they have lost their composure. What use are their literary achievements when faced with people who have lost their composure?

Ultimately, they could not escape worldly constraints and became mere weapons in the power struggles of the court for those with ulterior motives.

The old men didn't even look up when Zhu Yunwen arrived, showing that they didn't care about him at all.

Zhu Yunwen actually understood that scholars often looked down on each other, and the so-called arrogance they carried in their bones was actually the cheapest and most ridiculous thing.

Zhu Yuntong, of course, wouldn't tolerate their attitude. He casually flicked his sleeve and swaggered down to sit on a chair nearby.

He seemed oblivious to the old men, who were very pretentious and arrogant, continuing to drink tea and play chess as if nothing was wrong. Zhu Yunwen poured himself a cup of tea and then sat down to admire the surrounding scenery.

Both sides seemed to ignore each other and acted extremely at ease. At first, the old men were very calm, but as time went on, they seemed to lose patience.

Then one of the old men frowned, snorted, and said:

"That's quite ill-mannered; no wonder he has such a bad reputation."

These words were clearly directed at Zhu Yunwen, but Zhu Yunwen calmly took a sip of tea before slowly saying:

"No wonder this dynasty was destroyed by scholars; they were just a bunch of self-righteous scoundrels."

Upon hearing this, the old men all frowned, including the white-bearded Minister of Rites.

He glanced up at Zhu Yunwen, then snorted and said:

"Your Highness, what do you mean by this? Are you implying that we have misled the country?"

He was clearly an official, and such remarks made him very sensitive.

Zhu Yunwen revealed a cold smile and said:

"Isn't that so? Since ancient times, apart from being self-righteous and arrogant, have scholars ever played any significant role? If we say that Confucius, the sage of Confucianism, traveled around the states and promoted Confucianism, thus making some contributions to the common people, then that is admirable."

But as things have developed to this point, what can some literati do besides flaunt their so-called talent, define themselves as scholars, and act superior? In the end, they're nothing more than a group of self-righteous ordinary people; it's quite laughable, really.

The repeated emphasis finally made the old men restless. One of the white-haired elders abruptly threw down the chess piece in his hand and turned to Zhu Yunwen, rebuking him:

"Ignorant brat, how dare you humiliate us like this? In this Ming Dynasty, we are considered great Confucian scholars. How can you be so disrespectful here?"

Zhu Yunwen, however, completely disregarded these elders and spoke indifferently:

"You dare to call yourselves great Confucian scholars? You've only read a few books, it's truly laughable."

If he were truly a great Confucian scholar, how could he speak so sarcastically and ironically here? If he were truly a great Confucian scholar, how could he so easily become angry and ashamed?

If one is truly a great Confucian scholar, one should possess the fundamental qualities of humility, kindness, and wisdom—qualities befitting a truly accomplished person. But look at you all, do you possess even a trace of these qualities?

An elderly man in black stood up with a stern face and said to Zhu Yunwen:

"You are a young man, and you come here without bowing or greeting us old folks, which is bad enough. But you even took it upon yourself to sit down so casually. Do you have any respect for the elderly or for the young? Do you have even the slightest respect for us scholars?"

Zhu Yunwen frowned and stared at the old man, saying:

“Those who deserve respect must have their reasons for doing so. You people rely on your advanced age and act like elders, is this what you call a great Confucian scholar? As a junior, I should indeed greet my elders.”

But you all know what kind of situation we're in today. You're unworthy of being scholars, yet you willingly become pawns of those with ulterior motives in the court, targeting me. And you expect me to even speak to you? Is this how you conduct yourselves?

Furthermore, regarding status, although you are scholars, there seems to be no rule in this world that says anyone should bow, be polite, or greet a scholar. On the contrary, I am a grandson of the emperor and also have the status of a prince.

Since you are scholars, you should understand the concepts of hierarchy and etiquette. Why don't you bow to me? Why should I, a grandson of the emperor, bow to you?

"Could it be that you scholars have surpassed the royal family? Hmph, is calling you scholars arrogant enough? If you ask me, that's just self-righteousness and shamelessness."

Zhu Yunwen's words angered several elders so much that they stood up and rebuked him.

Zhu Yunwen, however, put his hands behind his back and said nonchalantly:

"Look at this group of self-proclaimed Confucian masters, who are now spewing vulgarities in a fit of rage. If this gets out... humph, aren't they afraid of being ridiculed by the world?"

Upon hearing Zhu Yunwen's words, the elderly men immediately realized they had been somewhat impolite and quickly corrected themselves.

Despite this, they were all still furious, their faces flushed with anger, because they realized that Zhu Yunwen was not playing by the rules at all.

The Minister of Rites then gave everyone a wink, and they immediately began to think of other ways to suppress this somewhat arrogant grandson of the emperor.