The young man in brown pried his companion's hand away and was about to respond when it was covered again. "The one who just fought with you was the nephew of the Minister of Revenue, and this one is an official from the Dali Temple. This is a fight between gods, don't get involved, or you'll be the only one who suffers."
When the man heard this, he hesitated. His friend was right. He couldn't afford to offend either of them.
When Zhou Huai and Zhou Chengwen heard that Lou Yunchun was going to take the matter to the Dali Temple, they looked at each other in panic.
Zhou Huai poked his head out and stammered to Lou Yunchun, "I admit defeat in this matter. Besides, you've whipped me so many times, so we're even... How about we just forget it?"
If this gets brought to the Dali Temple, he'll probably be severely beaten by his father and uncle, and even his job might be ruined.
Lou Yunchun didn't respond, and his face showed no emotion, which made people feel uneasy.
Just as the situation was at a stalemate, someone stepped forward to smooth things over.
"Lord Lou, calm down."
Lou Yunchun turned around and saw that it was Feng Miao.
Feng Miao first bowed to Lou Yunchun and said with a friendly smile, "Lord Lou, this is a trivial matter. Why bring it to the Dali Temple?"
Lou Yunchun glanced at him and didn't respond.
Zhou Huai has been quite cold towards Feng Miao these days, especially after the imperial examination. Zhou Huai got to know many new scholars who were about to kick him out, so he had to take this opportunity to save face in front of the Zhou family.
"I think you are here for fun today, so there is no need to let this little friction ruin your mood."
Lou Yunchun's eyes were sharp and scrutinizing, making Feng Miao feel uneasy. He continued, "This is because Young Master Zhou offended you and that young master in a moment of impulse. How about this: Young Master Zhou apologizes to you and that young master, makes amends, and vacates the stable. Then the matter will be over. Okay?"
Zhou Chengwen laughed dryly and nodded in agreement, "Muzhi is right. Let's vacate the stable right now." He then tugged at Zhou Huai's sleeve and whispered, "Why are you still standing there? Apologize and put things right. If things get out of hand, we won't be in any good shape."
A man has to bow his head under the eaves, so Zhou Huai had no choice but to step forward, walked in front of Lou Yunchun, gritted his teeth and bowed deeply to him in apology, "Just now... I was wrong. I apologize to you, sir. I hope you will show some mercy."
Then he turned around and bowed to the young man in brown clothes, saying, "Sir, please forgive me for the offense I just caused."
The young man in brown considered it for a moment, and not wanting to make a big deal out of it, he gave an excuse, "Forget it, let's just forget about this."
Feng Miao took the opportunity to say to Lou Yunchun, "Lou Sir, since this young master has reconciled, then the matter is over. Besides, the crowds are getting bigger and bigger, and it would be even more difficult to deal with if something happened in the middle of nowhere. Don't you agree?"
Zhou Chengwen also echoed a few words, and then quickly instructed the people behind him to lead the horses to a tree in the distance.
Feng Miao quickly winked at Zhou Huai, who came over and bowed to Lou Yunchun again to apologize, "Lord Lou, I was wrong. I won't do it again."
Lou Yunchun glanced at the road ahead. The long queue of carriages and horses stretched for half a mile. It was indeed not a good idea to delay any longer, so he said to Zhou Huai, "Let's call it a day. I'll make a note of this for now and discuss it with Minister Zhou in detail later."
After saying this, he ignored Zhou Huai's mournful face and turned to the stable manager, saying, "This dispute is due to your unfair treatment. You should give an explanation."
The stable manager was also caught between a rock and a hard place. Who would have thought there was a great Buddha on this side? Having already offended someone, he had no choice but to shed blood and avert the trouble. "It's my fault for not acting properly and causing everyone's displeasure. To compensate you for your loss, I'll waive the care fees for you, sir. How about that?"
The people who had just been squeezed out applauded when they heard this.
Seeing that everyone accepted it, Lou Yunchun nodded and said, "It's okay." Then he turned around to untie his horse.
The stable manager saw this and couldn't help but wonder, "Sir, what's going on?"
"Your stable is too dirty. My horse isn't used to it."
The stable manager choked and was speechless.
Lou Yunchun was walking out with his horse, but when he looked up he saw Xu Jiang gesturing at him.
He immediately understood, took two steps back, and reached out to the manager.
The steward looked at him in confusion.
Lou Yunchun said coldly: "Return the money."
Xu Jiang and Lou Yunchun hid under a tree, watching the Zhou family's entourage set up their carriages and horses, and seeing the servants unloading things, they guessed that they were going to hold an elegant gathering by the stream.
Thinking about what just happened, Xu Jiang couldn't help but frown, "This Zhou family is really becoming more and more arrogant."
Lou Yunchun soothed him, "Don't worry, they won't be crazy for long."
Xu Jiang looked at him, "What do you mean?"
Lou Yunchun didn't want to reveal too much, so he made a gesture of wiping his neck with her, "Kill the chicken to scare the monkey."
Xu Jiang chuckled when he saw this.
Seeing her happy, Lou Yunchun's expression softened.
The examination by the Ministry of Rites is approaching. High-ranking officials in the court are using their power to intimidate, and the Jisheng Book Bureau outside the court is using money to bribe. Half of these new scholars this year have already moved closer to the Ministry of Personnel and the Ministry of Revenue, including many children from poor families.
This not only violated the taboo of the emperor, but also violated the taboo of the officials who supported the new system, so it was necessary to kill the chicken to scare the monkey and warn the tiger.
The next to the Holy Bookstore is the chicken.
After the Ministry of Rites has released the assessment results, it will be time to kill the chicken.
Xu Jiang thought about the scholars who had just followed the Zhou family team, and had a guess in his mind, so he stopped asking.
Seeing the Zhou family coming this way, she said to Lou Yunchun, "Where are we going now? Mountain climbing or river cruise?"
The mountain road was steep and narrow, and it had rained last night, so it was difficult to pass with the horses and donkeys. Lou Yunchun suggested, "Let's go to the stream."
"Then let's go." She didn't want to run into the Zhou family again and ruin her mood.
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