Meng Zhao feigned surprise, widening his eyes: "Just as I thought! Judging from how familiar Young Master Yang is with Nanfeng Pavilion, he must be a regular customer. Young Master Fan, you'd better keep a close eye on him and discipline him properly."
Upon hearing this, the scholar surnamed Fan was so angry that his face turned red. He hurriedly retorted, "I stayed at the Yang family's house to discuss scholarship. Don't talk nonsense here!"
It's human nature to enjoy watching a spectacle. At this moment, a crowd had gathered at the entrance of the teahouse. One man felt that Meng Zhao and her group were being aggressive and couldn't help but say, "You can't just spread rumors about things that aren't true. That would ruin their reputation."
Meng Zhao immediately retorted, "On the first day my teahouse opened, they came here to slander me without saying a word. Now, the two of them are together every day, sleeping in the same bed. There are witnesses present, and she is even Young Master Yang's sister-in-law. You say I'm ruining their reputation? That's utterly ridiculous."
The scholar surnamed Fan trembled with rage and roared, "You're talking nonsense! Where did you get your evidence?"
Meng Zhao took two steps back in disgust, as if afraid of being splashed with saliva.
Meng Jianqiu then added, "You two are wearing clothes made of the same material, and you still say there's no affair?"
The two of them subconsciously looked down and were immediately struck dumb. It was quite a coincidence that they were wearing very similar clothes when they went out today. To an unfamiliar person, they would look exactly the same.
In an instant, even the men who had come with them began to look at them strangely, and couldn't help but wonder if the two of them, who were usually so close, really had some kind of secret, ambiguous relationship.
Feeling the menacing gazes of the crowd, the two felt utterly helpless, knowing they couldn't clear their names even if they jumped into the Yellow River.
I don't know how, the discussion was originally about not being allowed into the teahouse, how did it suddenly turn into a confrontation with me?
After a moment of stunned silence, they suddenly realized that the female shop owner had deliberately made up stories to confuse their thoughts and divert everyone's attention.
Having figured this out, the two decided to ignore the speculations and focus solely on the teahouse incident. "You woman, why do you not allow men into the teahouse? I think it's because you look down on us men."
Another person chimed in, "We are all scholars who have studied the classics diligently. We just wanted to have a cup of tea, but you, a mere merchant's daughter, have made things difficult for us and humiliated us. What are you up to?"
Just as Meng Zhao was about to retort, a calm and authoritative voice drifted from the side.
"Why are you making such a racket in public?"
Hearing the noise, everyone turned to look. It turned out that while they were arguing, a carriage had stopped beside them, and a tall, handsome man stepped out of it.
Among the onlookers, a few sharp-eyed people, after recognizing the man's face, stammered, "Your Excellency, County Magistrate?" As they spoke, they prepared to kneel down and pay their respects with trepidation.
Upon seeing this, Wang Xian promptly spoke up to stop them, saying, "I am out today on private business, not for official duties. There is no need for you to bow."
After saying that, he turned slightly to the side, his eyes sharp, and looked at the person who had just spoken, "You just said that the shop owner is bullying scholars, what is the reason for that?"
Since the magistrate was both a man and a scholar, Fan and Yang felt as if they had seen a savior. They hurriedly said, "Your Excellency, we students usually study very hard. Today we had nothing to do, and when we heard that a new shop was opening, we thought we would come and join in the fun. However, the female shop owner not only wouldn't let us in, but also made baseless accusations against us. We guessed that there must be something shady going on in this teahouse."
Upon hearing this, Wang Xian frowned slightly. "Do you have any evidence to prove that there is something wrong with this teahouse?"
The group was immediately stumped. What evidence did they have? They had only heard from Yang Yuan that his sister-in-law, who was said to be a jinx, worked there, and they found the sign that only allowed women to enter quite annoying, so they wanted to take the opportunity to make things difficult for her.
When asked this question by Wang Xian, they looked at each other and were speechless.
Seeing that they were speechless, Wang Xian turned his gaze to Meng Zhao.
Meng Zhao stepped forward and replied gracefully, "Your Excellency, it is indeed a rule set by me that this teahouse only allows women to enter. However, when the teahouse opened, a sign was placed in a prominent place at the entrance, clearly stating this rule. There was no intention to deliberately prevent you gentlemen from entering."
"My initial intention in opening this teahouse was simply to provide a safe place for the women of the county to drink tea, chat, and relieve their boredom. There is absolutely nothing shady about it. If anyone has any doubts, you may send the county's female constables to investigate and prove my innocence."
These days, Song Wanyin frequently visits this teahouse, making it difficult for Wang Xian to see her during the day. Wang Xian is perfectly aware of any shady dealings going on at this teahouse.
So, frowning and looking serious, he said to the troublemaking scholars, "Have you seen the sign standing at the entrance of this teahouse?"
The group trembled with fear at Wang Xian's imposing presence, stammering, "We...we saw it."
“Since you saw it, why did you force your way in? A scholar who doesn’t even understand this basic etiquette, how can he serve the people if he is fortunate enough to enter officialdom in the future!” Wang Xian’s words were resounding and struck the hearts of everyone present.
These scholars, each harboring a dream of becoming officials in the imperial court, panicked upon hearing the magistrate's words, their faces turning red with anxiety: "Magistrate, we were foolish and shouldn't have acted so rashly. We'll leave immediately and won't bother you again."
After saying this, they were all filled with shame and covered their faces as they hurriedly left.
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