Xu Liang still passed the imperial examination and became a Juren (a successful candidate in the provincial-level imperial examination).
001 lamented, "I feel like Xu Chengzong is a clown, and I also feel like we and Hu Sibai are clowns too."
The imperial court has not yet assigned jobs to these scholars, but now that Xu Liang has the title of a scholar, matchmakers from all around are flocking to him—more than in the timeline, perhaps because Xu Liang has already built a house with blue tiles.
Even the landlord Meng sent a matchmaker over at this moment. The scholar was not good enough for him, but the licentiate was a different story, especially since he was a handsome young man.
However, Xu Liang is still hesitant about whether to participate in the imperial examination. He has no interest in romance and has rejected all the matchmakers.
Emperor Xiu and 001 were wary of him rekindling his romance with Meng Liniang. After much waiting, Meng Liniang finally met Xu Chengzong.
With nothing else to do, they climbed onto the rooftops to get a closer look, hoping to intervene and stop any problems that might arise.
The wind seemed particularly mischievous that day. Meng Liniang was about to enter the perfume shop when her veil was blown off, revealing her beautiful face. As she turned her head, she bumped into Xu Chengzong, a street urchin.
The latter paused, his folding fan fluttering as it fell to the ground, brushing against the hem of his clothes.
He stared intently at Meng Liniang, then suddenly raised an eyebrow and smiled. Instead of picking up the fan, he picked up the veil, dusted it off before handing it over, and then teasingly snatched it away just as she was about to take it.
This behavior was rather frivolous, but Xu Chengzong also had a mouth that was just as impressive: "Whose young lady is this? She's so beautiful, is she betrothed?"
Meng Liniang, who had lived in her boudoir for a long time and rarely went out, was slightly taken aback when she suddenly heard such impudent words. Her face turned red with embarrassment, and her eyes welled up with tears, as if she was about to cry.
The maidservant beside him rushed forward to protect her master, angrily saying, "How can this young master be so rude? Quickly return the veil, or my master will definitely make you pay."
Xu Chengzong chuckled: "Oh? And who is your master?"
Meng Liniang gently called to her maid, pursed her lips and stepped forward, suppressing her shame and indignation, and said in a low voice, "Please, sir, return the veil to me."
"Tell me your name, and I'll give it to you."
"Does the young master have to be so disrespectful to a young woman like me?"
"A beautiful and graceful lady is the object of a gentleman's affection. How can this be called frivolous? I, Xu, am simply fond of you and wish to get to know you."
Hearing his ill-intentioned words, Meng Liniang became so angry that her voice trembled with tears. She managed to utter only the word "you" before covering her face with her sleeve and sobbing against the maid's shoulder.
A look of panic flashed in Xu Chengzong's eyes. He instinctively reached out to step forward, but then heard the maid shout, "Stop!"
The maid pointed at his nose and yelled, "You're nothing but a scoundrel! How dare you call yourself a gentleman? You'd better stay away from my young lady, or else..."
She looked around, then suddenly grabbed a vendor's carrying pole, holding it in her arms as if she were about to hit him.
Xu Chengzong was insulted in the street, but strangely, he didn't feel angry. Seeing the beautiful woman in tears, he became somewhat anxious: "I've truly fallen for your young lady at first sight and would like to get to know her..."
The maidservant shouted angrily, "You lecherous scoundrel!" and struck him. The latter raised his hand to protect his head, and with his other hand, he held out his veil. He didn't pull it back even after being hit, but repeatedly begged for mercy: "Heroine, spare me! Ouch, don't hit me anymore, here's your veil back! Ouch, my back..."
The maid pulled off her veil, disgusted that it had been touched by that stinky man, but she couldn't just throw it away, so she had to put it away for now. She returned the carrying pole, spat at Xu Chengzong, and led her mistress around him to find the family's carriage.
On the rooftop across the street, a fox named Yitong watched the two meet for the first time, and his face went numb.
"Maybe we should give up on this destined partner and find someone else."
Xu Chengzong picked up the fan, put it away, and tucked it into his waistband. He looked in the direction the carriage had gone, his expression slightly disappointed.
As the crowd dispersed slightly, a young man dressed as a servant squeezed over carrying a pile of things. Seeing his absent-minded appearance, he asked in confusion, "Young master, what's wrong?"
Xu Chengzong glared at him: "Where did you run off to slack off?"
"I'm innocent! Didn't I just go to buy things as you instructed?" The servant still grinned, seemingly unconcerned about being punished.
Xu Chengzong glanced at the things in his hand and sighed, "I've taken a liking to a girl, but it seems I made her cry."
servant: "..."
Once the servant figured out what had happened, he looked at him with a complicated expression: "Young master, even if you don't study properly, you should know that you can't just ask a girl's name."
"Isn't a name just something to be called? Why can't I even ask about it?"
"Young master, men and women should not know each other's names without a matchmaker. Even I understand this principle. How come you don't know it?"
“Those people from Xiangyunfang… Bah, how could they be worthy of comparing themselves to that young lady?”
Xu Chengzong suddenly tapped the servant with the back of his fan: "Go and find out which family's daughter that is."
The servant said with a bitter face, "Young master, I don't even know what the girl looks like, how can I ask? Young master, if we're meant to meet again, we'll meet again. If we're not, you can't just abduct a girl, can you?"
Xu Chengzong frowned, and after a long while, he pushed aside his fan and muttered, "It's best if no one tries to take it from me."
The two men's first meeting was not pleasant.
When Meng Liniang returned home, her eyes were still red. When her brother Meng Fangxu saw this, he felt sorry for her and told the maid in his room to take good care of her. He called out the maid who always accompanied him, but before he could ask, the maid immediately began to complain.
"Do you know whose he is?"
The maid said, "I only heard him call himself Xu."
In the neighboring village, the most famous family surnamed Xu is Magistrate Xu's family. However, Meng Fangxu also knows that Xu Chengzong is not a good person, but he doesn't like beautiful women, let alone harass people in the street.
He pressed further, "Any distinguishing features? How tall are you? What do you look like? What clothes are you wearing?"
The maid recalled the events and told the truth, and Meng Fangxu felt that she was referring to Xu Chengzong.
He frowned: "Sounds like Xu Chengzong. Qiuju, come with me."
It was still early, so the two set off immediately, not forgetting to hire a few guards for backup, and charged towards Xu Chengzong's house.
Xu Chengzong was preoccupied with thoughts of the beauty and wanted to ask his mother to inquire about her. He declined his friend's invitation to fight crickets together and returned home with a heavy heart. Just then, he bumped into a somewhat familiar carriage and immediately recognized the maid sitting in front of it as the one beside the beauty.
When the maid saw him, her eyes lit up immediately. As she went to lift the curtain, she didn't forget to snort, showing a smug air of someone who was taking advantage of someone else's power.
Xu Chengzong assumed the girl he had his eye on was inside the carriage, so he quickly went over, clasped his hands in apology, and said, "Miss, I was being presumptuous and impetuous today. I apologize to you. If you are still angry, you can do whatever you want with me."
Meng Fangxu was about to come out when he suddenly heard these words. He knew he hadn't made a mistake; this was the spoiled brat. He kicked Xu Chengzong in the shoulder, sending him sprawling to the ground.
He looked down at her and said condescendingly, "Xu Chengzong, is it you who made my sister so angry?"
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