As the two were talking, a rough male voice rang out from the doorway.
"Don't say there are no seats. If there are no seats, then make room for me."
The two turned around and saw a tall, burly man speaking aggressively to his employee.
"The old man has been traveling all night and wants to come in for a meal, but you keep complaining that there are no seats."
The waiter, a full head shorter than the burly man, said with a fawning smile, "Brother, as you can see, the place is indeed full. If you're patient, you can wait a while until some customers finish eating. Or if you're in a hurry, you can share a table with someone..."
Before he could finish speaking, the big man grabbed him by the collar, lifted him up, and spat directly onto his face.
"Do you even know who I am? I'm on my way to the capital to take the imperial martial arts exam. If you delay my path to fame, you'll regret it!"
As he spoke, the burly man grabbed the shop assistant and threw him backward, like a chicken, directly into the counter. The assistant bumped his forehead and broke two stacks of plates.
Meng Ruliu raised her eyebrows and was about to get up, but Su Wan quickly stopped her and whispered, "Sister, we're going to the capital now. We mustn't cause any trouble, lest we attract attention."
Meng Ruliu said, "That stinky man bullies people because he has some brute strength. I'll go teach him a lesson."
Su Wan said a few more words before she finally managed to persuade Meng Ruliu to stop.
Seeing the man's fierce appearance, many of the diners inside the house were frightened and got up to leave.
The man found a table and sat down. The restaurant owner, fearing the man would cause trouble and ruin the business, personally came out to appease him and served him food. The waiter, swallowing his anger, went to the kitchen to serve Su Wan and her companion the food.
The man ate some food, and his interest was piqued again. He said to the diners next to him, "I have practiced martial arts for ten years. This time I am going to the capital to become the top martial arts champion. If I succeed, I can lead a large army to achieve great things and bring glory to my ancestors."
The diner said, "It is rumored that this military examination was urgently convened by the Prime Minister. Does the court really have no great generals who can fight against the enemy troops at Xiping Pass?"
Another diner said, "When the Fifth Prince quelled the rebellion, all the famous generals of the court went to war with him, but who knew they would end up like this? His Majesty passed away, and the Fifth Prince died tragically at Xiping Pass. The Prime Minister is ultimately a civil official and cannot command troops in battle. So, he has to recruit military men from all over the country to compete and select a great general to lead the army."
Everyone was talking about it. Then, the man surnamed Qu finished eating and drinking, boasted about himself, wiped his mouth, and left the restaurant.
Su Wan overheard the conversation and whispered to Meng Ruliu, "I didn't know until I came that the imperial court is selecting talents. It seems they're going to deal with the Southern Chu army at Xiping Pass."
Meng Ruliu said, "When I was in the capital, His Majesty held two military examinations. If it weren't for the fact that the laws of the Great Jin Dynasty do not allow women to participate, I would have tried anyway."
A cry of alarm came from outside the door: "Hey, sir, this horse belongs to the two ladies inside! You can't take it away!"
Upon hearing this, Su Wan dropped her chopsticks, stood up, and ran outside, with Meng Ruliu following behind.
Upon going outside, he saw it was that man surnamed Qu again, untying the reins of his prized horse, Snowflake, saying, "I was just missing a good horse. The martial arts examination requires horsemanship skills, and this is truly a stroke of luck..."
Su Wan was filled with rage. This horse was protected by her maternal grandfather at the cost of his life; how could she allow such a despicable person to lay a finger on it?
She pointed at the man and said, "Sister-in-law, beat him up."
Meng Ruliu rolled up her sleeves and said, "My sworn sister, you're finally not stopping me anymore."
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