There's more than one sour chicken; many people are waiting to see the Lu family make a fool of themselves.
Especially seeing how hard Lu Baichuan and his wife were protecting their son, preventing him from being tested on his studies, they became even more convinced that he was truly a good-for-nothing.
I had heard before that the emperor sent his sons to the Lu family for training, and I thought the children in the Lu family must be very outstanding. Now it seems that it was all just hype.
It's understandable, considering that Lu Baichuan was a martial artist by birth, and the son he raised was just a brute. How could he possibly have any real knowledge or culture?
Thinking about all this, they felt even more that they could thoroughly deflate the Lu family's arrogance tonight, and thus became even more provocative.
The emperor looked down at his ungrateful officials and sneered inwardly, wondering who gave them the courage to provoke the Lu family like this.
If the dog wasn't good, would he let his son play with it? And how could his son have improved so much in such a short time?
The retired emperor also had a look of knowing everything, secretly anticipating how Gou'er would slap these shameless people in the face later.
Why can't we just enjoy a nice Mid-Autumn Festival dinner, eat and admire the moon? Why do we have to make things uncomfortable for everyone?
Lu Baichuan wanted to refuse, but then he saw that the little dog had already stood up. Before that, he had been gnawing on a big chicken leg, and there was still some oil on his mouth. He took the handkerchief that He Jiuniang handed him and wiped his mouth and face before saying cutely, "This boy is willing to accept this gentleman's test."
As he spoke, he comforted his parents in a childish voice: "Daddy, Mommy, it's okay. This adult must have few children of his own, which is why he wants to test other people's children. You have to understand."
Those who had been jeering froze instantly upon hearing this.
Gou'er's words seemed to be comforting his parents, but in reality, he was scolding Zhang Wentao for meddling in other people's business, and even cursing those who had helped to stir things up.
Such a sharp tongue at such a young age; they underestimated this little rascal.
The Emperor Emeritus couldn't hold back and laughed loudly, "Yes, if Minister Zhang feels that there are too few children in the family, then you should have more children to have more offspring. Next time, you must not keep eyeing other people's children."
The retired emperor no longer cares about state affairs, spending his days in comfort and retirement. He dislikes the behavior in the court and doesn't hold back, speaking his mind freely.
Zhang Wentao's face was grim, but he still answered respectfully and explained, "Your Majesty is joking. I have only heard that the young master has performed exceptionally well at the Imperial Academy and wish to test him."
The dog didn't care about all the twists and turns. He couldn't help but urge, "Sir, just ask whatever you want. I still want to eat mooncakes."
It means, "Get out of my way!"
The Empress Dowager initially thought the banquet was rather uninteresting and wanted to go back to rest early, but when she saw how clever Gou'er was, she immediately became interested.
She turned her head and chatted with the Empress Dowager sitting next to her, saying, "No wonder she's that girl's child, she's just as eloquent as her."
"Yes, I suppose that child is quite shrewd."
The Empress smiled and nodded. Although she didn't have much contact with the Lu family, everyone around her liked them. Moreover, her son, who had no ambition, was living a very comfortable life. He had no aspirations and no regrets. With her mind at peace, she was naturally willing to treat the Lu family with a normal attitude.
The Empress Dowager nodded, clearly having a plan in mind, otherwise she wouldn't be so confident.
It's truly remarkable that he can be so calm and composed at such a young age.
Zhang Wentao was furious that the little brat opposite him, who wasn't even as tall as him, dared to speak to him like that. He immediately hatched a wicked plan and asked, "What do you think of the Dongting people's actions some time ago?"
The moment this question was raised, everyone was immediately unsettled. This was a matter of state affairs; how could it be used to test a child?
Let alone a child as young as Gou'er, even students who have studied at the Imperial Academy for many years might not be able to fully explain the profound meaning behind it.
Zhang Wentao was clearly deliberately making things difficult for the child.
"What do you mean by this, Lord Zhang? Why are you making things difficult for a mere child?"
Mr. Kang couldn't sit still any longer and spoke up, accusing Zhang Wentao of being shameless.
Zhang Wentao was truly shameless, laughing brazenly as he said, "Lord Kang, you are mistaken. I was merely asking a very normal question. These students are the future pillars of the nation; how can they not pay attention to such matters?"
That's true, but when he tested his own child and the other children, he only did a simple test on their memorization of the text, and it was only the famous quotes, the easiest paragraphs and sentences to memorize.
Why does the difficulty suddenly increase when it comes to the dog?
The dog was younger than any of the people he had just asked questions to.
Lei Zi and the others couldn't sit still any longer and whispered to Lu Bochuan, "Third Uncle, let me answer for Gou'er!"
He was the oldest and had heard about the affairs of Dongting. Even if he couldn't answer particularly well, he wouldn't give Zhang Wentao any ammunition to laugh at him.
He didn't disapprove of Gou'er's abilities; he just felt that Gou'er was still young and might not understand Dongting's behavior, so naturally he wouldn't be able to answer well.
Lu Baichuan, however, did not intend to let Lei Zi help Gou'er. As his son, he would only encounter such situations more and more often, and it was impossible for someone to come to the rescue every time.
Besides, not being able to answer isn't a big problem, since he's still the father.
He Jiuniang didn't react much and didn't seem to be in a hurry at all.
All eyes were on the dog, waiting to see how he would react.
The dog, however, showed no sign of panic. After gathering his thoughts, he said, “The Doctrine of the Mean, Chapter 14, says: ‘The superior man acts according to his station and does not desire anything beyond it. … Confucius said: ‘Archery is similar to that of a superior man. If he misses the target, he should examine himself to find the reason.’”
"I believe that Dongting's behavior is not gentlemanly. He always covets other people's things, harbors ill intentions, and tries to drag others down with him. This is the behavior of a petty person, and in the end, he will suffer the consequences. This is the result of cause and effect."
He finished speaking quickly, his words were clear and his logic was sound.
There was a long silence around him; no one knew what they were thinking, or perhaps they were shocked by his words.
Zhang Wentao originally raised Dongting's question intentionally in a complicated way, hoping to confuse Gou'er and make him unsure where to begin his answer, or even scare him into tears.
I didn't expect the dog to be so clever, it immediately grasped the key point and described the behavior as the act of a villain.
This not only answered Zhang Wentao's tricky question well, but also subtly flattered the emperor.
Calling the people of Dongting a petty act is tantamount to praising the emperor as a virtuous gentleman.
There's a third layer of meaning: Gou'er glanced at Zhang Wentao subtly, a naive smile playing on his lips.
My darlings, I'll continue with big updates today and tomorrow. I'll return to my usual two updates a day on Children's Day, because I want to celebrate Children's Day, hehehe!
I don't care, I'm still a baby!
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