Chapter 61: The Dinner Became an Apology Session

Ye Wenshu’s friends truly believed he had taken their comforting words to heart and let the matter go, which set their minds at ease. It seemed that Wenshu was indeed good-tempered, for he hadn’t shown much anger at all.

Secretly, Ye Wenshu cheered himself up, determined that next time he would surpass Li Su without fail. He looked through the crowd at Li Su, gave a cold snort, and thought, What’s there to be so pleased about? It was just one victory over me. Who can say who will win or lose next time?

Li Su had no idea that Ye Wenshu had already issued him a challenge in his heart. Even if he had known, he wouldn’t have cared. If Ye Wenshu wanted to seek out trouble for himself, Li Su wouldn’t stop him.

If Lin Ze and the others knew what Ye Wenshu was thinking, they would probably look at him with sympathy. Was one crushing defeat not enough for him? Did he want to put himself through it again? They had never seen someone so eager to invite humiliation.

They only hoped he wouldn’t end up doubting whether he was cut out for scholarship at all.

Ye Wenshu forced himself to perk up. Though he hadn’t claimed the top spot, he had come in second, which was still an impressive achievement. The other scholars were willing to give him some face.

Many of the scholars, however, did not dare look Li Su in the eye. When they had mocked him before, they hadn’t spared their words—yet now he truly was the top scorer, while some of them hadn’t even made the list.

In truth, it was quite embarrassing, and naturally, they didn’t want to parade themselves before Li Su now.

But just because they avoided him didn’t mean Lin Ze and his friends wouldn’t seek them out.

The scholars from Li Su’s county now felt proud and vindicated. Those who hadn’t spoken ill of Li Su before were especially relieved, glad they hadn’t followed the herd. Otherwise, they would have both offended someone and lost face.

“Brother Li, we knew you could do it! All those who said you couldn’t take first place and mocked you are skulking away with their tails between their legs now.”

“I wondered why you didn’t come out to defend yourself and just let them talk. Turns out you were preparing this kind of rebuttal. What a beautiful response!” Of course, such a comeback required true ability—they almost wished they could try it themselves.

“Brother Li, you’ve really brought honor to our county! Let’s see if they dare call our county backward and say our scholars are just here to make up the numbers.”

“Brother Li, Brother Lin, Brother Qin, Brother Ren—all of you made the list this time. That means our county has eight scholars on the roll!” Li Su’s group alone made up half of them.

In previous years, only three or four scholars from their county would make it through the prefectural exam, and sometimes not a single one. The provincial exam was even more dismal.

No wonder people from other counties said theirs was a poor backwater where hardly anyone could read.

Li Su mostly just listened, occasionally responding with a word or two, but the atmosphere remained warm. The scholars from his county were full of praise, feeling he had brought them glory.

Lin Ze and the other two were quietly proud; ever since they had met Brother Su, many good things had happened.

Lin Ze whispered, “Did you all bring your notebooks?”

Qin Ming nodded emphatically. “Of course! Even when I’m in the wrong, I argue my case—now we’re in the right, how could I not bring it?”

Ren Shuhua looked a bit worried. “Won’t this make us seem too aggressive?”

“Not at all! They were the ones bad-mouthing Brother Su behind his back. We’re just repeating their words to their faces. How is that aggressive? Weren’t those their own words? Do they really think we’re such easy targets?” Lin Ze said firmly.

“Shuhua, if you’re nervous, just give your notebook to us. Xiao Ze and I can handle it—you stand back and watch,” Qin Ming added, knowing that Ren Shuhua, raised by a scholar grandfather, might not be comfortable with such things.

Ren Shuhua shook his head quickly. “I’m not scared, just worried about… but never mind, let’s do it together. We’re brothers, after all—together in good times and bad. Besides, my grandfather won’t know.”

Li Su turned and asked, “What are you all whispering about back there?”

Qin Ming, looking like a guilty conspirator, pulled a small notebook from his breast. “Brother Su, we brought the little notebooks.”

Li Su suddenly smiled. “Well done.” They really knew how to have fun.

“Of course!” Qin Ming replied, not a trace of humility in his voice.

Chatting as they went, the group arrived at Fortune Tower. Ye Wenshu went to speak with the innkeeper.

Ye Wenshu had invited quite a few scholars, but some had already left for home after checking the results.

Of those who came, some didn’t dare meet Li Su’s gaze at all.

Originally, everyone had assumed that even if Li Su was invited, he wouldn’t come, and if he did, he’d just be the butt of jokes. But now, no one dared mock him; they were just relieved he wasn’t making trouble for them.

Seeing that Li Su had no intention of holding grudges, everyone relaxed a little. When the dishes arrived, Lin Ze, Qin Ming, and Ren Shuhua, notebooks in hand, went to find their targets.

“Come, come—take a look. Didn’t you say this? I’m not wronging you, am I?” Lin Ze pointed to the notebook, which detailed the time, place, people, and the exact words spoken—so thorough that denial was impossible.

The other man gave a weak laugh. “It was all a misunderstanding… really…” When had this been recorded? And now they confronted him with the book in hand—did they have no shame?

Was this even something a normal person would do?

“A misunderstanding? Do you think one word settles it?” Lin Ze’s face wore a smile, but the man felt a chill down his spine.

“Young Master Li, I apologize—it was my fault for repeating what others said. I truly am sorry!” Surely that was enough? The scholar felt as though he sat on pins, his face burning with shame.

Li Su nodded slightly, merely sitting and looking at him, but the pressure was so great that sweat beaded at the man’s temples. He bitterly regretted running his mouth without thinking. Now look where it had landed him!

Li Su spoke slowly, “Reading is meant to make one wise. If you become an official and continue to parrot others without thought, speaking carelessly, it can be very dangerous.”

“Yes, yes!” Sweat dripped down the scholar’s face. If this spread, his reputation would be ruined. It was just a small matter—why did Li Su make it sound so grave?

And Ye Wenshu—was he in league with Li Su? Had he set up this gathering just to make them apologize to Li Su?

Thinking it over, Ye Wenshu really had been speaking in Li Su’s favor the whole time! A banquet of apology, orchestrated by the first and second place scholars!

Feeling he had uncovered the truth, the scholar’s apology became all the more sincere.

Li Su and Ye Wenshu were clearly friends, while the rest had been badmouthing their friendship behind their backs. In the end, whoever took first place, it was between the two of them—none of the others even factored in.

Ye Wenshu, unaware of these mental gymnastics, would have cried injustice if he’d known. His original intention was to show off and make friends, but now he could do neither.

With one person leading the way in apologizing, the rest didn’t wait for Lin Ze and the others to find them. They all stood up and apologized to Li Su in turn.

Lin Ze was left speechless—they hadn’t even had a chance to confront everyone, and yet all had confessed on their own.

Li Su neither accepted nor rejected their apologies. Seeing the awkward atmosphere, Ye Wenshu, as the host, had no choice but to step in and smooth things over.

He had gained nothing from this gathering, only a heap of trouble, and he felt nothing but suffocated frustration.