Misty Rain of the Old Times

Chapter 193 The wind is blowing hard
After leaving the exhibition hall of the calligraphy and painting society, Wei Ziyan and the others walked on the road to the academy in silence. The difference was that Wei Ziyan and Jiang Huaichuan looked relaxed and indifferent, while Wu Junyao looked unhappy.

Now that he was away from the crowd, there was no need for him to hide his emotions.

Although Wu Junyao made a fair evaluation of Gao Jingming's painting in the exhibition hall, it does not mean that his attitude towards Gao Jingming has changed. One thing is one thing.

Among the few people, Wu Junyao disliked Gao Jingming the most. There was no deep hatred between the two sides, and they had never even met each other, but because of their sisters, they were destined not to be the same kind of people.

Unless one of their sisters completely subdues the other, and eventually their relatives are forced to share a dominant position, there is no possibility of peaceful coexistence!
Of course, now they are a "family" on the surface, they should get along well with each other, and it is not to the point of tearing each other apart and fighting to the death. Moreover, such a thing is not allowed to happen in an environment like the academy.

From a personal perspective, Wu Junyao naturally couldn't stand Gao Jingming's success. The more outstanding the other party was, the more unhappy he felt. He always felt that he was being suppressed. This also made his sister lose face.

So he had to take action and couldn't let Gao Jingming continue like this. Gao Jingming had only been in the academy for a short time, but he had already produced a painting that was qualified to be presented to His Majesty on behalf of the academy. What would happen in a few years? By then, he would be too embarrassed to hold his head up in front of him.

Before this, he did not take Gao Jingming seriously, but after this incident, he had to take him seriously.

Jiang Huaichuan is the most indifferent person. He doesn't even know Gao Jingming, and the two of them have nothing to do with each other. He only has a better relationship with Wei Ziyan, so he stands on their side. Let them do whatever they want, neither taking the initiative nor refusing. He won't rush to the front to target Gao Jingming, but he will do his best to help where help is needed and doesn't mind contributing. He knows how to balance gains and losses.

They are all adults, not children. Those who put righteousness first are people in the underworld, while people like them care more about interests.

As for Wei Ziyan, he and Gao Jingming were not on the same page because of certain ideological issues, and it had nothing to do with Gao Jingming himself. Deep down, he didn't care about Gao Jingming. It was only because of Wu Junyao that he was interested in participating. He did it in a playful manner, just for fun, and didn't take it seriously at all.

As a child of an aristocratic family, to be frank, he could ignore Gao Jingming, let alone Gao Jingyu. If he really wanted to target Gao Jingming, a single word from him would be enough to make Gao Jingming unable to survive in the academy. This was not an exaggeration at all!
As they walked, Wu Junyao suddenly laughed and said, "My brother Gao is so famous at such a young age. It's really impressive. I feel ashamed of myself."

Wei Ziyan and Jiang Huaichuan looked at each other and knew that Wu Junyao was getting serious and wanted to do something serious.

But they didn't respond.

Jiang Huaichuan stopped and looked at a small, calm lake not far away. He said, "Brother Wei, Brother Wu, I'm going to say goodbye to you."

"Brother Jiang, why do you say that?" Wu Junyao raised his eyebrows in surprise, thinking to himself, I was talking about Gao Jingming, why did you suddenly jump here?

Wei Ziyan didn't seem surprised, instead he asked, "When?"

"Just for a few days. My family has sent me a letter asking me to go back. I have been in the academy for many years, but it has been difficult for me to make academic progress. After going back to celebrate His Majesty's birthday, I plan to train for two years to prepare for the exam," Jiang Huaichuan said, continuing to look at the calm lake in front of him.

A breeze blew by, and ripples appeared on the calm surface of the lake.

Wu Junyao was very surprised and asked, "Brother Jiang, are you graduating now?"

Jiang Huaichuan smiled noncommittally as a response. A family like his was very sensitive to many things, so he had to prepare in advance and there was no need to waste time in the academy.

Wei Ziyan nodded and said, "Since Brother Jiang has left, I'll finish my course too. Otherwise, it would be too boring. It's just right for us to go back together so that we can take care of each other. His Majesty's birthday is coming soon, and I will go with my family to celebrate in person. After that, I plan to take part in this year's imperial examination."

The two of them, one a descendant of an aristocratic family and the other a 'young marquis', were certainly qualified to personally congratulate Emperor Shang Xuan on his birthday.

Wu Junyao was a little dumbfounded. He always felt out of tune with them. Only at this moment did he realize that he was not on the same level as them.

He was a little confused and asked, "Why did you two brothers end the course in such a hurry?"

At this moment, he had forgotten what he had originally intended to say to Gao Jingming.

"It's not rushed. Counting the time, I have been in the academy for six years, and I am twenty years old this year. It is time to go out," Wei Ziyan said with emotion.

Jiang Huaichuan glanced at him without saying a word. He could see the situation and had to take action. As a member of a noble family, Wei Ziyan must know it better than him.

"What should I do if you all leave?" Wu Junyao said subconsciously.

Who cares what you do? Do you think that just because your sister, the queen, has been nice to you these past few years, you really think you are the same as us?
Jiang Huaichuan felt amused, but he had been getting along quite well with Wu Junyao over the years. He pondered and said, "Brother Wu, I don't think you have any plans to close down anytime soon. I know how you feel right now. Ask Brother Wei. He'll give you some good advice."

My mood, my mood is that I am very unhappy that Gao Jingming is in the spotlight, Wu Junyao muttered in his heart, and subconsciously looked at Wei Ziyan.

Wei Ziyan met his gaze and smiled, saying, "We're all planning to leave, and I don't want to cause any more trouble, but considering our long-standing relationship, Brother Wu, I have something to say to you: 'A tree that stands out in the forest will be destroyed by the wind.' That's all I have to say. Do you understand?"

"Brother Wei, what you mean is..." Wu Junyao frowned slightly. Jiang Huaichuan was speechless. If Wu Junyao wasn't from a wealthy family, how could he have traveled with them? He was indeed a bit clueless. He shook his head and reminded him, "Let's not beat around the bush. Brother Wei's point is very simple. Since you don't like Gao Jingming, you don't have to resort to some shady tactics. He's already in the spotlight this time, so why not praise him as much as you can? He's still young and his foundation is not stable. If you praise him too much, he'll naturally fall. Do you understand?"

"I understand," Wu Junyao said thoughtfully.

Wei Ziyan and Jiang Huaichuan smiled similarly. Now that things had come to this, if Wu Junyao messed up again, there would be nothing they could do.

"Let's go. We have to deal with the graduation procedures and say goodbye to some classmates and friends. We also have to go home and prepare to celebrate the emperor's birthday. We have a lot to do," Wei Ziyan said, shaking his head.

Wu Junyao quickly said: "Then I'll see you off."

After they parted, Wu Junyao pondered over what Wei Ziyan and Jiang Huaichuan had said before, and suddenly he understood, clapping his hands and saying, "Wonderful."

"Didn't Gao Jingming create a painting of pine and cranes to celebrate Your Majesty's birthday? Then I'll give you a push and help you spread your reputation. With a greater reputation, more people will come to you and make friends. How can you still have the mind to study? When you become famous at a young age, it's easy to get carried away, like a rootless duckweed, which will fall down at the slightest push. The huge blow at that time will be enough to make him unable to recover. This is a real conspiracy. I admire you."

After figuring out the key, he naturally had to arrange people to implement it. The first person he thought of was Zhang Ao, who was easy to use.

When he turned around, he found that Zhang Ao had been following him the whole time, so he said, "Come here, Xiao Zhang, I have something for you to do. Don't be afraid to spend money, whatever you spend will be on me."

Then he went over his plan.

"Ah, me?" Zhang Ao, who had been following the whole process, was stunned.

He felt uncomfortable enough because Gao Jingming, a classmate, was in the spotlight. Previously in the exhibition hall, he blurted out something and was looked at as if he were a fool by everyone around him, which made him feel uneasy. Now Wu Junyao gave him such an important task, and he felt a lot of pressure.

"Why, you don't want to?" Wu Junyao frowned, thinking that I asked you to do something because I think highly of you. Do you really think that I have no one else to order around except you?

Taking a deep breath, Zhang Ao said, "I dare not, Master Wu. I'll get busy first."

"Well, go ahead. Tell me when you need money," Wu Junyao waved his hand.

After leaving, Zhang Ao's face became panic-stricken and his mind was in a mess.

"Master, what about us?" Feng San, who was following him, asked nervously.

Shaking his head, Zhang Ao gritted his teeth and said, "Let's go!"

"Leave?" Feng San looked puzzled.

Zhang Ao took a deep breath and said, "Yes, let's go. What else can I do if I don't leave? Wasn't it embarrassing enough for me in the exhibition hall? And last time I listened to them and caused that scene in Room 133, it's ruined our reputation. I can't stay in this academy anymore. Young Master Wei and Young Master Jiang are both leaving, and I have a feeling the situation is not right. And that Wu Junyao, I didn't think much of him before, but now it seems he's just an ordinary guy, rich and nothing else. If I follow him, sooner or later I'll die, and I don't know how. We have to get out of here before he realizes it!"

"Ah?" Now it was Feng San's turn to be dumbfounded. When did his young master become so decisive?

Zhang Ao turned around and glared, "What are you talking about? Hurry up! Let's go today, hurry up and go straight home. Then write to tell the teacher that we don't want to study this book anymore. Let's go to a smaller place to start over. Who cares? If you can't afford to offend him, you can hide from him. Oh, right? Haven't you been getting along well with Gao Jingming's servant recently? Damn it, let's do it once and for all. Tell Chen Xuan secretly and tell him that Wu Junyao is planning to flatter his young master to death. Let them be careful."

Feng San...

Master, do you know what you are doing?

As time passed and the exhibition hall became less crowded, Chen Xuan and Gao Jingming went in to look at other people's works. One had to admit that, apart from the fact that Gao Jingming's drawing was indeed a trick, his writing was really not as good as others'. This had to be acknowledged.

When it was dark and the exhibition hall was closed, and the ten works representing the academy's tribute to the emperor were put away, Pei Zhenlong, Wang Xichen and others on the second floor finally walked out of the room.

"Brother Cuibai, now you can rest assured, right?" Pei Zhenlong shook his head and said with a smile.

Nodding, Wang Xichen breathed a sigh of relief and said, "This didn't lead to the discovery of that strange innate master. It seems it was just a false alarm. He was either just passing by or had already left."

"So you are just making yourself uncomfortable. I didn't care about it from the beginning. How easy it is," Pei Zhenlong said happily.

Ignoring him, Wang Xichen said, "Anyway, now I can go to the capital to celebrate His Majesty's birthday with peace of mind..."

(End of this chapter)