Days went by, and in a short span of five days, the excitement in Shu State City crested in wave after wave, showing no signs of stopping.
First, there was Third Place Scholar Li Huai'gu's parade through the streets. All the city's scholars and beautiful ladies flocked to congratulate him, creating a scene the people of the Shu Region called "a spectacle unseen in the Great Wei Dynasty for two hundred years."
It wasn't that Shu State had never produced a first or third-place scholar before, but in the past, successful examination candidates always held their celebratory parades on horseback in the Capital Prefecture.
Consequently, everyone knew of it, from the Prefect of Shu State City, the Governor's Office, the Inspectorate Office, the Capital Commandery, and the Marquis's Mansion, all the way down to the common people.
And along with the parade, the affair between Li Huai'gu and Yun Xiang was also spread by enterprising gossips.
The story went that Mrs. Li was trying to break up the loving couple, but the Third Place Scholar, fiercely protective of his beloved, insisted on marrying Miss Yun Xiang anyway.
It added a layer of romance to the Third Place Scholar's celebratory parade, making it a tale almost as legendary as Old Marquis Xiao's conquest of the Poshisu Country.
This gave the already bustling populace of Shu State yet another juicy topic for their after-dinner conversations.
However, another story began to spread alongside the tale of the "star-crossed lovers": the matter of Chen Yi, the live-in son-in-law of the Xiao Family of Duke Dingyuan, trying to abduct Miss Yun Xiang.
Though no one knew where the rumor started, it was told with striking clarity—from Chen Yi arriving at the door with his maid and servants, to his failed abduction and subsequent panicked retreat.
Even the line of poetry Chen Yi had used to comfort Li Huai'gu—"Pluck the flower when it's ripe for the picking; wait not 'til the bough is bare"—was twisted and cited as the motive for his attempted abduction.
For a time, the scandal swept through the entire city.
Some uninformed scholars even ran to Li Huai'gu for confirmation while simultaneously filing a complaint with the State Government Office, demanding that justice be served and Chen Yi be brought to account.
If Li Huai'gu hadn't personally come forward with Yun Xiang to clarify the matter, this "villainous fiend" Chen Yi might have been dragged from the Xiao Family's estate and paraded through the streets in shame. That spectacle would surely have been even grander than Li Huai'gu's own parade on his white horse.
Even so, a significant number of people in Shu State believed that Li Huai'gu had only come forward because he was pressured by the Xiao Family.
Somehow, Chen Yi was crowned with the title "Most Shameless Son-in-Law in History."
The rumors painted him as a brute, eight feet tall, built like an ox, with a swarthy, coarse-featured face.
As the story was passed from person to person, the lie effectively became the truth.
Yet, these street-level slanders didn't bother Chen Yi in the least. Instead, they drove poor Xiaodie into a frantic state, a mess of tears, laughter, and anger.
She firmly believed it was her fault, that the Young Master had only helped Third Scorer Li and Yun Xiang because of her.
「The sun was bright and warm, by the pond in the Spring Lotus Garden pavilion.」
As if he didn't have a care in the world, Chen Yi lounged on a newly crafted rocking chair, gently swaying as he pored over a thick medical text.
Xiao Wuge sat beside him, fishing with a pole like a miniature adult. Every so often, he would pull up a Golden Carp, let out a cheer, and toss it back into the pond.
Meanwhile, on the other side of the pond, Zhang Heng, the Young Crown Prince of Duke Qian, was being watched by Wang Lixing. He was squatting down, watching ants march in a line, muttering, "Most shameless runaway groom in history."
He was the most delighted of anyone when Chen Yi's bad name spread throughout Shu State. With an I-told-you-so expression, he had simply swapped "son-in-law" with "runaway groom," inventing yet another nickname for Chen Yi.
Wang Lixing, listening nearby, felt the urge to offer a word of explanation, but one look at Zhang Heng, whose small frame wasn't even as thick as his own calf, made him decide to keep his mouth shut.
Xiaodie looked at Chen Yi's serene expression, and thinking of the recent rumors in both Shu State City and the Xiao Mansion, she couldn't stop her tears from flowing once more.
"Young Master, it's all my fault... SOB..."
Chen Yi looked up from his medical book, glanced at her, and said with a sigh, "There you go, crying again. I'm not dead yet, you know."
Xiaodie whimpered, "I... I don't understand. The Third Place Scholar already explained everything two days ago. Why won't they believe him?"
"You were clearly just trying to help, and the Third Place Scholar and Miss Yun Xiang even won Mrs. Li's approval, so why are you the one..."
Chen Yi handed her a handkerchief and returned to his book. "Prejudice in people's hearts is like a great mountain. It's hard to climb, but even harder to cross."
Wiping her tears, Xiaodie said, "But we can't just let them ruin your reputation, can we?"
Chen Yi thought for a moment. "Actually, making them shut up is simple. Tomorrow, I'll go burn down the State Government Office. I guarantee they won't be so fixated on this issue then."
Xiaodie stared at him, dumbfounded, not even noticing her tears had trickled into her mouth.
"Burn... burn down the Government Office?"
Imagining the consequences, Xiaodie didn't know whether to laugh or cry. She couldn't help but ball her little fists and tap him lightly, chiding him:
"Young Master, you're talking crazy again."
Chen Yi smiled, seeing that she had calmed down. "Go see if dinner is ready," he instructed. "I'm hungry."
Xiaodie quickly dabbed her eyes with the handkerchief, gave a sound of assent, and headed out of the Spring Lotus Garden.
Xiao Wuge glanced over his shoulder and secretly jotted down another one of Chen Yi's phrases.
He planned to tell his big sister, Xiao Wan'er, about all the wisdom he'd collected when she returned.
'That stuff about prejudice in people's hearts... it was said in plain language, but it sounded so profound.'
Luckily, Chen Yi had no idea what the boy was thinking, or he would have surely delivered a few swift smacks to his backside.
Right now, he was combining his Minor Achievement Medical Dao with a cram session, absorbing medical knowledge beyond the "Treatise on Cold Pathogenic and Miscellaneous Diseases."
Ever since his Cultivation broke through to the Upper Ninth Grade, his various Techniques had been improving steadily, but they were all still a little ways off from their next breakthroughs.
For him to break through, he needed more than just Cultivation; he also required a great deal of Opportunity to raise the Realm of his Martial Arts Body, Punch, and Step.
Since the gap was currently too large, he had spent eleven Opportunity points and, with the help of his newly acquired "Treatise on Cold Pathogenic and Miscellaneous Diseases," had first raised his Medical Dao to the Minor Success Realm.
Immediately afterward, Chen Yi discovered that the Profound Mysteries of the Medical Dao far exceeded his imagination.
The entry-level stage alone covered topics like the Yin Yang Five Elements, internal organs and meridians, the Four Diagnostic methods, and the Eight Principles.
It also required him to recognize common diseases, write prescriptions, use Silver Needles to alleviate pain at acupoints, and brew herbal remedies to expel pathogens and bolster health.
And upon reaching the Minor Success Realm, the scope became even more all-encompassing.
Beyond the basics, it added diagnosis and treatment based on pattern differentiation—demanding flexible application of methods like Six-Channel and Four-Level differentiation—and even required him to master Controlling Needle with Qi to clear the meridians.
In comparison, while the Fist Dao was divided into Fist Technique, Palm Technique, and Leg Technique, they all shared many fundamental principles.
Thus, after stepping onto the path of the Medical Dao, Chen Yi instantly felt like he was running out of time.
To put it poetically: he was wasting away for the sake of his studies, and he wouldn't have it any other way.
'Why did I put myself through this?'
Chen Yi shook his head to himself. If he had to blame someone, it would be Li Huai'gu. 'Of all the family backgrounds to have, why did he have to come from a long line of physicians?'
The day passed quickly.
After nightfall, Chen Yi practiced his Pile Skill and Techniques with Pei Guanli as usual.
But starting yesterday, he had taken the initiative to add something new to their routine: a daily sparring match with Pei Guanli to increase his combat experience.
Pei Guanli, of course, did not refuse. She was just as eager to prove that her previous losses were merely due to carelessness.
However, her hopes were high, but reality dealt her a stunning blow.
Chen Yi won both of their subsequent matches, a result that was truly difficult for her to accept.
Pei Guanli couldn't figure it out. In terms of Cultivation, she was slightly stronger than Chen Yi. The grades of her Body Technique and other Techniques were high, and she had practiced them to the point of mastery.
'So how was it that in a real fight, my Body Technique and Palm Technique were so ineffective?'
It would have been difficult for Chen Yi to explain. If he had to, he would say that his Minor Dao Realm allowed him to see every shift in Pei Guanli's moves—he could even perceive the flow of her Qi Mechanism with perfect clarity.
Coupled with the fact that Chen Yi had also learned the Meteor Butterfly Step and Hundred Flowers Palm himself, he naturally knew how to counter them.
They cultivated like this until late into the night—
[Daily Intel · Yellow-level Top Grade: At a quarter past noon, the Little Duke's wife, Xiao Qiuyun, will be disciplining her son. A small amount of Opportunity can be obtained.]
Chen Yi raised an eyebrow. 'My luck isn't bad,' he thought. 'Not only can I gain some Opportunity, but I also get to watch the Young Crown Prince Zhang Heng get scolded and spanked.'
He just wondered if the current Duchess of Qian would be *genuinely* "disciplining her son," or if it would be more for show.
With that thought, Chen Yi ended his night of cultivation, parted ways with Pei Guanli, and headed for the wooden lodge.
Just then, a voice suddenly sounded by his ear.
"Second Young Master, you're still up? It's so late."
Chen Yi turned his head, frowning inwardly. The figure at the entrance to the Spring Lotus Garden... who else could it be but Liu Si'er?