Hearing Fang Yang speak like that, Marquis Yongping, Xie Lin, was so enraged that his temples throbbed.
He wished he could immediately draw his sword and cut someone down.
Gritting his teeth, he looked at Fang Yang and said, "Good! Very good! This is the excellent son Duke of Cheng cultivated, huh? It seems this matter cannot end like this. I will definitely impeach you today. Not only will you, this Spendthrift, not escape, but even your father won't!"
"Alright, alright, go ahead. Turn left when you leave, that's Zhuque Street, go straight and you'll reach the Imperial City. What your son did, the entire capital's populace saw it. I don't believe you can turn white into black. Although my Duke of Cheng Residence has declined, my peerage is still here!"
Fang Yang replied without the slightest fear.
Fang Bo, upon hearing this, his hands trembled.
He wished he could go up and cover his young master's mouth.
But he couldn't do it now; his limbs were already soft with fear.
The person opposite was the general of the Imperial Army, responsible for guarding the capital! My young master, please shut up!
Marquis Yongping, Xie Lin, upon hearing the words, slammed the table and rose abruptly, exclaiming, "How dare you!"
"Slap!"
Fang Yang, without ceremony, raised his hand and slapped Xie Ping's face, which was swollen like a pig's head.
This immediately drew a miserable cry from Xie Ping.
"You!" Marquis Yongping, Xie Lin, glared at Fang Yang, his eyes bloodshot.
He only regretted not bringing his sword, otherwise, he would have chopped this Spendthrift to pieces!
Fang Yang, however, was not afraid in the slightest.
He said indifferently, "If Marquis Yongping is here to discuss matters, then let's discuss them properly. If you're here to flaunt your power at my Guo Gong Fu (Duke's Residence), then I'm sorry, we don't welcome you! Oh, by the way, I forgot to tell Marquis Yongping, I tend to get physical when startled."
"You! Good, very good! Just wait for me to report this to His Majesty!" Marquis Yongping, Xie Lin, wished he could skin Fang Yang alive.
But with his son in the other's hands, he could only suppress his anger, no matter how furious he was.
If Duke Chengguo, Fang Jingsheng, were here, he might have been able to threaten a few words.
Now it seemed this Spendthrift was a complete scoundrel; nothing he said would work. After uttering a harsh threat, he could only glare furiously at Fang Yang.
"No matter, Marquis Yongping can do whatever he wants, I won't participate," Fang Yang said with utmost indifference.
"Good, since that's the case, release my son, I want to take him and leave!" Xie Lin stood up.
"Alright, pay up!" Fang Yang extended a hand.
"What? You beat my son like this, and you're asking me for money?" Marquis Yongping seemed to have heard the biggest joke.
"He was beaten like this because of the bet. If I had lost, and he told me to call him 'father' when we met, I would have had to accept it. So we each relied on our own abilities. This money is for the tables and chairs he overturned in my shop, as well as my lost work wages, emotional distress, and reputation fees," Fang Yang said nonchalantly.
"Dream on!" Marquis Yongping's chest heaved with anger.
"Very well, then we can only follow the method of my Guo Gong Fu (Duke's Residence). Since your old man isn't willing to pay, tomorrow you'll start cleaning the latrines for my Guo Gong Fu (Duke's Residence). Take him down, lock him in the woodshed first, and let him starve for a night before we talk!"
Fang Yang waved his hand, about to have someone take Xie Ping away.
Xie Ping was instantly stunned.
The next second, he struggled even more frantically, constantly looking at his own father, making muffled sounds.
There was nothing he could do; his mouth was stuffed with a stinky, long piece of foot-binding cloth that Fang Yang had found from who knows where.
"Wait!"
Marquis Yongping, Xie Lin, seeing Xie Ping about to be taken away, suddenly roared.
Then he took a deep breath and said, "I'll pay the money!"
"Five hundred taels, please!" Fang Yang extended a hand.
Marquis Yongping, with a gloomy expression, pulled out a stack of silver notes from his embrace, drew out two, and handed them to a servant nearby.
The servant respectfully delivered them to Fang Yang.
"Splendid!"
Fang Yang chuckled.
His gaze kept lingering on Marquis Yongping's embrace.
That stack of silver notes just now, at least ten thousand taels!
"Release him!"
Marquis Yongping knew what Fang Yang was looking at and gritted his teeth, shouting.
"What are you still standing there for?! Who told you to tie him up?! Untie him! Untie him!" Fang Yang immediately scolded the two servants.
The two servants didn't dare to say more and quickly untied him.
Xie Ping, now free, scurried to Marquis Yongping's side, terrified of being caught and beaten by Fang Yang again.
"Hmph! I will definitely report this matter to His Majesty!" Marquis Yongping snorted coldly, rose, and left with Xie Ping, fuming with anger.
Fang Yang, meanwhile, chuckled and called out, "Marquis Yongping, feel free to report! Brother Xie, come visit often when you're free!"
"Young... Young Master!"
Fang Bo watched the Marquis Yongping and his son walk away, then, trembling, called out.
"Huh? Fang Bo, what's wrong with you?" Fang Yang asked curiously.
"Young Master, Marquis Yongping just said he was going to report you to the Emperor," Fang Bo said with a worried expression.
"Let him report it," Fang Yang said indifferently.
"But, but..."
Fang Bo was about to say something more.
Fang Yang, however, said calmly, "Don't worry, Fang Bo. My father is currently enduring hardships and risking his life for the Emperor. As long as I don't do anything treasonous, something that would lead to execution, or something that would incur the wrath of both heaven and man, I'll be fine until my father returns."
After speaking, he didn't wait for Fang Bo to reply and slowly turned to leave.
Fang Bo, however, was filled with worry.
Finally, he could only sigh helplessly, hoping that the young master would cause less trouble before the old master returned...
The capital's social circle was only so large.
Under Fang Yang's deliberate arrangement, after an afternoon of fermentation, the news of his conflict with Xie Ping had spread completely, and even the story of Marquis Yongping's son being beaten into a pig's head became a topic of conversation among the common people after meals.
Besides that, there was another matter: the reputation of celestial intoxication, after Fang Yang's first couplet, spread rapidly, and the level of discussion completely overshadowed his conflict with Xie Ping.
Initially, it was just some people looking for a small advantage, trying to find someone to complete the second couplet.
But later on, the offer of free wine for completing the second couplet was no longer mentioned.
Everyone's basic greeting changed when they met.
"Do you know that amazing couplet at the entrance of celestial intoxication?"
"That celestial intoxication, 'One who never drinks celestial intoxication in their life, even becoming a prime minister is in vain,' celestial intoxication?"
"Yes!"
Then followed an awkward conversation.
For a time, the name of celestial intoxication resounded in every corner of the capital.
By night, countless high-ranking officials and nobles had a piece of Xuan paper in front of them with 'A Monk Painting a Lotus' written on it.
At Song Residence, Song Li, Vice Minister of the Ministry of Rites, who had just returned home from duty, gently asked his worried-looking daughter, "Daughter, why the troubled expression?"
"Father, look at this."
Song Yiran handed a piece of Xuan paper to Song Li.
Song Li glanced at it and immediately frowned deeply.
"This handwriting..."
Hearing this, Song Yiran's pretty face flushed, and she quickly said, "Father, please look at the content first."
Song Li nodded.
Then his eyes suddenly lit up, followed by a deep frown.
"A monk painting a lotus on the painting, this first couplet, it's truly exquisite! My daughter could actually come up with such an amazing couplet, truly a talented woman!" Song Li praised.
At this, Song Yiran's face became even redder.
"Father, I didn't write this."
"You didn't write it? Was it Cui Zhuangyuan? Ah, yes, Cui Hao, with the talent of an Imperial Examination Top Scholar, it's truly impressive to write such an amazing couplet!" Song Li praised again.
"No, it wasn't him either," Song Yiran shook her head.
"Oh? Not him either?" Song Li was surprised.
He truly didn't know who else could possess such talent to write such a couplet.
"It was Fang Yang," Song Yiran said softly.
"It was Fang Yang, what?"
Song Li was suddenly startled and looked sharply at Song Yiran.
Seeing Song Yiran nod, Song Li composed himself somewhat from his shock and muttered, "First, two poems that can be passed down through the ages, and now an eternal couplet. This boy is truly remarkable!"
Song Yiran frowned.
Song Li's hands were trembling.
He was careless; such an excellent son-in-law, he was about to lose him!
"Father, look at this handwriting again," Song Yiran said again.
"This handwriting is gaunt and bony, yet full of sharp edges, quite flamboyant. It's just a pity it lacks some charm," Song Li said, shaking his head.
"Father, this is my imitation, so naturally, I haven't captured its essence. What do you think of the person who can produce such handwriting?" Song Yiran asked.
"Without seeing the full picture, it's difficult to comment, but judging solely from the characters you've written, the script is unique, not confined by form, and distinctly individual. It must belong to a talented scholar of this era."
"Boom!"
Song Yiran felt her mind buzz.