Chapter 163: A Blade Unsheathed
With each word Jiang Caibin spoke, Wang Dongdong's anger surged, yet her Face grew colder.
Liu Sheng glanced down and saw Wang Dongdong's hand already resting on the hilt of the sword at her waist.
"Speak, why aren't you continuing?" Wang Dongdong's gaze, cold as a sharp sword, shot towards Jiang Caibin.
Jiang Caibin didn't care at all, even tapping his head in a feigned manner.
"Oh, right, the Weaving Institute seems to have been removed from the Weaving Bureau, hasn't it? No wonder I don't remember its name, it's not important anyway. You've lost your job, so you've come all the way to this remote place to take such an exam for nothing."
With a "clang."
A cold light flashed, and a sharp blade was unsheathed.
No one had time to react as the long sword flew straight across the dining table towards Jiang Caibin, grazing his neck and embedding itself into the wall behind him.
Fortunately, Taibai Restaurant was built with quality materials; the private rooms were separated not by thin wooden boards, but by brick walls of a certain thickness.
Otherwise, with Wang Dongdong's strength, even though she had some control, it would have pierced through the wall and scared the people next door.
However, this alone was enough to terrify everyone in the private room.
Of course, except for Liu Sheng.
But Liu Sheng had to exert tremendous effort to suppress the corners of her mouth from turning up.
She could tell that Wang Dongdong had deliberately controlled her aim, which confirmed that, as Wang Dongdong had said, she had put in a lot of hard work in the martial arts examination.
Jiang Caibin only reacted then, letting out an extremely sharp scream, almost cracking his voice.
He wiped his neck and saw traces of blood on his fingertips, letting out an even higher-pitched shriek.
"Wang Dongdong!" Jiang Cai Zhi's Face was filled with rage, his features distorted.
"Dongdong, that was too dangerous." Shao Yan also frowned; although she knew Wang Dongdong was just trying to scare him, she still disapproved of friends wielding swords at each other.
Ling Yuke, however, laughed and clapped her hands.
"Serves him right, for having such a foul mouth. Dongdong, I support you!"
This was typical of someone enjoying the drama.
"Young Master Jiang, are you alright? How could you have such a friend…" Yang Qing quickly moved to Jiang Caibin's side, pulling out a handkerchief with a concerned expression to cover the almost invisible wound on his neck.
Ruan Shizhi said nothing, his dough-like Face turning even paler.
Jing Hao, who was beside him, also remained silent, embracing his arms and coldly observing for a moment before speaking, "What stage is Dongdong at now?"
Wang Dongdong heard Jing Hao's question and knew he was asking about her cultivation level.
"Seventh stage."
"As expected, and your accuracy is very good." Jing Hao praised her lightly.
"Jing Hao! What are you saying! She almost killed me! Fortunately, her aim wasn't precise, otherwise I would be dead!" Jiang Caibin angrily exclaimed.
"If she wanted to kill you, you'd be dead already." Jing Hao coldly left that remark.
Jiang Caibin wanted to argue a few more words, but Jiang Cai Zhi's gaze forcefully suppressed him, so he could only look at Wang Dongdong with silent resentment.
Liu Sheng, observing this glance from the side, found it a bit strange.
"Young Master Jing is right, with your cultivation, Dongdong could crush you with one finger." Jiang Cai Zhi spoke fairly, then turned to Wang Dongdong, "Dongdong, give your brother some Face. Xiao Bin doesn't know how to speak, but he didn't mean it. You know that."
"For the sake of him giving you candy and toys since childhood, stop arguing." Jiang Cai Zhi added when he saw Wang Dongdong fall silent.
Wang Dongdong said nothing, nor did she give Jiang Caibin another look. With a wave of her hand, she retrieved her long sword and returned it to its sheath.
Jiang Cai Zhi knew the matter was settled.
However, someone didn't want to let it go so easily.
"Dongdong, what Cai Bin said isn't wrong. We also didn't understand back then why you insisted on leaving Chang'an to go to that county." Ling Yuke asked, blinking her eyes.
Jiang Caibin seemed to have found support, covering his neck and shouting, "Exactly! I told you! Yu Ke, you finally said something fair."
"In Chang'an, we could still eat, drink, and play together. You don't know how much the capital has changed in the past two years!" Jiang Caibin said, his Face actually showing a hint of grievance.
Wang Dongdong gave him a cold glance, and he shrank his neck like a quail.
Liu Sheng suddenly understood why Jiang Caibin had seized the opportunity to mock Wang Dongdong as soon as they met.
He just had a foul mouth.
Jiang Cai Zhi also said, "At Chang'an Academy, there were also imperial examination training sessions, which didn't delay our studies. Shao Yan and I also passed the imperial examination through those training sessions, and these past two years, they've all been immersed in refining themselves."
Actually, Liu Sheng had no direct impression of Wang Dongdong's family background before, but now she truly realized that the circles she and Wang Dongdong moved in were vastly different.
She hadn't expected that Jiang Cai Zhi and the spirited Shao Yan were both successful scholars.
But then again, how else would Jiang Cai Zhi enter the Ministry of Rites?
She wondered which department Shao Yan worked in?
In any case, it had nothing to do with her current situation.
She just quietly scooped a spoonful, preparing to drink the lamb offal soup she hadn't had time to drink earlier.
However, her spoon came up empty.
She looked down and saw the bowl was empty, and Ling Xiaoshu grinned up at her.
Liu Sheng could only silently get up and ladle another bowl, then picked up a few slices of roast duck and shredded meat, wrapping them with shredded green onions in a pancake, brushing on sweet bean paste, and handing it to Ling Xiaoshu.
Then she repeated the process for herself, wrapping a portion and stuffing it into her mouth. It was full of savory flavor, and the pancake and green onions perfectly balanced the greasiness of the duck skin.
However, in Liu Sheng's heart, it was still not as good as the rustic roast duck made by Liu Ruhai.
Fortunately, everyone's attention was currently on Wang Dongdong, so no one paid attention to her despite her many actions.
Except for those constantly lurking gazes, following her like shadows.
Wang Dongdong pondered for a moment before speaking, "You are in Chang'an, a Chang'an where no strangeness can invade. Do you know what true strangeness is like? Eating, drinking, and enjoying yourselves every day, sparring with classmates—is that considered refining yourselves? Then, after passing the imperial examination and entering the National Academy, what is the purpose of becoming an official?"
At these words, the entire room fell silent.
Liu Sheng knew that Wang Dongdong had always been bold and direct in her speech, but she hadn't expected her to be this direct.
Wang Dongdong continued frankly, "Of course, Sister Shao Yan is not included; she has experienced a lot at the Weaving Bureau."
At this, Liu Sheng finally knew where Sister Shao Yan worked, and her temperament indeed matched, inspiring respect.
However, seeing the fatigue and displeasure in her brows, it was probably not going very smoothly for her either.
"Jing Hao is not included either; I know he often hunts strangeness." Wang Dongdong disregarded the increasingly unsightly expressions of some people, "Ruan Shizhi is also not included; his mother is the Protector-General of the North, and his parents are stationed at the Northern Border Great Wall year-round, so it's impossible for them not to know."
After pointing that out, it was clear who was left.
And by their expressions, it was evident that the ones with the most unsightly Faces were the ones she was referring to.
"What do you mean by that?" Ling Yuke was the first to lose her composure, "Are we greedy for pleasure? Ignorant of human suffering? Only you are the most noble, descending to experience the people's plight."
"I just spoke up for you, and this is how you repay me?" Her beautiful Face was somewhat distorted.