They've all become top scholars in the imperial examinations, and you're telling me this i

Chapter 25: The Peach Blossom Tribulation Won't Be So Easy to Overcome
Behind the old locust tree at the West Market intersection, behind that mottled, worm-eaten wooden table, the atmosphere was extremely strange.

Yuan Shoucheng rested his chin on his hand, his eyes darting around.

Sitting opposite him was a burly man wearing a crimson-gold crown and a dark cloak with fine, dark scales faintly visible on his body. At this moment, he was puffing out his cheeks, looking just like a giant toad holding its breath. He was none other than the Jing River Dragon King, who had restrained his dragon might.

The Dragon King slammed his palm on the table, causing the open, thick bamboo tube to bounce, and the ink on the yellow hemp paper underneath to smudge.
"Old man! Speak! What filthy motive do you have for wanting that golden carp?!"

He lowered his voice and roared, his eyes wide like copper bells, afraid that the passing Wu Hou would notice his rage.

"hey-hey,"

Yuan Shoucheng stroked his sparse beard, his face full of innocence.
"What are you saying, Dragon King? A golden carp is just for good luck! Divination reveals heavenly secrets, which will shorten one's lifespan! Shouldn't you compensate with something good? This is called... an equal exchange!"

He shook his head and talked nonsense.

"fart!"

The Dragon King was so angry that his beard trembled.

"Do you think I'm stupid? Those golden carp are rare creatures of my Jinghe aquatic tribe, possessing extraordinary energy and blood! Do you want to use them to practice some evil kung fu? Or are you trying to pry into the secrets of my dragon clan?!"

He grew angrier the more he thought about it, and nearly smashed the table with another slap.

"Ouch!"

Yuan Shoucheng tenderly supported the bamboo tube.

"Dragon King, please calm down! Be gentle! It's just a small business! It's just to nourish the body, nothing else..."

He glanced furtively at the passersby, wondering whether he should shout, "Someone's causing trouble!"

Seeing that he was unyielding, the Dragon King's stubbornness flared up. He jumped up, then quickly sat down again, lowering his voice to avoid attracting attention, and announced fiercely,
"Fine! You won't talk, huh? I'll stand guard right here today! Let's see who dares to bring the golden carp! One by one, I'll beat them up! I'll beat them up until no one dares to bring them anymore! I'll smash your worthless rice bowl!"

He sat across from the table, arms crossed, sulking, like a wall standing guard.

"Oh dear! Dragon King, that's not fair!"

Yuan Shoucheng was also furious, slamming his fist on the table and rising up in anger.

"You're ruining my livelihood?! I, Yuan Shoucheng, have been navigating the world for decades, and I've never seen anything so domineering! It's just a few fish, isn't it? Is it worth you going to such lengths, sending troops... and even having yourself guard them?"

He was so angry that he spun around on the spot, pointing at the Dragon King's nose.

"If you keep being so unreasonable, I'll call for help! The Marquis of Wu! Where's the Marquis of Wu patrolling the streets...?"

He made a shouting motion, glancing at the patrolling military guards not far away.

The Dragon King's expression changed slightly, and he glanced somewhat unsteadily in the direction of Marquis Wu. He forced a groan and said, "You...you shout! I'm upholding justice! Cleaning up...cleansing up those swindlers and fraudsters!"

The two remained locked in a stalemate, glaring at each other with wide eyes, as if whoever blinked first would lose.

"Mr. Yuan, I have two golden carp. Please tell my fortune."

A clear voice broke the silence instantly.

Chen Guangrui was carrying a wet straw rope net bag, inside which two glittering golden carp were jumping around. They were placed boldly on the worm-eaten wooden table, right on top of the yellow hemp paper that read "One golden carp, one divination".

The air solidified instantly.

The Dragon King suddenly looked up and saw that it was Chen Guangrui. His bull-like eyes widened even more instantly, and his face turned a deep purplish-red! He clenched his fists tightly, and the veins on his forehead bulged. He had just said that he would beat up whoever brought the golden carp, but now that Chen Guangrui had arrived, he didn't dare to swing his fist.

"Pfft!"

Yuan Shoucheng, standing nearby, chuckled and sarcastically remarked,
"Oh ho? The Dragon King? What happened to the rule of beating up whoever brings you the golden carp? Quick, beat him up! Let this old man see what the Dragon King is capable of!"

He deliberately raised his voice a few decibels, even raising his eyebrows defiantly at the Dragon King, then secretly glancing at the Marquis of Wu. The Dragon King was so angry his eyes almost popped out of their sockets, panting heavily, pointing at Chen Guangrui and then at the carp, his lips trembling for a long time before finally managing to utter a single sentence…
"you you……!"

Chen Guangrui, seemingly oblivious to the Dragon King's embarrassment, looked at him with a completely normal expression.
"What's wrong, Dragon King? Is there something wrong with this fish?"

"I...I..." The Dragon King, feeling suffocated, suddenly remembered the crucial point and roared, changing the subject.
"Kid! Where did you get that golden carp?!"

He glared fiercely at Chen Guangrui, his nostrils practically spitting out smoke, and temporarily forgot about Yuan Shoucheng standing to the side.

Chen Guangrui casually turned to Yuan Shoucheng, who was watching the show with great interest, and said, "Oh, Mr. Yuan gave me a divination yesterday, telling me the time and direction. I went fishing as he said, and I actually caught these two big ones."

"Yuan! Shou! Cheng!"

The Dragon King's boundless rage instantly found the perfect outlet! He abruptly turned his head, his massive, fire-breathing eyes fixed on Yuan Shoucheng, his fury almost burning the old Taoist to ashes!

"It's you again!!! I'll fight you to the death!!" The roar made the table vibrate and almost shook the leaves off the old locust tree.

Yuan Shoucheng's smile froze, and he shrank back.
"Huh? No...no! He's lying! When did I tell him that?! Scholar Chen, you can't do this to an old man like this!"

Chen Guangrui looked innocent and shrugged.

"Didn't you tell me yesterday that you had a great place that would guarantee a perfect shot? Isn't this place a perfect shot?"

The Dragon King had completely lost it, grabbing Yuan Shoucheng's empty collar.

"You old bastard! If you don't explain yourself to me today, I'll... I guarantee I'll smash your whole business to pieces!"

"Let go! Let go!"

Yuan Shoucheng patted the Dragon King's hand, struggled free, caught his breath, and glared at the culprit, Chen Guangrui.

"Alright, alright, it hurts, it hurts! Don't keep me from telling the top scholar's fortune. He has important business to attend to. Let go quickly, or you won't be able to find where Cao Guan is, and don't blame me. Ouch, you old dragon, you're really going to hurt me, aren't you?"

Yuan Shoucheng expressed his dissatisfaction, then looked at Chen Guangrui and said, "I've paid for the divination, now tell me, what do you want to know?"

"Avoiding a love triangle." Chen Guangrui said casually.

"What?!"

Yuan Shoucheng picked at his ear, thinking he had misheard. "Didn't I say that your love troubles are unsolvable?"

Chen Guangrui nodded.
"Yes. But I've come up with a plan. I've already sent Zhang Changling, the second-ranked scholar, to propose marriage. That way, the opportunity won't fall on my head. Would you please calculate whether this method is reliable?"

Yuan Shoucheng's eyes nearly popped out of their sockets.

"You...you...you let that Zhang guy take the fall?! Chen Guangrui! This...this method is too much..."

He couldn't find the words to describe this action for a moment.

"Stop talking nonsense and calculate!"

The Dragon King beside him urged them impatiently, he was furious with both of them.

Helpless, Yuan Shoucheng picked up a few copper coins from the table and scattered them carelessly on the long table. His cloudy eyes carefully examined the scattered coins.

"I should probably do the math; what if this method really works?"

The mockery and schadenfreude on his face gradually disappeared, and his brows furrowed more and more tightly.

"No wonder..."

He stroked his beard.

"Your romantic entanglement isn't going to be easy,"

"The divination indicates numerous obstacles... that young man's marriage proposal will almost certainly be rejected! The thread... the thread is still on your side! It can't be cut off completely! Scholar Chen, your method of substitution... is risky!"

He shook his head, his face saying, "This isn't over yet."

(End of this chapter)