Whoever can strike me hard will be rewarded handsomely.

Inside the main room.

After seeing his junior brother off, Shen Jiangliu noticed his teacher looking at him. He seemed to remember something and reached into his clothes, then paused, a hint of embarrassment on his face: "I was in such a rush to attend my junior brother's victory celebration today that I probably left the Lishui survey map you asked me to perfect on my desk and forgot to bring it..."

Before Jiang Jibai could respond, Shen Jiangliu smacked his head: "Look at my memory! I remembered it before I left, but I forgot it in my haste. It's probably because there are so many complicated matters involving the Ministry of Water Resources and the Censorate lately, all mixed up together, and then..."

Jiang Jibai naturally understood the unspoken meaning behind his eldest disciple's words—it wasn't that he hadn't taken the tasks he assigned to heart, but rather that there were simply too many and complicated matters to attend to.

The eldest disciple held several positions, and Jiang Jibai was not an unreasonable person. He did not expose the eldest disciple's little trick of making excuses for himself: "Since you forgot to bring it, then forget it. You can check and make up for the omissions in the next two days. I happen to be going to Cuiwenzhai to replenish some paper and ink in three days. Anyway, it's not far from your place, so I will come and pick it up."

Shen Jiangliu understood the teacher's unspoken meaning: three days was the final deadline. If he couldn't submit a satisfactory assignment by then, he would likely have to endure another round of the sect's dregs.

Fortunately, it was mostly done, and Shen Jiangliu immediately said, "I will check it carefully several times to make sure you are satisfied."

Jiang Jibai glanced at him indifferently: "It's getting late. If you're too lazy to go home today, sleep in the east wing, tidy up, and get some rest."

Shen Jiangliu's gaze lingered briefly on the ornament at Jiang Jibai's waist. He stood up as instructed, took two steps outside, then paused, turned back, and said, "You've had quite a bit to drink today. Let me help you wash up and rest. Yanqing found a room to sleep in after seeing off Junior Brother, so you don't need to worry about her."

Upon hearing this, Shen Jiangliu keenly noticed that his teacher's gaze had returned to his face, carrying a meaningful and probing look: "You want to plead for Yanqing?"

Teachers are not easily fooled; pretending to be stupid will definitely not work.

Shen Jiangliu, with his eyes downcast and his mind at ease, said, "Today is, after all, Yanqing's victory celebration banquet."

This conventional plea clearly did not dispel Jiang Jibai's doubts. Instead, after several breaths of silence, he pressed on with another question: "Why do you think I'm going to punish your second junior brother tonight?"

Shen Jiangliu paused upon hearing this.

Jiang Jibai observed his eldest disciple's reaction.

At tonight's banquet, although Yanqing said "not as good as my junior brother" when Yu Shanzhang praised the article and steered the conversation toward the Mangshan Poetry Gathering, those few words sounded like nothing more than self-deprecation.

Jiang Liu was not present at the Mangshan Poetry Gathering, so he should not know that Fei Bai was unwilling to make "policy discussions" in front of everyone. How could he think that he would punish Yan Qing, or even come out to plead for Yan Qing as if he had foreseen it?

Shen Jiangliu felt a chill run down his spine: "Yanqing mentioned the Mangshan Poetry Gathering to me, saying that you stepped in to politely decline the third round of the policy debate on behalf of your junior brother."

Since he politely declined, there must be a reason. His mention of it again today subtly suggests he's trying to force his junior brother to finish the final match with Pei Lian. Your repeated refusal on behalf of your junior brother suggests that Yan Qing's actions are inappropriate, as he likely didn't consult his junior brother's consent.

Such an unreasonable demand cannot be ignored.

Jiang Jibai stroked the ornament at his waist, then calmly raised his eyes: "In that case, you still want to plead for your second junior brother?"

Shen Jiangliu "spoke frankly": "Yanqing is stingy beyond compare, and Junior Brother's heart is smaller than a pinhole. Although I don't know how big the grudge is between them, you were incredibly considerate in refusing the competition for Junior Brother at today's banquet, but then you punished Yanqing. Although you were just stating the facts and didn't mean to be biased, the rift between Junior Brothers is probably hard to resolve and may even escalate."

Most importantly, Fang Yanqing's actions stemmed from his indignation at the injustice done to his teacher, demonstrating his sincere patriotism.

Even if there was a mistake, Shen Jiangliu could not sit idly by and watch Fang Yanqing's sincere feelings be unintentionally betrayed by her teacher who was kept in the dark.

Yanqing should not suffer this injustice, and the teacher should not bear the regret of being unaware of the situation in the future.

Shen Jiangliu's argument sounded logically sound and not without merit, but Jiang Jibai remained silent on the matter.

Shen Jiangliu knew that his teacher was a very principled person. Even if he was persuaded by him, it didn't mean that he could turn a blind eye to Fang Yanqing's "forced" behavior.

He observed his teacher's expression and slowly asked, "If you felt that my explanation to the junior brother last time was quite effective... how about I go and talk to the second junior brother about the importance of brotherly love?"

The implication was that Jiang Jibai should agree not to pursue the matter of tonight's events with Fang Yanqing.

Shen Jiangliu's request brought a moment of silence to the main room.

After a long silence, the sound of a teacup base colliding with a wooden table rang out, accompanied by Jiang Jibai's cryptic remark: "You're the second person to come today to plead for Yanqing."

Shen Jiangliu's eyelids twitched.

There were four people in total, master and disciples. After the incident, on the short journey back to the Jiang residence, who was the first to plead for mercy? The answer is obvious—just two sentences before, he was still confidently saying that "his heart is smaller than a pinhole."

It was surprising, yet not so surprising.

Shen Jiangliu sighed inwardly: Your Majesty, this disguise of yours probably won't last much longer.

"Brotherly love and respect, this is a good thing." Shen Jiang moved his lips, about to say a few more words, when Fang Yanqing returned to the main room and was standing outside the threshold holding a wooden box. It was unknown how much of what he had just said had been heard by him.

Jiang Jibai said, "Jiang Liu, you should go back to your room first."

Shen Jiangliu's gaze darted back and forth between his teacher and his second junior brother before he asked Fang Yanqing, "Junior brother, would you like to sleep in the east wing with me tonight?"

Fang Yanqing hummed in agreement.

Shen Jiangliu nodded, said nothing more, and walked past.

After Shen Jiangliu's figure disappeared under the corridor, Fang Yanqing's knees hit the ground.

Jiang Jibai looked at Fang Yanqing, whose expression was full of complex emotions, and asked, "How much of the conversation between your senior brother and me just now did you hear?"

Fang Yanqing lowered his eyes, his hands holding the wooden box tightened slightly, and he answered without any pretense, "When I got to the door, I heard you say that my senior brother was the second person to plead for me tonight."

Jiang Jibai asked, "What's that in your hand?"

Fang Yanqing was silent for a moment, then his Adam's apple bobbed slowly: "The gift... was from my junior brother."

"Is there anything you want to say about what happened tonight?"

Fang Yanqing spoke calmly under Jiang Jibai's gaze: "Please punish me."

"I believe you wouldn't target Fei Bai for no reason. Whatever the conflict between you and your junior brother, since your senior and junior brothers have pleaded for you..." Jiang Jibai paused slightly, then slowly stepped forward to help him up: "Then so be it. I'll just assume you had a reason."

Fang Yanqing's fingers, which were gripping the box tightly, turned slightly white.

"Go and rest."

Fang Yanqing moved her lips, looking at her teacher's face which showed little anger, and after a long while, finally said, "You should also get some rest."

Having said that, he silently stepped over the threshold and out of the main room, clutching the box.

As soon as his heels touched the ground, Fang Yanqing heard the teacher behind him casually ask, "Did you mention the Mangshan Poetry Gathering to Jiang Liu?"