Chapter 195 The First Talent of Wulin Kingdom
Meanwhile, Yue Yao returned to the guest house.
Her attendants and maids, seeing that she hadn't returned all night, were as anxious as ants on a hot pan and swarmed around her.
"Your Excellency, are you alright? Did Shen Yulou do anything to you?"
"It's nothing."
Yue Yao waved her hand, walked directly to the main seat, and sat down, resuming the dignity of an Envoy.
"Is everything ready for tomorrow's audience with Emperor Ren?"
A trusted maid bowed and replied, "Reporting to Your Excellency, everything is prepared! We guarantee they will suffer a great loss and regain all the face they lost last time!"
"Very good."
Yue Yao nodded, a look of expectant joy appearing on her beautiful face.
She was quite curious to see what extraordinary abilities this interesting Lord Shen would display in the court tomorrow.
This man is truly interesting...
The next day, in the Golden Throne Hall.
Before dawn, the hall was already packed with people, more bustling than a market fair.
Many people had missed the epic drama of Shen Yulou's debate with Gongsun Changlin last time, regretting it immensely.
This time, hearing that an Envoy from Wulin Kingdom had arrived, and a stunning beauty at that, they all rushed to watch the spectacle as if injected with stimulants.
Emperor Ren sat on the dragon throne, looking at the Servants crowding outside to watch the show, and did not restrain them.
Let them watch, he thought, it adds to the court's prestige.
"Envoy from Wulin Kingdom, Yue Yao, an audience—"
With He Shun's prolonged announcement, Yue Yao, dressed in exotic splendid robes, led her retinue into the great hall.
She first bowed gracefully to Emperor Ren according to etiquette, then spoke, her voice clear and melodious.
"This humble one, Yue Yao, greets His Majesty of Great Hun.
I heard that a few days ago, the Princess of Yan State gave birth to a dragon son in your esteemed country. May I ask where Her Royal Highness is now? And is she well?"
Emperor Ren's expression stiffened, then he cleared his throat, a look of magnanimity on his face.
"Oh, that matter.
The Princess of Yan State was eager to return home. I, out of compassion for her and her son, have sent people to safely escort them back to Yan State.
My Great Hun has always been honorable and righteous."
In a corner below, Shen Yulou rolled his eyes.
This dog Emperor's thick skin would probably make even a city wall corner yield to him.
She clearly ran away on her own, yet you managed to spin it into you magnanimously sending her back. This skill of self-aggrandizement is truly masterful.
Impressive, impressive!
Yue Yao did not expose him, instead exchanging a string of pleasantries with Emperor Ren about His Majesty's wisdom and the long-lasting friendship between their two nations.
After the formalities, she got to the point.
"Your Majesty, this humble one's main purpose in coming here is to redeem our warrior, Song Hu. However..."
Her tone shifted, and her beautiful eyes swept across the hall, finally settling on Shen Yulou, a playful smile playing on her lips.
"Before the redemption, this humble one heard that Great Hun is rich in talent, with many capable and extraordinary individuals.
Therefore, I would like to pose a small riddle to the clever people of your esteemed country. May I?"
As she spoke, she turned sideways and introduced a rather arrogant-looking scholar behind her.
"This is First Scholar of Wulin Kingdom, the foremost scholar of my Wulin Kingdom.
He is widely read, quick-witted, and today, he shall challenge the capable individuals of Great Hun!"
Holy crap!
First Scholar of Wulin Kingdom?
Many civil and military officials below gasped when they heard this name.
This name was like thunder in the circle of scholars!
He was hailed as a once-in-a-century prodigy of Wulin Kingdom, said to be able to compose poetry at three, write essays at five, and had finished reading all of his country's books by seven, possessing extraordinary intelligence.
Who would have thought that Wulin Kingdom would actually bring this formidable figure here this time!
Immediately, the hall buzzed with discussions, and many ministers' faces showed grave expressions.
Emperor Ren on the dragon throne also furrowed his brow.
Last time, he sent a foolish Gongsun Changlin who suffered a cultural loss, and this time they sent the smartest person?
He looked at Yue Yao and asked in a deep voice.
"May I ask how the Envoy wishes to compete?"
Yue Yao smiled charmingly, her gaze first circling Shen Yulou's face before she spoke.
"Last time, Gongsun Changlin was ignorant and lost fifty thousand taels of silver.
This humble one is not greedy. Today, we shall again use these fifty thousand taels as a prize to add some excitement, how about it?
It will also give me something to report to our King."
Fifty thousand taels?
The stakes are indeed high!
Emperor Ren hesitated a little; last time, he earned fifty thousand taels, and the national treasury was much fuller.
Now to gamble such a large sum again, if he lost, it would be a bit tight.
But then he thought, there was nothing to fear.
Three cobblers with their wits combined are better than a Zhuge Liang.
There were so many civil and military officials today.
Everyone standing in this Golden Throne Hall was a cream of the crop, a battle-hardened old fox!
With so many people, could they possibly be afraid of one young upstart?
Thinking this, Emperor Ren straightened his back, his imperial aura instantly full, and waved his hand.
"Granted! I want to see what astonishing abilities the foremost scholar of Wulin Kingdom possesses!"
It's done!
Yue Yao's smile deepened.
The young scholar named First Scholar of Wulin Kingdom stepped forward, chin held high, looking as if to say, "All of you sitting here are trash."
He cleared his throat and said loudly.
"I will now pose a question, and I ask everyone to answer. If you can answer correctly, it will be considered a victory."
"A few days ago, a small foreign country presented ten boxes of beautiful jade to our King. However, among these ten boxes, one box of fakes was mixed in."
"This box of fakes is identical in appearance to the genuine articles, the only difference being that each jade pendant weighs slightly less than the genuine ones."
"Now, there is only one balance scale before the imperial presence, and due to time constraints, you are only allowed to weigh once."
He paused, scanning the Hun Kingdom ministers below who were whispering to each other, his disdain unconcealed.
"Please tell me, how can you use this one weighing opportunity to find that box of fakes?"
As soon as his voice fell, the entire Golden Throne Hall instantly fell silent.
Then, like boiling water, it erupted in a buzz of discussion.
"Weigh once? How is that possible?" A military general scratched his head, his face full of question marks.
"Ten boxes of jade pendants, you'd at least have to put five boxes on each side, right? That would only tell you which five boxes contain fakes, you couldn't possibly find out which specific box it is!"
"Exactly! Unless you have incredibly good luck and hit it once, but that's not skill, that's guessing!"
The Vice Minister of Revenue, even more so, immediately took out his professional habit and began counting on his fingers.
"If you use the process of elimination, weighing two boxes at a time, you'd need to weigh at least four or five times to guarantee finding it, wouldn't you? Only weighing once, isn't that nonsense?"
All the civil and military officials, every single one of them, were completely bewildered.
They scratched their ears and cheeks, whispered amongst themselves, discussed for a long time, but not one could come up with a coherent explanation.
Yue Yao took all of this in, a smug curve playing on her lips.
This problem, back in Wulin Kingdom, had stumped all the clever people in their court.
Her gaze finally fell on Shen Yulou in that corner, who had been watching the whole scene like a play from beginning to end.
She was quite looking forward to seeing if this man, who was so wild on the tower top last night, could also impress her today..