Chapter 48: Provocation

After Shen Miao left the forest, Gu Yu and Jingzhe, who were guarding the place, heaved a sigh of relief. Jingzhe looked inside and was puzzled when she didn’t see anyone. “Where is he?”

Shen Miao also looked back. The plum tree was lush and green, swaying gently with the wind. Xie Jingxing probably left from another entrance.

She said, “Let’s go.”

When they returned to the banquet, Feng Anning rushed over and complained, “Didn’t I tell you to wait for me? When I turned around, you were gone. When I came back, I didn’t see you here either. Where did you go?”

“People say the chrysanthemum in the garden is pretty, so I went to see it.” Shen Miao looked up at the stage. “Has it started?”

“You’ve been gone for too long. The male team has already drawn lots.” Feng Anning curled her lips. “Now, it’s the male team’s turn.”

The young men on the stage were competing. The first round of “drawing” had passed, but Shen Miao did not care about the results. The second round was “choosing”, choosing a subject they were good at.

Shen Miao’s gaze landed on the young man in green clothes on the left.

This young man was dark and strong. His facial features were not bad, but because of his overly strong body, he looked very solid. Moreover, with green clothes, his skin looked even darker. Not only that, he also had a high bun and a jade hairpin. He probably wanted to imitate the style of the ancient gentlemen, but because he could not bear to part with his rich clothes, he looked a little out of place. In short, although he tried his best to look noble and gentlemanly, he actually looked like a country bumpkin.

This was Gao Yan from the Shi family of the capital. Gao Yan was still young, only 16 years old. After Fu Xiuyi ascended the throne, Gao Yan’s status rose because he took advantage of Gao Jin. He bullied people in the capital and even dared to covet Wanyu. He was simply a badass.

At the thought of how Wanyu had been molested by Gao Yan in the palace, Shen Miao was furious. She stared at Gao Yan from afar, as if she was looking at a prey walking into a trap.

Gao Yan was talking to Gao Jin happily at this moment.

He was naturally happy. After receiving such an excellent essay, as long as he showed it later, he would definitely shock everyone.

Shen Miao sneered in her heart. Go, show everyone this essay and get recruited by Fu Xiuyi! Gao Yan will surely bring disaster to the entire Shi family.

As for Pei Lang, she turned to look at the green-robed man sitting not far from Fu Xiuyi. From now on, you will slowly repay the debt you owe in the past!

“Shen Miao, after men finish choosing. It will be women’s turn to choose. Will you choose?”

“No,” Shen Miao replied.

In the test, “choosing” was something that every student had to do. Contestants could choose what they were good at. If they were unwilling to choose, they could choose not to do so. Therefore, instead of saying that “choosing” was a part of the test, it was better to say that it was the part where contestants could showcase their skills easier. If there was something that they were best at, they could naturally show it in the “choosing” segment. Therefore, compared to “drawing lots”, everyone was more enthusiastic about “choosing”.

“Why?” Feng Anning was a little disappointed. She said, “Aren’t you very good at painting now? You should be good at other subjects too. Why don’t you show them?”

“There’s no need.” Shen Miao started to play chess on the table again. Without looking up, she said to Feng Anning, “Let those who want the limelight get the limelight. What’s more, I got first place in painting just because I was lucky.”

“You…” Feng Anning didn’t know what to say.

“Fifth Sister.” A voice interrupted their conversation. Shen Yue stood in front of them and said worriedly, “Fifth Sister, are you really not going to participate in the next round?”

“Second Sister, do you want me to participate?” Shen Miao asked.

Shen Yue was stunned by her words. For some reason, Shen Miao seemed to have made up her mind to fall out with her. Shen Yue was puzzled. Could it be that she was angry at the second and third branches because she fell into the water last time. Shen Yue bit her lip and looked a little aggrieved. She said softly, “I naturally hope that Fifth Sister will participate. That painting just now was very good. Since Fifth Sister is so talented, why don’t you continue to choose to paint?”

What Shen Yue said was heard by all the young ladies and madams nearby. Although Shen Miao got first place, none of them were convinced since she had always been a bad student.

Shen Yue thought so too. Therefore, she thought that as long as Shen Miao painted again, she would definitely make a fool of herself.

Feng Anning understood what she meant and immediately sneered. “Second Miss Shen, you make it sound so easy. One has to spend time thinking of an idea before one can paint. You can’t paint two paintings in a row, can you?”

“I asked because I think Fifth Sister has improved a lot.” Shen Yue smiled gently. “Her painting was terrific just now. What’s so difficult about painting another one?”

Shen Miao did not look up from the beginning to the end. She only picked up a chess piece and placed it on the chessboard. “I’m not interested. Don’t worry about me.”

Shen Yue did not expect Shen Miao to answer so indifferently in front of so many people. For a moment, her expression was a little ugly. The most infuriating thing in the world was that Shen Miao refused to take the bait.

Shen Miao wasn’t provoked even when she was challenged in front of so many people. This made Shen Yue even more certain that someone helped Shen Miao with the painting idea. She paused for a moment and suddenly continued with a smile. “Since Fifth Sister insists, I won’t say anything else.” She turned around and returned to her seat.

In the men’s section, Cai Lin had been secretly looking at Shen Yue. He saw Shen Yue suddenly look over from afar and smile at him gently.

Cai Lin was stunned for a moment before feeling a little excited. However, Shen Yue lowered her head again, looking a little sad.

He suddenly became nervous.