Abandoned Woman Busy Farming

Chapter 2540: Chapter 2541: None of Your Damn Business

Bai Ruozhu didn’t need to prepare much; she just planned to bring Fo Lanying along. Fo Lanying loved causing trouble for others.

Unexpectedly, Mo Beishan returned with news from outside, saying that the Crown Prince had already announced his intention to attend the Poetry Conference in three days!

”Why is he going? Is he secretly plotting something?” Bai Ruozhu no longer had a good impression of the seemingly polite Crown Prince.

”I found out that in previous years, he often attended the Poetry Conferences at Yinfeng Garden. Many unmarried women from the Capital attend just because of him. Even though the Crown Princess has already been chosen, those aristocratic women can still become concubines.” Mo Beishan said.

”It seems like routine attendance, but we don’t know what his real plan is. It’s better to be cautious.” Jiang Yichun spoke up.

In the end, instead of just Bai Ruozhu and Fo Lanying attending the poetry conference, it changed to Bai Ruozhu, Jiang Yichun, Fo Lanying, and Yuan Licheng going together.

However, according to the rules, male and female guests were to sit separately, and the distance was somewhat far. If anything happened, they could only communicate via signals.

Bai Ruozhu hadn’t visited Fangzi these three days to avoid suspicion; she only sent Jianqi with a message suggesting it would be best if Fangzi’s second brother didn’t attend the poetry conference.

With this message, Fangzi’s face paled a bit, immediately understanding that if such a thing happened, her second brother would also lose face, right?

Although she felt a little unwilling in her heart, thinking that her second brother disliked Huizi, marrying her would make him unhappy. Better a short pain than a long one; after all, losing face wasn’t a big deal. People would forget over time.

Unexpectedly, when the poetry conference came three days later, Bai Ruozhu and the others arrived and even invited Fangzi to sit with them. They hadn’t chatted much when Fangzi saw the men’s side and her face changed.

Bai Ruozhu followed her gaze, ”What’s wrong?”

”My second brother is here.” Fangzi said softly, ”I asked my mother to keep him at home to talk, but perhaps his friends invited him to come.”

Bai Ruozhu secretly sighed; there was nothing to be done; it seemed it was destined by heaven.

She gently squeezed Fangzi’s hand, saying softly, ”Don’t worry, relax.”

Fangzi nodded, took a sip of tea to suppress the agitation in her heart.

Not far away, Huizi was talking with someone, and it wasn’t the same few girls she used to be with; rather, some new friends who seemed eager to curry favor with her. Their families probably held lower status than Huizi’s family.

At this moment, Yaxi entered with her friends, casting a sidelong glance at Bai Ruozhu’s group and pretending not to know them.

”Yaxi, sit over here!” Huizi stood up, cheerfully waving to Yaxi, appearing very affectionate, as if they were as close as before.

A flicker of disgust passed across Yaxi’s eyes, but she held it back, smiling as she greeted them, ”I’m the organizer today and have a lot to manage. You all chat, I’ll come over later.”

Her words were cordial without being rude, but Huizi understood that she and Yaxi were no longer as close.

She cast a fierce gaze at Bai Ruozhu and Fangzi in the distance. If it weren’t for them, how could her situation have turned out like this?

Just wait and see, she would make them pay today!

The auspicious time soon arrived, and the poetry conference officially began, but the Crown Prince hadn’t arrived yet. According to previous traditions, the conference didn’t have to wait for the Crown Prince to start, and he might not show up at all.

Halfway through the first segment, the Crown Prince quietly arrived with his entourage, exuding a very low-key presence, and silently took his seat at the judges’ table.

Many of the young women writing their compositions beamed brightly, becoming even more diligent.

Bai Ruozhu glanced stealthily at the stage and continued leisurely drinking tea.

”Oh, Bai Sir is from Zhongyuan, why not compose a poem for the Tangfen Poetry Contest?” an ill-timed voice spoke up. Bai Ruozhu glanced at the source, a somewhat unfamiliar young lady, though she vaguely recalled the girl had spoken with Huizi before.

Bai Ruozhu sipped her tea, smiling, ”You young girls can compete in poetry, I’m just here to enjoy the excitement, I won’t embarrass myself.”

The young lady chuckled, ”So, Bai Sir is afraid of embarrassment.”

Bai Ruozhu wasn’t angry, resting her chin on her hand, ”What does it matter to you if I compose a poem or not? Are we that close? You’re overstepping a bit.”

Her words were blunt, causing the young lady’s face to flush to her neck, nearly in tears from anger and frustration.

”What, isn’t this Poetry Competition voluntary? Is it a crime not to compose a poem? I wonder who gives you the confidence to mock me?” Bai Ruozhu snorted, ”Aren’t I a Zhongyuan envoy? You’re an unmarried girl daring to provoke me; just imagine how much you’d love to provoke others after marriage.”

The young lady’s face turned deathly pale and she couldn’t help but burst into tears, sobbing, ”So what if he’s a Zhongyuan envoy, he can’t just bully people!”

”Since there are so many people here today, let’s be fair. You provoked me, and I clearly stated my position in not writing poems. Just because you’re in the wrong doesn’t mean I’m bullying you. If all those in the wrong claim to be bullied, where’s justice in the world?” she laughed again, ”If you’re willing to be used as a Gun, you must be prepared to bear the consequences.”

The phrase ”used as a Gun” immediately sparked a sense of gossip among many, and those who had just spoken with Huizi also instinctively turned their gaze to Huizi.

Huizi was a bit embarrassed, but didn’t show it, standing up, ”Why be so aggressive, Bai Sir? The young lady was just curious. You’re a few years older than her and speak so harshly; isn’t that bullying?”

Bai Ruozhu suddenly clapped her hands, the sound ringing loudly, leaving everyone dumbfounded at what play was unfolding.

”So Miss Huizi is the one using her as a Gun, huh? If you wanted to see me compose a poem, you could have directly said so. Why send a young girl to take the fall and mock me about being afraid of embarrassment? A nice poetry conference, yet you insist on pulling such a stunt; isn’t that affecting others’ performance?”

”When did I incite her? I just can’t stand Bai Sir bullying people by force and said a few righteous words.” Huizi straightened up, again striking that particularly righteous friend-helping posture.

”Oh, you’re truly righteous!” Bai Ruozhu lightly praised, then turned her head, ”Alright, the nonsense is over, let’s continue. Let’s not let irrelevant things affect our poetry creation.”

Huizi opened her mouth, furious and wanting to retort; wasn’t she just calling her words nonsense?

But everyone else had resumed writing while she hadn’t started. She had no choice but to grit her teeth and endure it.

Finally, this little episode passed. However, Huizi didn’t gain much advantage. Yet, because the best poet Yaxi didn’t participate in the first segment, and Ya’an wasn’t present, Huizi managed to take first place.