Top Scholar

Chapter 84 Do you have to pay for a meal?

Ma Zhaizhang doesn't know why there are so many good people in this world. When he eats a meal in town, he always encounters situations where the restaurant owner doesn't charge him.

So, he treated his classmates to a meal at Liu's Restaurant, where the portions were huge and everyone could eat their fill. Twenty people sat at two large tables and ordered more than a dozen dishes. The owner actually gave them a free meal again...

It made him feel embarrassed.

"How can business continue like this?" Ma Zhaizhang helplessly put away his money bag. Why couldn't he spend the money?
"..." Everyone thought to themselves, "Why is it always like this? They've never given us a free meal..."

Fortunately, Ma Zhaichang was an open-minded person. He stopped thinking about it and picked up his bamboo tube, saying to his classmates, "Let's drink today and be merry, worry about tomorrow tomorrow! Let's not talk about the monthly exam anymore, let's have a drink!"

"Cheers! Cheers!" The classmates raised their glasses, shouting loudly as they drank Sweet Water's 'Peach Dew' with the force of old-school liquor!
At this moment, Zhu Zihe and his classmates also entered the store. It seems that everyone wanted to have a good meal after the exam.

Just like that limerick says, this is the most relaxing time of the month...

"Here, here!" The companions who had arrived early to reserve seats greeted Zhu Zihe and the others and led them to their seats.

Zhu Qiji then noticed that Su Numa was also in the same shop, and couldn't help but frown slightly. He thought to himself, "To think we're in the same stall, what bad luck!"

"How about we go to another place?" his companion asked, noticing his pale face.

"No need." Zhu Zi glanced at him. He thought to himself, "If I sit down before leaving, won't that person think I'm afraid of him?"
"That's right, don't change it!" the student who had reserved the seat whispered excitedly. "You guys don't know, do you? There's a big sale today, students eat for free!"

"Really?" The students at Mingzhizhai immediately perked up.

"I saw it with my own eyes!" The classmate pointed to the two tables at Sheng Shen Zhai and said, "Those two tables have already paid their bills, and the owner has waived them."

"Really? Then we're going to have a good meal today!" Now they wouldn't leave even if we beat them.

At this moment, the shop owner, whose heart was still bleeding, also came over to greet them: "What would you gentlemen like to order?"

One student pointed to a row of signs on the wall and said, "Bring all the dishes on these signs!"

"Serve them all up?!" Now it was the boss's turn to be surprised.

"Is there a problem?" Everyone looked at the boss.

Normally, the owner would say that there's too much food to finish, and suggest ordering less. But today, the restaurant had given away two tables for free and desperately needed to recoup some money, so the owner quickly replied, "No problem, no problem! I'll have someone prepare the food right away!"

After saying that, he quickly disappeared into the kitchen, not giving them a chance to back out.

~~
Unaware of what was about to happen, the members of Mingzhizhai continued to chat leisurely.

"Speaking of which, their Sheng Shen Zhai showed significant improvement in the last monthly lesson. I wonder if they will improve again this time." After a few words, the conversation drifted back to the monthly lesson.

"If they do that again, our school won't be the strongest anymore," another classmate worriedly said.

"No way. Last time the questions were easy, but this time they're obviously much harder. It took me ages to figure them out," said a good student. "They're probably going to fail this time."

"How did you solve the problem?" the classmates asked.

The student then confidently declared, "This is not merely a sightseeing tour; it truly embodies the principles of governance. Education is carried out through song and poetry!"

It uses the currently popular 'four-character four-line' format in academies...

But instead of the praise he expected, his classmate said, "Qiu, you've got it wrong. The key point isn't governance and education; it should be the unity of heaven and humanity!"

"How can it be 'harmony between heaven and man' and not 'governing the world and educating people'?" The student blushed and asked Zhu Zihe, "Brother Zhu, you be the judge, which one of us is right?"

But Zhu Zi and Ding Ding stared intently at Su Lu, who was several tables away, without even blinking.

"Why is Brother Zhu silent?" the classmate asked.

"Oh." Zhu Zihe then came to his senses, asked the question again, and finally answered:

Zhu Xi said: "The principles of Heaven are pervasive and pervade all places; this is the essence of this principle." Therefore, "the unity of Heaven and humanity" is correct, while "governing and educating" receives zero points...

After saying that, he ignored his classmate who was on the verge of collapse and continued to silently look at Su Lu.

"Brother Zhu seems particularly interested in that classmate Su," the classmates said curiously.

"After all, he won against Brother Zhu twice in terms of morality," one of the straightforward students pointed out.

"So what? Last time the questions were too easy, and he got half a point by luck. This time the questions are so difficult, he might get zero again and be sent home." Of course, most of the classmates sided with Zhu Zihe.

"Even if he could get half a point, it would be uncertain. He has to make sure he doesn't lose a single point in the remaining seven monthly classes. How is that even possible?"

"Maybe he can improve even further." Some people who admired Su Lu said a few words on his behalf: "He made significant progress last time, and if he makes another step forward this time, he can get a point."

"Hahaha, how could that be? Writing skills are the result of years of hard work; it's good enough to make progress even a little bit each day. Who can make a thousand miles in a day?"
Most of his classmates naturally didn't believe it, but one classmate, Feng, who had "lack of love since childhood," even swore, "If he can get even one point, I'll call him grandpa!"

"Hahaha..." The classmates laughed so hard they were doubled over.

"Say less," Zhu Zihe snapped, his face dark. "Reflect on your own faults in quiet contemplation, and refrain from gossiping about others. Only cowards derive pleasure from belittling their opponents." His words left the group of classmates speechless and resigned...

Zhu Zihe stood up and, under the watchful eyes of the two students, walked to Su Lu's side.

"Brother Zhu, what brings you here?" Su Lu asked with a smile. He thought to himself that this visitor was up to no good; he probably wanted him to compose a poem or something, which would be quite a challenge.

But then Zhu Zihe said in a deep voice, "If you can get even one point this time, and if righteousness comes first, then I will... I will..."

"What's wrong with you?" Su Lu asked, puzzled.

"I'll admit you're a fine steed too!" Zhu Zihe finally blurted out, his face flushed.

"Huh?" Su Lu was even more confused. What did he mean by "I am also a miracle"?
He then said, seemingly out of nowhere, "Everyone who comes into this world is an absolute miracle."

"Idiot." Zhu Zihe snorted and said, "The problem with people is that they like to act as teachers."

I don't know whether to advise him to stop giving others feel-good platitudes or to stop teaching this person and that person all day long.

Without offering any further explanation, he turned and returned to his seat.

Su Lu and his classmates looked at each other in bewilderment. Why was this person acting so strangely?

However, it's perfectly normal for top students to have slightly abnormal minds...

~~
School rules stipulate that students cannot drink alcohol. And no one dares to violate these rules in public.

If you don't drink alcohol and just eat, you eat quickly. Twenty young men devoured the entire table of food in no time, then dusted themselves off and left.

Seeing that the two tables at Sheng Shen Zhai had indeed not paid and had not been stopped, the people at Ming Zhi Zhai's table felt much more at ease.

Then the dishes they ordered were served in a steady stream, and the classmates ate heartily without worry. Everyone ate until their bellies were round, including Zhu Zihe. Although he was a young master from a wealthy family, he ate in the school cafeteria every day, so his stomach was long since empty of oil and fat.

But the dishes kept coming out in large platters and bowls, stacking up several times on the table before stopping.

"We can't eat anymore, we really can't eat anymore!" The classmates clutched their stomachs, their eyes rolling back in their heads from being so full. Actually, they were usually quite polite when they ate, but they couldn't resist the free feast they had today!
They even wanted to take the leftovers home. But scholars still have their pride; how could they possibly eat and take things for free?
The students were sitting there digesting their food when the shopkeeper came over with a smile and presented them with a long bill, saying, "Thank you for your patronage. The total is two thousand one hundred and fifty coins. I'll round it down to two thousand one hundred coins."

"What?!" The scholars were stunned. "You have to pay for a meal?"

"How novel! Who doesn't pay when they eat out? Are you trying to dine and dash?"

He glanced at the assembled scholars and asked with a smile, "May I ask which gentleman is paying for this?"

"..." The scholars looked at each other, then turned to look at the classmate who had taken up the seat.

"Didn't you say there was a big sale today, and students would eat for free?"

"Yes, I saw it with my own eyes and heard it with my own ears," the classmate quickly said to the shopkeeper.
"The Ma family head at that table just now took out his money and said he wanted to pay the bill. Didn't you say it was free today as a special offer, and that he could come often in the future?"

"Yes, but I only said that to those two tables of customers." The owner wasn't annoyed and still smiled, saying, "I didn't say that all customers would get their money free."

"This is unfair! Why are they exempt from their bills but we have to pay them?!" a student questioned.

"Because his grandfather is our commander of a thousand households. May I ask who your grandfather is?" the shopkeeper asked with a smile.

The students immediately fell silent...

The boss chuckled and said, "If you're short on cash, just give me whatever you have. The rest can be sent over within three days. You're all respectable people from Taiping Academy, so you certainly won't skip out on your payments."

By this time, a larger crowd had gathered, and some people began to laugh. "The students of Taiping Academy are eating for free!"

The students were so ashamed that their faces turned red, and they dared not cause a scene. They had no choice but to start raising money, and in the end they only managed to scrape together 1,100 coins...

"Why is it so expensive?" The students were heartbroken.

"You guys ordered expensive stuff. Even Ma didn't order turtle." The owner had a sly smile on his face.

Finally, having no other choice, they had to pawn their academy access pass to guarantee the remaining thousand coins would be delivered within three days, and only then did the group leave dejectedly.

Zhu Zihe coldly told the shopkeeper, "Send the untouched dishes to the academy!"

We've spent so much money on these dishes, we have to eat them all!

"Alright, alright, as you wish, young master." The boss quickly waved his hand, instructing the waiter to pack all the dishes on the table into food boxes and send them to the academy.

On the street, the students of Sheng Shen Zhai were strolling around digesting their food when they saw this scene and were shocked: "The people of Ming Zhi Zhai are so rich. Not only did they order so many dishes, but they also packed up so many to go?"

"Next month we'll go to a better place to eat!" Ma Zhaizhang said fiercely, clutching the money he hadn't spent yet.

"I refuse to believe I can eat without spending money!"

P.S. This is the fifth day and the fourth update! Ugh, I'm exhausted! Please vote and subscribe! Let's see how long this monk can hold out!
(End of this chapter)