Time Travel: After Seizing the Throne, I Lead the Ming Dynasty to Take Off

"It's not here yet, I was just kidding, hahahahaha!"

Seeing that Xia Yuanji had finally come to his senses, the man confessed with a smile and without hiding anything, "We called you, but you didn't respond. I guess only by saying this will you have the time to pay attention to us."

There was a slight dazed look on Xia Yuanji's face.

Then he showed some embarrassment and scratched his head sheepishly, and apologized sincerely: "Sorry, Brother Lu, I was so lost in thought just now that I really didn't hear anything."

The other people around him were also used to him being like this.

Instead, he smiled nonchalantly and said, "I knew you were like this."

"That's why I lied to you!"

After that, he brought up what they had talked about before and invited, "We were just talking about whether Miss Fu Liu would show up today. Now that you are here, the pleasure boat will be open for guests soon. Why don't you and I go out for some fun together?"

They were all in the Imperial College and shared the same dormitory. Although they had different personalities, they had a very good relationship with each other.

As soon as one person finished speaking, the others immediately echoed with great interest:

"That's right! At first, Brother Zhou was hiding it from us! Now that he can't get rid of us, he finally admitted it honestly, hahahaha!"

"Miss Fu Liu has a stunning face and a slender figure. Her gentleness carries a gentle aura that's completely different from other girls. Her beautiful eyes don't flirt with you as blatantly as others, but they make you itch more than anyone else..."

When talking about the girl, several people's faces were filled with recognition and longing.

Of course, after talking for such a long time, the man immediately realized that he had been too blunt and quickly coughed twice to cover up his embarrassment.

Then he covered it up in a high-sounding manner, "Of course, we are mainly attracted by Miss Fuliu's talent."

"Not bad."

"exactly."

"..."

There are some things that everyone knows tacitly, but they still have to hide it on the surface. Naturally, the other people put away their greedy looks and nodded.

We all share the same dormitory.

Xia Yuanji naturally knew what kind of people they were, but he saw through them without saying anything.

He simply waved his hand and declined, "Thank you for your kindness, brothers, but... the little money I have in my pocket is only enough to buy a few squares of good ink. I really can't afford more, so I won't join in the fun. Have fun, everyone."

One of them immediately sighed and said, "Weizhe, you've spoiled the fun. Ink, as long as it can be used for writing, is fine. Buy a few squares of cheaper ink first, and then buy better ones when you have more money."

Xia Yuanji refused again, "This...is not appropriate. We are in the Imperial College, trained by the imperial court. Studying is not something to be taken lightly."

The other person said, "Never mind, Weizhe, I'll treat you!"

Even so, Xia Yuanji still refused, saying seriously, "This...isn't just about money. I need to review today's lessons tonight. The triennial imperial examination will be held in a year. I know I'm not very talented, so I won't slack off."

After three times of this, he was so determined that naturally no one around him wanted to invite him again.

But Xia Yuanji's refusal, though sincere, was also a bit blunt, leaving his roommates feeling somewhat embarrassed and discouraged. "Xia Yuanji, you're diligent and studious, so if we go out on the pleasure boat and have fun, are we not doing our jobs properly? And are we even betraying the emperor's grace and the court's training?"

This is the truth, but people's first reaction is always selfish. They subconsciously like to excuse themselves and find some legitimate and high-sounding reasons to justify their various behaviors, whether they are justified or not.

At that moment, the faces of the other people all looked a little bad.

Instead, he said to Xia Yuanji in a slightly didactic tone: "Weizhe, I'm not saying anything bad about you, but sometimes people really shouldn't be too rigid and pedantic. We went to the pleasure boat to have fun, saying we were going to see girls, but from another perspective, that's not the case..."