Favoring a concubine and destroying the wife? I'll abandon my husband and children and wipe out

While all guests at a banquet usually arrive on time, it's not always possible to be a few minutes late due to unforeseen circumstances.

If a guest is unable to arrive on time, out of respect for the organizers, they will send a servant to inform the host in advance.

Several people were late for today's apprenticeship banquet due to unforeseen official business.

The Zhao family's status and wealth in the capital have risen significantly, so it wouldn't be polite for these guests to finish their business quickly and head to the Zhao residence.

One of them, Lord Han, was a fourth-rank official, known for his uprightness. His relationship with Zhao Ye was not particularly close, but it wasn't bad either.

On his way there after finishing his business, he stopped by Wenbaoge and bought an extra fine inkstone as a gift for Zhao Ye's son to make up for his rudeness in being late.

However, just as he was about to leave, he suddenly overheard the scholars next to him chatting.

"The new manuscripts from this bookstore are really good; every single article is excellent, and I can't find a single bad one!"

"I don't know who wrote this book."

"It's such a pity to keep it anonymous. If it were signed, I would definitely inquire about this person and befriend them, hoping to gain some guidance!"

"Hey, look at this new page I just turned to! What a carefree spirit this line, 'Even if a fortune is spent, it will come back again,' truly captures the essence of this sentiment!"

Lord Han was a civil official. Because he held a position in the Hanlin Academy, he loved writing poetry and calligraphy. His usual hobbies for passing the time were appreciating the masterpieces of calligraphy and painting by famous masters. He had read countless rare books.

That's why he had a great liking for Zhao Shize, who was young but talented, and that's why he took the initiative to ask for an invitation to Zhao Shize's apprenticeship banquet.

Upon hearing this, they immediately stopped and were drawn in.

"Young friends, what manuscript are you referring to?"

Lord Han left in such a hurry that he hadn't even changed out of his official robes. Upon seeing this, the men immediately bowed and respectfully presented the books they were carrying.

Lord Han thanked him politely, intending to write down the book's name so he could have his servant buy a copy to study carefully later.

To my surprise, I was captivated by the poems and articles inside.

The more I look at it, the more amazed I become.

The scholars, having found kindred spirits, became less reserved and began to freely discuss their views on the subject matter. Lord Han, in turn, enjoyed the conversation with them.

The driver, seeing that it was quite late, mustered up the courage to remind him.

Lord Han then remembered that he still needed to go to Zhao Ye's residence: "Just one more page, just one more page and I'll be leaving..."

Suddenly, Lord Han stopped and stared blankly at the newly turned page.

The people in front of him were puzzled and moved closer: "Sir, is there a problem? We haven't seen the rest yet, but we can still discuss it... Wait, why is it this song?!"

The words printed on it read: "In the human world, April's flowers have all faded, but in the mountain temple, peach blossoms are just beginning to bloom. I long for spring's return, but find it nowhere; little did I know it had turned and entered this place!"

Now everyone in the capital knows that this is the poem by the young master of the Zhao family that made him famous at Xiangchun Tower!

"How could the young master of the Zhao family's poem be here? Could this anonymous author be the young master of the Zhao family?!"

Upon hearing this, Lord Han flipped through the book again and indeed found several of Zhao Shize's writings that had been hanging in Xiangchun Tower on this page!

"It really is the young master of the Zhao family?"

"I thought Xiangchunlou was already quite unexpected, but I never imagined his talent would far surpass my expectations! Truly, a hero emerges from among the young!"

"However, the young master of the Zhao family is only seven years old. How can he write such articles with such diverse styles? Among them are descriptions of the scenery beyond the Great Wall, high mountains and snow-capped peaks, iron horses and icy rivers... It's as if he has seen them with his own eyes, and he describes them so vividly that it makes people feel as if they are there. It's unbelievable!"

Lord Han was amazed by Zhao Shize's scholarship when he heard this, and his brows furrowed, a question arising in his mind.

On a sudden impulse, he turned to the last page and touched the rubbing, stroking the raised surface. After closing the manuscript, he looked at the markings and publication date on the side.

Immediately, Lord Han's expression froze.

"No, this book was printed using movable type on the eve of the poetry gathering."

Lord Han, having come from the Hanlin Academy, was most familiar with these details.

The scholars quickly realized what was happening.

"How is this possible?"

"Young Master Zhao learned the topic at the poetry gathering and composed the poem on the spot. How could he have written it in advance and submitted it to the publishing house for printing?"

"Besides, even if he did it unintentionally and just happened to match the topic, who would give their private writing to an outsider in advance? Aren't they afraid it will be plagiarized at the poetry competition?"

"There's something wrong with this young master Zhao's poem!"

"Could it be..." someone suddenly said, "that these weren't actually written by Young Master Zhao, but rather he stole someone else's work?"

The shop was bustling with people, mostly scholars. They were already pausing because of the manuscripts they were discussing and the recently famous Zhao Shize. Upon hearing this, they couldn't contain themselves any longer.

"What manuscript? Let me see!"

“Oh, I know this book. I bought it yesterday because the bookstore owner strongly recommended it, but I haven’t had a chance to read it yet.”

"Why does this look so familiar? Goodness, I remember now, I heard a storyteller at the Beifang Teahouse mention it the other day. He said it was made by a young man with a troubled life, and he sold it to make ends meet!"

"How did it become the young master of the Zhao family's?"

As everyone chimed in with their own opinions, Lord Han's face darkened.

He detested cheating in this area more than anything, especially stealing the articles of such hard-earned scholars!

In Lord Han's view, how is this any different from taking advantage of someone's poverty and weakness to force them to give him their hard work?

We need to get to the bottom of this!

Lord Han immediately bought the manuscript with silver and ordered the coachman to hurry to the Zhao residence, where he happened to run into an official who was also late.

Both sides exchanged polite greetings, but their expressions were strange, and they seemed distracted.

The gatekeeper led them to the front courtyard. By this time, the apprenticeship ceremony had ended, and Zhao Shize officially became Zhou Xiangru's disciple in front of everyone. The guests offered their congratulations, and the scene was extremely lively. Even the servants took a break from their busy schedules to squeeze in a peek and enjoy the view.

For a moment, Lord Han and his companion were blocked from their path.

The servant quickly smoothed things over.

When the servants saw that more guests were coming, they quickly made way and continued to do their work in an orderly manner, though they couldn't help but whisper among themselves.

At this moment, Lord Han suddenly heard:

"Hey, do you think Mr. Zhou took the young master as his last disciple because of his talent?"

"Nonsense, what else could it be?"

"But the young master doesn't usually study much at home. I remember he's quite playful; he was even gambling with the servants yesterday. So how did he become so good at studying? It's really strange."

Lord Han immediately agreed, then looked at the servants who were talking with their backs to them and hadn't noticed them. His brows were already furrowed deeply.

Is Zhao Shize really such a spoiled brat in the manor?

They even have such a despicable and shameful habit as gambling!

The official next to him was quite embarrassed. He was of low rank and usually had to be humble, so he didn't really want to hear about the private affairs of a high-ranking official.

"Lord Han, let's go forward and offer our congratulations as soon as possible," he said.

Lord Han nodded with a stern face; he also wanted to get to the bottom of this.

Before they could leave, one of the servants suddenly said mysteriously, "The young master may not be studious, but he has such a good father as our master. You didn't know, did you? Our master has been preparing a poetry competition for the young master to make him famous for days in advance!"

"Moreover, the adults even found some brilliant scholars who could guess the various topics in advance and compose poems for the young master to memorize and write his own!"

"In this way, it will become the young master's own hard work. Outsiders don't know what kind of person the young master is, so they will naturally believe it."

The others were dumbfounded: "You must be talking nonsense!"

The man was displeased: "How is this nonsense? You and I know exactly what the young master is like. Besides, whether it's the young master's real talent or not, we can just test him on the spot to find out."

"And don't you know that the scholar our master found was forced to leave the capital with nowhere to go? But he wasn't worried. Before he left, he gave away all his poems for free. I heard several storytellers talking about it when I went out to buy things the other day."

"How could ordinary people know about our young master's poems? They certainly weren't his!"

Lord Han couldn't hold back any longer: "What are you talking about? Explain yourself clearly!"

The servants turned around and were startled. They hurriedly said that he had run away and had no chance to call him back.

The accompanying official panicked: "Lord Han, please don't worry about it."