This made Li Shimin anxious, and he wanted to trade one for one with me.

Cheng Yaojin sat on the ground, touching his slapped cheek, stunned for a long time before he realized that he had been hit by Cheng Jun.

"Rebel!"

Cheng Yaojin roared and leaped up.

Cheng Jun was also taken aback.

He was punched by him, but he acted like nothing happened. What kind of physique does he have?!

I should have used an inkstone...

At this moment, Cheng Yaojin had already rushed to Cheng Jun in one stride, his face contorted with a ferocious expression that showed no mercy to his family. He raised his fist, which was as big as a sandbag, and used all the strength in his arm to punch Cheng Jun hard!

clang! !

Cheng Jun took a few steps back and looked at Cheng Yaojin calmly.

Cheng Yaojin, however, squatted on the ground in pain, his left hand covering the back of his right fist, his eyes red with pain, and glared at him, saying, "What are you carrying in your arms?"

Cheng Jun opened his clothes, revealing a bronze mirror and inkstone underneath.

Upon seeing this, Cheng Yaojin's breathing became erratic: "Why are you carrying these things around?"

"I'm fine just because I'm carrying those two..." Cheng Jun said with a gentle and kind smile, "I just told you I'm a gentleman, but you didn't believe me. Dad, remember this: a gentleman keeps his weapons hidden, prepared for any eventuality!"

"If there's nothing else, I'll be going now. See you later!"

After saying that, Cheng Jun took advantage of their momentary lapse in attention and made a hasty escape.

In the main room, Cheng Chumo and Cheng Chuliang both looked at Cheng Yaojin.

Cheng Yaojin, seeing their expressions, laughed angrily, "Admiring them now? You must be thinking, 'This is what a true hero is,' right?"

"You two bastards, what are you standing there for? Go find him and bring him back!"

Cheng Chumo solemnly said, "Father, I don't think my third brother will come back."

Cheng Chuliang chimed in, "That's right, if Third Brother comes back, won't you beat him to death?"

Cheng Yaojin's fists hardened. He walked over, grabbed the two men by the collar, and roared fiercely, "You two wretches, do you think I'm not angry enough?"

The two of them shuddered and said in unison, "Let's go find it now!"

Cheng Yaojin snorted coldly, released his grip on them, and said, "Tell that unfilial son that I have important business to discuss with him and I won't lay a hand on him!"

"Yes!"

Cheng Chumo and Cheng Chuliang quickly agreed and turned to run away from the main room.

Upon learning from the servants that Cheng Jun had left the Cheng residence, the two immediately gave chase and soon caught up with him not far from the mansion.

Cheng Chumo chased after him, calling out, "Third brother, are you trying to run away?"

escape?

Can a scholar's actions be called escaping?

That's called laying low and avoiding trouble!

And he also needs to be able to escape... Cheng Yaojin is the Duke of Su; if he has the power to find someone and hasn't done so in more than two days, it's definitely because the officials below him are working against him...

"I'm just going out to hide for a couple of days. Once I get through these two days, no matter how much Cheng Yaojin tries to attack, I won't be completely knocked out..." Cheng Jun thought to himself as he stopped and turned to look at the two men, asking, "Did our father send you to find me?"

He suddenly noticed that Cheng Yaojin's attitude was a bit strange.

You should know that when Cheng Yaojin was beating his son, his other son was laughing on the side, so he could pull him over and beat him up too.

Cheng Jun punched Cheng Yaojin in the main room. Given Cheng Yaojin's temper, he should have been furious and searched the entire mansion for him with his spear.

But he didn't, he just sent Cheng Chumo and Cheng Chuliang over!

Cheng Jun was unsure whether Cheng Yaojin had ulterior motives or something else entirely.

In short, the fact that Cheng Yaojin sent Cheng Chumo and Cheng Chuliang to find him instead of coming in person indicates that the situation has changed and he intends to wait and see. If things don't go well, it won't be too late to run away.

Cheng Chumo nodded and said, "Your father said he has important business to discuss with you, but he won't harm you. You can go there without worry!"

Cheng Jun retorted, "Do you believe he's real, or do you believe I'm Qin Shi Huang?"

"I'll go if you want me to, but you have to get Dad to write a guarantee that he won't hit me! Without a guarantee, I absolutely won't go!"

Cheng Chumo pondered for a few seconds, then turned to Cheng Chuliang and said, "Second brother, go and tell our father!"

"Okay!" Cheng Chuliang nodded and walked towards the main room.

After a long while, Cheng Chuliang walked over, clutching his cheek and looking pained.

Cheng Chumo asked with an expression that said, "Did our father draw up a written agreement?"

"Stand up my ass!" Cheng Chuliang cursed, "You almost beat me to death!"

"However, after my father beat me, he made me show this to my third brother."

As he spoke, he took out a jade pendant from his bosom. The jade pendant was crystal clear, green like a summer lotus, and had a smooth and delicate surface, clearly indicating that it had been treasured close to his body for many years.

Cheng Jun felt as if the memory left in his body was like a wild donkey kicking him hard on the back of the head.

Suddenly, I remembered the origin of this jade pendant.

It is said that Cheng Yaojin bought this jade pendant as a token of his love for Sun Shi during their first date.

Sun had worn it on her person all these years, but on her deathbed last year, she returned it to Cheng Yaojin.

Upon seeing the jade pendant, Cheng Chumo's eyes instantly reddened. He turned to Cheng Jun and said, "Third brother, you know that our father cherishes this jade pendant very much. The fact that he asked your second brother to bring it over speaks volumes. Go quickly!"

Cheng Jun believed it to some extent, but just to be on the safe side, he opened his palm and said, "Brother, give me that jade pendant, I'll take it back to our father!"

"it is good!"

Cheng Jun took the jade pendant from Cheng Chumo, held it tightly in his palm, and then returned to the Cheng residence, heading towards the main hall.

Inside the main room, Cheng Yaojin stood with his hands behind his back, head bowed, seemingly lost in thought.

Hearing footsteps, he looked up and saw Cheng Jun walking towards him. He snorted coldly.

"You came?"

"I am coming."

Cheng Jun gripped the jade pendant tightly as he spoke.

Cheng Yaojin said coldly, "You shouldn't have come."

Cheng Jun said seriously, "I can leave."

"..."

Silence, long silence.

The two figures, resembling clay or wooden sculptures, faced each other in the main room.

After a long while, Cheng Yaojin clenched his fists and gritted his teeth, saying, "You wretched creature, do you think you can still leave?"

"Father, you are a gentleman too!"

Cheng Jun patiently explained, while extending his arms outwards to shoulder level.

With his five fingers spread out and palm facing up, the bright green jade pendant was revealed.

With an air of ready to drop the jade pendant on the ground at the slightest provocation, he stared at Cheng Yaojin and said earnestly:

Confucius said, "A gentleman is magnanimous and at ease, while a petty person is always anxious and worried. You should be as open-minded as I am, and not be as petty and calculating as a petty person!"

Cheng Yaojin stared at the jade pendant in his palm, veins bulging on his forehead, but he still managed to suppress his anger and said, "How come I never realized you were so eloquent before?"

"Come and sit down!"

Cheng Yaojin not only didn't attack him, but instead sat cross-legged on the ground. Seeing that Cheng Jun was still standing, he didn't press the matter. He rubbed his left cheek, which had been punched by Cheng Jun, and snorted, "I called you over because I have something important to say, not to beat you up!"

"Do you think I believe you?" Cheng Jun remained silent, waiting for him to continue.

Seeing that he kept his palms facing upwards, Cheng Yaojin smirked and said, "You attacked your father, and not only did I not fight back, I even sent those two bastards to invite you. Do you know why?"

"Because I hit you, no one from the Cheng family will be allowed to go to the palace tomorrow. If His Majesty blames me, I can't afford to suffer the consequences! Do you understand?"

"Is he trying to trick me, hoping I'll put down the jade pendant so he can make his move...?" Cheng Jun was unsure of Cheng Yaojin's true intentions. He remained still and asked, "What are we going to the palace for tomorrow?"

Cheng Yaojin said calmly, "This morning at the court session, His Majesty issued an imperial edict that each ward in Chang'an City must select a talented young man, and all civil and military officials must send a son who is at least fifteen years old, regardless of whether he is a legitimate son or a concubine's son, to go to the palace at the court session tomorrow morning."

"His Majesty will select three people from among these individuals to serve as Imperial Censors!"

Cheng Yaojin suddenly gritted his teeth and said, "I wanted to ask your elder brother to go, but that bastard either didn't know anything when asked, or he would do the opposite of what I told him to do. He won't learn his lesson unless he's beaten!"

No wonder Cheng Yaojin was so angry when he came back from court and beat up Cheng Chumo and the others. It turns out it was because of this... Cheng Jun suddenly realized, but then asked strangely, "What does the selection of censors have to do with the sons of military officers?"

Censors are civil officials and also officials who speak out, so they need to have a certain level of eloquence.

The sons of military officers are good at wielding swords and spears, but when it comes to talking? They're just not cut out for it!

Cheng Yaojin explained, "His Majesty said he didn't want to show favoritism."

"Is this sarcasm?" Cheng Jun raised an eyebrow, not believing the current emperor's explanation at all.

"You stubborn brat, are you?" Cheng Yaojin grinned angrily. "The emperor's word is law; how could he be speaking ironically?"

"I originally wanted to send your second brother, but that bastard is even worse than your eldest brother. He dared to squat at the door and laugh so loudly while I was teaching your eldest brother a lesson. I had no choice but to beat him up!"

"So tomorrow you'll have to represent the Cheng family at the palace!"

"Don't feel guilty. I know all three of you very well. None of you are cut out to be censors. Just think of it as going to broaden your horizons. When you come back, I'll reward you handsomely!"

After saying that, Cheng Yaojin waved his hand and said, "Alright, put the jade pendant down, you can go back now!"

Cheng Jun looked at him warily and said, "This jade pendant was given to me by my second brother, I have to return it to him first!"

"Resign, kid!"

"..."

As Cheng Jun walked out of the main room, he kept clutching the jade pendant and looking back at Cheng Yaojin every few steps, as if he were on high alert to prevent Cheng Yaojin from suddenly rushing out.

Cheng Yaojin's bushy beard twitched as he watched.

…………

It seemed Cheng Yaojin hadn't lied... Cheng Jun returned to the house and, seeing that Cheng Yaojin hadn't chased after him, finally felt relieved.

After closing the door, he put the inkstone and bronze mirror back in their original places while recalling the conversation in the main room.

Chang'an City was divided into Chang'an County and Wannian County, with a total of 108 wards.

With the sons of all the civil and military officials, plus the young talents from various neighborhoods, there are at least two hundred people... The competition for the censorate selection tomorrow will be fierce!

Anyway, I was just there to make up the numbers... Once this process is over, it's a way of giving Lao Cheng an explanation... Cheng Jun played with the jade pendant in his hand, thinking silently without any burden in his heart.

"Third brother, come out quickly, I have something to tell you!"

Just then, Cheng Chumo's shouting suddenly rang out from outside.

Cheng Jun gripped the inkstone tightly, got up, and walked to the door, but did not open it to go out. He suspected that Cheng Yaojin was angry and had joined forces with his eldest and second sons to lure him out.

"I won't go out. If you need anything, come in and talk to me!"