Page 1092

"Who on earth is causing this mess!" Lin Yuan was so angry, her nose was almost smoking, and her outstretched arms had gone sore.

Just as she was about to give up, Xia Zheng’s hand suddenly moved and flicked in one direction, and the copper coin in his hand flew swiftly towards the third floor.

Bang.

Cheng Haoxuan hurriedly stepped back, barely dodging the copper coin, and the grapes he was about to throw were crushed in his attempt to escape.

"Xuan!"

Madam Cheng was startled and quickly stood up to help Cheng Haoxuan up from the ground.

Upon seeing that her son was unharmed, just a bit disheveled, Madam Cheng was both annoyed and amused, scolded, "Serves you right to be hit! Everyone else was helping their friends, but you, you just had to cause trouble! Wait till I see Young Master Xia, I’ll definitely complain to him about you! "

Cheng Haoxuan, rubbing his sore butt, made a bitter face and complained, "Mom, you really are biased; I’m your son!"

Madam Cheng pursed her lips and gave him a stern look, taking out a handkerchief to wipe the grape juice from his hands.

With Cheng Haoxuan no longer causing trouble, Lin Yuan managed to smoothly get her hands on the fabric strip she had been eyeing for a long time.

The two of them hurried to the young man counting the answers while unraveling the fabric strip. However, the moment the riddle on the fabric appeared, both of them wanted to shout in frustration!

Is this the simplest one? Why are there so many characters!

They had thought they were getting a question that couldn’t be simpler, only to find it was filled with tiny characters.

But once they calmed down and read the riddle, they couldn’t help but curse internally, "Tricky!"

Turned out, the riddle on the fabric wasn’t one question but three. However, although there were many questions, each one was indeed very simple.

"Big sister looks beautiful in colors bright and warm, clad in orange with seven black stars adorned.

Lusts after aphids to fill her tummy right.

Second sister loves to buzz and hum, busy in Hundreds Flower Gardens, back legs carry a basket, stocked full to feed her sons.

Third sister wears a yellow dress, slim waist, long legs she possess, flies to fields hunting pests, armed with venom-tipped spears and blades. "

The answer comprises three common little insects.

Exchanging a look, they laughed; the question truly was simple.

The person who set the rules surely had predicted some contestants would guess his mindset and thus used this string of characters to annoy them.

Yet upon seeing the question, everyone couldn’t help but burst into laughter, making them both love and hate the question.

This was less a matter of everyone participating in a competition for fun than of the rulemaker playing games himself!

"Definitely a child at heart," Lin Yuan chuckled, handing the fabric strip to the young man and stating the answer, "Ladybug, honeybee, wasp."

The young man glanced at the answer, his expression one of disbelief. He had thought these two would lose given their late acquirement of the fabric strip, but in the end, they still won the contest.

"Correct, congratulations to both of you!"

As the young man announced loudly, the crowd below first paused and then burst into thunderous applause.

A group of men and women on the other side were still frantically studying their riddle, which was indeed just a word puzzle, though not an easy one.

Seeing them shaking their heads in dismay, Lin Yuan couldn’t help but sigh inwardly, realizing that the higher the position, the simpler the questions seemed.

Those two were clearly not convinced and looked over the question Lin Yuan and her partner had, marvelling upon hearing Lin Yuan’s explanation. They had only pursued speed without realizing the deeper meaning hidden behind this simple-looking fabric strip.

With that, they truly accepted their defeat.

Embroiderer Ru came over with a smile and immediately took notes on Lin Yuan’s name, height, weight, and various other measurements, the recorder being that same girl Tian Hui had brought in the other day to take measurements, which indeed saved some trouble.

Red Smoke Pavilion truly was the premier embroidery atelier in the Capital city, having both skills and financial power. Besides providing Lin Yuan with attire for all seasons, other contest participants also received some gifts.

And for the pair that almost clinched final victory against Lin Yuan and her partner, although they did not receive the attire for all seasons as a prize, Red Smoke Pavilion also provided each of them with a set of the latest trendy attire.

Seeing their measurements being noted as well, others who had given up early in the second round of the contest regretted it tremendously. Had they known that simply lasting till the end could net them two articles of clothing, they would not have given up so easily.

On the third floor, Madam Cheng appeared with a smile, while Cheng Haoxuan covertly hid behind her.

The appearance of Madam Cheng immediately drew many greetings, and Xia Zheng also pointed this out to Lin Yuan. However, the recent interruption still left them somewhat puzzled.

Lin Yuan was so focused on the fabric strip that she hadn’t noticed, and Xia Zheng, standing behind her, had also missed seeing who the troublemaker was, or else the copper coin wouldn’t have gone astray.

They exchanged glances and shrugged at each other; there was still plenty of time ahead, and eventually, they would encounter that moment face-to-face.