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Listening to her mother’s pointless words of encouragement, Yao Hanai sneered in her heart.

If she really could come up with a good solution, would she be so distressed?

Indeed, when she first heard that Xia Zheng had introduced movable type printing to the Capital city, she thought it was his invention and felt genuinely inferior.

But as clever as she considered herself to be, she indeed had not come up with a better idea.

Lady Meng kept talking incessantly about how the women and young ladies in the Capital city compared her to Lin Yuan, and Yao Hanai felt as if an annoying fly had stopped by her ear, both irksome and nauseating.

She cocked her head slightly to look at her mother, feeling a sudden wash of desolation. Her mother, unable to give birth to a son, raised her as if she were a boy, demanding she surpass everyone in everything. But did her mother really care about her daughter at all?

Sometimes, she was truly envious of Su Qiuyu for having such a father, and even Yan Ruchun’s father was extremely indulgent with her. The Capital city’s seemingly perfect, flawlessly talented lady, what kind of pain did she bear behind the scenes, and how many people knew of it?

Slowly closing her eyes, Yao Hanai quietly exhaled a breath of turbid air. She was truly thankful for this illness; it allowed her to rest properly. All other matters could wait until after her recovery.

The 26th of the first lunar month, the day Red Smoke Pavilion announced the shortlist for the final competition.

Early in the morning, Lin Wei got ready to head to the Red Smoke Pavilion to see the list, and Tian Xuan also arrived at Lin Mansion early in her carriage, waiting outside.

When the sisters reached the entrance of the Red Smoke Pavilion, the doorway was already jam-packed with people eager to see the list. With no other choice, Lin Yuan and the others had to disembark from their carriage and thread their way inside on foot.

As they walked, Lin Yuan felt as if someone had unintentionally bumped into her. Frowning, she turned to see a sleazy-looking middle-aged man.

Since the place was crowded, Lin Yuan felt there was no danger, and thus did not let Lin Yi accompany her. But the more crowded the place, the more likely it was for people with ill-intentions to be around.

And now, she had encountered one.

Touching her money bag discreetly, Lin Yuan pretended not to notice the man’s abnormality and continued walking forward.

Sure enough, just as she turned her head, the man’s hand reached for her money bag.

With a slight curl of her lips, Lin Yuan quickly grabbed the man’s wrist at the vital point in a precise and firm grip. When she squeezed hard, she heard the man cry out in pain.

"Don’t you see who your lady is here? Daring to pick a pocket right in front of me!" Lin Yuan said, turning her head. If one disregarded the fact that she was currently grabbing her own wrist, based purely on her sweet and cute smile, who would have thought that she could be such a devilish fiend.

The man was just a petty thief, not very brave, and so, immediately began to plead incessantly for mercy when his vital point was seized.

Lin Yuan’s eyes narrowed slightly, and she kicked the thief’s calf, speaking in a low voice, "Don’t think I don’t know what you’re thinking in your heart.

Thinking of targeting someone else after passing by me?

This kick is a reminder for you to walk a straight path.

If I catch you doing wrong again, I’ll break this leg of yours! "

The man, clutching his leg, broke out in a cold sweat from the pain, hurriedly nodding and assuring her that he would never again engage in thievery or deception.

"Get lost!" Lin Yuan exclaimed sternly, watching him leave before turning back to continue pulling Lin Wei and the others along.

Because of the crowd, no one noticed what Lin Yuan had just done. However, at a tea house not far away, an aristocratic youth witnessed the entire scene unfold.

His lips involuntarily curled into a smile as he murmured to himself, "It’s been so long, yet she’s still the same."

He was accompanied by two ladies, one older, the other in the bloom of youth.

The young lady inadvertently looked up just in time to catch the smile that the man couldn’t conceal quickly enough.

Though she didn’t think highly of the man, she had to admit that he looked rather handsome when he smiled.

Since his arrival in the Capital city, her half-brother had always been cold-faced. Why had he suddenly smiled today?

Curious, Chen Leyao walked to the window, scrutinized the congested crowd below, and frowned slightly as she asked, "What did my little brother see that makes him so happy?"

Hearing the lady’s question, Chen Ruochu’s smile vanished in an instant, and he reverted to his icy demeanor, "I’m laughing at their eagerness to crowd like this, not realizing how few of them will make the list. It’s simply foolish."

Chen Leyao enjoyed this comment; having been pampered by her parents since childhood, she was the quintessential lady and naturally looked down on these common folk.

"Yaoyao, why bother talking to him? Come sit down." Seeing her daughter engaging with the concubine’s son irritated Lady Jiang immensely. Were it not for the day’s events necessitating a man to step in, and with Chen Haigang preoccupied with the opening of his new shop, she would never have brought this son of a concubine out.

Reprimanded by Lady Jiang, Chen Leyao shrugged and obediently returned to the table, losing all interest in Chen Ruochu.

Chen Ruochu internally scoffed and turned to walk toward the exit.

Lady Jiang’s eyebrows rose as she called out to him, "Stop! They’re about to announce the list; where are you going if not waiting here?"

Chen Ruochu didn’t even turn his body as he responded with utter sarcasm, "You just said they’re about to announce the list. If sitting in the tea house is all it takes to see the results, why did you ask me to come?"

His retort left Lady Jiang breathless with irritation, her chest heaving with anger, yet she couldn’t think of a comeback.

It was only after Chen Ruochu had disappeared from the elegant room that she came to her senses, fuming as she slapped the table and cursed, "This ungrateful wretch, after all the food and clothing I’ve provided, and bringing him to the Capital city, this is how he repays me?

Ah! It’s true, he didn’t come from my womb.

No matter how well you treat him, he’ll never appreciate it! "

Lady Jiang was a typical Jiangnan woman, and although slightly hot-tempered, her voice was soft and genteel.

Even her scolding was pleasant to hear, such that her voice filled the elegant room with rhythmic vitriol—those in nearby rooms, unable to make out her words clearly, mistook it for someone singing a gentle Jiangnan tune.

Upon leaving the elegant room, Chen Ruochu took a deep breath; despite the throngs outside, he felt much more comfortable than inside.

Feeling relieved, Chen Ruochu flagged down a server, tossed him a silver piece, and said, "Do something for me, and this silver is yours."

Naturally, the server was ecstatic at the prospect of earning money and nodded repeatedly.

"Check the list for the name Chen Leyao..."

After a pause, Chen Ruochu took out another silver piece from his pocket, handed it to the server, and gave new instructions, "Write down the twenty names from the list for me, not missing a single one."