"Reporting to the young master, after receiving your instructions, I personally went to the Duke of Wu's residence and delivered the invitation to him in my own hands. However..." At this point, the steward's expression immediately changed. He then hesitated and refused to speak.
“Just say it, whatever it is.” Wei Zhongdao said, frowning.
"However, the Duke of Wu looked down on us and tore up the invitations on the spot. He even said that we were a bunch of young kids, very boring, and there was nothing to do with us."
"What? How dare this person do such a thing?" Wei Zhongdao immediately stood up.
“Oh, Brother Zhongdao, you don’t know this. This person is more than just that. This morning, something big happened. He doesn’t even respect the Imperial Academy.”
"Oh, what exactly happened?"
"Back then..."
"Moreover, after all these years, they still use the same old methods. They haven't improved at all. This kind of person is really..." Cao Cao shook his head.
Without needing to delve deeper, based solely on recent intelligence, Cao Cao could deduce that this was all a staged performance by Wei Zhongdao and Wang Yu. It was even quite possible that the invitation hadn't even been sent at all. And then, they were deliberately trying to tarnish Lin Yang's reputation.
After all, according to Wei Zhongdao, Lin Yang had already torn up the invitation. That way, there would be no way to verify anything, and anyone could say whatever they wanted!
Of course, it's also possible that the invitation was sent, and Lin Yang, being clever, couldn't think of a way to break the deadlock in the short term, so he simply avoided the trouble. That's also a possibility.
“Sigh, no matter how old-fashioned the methods are, as long as they work. After tonight, those who don’t know the truth will have a bad first impression of the Duke of Wu. And first impressions are often very important. Who knows how much effort it will take to resolve this later?” Yuan Shao shook his head and said.
Although the two had only met a few times, Yuan Shao was quite supportive of Lin Yang. After all, he too had started from scratch.
Unfortunately, he still had the Yuan family's name to rely on, but this boy relied entirely on him. The difficulty of this was incomparable.
"Oh, I see. So, does this mean that the Duke of Wu has some character flaws?" Wei Zhongdao said awkwardly.
"Yes, that's exactly it," Wang Yu said excitedly.
It must be said that their performance was effective. At least many naive people were genuinely deceived.
At the same time, Lin Yang went directly to the entrance of the Hidden Dragon Pavilion. Looking around, he saw that the weakest among the people inside were at least at the third rank. The majority were at the fourth or fifth rank.
However, considering their identities, they are either scions of noble families, chosen ones, or people who will be remembered in history, so it is normal for them to have great fortune.
If the time and place were different, Lin Yang would be quite interested in befriending them. Unfortunately for him, they're here to cause trouble today!
With a loud bang, the door shattered. Then, accompanied by the sound, two guards who were watching the door flew in.
"Brother Zhongdao, what's going on? Why are these people blocking me from coming in? Could it be that you didn't invite me tonight?" Lin Yang asked calmly.
"But it's alright. If I wasn't invited, I'll just consider it an uninvited visit. Besides, I really didn't expect that Brother Zhongdao, a disciple of the Wei family, one of the four great merchants, would be this kind of person? It's truly shameful!" Lin Yang turned around and said embarrassedly. It seemed as if Wei Zhongdao had done something that angered both heaven and man.
"I was wondering how something that happened this morning could have spread throughout the entire capital by noon. I later found out that it was all Zhongdao's doing."
"Brother Lin, be careful with your words. Don't slander me without evidence. Even if you are the Duke of Wu, I still want justice," Wei Zhongdao said excitedly.
Then, he even put on an act of fearlessness towards power and a love for only truth. To this, Lin Yang could only say, "Young man, you're too sweet! I just hope you don't burst into tears later."
Seeing this, Lin Yang carefully examined Wei Zhongdao from beginning to end. Then, with great regret and some heartache, he sighed, "I really didn't expect that you, Brother Zhongdao, would be this kind of person. I knew it! How could my little misunderstanding with Brother Wang involve you? But after reading this booklet, I finally understand."
Seeing this, Wei Zhongdao suddenly had a bad feeling. Although he didn't think that a single booklet could turn Lin Yang's situation around, he still quickly asked, "Brother Lin, what do you mean by this? What booklet?"
Upon hearing this, Lin Yang didn't say much, but shook his head regretfully. Then he took out stacks of newly printed books from his storage ring, including "Picking Up Soap" and "The Story That Wang Yu and I Had to Tell."
Then, under the intensely curious gaze of the crowd, these booklets were distributed to the many heroes present. Two copies were given to each person, both men and women.
The entire Qianlong Pavilion fell silent with the rustling of pages turning. At the same time, countless gasps of surprise rippled through the room.
Chapter 42: Is Jinling something to be confined to a pond?
"So that's how it is. No wonder Wei Zhongdao stood up for Wang Yu," a Chosen One who was unaware of the situation muttered to himself. Clearly, he now completely agreed with Lin Yang's assessment.
"Explosive! Absolutely explosive! So this is what male-male relationships are like? And there are even these positions! I've really learned something new today," said a young man from a prominent family, his eyes shining with excitement.
"Hehehe, this painting is so clear! You can even see this part clearly. This is art, this is art!" A scion of a prominent family exclaimed from an artistic perspective.
"No wonder Wei Zhongdao had so many beautiful wives and concubines, yet he had no children. It turns out he wasted all his vital essence on Wang Yu." A certain truth-seeker suddenly channeled Conan, saying with a determined look.
"Ugh, so disgusting. All that glitters on the outside, rotten inside. It's such a waste of such a pretty face," said a daughter of a prominent family.
Then, amidst the murmurs of the crowd, Wei Zhongdao, no longer brimming with confidence, even appeared somewhat flustered. He then directly opened a small booklet and began to read it.
He wouldn't have cared if he hadn't looked at it, but once he did, Wei Zhongdao was completely dumbfounded. He was just a little arrogant, looking down on peasants like Lin Yang, not an idiot. Of course, he knew the consequences once this booklet was spread far and wide.
"Oh, right. I forgot to tell Brother Wei that just now, at this very moment, millions of identical books have been distributed in all directions."
"If Brother Wei were to use all the connections the Wei family has right now, and also contribute some of its resources, there might be a slight chance of completely destroying these books," Lin Yang kindly suggested.
Upon hearing this, even the crowd who had been watching intently couldn't help but gasp. Ruthless, truly ruthless!
Even if, as Lin Yang said, they could truly wipe out the pamphlets completely by unleashing their full power, what could they possibly rely on? Just Wei Zhongdao, the direct descendant of the family head? That's impossible!
The resources and wealth of a family are often only used in times of life-or-death crisis. Essentially, every bit used diminishes it.
Let alone this small matter, even if Wei Zhongdao's father, the current head of the Wang family, encountered this situation, he would not be able to use the family's resources.
That's the rule!
*Pfft*, and then a mouthful of blood spurted out. Wei Zhongdao said sadly, "You are so cruel."
How could he not be heartbroken? Getting into this mess ruins his reputation for life. When that happens, the first thing everyone will think of when they hear "Wei Zhongdao" is, "Oh, that gay guy!" The thought is so vivid, it'll make Wei Zhongdao faint with rage.
Of course, it's also possible that Wei Zhongdao simply couldn't think of any other solution at the moment. After all, he couldn't very well say, "I, Wei, am not into men and prefer women; if you don't believe me, you can try me."
Therefore, pretending to faint at this time to avoid saying or doing the wrong thing is actually a good option.