"Who dares to drive this carriage away today?"
Those familiar with Baili Yan knew he was angry now, for his tone was airy and light only when he was upset.
"Cousin!"
Ye Ziāan came down from the carriage upon hearing this.
"Arenāt you attending the Qionglin Banquet tonight?"
"Yes, Iāve inquired about it. There are many who will not be attending the banquet, so it wonāt be conspicuous if I donāt go," Ye Ziāan said honestly.
"Hmph, if you were just any Advanced Scholar, indeed it wouldnāt be noticeable, but you are the second-ranked, the second place in the Great Zhouās Imperial Exam." Baili Yan felt a surge of frustration when he talked about being second.
He had naturally heard the Emperorās words, saying something like "Brother An is deceiving him, as if he had never seen Brother An before." Didnāt that mean the Emperor knew that the real Brother An wasnāt this way and that was the reason why he stripped the first rank that originally belonged to him?
There may not seem much difference between the top rank and the second, but they sound entirely different, and this jerk made him so angry.
"Come, tell me, why did you do that to your face?"
Although Baili Yan already knew the reason, he still wanted to hear it from Ye Ziāanās mouth, and then strangle him.
Facing his question, Ye Ziāan naturally wouldnāt answer and just stood there motionless.
"Fine, fine, you wonāt say, but I know," Baili Yan pointed at him, "Mr. Luo kept it from you, but Mu Shaofeng is not in the dark. Youāre in such a rush to go home now for her, arenāt you? A grown man so entangled in love, do you believe I would extinguish her in a fit of rage?"
At these words, Ye Ziāanās pupils shrank, and he replied just as coldly, "If she lives, I live, if she dies, I die!"
"You, you, you!" Baili Yan was almost choked with anger by him. "Fine, if you dare to take one step out of this mansion today, I will have someone kill that damned girl, donāt believe me, just try."
"Why canāt you tolerate her?" Ye Ziāan asked, full of resentment, "Donāt forget, the items you have were from her; arenāt they a great enhancement for you?"
What Yang Chuxia had Ye Ziāan bring to Baili Yan were the designs for sleeve arrows and small crossbow arrows, which had been improved and were completely different from what this era had, whether in range or flexibility.
Upon hearing this, Baili Yan glanced at him and said, "I just canāt stand the sight of you disregarding everything for her."
"How am I not considering the bigger picture?" Ye Ziāan retorted, speechless, "Is skipping a banquet really disregarding the bigger picture? Is there a rule that stipulates attendance? There isnāt. Although the Emperor said heās considering which department I should join, he didnāt say I couldnāt leave the Capital, right?"
Baili Yan was left speechless by his rebuttal, as it seemed there truly wasnāt such a rule.
Seeing him not speaking, Ye Ziāan snorted.
"No, thatās wrong!" Baili Yan said hastily, "The Emperor said he is considering which department, so you have to wait. What if the Emperor wants you to report for duty tomorrow or the day after? What then?"
"But Cousin, if he considers for a year should I wait in the Capital for a whole year?" And besides, he didnāt want to enter any of the six departments now; he wanted a position outside the Capital, though he wouldnāt tell Baili Yan because he wouldnāt agree.
Baili Yan thought it made sense, but he wouldnāt admit it.
"First attend the Qionglin Banquet tonight. I will inquire about the Emperorās intentions. If itās not successful, then you can wait for a month before going back."