The onlookers in the building were dumbfounded, unable to speak. They had seen fights, but never had they witnessed a scion of a noble family personally engaging in one. Even if someone were lucky enough to witness such a rare scene, they probably hadn't seen such a blatant two-on-one affair.

Even Teng Zijing felt somewhat dejected. Although he was weaker than the Guo family's expert, the young master's move made him lose face as well.

Suddenly, a thought struck him. He recalled the seemingly comical scene earlier—the young master had actually been able to see through such a complex situation, and...that punch, seemingly frivolous, was actually accurate to a terrifying degree in terms of power and angle. He looked at Fan Xian again, this time with a hint of awe and astonishment.

Escorted by the gazes of the crowd, Fan's party was about to descend the stairs when the door of a private room at the corner of the floor was pushed open. Several people walked out, presumably having heard the argument outside and come to watch the commotion. One of them, dressed in luxurious clothing and exuding an air of nobility, saw Fan Ruoruo and his eyes lit up. He stepped forward and bowed, saying, "It's rare to see Ruoruo *meimei* out of the manor today."

The man had handsome features, thick eyebrows, clear eyes, a straight nose, and thin lips. He truly looked like a promising talent.

Fan Ruoruo was slightly surprised and returned the greeting, saying, "So it's the *shizi*." Then she quickly introduced Fan Xian to him. Fan Xian hadn't expected this to be the son of Prince Jing, who was on good terms with his family, so he exchanged a few polite words.

Prince Jing's family had always been on good terms with the Fan family, so they knew quite a bit about each other's families. As soon as Fan Ruoruo introduced him, the *shizi* of Prince Jing immediately guessed Fan Xian's identity and couldn't help but feel surprised.

He found Fan Xian's speech to be neither obsequious nor arrogant, and there was an inexplicable confidence in his bones, yet his smile was so warm and amiable, which made him feel very comfortable.

At this moment, Guo Baokun, the compiler from the palace, also came over to pay his respects to the *shizi*. Some bystanders told the *shizi* about the previous small conflict between the Guo and Fan families. After listening, the *shizi* became very interested and asked Fan Xian, "It seems like you have some opinions about scholars, *xiongtai*."

"Everyone can read, everyone is a scholar," Fan Xian replied after bowing to the *shizi*.

In his mind, there was no concept of class divisions in this era, nor did he think that reciting some eight-legged essays would make one transcend the common trades and customs: "I also read, how could I have opinions about scholars...but..."

He smiled and continued, "I only have opinions about so-called talents."

As soon as these words came out, the people in the building showed curious expressions, wanting to see what this son of a noble family who used black fists would say. Even the *shizi* of Prince Jing asked with great interest, "Why do you look down on so-called talents, *xiongtai*?"

The *shizi* of Prince Jing was still polite, but because Fan Xian had not formally recognized his ancestors and returned to the clan, he could only call him *xiongtai* in this kind of occasion without mentioning his surname.

Fan Xian understood the rules of this society and was not angry at all. He smiled and explained, "The reason I have opinions about talents is because I think the current atmosphere is greatly mistaken. It seems that as long as a scholar is willing to go to brothels more often, he becomes a talent. This so-called talent, I'm afraid, has too much the scent of rouge and not enough bookishness, which is of no benefit to the country, but allows those women to earn profits."

These words were somewhat sarcastic, but not very vicious, and sounded somewhat like a joke.

The *shizi* of Prince Jing laughed, and the people in the restaurant also laughed. This matter was considered over. After all, in other people's eyes, this young master of the Fan family, who didn't know where he came from, seemed to have some acquaintance with the *shizi* of Prince Jing. And Guo Baokun's side, it seemed that fighting was not Fan Xian's opponent, nor was cursing, so he had to give up bitterly.

The *shizi* of Prince Jing invited Fan Xian to come inside for a drink, but Fan Xian declined on the pretext of returning to the manor, but made an appointment for another day. Fan's party then left the restaurant.

As soon as they left the restaurant, just before getting into the carriage, the scholar named He Zongwei hurried down, looked at Fan Xian with sincere eyes, and said "Thank you" very sincerely.

"What are you thanking me for?" Fan Xian asked with a smile.

He Zongwei smiled and replied, "I have always called myself a disdain for the powerful and have prided myself on this. Today, your words have enlightened me, and I realized that I only like this feeling. Deep down, I still can't get rid of those cliches."

Fan Xian frowned slightly, feeling that this person's attitude had changed too quickly.

Although he didn't like this seemingly upright scholar, the conflict had actually arisen because the other party had stood up for him, the "author of *Hong Lou Meng*", so he smiled and enlightened him: "Everyone has a cowardly part in their body, but it often takes some things to force this part out. This is the so-called petty beneath the scholar's robe. Today, I was just making things up, I hope you don't mind, *xiongtai*."

"Petty beneath the scholar's robe?" He Zongwei seemed to be lost in thought. When he came back to his senses, he bowed deeply to Fan Ruoruo, who was beside Fan Xian, and then turned and went upstairs without looking back.

Fan Xian glanced at the black-skinned scholar's face and saw that it seemed a little red, and then he knew what was going on. He looked at his sister with a teasing look, but Fan Ruoruo's face was calm and waveless, as if that black-faced scholar had never been there at all.

Knowing that He Zongwei only had a crush on her, Fan Xian didn't have much sympathy. In his plan, the husband his sister would marry in the future didn't necessarily have to become a marquis or prime minister, but he had to be someone his sister liked.

———————————————————————

After Fan Xian left, Guo Baokun and He Zongwei's table of literati lost face and also left the building. The third floor of Yi Shi Ju began to gradually return to calm, but the guests at each table were still discussing the young master of the Fan residence. They all said that they had never heard of the Sima Nanbo family having such a person, and were guessing whether he was a cousin of Miss Fan or something.

The *shizi* of Prince Jing naturally knew Fan Xian's identity, but it was impossible for him to tell those idlers outside the room. He poured a glass of wine and slowly drank it, sighing quietly, "Everyone says that the Crown Prince likes literature and often associates with scholars of integrity, but now it seems that among the people he associates with, there isn't even a decent talent."

A staff member pondered for a while beside him and said, "That He Zongwei is a student of Zeng Wenxiang, and he will definitely pass the *keju* next year. I don't know what kind of person he is."

The *shizi* of Prince Jing shook his head: "This He Zongwei has talent, but his character is..." He had actually heard the conversation outside in the厢房 earlier. Now, thinking of the comment he heard about *fenggu*, he chuckled: "His *fenggu* is indeed a bit lacking."

The staff member also laughed beside him: "That illegitimate son of Lord Fan who has been hidden for more than ten years is really interesting."

The *shizi* of Prince Jing patted the fan in his hand and was about to praise him, but suddenly thought of Fan Xian's teasing words earlier. He quickly put the fan back on the table and laughed: "That Guo Baokun relies on the power of his father's family and is on good terms with the Crown Prince, so he doesn't take the Fan residence seriously. It's really not easy for this kind of mediocre person to still be alive."