Song Qingshu was utterly unmoved. He cupped his hands toward the surrounding crowd in greeting, his face full of smug satisfaction. "You let me win, you let me win!"
Someone immediately objected, and quite a few people turned to Yelü Nanxian for an explanation. "A contestant is openly bribing people. Aren't you going to do anything about it?"
Yelü Nanxian suppressed a laugh and replied, "The Princess is choosing a husband. Her future Imperial Son-in-Law needs the greatest overall strength. Whether it is wealth or intelligence, both are forms of strength. There is nothing wrong with that."
Everyone was stunned at first, but gradually felt that she had a point. This was not some martial arts performance in the jianghu. Jianghu folk could simply settle a marriage contest through combat, but the Princess had to consider other forms of ability as well.
After Song Qingshu returned to his camp, Xue Pan came over and affectionately threw an arm around him. "Baoyu, you're really something. You actually won in such a way."
"What is there to be proud of? You've completely disgraced Great Song." The Lu brothers and their group sneered from the side. The others who had failed to advance chimed in, while secretly regretting that they had not thought of such a trick themselves. They all came from prominent Southern Song clans and naturally knew that the Jia family was doomed, so they had no reason to show Jia Baoyu any courtesy.
"Tch, Western Xia accepted it, so what are you all so sour about?" Xue Pan snapped and immediately resumed trading insults with them.
Song Qingshu shook his head, too lazy to lower himself to their level. Xue Baochai came to his side then, her little mouth pouting as she sulked. "If I had known you had a