Overstated?

"Qiu Yan is here?"

In the backyard, Pang Qianru listened to the report from the servant in blue, got up from her chair, and then dismissed the servant.

Today, she was not wearing military uniform, but Confucian robes. However, she did not deliberately dress like a man. Her long, smooth, black hair reached her waist, and as she stood up, her hair flew in the wind.

"He's finally here. This man is truly hard to invite. I want to see what this talented man, who has captivated you so much, is really capable of. Is he truly a man of exceptional talent, comparable to Wen Zhizhen?"

As she spoke, she turned her head to look beside her, and what she saw was Song Qian's coquettish expression.

"Sister, don't talk nonsense. I'm not looking for Young Master Qiu out of personal feelings!" Song Qian retorted, her face slightly flushed.

Seeing her expression, a hint of jealousy flashed in Pang Qianru's eyes, but she remained calm on the surface and chuckled, "Alright, I won't say anything. Now that Qiu Yan has arrived, we should go out and greet him. Today, I've prepared a grand gift for him, but of course, it can only be presented after he Wen Zhizhen have settled their score."

"Sister, why do you have to stir up a fight between Young Master Qiu Wen Zhizhen?" Song Qian asked, puzzled. "Besides, aren't you interested in Wen Zhizhen? Even if you're deliberately getting close to him, there's no need to make him fight with someone else."

"So you're worried about him?" Pang Qianru raised her eyebrows. "Or are you afraid that Qiu Yan is unworthy of his reputation and will reveal his true colors in front of everyone? Although Wen Zhizhen is fond of fame and took advantage of that silly girl from the Xu Clan, even with the help of others, his reputation still rose on his own. As for Qiu Yan, he seems to be putting on airs. I'm not the only one who wants to know which of these two is more talented."

"Is your whole plan, sister, to prove Qiu Yan's talent?" Song Qian countered.

"If he is talented, this plan will only benefit him," Pang Qianru replied calmly, her smile fading. "Besides, I am not young anymore, I have reached the age to get married, but I should marry a man with a promising future. Who this man is is not important, the key is that he must have enough reputation so as not to tarnish the name of my Anyang Marquis Residence!"

Song Qian's expression changed slightly. She opened her mouth to speak, but before she could utter a word, a series of rapid footsteps came from outside the door, interrupting her. Then, the young servant in blue staggered back.

"Why are you here again?" Pang Qianru frowned. "What's with the rush? What kind of state are you in?"

"Reporting to Miss, something has happened in the front yard!" The servant, calmed by the rebuke, suppressed his anxiety and clasped his hands in reply.

Pang Qianru asked with slight surprise, "What's going on? Is someone causing trouble at the Anyang Estate?"

The servant quickly replied, "It was Miss who told us to keep an eye on Qiu Yan. For some reason, he got into an argument with someone and set out writing materials, saying he wanted to settle things through a literary contest!"

"A showdown with someone?" Pang Qianru was taken aback at first, then chuckled. "I tried to see Qiu Yan several times before but failed. I was wondering what kind of person he was. I didn't expect him to be so impatient and lack composure. He's only been here a short time and he's already ready to fight someone."

As she spoke, she remained calm and asked the servant, "Who was he who engaged in a literary contest with him?"

The servant looked troubled and replied, "That person isn't well-known; I'll have to ask around to find out."

"So, he's just some nobody?" Pang Qianru shook her head. "Has Qiu Yan never seen the world? Everyone in the city compares him to Wen Zhizhen, yet here he is, competing with a nobody, needlessly lowering his status!" As she spoke, her face was full of disappointment.

"Sister!" Song Qian called out from the side, her voice filled with dissatisfaction.

"Alright, I understand." Pang Qianru turned back with a smile, then waved her hand to dismiss the servant. "That's enough. He's a guest, and regardless of whether Qiu Yan were exaggerated or not, we still sent him an invitation. You also have something to discuss with him, so you should go and see him. Besides, this whole mess hasn't even started yet. If word gets out, it won't sound good. If Qiu Yan loses, it will be even more troublesome, and even Wen Zhizhen, who is on par with him, will be affected."

Although Song Qian was dissatisfied, she knew that the servant would not dare to report false information, so she could not refute him and went out to see what was going on.

Before the two could take two steps, the servant returned, accompanied by a maid, both looking anxious.

"What is it now?" Pang Qianru raised her eyebrows, revealing her displeasure.

This expression startled the servants and maids, who then began to speak rapidly and in rapid succession, creating a chaotic scene.

"Shut up, you speak!" Pang Qianru snorted coldly, stopping the two of them, and pointed at the servant to give the order.

"Yes, Miss, something has happened again." The servant nodded and replied.

"Was it caused by Qiu Yan?" Pang Qianru's displeasure deepened.

"It was him who caused it," the servant nodded. "That Master Qiu... Scholar Qiu had a contest with a scholar, and had someone prepare writing brush, ink, paper and inkstone for him. But after receiving them, he scribbled all over the paper, which drove the scholar he was fighting with crazy!" Seeing that Pang Qianru's expression was not right, he quickly changed his words, but what he said confused Pang Qianru.

"Crazy?" Pang Qianru chewed on the word. "Can a verbal battle drive someone crazy? Did they hit someone on the head?"

"This..." The servant was illiterate and had no idea why, so he could only secretly look at the maid. The maid understood and continued, "I don't know the specific reason either, but after Qiu Yan finished his painting, the scholar who was arguing with him seemed to have lost his soul. He held the scroll, looking dazed, and kept muttering to himself, as if he had hysteria."

"Hysteria? A painting? You mean Qiu Yan had a contest with Wen Duan, and all he did was paint a picture, which made the other person lose their mind? How long did it take? What could he possibly have painted? Isn't this ridiculous?" Pang Qianru felt her head spinning and couldn't quite process what she was thinking.

But before she could think it through, another series of footsteps approached, followed by two servants rushing in, their voices preceding them—

"Miss! Something terrible has happened! This is a huge commotion!"

"What's going on! What's going on!" Pang Qianru's eyes widened, her previous composure gone, sensing that things were getting out of control. "Could it be Qiu Yan who caused this?"

The two servants approached, clasped their hands in greeting, and bowed. They said urgently, "That's right, it's that scholar Qiu. He's been fighting with more than a dozen scholars, writing and painting, and he's really got them all bewildered. Now at least thirty scholars have surrounded him, and it's difficult to maintain Order. If this continues, the city patrol will be called, and things will get complicated!"

Upon hearing this, Pang Qianru was startled. Inviting everyone was fine, but if the situation got out of control and trouble arose, it would be considered a mass gathering, and such a thing was most taboo in the Imperial City.

"Has Qiu Yan ever been to school? How can he be so shameless, causing such a huge mess!" Pang Qianru took a deep breath, suppressing her emotional turmoil, her eyes turning cold. "It seems Qiu Yan is indeed unworthy of his reputation; I wonder how he even gained this fame." As she spoke, she deliberately glanced at Song Qian. The latter bit her lip slightly, remaining silent.

Pang Qianru ignored her and stepped forward, giving instructions. "Since this has already happened, the most urgent task is to quell the situation. It's not appropriate for us women to go. Here's what you'll do: take a few guards, separate Qiu Yan from the crowd, and then bring him here. I need to question him; at least we can't let the situation escalate further. As for calming down the scholar, someone else will take care of that. Go. Remember, act quickly!"

When she spoke, she showed no politeness to Qiu Yan whatsoever, her face devoid of any feminine demeanor, instead displaying the air of a general making a decisive statement in battle.

The servants and other servants didn't find it strange. They bowed their heads, accepted the order like generals being appointed, and turned to leave!

Watching the group leave, Pang Qianru shook her head. "They really are not as good as they've heard; it's a huge disappointment."

As she spoke, she turned to look at Song Qian and continued, "Don't worry, I had someone bring him here to rescue him from danger. This Qiu Yan was putting on airs before, but now it seems he doesn't know when to back down. If you want to ask him anything, don't hold back. Ask him directly after he's brought here. If he still acts all high and mighty, then don't blame me for being impolite!"

Song Qian simply frowned and remained silent, her mind in turmoil. She recalled Qiu Yan's past experiences in Wuxin City, filled with doubt. In her memory, Qiu Yan was by no means a reckless person, so why did he cause trouble today?

Seeing Song Qian frown and remain silent, Pang Qianru did not urge her, but simply smiled coldly, thinking to herself, "Before this, Qiu Yan held the initiative, but from now on, the initiative has changed hands!"

"Make way, make way!"

In the front yard, a servant in blue robes led three burly men toward the crowd.

A crowd gathered in front of the main entrance of the lobby; at a glance, it was a dense, layered mass of people, inside and out.

Seeing this, the servant shook his head, muttering to himself, "These scholars are truly useless; they only dare to surround them, but dare not make a move." A sense of superiority welled up within him, and he felt that although he was illiterate, he was far superior to these scholars.

Lost in thought, he turned back and ordered, "Part the crowd, I'll go pull Qiu Yan out!"

The three men nodded, skillfully parted the crowd, and the people along the way were unknowingly separated. The servant followed closely behind and quickly reached the center, then let out a soft exclamation.

He noticed that although many people had gathered around, Qiu Yan's spot was empty; he was alone, writing at a low table.

"They're all just all talk and no action!" Although he had some doubts, the servant stubbornly believed that this was because the scholars dared not take action.

"They wouldn't dare, but I'm not afraid at all. What kind of talent is he? He's just a name without substance! Let him make a fool of himself again!"

Thinking this, he stepped forward, reaching for Qiu Yan's arm to pull him down, shouting, "Alright, stop pretending! My young lady sent me to take you there!"

Unexpectedly, before he could even make a move, angry shouts and rebukes came from all around him.

"You dare, you brat!"

"Stop! What are you doing?!"

"Coming to bother you? You're asking for trouble!"

P. S.: Thanks to "Simple Happiness", "bigdove", "Seeking the Way. Lost. Existence", "aktina", and "Twenty Moons" for their monthly votes!

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