"You..."
Xiao Jingbai was so angry that he almost fainted. Immediately, he turned his head and glared furiously at Li Wanming.
He knew very well in his heart that whether he could have lunch or not actually didn't depend on Pei Yanqi.
His mother had been away for these few days, and the power of life and death in the prince's mansion was actually in Li Wanming's hands. As long as she didn't agree...
However, Li Wanming showed a hesitant look on her face. "Before the second aunt left, she specifically told us to listen to everything Mr. Pei said. Now that he has given the order, I dare not disobey."
Seeing Xiao Jingbai's face change, she quickly coaxed him. "Cousin Jingbai, it's just Volume One, not the whole book. There aren't many words. Just write quickly. Well, I'll go have lunch first. Come find me when you're done."
After saying that, Li Wanming quickly slipped away with Qinglan. In a few breaths, they were out of sight.
Xiao Jingbai was instantly stunned, too shocked to say a word.
And Pei Yanqi's ruler had already tapped on his desk. "If you don't start writing, it will be thirty copies."
Xiao Jingbai looked up and glared at him for a long time. There was a raging fire in his eyes, but in the end, he couldn't withstand the deterrence of that ebony ruler. He had no choice but to pick up the brush angrily and start writing in a wild and untamed manner on the rice paper.
However, his foundation was too poor. The characters he wrote were crooked and looked like spider webs.
"The brushstrokes lack strength."
"The strokes are incorrect."
"There are too many misspelled characters."
Every time he finished writing a sheet, Pei Yanqi would tear it up. By the time Li Wanming came back after lunch, the study was already filled with wads of paper.
Xiao Jingbai finally flew into a rage. "I'm not doing this anymore!"
He kicked over the table and was about to walk out.
With a glance from Li Wanming, General Gao immediately flashed in front of him.
"What are you doing! How dare you stop me?" Xiao Jingbai roared with his eyes wide open. "Are you also rebelling?"
"I wouldn't dare, sir." General Gao lowered his head. "It's just that the prince and the heir gave an order before they left, telling me to follow all the orders of the heir's wife."
Li Wanming twisted her handkerchief on one side and advised. "Cousin Jingbai, it's not that I won't let you go. It's just that the second aunt specifically told me before to take good care of your studies. It's only your first day of class. I really don't dare to let you leave..."
"But what if the young master doesn't eat and starves his stomach?" Nanny Li was anxious and said eagerly. "How about having a piece of snack first to fill your stomach? You can't write well if you're starving like this..."
Pei Yanqi didn't even lift his head at the desk. "It doesn't matter. When Heaven is about to place a great responsibility on a person, it will first test his resolve, exhaust his muscles and bones, starve his body, leave him destitute, and disrupt his plans. All of these are for the purpose of tempering his will and increasing his abilities... All of the above are forms of cultivation."
General Gao was from the Black Armored Elite Cavalry. He was tall and powerful. With him blocking in front of Xiao Jingbai, the young servants who served him didn't dare to step forward.
Xiao Jingbai glared for a while, but in the end, he didn't dare to fight with General Gao. With red eyes, he turned around and started cursing at Pei Yanqi.
"Who do you think you are! How dare you control me?"
"My uncle is the first feudal prince of the Great Sheng Dynasty. I'm the second young master of the Ning Prince's Mansion! Let me out quickly, or I'll make you pay!"
Pei Yanqi's face was calm, and his eyes were as calm as an ancient well. "Disrespectful to elders, insubordinate, speaking recklessly, and full of hostility."
He walked slowly closer with the ruler in his hand. The long ebony ruler was as dazzling as a red-hot iron rod in the noon sun.
Xiao Jingbai opened his eyes wide. "What... What do you want to do?"
Pei Yanqi motioned. "General Gao..."
Gao Yong responded and turned around to grab Xiao Jingbai's left arm. He lifted him up like a chick, twisted his right hand behind his back, and pressed him hard onto the table in the courtyard.
"What... What are you doing?" Xiao Jingbai seemed unable to believe what was happening in front of him and shouted. "I'm the second young master of the Ning Prince's Mansion! You're just a seventh-rank Hanlin scholar. How dare you beat me?"
It was okay when Li Wanming beat him before. She was going to be his elder sister-in-law and the mistress of the Ning Prince's Mansion. It was within her duty to discipline her younger siblings.
But... Who was this Pei Yanqi!
Even though he was a top scholar, he was just a Hanlin scholar now. A poor and pedantic scholar actually dared to lay hands on him?
"Pei Yanqi... Are you tired of living?!"
The ebony ruler was raised high and fell heavily.
Slap!
Slap!
Slap!
...
Five consecutive strikes left the palm of Xiao Jingbai's left hand red and swollen.
He was in so much pain that tears welled up in his eyes. His features were distorted, and he struggled desperately, but he kept cursing with even more vulgar words.
"Son of a bitch! Who do you think you are? A poor and insignificant wretch who actually thinks he's something! You came to teach me just to cling to the high branch of our Ning Prince's Mansion so that you can achieve success and prosperity. Stop pretending to be so noble!"
"You wait! You beat me today, and I'll return the favor twice tomorrow!"
"By then, even if you kneel on the ground and beg for mercy, it won't help! I'll make you know the consequences of offending the Ning Prince's Mansion!"
"Let me go... I'll kill you!"
Pei Yanqi remained unmoved. "Arrogant, disrespectful, rude, and reckless."
Slap!
Slap!
Slap!
Another five strikes...
Every time Xiao Jingbai cursed, Pei Yanqi would strike. He didn't even frown.
Li Wanming turned her face away. This time, she really couldn't bear to watch.
...
I don't know how many strikes there were. Xiao Jingbai couldn't take it anymore and finally burst into tears. "Let me go, let me go! I'm going to Guiyuan Temple to find my mother... Let me go. I'll make my mother beat you..."
Pei Yanqi waited until he had cried enough before saying calmly. "Second young master, the second lady had already told me before she left that she would leave you entirely in my care. No matter what I do, she won't interfere."
"If you want to go to Guiyuan Temple to complain, feel free to go."
"However, I'd like to remind you that if I leave this time, no scholar in the capital will dare to step into your Ning Prince's Mansion again. Second young master, you may end up illiterate for the rest of your life."
His voice was very calm, but to Xiao Jingbai's ears, it was like a steel needle, piercing painfully.
His mother had left him in his care...
No scholar in the capital would dare to come...
These words were swirling chaotically in his mind and finally merged into one sentence: You will be illiterate for the rest of your life.
Illiterate...
What a joke!
He was the second young master of the Ning Prince's Mansion. How could he be illiterate?
However, it seemed that he was right...
He was already twelve years old, but he couldn't even write "Youxue Qionglin".
At this time, Pei Yanqi squatted down. His voice was like a cold wind in his ears, making people palpitate.
"Second young master, your great-grandfather expanded the territory and pacified the world with the founding emperor, which is why the Ning Prince's Mansion received the honor of being the first feudal prince of the Great Sheng Dynasty. The current Prince of Ning guards the southern border and also has the merit of stabilizing the country. Even your eldest cousin, Heir Xiao Jingnan, is equally talented in both civil and military affairs and erudite..."
"I privately think that if you continue to act like this, not to mention inheriting the title, you may not even be able to stay in the Ning Prince's Mansion in the future."