After Wen Heyu left, the noble ladies who were familiar with Liu Jingxian came over to inquire about the reason. Liu Jingxian then told them how Wen Heyu, after receiving favors from others, still tried to force the benefactor to be his concubine.
Only then did the noble ladies realize that the seemingly elegant and gentle top scholar in the imperial examination was actually a hypocrite in private.
As a result, the slightest bit of romantic feelings they had for Wen Heyu vanished in an instant.
Liu Jingxian felt extremely refreshed after humiliating Wen Heyu.
Shen Linyi, not far away, also witnessed the whole scene of Liu Jingxian humiliating Wen Heyu. She felt really delighted and couldn't wait to clap her hands in applause.
But what awaited Wen Heyu didn't end there. After Liu Jingxian's part, Lao Bo was about to start the next act of the show.
To keep Shen Linyi in his sight, Wen Heyu specifically asked Lao Bo to take the "Shen Linyi" to the third floor.
Because of the dressing, Shen Linyi immediately spotted the woman impersonating her and Lao Bo.
The woman hadn't eaten since she left home in the morning. When she saw the pastries on the banquet, her eyes lit up and she couldn't wait to grab a few and stuffed them into her mouth.
Seeing this, Lao Bo, remembering Wen Heyu's order to make Shen Linyi make a fool of herself, quickly shouted at the top of his voice.
"Miss Shen, isn't your eating behavior a bit too ugly? There are chopsticks here. Why do you have to use your hands?"
Actually, the woman's movements weren't very obvious, and she was wearing a veil. If one didn't look closely, no one would notice her. But Lao Bo's shout immediately attracted the attention of the people around.
The feast of the Forest of Gems Banquet wasn't like an ordinary one. It was a self - service style. All the pastries and dishes were placed on several large tables, neatly arranged. Those who wanted to eat would use small plates to pick up some and enjoy them at the empty seats beside.
But the woman didn't know any etiquette. So she just grabbed the food with her hands.
The woman didn't care about Lao Bo at all. But she still picked up an empty plate, grabbed several hairy crabs, and quickly walked to an empty table. Then she started to peel the shells and eat the meat.
Her actions were so rough that Lao Bo almost fainted.
There were clearly the eight crab - eating utensils neatly placed beside the hairy crabs. But the "Shen Linyi" just didn't use them. She seemed not to see them at all. She just grabbed the crab legs and stuffed them into her mouth, crunching loudly.
Seeing this, the noble ladies around covered their handkerchiefs and snickered, whispering to each other.
Lao Bo was extremely panicked, but he thought this should be what Wen Heyu wanted to see, so he didn't stop her.
So, in order to make the "Shen Linyi" make an even bigger fool of herself, Lao Bo braved himself and took away the woman's plate, not allowing her to eat, hoping to see her lose her temper on the spot.
"Miss Shen, you are so unruly. You've really let down my young master's teachings. Please stop eating. Don't disgrace my young master."
A look of confusion flashed across the woman's eyes. Since she came in, no one had taught her any rules. This old man even asked her to kowtow and salute others.
Even though she was uneducated, she knew that as a commoner, she had no reason to kowtow and salute others for no reason. They weren't royal relatives. Even a young servant like Lao Bo who served wine asked her to salute. What kind of logic was that?
Moreover, as a firewood - cutter, she had never eaten such delicious food before. If she didn't eat her fill now, wouldn't she be treating herself badly?
After some self - justification in her mind, the woman ignored Lao Bo and directly snatched the crab back and crunched it loudly again.
Originally, they thought the "Shen Linyi" would stop after eating a few crabs. But unexpectedly, she carried the plate and directly cut a few pieces of mutton. Then she ate it with her hands. The greasy fat stained the veil, leaving a yellowish oil stain.
The lamb chops had been roasted and generously seasoned with spices, which made people's mouths water. But the noble ladies around thought it wasn't very elegant to eat them, so not many people would take the initiative to eat them.
Seeing the increasing ridicule from the people around, Lao Bo began to doubt if his previous actions were right.
But he couldn't leave. He could only force himself to whisper words of persuasion, hoping that the "Shen Linyi" would finish eating quickly.
But bad news travels fast. Because of the way the "Shen Linyi" was eating, more and more people gathered around her, as if they were looking at something novel, staring eagerly as the "Shen Linyi" ate one thing after another.
The woman was afraid that her appearance would be seen. If she was kicked out, she wouldn't be able to eat anymore. So she fixed the veil with her greasy hands and pulled down her bangs a bit, only showing a pair of eyes.
She even pulled down her sleeves a bit to cover her rough and thick fingers.
In the eyes of the people around, there was a strange person tightly wrapped in gold and silver, eating non - stop with a grunt.
"Lao Bo, what's going on?"
Wen Heyu's sinister voice sounded from behind Lao Bo. Lao Bo was so startled that he quickly turned around and almost knelt at Wen Heyu's feet.
Originally, Wen Heyu planned to go and change his soiled clothes first. But when he got downstairs, he found that all his spare clothes had been packed away by Lao Bo and he didn't know where they were. He had to search for Lao Bo floor by floor.
Because of the fruit juice, he felt sticky all over. Coupled with the anger of being played with, his steps became heavier.
Now seeing the "Shen Linyi" making such a fool of herself in front of others, Wen Heyu's face turned as cold as frost.
He guessed that after his deliberate guidance, Shen Linyi would surely make a fool of herself. But he thought it would just be some improper behavior or saying the wrong thing and offending someone. He never expected that Shen Linyi would disgrace herself in such a way.
Taking advantage of the fact that no one noticed him, Wen Heyu quickly waved to Lao Bo, planning to take Lao Bo away. After everyone left, he would come back to pick up Shen Linyi.
By then, Shen Linyi would have been laughed at and would know how much of a fool she had made of herself. Then he could comfort her a few words and still achieve his goal.
This was the best outcome Wen Heyu could think of in such a short time.
But before the two of them could take two steps, Liu Jingxian's voice came like a ghost: "Oh, isn't that the guest brought by Young Master Wen? Why is she eating so eagerly? It seems as if she has been mistreated."
Hearing Liu Jingxian's words, the on - lookers all showed a look of sudden realization.
"So she's the guest brought by the top scholar in the imperial examination. But why is she so hungry? Could it be that the top scholar has already spent all the gold and silver bestowed by the emperor and can't even feed the people in his mansion?"
"What's the identity of this girl? Family members are allowed to attend the Forest of Gems Banquet. Could it be... this guest is a relative of the top scholar?"
"Humph... As expected of someone from a remote and poor area. Even if a golden phoenix has flown out of a mud nest, it can't get rid of that poor and shabby aura."
"Hey, maybe this girl is the top scholar's wife from the countryside. It's her first time attending a banquet. Maybe she's been dazzled by all this wealth."
...
Wen Heyu had been in the limelight recently. There were those who envied him and those who were jealous. Seeing such a good show, most of the people around were adding insult to injury.
Surrounded by the sarcastic remarks, Wen Heyu felt extremely ashamed.
He didn't expect that instead of making Shen Linyi feel inferior, he himself would feel so embarrassed.