They all knew that Zu An had been orphaned at a young age, and the uncle that had raised him had passed on as well. What family did he have left?
As for the Chu clan, he was but a drafted son-in-law. Judging by the values of this world, no one would consider this clan his family at all.
He didn’t even have a family to go back to. Who was he supposed to visit?
Xie Daoyun frowned. “Young master Xu, you’re crossing the line.”
Xu Qinsong smiled. “I do not understand what miss Xie is saying. Is there anything wrong with my phrase? This is something everyone should acknowledge, right? Perhaps this is already too much for him?”
Xie Daoyun opened her mouth to retort, but closed it again without saying anything. If she spoke up for Zu An right now, she would have fallen for his trap and brought shame to Zu An.
She gave Zu An a worried look, but she didn’t see anything awful or angry in his expression.
Zu An looked at Xu Qinsong. “Bro, your eye bags are quite large.”
“What does that have to do with you?” Xu Qinsong snorted. “Scholars like myself who have dedicated ourselves to our studies often do not have time for much rest. It’s common for us to have eye bags.”
“Is that so? Then according to your words, those who don’t have dark circles around their eyes don’t study hard? Miss Xie here is considered the most talented in Brightmoon City, but she doesn’t have any eye bags.” Zu An pointed at Xie Daoyun, who was standing beside him.
Xie Daoyun blushed. Why are you involving me?
Everyone looked at Xie Daoyun’s beautiful complexion. All of them sighed with praise. At the same time, they directed angry looks at Xu Qinsong.
Xu Qinsong waved his hand vigorously. “That’s not what I am trying to say. Our constitutions are probably different, that’s all.”
Zu An had anticipated his answer. He pointed at everyone around him. “Look, how many others here have dark circles? Do none of them work as hard as you?”
Xu Qinsong now knew what it meant to be the target of everyone’s anger. He immediately panicked. “Why are you resorting to malicious attacks? That’s not what I meant at all!”
You have successfully trolled Xu Qinsong for 444 Rage points!
“Ah, I understand now.” Zu An laughed. “It seems like you probably spend too much time indulging in debauchery. That’s why your body is so weak.”
“How dare you slander me!” Xu Qinsong was furious. However, he did his best to keep his wits about him. “If you can’t match my phrase, then admit that you can’t match it. Why do you have to ramble on about all this nonsense?”
You have successfully trolled Xu Qinsong for 666 Rage points!
“Who said that I can’t match it?” Zu An smiled mysteriously, “The phrase you gave me is ‘Filial piety is the first among virtues; remember to visit home often’. Considering your current situation, let me gift you another association: ‘Excessive lust is the root of all evil; less touching of women is advised’.”
A stunned silence momentarily descended on the room, before the entire room erupted with uncontrolled laughter.
Even Xie Daoyun’s face became completely red. This guy was really ingenious, always managing to link whatever he said back to this same topic.
Xu Qinsong’s face became entirely red. “You, you, you… you are insulting common decency! Truly insulting common decency!”
You have successfully trolled Xu Qinsong for 999 Rage points!
Unfortunately, his anger was completely smothered by the ruckus that had now engulfed the room.
Sang Qian cursed when he saw this scene. “Trash!”
Xu Qinsong was in a state of complete provocation. He said loudly, “I still have more phrases, still have…”
With his talents, it was easy for him to come up with more literary phrases. However, the two previous phrases had been defeated by the word ‘touch’, which made him begin to doubt his very life. He really didn’t know what phrase he could use to redeem himself.
Zu An laughed as he saw him stammer and stutter about. “All right, you were the one who posed the questions, and I’ve already responded. It’s now my turn to pose one.”
1. In Chinese culture, matching rhyming couplets is a very common game to demonstrate intelligence. In ancient China, this practice was just as famous as the game of chess or calligraphy, without the limitations of space or equipment.