Just as Xue Rui and Helanchou were guessing Han Wenguang's intentions in sending his disciples to pick a fight, Yu Shu was completely unaware that she was already in deep trouble and had become the last stepping stone to the Heaven Stairway in the eyes of others.
She accepted Jin Zuofeng's challenge and saw that some of them could not hide their excitement and were secretly delighted. She sneered to herself and calmly waited for them to make trouble. No matter what kind of conspiracy they had, she would deal with them all at once.
"Female Fortune Teller has such elegance. Our visit was not in vain. It is really better to see than to know." Jin Zuofeng put on an act and cupped his hands towards Yu Shu.
Yu Shu raised her hand to block and said bluntly: "Words of admiration can wait. Since you all want to compete with me, you must have a plan. Tell me about it first."
Yu Shu clearly pointed out that they came prepared but Jin Zuofeng did not blush. He raised his hand and pointed to his companions and said to her:
"This round will be a three-way competition. Senior Brother Pan, I, and you can choose the last person. We will choose three people to compete with Miss and set questions. Whoever answers correctly first wins. If they answer incorrectly or can't answer correctly, they lose. Three to two wins. Female Fortune Teller, what do you think?"
Xin Liu, Feng Zhaomiao and the others watched the fire from the other side. Seeing this step, they knew that it was inevitable but still broke out in cold sweat for Yu Shu. They secretly thought that this group of people was shrewd. They looked at each other and hesitated. In the end, no one stepped forward to speak up for Yu Shu. It was obvious that they were afraid of Han Wenguang's reputation as a Fortune Teller.
Yu Shu immediately saw through their plan. She snorted and said, "You're right, you're right.
"I believe that everyone here has a skill. Using three of your strengths to win against one of my skills, you all really know how to calculate."
Being ridiculed by her, most of the people who came were embarrassed. Only Jin Zuofeng's expression did not change. He smiled and said:
"This is not true. The Three First Grades have no loopholes. You were able to answer all the questions set by the Celestial Commissioner. As the Chief Fortune Teller, your weakness is greater than your strength. How can we calculate? "
These words were clearly sophistry, but he said it in a dignified manner. Yu Shu couldn't blame them anymore. She glanced at the expressions of the five of them and turned around to ask Lin Fu to prepare a table, chair, paper, and pen. She quickly came up with a plan and said,
"We'll do as you say. Who wants to go first?"
Jin Zuoyan and the rest saw Yu Shu's confident look and thought that she was arrogant. Only Pan Ming's expression remained the same. He took a step forward with his abacus and said,
"I'll go first. Female Mathematician, please set the question."
The guests who were chattering just now all lowered their voices and stopped talking. Hundreds of pairs of eyes stared at the two parties in front of the door in complete silence.
Yu Shu props up her chin with one hand, thinking about what kind of question to give to Jin Zuojue. Modern Advanced Mathematics was out of the question. The level of mathematics in this era had not developed to that point yet. Even if she gave them a question, they would not be able to understand it. On the contrary, it made her seem different.
The mathematics questions in ancient times were mostly about daily life. Giving a question was different from answering it. Coming up with a difficult question was more difficult than solving ten difficult questions. Han Wenguang's disciples had already taken the initiative and were already prepared. If she was really at the same level as them, then she would definitely lose today.
"Let me think about it. Let's let Master Pan set the question first." Yu Shu decided to test the other party's depth. She raised her hand and gestured for Pan Ming to go first.
Pan Ming knew that he had the upper hand. He didn't refuse and handed the abacus under his armpit to his junior brother. Then, he took a tiger-skinned pouch from someone behind him and took out a heavy bamboo tube. Then, he took out a pearl the size of a little finger, which was smooth and shiny. He held it in front of Yu Shu to let her see it clearly and said in a deep voice,
"This bamboo tube is seven and four inches long and its mouth is five and two inches round. This pearl is three inches round. The bamboo tube is filled with pearls of the same size. Let me ask, how many pearls can the tube hold?"
Yu Shu was surprised. She was surprised that the other party had asked such a high-level question. It was able to give her, who was not good at calculating the volume, a headache. It was really difficult for her to think of a suitable solution in a short time.
Xin Liu was standing not far behind Yu Shu. When he heard this question, he turned his head and whispered to Qin Yuerou, "What kind of question is this? It's clearly making things difficult for people. The lotus master has not even seen how big the bamboo tube is. She has to guess. Who knows how many pearls can be placed in the tube."
Qin Yuerou laughed and patted her shoulder. She also looked at Yu Shu worriedly and said softly, "Don't be anxious. Let's see."
At this time, Lin Fu directed the waiter to move two square tables between them. Brush and ink were ready. As Yu Shu pondered, she wrote down the sizes that Pan Ming had just said.
When the female fortune-teller saw her actions, she was afraid that she would take the initiative and hurriedly reminded her, "You haven't given your question yet."
Yu Shu sneered and ignored the small-minded woman. She put down her brush and looked up at Pan Ming, saying, "Since there are pearls, I will also use this as the question. There are a thousand pearls in a bushel and they are placed in ten treasure boxes. You can randomly put a few pearls in one box, but after you're done, from one to nine hundred and ninety-nine, you can take out an entire box of pearls for me. Great Fortune-Teller Pan, think about it. How are these ten boxes going to be filled?"
This was actually a problem that could be solved using a function. In the modern era, it was not difficult to solve, but for the fortune-tellers of this era, it was a difficult problem that they had no idea where to start.
Just by looking at Pan Ming and the others' conflicted expressions, Jin Zuofeng asked Pan Ming with his eyes. Pan Ming hesitated for a moment before silently nodding. Without saying anything else, he walked to the table and put down his abacus. He picked up his brush and started writing.
Yu Shu picked up her brush again, but the ink was still on the paper. She was not in a hurry to solve the question. First, she strenuously recalled the volume formulas from ancient times.
The time it took to drink a cup of tea quickly passed. There were also people who were proficient in mathematics. They discussed in private, but the difficulty of these two questions made them frown and unable to come up with a solution.
Yu Shu wrote and drew on the paper. She recalled the formulas that seemed right but weren't. With a few swishes, she changed to another piece of paper. She didn't know why, but she couldn't concentrate.
Gradually, her previous relaxed mood disappeared. People with discerning eyes could see that she was impatient. Some of the nearby customers craned their necks to see what she was calculating. It was a mess, and they couldn't see clearly.
Pan Ming, on the other hand, was playing with the abacus beads in one hand. From time to time, he would write down a number.
Seeing that the audience was getting impatient, Yu Shu suddenly grabbed a piece of paper and rolled it into a ball with a cold face. She threw it on the ground as if she was venting her anger. Then, she put down her brush and walked back and forth in front of the table. From time to time, she would stop and look at Pan Ming. Suddenly, she said,
"Great Fortune-Teller Pan, what if both of us can't answer this time?"
Pan Ming put the last bead on the abacus. He raised his head, and his eyebrows relaxed. There was an honest smile on his face.
"No, I already have the solution."
Yu Shu's face stiffened. The next moment, she heard the voices of the guests around her.
"She solved it. Did you hear that? Fortune-Teller Pan solved it first."
"Tsk, tsk. She is indeed the disciple of a famous teacher. Alas, this female fortune-teller is still too young."
"Alas. Young people are full of vigor. Seems like there isn't much difference between the top three. The fortune-teller might not be that good either. "
Hearing these criticisms, Yu Shu looked at the smug expressions on the other party's faces and felt unhappy. She reminded, "Then please explain. I'm all ears. You'll lose. "
"That's how it should be." Pan Ming looked down at the records on the paper and read them one by one, "Ten boxes of pearls. There were one, two, four, eight, sixteen, thirty-two, sixty-two, one hundred and twenty-five, two hundred and fifty, and five hundred, respectively. No matter how many you want. It can even take out the whole box. Am I right? "
"… That's the correct answer." Yu Shu smiled bitterly and nodded gracefully.
Xin Liu and Qin Yuerou, who were watching from the side, simultaneously revealed looks of disappointment. They clearly didn't expect Yu Shu to be inferior to her opponent.
"Hehe, Senior Brother, you're the best." The female diviner giggled. Standing next to Pan Ming, she raised her chin and said to Yu Shu, "Then this time it's your loss."
These people had been a little afraid of Yu Shu just a moment ago. However, after winning the first round, they were no longer so cautious, especially Jin Zuofeng. He didn't take Yu Shu seriously at all. Now, he was even more certain that she was able to win because of Celestial Commissioner's prejudice against their teacher. When he looked at Yu Shu again, there was a hint of disdain in his eyes.
Just as Jin Zuofeng was about to take advantage of the situation and start the second round, Yu Shu's servant, Yun Dou, came out of nowhere and whispered a few words in her ear.
Yu Shu turned to look at the flower rack that led to the backyard. Then, she apologized to Pan Ming and the others, "Please wait for a moment.
"Please wait a moment, I'll be right back."
After she finished speaking, she left everyone behind and hurriedly went around the flower rack, disappearing without a trace.
***
Xue Rui was waiting behind the flower rack. As soon as he saw Yu Shu's figure, he pulled her arm and quickly led her to an empty room on the first floor. After entering, he let go of her with one hand and closed the door with the other. He turned around and looked at Yu Shu with a serious expression.
Yu Shu was frightened by his expression, "Big Brother?"
"It's fine that you lost just now, but are you sure you can win the next two rounds?" Xue Rui asked with a sullen face.
Yu Shu was afraid that he would see her lose. She guiltily glanced to the side and said, "En."
Unexpectedly, Xue Rui said in a serious tone, "If I don't have full confidence, I will ask the Ninth Prince to come forward and suppress this matter."
"Ah? This, this is not necessary, right? " Yu Shu looked at Xue Rui with a puzzled expression, and she felt that he was making a mountain out of a molehill. It had already come to this, so if Liu Tan were to step forward and meddle in this, wouldn't it make things even more difficult for her?
Xue Rui sneered and said in a low voice, "Do you think Han Wenguang is just angry that you took away the reputation of his disciple, so he sent someone to pick a fight with you?"
Yu Shu was surprised and asked suspiciously, "Isn't it true?"
Xue Rui squinted his eyes, "Han Wenguang has been famous for 30 years. During these 20 years, he has trained two excellent disciples of Fortune Teller and one of them has three Fortune Tellers. He is in charge of the largest Chamber of Commerce in Anling City and has both fame and fortune. At his age, why would he make things difficult for a little girl like you just for a little reputation?"
Yu Shu felt that something was wrong. After listening to Xue Rui's explanation, she was even more sure that there was a conspiracy. Seeing that he seemed to know something, she urged,
"Brother, just tell me what you know. What is that person's plan?"
This was an important matter, yet Xue Rui wasn't willing to conceal it from Yu Shu who was the person concerned. So he told her about Han Wenguang's objective in full detail, and it included the severe consequences that would be brought about by her defeat today.
The hairs on Yu Shu's body stood on end when she heard half of what Xue Rui said, and when Xue Rui finished speaking, her beautiful face had already turned completely black. She took a few deep breaths to forcefully suppress her shock and rage, and a cold light flashed within her eyes as she gritted her teeth and said,
You've already exceeded your reading limit for today. If you want to read more, please log in.
Login
Select text and click 'Report' to let us know about any bad translation.
