Sima Qing had asked, but his senior, Zhong Zifeng, had only shook his head, saying that he couldn't be on the same level as an expert senior. That would be disrespectful.
Sima Qing didn't understand and even scoffed at it.
But now, seeing Xiao Shu coming down from the carriage and seeing the Five Rings beast pattern on his sleeve, Sima Qing suddenly came to a realization.
At this moment, he actually understood why his senior brother had always been unwilling to ascend to the five-ring realm.
So it was because Senior Shu was still at the Five Rings realm.
Not only was Senior Shu still alive, his appearance hadn't changed at all since fifty years ago.
At this moment, Sima Qing felt as if a bucket of cold water had been poured over his head, causing him to shiver.
Although he was arrogant, he wasn't so arrogant that he had lost his rationality. The moment he saw Xiao Shu, many of his past memories surfaced.
Sima Qing wasn't an ignorant person. Ignoring his fear, just the respect he had for Shu Xiao Lou made him not dare to display the same attitude he had before.
At this moment, he came back to his senses. Without caring about what the people around him thought, he took two quick steps forward, knelt on the ground, and performed a teacher's greeting.
"Sima Qing pays his respects to Senior Shu. I didn't know that Senior Shu was in the carriage and stupidly attacked. Please punish me, Senior Shu."
It was exactly the attitude a student would have when meeting their teacher. Humble, fearful, and even with a hint of worship.
At this moment, without his status as a State Preceptor, Sima Qing only knew that he was a junior, and Senior Shu was someone who even his own teacher had to pay respects to. It wasn't too much for him to do such a greeting.
Sima Qing's one hundred and eighty degree change in attitude stunned everyone present.
Lin Jin didn't expect Sima Qing to change so quickly. There wasn't even a formality. A second ago, he was still threatening to teach Lin Jin a lesson, and the next second, he was kneeling on the ground, admitting defeat.
After being stunned for a moment, Lin Jin mumbled to himself, "Or, he's a State Preceptor. Respect, respect!"
This time, Lin Jin was truly impressed. To him, whether Sima Qing was sincere or if he was compromising, it wasn't easy. There was still room for Lin Jin to learn from him.
Of course, if one were to observe closely, they could tell that Sima Qing truly respected Shu Xiao Lou.
Shu Xiaolou said with a straight face, "I remember you, Sima Qing. Back then, you were a humble and courteous young man. How did you start to put on airs after not seeing you for so many years? I was beside Peiyuan when he died. He said that whether it was Xiao Zhong or you, Xiao Sima, who made a mistake, it was all up to me to deal with. Since your state of mind is unstable, I will first take off your five-ringed beast pattern sleeve. Go back and reflect on yourself. When you realize your mistake, come back to me. "
After saying that, Shu Xiao Lou actually stretched out his hand and pulled off the five rings beast pattern sleeve from Sima Qing's sleeves.
Unfortunately, Sima Qing did not dare to dodge at all, and even more did not dare to stop him. He actually obediently allowed Shu Xiao Lou to pull off the five rings beast patterned sleeve.
"Sima Qing will follow Senior Shu's teachings!"
At this moment, after Sima Qing finished speaking, he stood up, bowed and retreated before leaving.
He just left.
He did not leave behind any words. Because Shu Xiao Lou told him to go back and reflect, Sima Qing did not dare to not go.
Because Shu Xiao Lou had just said that you, Sima Qing, made a mistake. Someone told me to punish you, and this person is called Peiyuan.
Others might not know who Peiyuan was, but how could Sima Qing not know?
Mister Peiyuan was his and Zhong Zifeng's teacher.
When Senior Shu mentioned Peiyuan's name, Sima Qing did not dare to have the slightest bit of resistance.
He was an arrogant person, but he also respected his teacher.
These thoughts had only flashed through Sima Qing's mind once over the years. From his unparalleled arrogance to his obedient departure, these were all changes in Sima Qing's mind. Naturally, no one else knew.
It was impossible for those who didn't know the inside story to not be shocked when they saw this frightening scene.
Even Lin Jin, who knew some inside information, was dumbfounded, not to mention the others.
Many of the princes' personal guards, palace guards, and the invited beast appraisers were all dumbfounded. This time, Sima Qing had turned the corner so quickly and hastily that they had no time to react.
However, Shu Xiao Lou's acting skills were still on point. After getting off the carriage and chasing away the State Preceptor, Sima Qing, he placed his hands behind his back and walked forward.
Along the way, no one dared to block his path and they all subconsciously moved aside.
The crowd had already noticed the Five Ring beast tattoo on Shu Xiao Lou's sleeves. Some of the more knowledgeable people immediately recalled that there was a mysterious Rank 5 beast appraiser in Heavenly Jade Academy.
Could it be this old man?
Appraiser Yan's eyelids were twitching. As one of the academy's veteran beast appraisers, he had naturally heard rumors about Senior Shu. In fact, he had seen the red dress version of Shu Xiao Lou yesterday. Today, seeing this old man version, Appraiser Yan was dumbfounded and had no idea what was going on.
When Shu Xiao Lou passed by Appraiser Yan, he turned to look at him. Appraiser Yan quickly bowed in greeting.
After a few seconds, Shu Xiao Lou continued forward and said to Lin Jin, "Let's go in."
Those who had regained their senses immediately went forward to lead the way.
Appraiser Yan didn't know if he should go or turn back. The beast appraisers invited by the second prince had arrived as well but they didn't notice the earlier scene. Two Rank 4 beast appraisers came down from the carriage. Upon seeing Appraiser Yan, they greeted him with a smile.
"Appraiser Yan, why are you standing here and not leaving?"
Appraiser Yan turned around and saluted them. "Oh, it's Appraiser Du and Appraiser Wang."
"Appraiser Yan, I heard that the crown prince invited you here. It seems like Lord Royal Preceptor will be here too. Why aren't you here? Is he already inside? "Appraiser Du asked from the other side.
Appraiser Yan smiled bitterly. "It's a long story. Alright, let's talk as we walk."
No matter what, Appraiser Yan was invited here by the crown prince. Lord Royal Preceptor may have left due to the earlier incident but Appraiser Yan couldn't leave. If he did, wouldn't he be making things difficult for the crown prince?
Appraiser Yan couldn't bring himself to do something like that.
By the time they arrived at the banquet hall, Appraiser Yan had already recounted what happened earlier. Appraiser Du and Appraiser Wang were dumbfounded and were already thinking of backing out.
As the academy's Rank 4 beast appraisers, they more or less knew some of the academy's secrets.
Very few of the average assistant lecturers and students had heard of Senior Shu.
However, official Rank 4 beast appraisers like them still had their own sources of information. Senior Shu was a legend in the academy and not only did this legend show up today, he even reprimanded the imperial preceptor and tore off his five-ringed beast pattern sleeve sleeve. More importantly, the imperial preceptor didn't seem displeased at all. Instead, he remained respectful and obediently went back to his room to reflect on his mistakes.
This was a little too much.
If even the imperial preceptor behaved this way, one could only imagine the pressure they would feel if they were to face Senior Shu.
"Was Lord Shu invited by the third prince?" Appraiser Wang suddenly asked the crucial question.
Appraiser Yan and Appraiser Du came to a realization.
Today's banquet was in fact a test set up by His Majesty to test the three princes who had the potential to become the crown prince. To a certain extent, the fact that they were invited meant that they were supporting the corresponding princes.
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