Rebirth of Poisoned Empress, by 颜若优雅

Chapter 54

Because of the daughter of the Marquis Jiang's words, Shen Liang once again became the focus of attention. Who doesn't know that he had been raised in the countryside for the past five years? Between Shen Ruiting's neglect and Liu Shuhan's intolerance, who would hire a master to teach him? The gazes that landed on Shen Liang ranged from concern to sympathetic to gloating. Most of them only scrutinized him with silence.

"Challenging the man the moment you step forward. The daughter of Marquis Jiang really is someone who has opened this lord's world view up." The Elder Princess and the Imperial Princes had to watch what they say, but Pei Yuanxian wasn't concerned with formalities in the least. His notorious reputation isn't a fluke. The daughter of Marquis Jiang's face immediately flustered and the poisonous glare she threw at Shen Liang saturated in hatred. Along with her, the entire Jiang Family felt embarrassed. Even they did not expect their young lady to deliberately call out Shen Liang.

"Young Master Shen can't be afraid?" the young lady didn't dare retort back to Pei Yuanxian, but seeing that Shen Liang hadn't answer for quite a while, she settled her grudge on him. She wanted to make him lose face. On what basis should a country bum who had been raised in the countryside for the last five years suppress and be better than her, a high ranking, noble daughter from an affluent family in every aspect?

"En, I am indeed a bit frightened. Young Lady Jiang should take it easy on me," When faced by the gazes of the audience, Shen Liang stood up helplessly. His honest admittance of his fear seemed to render the other party speechless.

"Hmph! I sure want to see how long you can keep up your pretense for," Shen Qiang, who was seated next to Liu Shuhan, whispered viciously. Not only has Shen Liang stolen the attention and admiration that belonged to her since his return, he had also attracted the attention of the Imperial Princes, Duke of Qingping, Young Master Jing, as well as the others. Her jealousy and envy accumulated to an unbearable degree and hated that she couldn't personally challenge him to all of the traditional skillsets qin, chess, calligraphy, and art. She wanted everyone present to see besides that face of his, what else, or lack thereof, Shen Liang had to him.

"Qiang'er," Liu Shuhan said with warning. If one listened closely, they would be able to discern the fatigue in her voice. Then thinking about it, it was only natural. After all, the flawless plan she had developed after great difficulty did not achieve the intended results. Not only that, but it may even prove to bite them back. Anyone who faced such a situation would beel tired.

"I didn't say anything wrong..." Shen Qiang didn't dare to act presumptuous before her mother's warning gaze and could only lower her head to grumble. Zhao Lan, who shared the same table with them, was concerned about her daughter, whom she had sent back. Preoccupied, she couldn't take the opportunity to fan the fires as well. Concurrently, Lu Yang was an arrogant and prideful person. She had always looked down on the mother-daughter pair and couldn't bother with them. As for the rest, Shen Xiao, Shen Yang, and Shen Jing, none of them expressed their opinions either. They only looked at Shen Liang with a complicated gaze.

In comparison, as Shen Liang's father, Shen Ruiting's expression darkened. No matter how dissatisfied he was with Shen Liang, the child was still his son. The moment Shen Liang lost, he and the Marquis Donglin Manor would be the one who lost their faces as well. Adding on the ruminating rumors and gossip that had spread around the Imperial city, if someone with designs were to send in a request for his impeachment tomorrow, he'd be under quite some pressure.

"Since Shen Liang has already agreed, I wonder what Young Lady Jiang wishes to compete in?" Facing the gazes that focused on him, Shen Liang headed to the center of the performance venue with an extraordinary demeanor and bearing. He looked and faced the Young Lady Jiang with a steady gaze. The Elder Princess retracted her scrutinizing gaze on Shen Liang and instead turned it to the Young Lady Jiang.