Jiang Guangsheng had never met anyone so arrogant!
But what Zou Hansheng said was not wrong. In the two successive promotion examinations, Ji Zizhao had indeed surpassed all others, but she had always ranked second, while Zou Hansheng had consistently led by a wide margin.
"What, the second young master of the Jiang family has nothing to say? If you have nothing to say, don't stick your neck out. Not only will your hero saving the beauty plan fall through, but you might even end up looking like a buffoon in the eyes of the beauty, which would be a loss not worth the gain," Zou Hansheng despised petty merchants like Jiang Guangsheng the most.
Earning money from medicine while seeking a good reputation in the palace was utterly hypocritical.
"So, this is what it's like to be consistently at the forefront," Ji Zizhao, who had been silent, suddenly spoke.
Zou Hansheng, unable to discern the tone of her words, frowned, "What is the meaning of the eldest daughter of the Ji family's words?"
"Doesn't Young Master Zou pride himself on being knowledgeable and well-traveled? Why do you need to ask me such a simple question now?" Ji Zizhao said with a smile. Sudane Novel Network.
Zou Hansheng choked, "If the eldest daughter of the Ji family has something to say, just say it directly. There's no need to beat around the bush."
Ji Zizhao continued unhurriedly, "I am merely stating the truth. Why does Young Master Zou need to be so modest? Or do you truly not understand? If that's the case, I'm truly curious. You were just so proud and arrogant. How can you not even understand the meaning of such a simple statement?"
Faced with Ji Zizhao's unyielding demeanor, Zou Hansheng was truly vexed.
He genuinely did not understand what Ji Zizhao meant by her words, but now that Ji Zizhao had spoken so definitively, even if he didn't understand, he dared not speak carelessly.
But if he were to claim he understood…
Zou Hansheng truly did not understand.
Therefore, Zou Hansheng, unable to discern whether it was praise or criticism, stood frozen, unsure whether to smile or not.
These words were impossible to respond to!
Jiang Guangsheng watched Zou Hansheng, who was being forced by Ji Zizhao to pretend to understand, and felt a surge of satisfaction.
This man, relying on being the sole son of the Imperial Physician, had always been arrogant. His conceited and dismissive nature was well-known among the wealthy young masters of the imperial city.
It was rare to see Zou Hansheng, whom all the wealthy young masters deferred to, in such a predicament, and Jiang Guangsheng could not help but feel pleased.
Coincidentally, this scene was witnessed by Uncle Zhang Shuzhong and Zou Li, who were not far away.
Both were figures of the highest authority in the Imperial Hospital, and naturally, they had come to observe the final round of the promotion examination.
Zhang Shuzhong was naturally protective of his own, and seeing someone troubling his disciple, he naturally became displeased. Oh, so his disciple deserved to be bullied just because she was a woman?
Of course, given Zhang Shuzhong's seniority, confronting Zou Hansheng directly would be beneath him.
But if he couldn't deal with the younger generation, couldn't he deal with the elder?
Glancing at Zou Li beside him, Zhang Shuzhong opened his mouth, "I never expected the sole son of Imperial Physician Zou to be so naive and innocent, so unworldly. Imperial Physician Zou is truly a competent father. No wonder he doesn't linger in the imperial palace for more than a moment after his shift ends each day. He must be busy teaching his son how to behave, right?"
Hearing these words, Zou Li was almost beside himself with anger.
"Doesn't linger in the imperial palace for more than a moment after his shift ends" clearly implied he was unwilling to share the burden.
And "unworldly, naive and innocent"...
Don't think he couldn't tell this was an insult to his son's intelligence!
"My son was the first in two promotion examinations. A bit of impatience is understandable for anyone." Zou Li was also an old fox, his words slippery like an eel, making it impossible to grasp any fault.
Zhang Shuzhong had no intention of indulging him. "Indeed, he was first. But that 'first' is not the same as this 'first'."
The results of the top ten in the Imperial Hospital's promotion examinations were personally reviewed by the two Imperial Physicians.
Precisely because of this, both Zhang Shuzhong and Zou Li were well aware that Ji Zizhao had not truly ranked second, but rather that she had deliberately chosen to be second.
Those who had experienced the ways of officialdom understood that to live a stable life, one could not be too timid, nor could one be too assertive.
Only by being mediocre yet possessing hidden talent could one stand more firmly and go further.
In this promotion examination, Ji Zizhao had clearly been capable of doing better in both the first round of tests and the second round of consultations, yet she had only gone so far.
If the first time could be attributed to carelessness, then the second time was deliberate.
Both Zhang Shuzhong and Zou Li were old foxes in the palace; if they couldn't see such a nuance, they would have lived in vain.
Therefore, even though his son had ranked first in both promotion examinations, Zou Li did not dare to boast in the slightest.
Because of guilt!
Hence, Zhang Shuzhong was so righteous now.
Because he had the confidence!
To put it bluntly, you know deep down how your son's first place was achieved, don't you?
Your son acts like a big brother in front of my disciple because your son is truly foolish.
But if you try to act tough in front of me, then you are truly asking for a beating!
Zou Li had not told his son the truth because he did not want to dampen his son's confidence.
Unexpectedly, his son had provoked trouble on his own.
Feeling Zhang Shuzhong's almost tearful expression beside him, Zou Li's face darkened.
Fortunately, the time for the third round of the promotion examination arrived, and Zou Li finally escaped the troublesome Zhang Shuzhong.
Because the third round required continuous patient consultations, each doctor had to be accompanied by a designated imperial physician.
After the doctor examined the patient, the designated imperial physician would then make the final judgment.
Due to limited personnel, both Zhang Shuzhong and Zou Li had to participate.
Determined to defend his son's honor, Zou Li specifically chose to be Ji Zizhao's assessor.
As soon as the promotion examination began, he followed Ji Zizhao closely.
He wouldn't have known if he hadn't followed, but the more he followed, the darker Zou Li's face became.
Ji Zizhao's actions, from pulse diagnosis to prescribing medicine, were as smooth as flowing water. Moreover, she could prescribe the most secure and effective prescriptions based on the patient's constitution. Then, for patients with sprains, Ji Zizhao directly used silver needles.
With such flawless execution, Zou Li couldn't find a single flaw, even if he wanted to pick at the smallest imperfection.
As a result, Zou Li's face remained dark from the end of the third round of the promotion examination until he stepped through his own front door!
At the dinner table, seeing his son's spirited demeanor, Zou Li suppressed his anger, unwilling to crush his son's self-esteem.
However, Zou Hansheng, as if it were his destiny, brought up Ji Zizhao. "Father, you observed Ji Zizhao closely today. You must be well aware of her medical skills, right? You warned me days ago to answer seriously and not underestimate Ji Zizhao. But what was the outcome? Wasn't I still crushing her?"
Zou Li: "..."
My son, endure!
Seeing his father's silence, Zou Hansheng assumed he was correct and added indignantly, "Father, you didn't see how Ji Zizhao was feigning composure today. Clearly, she was being crushed by me the whole time, yet she insisted on putting on a facade of aloofness. Indeed, a good-for-nothing is still a good-for-nothing."
Zou Li: "..."
What else could he do?
Continue to endure.
"Father, why are you silent? Are you angry at Ji Zizhao's foolishness? If so, tomorrow I will definitely see where Ji Zizhao ranks. It would be best if she isn't directly relegated to the bottom."
Zou Li: "..."
Endure...
No more!!