"So Your Majesty, who do you favor now? Is it..." the previous minister opened his mouth again and mentioned his granddaughter's name.
"Although your granddaughter is not bad, my daughter still stands a better chance! My daughter is proficient in music, chess, calligraphy, and painting..." Another minister spoke.
"Music, chess, calligraphy, and painting are nothing special, my daughter is different. She once studied dance from a master, her dancing skills encompass the essence of a dance apprentice!"
"Is dancing so great? My granddaughter..."
And so, they welcomed the first debate in the court today. Perhaps this was the initial competition of peerless talents, a competition outside of the regular.
*Cough!* The emperor interrupted the "competition" with a cough, then unexpectedly uttered a sentence that surprised everyone—
"Your daughters and granddaughters are all very good. They are truly talented women of the empire. Normally, I would have chosen one of you, but, this time, I will choose Zhen Xiaoyan!"
"Why? If in a fair situation, she won't be able to win."
"You don't need to worry about fairness. When I say it's fair, it's fair. Although you feel like it's impossible, since Ye Lang, the brat, chose Zhen Xiaoyan, the result is now hard to predict." The emperor knew they still had doubts, questioning the fairness of the situation, and he clarified and guaranteed it once more.
"Why? So, Your Majesty, do you believe that Ye Lang has the ability to change the result and allow Zhen Xiaoyan, that fat and useless girl, to win against so many beautiful and talented young ladies in an absolutely fair competition?"
"No, I don't believe he has that ability," the emperor shook his head immediately. Ye Chengtian seemed to also agree with this, simply because Zhen Xiaoyan's conditions were too incredible, something that not even a god could change, not to mention Ye Lang, the always absent-minded fool.
"But..." before the ministers could finish their sentence, the emperor said something very surprising with a sacred and serious attitude.
"But, I believe in his luck!"
"..." The crowd fell silent.
"You can question his abilities, but you absolutely cannot question his luck! Lady Luck has always favored him, it's truly enviable!" The emperor said with deep emotion, seemingly really envious.
"..."
At this, the crowd had no more words. Many of them had heard something about Ye Lang's miraculous luck, which often brought him good fortune in situations others could not even dream of obtaining.
What many didn’t know was that Ye Lang's luck wasn't just limited to matters of money; it was also reflected in some aspects of his daily life. For instance, he had never been injured due to accidents, despite his absent-minded way of walking. In the past, it wasn't unusual to see Tiger Niu taking care of him, but during the past five years when he walked alone, he miraculously managed to avoid stepping into pits and getting hit by falling objects. Yet, he never realized it until after the fact.
One could say, borrowing the emperor’s words, Lady Luck favored him so much that she didn't even allow the slightest harm to befall him!
"But, he is not lucky every time. There are many times he has really faced misfortune. How can you be sure he will succeed this time?" someone questioned, who was indeed right, for if he wanted to buy something, others would fight to buy it with him.
"Not succeed, but fail! His goal is to squander his wealth!" Ye Chengtian corrected, adding, "We were just making a small bet. Winning or losing depends on divine will!"
"Yes, his bets were to make something originally impossible seem possible. This doesn't mean it will definitely happen. So, if you want to bet with us, be prepared to lose your money!" the emperor smiled.
Although the emperor mentioned the risks, everyone understood the principle. They were not optimistic about Zhen Xiaoyan, but many still bet on her, transforming this previously low-profile competition into something more lively.
This was because the emperor had placed his bet. In order to gain favor with the emperor, these individuals would naturally also place their bets, considering it as a form of social cost rather than a gamble.
Nevertheless, the focus wasn't solely on Zhen Xiaoyan, but on Ye Lang. People were more interested in where he was and what he was planning to do to deal with this competition.
Initially, many were waiting for Ye Lang to do something stupid or rather, something crazy. They wanted to witness this craziness, finding it more thrilling.
Many believed that the means by which Ye Lang allowed Zhen Xiaoyan to win would be to cripple these competitors one by one. This was the only possibility, as even if Zhen Xiaoyan made significant efforts to change her current situation, she would still not emerge victorious within such a short time, and she would not miraculously transform into a phoenix.
If they had a few months, there might be a chance, albeit a small one. However, with only twenty-odd days left, unless mythical beings descended to help her, a mere mortal would find it almost impossible to achieve.
However, all their hopes were dashed in the end. Ye Lang remained inactive throughout, and everything was calm and uneventful!
Could this be the calm before the storm?
The brilliant ladies and their families, still anxious and uneasy, couldn't relax until the very end. Only then could they truly ease up. This also caused the atmosphere at the beginning of the competition to feel like the commencement of a battle, with armed guards, mercenaries, and city guards appearing throughout, making the scene extremely tense!
"What's going on? Did we come to the wrong place? Is this the Peerless Talent Competition or the Martial Arts Competition?" Some uninformed spectators asked.
"No, you're in the right place. This is the preliminary round of the Peerless Talent Competition!"
"Then why..."
"Why is it like this? It's because someone is threatening the safety of these talented women, so there are so many people anxiously protecting them."
"What?! Someone wants to harm these talented women? Who is it? Tell me, I'll get rid of him!" one person declared arrogantly, seemingly a powerful figure.
He believed that his words would receive support, after all, everyone here had come for the talented women, and naturally nobody would want anything to happen to them.
However, he was wrong, very wrong. He did not receive the support he expected, but instead, some people were mocking and looking down on him!