My Sword Immortal Wife Has Gone Berserk - Chapter 18:

Chapter 18: Denying His Father, Denying His Kin

“I really don’t know you.”

Lin Ce shrugged and spread his hands. In both his past and current lives, he had never heard of anyone named Zhao Sui from Muzhou. He did know Muzhou—it was one of the four docking points on the Grand Canal south of the capital, located at Yangshui Wharf.

Back then, Muzhou was infamous for corruption. It was said that not a single official stationed there was clean. When Lin Ce’s grandfather still held the position of Prime Minister, he had personally led a campaign to clean up Muzhou.

That operation had seen heads roll, and many officials were removed. But that had been years ago, and Lin Ce didn’t know the details.

When everyone saw Lin Ce deny knowing Zhao Sui, they all burst into laughter.

Zhao Sui’s face turned sallow, and a savage glint flashed through his eyes. He gripped his wine cup tightly, spilling much of its contents as his hands trembled. A wave of humiliation surged within him.

“Haha, of course the Prime Minister’s grandson wouldn’t remember the son of a lowly county magistrate.”

“Even though the corruption case back then rocked the entire Great Zhou Empire, the only names remembered were high-ranking officials.”

“Zhao Sui, just sit down. No one wants to hear from you.”

The other scholars at the gathering sneered with open disdain.

They were all competitors after all. Court appointments were limited—one position, one candidate—and they would step on anyone to climb up. Naturally, there was little goodwill among them.

Seeing Zhao Sui bring this embarrassment upon himself, the others wasted no time mocking him.

Lin Ce was a bit puzzled. He had no idea what this was about. But he already didn’t like Zhao Sui—the man’s earlier words had left a bad taste.

“Don’t take it personally, Young Master Lin,” Wu Sheng’an, the Prince of the Southwest’s son, quickly explained. “His father was a minor county magistrate in Muzhou. During the corruption case years ago, he was implicated and had his entire family’s property confiscated. Zhao Sui has held a grudge against you ever since.”

Without the explanation, Lin Ce wouldn’t have known Zhao Sui’s background.

“I see.” Lin Ce narrowed his eyes and nodded. That explained everything.

Normally, the scholars at this gathering wouldn’t dare provoke him. After all, he was the grandson of a former Prime Minister. Even a retired tiger was still feared. Who knew what kind of influence Prime Minister Lin still wielded behind the scenes? One word from him might launch a scholar’s career.

But Zhao Sui harbored a personal grudge against the Lin family, so naturally, he behaved recklessly. Now that he’d been humiliated, he had only himself to blame.

“This guy’s been spreading rumors around town, talking about how satisfying it is that Prime Minister Lin fell from power—as if he was the one who brought him down,” Li Jiayin added. She seemed to recall hearing about Zhao Sui.

Lin Ce cast him a scornful glance. What a clown.

“You may not remember me, Young Master Lin, but I remember you,” Zhao Sui said bitterly. He had assumed he’d made an impression worth remembering. Now that Lin Ce didn’t even know who he was, his pride was completely shattered. He downed his wine in frustration and slumped back in his seat.

But Lin Ce had no intention of letting him off that easily.

A gentleman might wait ten years to exact revenge—but Lin Ce? If it didn’t need to wait till tomorrow, he wouldn’t.

“Your father was involved in corruption. You should’ve been implicated as well. How did you end up in Bianjing, seated at Moonview Tower as a guest of His Highness?” Lin Ce asked with curiosity. According to the laws of the Great Zhou Empire, under the principle of collective punishment, an official’s family should be imprisoned if the head of the household was convicted. Zhao Sui shouldn’t even be qualified to be here.

These scholars were all Spring Imperial Exam candidates who hadn’t passed. Was Zhao Sui actually one of them? That didn’t add up.

Seeing Lin Ce’s curiosity, someone stepped in to explain.

“The person who reported Zhao Sui’s father for corruption… was Zhao Sui himself.”

This statement drew another round of uproarious laughter.

Everyone looked at Zhao Sui with strange expressions. This detail had never been made public, and Zhao Sui thought no one knew. But although these scholars had failed the exam and sought patrons among the elite, that didn’t mean they were from humble origins.

As the saying goes, know your enemy to win every battle. Many had quietly investigated their competition.

Zhao Sui had drawn attention with his constant rumors about Prime Minister Lin’s downfall. He was hoping to get noticed by some unseen power pulling strings behind the scenes.

So, plenty of people had already looked into him.

They hadn’t said anything before because the timing wasn’t right. Now that Lin Ce had asked, it was the perfect moment to spill the truth.

“You’re all lying!” Zhao Sui’s eyes reddened with rage. His whole face twisted with vicious fury.

He was trembling with anger but looked even more like a pitiful clown among the crowd.

Lin Ce understood the situation. He looked at Zhao Sui and smiled, “You’ve actually left quite an impression now. To expose your own father for corruption in the name of justice—that’s no small feat. Zhao Sui of Muzhou, I’ll remember you.”

Another round of laughter erupted.

Today, Zhao Sui’s last shred of dignity had been stripped away. Staying in Bianjing after this would be nearly impossible for him.

“Lin Ce! You planned all this, didn’t you?” Zhao Sui roared through gritted teeth, eyes burning with hatred. “You heard what I said about the Prime Minister and held a grudge—now you’re humiliating me in public!”

The more he spoke, the more agitated he became, finally stepping forward with fury in his eyes. It looked like he wanted to kill Lin Ce on the spot.

Wu Sheng’an waved his hand, and several guards stepped forward. If Zhao Sui dared attack, they would throw him out immediately.

“I don’t even know you. If I wanted to humiliate you, I wouldn’t have waited until today,” Lin Ce said calmly. A clown like him wanted to use Lin Ce as a stepping stone?

Even Wu Sheng’an wouldn’t dare to say he could trample Lin Ce beneath his feet.

As the Prime Minister’s eldest grandson, Lin Ce’s status alone was enough to make anyone cautious.

A toothless tiger still had claws. Without the burden of office, Prime Minister Lin could act more freely than ever.

“You… just wait and see!” Zhao Sui growled, clenching his fists so tightly that blood began to drip from between his fingers.

His hatred for Lin Ce had reached a boiling point.

Realizing it was no longer wise to stay, Zhao Sui turned to leave.

“Leaving already?” Lin Ce said with a light smile. “Since this is a poetry gathering, how about I send you off with a poem?”

“Oh? Young Master Lin is going to compose a poem?” Wu Sheng’an was intrigued. No one had ever heard the Prime Minister’s grandson recite poetry before. All the world knew about Lin Ce was that he was frail and sickly.

Li Jiayin also looked forward with anticipation.

Yesterday, she had gotten a glimpse of Lin Ce’s great ambition. The lines he had casually uttered had been bold and stirring—enough to rouse anyone’s spirit. She wondered what kind of masterpiece he would deliver today.

“I don’t really know anything about poetry, so I’ll just babble a few lines,” Lin Ce said cheerfully.

He cleared his throat and immediately launched into his verse:

“Forged a thousand times into a single needle,

Right and wrong flipped by lies that muddle.

Eyes grown where the backside’s been,

Disowning father, denying kin.”

Li Jiayin had expected something profound. But once she heard it, she instantly covered her mouth and giggled. Beside her, Wu Sheng’an burst out laughing and slapped the table in amusement.

The other scholars turned red trying to hold back their laughter, lowering their heads as they snickered.

Only Zhao Sui’s pupils shrank—his disgrace had just been immortalized by Lin Ce’s mocking verse.

Today’s confrontation—utter defeat!