Chapter 573: Chapter 560 Mutual Compensation

“You…” Zhuang Qinglan was too choked up to speak.

Because the two of them started to argue, everyone who had been concentrating on the examination turned to look at them, and discussions burst forth.

“I remember her. She seems to have taken the exam last year too. Even then, she was very overbearing. She even bullied someone. I didn’t like the way she behaved when I saw her last year. I didn’t expect to encounter her again this year. She still behaves as if no one else matters.”

“Exactly, I clearly saw her deliberately knock that young girl’s writing to the ground earlier, then she intentionally stepped on it and tore it apart. What she’s upset about now is just an imitation of her own behavior. She doesn’t even think about how someone else might feel when their belongings are damaged.”

“I heard she is the daughter of Magistrate Zhuang? I guess she is acting so arrogant because her father holds an official position at the imperial court.”

“So what if she’s the magistrate’s daughter? In theory, a magistrate should serve the people with the salary provided by the imperial court. In reality, she uses her father’s position to cause trouble everywhere, isn’t she afraid of embarrassing her family?”

“Indeed, and not to mention that this is a women’s academy, a quiet place for studying. Her aggressive behavior is damaging the reputation of scholars. How could such a person be fit to study in an academy?”

“Exactly, exactly…”

The crowd of onlookers grew larger and the discussions louder. But everyone was unanimous in their opinion, that Zhuang Qinglan should be driven away.

Zhuang Qinglan, who was used to being domineering at home, was still young. She found it hard to save face when confronted with such talk, her face turning beet red. She glared fiercely at the onlookers, “Stop making such a fuss here, or I’ll tell my father and have you all arrested.”

Her words were like a stone thrown into a lake, stirring up waves of reactions.

Scholars speak of persuading people through reason, talent, and virtue. But Zhuang Qinglan, who was already in the wrong, was now making outrageous statements, trying to suppress everyone with her authority. Naturally, this aroused discontent among those who came to take the exam.

The voices denouncing Zhuang Qinglan grew louder, and the words became increasingly harsh, with an obvious intention to drive her out.

“What are you doing…” Zhuang Qinglan, who had been acting aggressively, was now frightened by the aggressive press of the crowd. She kept retreating and in her panic, stumbled over a stone protruding from the pavement and fell on her buttocks.

This fall brought out all of Zhuang Qinglan’s fear and shock, and she burst into tears with a loud cry.

Her sobs were pitiful to hear.

But she was surrounded by women who, instead of being moved by her teardroppish appearance, found Zhuang Qinglan utterly useless. They saw her as someone who only knew how to use the power of her household to oppress others. Their disdain for her only increased.

“What happened?” A woman, around her thirties, tall and thin, looking very dignified, walked over and asked loudly with a glance at the crowd.

“Master Xue is here.”

Someone in the crowd shouted, and the noisy crowd quieted down immediately.

Even Zhuang Qinglan, who had been sobbing, tried hard to stop crying. She covered her mouth, her shoulders heaving with restrained sobs.

“Master Xue,” Mr. Feng paid his respects and began to recount what had happened.

“Hmm,” Master Xue nodded slightly, then turned to Qingsui, “It seems this incident started when Zhuang Qinglan tore your scroll. Scholars often talk about being magnanimous, returning hatred with kindness. But you purposely threw her paperweight on the ground. Can you tell me what you were thinking?”

“In my opinion, if we return hatred with kindness, then how should we repay kindness? Moreover, whether to forgive someone depends on whether they are worthy of forgiveness. If a person is fundamentally irredeemable, forgiving them would actually encourage wrongdoing and give others the impression that doing wrong is permissible. It would then be inappropriate if they become more and more unrestrained in the future.”

“To make them understand how it feels if the same situation happened to them, to feel other people’s pain and dissatisfaction, then they might weigh their actions more carefully in the future and dare not do evil.”

“In addition…”

Qingsui paused, then said, “This calligraphy is from my mentor. I treasure it very much. It was damaged by someone, and I was furious. I also wanted to vent.”

“Well said.” Master Xue nodded slightly when she heard Qingsui’s words, then shifted her gaze to Zhuang Qinglan, who was sobbing softly, “Are you the daughter of Magistrate Zhuang?”

“Yes.” Zhuang Qinglan hurryingly nodded, “My father is Ningming Magistrate, Zhuang Qisheng.”

“Last year, Magistrate Zhuang fixed the roof of the academy, and I have not yet thanked him. When you go back, please pass on my thanks to your father.” Master Xue said.

“Yes,” Zhuang Qinglan nodded hastily like a pecking chicken, “The rosewood paperweight I brought this time was originally intended as a gift for Master Xue. I didn’t expect it to be ruined by this unruly girl. I hope Master Xue can stand up for me.”

“If you damage others’ belongings, you should naturally compensate them. This is basic justice,” Master Xue nodded, “In that case, you should compensate each other for the items you’ve damaged.”

Compensate each other?

The crowd looked at each other in confusion.

It sounded very fair, but the rosewood paperweight that Zhuang Qinglan brought was obviously valuable, probably worth several dozen taels of silver. On the other hand, Qingsui’s calligraphy didn’t even have a signature. From what she said, it was written by her primary school teacher, it most likely was just worth a few dozen coins.

With such a great disparity in their value, compensating each other was clearly a bit biased towards Zhuang Qinglan.

As expected, was it because Zhuang Qinglan is the daughter of a magistrate?

For a moment, the crowd looked at Master Xue with mixed feelings.

“However, to avoid you arbitrarily asking for compensation, the price of your items will be determined by me and these gentlemen, with you supervising from the sidelines,” Master Xue said.

“Master Xue is right,” Mr. Feng and others all agreed.

Seeing this, Zhuang Qinglan hurriedly got up from the ground, wiped her tears, and nodded, “I’ll listen to Master Xue.”

“Hmm,” Master Xue nodded slightly and looked at Qingsui, “What about you?”

If Master Xue was fair and unbiased, she wouldn’t suffer any wrong. If Master Xue was just giving Zhuang Qinglan a way out and favouring her, it meant that she could do without studying in this academy.

In short, there was something to gain from both scenarios.

“I will follow Master Xue’s decision,” Qingsui thought for a moment and agreed.