The Princess of Northern Land
Chapter 460 Loss (2)_1

Chapter 460: Chapter 460 Loss (2)_1

If Ma Zhicai’s initial ambition was to become an official, his current goal has become to ensure his name is enshrined in the ancestral hall of Shili Village.

This thought has recently become like a demon in his heart.

"Are you prepared, I am going first to set the question," the moment Lou Zheng spoke, the chattering crowd immediately quieted down.

"Ready." An abacus and ink stand were set up in front of Eldest Brother Ma, similar to the rest of the shopkeepers and children.

Frankly, alongside the other children arranged by Lin Ziyin for the contest, Eldest Brother Ma felt quite upset. Wasn’t Lin Ziyin blatantly demonstrating his lack of faith in him, humiliating him?

However, to ensure a prosperous life in the future, Eldest Brother Ma dared not show his true feelings. Instead, he cheerfully joined the shopkeepers and children as if nothing was bothering him.

Seeing that Eldest Brother Ma raised no objections, Lou Zheng quickly announced a series of numbers. The numbers weren’t naked figures. Lou Zheng was a literate scholar before becoming the village chief of Shili Village and now a whiz at Lin Family’s external procurement. Hence, the issues he set were highly challenging and completely in line with practical applications.

With his expertise, Eldest Brother Ma was startled after hearing the problems set by Lou Zheng. He had never expected that Lou Zheng could create such profound questions. If hadn’t been operating a store in the city for so many years, he would have surely been puzzled by Lou Zheng.

"Withdraw one hundred and fifty taels, three mace of Silver." Before he could announce the number, those around him had already figured out the answer. Eldest Brother Ma looked surprised at the shopkeepers beside him. Most of these people were young, with complex expressions on their faces. They were all holding up cards with answers, leaving Eldest Brother Ma embarrassed, even the pupils from the school had solved it.

Among these children, some were from the village, and some were the children of the Lin Family’s servants. Eldest Brother Ma hastily wrote down the answer on a piece of paper and held it up.

However, no matter how quickly he moved, he was still half a beat behind everyone else.

In the face of the upcoming problems, Eldest Brother Ma no longer dared to underestimate the challenge and quickly focused on confronting Lou Zheng’s questions.

Lou Zheng asked ten questions, most of which involved complex calculations. What frustrated Eldest Brother Ma was that no matter how fast he calculated, he couldn’t match the speed of the Lin Family’s shopkeepers and the school children.

He privately suspected that Lou Zheng had secretly leaked the answers to those of the Lin Family participating in the contest.

He didn’t feel nervous though and wasn’t willing to expose Lou Zheng and Lin Ziyin’s shenanigans yet. Later, when his son, Ma Zhicai, set the question, they would see their real power, and by then, the villagers would be able to realise the trick without him saying anything.

Composing himself, Eldest Brother Ma honestly finished Lou Zheng’s ten problems. Fortunately, although his speed was slow, he did not make a single mistake.

Yan Family’s mother Yan and Ma Xincai’s mother Huang were both a little nervous as they stood nearby. As members of the Ma Family, they naturally hoped that Eldest Brother Ma could work in the Lin Family store. They could clearly see the improvements in the lives of the families in the village and were quite envious.

Eldest Brother Ma’s response was slow, but his wives were even more anxious than he was. They held the same suspicion as him, suspecting that Lou Zheng and Lin Ziyin had manipulated the situation behind their backs.

Finally, it was Ma Zhicai’s turn to set a problem. Ma Zhicai solemnly announced the problem with the elegance of an intellectual. There were comparatively larger and more complex numbers.

Eldest Brother Ma gave him an approving look. The complexity was good; it was time to demonstrate his capabilities. He was eager to see how the Lin Family would cheat this time.

Ma Zhicai spoke coldly, then sat to one side, indifferent. He only cared about setting the problem; as for the answer, he didn’t know. However, Ma Zhicai did not think there was any shame in this. Mathematics was only a tool for elegance, and he had initially aimed at becoming a government official. Naturally, he would not put his mind on such difficult and refined subjects like mathematics.