Journey to the West: Starting by taking Sun Wukong as my disciple!-Chapter 583 - 582: In Front of the Powerful, Self-Respect Is Most Important

Chapter 583: Chapter 582: In Front of the Powerful, Self-Respect Is Most Important

Tian Peng merely extended one hand and grasped the young master’s fist, then remained motionless.

The young master tried to pull his hand out, but it was as if it had been stuffed into stone, completely immovable.

While watching the match, he hadn’t thought Zhu Ganglie was all that impressive, deeming his opponent too weak. It was only after he truly faced Zhu Ganglie that the young master realized how formidable this man was.

This man had restrained him without using any techniques, and he didn’t even have the space to fight back.

If they were to really compete, the thought of how terrifying this man’s true strength could be was something he didn’t dare to contemplate.

"Young master, do you plan to admit defeat, or do you want me to beat you?" Tian Peng asked.

The young master glared at Tian Peng, "I will never admit defeat!"

"Very well, as you wish." After Tian Peng finished speaking, he released the grip on the young master’s hand and swung his fist towards the disc on his body.

In an instant, the young master lost.

The officials were also stupefied; they had fixed the match for the young master to become the martial arts champion. Now that he had lost, the title was slipping through his fingers. Could the Lord forgive them for this?

"Examiner sir, what should we do?"

The examiner was flustered too; he hadn’t expected this commoner to be so extraordinarily skilled.

The young master looked at the officials who were hesitating to announce the results and barked sternly, "What’s the matter? Can’t you see who won?"

"It’s not that, young master, it’s just..." the official hemmed and hawed, unsure of what to say.

"Announce the results!" the young master demanded more sternly.

"This..." The official was extremely anxious; after all, the young master was just a child, and they couldn’t take his words seriously. The real person in charge was the Lord, and they didn’t dare take responsibility for this.

"I’ll say it again, announce the results!" the young master’s voice was severe, and he was clearly angry.

The official looked at the examiner with a pleading gaze, and for a moment, nobody dared to speak.

The young master didn’t dare to confront Tian Peng, so he could only vent his anger on the officials and the examiner.

In front of a true strongman, the young master was unwilling to show haste or irritation; he had now genuinely come to regard Tian Peng as both an opponent and a target.

Among those he had seen in the past decade or so, the strongest person was his father.

He looked down on anyone who practiced martial arts because he knew, no matter how formidable others might be, they were no match for his father.

But in the fight against Tian Peng, from the moment he threw his first punch, Tian Peng became the most formidable person he had ever encountered in his life.

One must hold the utmost respect for the strong, and the longer the delay now, the more disgrace the young master felt.

Initially, he disagreed with his father setting the martial arts champion title for him but then thought that since no one could beat him anyway, whether at mounted archery or martial arts, the champion title was rightfully his, even without a fixed quota.

Yet no one had anticipated an accident in the examination hall, an accident that had caught everyone off guard.

"It doesn’t matter. I don’t care if I’m not first; I’m indifferent to my ranking. After all, I’ll be leading troops in the future and any position will do," Tian Peng said, unconcerned.

Tian Peng genuinely didn’t care, but the young master did.

"I, Chai Wei, do not covet fame or glory. Whoever wins is the winner, and whoever loses is the loser," Chai Wei said sternly. "Since you won’t admit he won, fine, whoever wants this first place can have it!"

Chai Wei’s words came out very bluntly.

The examiner was the first to recover and immediately said, "Young master, please don’t say that. It’s just that Zhu Ganglie was too impressive, and we were all caught off guard for a moment. The first place naturally goes to the winner, so our exam today has come to an end. Everyone may go home now."

Hearing the examiner say this, the young master’s mood improved slightly. He nodded his head and said to Tian Peng, "What’s yours is yours, you won so you are the first."

Tian Peng nodded without saying anything.

In fact, it wasn’t only Chai Wei who had misjudged Tian Peng; Tian Peng had also not expected the young master to take the matter so seriously.

It was just a first place after all. He had thought that someone as extraordinary as a young master would care a lot about the ranking, but what mattered more to him was not the ranking but his self-respect.

If Tian Peng hadn’t been present, the young master would indeed have been very impressive; at least his first place and the title of martial arts champion would have been well deserved.

After the exam ended and Tian Peng was preparing to leave, he had just taken two steps when the young master called out to him.

"Wait a moment."

"What is it?" Tian Peng asked.

"You came to Chang’an alone, right? You don’t look like you’ve stayed in Chang’an before. How about I show you around Chang’an?"

He virtually didn’t know how many times he had wandered around Chang’an. How could others tell he hadn’t been to Chang’an just by looking at him? Was it written all over his face?

"Your clothes seem to have not been changed for quite some time." Chai Wei said, "I know a tailor shop in Chang’an that makes very good clothes."

Tian Peng then understood. It was his clothes that gave him away.

He really hadn’t paid much attention to clothing. The clothes he was wearing were still the ones he had made in a tailor shop back in Bianjing. When he was working as a constable in Kaifeng Prefecture, he had worn the constable’s uniform and had no chance to wear other clothes.

"No need," Tian Peng declined, "I don’t have much money. Besides, once I earn a ranking, won’t they make clothes for me? I should save money where I can."

"You don’t have to spend money," Chai Wei said.

"That’s even more reason not to go," Tian Peng replied. "I don’t know you, and today is the first time we’ve met. Besides, I don’t think you should be so concerned about me, especially since I took your first place."

"First place is something you earned, not something you took."

Chai Wei’s expression changed instantly upon hearing this; he was very sensitive about people mentioning this, especially since he had lost to Tian Peng. First place was meant to be won, not taken.

"Alright, it is something I earned," Tian Peng said, following his words. "So there is even less necessity. Besides, we are not the same kind of people. There’s no need to stay in contact outside the examination hall."

"Won’t we be the same once we both enter the court to serve as officials?" Chai Wei followed up, "Actually, I wanted to ask where you trained your martial arts?"

So that’s why the young master kept being so attentive; he wanted to learn skills.

"That’s even less necessary, young master." Tian Peng said, "The techniques you’ve learned are all taught by lords; I don’t belong to any school, and I haven’t even shown off my martial arts—I rely solely on brute force."

"I genuinely want to make friends with you," Chai Wei said.

"I know," Tian Peng replied. "But the exam isn’t over yet, and if others see us getting close, they might think I’m trying to curry favor with you. It’s better to keep some distance."

"I don’t think you’re that kind of person," Chai Wei said. "Besides, since you are the victor, if there’s any fawning to be done, it should be me fawning over you, not the other way around."

Tian Peng truly didn’t care about that; he simply didn’t want to get too close to Chai Wei.

In Chai Wei’s eyes, there was admiration and worship for him, but he was just someone with greater strength. Why should Chai Wei admire him so much?

"Are you really not going?" Chai Wei asked. "Even going for a meal would be good—Chang’an City is full of delicacies, and I’m sure you’d find something you love to eat."