“Lord Han is right, this is my fault, official…”
Although being reprimanded by Han Mo in person was indeed a bit embarrassing.
However, Li Yueyang still had a handle in Han Mo's hands. No matter how much his pride was hurt, he could only swallow his humiliation at this moment.
Moreover, the tougher Han Mo's attitude, the more at ease he felt in his heart.
“The city of Mingzhou is in ruins and needs rebuilding. If you have nothing else to do, you should go back and attend to your business!”
After a stern lecture, Han Mo directly sent Li Yueyang away.
“Yes! This official takes his leave!”
“I reckon it won’t be long, perhaps three to five days, or at most seven to eight days, before our Minister Wang comes charging over. Have you thought about how to deal with him?”
As soon as Li Yueyang left, Shao Bowen walked in, a mischievous smile on his face as he asked Han Mo.
“Why do I feel like you’re enjoying my misfortune?”
Seeing the smile on his face, Han Mo rolled his eyes at him.
“What do you mean enjoying misfortune? I call this sitting on a mountain and watching the tigers fight, while also taking the opportunity to recuperate and critique the heroes of the world!”
“Is there a difference?”
Looking at his shamelessly smug demeanor, Han Mo’s eyes were about to roll out of his head.
This guy was truly too much. He was supposed to be his advisor, but instead of offering suggestions, he was here to witness his predicament.
“Of course, there’s a difference! Is enjoying misfortune something a scholar should do?”
Seeing his smug look, Han Mo gritted his teeth in annoyance, but he was utterly helpless against him.
After all, when a renowned scholar like him was determined to shed all shame, ordinary people wouldn’t be able to do much about him.
However, Han Mo was not an ordinary person. With a twinkle in his eye, he quickly thought of a way to retaliate.
“I heard that you, sir, have extraordinary attainments in mathematics, bearing the title of the greatest calculator in the Great Song Dynasty. Is this true?”
“What greatest calculator in the Great Song Dynasty? That’s just some flattery from friends and not to be taken seriously. However, when it comes to attainments in mathematics, I do have some. I wouldn't dare say I'm the best, but ranking third or fourth is certainly within reach!”
Even though he didn’t know what mischief Han Mo was brewing, Shao Bowen was quite confident in his mathematical abilities.
“Since that’s the case, I do have something I need your guidance on!”
“Feel free to ask me anything about mathematics, and I, Shao, will tell you everything I know!”
Hearing this, Han Mo almost burst out laughing. He cleared his throat and quickly pinched his thigh, suppressing the laughter bubbling up inside him.
“A few days ago, I met an acquaintance who told me an interesting story. I’ve been racking my brain trying to figure it out, and today is the perfect opportunity to ask you, sir!”
“Oh? Something that could stump you, Master? I’m truly eager to hear it!”
As soon as mathematics was mentioned, Shao Bowen seemed to become serious all at once.
“My friend has a concubine named Chun Lu. When she has nothing to do, she likes to take two or three handkerchiefs and go to the market to eat snacks!”
“Does this have anything to do with mathematics?”
As Han Mo’s story became increasingly bizarre, Shao Bowen asked with some confusion.
“Don’t be impatient, sir, it’s coming right up!”
“It’s said that one day, Chun Lu went out with two sisters. They saw a street vendor selling novel snacks and each bought one. Each snack was originally ten copper coins. After they paid, the vendor suddenly heard that his wife had given birth to a son. Overjoyed, he returned five copper coins to the three of them!”
“Returned five copper coins to the three of them? That vendor is too stingy! How are these five coins supposed to be divided among three people?”
Shao Bowen couldn’t help but interject as he listened.
“That’s exactly right. Chun Lu also felt that the vendor was quite unkind. For the sake of fairness, she took three coins from the five, returning one coin to each person. The remaining two coins were used to buy a piece of rice cake. After the three of them shared it, they each went home. However, upon returning home, Chun Lu kept thinking about it and felt something was amiss!”
“Amiss? What was amiss?”
Looking at Han Mo’s vivid description, Shao Bowen couldn’t help but furrow his brow.
“You see, sir, each of them gave the vendor ten copper coins, and then each got one coin back. The remaining two coins were used to buy rice cake, which means each person spent nine coins, plus the two coins for the rice cake, that makes…”
“One coin short?”
Hearing Han Mo reach this point, Shao Bowen’s eyes widened.
“Yes, that’s the puzzle that’s been troubling me these past few days. May I ask, sir, where did this one coin go?”
After Han Mo finished speaking, Shao Bowen was completely stunned.
“Three times nine is twenty-seven. Twenty-seven plus two equals twenty-nine…”
Shao Bowen calculated with his fingers, his eyes widening even further.
“Don’t rush. Go back and think about this slowly. I’ve been pondering it for days. It’s fine if you tell me tomorrow after you’ve figured it out!”
Seeing Shao Bowen continuously counting on his fingers, Han Mo couldn’t help but chuckle.
However, he managed to hold back his laughter. As he spoke, he deliberately opened the door for Shao Bowen and then pushed him out.
“Three times three is nine, three nines are twenty-seven, twenty-seven plus two equals twenty-nine… So where did this one coin go?”
Long after the door was closed, Han Mo could still hear Shao Bowen muttering and recalculating outside.
To avoid disturbing his calculations, Han Mo quietly changed his clothes, pushed open the window on the back wall, and silently jumped out.
Judging by his current state, he was probably going to spend the entire night calculating this. Han Mo naturally had no intention of staying up until dawn with him.
“Young Master, you are…”
Seeing the clothes Han Mo was wearing and his furtive demeanor, Jiang Yan, who was already preparing to go to bed, asked with some confusion.
“Since you’re not asleep yet, why don’t you come out with me for a bit? I can also help you see if there are any suitable residences for sale!”
Seeing the puzzled expression on Jiang Yan’s face, Han Mo coughed and then spoke.
“Young Master, it’s completely dark. Where are we going to look for houses…”
Hearing Han Mo’s words, Jiang Yan pointed at the pitch-black sky with some confusion.
“This Mingzhou city is not small, nor is it particularly small. If you want to know where houses are for sale, just look up and see where there are no lights!”
Seeing the strange expression on Jiang Yan’s face, Han Mo quickly tried to explain.
“Young Master, why do I feel like you’ve done something you shouldn’t have?”