My husband Can Cultivate

Chapter 623: Can’t I admit defeat?

"Judges, this is a competition of medical skills, isn’t it? He just assaulted an old man on stage. I’m sure the cameras caught it clearly. Aren’t you going to do anything?" Chen Guo stood up and demanded loudly.

Gu Chong furrowed his brow. "Even if I did touch him, it was an accident. I didn’t use any force. Who knew he was so frail he’d just fall over? It’s normal to bump into someone on stage, isn’t it? Is that really worth a penalty?"

"Bullshit! You did it on purpose!" the people from Jingnan Prefecture cursed.

The judges frowned. They hadn’t seen what had happened, but seeing the indignation from the Jingnan Prefecture contingent and Liu Changsheng’s condition, they knew they couldn’t remain silent.

Just as they were about to speak, a voice drifted over from the Su Mansion’s area. "Gu Chong, be more careful next time. Avoid bumping into the elderly. You know how some of these old-timers are, always eager to stage a fall."

"Yes, Family Head!" Gu Chong bowed respectfully to the speaker.

That person was none other than the head of the Gu Family.

At the judges’ table, the panel members frowned. They couldn’t afford to disrespect the Gu Family Head. After a brief discussion, one announced, "This is a one-time warning. For this match, Gu Chong is the winner!"

"Damn it!" Chen Guo clenched his teeth. Jingnan Prefecture’s level of medical skill was low, so even the judging panel looked down on them and was unwilling to stand up for them. Moreover, the incident hadn’t been an official violation during the match itself, so the judges would inevitably give face to the Gu Family. After all, they were the family with the highest level of medical skill in all of the Southern Territory.

"Stay calm," Yang Qi said, gently patting Chen Guo’s shoulder. "What goes around comes around. Don’t worry, that Gu Chong will have his day. If the judges won’t punish him, I will."

Chen Guo and Yao Ran glanced at Yang Qi. They knew he wasn’t one to make empty boasts, but they couldn’t imagine how he planned to deal with Gu Chong.

For the time being, the matter came to a close.

The competition continued. Every contestant who made it this far had an incredibly solid foundation in pharmacology, so even though the first round lacked practical application, the matches were still spectacular. The top ten on the Southern Territory Divine Doctor List were especially formidable; they chose the hardest questions right from the start, leaving their opponents completely stumped.

The competition progressed quickly. Before long, it was Yang Qi’s turn. He stepped onto the high platform, facing his opponent, a doctor from Guang Prefecture.

People from Su Mansion began to jeer. "This Yang Qi must be the one Jingnan Prefecture sent just to make up the numbers, right? He looks like he’s in his twenties. What skill could he possibly have?"

"Heh, he’ll probably fail this pharmacology round right away. It’s not enough to have a good memory; a lot of this knowledge requires years of accumulation."

"Exactly. And you can’t answer those questions without practical experience."

"Jingnan Prefecture is about to make a fool of themselves again!"

"Mr. Yang, you can do it! You’ll definitely win!" Chen Guo shouted, unable to contain his frustration.

Unfortunately, very few people in Jingnan Prefecture knew of Yang Qi’s exceptional medical skills, and even fewer were in the stands. The cheers for him were sparse.

"Young man, this is a competition of medical skills, not a martial arts tournament. I suggest you step down to avoid embarrassing yourself," his opponent said arrogantly, clearly not taking Yang Qi seriously.

Yang Qi just smiled and looked toward the judges. "Let’s have a Class A question, please."

The questions were graded from D to A, with Class A being the most difficult.

Hearing this, the judges paused for a moment.

His opponent from Guang Prefecture paled. A Class A question? I can’t possibly answer that. Is this guy trying to take me down with him?

The judges turned to Yang Qi. "This is your request. If you fail to answer it, your opponent will automatically advance."

"I requested it. Let’s begin," Yang Qi said calmly.

The mockery from the Su Mansion camp continued. "He’s just putting on an act!"

"That kid probably knows he can’t even answer the easiest questions, so he’s doing this to show off his ’courage’."

"How ridiculous."

Yang Qi, however, remained completely unaffected. He submitted his answer sheet, leaving the judges astonished.

"You answered correctly," they announced, then turned to the doctor from Guang Prefecture. "Do you wish to continue?"

He stared at the question for a long time, unable to think of a solution. "Never mind," he said. "I concede."

At this point, it was obvious to everyone how exceptional Yang Qi’s theoretical knowledge was; he could even solve a Class A question. How could this guy be so formidable!

"Hmph, what’s so special about that? It’s just theory. A case of a blind cat stumbling upon a dead mouse. Young people just have good memories!"

"Exactly! The next round won’t be testing theory anymore. We’ll see if he can pass that!"

The doctors from Su Mansion, especially those from the Gu Family, were visibly annoyed. The expressions on Gu Lingshan and Gu Baiyi were particularly unpleasant.

"Hahaha, did you see that? Mr. Yang is Jingnan Prefecture’s true trump card, not just some filler you all claimed he was!" Chen Guo roared with laughter, finally releasing the pent-up frustration. It didn’t matter if they had fewer contestants; what mattered were the best results.

"Mr. Yang, you are truly incredible!" Yao Ran exclaimed, filled with admiration.

"Yang Qi!"

"Yang Qi!"

The audience from Jingnan Prefecture began to chant, a new hope ignited within them. With the ability Yang Qi had just displayed, he might even make it into the top twenty.

"Hahaha, how could the King of Elixir from our Jingnan Prefecture be anything less than brilliant?" Lei Qingtian stroked his beard, overjoyed.

"Don’t be so quick to concede," Yang Qi said suddenly, looking at the doctor from Guang Prefecture. He then turned to the judges. "After this round of competition, there’s a resurrection match, correct?"

"That’s correct," a judge confirmed. "After this round, there will be a resurrection match. This is to prevent skilled doctors from being eliminated simply because they were matched against an overly strong opponent. Ten contestants from the pool of those eliminated will be chosen to challenge those who advanced. A victory means they take the qualifier’s spot."

Although this rule hadn’t been announced aloud, it was in the written regulations, so everyone was aware of it. Still, Yang Qi wanted to confirm.

"In that case, I concede!"

Yang Qi immediately walked off the high platform, leaving everyone utterly dumbfounded.

He had clearly won, demonstrating profound theoretical knowledge. Why would he choose to concede? Everyone was baffled.

Is this guy out of his mind? He could have advanced directly, but he chose the resurrection match instead? This thought crossed many people’s minds.

Chen Guo’s eyes, however, suddenly lit up. He recalled what Yang Qi had said to him earlier and instantly understood his plan.

"Absurd!" one of the judges snapped, displeased. "Why are you conceding?"

Yang Qi smiled. "I’m free to concede, am I not? Is there a rule against it?"

"But you already won," the judge said, puzzled. "You could have just conceded from the start."

Yang Qi smiled again. "But how would I have demonstrated my ability then? Since it doesn’t violate any rules, I am allowed to concede, correct?"