Pei Yuanli ignored Sun Mo. He wasn't looking down on Sun Mo, but as a great teacher, one should have confidence in oneself, one should have pride. One should believe the judgment one made.
After Tan Lu heard Sun Mo's words, he sharpened his focus and tightened his grab on the spear. (Just wait and see, I will win for sure!)
"Why? Teacher Sun doesn't trust in Teacher Pei's judgment and feels that this student would lose?"
Yi Jiamin finally found a chance to plot against Sun Mo. He immediately acted.
If Tan Lu won, everyone would feel that Sun Mo's judgment was merely so-so. It would cast a shadow over his image as the God Hands.
If Tan Lu lost, Sun Mo would be in an even more dire strait. (So what if your judgment is actually better than Pei Yuanli's? This 2-star great teacher would hate you for making him lose face in front of so many students!)
This was precisely office politics. No matter what Sun Mo answered, he would stir up trouble.