Chapter 16: One Mountain is Higher than Another

  Xiao Fugui's expression was calm and tranquil, standing there indifferently, staring at Zhang Xuan with unblinking eyes.

  Zhang Xuan slowly got up and bowed to Madame Guo, "Zhang Xuan obeys. Please, madam, give the assignment."

  Madam Guo gazed at Zhang Xuan with a charming smile, her eyes sparkling, but for the time being, she couldn't think of any good topic. She pointed to Wang Wei and said, "Mr. Mo, as a renowned scholar of our time, can you come up with a poem topic for me?"

  Wang Wei was taken aback, then nodded and smiled. He pondered for a moment, casually pointing to the blooming lotus flowers on the Qujiang Pool in front of him, and said loudly, "On a sweltering summer day, with the lotus flowers in full bloom on the Qujiang Pool, let's take the lotus as our theme."

  ……

  ……

  Under the watchful eyes of everyone, Xiao Fu steeled himself to make Zhang Xuan lose face. To this day, he still doesn't believe that Zhang Xuan is not a prodigal son but a talented scholar, and in his heart, there is still a hint of luck.

  He smiled faintly and hastily bowed his head towards Zhang Xuan, "Third Master, please."

  Zhang Xuan smiled and returned the courtesy, "Xiao Gongzi is a learned and talented man, his poetic name is renowned in the streets. I, Zhang Xuan, am not worthy, dare not take precedence. Please, Xiao Gongzi, go first."

  Xiao Fu smiled proudly and didn't continue to decline, he walked forward and bowed to Madame Guo and Wang Wei, then gazed at the lotus flowers in the pool, hesitated for a while before finally coming up with a poem. Although he was talented, he hadn't yet reached the level of composing poetry in seven steps, on-the-spot composition tested not only talent but also quick thinking.

  He turned his head and loudly chanted:

  Emerald lotus flowers in full bloom, rising elegantly out of the water.

  A wisteria vine leads green, two shadows share a red divide.

  The beauty steals the singer's face, fragrance scatters with dancing clothes in the wind.

  The lotus flower can be recited by itself, let alone when two hearts are as one.

  Xiao Fu finished reciting, and the celebrities present nodded in approval. Even Wang Wei spoke up to praise him, "Young Master Xiao's poem has well-crafted couplets, accurately captures the theme and scene, and is a rare masterpiece even among hastily written works."

  Doctor Huang Ming of Guozijian also praised, "Not bad, Xiao Gongzi indeed has the style of his father, elegant and refined, clever and quick-witted."

  Everyone praised in unison, and the surrounding scholars also followed suit with some applause.

  Xiao Fuzhi beamed with pride, bowed slightly and smiled calmly, saying, "Gentlemen, you are overpraising me. Xiao Fu's work is clumsy and cannot be considered elegant, please point out my mistakes."

  However, although his mouth was humble, the proud color between his eyebrows could not be hidden. Especially when Xiao Fu stood up and faced Zhang Xuan, the pride in his eyes was even more overwhelming.

  "Third Master, please," Xiao Fu said calmly.

  The complex gaze of the crowd on the scene shifted to Zhang Xuan, and Wang Wei and Qiu We both secretly sighed. To be honest, Xiao Fu's poem just now was of extremely high standard, and although Zhang Xuan had talent, it would be very difficult for him to surpass Xiao Fu in this kind of essay at this time.

  Madam Guo turned her head and glanced at Yang Ci, furrowing her brow. Although she wasn't very familiar with poetry, she knew that Xiao Fu's poem had been widely praised by people like Wang Wei, so it was probably quite good. And her favorite, Zhang Xuan, would likely be thoroughly suppressed by Xiao Fu this time...

  Xiao Fu's overbearing manner made Zhang Xuan feel less guilty about the "ancient people". He slowly raised his head to glance at Xiao Fu, who was flushed with excitement, but in his heart, he secretly sneered.

  I was just taking the opportunity to make a name for myself, and had no intention of competing with you in poetry. I didn't want to compare who's better or worse, but since you insist on stepping on me to climb up, then let you fall hard and get half-killed.

  At this thought, Zhang Xuan's expression remained unchanged, and he slightly nodded to Xiao Fu before scanning the surroundings and loudly reciting:

  "After all, in June of Qujiang, the scenery is not the same as the four seasons. The lotus leaves that meet the sky are endless green, and the lotus flowers that reflect the sun are a different kind of red."

  After finishing the poem, Zhang Xuan took two slow steps forward under the gaze of the scholars who were shocked and amazed, smiled and said: "Ladies and gentlemen, esteemed teachers and elders, I have another poem to present, please don't hesitate to correct me."

  Having finished speaking, Zhang Xuan stood alone on the red carpet in the middle of the scene, gazing at a pool and a river in the distance where lotus flowers were blooming. After a moment's thought, he loudly recited, "The spring eye is silent and the stream is fine, the tree shade shines on the water with soft love. The small lotus has just revealed its tip, and there are already dragonflies standing on its head."

  After a moment of silence, Wang Wei excitedly slapped the table and shouted in praise, "What a wonderful 'The lotus leaves that connect with the sky are infinitely green, the reflected sun's light on the lotus flowers is uniquely red!' What a wonderful 'The small lotus has just revealed its tip, already having dragonflies standing on its head!' Such excellent lines seem to be naturally perfect, truly extremely wonderful!"

  Qiu Wei and Huang Ming couldn't help but applaud and cheer, lavishing praise on them.

  No one expected that Xiao Fu's poem was extremely high, thinking that Zhang Xuan had been pushed to the end of the road, but unexpectedly Zhang Xuan's level was even higher, and the situation suddenly turned around, instantly turning back to kill Xiao Fu.

  The Yangtze River waves push forward, one mountain is higher than another!!

  Several dignitaries and nobles took turns to praise, especially Wang Wei was so excited that he slightly lost his composure "shouting loudly", which directly stirred up the emotions of the crowd on the scene, and enthusiastic cheers erupted.

  Zhang Xuan has produced two masterpieces in such a short period of time, each one's level is high enough to make people applaud and exclaim.

  Adding to the previous three, Zhang Xuan has already composed five poems in less than an hour today. The high quality, talent and realm of these poems are such that even famous scholars like Wang Wei would secretly sigh in admiration at not being able to match them.

  If there were still people who had some doubts about Zhang Xuan's talent, this poem about the lotus would put an end to all speculation. One or two instances might be luck, but several times in a row, excellent sentences emerged on the spot, and they were even impromptu compositions. If even this cannot prove that Zhang Xuan has quick wit and overflowing talent, then perhaps there is no other talented scholar in the city of Chang'an.

  At this moment, regardless of whether they held official positions or not, the gaze of the crowd towards Zhang Huan had truly undergone a fundamental change.

  Although Zhang Xuan did not have a self-satisfied expression, he also knew that from now on, the label of a dissolute young master had thoroughly left him and become history. From this moment on, the Zhang Xuan who appeared in the eyes of the people of Chang'an had achieved rebirth through nirvana.

  He suddenly felt a wave of relief in his heart.

  As for the repeated borrowing, these two poems just now are directly using Yang Wanli's poetry, but I don't care about it anymore. As a time-traveler in this land of poetry, if he gives up using his greatest and most natural advantage at certain critical moments, and instead uses poetry as daily homework like the Tang Dynasty literati, then that would be the biggest foolishness.

  It's like asking ancient people to compete with modern people on computer operation, how can they possibly win?

  Crossing rebirth is the biggest cheat. If he doesn't take advantage of this innate golden finger, as a foreign modern soul, how can he survive in this era? Besides, this time it's not to show off, but because of the situation, there's no choice but to do so.

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  Corrected a small mistake, thanks for pointing it out, fellow bookworms!