Chapter 17: Xiao Fu's Embarrassment

  Zhang Li, a servant of the Zhang family outside the court, almost fainted on the spot. He couldn't accept the reality in front of him, his breathing was rapid and his chest heaved, his whole body weak.

  Miss Cui Ying's eyes, like water, also became extremely deep in an instant, because her heart was excited and trembling, and her beautiful face was flushed with red light. With her talent, she naturally knew that Zhang Xuan's poems were all excellent works, especially these two poems about lotus flowers, which showed her skill.

  Such talent can only be described as a genius of a freakish kind.

  Cui Ying's emotions surged, tightly grasping the arm of a maid beside her, and suddenly said in a low voice, "Cai Xia, let's return to the manor."

  The scene's Zhang Xuan was as elegant as jade, producing one excellent work after another. The maidservants Cai Xia and others were watching in a trance when they suddenly heard that their young mistress was leaving, and couldn't help but hesitate, saying "Young Mistress, we're not done watching yet? You're leaving already...... Let's hear what Xiao Gongzi has to say in response to Zhang Gongzi's poem?"

  Cui Ying faintly raised her head and swept a glance at Xiao Fu, who was standing on the spot with a pale face and trembling lips. She shook her head gently and said, "No need to look anymore, Zhang Xuan's poem is enough to show his foundation...Xiao Fu can't possibly recite a stronger poem again. He has lost for sure, let's go back to the mansion."

  The thoughts of a young girl are the hardest to grasp, especially one like Cui Ying who comes from a noble and aristocratic family. Seeing her persistence, several maids had no choice but to reluctantly accompany her as she left.

  Choi Hwan saw his sister leave and seemed to have guessed a few of her thoughts, and couldn't help but shake his head secretly.

  At this point, the poem about the lotus was presented, and Cui Huan could no longer deny Zhang Xuan's extraordinary talent. Although Cui Huan was proud and arrogant, he was not a person who was jealous of others' abilities, and with his broad-mindedness, how could he not admit defeat when faced with the facts?

  But the Zhang family is currently facing a huge predicament and crisis. If Zhang Huan's case gets implicated, the Zhang family may find it difficult to recover in the future. If that's the case, even if Zhang Xuan's reputation becomes more prominent, his own family would not maintain their engagement with the Zhang family for political gain.

  As a member of a noble family, Cui Huan was well aware of the twists and turns involved.

  He couldn't help but think of his sister's strong and stubborn personality... Cui Huan couldn't help but let out a soft sigh, feeling a bit worried.

  ……

  ……

  "Xiao Gongzi, please instruct." Zhang Xuan smiled and bowed to Xiao Fu, then returned to his seat.

  As soon as he sat down, the flirtatious laughter of Guo Guifei reached his ears, "Xiao Ge of the Xiao family, you've already composed two poems, do you have another one to please me? Come on, recite it slowly, I'll listen with bated breath!"

  Xiao Fu's face slowly turned from pale to deathly white, he had thought that his poem would be a showstopper, and even if Zhang Xuan was somewhat talented, he would still be left in the dust. But unexpectedly, not only did it fail to stump Zhang Xuan, but instead allowed him to calmly recite two poems that earned thunderous applause...

  Until now, Xiao Fu had to admit that Zhang Xuan's talent was beyond his reach. But since he started this himself, how could the proud and arrogant him be willing to be suppressed by a young master with a reputation for being reckless?

  So he wanted to recite another poem, at worst, he had to regain some face.

  But he furrowed his brow and gazed intently at the pond full of blooming lotus flowers, yet for a long time couldn't come up with another poem to chant about them.

  It's no exaggeration to say that his talent is not fake, and it's not difficult for him to recite a poem about the lotus on the spot again. In fact, for someone like him who has been fond of reciting poetry for years, this is simply an effortless task.

  But the key to the problem is that Xiao Fu wants to suppress Zhang Huan's momentum at once. And Zhang Huan's previous two poems were of a very high standard, and received unanimous praise from the famous scholars present, which gave Xiao Fu tremendous psychological pressure.

  It's not impossible to come up with something casual, but doing so would only make oneself appear lacking in learning and refinement.

  Xiao Fu's mind was in disarray. The more he wanted to compose a better piece, the more his thoughts dried up, and his brain became as muddled as a pot of porridge.

  Wang Wei and others looked at Xiao Fu, also secretly frowning, thinking that the poetry contest was originally a gathering of friends with literature, there is no certain rule for who is higher or lower, it's not necessary to compete and suppress others, this itself has fallen into a lower realm.

  The surrounding voices whispered with some sarcastic remarks, and Madame Guo was even more impatient, waving her hand and shouting, "Xiao Fu, what are you waiting for? Hurry up and recite it, I'm still waiting!"

  Xiao Fu's face turned red with anxiety and despair, his eyes fixed on Zhang Xuan who was sitting calmly with a gentle smile. Suddenly, he felt a surge of anger and dizziness, and before anyone could react, he fainted and fell to the ground.

  Hush!

  The scene inside and outside the court was suddenly in great chaos. Madame Yuanguo's eyebrows furrowed, and she said in a deep voice, "This is truly unlucky and depressing to the extreme. Come, quickly go and support Xiao Fu to receive medical treatment."

  Xiao family's attendants, who had accompanied Xiao Fu to the banquet, rushed into the scene and, together with the servants of Guo's wife, hastily lifted Xiao Fu out of the scene. Several doctors were ordered to rush forward and start emergency treatment on Xiao Fu.

  Xiao Fu was still in his prime, but he had a sudden outburst of bad temper and lost control. Zhang Xuan did not expect Xiao Fu to lose his composure to such an extent, and for a moment, he was speechless.

  ……

  ……

  Cui Ying walked with three or four maidservants for a short distance before hearing a commotion behind her, and she involuntarily stopped in her tracks, turning around to look.

  Cui Ying's slender willow eyebrows slightly raised, and she calmly said, "Cai Xia, go take a look at what's going on."

  Cai Xia nodded and quickly ran off, holding her skirt, then immediately came running back, panting, "Miss, something's happened! It seems that Xiao Fu Xiao was reciting poetry and fell behind, he was so ashamed that he fainted on the spot... The doctor is rushing to rescue him."

  Cui Ying was taken aback, and soon a complex expression floated back onto her face. As intelligent as she was, how could she not understand the underlying connections? Xiao Fu had always been young and impulsive, and this time he must have been enraged by his inferior poetry skills, which led to the chaos.

  This Zhang Xuan... Cui Ying subconsciously shook her head, and suddenly took a step back in the direction she came from.

  Cai Xia and several maidservants were surprised, hastily catching up to ask, "Miss, aren't we leaving?......"

  "Hmm, let's not go any further. We'll head back and take a closer look later." Cui Ying walked with light steps, her pace very quick.

  Cai Xia was taken aback, but she proactively and hastily called out to the other maidservants, then quickly followed behind Cui Ying's buttocks back to the outer edge of the crowd.

  At this time, Xiao Fu had actually come to under the doctor's emergency treatment, but he was so ashamed that he didn't dare to return to the scene, and let the servants carry him onto the carriage and take him back to the mansion.

  __________

  Third update, begging members to click, collect and recommend votes.