Chapter 2: The Fight in Front of the Hall

  Now Yunqi is like sitting on pins and needles, his forehead constantly sweating, although it's not yet the hot season, he feels parched.

  "Old master, I..."

  Just as Yun Qi was about to speak, Yang Wenguan rushed in and said: "Father, the poem that Mr. asked me to write, I've finished it, please take a look!" At this time, Yang Wenguan handed over the rice paper with a look of urgency and walked to Yun Qi's side, his eyes hinting: Look, I'm here to save you at the critical moment.

  Yang Wenguan was worried that his theft of the arrow would be exposed after he was called away from Yun Qi, so he secretly followed Yun Qi and snuck outside the hall to eavesdrop. Although he also wanted to know Yun Qi's true identity, since they were now on the same side, he suspected that Yun Qi might have some unspoken secrets, so he came up with this plan.

  "Huh? Pass it over and let me see." Yang Ziting couldn't have thought that his own brain-damaged son would actually compose poetry, and he felt curious, so he spoke up.

  After reading for a while, although I found that some parts of the poem were not rhyming well and the words were written carelessly, compared to before, it was like heaven and earth, and my heart felt greatly relieved. I gently placed the rice paper in my hand on the table, and a smile floated onto my face. "Wenguan, your current performance is very satisfactory to me as your father, but remember not to be arrogant, you still need to focus wholeheartedly on studying."

  "Yes, Father!" Yang Wen Guan replied respectfully, feeling quite pleased with himself at the moment, this plan was indeed a two-for-one deal.

  Before he could finish thinking, Yang Ziting said: "Alright, your father is very relieved. You go down first, I have some words to say with Yun Qi."

  Isn't it? I'm so tragic? Yun Qi thought absent-mindedly. Wiping the sweat from his forehead, he opened his mouth with difficulty: "Yes, sir."

  Yang Wenguan saw the situation and thought it was not good, so he quickly came up with an idea and said: "Ah, Father, I still have some questions about poetry that I don't understand, and I'd like to ask Cloud Seven for guidance."

  Yang Ziting showed a skeptical face and said: "Oh? You want to ask Yun Qi for advice?" Then he looked at Yun Qi again: "You can also make poetry?"

  Yun Qi had already thanked Yang Wenguang's ancestors in his heart, and he didn't need to find any reason, but he just found this one. It was better than saying where he came from, so he hastily replied: "Yes, sir, I've read some books, I can write some poems and couplets."

  Yang Ziting was surprised: "Oh? You can still make couplets?"

  Yun Qi hastily bowed and said: "I dare not deceive you, sir."

  Yang Ziting showed interest and didn't rush to ask about Yun Qi's background. Since they had plenty of time, he said: "Let the old man test you then, how is it?"

  Yun Qi dared not think of anything at this time, desperately recalling the poems and couplets he had learned when reading books before, and replied: "Please give me a topic, sir."

  Yang Ziting thought for a moment, gazing at the lush spring scenery outside the house, and then said: "Now is the season of spring, you can use 'spring' combined with the garden scene outside to compose a poem."

  "Spring... the scenery outside..." Yun Qi muttered to himself, his brain started working, racking his brains to recall the poems about spring scenery he had learned before, but unfortunately, almost all of them were returned to the teacher. He glanced up at Yang Ziting, who was sitting there leisurely and contentedly, not in a hurry at all.

  Fragments of poems kept flashing through his mind, Li Bai, Du Fu, Wang Wei, Du Mu... none of them seemed to fit the topic given by Yang Ziting. He continued thinking, Li Shangyin, Meng Haoran, Liu... Ah! Meng Haoran had a poem "Spring Dawn" that seemed quite relevant to the topic, and he vaguely remembered its content. After thinking carefully for a while, he confidently said: "Sir, I've got it!"

  "Ah...!" Yang Wenguan, who was sitting beside him, spat out the tea he had just drunk and stared at Yun Qi with wide eyes: What do you mean you've got one! Is it a boy or a girl?

  Yang Ziting furrowed his brow and looked at him with great dissatisfaction before turning to Yun Qi and saying, "Then you speak."

  "Yes, sir." Yun Qi's hands were clasped behind his back as he walked to the entrance of the hall, slightly raising his head and narrowing his eyes, with an air of a great poet. He took a deep breath and slowly recited: "Spring sleep does not know dawn, everywhere hears the cry of birds, last night's wind and rain sound, how many flowers have fallen." After finishing, he still closed his eyes as if savoring the taste carefully.

  At this moment, look at Yang Ziting's expression: surprised, stunned. After a while, the old man came back to his senses, and he kept repeating the poem that Yun Qi had just recited.

  Yun Qi was anxious at this time, although he knew it was a fabricated history, but the poem was not his to begin with, and was a blatant plagiarism. After waiting for half a day without seeing Yang Ziting respond, he couldn't help but ask in a low voice: "Sir, is my poem okay?"

  "Hmm..." Yang Ziting suddenly came back to his senses, and kept saying: "Good poem, good poem. The words in the poem are simple, but the meaning is extraordinary."

  Not really, a poem made you wet? Yun Qi thought wickedly, but said: "Thank you for the compliment, Master Xie!"

  Yang Ziting asked again: "Do you have any other poems that describe this season? Please make a few more."

  "Ah! No way!" Yun Qi collapsed, had this old man become addicted to wetting? Seeing Yang Ziting's urgent expression again, he could only force himself to answer: "Yes! Old master!"

  As the saying goes, "all things are difficult at the beginning, but once started, they become much easier." Yun Qi was just like that. After plagiarizing this Spring Dawn poem, a large number of descriptive poems about spring suddenly flooded his mind. Without delay, he continued to recite: "People are idle when the osmanthus flowers fall, the night is quiet and the spring mountains are empty. The moon rises and startles the mountain birds, which chirp in the spring valley."

  "Good! Good! Good! Continue!"

  "The grass and trees know that spring will soon return, a hundred kinds of red and purple flowers compete in fragrance. The willow catkins and elm seeds have no clever thoughts, they only scatter across the sky like snowflakes."

  "Alright! This one is the most impressive, are there any more?"

  "The heavenly street is moist with gentle rain like cream, the grass color looks distant but is actually near. This is the best time of spring, surpassing the willows and smoke-filled South Capital."

  "Good poem, good poem! Encore, encore..."

  Yun Qi just wanted to faint, his heart was bitter and speechless. This old man was addicted to wetting, even if he knew a lot of poems, but he couldn't come up with better ones at this speed! He hastily replied: "Old master, I'm just a shallow scholar, I won't be able to come up with better poems in such a short time!"

  "Oh? You're saying you're not learned or talented? That's not right, I've heard the poems you've written and they're extraordinary. If you say you're not talented, then there are hardly any people in this world who dare to call themselves talented. I'm extremely satisfied with you, extremely satisfied!" Yang Ziting said "extremely satisfied" twice in a row, it's clear that he's in an extremely good mood now and his opinion of Yun Qi has changed a lot.

  "Thank you, sir, for your praise! I'm honored and surprised!" Flattery is still necessary, and the more you flatter, the less people will blame you. As a modern person, Yun Qi naturally knows the art of flattery like the back of his hand. In the past, he didn't hesitate to flatter his superiors, which was indeed extraordinary.

  "You don't have to be so modest, if you didn't have real talent and learning, I wouldn't praise you." Yang Ziting shook his head and continued to ask: "You've passed the test of poetry and literature, now let's see how you do with couplets."

  Yun Qi heard this and secretly complained in her heart: You've had your fun, but you can't torment me like this. She really had no choice: "Please come up with a couplet, sir."

  Yang Ziting thought for a moment, smiled and said: " Outsiders are not allowed in, wise men enter!"

  "The thief is none other than Mo Laidao!"

  Yang Ziting didn't give Yun Qi time to think, and directly blurted out: "Sweeping the plum blossoms and snow alone!"

  "Observe carefully: the mountain's momentum dances with the flowing stream!"

  ……

  Yang Ziting: "Dragon anger rolls wind and waves."

  "The mountain color is upside down in the sea, and the sea is upside down in the sky."

  ……

  Yang Zitong: "Goat climbs mountain, mountain bumps goat's hoof, bleats."

  When Yang Ziting heard the upper rhyme, he imitated the sound of a goat's bleat. Yang Wenguan couldn't help but burst out laughing, but was glared back by Old Master. The two were now enjoying their battle, and wouldn't let anyone interrupt, not even his own son.

  Yun Qi didn't wait for long and replied: "Water buffalo enters water, water submerges the water buffalo's horns, mooing sounds."

  ……

  Yang Ziting stood up and shouted loudly: "A dog's teeth are pressed down by a dog."

  Yun Qi didn't back down either. He leaned his body forward, and the tip of his nose almost touched Old Master's forehead. In a low voice, he replied: "Jīguān huā xià jī guān huā!"

  The old man finally stopped asking questions, but instead stared at Yun Qi in a daze, his face expression indistinguishable between anger and astonishment. Yun Qi felt a chill run down her spine under the gaze, but she knew that at this moment, she couldn't back down.

  After a long time, Yang Ziting retreated several steps and sat down on the chair with a thud. He muttered to himself: "You have such great talent, why are you willing to be just a book boy in my husband's household?"

  Yun Qi Zheng said: "Master Hui, in my heart I am grateful to you. When I was in trouble, it was you who took me in and provided me with food and shelter, and even gave me a monthly allowance. From the bottom of my heart, I am grateful to you and your family, so please rest assured that I will stay at Yang Fu without any ill intentions."

  Yang Ziting said, "A person with such talent, how can he be a petty person? I only hope that you will supervise the young master to study more in the future. In the future, I will allow you and Wen Guan to take the imperial examination together."

  Ke Ke didn't care about the imperial examination, he came to this world without any intention of taking the exam and becoming an official. He just wanted to be an ordinary person, an ordinary rich person, his only wish was to count money every day. But these words couldn't be said at this time, otherwise, he would really have to roll up his bedding and become homeless. Facing Yang Ziting again, he bowed and respectfully said: "Don't worry, sir, I will sincerely supervise the young master, thank you for trusting me."

  Yang Ziting looked somewhat tired and waved his hand, saying: "You all go back first."

  Yun Qi was about to thank him when he suddenly heard a strange noise outside the house, followed by light footsteps fading into the distance. It seemed that someone had been eavesdropping just now.

  All the way, Yun Qi couldn't stop thinking: Who was eavesdropping? The footsteps sounded like a woman's, could it be Cui Hong? Hmm...impossible. Was it Yang Wenqin or Han Xueyan then...