Chapter 52: The Talented Landlord Lu Baozi

  Lu Bo's loud voice fell, finally waking up most people.

  "Flower basket! I want to send a flower basket! Heaven! Sounds too good!"

  "Unfortunately, I've spent all my money on a bouquet of flowers for Qi Shui's sister. Do...do you have any money left? Can you lend me some, just lend me some, and I'll pay you back as soon as I get home."

  "My goddess..."

  "What a mess! How can it be called a system? The ancients created the word patterns, how can they be changed at will?"

  The last curtain falls, and the poetry meeting ends in disarray.

  At this time, amidst the commotion, Qiuyue's flower basket suddenly surged to over 400, directly pressing in on second place.

  On the first ship, several older generation literary giants were also shocked.

  "What's this? Can you sing like this?" An old man frowned, his tone very dissatisfied.

  "It also has a few flavors, but it's just that after falling down, it gained infectivity, but lost its charm."

  "Yes indeed, this woman is too bold."

  "Sigh, but it seems young people like it tightly."

  Dong Changyun held his teacup, furrowed his brow in deep thought. He suddenly understood why Qiu Yue thanked Song Kai as soon as she went on stage. The way this song was sung must have been her idea!

  This is Song Kai, where did he come from? A divine calculator and a genius poet, now able to break through the shackles and sing out new flavors of ci pai.

  "Old Dong, Old Dong?......"

  Hearing someone calling him from beside, Dong Changyun came back to his senses and let out an "ah".

  "In a while, we'll have to announce the winner and us two old guys will have to give scores to these six girls," said Kong Shan with a smile.

  Dong Changyun smiled and nodded, "This Autumn Moon girl's singing voice and piano skills are both top-notch, the lyrics she chose are also well-remembered, only the song has some controversy, but looking at other people's reactions, it should be no problem to take first place."

  Kong Shan was taken aback, looking at Dong Changyun, and then burst out laughing.

  "Brother Kong, why are you laughing?" Dong Changyun asked slowly while drinking a cup of tea.

  "I originally thought that Brother Dong would definitely give this Autumn Moon girl a champion, but Brother Dong's actions are always strict and can be called our model. This kind of singing method, Brother Dong can actually give Autumn Moon girl the first prize, which is to guide the readers of the world, it means that reading books also needs to know how to adapt." Kong Shan said on the side.

  Dong Changyun waved his hand, "Don't provoke me, Brother Kong. What's good is good, am I that kind of pedantic person?"

  Actually, as Kong Shan said, Dong Changyun indeed wanted to give Qiu Yue a second place, after all, this singing method is really too controversial. If she were given the first place, then everyone would no longer follow the traditional rules, and each word card name would be sung in a chaotic manner. Everyone would seek innovation and lose their sense of propriety.

  Dong Changyun was very afraid of losing his dignity.

  But thinking of Song Kai, and that this song was created by Song Kai, Dong Changyun couldn't help but feel a little excited. In his opinion, although Song Kai is unorthodox and only knows how to engage in business all day, he indeed has great talent, and he hopes to see Song Kai continue to innovate in the future.

  The last time Song Kai came home, this face still had to be given, let alone, this song is really good.

  The flower basket reward on that side has ended. Although it was only a short moment, Autumn Moon still got 500 flower baskets and won third place.

  The geniuses also finished writing their poems and handed them over to the first cabin, everyone was just waiting for the final score to come out. This should have been the main event, but today everyone's interest was clearly drawn by Autumn Moon.

  Song Kai saw the result and also let out a slight sigh of relief, saying: "Ling Dang, you should also hand in your poem now."

  Nie Lingdang hesitated for a moment, then waved his hand and said: "Suddenly I don't have much interest, I thought you only wrote poems for me alone, now it seems that you are leaving emotions everywhere."

  "What?" Song Kai stared at Nie Lingdang, unable to understand what was wrong with this woman again.

  Nie Lingdang pulled out a piece of Xuan paper from his sleeve and placed it in front of Lu Botao, "Dead fatty, this poem is for you."

  Lu Bo Tao looked at Song Kai and Nie Ting Tong with a puzzled expression, then lowered his head to look at the rice paper, on which was written a poem in elegant handwriting.

  "When will the spring flowers and autumn moon be over? How much do you know about past events? The small building was again blown by the east wind last night, and my hometown is unbearable to look back at in the bright moonlight. The carved railings and jade steps should still be there, but only the red cheeks have changed. I ask you, how many sorrows do you have? It's just like a river of autumn water flowing east."

  Lu Bo Tao stared at this word, then suddenly shouted "Wow!", "Really? Are you saying really? Sister-in-law, are you telling the truth?"

  "Get out! Look at you, you've never seen the world!" Nie Lingdang scolded in Song Kai's tone.

  "Yes, yes, I'm inexperienced, yes, yes," Lu Botao laughed loudly with a hoarse voice like a wild goose, then picked up the brush on the table and found a new piece of Xuan paper, quickly copying down this slightly revised version of "Yu Mei Ren" by Song Kai.

  After copying it, Lu Botao was overjoyed and held the paper in his hands, grinning foolishly.

  "It's getting late, if you want to get Cai Zi's title, I'm afraid you have to hurry up," Song Kai said with a smile.

  "Yes, yes! Song Daxia, sister-in-law, you wait a moment, I...I'm going," After finishing speaking, Lu Botao's over 200-jin body stepped on the boat and ran towards boat No. 1 with a thud. He was reluctant to let others deliver this poem, if it were to be plagiarized, he would cry but no tears would come out.

  Yang Huaiyan looked at Lu Botao's excited expression, slightly puzzled. He also had a good poem, which was written by Zhou Wentiang, the first of the four great talents in Suzhou City, for a high price. This Mid-Autumn Festival poetry gathering, Yang Huaiyan had long regarded this title as a certainty.

  Lu Bo Tao didn't care about those things and went to the No. 1 ship, where he handed over the Xuan paper in his hand as if it were a treasure.

  On his way here, Yang Huaiyan stretched out his hand and stopped Lu Botao. "Lu Lang! What's the matter with you being so excited?"

  Lu Bo Tao and Yang Huai Yan didn't have much of a grudge, nor did they have any close relationship. He cleared his throat with a loud "ahem" and chuckled, "Nothing, just... I had a cup of wine earlier and got inspired to write a poem."

  Yang Huaiyan burst out laughing and thought to himself: You think you can still write poetry with a body like that?

  They parted ways, and Lu Botao excitedly ran back to Song Kai's side, repeatedly expressing his gratitude to Song Kai. This was because Lu Botao's father, the leader of the Green Gang, had always wished for his son to obtain a government position, even if it meant just getting a nominal title as a scholar. Tonight, that wish had finally come true.

  The poem will enter after the performance of Autumn Moon, and soon, someone began to announce the results of the song and dance, the number of flower baskets, naturally, Yang Liu was far ahead, while Autumn Moon ranked third, but the score of the second part made everyone amazed, indeed, Dong Changyun and Kong Shan's score result was Autumn Moon first, Yang Liu second.

  "Master Yang, this autumn moon's singing voice is indeed moving, but this time, I'm afraid Miss Yang Liu might be in some danger," said a young man beside Yang Huaiyan.

  Yang Huaiyan sneered and said disdainfully, "What's there to fear? Now Yang Liu has one more name than Qiu Yue. Next is the ranking of the talented scholars. Humph, this year's top scholar, even if it's not me, is my closest friend. Could I still be afraid that the first place will run away?"

  The people around all burst out laughing and repeatedly said it was true.

  Not long after, Dong Changyun stood at the center of the painting boat and began to announce the results.

  "Ladies and gentlemen, tonight's Mid-Autumn poetry competition has far exceeded my expectations! There were several outstanding works, even I and Mr. Kong couldn't help but sigh in admiration. Indeed, it is true that every generation produces talented individuals, and the time when our Suzhou city will shine brightly throughout the world is just around the corner. Now, I am pleased to announce the first prize winner, Lu Bo Tao, with his outstanding work, 'Yu Mei Ren', which can be called a supreme poem!"

  Dong Changyun announced the results, and there was a burst of astonished whispers. Those who didn't know Lu Botao were shocked because they had never heard of such a person before. And those who knew Lu Botao were even more shocked - this dead fatso couldn't even recite the Analects, how could he possibly get first place?

  However, Dong Changyun's next words dispelled everyone's doubts. He slowly said: "The poem written by Master Lu is a nostalgic work. When will the spring flowers and autumn moon end? How many past events do you know? The small building was blown by the east wind again last night, and my hometown cannot be looked back in the bright moonlight. The carved railings and jade steps should still be there, but only the beauty has changed. I ask you, how much sorrow do you have? It's just like a river of autumn water flowing eastward.

  "My god, it's truly an extraordinary poem!"

  "Who is this Lu Bo Tao!"

  "Is this really written by that dead fat guy?"

  Among the whispers, Yang Huaiyan suddenly looked towards Lu Botao, only to see him smiling with a pleased and flattering expression, carefully accompanying Song Kai and Nie Lingdang in conversation.