"Super Boy Contest"

  "How can this matter be handled hastily? It needs to go through various connections. Besides, I have some words that I must say." Peng Jingrong said directly to Liu Ziguo.

  "You've been acting too recklessly lately, causing chaos in the imperial court and stealing from the palace at night. I know your martial arts skills are impressive, but have you considered that you have 500 brothers and 100,000 iron factory workers behind you? As the deputy general of the iron factory, every move you make affects the factory's fate. The situation in the capital is more complicated than you think, and the Eastern Depot and Imperial Guards are not as foolish as you imagine. Why were my father and the Duke able to maintain power for so many years after the failed coup? It's because they kept a low profile! You must be low-key too! Everyone in the world is driven by self-interest; if you're serving the young emperor, it's not for the sake of the people, but for personal gain and power. If you really want to become a general and establish your own legacy, I'll help you, but only if you stop being so impulsive and learn to use strategy instead of just relying on brute force."

  After listening to the elder sister's heartfelt words, Liu Ziguang felt his face burning with shame. Since he had possessed a super strong body, he indeed forgot himself and only knew how to act recklessly when encountering unpleasant things. The typical representative of the bravery of a common man is Xiang Yu, but he couldn't fall into that situation. As a young man in the 21st century who has received modern higher education, Three Represents, and Harmonious Society education, he should properly utilize his resources, reasonably arrange them, and use wisdom and strategy to achieve his goals.

  Being able to face one's own mistakes is progress, even a little girl can say it so clearly. She will do her best to help him achieve success. What does this imply? Behind every successful man there is a great woman, and Peng Jingrong is now hinting that she is willing to be that woman.

  "I was wrong, Miss's words are like a timely rain, Liu has learned from his mistakes. From now on, you can be my advisor, it's convenient to ask for your advice morning and night." Liu Ziguo stood up and gave Peng Jingrong a serious bow, bowing deeply.

  Peng Jingrong's face flushed, and Liu Ziguang's attitude of knowing his mistakes made her very happy. The person in front of her seemed to be the humble young man who had talked about compound accounting methods in the study again. What strategist, sooner or later please teach, isn't that going to be a perfect match? Both of them had underlying meanings in their words, but they deliberately didn't break through that thin layer of paper.

  "Hurry up, don't be late." She reached out to help Liu Ziguang, and their hands touched, both feeling a little shy, looking down and not daring to look at each other. A magpie landed on the windowsill, chirping loudly, and the spring sunlight shone through the willow branches that had just sprouted green buds into the room. The two suddenly looked up at the same time and opened their mouths: "We..."

  "Let's go watch the handsome guys' competition!" Along with the shout, Second Miss pushed open the door and ran in. "Sister, I knew you were here, how shameless, a lone man and woman living together in one room and even holding hands." Peng Jingwei scratched her nose, embarrassed for her sister.

  "Watch me tear your mouth! You just talk nonsense." The two sisters were wrestling together.

  Liu Ziguang, who was once again interrupted, said in a bad mood: "What's the point of having a 'Good Man' competition? Is there going to be a 'Super Girl' competition or not?"

  Peng Jingwei was fending off her sister's attack while panting and saying: "The Good Man Contest is actually the poetry conference held in the capital every year, which has evolved into a venue for famous scholars to showcase their poetry, songs, and various talents over the past two years. There are sword dances, poetry recitals, singing, acting, and everything else. What's Super Girl? Never heard of it."

  It's said that this gathering, also known as the Moxu Lake Conference, is where those who failed to become scholars and so-called men of letters compete for a spot. The location is at the lake pavilion on Moxu Lake. Every time there's a gathering, the officials, nobles, and wealthy merchants' wives and daughters from the city rent boats that fish in the lake, set up canopies, hang lanterns, and don't disperse until dawn. When they see something exciting, these people throw handkerchiefs, sachets, fruit, and flowers onto the stage to cheer. A few famous scholars and men of letters from Jiangnan serve as judges, selecting the top ten winners each year, who are then given titles such as "zhuangyuan", "bangyan", and "tanhua". Those who make it onto the list will have high-ranking officials coming to visit them, and even when walking on the street, they'll attract women's attention and be surrounded by their screams. Peng Jingrong is only eighteen years old after all, and having just spoken with an air of maturity, she now shows strong interest in this frivolous and pretentious activity.

  "Not interested, there are still many things to do, who has the leisure time to watch those sour scholars? You'd better go by yourself." Liu Ziguang shook his head like a rattle drum, thinking of ways to get rid of Miss Electric Light Bulb as soon as possible.

  "You go first, we still have something to talk about." It was truly a case of twin telepathy, as Peng Jingrong also pushed her sister outside.

  "Hmph, you guys aren't going, I'll go with Xueyuan then." Peng Jingwei stormed off.

  "Well, what shall we talk about? Why don't we discuss some personal matters?" No one interrupted, and Liu Ziguo brought up the ambiguous topic.

  "What I want to say is about the Good Man Contest. My sister's words just reminded me of something." The big miss replied dryly.

  This girl is really interested in that thing, and having me here isn't enough to watch, Liu Ziguang was speechless with frustration.

  "The delegation from Songguo is staying by the lake, and today's event is a good opportunity to make contact with them. I'll send someone to meet their informant and bring Vice Shi out to meet you. You can then hand over two small sections of the 'Painting of Rare Birds' to them, firstly to let them know that our goods are genuine, and secondly to show our sincerity." It turns out it's this matter, making us act like spies, Big Sister really has potential in espionage.

  "What a wonderful plan! You are truly the Zhuge among women!" Liu Ziguang exclaimed involuntarily. Peng's old father must have raised his eldest daughter as a son, with both literary and military talents, knowledgeable about all things past and present, Chinese and foreign.

  Peng Jingrong's shy smile was like a peach blossom unfolding, and Liu Ziguang couldn't help but stare blankly. When he came to his senses, the person had already disappeared.

  The most lively time of the Good Man Competition was in the late afternoon, Liu Ziguang and his sister rented a awning boat drifting on Mochou Lake. The original twelve sections of "Painting Life Rare Birds" were carefully divided into a small part, rolled up into a thin scroll and hidden in the hole of the flute, so that the envoy of the Song Dynasty could distinguish between true and false. The password had been set beforehand through the contact person.

  Lianfeng has a group of people who are responsible for secret work, with connections in all walks of life, both good and bad. The news about the theft from the palace is already out, and the informants from Song, Qing, Xia, and Taiwan's Zheng family probably already know what was stolen. The envoy from Song will not miss the opportunity to recover their ancestral treasures.

  Take advantage of the other party not arriving yet to take a look at the good boy competition. Looking from afar, a young man dressed as a scholar is reciting his own poetry on the lake pavilion, and the famous scholars on the shore are shaking their heads and commenting. The misses and maids in the small boats on the lake only care about whether the person in the pavilion is handsome and elegant, and don't care about the poetry or songs. If a weak and handsome young scholar appears, the nearby beauties will stand at the bow of the boat and throw sachets and handkerchiefs over, feeling like throwing embroidered balls. If it's an old and decrepit corrupt Confucian, the girls will shrink into the cabin and ignore him. Most of the good men who come to watch the excitement on the shore are here to see the women, and when they see this situation, they loudly boo and drive the person away. It's a beauty pageant, and what's being selected is beautiful boys.

  The judges were very serious, and each contestant was scored by five judges as the basis for the ranking. Those with unusual appearance and skeletal features were often eliminated in the preliminary round. Although there is no age limit for those who can participate, at least they can guarantee that their facial features are regular.

  One after another, several talented individuals came on stage to perform. There was a martial artist who drew his sword and danced while singing "Man Jiang Hong", a scholar who recited his own long poem in a hoarse voice, and someone who performed calligraphy by splashing ink in front of the crowd. The most hilarious one was an oil seller who brought a gourd and a copper ladle to perform the stunt of pouring oil through the coin slot, which also earned him applause. In short, it was a diverse and bizarre show, and it seems that the interests of the people in the Ming Dynasty were quite broad.

  The boats were getting more and more, and the distance between each boat was getting closer and closer. The sides of the boats were touching each other, and the elegant ladies were chattering and pointing at the enthusiastic performances of the good men on stage.

  A soft chanting sound suddenly came from the boat next door:

  "The green hills are faintly visible, and the water is distant. The grasses and trees of Jiangnan wither as autumn ends. On a clear moonlit night at Twenty-Four Bridges, where can I find my jade-like beauty?"

  Turning around, it was a girl wearing a yellow jacket who was smiling at them, her eyes falling on the flute in the eldest sister's hand.

  The young girl used the newly broken willow branch in her hand to splash the emerald green lake water, and smiled at Peng Jingrong: "This sister is so elegant, she even brought a musical instrument to watch the game."

  Peng Jingrong also recited a poem:

  "The leaves are dense with dew like crying eyes, the leaves sway gently in the wind like a dancing waist. The small tree cannot help but be climbed and broken, begging you to leave two or three branches."

  "This young lady, the willow trees are still budding. If they were all picked like you did, then the banks of Lake Mochou would be bald."

  The young girl smiled shyly: "Little sister knows, elder sister's flute is quite unique, isn't it from a famous craftsman? May I take a look?" "Take it and have a look." Peng Jingrong handed the flute over.

  The girl played with it for a while, then returned it: "Indeed, it is the fine work of Master Ni from Sanpai Building. Tomorrow I will also go to buy one." Then she left them a charming smile and ordered the boatman to row forward again. As the two boats moved further apart, Peng Jingrong said in a low voice: "It's done, we can leave now."

  "This man is the deputy historian of the Song Dynasty's diplomatic mission? What a handsome man." Liu Ziguang responded in a low voice.

  "How did you know?" Peng Jingrong asked in surprise.

  "Although he deliberately concealed it, I still saw his Adam's apple, the speed and skill of taking pictures were very fast and clever, if not careful, it would be hard to notice, looks like an old hand in espionage." Liu Ziguang's eyes are still very poisonous.

  "We should go too." suggested Peng Jingrong.

  "Wait a minute, what's that thing in the hand of the person on stage?" Liu Ziguang's gaze was attracted by this new contestant who had just come up to the stage in the middle of the lake pavilion.

  The man held up a shining light bulb.

  Next episode preview: The protagonist subdues the inventor Edison, reserves his own technical strength, and all the preparations are for a major action. The form of the coup is initially set as a midnight parachute drop.

  Tanks, submarines, and hot air balloons will all appear, don't worry, should the protagonist go back to rally 500 people for a rebellion now? The timing, technology, and various conditions are not yet ripe, the enemy BOSS has not appeared yet, the next step is about to start the conflict. Continuous conflicts, if you have any good suggestions, I will consider them all.