"Uh, could you please repeat what you just said? I was distracted..."
Just now he was concentrating on thinking about which delicacy to try next, when someone suddenly called his name. Zhu Ping'an didn't hear clearly what the person said for a moment, so he had to put down his chopsticks, looked up and asked the person.
But I looked up and was surprised to find that almost everyone was staring at me. Well, this is the largest and most sumptuous banquet I have ever seen since I came to the Ming Dynasty. I just want to try it, not just watch... ...
"You must be Zhu Ping'an, a top talent in Huaining County. We all wrote poems to share with everyone, but you have remained silent. Are you looking down on us?" The student who stepped forward repeated what he had just said, deliberately using plain language to satirize Zhu Ping'an for being illiterate and unable to understand classical Chinese.
Many people followed suit and asked Zhu Ping'an to write a poem and share it with everyone.
"Oh, poetry."
Zhu Pingan repeated softly, then shook his head gently and said modestly, "I'm not very good at writing poetry, so forget it."
Ouch
I go
Not good at writing poetry
You are quite honest.
But if you think that you can avoid writing poetry in this way, you are totally wrong! You are underestimating us.
The student who stepped forward smiled politely, took a step forward, and said with a bow, "You are too modest. You are a famous top-ranked talent with great potential at a young age. Everyone among us knows you. Please don't refuse."
"That's right, don't refuse. The poem you wrote at the Ten-Li Pavilion about being bitten by a snake and hearing a bird cry, well, that, that is quite refreshing to us."
Someone nearby immediately echoed the words, and mentioned the infamous poem Zhu Ping'an had written at the Ten-Li Long Pavilion about being bitten by a snake and hearing a bird cry, and ended with the words "refreshing" to make a joke.
For a moment, the building was filled with laughter.
The singer who was in charge of singing at the poetry meeting looked at the young man who was being questioned by everyone with sympathy in her beautiful eyes. The young man was only thirteen or fourteen years old, and the singer couldn't help but feel sympathy for him when he was being ridiculed and questioned like that. The weak usually sympathize with each other.
“Once bitten by a snake, you will hear birds singing everywhere. Outside the long pavilion, beside the ancient road, a line of egrets fly into the blue sky… Hahaha, easy to remember, isn’t this well done? Don’t refuse.”
Someone read aloud a poem that Zhu Ping'an had written, accompanied by laughter.
This was the first time for the beautiful singer who was in charge of singing the poems to hear Zhu Ping'an's poems. Being in a festive occasion, the singer had put a lot of effort into poetry and songs in order to please the guests. At this moment, she was disappointed when she heard Zhu Ping'an's poems read out by others. It was understandable that someone of this level could pass the county exam and get the top spot. It could only be explained by his family background. She thought they were in the same boat, but she didn't expect that he was just a dandy boy. The singer looked at Zhu Ping'an with a hint of contempt.
Zhou Xuezhen, as well as Mr. Li, Mr. Zhao and others, all frowned and looked at Zhu Ping'an with unpleasant expressions.
Everyone started to cheer for this poem and asked Zhu Ping'an to write another one.
A fellow villager sitting next to Zhu Ping'an was worried that Zhu Ping'an did not understand the seriousness of the matter and that he would make a big fool of himself and affect the reputation of Huaining County. So he whispered to Zhu Ping'an and signaled Zhou Xuezhen and others over there with his eyes.
So that's how it is. Zhu Ping'an glanced at everyone and a silly smile appeared on the corner of his mouth.
"Oh, that poem, but I wrote it as a joke."
Zhu Ping'an stood up when everyone had almost finished laughing. He seemed a little embarrassed, smiled foolishly, and spoke very sincerely.
Ga
Everyone's laughter stopped abruptly. The poem you had been laughing at for so long was simply a joke someone made to amuse people. How could you still laugh at it
But soon, he started laughing again.
There was some self-mockery in his laughter. It was really funny. He almost got fooled by this young man. It was just a joke. If you say it was a joke, then it is just a joke? It must be just an excuse to shirk responsibility.
"Is this a joke?" The student who stepped forward had a playful smile on his face, as if he had seen through Zhu Ping'an's little trick.
"Well, when we were saying goodbye to our loved ones at the Ten-mile Pavilion, I saw that everyone was depressed, so I wrote that joke poem just to lighten the mood."
Zhu Ping'an's tone was very sincere, but in the eyes of everyone it seemed like he was bluffing.
Everyone looked at Zhu Ping'an with strange eyes. It was too shameless to say that the poem he wrote was a joke just because it was not good.
The student who stepped forward was also a man of quick wit. As soon as Zhu Ping'an finished speaking, he continued what Zhu Ping'an said,
"Oh, it seems to be a joke then."
At this point, the conversation suddenly changed
"Then please write a poem seriously to open our eyes."
When everyone heard the words of the student who stepped forward, they couldn't help but shout "Cheers" in their hearts. That's it, haha, you said you wrote it as a joke, so now make a serious song for us to see, hahaha...
Use your own spear to attack your own shield.
The student who stepped forward left a good impression on everyone, even on Zhou Xuezhen and Mr. Li and Mr. Zhao. Seeing the admiring eyes of Zhou Xuezhen and others, the student who stepped forward couldn't help but feel that his decision was wise.
Opportunities are created by people.
The students who stepped forward were satisfied with their decision. At this moment, they found Zhu Ping'an, a good-for-nothing, much cuter and more pleasing to the eye.
"Do it seriously"
"Make one"
Everyone was indignant and urged Zhu Ping'an to write a poem seriously. They were just waiting to see Zhu Ping'an make a fool of himself and embarrass Huaining County.
Zhou Xuezhen and others also stared at Zhu Ping'an intently, to see what kind of ridiculous poem this good-for-nothing would come up with, and then take them to see the Lord of the Prefecture. The imperial examination is a place for selecting talents for the country, and the examination rules must be strictly enforced. This person must be severely punished, and even the Magistrate of Huaining County may be held accountable. There must not be any room for any sand in the sand.
"Yeah, okay."
Zhu Pingan glanced at everyone and nodded. Everyone was watching him, and it would be too rude to refuse. Moreover, looking at Zhou Xuezheng's dark face, if he didn't write a poem that satisfied him this time, he was afraid that he would kill the chicken to scare the monkeys, and he would never think about the imperial examination in the future. This was not what he wanted to see. Everything was inferior, only reading was superior, and he wanted to go a long way on this road.
"The one about hearing the bird cry after being bitten by a snake is a joke version of the Ten-mile Pavilion. Here is a serious version, um, this is it."
As Zhu Ping'an spoke, he wrote with his brush, leaving a poem on the snow-white rice paper.
Master Hongyi, I'm sorry. If you, who are now living in modern times, see these words hundreds of years later, please don't scold me too much.
After Zhu Ping'an finished writing, he blew away the ink slightly, then handed the rice paper filled with words to the student who stepped forward with both hands.
The student had a mocking smile on his face and had no expectations for the poem Zhu Ping'an handed over. He thought that the way Zhu Ping'an painted with his brush just now was a desperate move and he was just bluffing.
The student looked at the poems written by Zhu Ping'an with a mocking look, wondering what kind of poems this "talented man" who was bitten by a snake and heard the cry of a bird would be forced by him to write that would be laughed at for eternity.
However
Just a glance
The mockery on the student's face withered, and he looked constipated...
What happened? Everyone was very curious. Why did he have such an expression? Could it be that the poems written by that "great talent" were really so disgusting
So everyone couldn't help but laugh and ask questions out of curiosity.
The student was unable to utter a word. He just passed the rice paper in his hand to everyone to circulate. Then everyone looked constipated.
When the rice paper was passed to Zhou Xuezheng, it was already a little wrinkled by everyone, but the words on it were becoming more and more clear:
Outside the long pavilion, beside the ancient road, the grass is green and endless. The evening wind blows the willows, the sound of the flute fades, and the setting sun shines beyond the mountains.
At the end of the world, at the corner of the earth, half of my friends are gone. I will drink a cup of muddy wine to end my remaining joy, and I will not dream of the cold tonight.
Zhou Xuezheng couldn't take his eyes off the rice paper for a long time...
The atmosphere of the Jingxian Poetry Meeting became very strange at this moment. Everyone had been laughing and toasting since the beginning, and even when they were laughing and making fun of Zhu Ping'an, it was very lively. But at this moment the atmosphere was strangely quiet. Usually, when everyone wrote a poem, someone would comment on it, but at this moment no one spoke, and everyone looked constipated.
(It’s the third update, and this chapter isn’t too short, so I’ll just reluctantly encourage you to collect and recommend it.)