Selling wife for fame? Kick out the scumbag and marry the new emperor to enjoy the harem of favors

Chapter 157 Competition
Upon hearing the second line, Shangguan Yi's old face stiffened, and his expression became somewhat unnatural.

They were quite harsh with their words.

"Hahaha, good, that's right!"

Zhao Xingjin laughed loudly, his eyes searching the crowd for the source of the sound.

Like him, the officials present were all trying to figure out who had come up with such a brilliant second line.

However, when they got a good look at the young man, they realized that he was a complete stranger.

While others might find him unfamiliar, Xie Jiu recognized him; the person who provided the matching couplet was none other than Zhou Zhiqing.

"Are you from the Hanlin Academy?" Zhao Xingjin asked.

Although I didn't recognize them, I knew who was sitting in those seats.

Zhou Zhiqing hurriedly cupped his hands in greeting, "Your Majesty, I am Zhou Zhiqing, a junior scholar of the Hanlin Academy."

Upon hearing his identity, many people turned their heads and began to scrutinize the young man.

The Shujishi were selected from the newly appointed Jinshi (successful candidates in the highest imperial examinations). They were virtuous and talented individuals who entered the Hanlin Academy and were taught by Hanlin scholars for three years. After three years, they would be assessed, and those who performed well would be retained and would have the opportunity to become close advisors to the emperor in the future.

Clearly, a young man like Zhou Zhiqing has a bright future, especially now that he has been praised by the emperor for his second line of the couplet, which gives him more opportunities than others.

He was also quite handsome, and for a time, some officials with daughters of marriageable age in the room began to have some ulterior motives.

In the capital, it is common knowledge that there are talented young men from prominent families. However, Zhou Zhiqing is an unfamiliar face and has no prior reputation, which means that he is probably from a poor family. If you take in such a son-in-law and provide him with guidance and training, he will be a good match in the future.

Unfortunately, these people did not know that Zhou Zhiqing had already married, and that his wife was a female relative of the disgraced official Wu.

Of course, this is all for later.

Upon hearing Zhou Zhiqing introduce himself, Zhao Xingjin nodded with satisfaction. "Not bad. Study hard at the Hanlin Academy. Our Great Jing needs young people like you."

"Your humble servant will certainly not fail your guidance!" Zhou Zhiqing was thrilled and immediately responded.

Xie Jiu watched this scene, lowered her eyes slightly, and a slight smile appeared on her lips. She thought to herself that Zhao Xingjin's praise would probably push Zhou Zhiqing and Wu Qingchan's marriage further towards disintegration.

She was looking at this floor, but the others present naturally didn't know any of this, especially the envoys from Xichi Kingdom, who only saw Shangguan Yi being rebuffed by the young man opposite him.

No, it was another rebuttal.

The last Xie Wei who left him speechless was also young.

Seeing this, Gao Sui gave a wink to the man in his early twenties sitting behind him. The man understood and stood up, speaking at the opportune moment.

"This Lord Zhou's couplet is truly ingenious. I also have a first line that comes to mind. I wonder if Lord Zhou can come up with a matching line?"

That's more targeted now.

Zhou Zhiqing wasn't stupid; he could naturally sense that the other party wanted to dampen his spirit.

Under these circumstances, he had just gained some favor from the emperor. If he were to lose that favor, all his previous glory would be for nothing, and he might even be disliked for being incompetent. Therefore, he not only had to respond, but he also had to respond well.

After pondering for a moment, he smiled gently and said, "You flatter me. If you have a good first line, please share it so that all the officials present can hear it. I am not very knowledgeable, so please don't be too disappointed if I can't match it. I'm sure the other officials here may have a good second line."

Zhao Xingjin was fairly satisfied with what he said. He hadn't forgotten the occasion or tried to be a hero because of the other party's deliberate targeting and his earlier show-off.

Instead, he adopted a humble attitude, so that even if he couldn't come up with a good matching line, he wouldn't be ridiculed too much by the other party. At the same time, he would also mobilize the other officials of Dajing present and subtly urge everyone to unite against the common enemy.

The young man from Xichi Kingdom was named Jin Yue. He was a rising star in the Xichi literary world and was certainly no ordinary person.

Seeing through Zhou Zhiqing's little scheme, he remained calm and smiled as he spoke.

“Okay, then my first line is: The sky is near the mountain top, but when you walk to the mountainside, the sky is even farther away.”

This line is much more meaningful than Shangguan Yi's malicious first line; it can be considered a proper exchange of ideas.

Upon hearing this, Zhou Zhiqing frowned slightly, seemingly unable to come up with a suitable second line.

Zhao Xingjin saw this and, though slightly disappointed, didn't blame him. He could understand; having just been in the limelight, he was naturally under more pressure now. Unlike the first time, when he didn't think about anything and just wanted to be right, this time, if he wasn't right, it would be embarrassing. It was better not to speak at all.

"What's wrong, Lord Zhou? Can't come up with a reply?" Jin Yue asked with a smile, but he couldn't hide his smugness.

But to everyone's surprise, after a moment of contemplation, Zhou Zhiqing said, "The moon floats on the water's surface, but if you try to scoop it up from the bottom, it will sink again."

As soon as he said this, the smile on Jin Yue's face gradually disappeared.

Obviously, that's correct.

Seeing that Jin Yue was a bit upset, Zhao Zaiyan quickly stepped in to smooth things over and started clapping.

"Excellent, excellent line, perfectly balanced, truly superb, Lord Jin, don't you agree?"

Upon receiving the reminder, Jin Yue quickly smiled and cupped his hands in a respectful gesture to Zhou Zhiqing, saying, "Indeed, Lord Zhou's words are excellent; I admire them."

"Thank you for your kind offer," Zhou Zhiqing replied politely.

After both parties sat down, Zhao Xingjin smiled and spoke at the opportune moment.

"This is a fair exchange, a draw. Come on, who has a good first line? Just say it. Whoever comes up with a first line today and no one can match it, I will reward them with this piece of pine soot ink!"

This was clearly meant to intimidate the Da Jing people, since the couplet was proposed by Gao Sui, the Prince of Yi of Xichi Kingdom.

How can it end like this?

Xie Mingshen saw through Zhao Xingjin's thoughts and took the initiative to say, "Your Majesty, I have thought of a line: 'Chickens and dogs cross the frosty bridge, along the way plum blossoms and bamboo leaves.'"

After he finished speaking, a short while later, someone from the Xichi Kingdom's delegation spoke up.

He said, "The tortoise and snake float on the water's surface, with two jade belts and purses."

After hearing this, Xie Mingshen chuckled and said, "I suppose that matches up."

But it lacks artistic conception and is too popular and superficial.

He didn't say what he meant after that, but many people in the room understood what he meant, and low laughter seemed to come from all directions.

Both Shangguan Yi and Zhao Zaiyan looked rather unwell.

Fortunately, Jin Yue didn't falter and promptly replied with a line: "Swallows and orioles fly through embroidered curtains, half a window of jade-cut golden edges."

This was naturally far superior to the previous sentence. Although the other party was from Xichi Kingdom, his literary talent made the officials of Dajing present look at him with new respect.

Seeing that the situation had been somewhat turned around, the Xichi delegation members looked much better.

But this results in a draw, with both sides secretly vying for dominance.

Xie Jiu looked up at Zhao Xingjin and noticed that the smile in his eyes was no longer the same as before. He was probably a little impatient and didn't want to continue arguing about the couplet. So after thinking for a moment, he beckoned Chunrong to his side and whispered a few words in her ear.

Upon hearing this, Chunrong quietly withdrew and quickly went to Princess Wenxi's side.

Then, a voice with a touch of childishness rang out in the hall.

"Father, I have thought of a first line of a couplet. I wonder if it is acceptable?"

Zhao Xingjin looked over upon hearing the sound and saw that the little girl was tightly clutching her handkerchief, indicating that she must have mustered up her courage to stand up. Therefore, he spoke gently.

"Tell me about it, it doesn't matter if it's not good."

There's nothing shameful about children.

Princess Wenxi nodded, and then, under the gaze of everyone, said, "North of the city, in front of the Three Pagodas Temple, there are three pagodas, pagoda, pagoda."

Zhao Xingjin hadn't had high expectations, but Princess Wenxi's first line of the couplet stunned everyone.

It's really hard to answer.