Frost for a Thousand Years

Chapter 178 Yun Xiang’s clothes and Hua Xiang’s appearance

It's a game of "Flying Flowers".

Classic games for gatherings of literati, and since it's the Qionglin Banquet, they are an essential part that cannot be missed.

Song Shi'an knew there was such a segment, and since he was the top scholar, he was bound to be teased.

Come then.

He was already slightly tipsy from drinking, and slowly got up.

A beautiful woman from the Western Regions helped him down the steps, supporting his arm.

He walked to the center and bowed to the king: "Your Highness."

“When scholars play the ‘Flying Flowers’ game, they usually use existing poems, so they have to be able to recite them off the cuff, and there are also format rules and the order of the key points,” said the Prince of Jin. “Since this is an impromptu creation, and you are the first to do so, let’s give you more time and be flexible with the rules. What do you think?”

"I will obey Your Highness's will," Song Shi'an said.

This means that the people further ahead in the group are at a disadvantage.

Therefore, the King of Wu took the initiative to suggest: "Since there are no strict rules, as long as the key word is hidden, we can set a topic, and within the time it takes for an incense stick to burn, all the scholars can think about it together and then recite it in order."

"That's excellent," the Prince of Jin nodded with a smile, and said, "What do you all think?"

"Your Highness is wise." Everyone agreed that this was the best approach.

“Since it’s a drinking game, there must be a penalty drink,” said the Prince of Jin. “When the poems are recited, the others will judge who is better. The winner will continue to compare with the following poems, and the loser will drink.”

Once this rule was announced, everyone quickly understood it.

There are thirty people, and twenty-nine of them will drink.

Only the first one can escape unscathed.

This is hardly a drinking game.

This is basically forcing everyone to drink!
"If we have to compete like this..." Gao Yunyi said, "wouldn't it just be a contest to see who can defeat the top scholar first?"

"Or is it that Brother Shi An alone defeated all twenty-nine of us?" Ge Zhao asked with a smile.

"We still have Young Master Sun Qian, so don't be afraid!"

"Don't count on me, everyone," Sun Qian replied casually, even managing a joke.

"It's alright, I'm here for you!"

"We won't let him wipe us out by himself."

"Brother, what you're saying is a bit gory," Song Shi'an joked.

Everyone burst into laughter.

"Your Highness," Gao Yunyi pleaded, "could we shorten the thinking time a bit? If we give him enough time to come up with another 'Ode to the Goddess of the Luo River,' what will we be doing?"

"That's a good idea," praised the Prince of Jin. "What does the top scholar think?"

"I will follow Your Highness's lead," Song Shi'an said magnanimously. "This is merely a starting point; the true literary masters will depend on you all."

This phrase, especially the "throwing a brick to attract jade" meme, caused widespread PTSD among the people.

“This top scholar was the one who asked us to throw out a brick to set an example!” Gao Yunyi pointed at him and protested to the others.

"Yes, that day really made us look quite pathetic," Fan Wuji remarked.

Sun Qian, who had maintained his elegance and composure when he was mentioned earlier, suddenly looked rather unpleasant.

Joking is fine.

But no, they can make any kind of joke.

“Then what?” King Wu, completely oblivious to Sun Qian’s attitude, joked, “Today’s Flying Flower Game, you can’t deliberately go off-topic again.”

The students below immediately burst into laughter.

references:
[1] Sun Situ. What does your poem have to do with my birthday? [M]. Banquet: A Poem Presented to Sun Situ on His Birthday, Sun Situ's Residence, 9xx.03.

If anyone else had acted this way, Sun Qian would have lost his temper on the spot. But after all, it was His Highness. There was nothing he could do. No matter how angry he was, he could only drink in silence, just like Song Shi'an, who was placed at a small table in the corner that day. Except that Song Shi'an had hidden a poem, "If a scholar could become a marquis of ten thousand households."

No, why can't I make a name for myself?
Why must I lose to him?
Indeed, his "Ode to the Goddess of the Luo River" truly suffocated the scholars of his time. However, prior to the last provincial examination, he had no surviving works.

These articles all appeared during the exam.

That poem, "The Marquis of Ten Thousand Households," is indeed grand and magnificent, but it strayed far from the topic. Can that be considered a victory?
Song Shi'an is strong, but I have never seen him create a work in person under completely improvisational conditions that meet the requirements.

is it possible?
The emperor wanted to have his sword pushed around, so he specially made all this for him.

It's cheating, it's someone behind the scenes, it's someone with real power.

Otherwise, how could a young man in his early twenties be so invincible!
It seems like Sun Qian is about to turn evil...

Song Shi'an was a little worried about him.

The Prince of Jin also sensed it; Sun Qian's aura at that moment could only be described as damp.

But the King of Wu was completely oblivious, thoroughly intoxicated by the wine, and complacent only because his jokes had brought laughter to everyone...

The Prince of Jin wondered, "Could this be my father testing our abilities?"

Or rather, to examine our character?
He didn't know, but one thing he was sure of was that his father really liked testing people!

"Since that's the case, let's shorten the thinking time to half an incense stick's time, how about that?" Prince Jin changed the subject and said.

The intensity was felt by everyone after half an incense stick had burned.

Asking Song Shi'an to write a beautiful and evocative poem within half an incense stick's time is incredibly demanding!
"As Your Highness wishes."

Song Shi'an repeated the same statement.

"What, you'll listen to whatever I say?" Prince Jin laughed. "Does the top scholar mean he can do it even faster?"

“It can be fast, but it may not necessarily be better,” Song Shi’an said.

“Just don’t make it too good,” Gao Yunyi chimed in. “The top scholar has written too many good poems. We want to see how bad the worst one can be.”

"Yes, yes."

"Why not just write a poem as quickly as possible, regardless of its quality?"

The scholars who had passed the imperial examinations began to devise strategies for recruiting outside their own ranks.

"Oh dear." The Prince of Jin also set a small trap, asking, "Scholar, how quickly can you compose a poem?"

"Does Your Highness mean that we should just write poems, regardless of their quality?" Song Shi'an asked.

"It would be good enough if you could even compose a poem, regardless of its quality," said the Prince of Jin. "Scholar, how fast can you be?"

“Then…” After a moment’s thought, Song Shi’an said, “Seven steps.”

The students in the room were stunned when these words were spoken.

Even the two kings were frozen in time. What the heck? Composing a poem in seven steps?
So crazy!
"Seven steps? You can compose a poem within seven steps?"

"That's like a poet immortal, speaking fluently without hesitation!"

"Someone can actually compose a poem in seven steps... I really have to see that!"

No student had the confidence to do that.

Even Sun Qian believed that it was impossible to produce a good poem in such a short time.

Of course, a short sentence that fits the rhythm is fine.

"Excellent!" King Wu was particularly impressed by Song Shi'an's magnanimity and said enthusiastically, "Top scholar, let us look at you with new eyes!"

"Please, Your Highnesses, give us the questions."

Song Shi'an bowed slowly, without the slightest fear.

He didn't want to show off, but he was forced to do it, so what could he do?
Trying not to show off in order to avoid offending the emperor on this occasion is putting the cart before the horse.

Just pretend.

“Then, King Wu, you shall set the question,” King Jin said humbly.

"I'll set the question? I'd better avoid any appearance of impropriety," the King of Wu politely declined. "Please, the King of Jin, set the question."

Indeed, everyone knows that Song Shi'an is a member of the Wu King's faction. It's absurd for him to act as his own referee and compete against himself.

As for the Prince of Jin, there was no possibility that he would leak the exam questions to Song Shi'an to gain prestige.

They are political rivals.

"Ok."

The King of Jin slowly rose and looked around. Then, seeing a beautiful woman kneeling beside each table, he suddenly had an idea and said, "Beautiful women are like flowers, captivating and enchanting. Let's use 'flower' as the theme and compose a poem to describe the beauty of these women."

After the question was revealed, everyone in the audience went into a frenzy of brainstorming.

Although they had the advantage of being latecomers, they still had to write poems.

"Yes."

Song Shi'an bowed to the Prince of Jin.

Then, he slowly turned around and faced the beautiful woman from the Western Regions standing in front of him.

The girl's cheeks flushed slightly, and she placed her hands on her thighs, striking a pose that was even more alluring and elegant, like a model, confidently displaying herself...

Song Shi'an lifted his foot and took a step.

The eunuchs present whispered as they counted, "One step."

He walked slowly, but he didn't stop for long.

Lift your foot once every five seconds. Each step takes five seconds.

In other words, even if you complete all seven steps, it will only take a little over a minute...

"Seven steps."

As the voice faded, most of the students looked up in astonishment.

Impossible! It's impossible to produce any good poems so quickly!

Even if many people manage to compose a poem within this timeframe, it's really just a mess.

Sun Qian smiled and raised his head.

Writing fu (a type of classical Chinese prose-poem) was his forte.

Beautiful women and flowers are indispensable subjects in prose.

I succeeded, and not badly.

On the seventh step, Song Shi'an faced the two kings. Then, he slowly raised his head and saw that the two kings were holding their breath and craning their necks, waiting for him to recite the poem. The contemplation on his face turned into a gentle smile: "Clouds remind me of clothes, flowers remind me of beauty."

The moment this sentence was uttered, every student's eyes widened in shock.

"The spring breeze caresses the balustrade, and the dew is heavy..."

These two lines are so beautiful they're beyond words!

Everyone was captivated by the stunning visuals.

The smile vanished completely from Sun Qian's face, replaced by an indescribable despair. A tear involuntarily streamed down his shocked face, and he murmured absently, "Clouds yearn for her garments, flowers for her face; spring breeze, spring breeze, caressing the balustrade, heavy with dew..."

It's impossible to win, absolutely impossible to win.

He could never catch up with the poem he composed in seven steps, even in a lifetime.

What should we compare?

How can I compare to him!

He brought shame upon himself and his own demise!
"It's so beautiful, so amazing! I feel like I'm witnessing a golden age that lasts for ten thousand years..."

"Indeed, what kind of atmosphere could give birth to such a literary style?"

"Although this line is enough to complete the poem in the Flying Flower Order, could you please finish the rest?"

Faced with the requests of the scholars, Song Shi'an pondered deeply and then said, "If we don't meet on the top of Mount Qunyu, we will meet under the moon on the Jade Terrace."

Now everyone finally understood that it wasn't because Song Shi'an loved women that they were so beautiful.

But Song Shi'an is more capable of creating beauty than anyone else in the world.

She truly deserves to be called the goddess of beauty in our time.

The two kings were also amazed by his talent and remained silent for a long time.

It wasn't until the Prince of Jin realized he needed to bring up the procedure that he spoke up, saying, "Second Scholar, please begin."

"Your Highness."

Ge Zhao stood up abruptly, holding the wine cup, showing no sign of defeat, only profound respect for Song Shi'an: "Please allow me to avoid making a fool of myself this time."

After saying that, he was immediately forced to drink a penalty shot.

I finished the whole glass.

Next was Sun Qian, who rose shakily, wiped away the tears from his eyes, and offered a toast to Song Shi'an from afar.

He swallowed the food without saying a word, then sat down, looking utterly dejected.

One by one, all the students stood up, but no one was willing to play the drinking game. Instead, they all toasted Song Shi'an.

(End of this chapter)