How can one cultivate immortality without learning modern knowledge?

Zhou Wenju picked up the freshly boiled teapot and poured a cup for each of them: "Brother Zhong, shall we speak frankly?"

Zhongba took his teacup: "If you didn't want to speak freely, why did you travel so far to invite me? Now that we've already sealed our voices, no matter what taboos there are, Brother Zhou, just ask me directly."

"Then I shall proceed with my insolence!" Zhou Wenju said, "Is Your Majesty dissatisfied with these three?"

Chung-hachi hesitated slightly: "The Qingshan Literary Gathering concerns the safety of the northern border and is no ordinary literary gathering. If we fail, the consequences will be unimaginable. Therefore, Your Majesty is extremely cautious about this. It has nothing to do with factions or reputation. Participating and winning is Your Majesty's only goal!"

"The Green Mountain Literary Gathering... what exactly is behind it?" Zhou Wenju took a sip of tea.

Before going to Beijing, he only had a general understanding of the Aoyama Literary Society.

It is generally regarded as a friendly exchange with foreign countries.

Is this kind of article important?

Of course it matters.

What foreign affairs activity is unimportant?

However, now, listening to Zhong Bayan's words, the importance of this literary gathering far exceeds expectations.

It even reached the point where they "couldn't afford to fail."

Why is that?

Chung-hachi let out a soft sigh: "This matter is not exactly a secret. This literary gathering between the Great Yu Kingdom and the Great Yan Kingdom stems from a choice made by 'White Deer Creek'..."

Bailu Creek.

It was the settlement of the ancient alien race, the Spirit Race.

This stream, though called a stream, actually stretches for thousands of miles.

It is located north of Lanzhou in northern China.

Last September, Bailuxi made an unprecedented decision: to allow intermarriage between its people and other human tribes.

They only had two choices: go north or go south.

To the north lies the Great Yan, and to the south lies the Great Yu.

The two countries are roughly equal in strength and prosperity, so whether Bailuxi should head south or north is a matter of a single decision.

After discussion among the clan elders, they proposed that the two countries hold a literary gathering, which would be called the "Qingshan Literary Gathering".

The winner of the literary contest will be granted the right to open their clan's doors to Bailuxi for intermarriage.

The Spirit Clan is extremely powerful. If they were to form a marriage alliance with the Great Yan, their strength would instantly surpass that of the Great Yu, putting the northern border of the Great Yu Kingdom in danger. Conversely, the same applies – after all, these two countries are enemies.

The decision to form a marriage alliance has pushed two great nations to the brink of disaster, where neither can afford to lose.

Therefore, both countries attach great importance to this event and want to fully showcase their respective cultural and philosophical heritage at the Qingshan Cultural Conference.

"A literary gathering is a matter of national destiny... I understand!" Zhou Wenju said, "Brother Zhong, what do you hope I will do next?"

"What you do depends on what your competitors do!" Chung-hachi's eyes held a complex expression.

"Have they made a move?" Zhou Wenju asked.

"Yes, I just received a message that Professor He Wenxin of Luoyang Academy will be holding a discussion at Zuixinglou on the fifteenth day of the first lunar month, the Lantern Festival. His consistent view is that one should only talk about poetry when one has reached a high level of literary achievement..."

"Only those with high literary rank can talk about poetry... Those without literary rank are not even qualified to discuss poetry, let alone represent the Great Yu Kingdom at the Green Mountain Literary Gathering, is that right?" Zhou Wenju smiled lightly.

"Brother Zhou is indeed perceptive. This Master He chose to create such a stir and engage in his 'Drunken Star Theory' before His Majesty decided on the candidates for the Qingshan Literary Gathering. His intentions are quite obvious," Zhong Ba said. "If his 'theory of poetry' becomes the mainstream view in the literary world, you and that great scholar of Qingshan Poetry, Xiang Yuezhou, with your 'deficiency in literary rank,' should be excluded from the candidates for the Qingshan Literary Gathering! But he can leverage the popularity and prestige of his 'Drunken Star Theory' to successfully obtain the qualification for the Qingshan Literary Gathering. Even if His Majesty does not approve of him, it will probably be difficult to go against the general trend of the literary world."

"In a debate on the philosophy of literature, he not only enhanced his own literary reputation but also conveniently trampled his opponent into the mud. This master of literature and philosophy played a rather clever strategy."

"That's for sure. Which literary master who thrives in the turmoil of the capital isn't a shrewd and calculating individual?" Zhongba asked. "Brother Zhou, do you have a plan?"

"Discussions on the Way, the true path of literature, how can we speak lightly of such matters?" Zhou Wenju smiled faintly, "How about we, in our day, also entered the Drunken Star Pavilion and listened to its teachings?"

"Listen to the Way? Just listen?" Chung-hachi asked.

"Not necessarily!" Zhou Wenju said. "If the mood strikes, we could discuss it once in a while!"

"Regarding the last discussion, Brother Zhou's topic should have been 'Poets are not judged by their background'!" Zhongba said.

He Wenxin's topic is "Only when one reaches a high level of literary attainment can one talk about poetry." This means that discussing poetry and participating in the most prestigious poetry gatherings require a certain level of literary attainment. If you cannot even attain that level, it means that your literary foundation is insufficient, and those with insufficient foundation are not qualified to talk about poetry.

If this view holds true, then Zhou Wenju and that great scholar Xiang Yuezhou will be in trouble, as both of them lack literary talent and are not qualified to participate in the Qingshan Literary Gathering.

So, you think this old geezer held this grand debate on the fifteenth of the first lunar month just to boost his own reputation?

No, that's not true!

His target was clear and obvious: Zhou Wenju, who had jumped out halfway through and was a potential contestant in the Qingshan Literary Gathering, and Xiang Yuezhou, the renowned scholar of Qingshan poetry.

These two are He Wenxin's biggest rivals, a professor at Luoyang Academy and a master of poetry.

To refute his viewpoint, there is naturally only another perspective: "Poets are not judged by their origins." That is, to set aside the poet's identity and literary rank, and simply discuss poetry in terms of poetry itself.

To refute his view, there is naturally only another view: "Poets are not judged by their origins." That is, to set aside the poet's own identity and literary rank, and to discuss poetry simply based on the poem itself.

These two viewpoints are actually widely debated in literary circles and among the general public, and each has a large following.

The proponents of the former viewpoint are those who already hold high positions of authority.

They have formed a circle at the top of the literary and artistic circles.

They hope to maintain control over the definition, aesthetics, and discourse of "poetry"...

The proponents of the latter viewpoint are those who themselves do not hold high positions of authority.

They can't get into this circle.

They longed to break down people's prejudices with genuine talent, so they emphasized that "poets should not be judged by their background."

The former stands taller and speaks louder.

The latter had a lower volume, but a larger quantity...

Zhongba's approach to Zhou Wenju revolved around the argument that "poets are not judged by their social background."

Zhou Wenju smiled but did not answer...

Zhongba chuckled softly: "Actually, a poet's origins are irrelevant. There's a place on West Mountain that embodies this perfectly. Why don't you go and take a look, Brother Zhou, and perhaps find some inspiration or material?"

"Which place?" Zhou Wenju asked.

"Liu Wenbi!" Zhongba laughed: "Look, that pretty girl you met on the road is already wielding her brush in front of Liu Wenbi. It seems you two are really on the same wavelength."

With a laugh, he turned and left the temple.

Zhou Wenju's gaze fell upon the scene, and he thought to himself, "Damn it..."

It really is!

That girl Lin Nongyue actually went to Liuwenbi, and really did open her paper umbrella there and start copying everything in sight.

In Zhongba's understanding, this girl was in sync with Zhou Wenju, knowing that Zhou Wenju wanted to prove that "poets are not judged by their background", so she went to Liuwenbi to seek inspiration.

Why seek inspiration at Liuwen Wall? Because this place is perfect for proving that "poets are not judged by their origins"—Liuwen Wall is covered with poems and essays by people who have visited Xishan and all sorts of others.

But Zhou Wenju knew that this girl wasn't trying to find inspiration for him at all.

This guy is a complete poetry plagiarism maniac! Plagiarizing poems is one thing, but going after Liu Wenbi is a serious matter!

There are tens of thousands of poems on the wall of Liuwen. For a practitioner like her, copying poems is definitely more difficult than killing people. How many tens of thousands of poems would it take to finish?

Oh……

Zhou Wenju realized a key point.

She copied the poem using the inside of a paper umbrella.

The inside is only about the size of a butt; once it's completely covered, that should be enough...

He initially predicted that Lin Niu would return to her room soon.

However, he miscalculated.

The girl didn't come back until sunset.

Zhou Wenju leaned closer to the window to observe again, and lo and behold, he saw that the person was still copying!

You've spent two hours copying this tiny piece of land and it's still not full? That doesn't make sense...

As evening fell, she still hadn't returned; she was still copying...

A vague doubt arose in Zhou Wenju's mind. Could it be that this girl was using the copying of the poem on the wall as a way to avoid being alone with her boyfriend tonight?

He slept soundly through the night. On the fourteenth day of the first lunar month, the first thing he did after getting up was to go to the window. He glanced at it and found himself in a dead end.

This girl is still copying.

Moreover, the copying is so realistic it doesn't look fake.

Zhou Wenju couldn't understand it at all, so he left the temple and went to the Liuwen Wall.

Snowflakes were falling heavily from the sky, and at this time of year, there was no one else in front of Liuwen Wall.

He leaned closer, took a look, and his eyes widened...

The inside of this umbrella is layered upon layered, like a void, no, it is a staggered overlap of spaces.

Spatial Laws!

A magical treasure in space!

The inside of this umbrella has almost endless space.

She wasn't avoiding being alone with a man and woman in a room, nor was it a spur-of-the-moment decision. She genuinely intended to copy down the entire Flowing Wall, and it wasn't just an intention, but something she was actually doing. She had been copying for a full day and night, and she even had a rare treasure to support her ambition—the inside of the Flower Umbrella in the Endless Space.

"Are you really planning to copy down all these tens of thousands of poems? Completely disregarding the feelings of your spatial treasure?" Zhou Wenju asked.

Lin Nongyue finally put down her pen, glancing sideways at me with more white than black eyes: "The feeling of a spatial treasure? What kind of feeling could a spatial treasure possibly have?"

"If these extraordinary treasures had a spirit, they might sigh and say, 'These days, it's not easy being an extraordinary treasure. It's one thing for them to collect your weapons, clothes, and all sorts of snacks, but they also have to collect all kinds of trash you can see.'"

"Trash! If you dare say trash again, you'd better write me a poem that isn't trash!" Lin Nongyue said angrily.

"This request is not unreasonable!" Zhou Wenju said. "It might be possible tomorrow! But the condition is that you put away your pen and come back to my room with me."

"Why should I go back to your room?" Lin Nongyue's eyes were a little complicated, unsure if she was thinking the wrong thing.

"Two reasons, one true and one false. Do you want to hear the true one or the false one?"

"Huh? There are both true and false reasons? Let's hear them all..." Lin Nongyue became interested.

"The fake reason is that you're lying here copying so hard, and I feel a little sorry for you."

"Tch! What's the real reason?" Lin Nongyue rolled her eyes at him.