How can one cultivate immortality without learning modern knowledge?

A young and accomplished scholar entered.

The elderly Confucian scholar entered.

Pedestrians on the street all moved aside, and when vehicles passed by, even the drivers consciously put away their rudeness, and the horses' hooves moved with extraordinary gentleness...

The brothels on both sides of the street were completely silent, with no sound of string and wind instruments. Countless courtesans, dressed in their most alluring clothes, leaned against the balconies and watched the spectacle in their most captivating poses.

Almost all the courtesans of the brothels entered the Biyan Tower. Around the scholars, curtains were lowered, and with delicate touches and the softest zither music, they welcomed the literary talents.

Chen Shi (7-9 AM)

A drop of ink appeared out of thin air, and with a soft thud, it transformed into a long, dark bridge, spanning between the Biyan Tower and the Ruyi Tower.

Three figures crossed the bridge; they were the three members of the Mo family.

Mo Ziyi, Zhou Wenju, and Rou'er.

At the top of the Jade Mist Pavilion, on the high platform, the five people stood up simultaneously, smiling as they approached the Ink Bridge...

The hundred people who had gathered below the stage also turned to the side.

"Greetings, Miss Purple from the Mo family!" Li Yuecheng, standing in the center, greeted her with a scholar's bow.

The five people bowed at the same time.

Mo Ziyi bowed slightly: "Today's poetry gathering will be attended by myself and Zhou Wenju, a guest elder of the Mo family. The matter of discussing the Dao through poetry will be handled by young master Zhou."

Zhou Wenju also bowed slightly.

All eyes fell on Zhou Wenju's face.

All five of them looked surprised...

Meanwhile, in another restaurant, by the window, the Seventh Princess's eyes suddenly widened.

"Princess... Oh, young master..." a palace maid exclaimed in surprise, "He's not Mo Sanqiu!"

"It's not him! I knew it! I'd heard people say that Mo Sanqiu looks rather lewd, quite different from his appearance. Turns out it's not him!" the princess murmured.

"What's going on?" a palace maid exclaimed. "His Highness risked punishment from the Empress to travel thousands of miles to see the Imperial Son-in-Law, only to find out he's an imposter! Hasn't His Highness wasted all his efforts?"

"Bullshit!" the princess roared. "What do you mean by 'prince consort'? I didn't even approve of it! You think you can just pick any man and expect to climb on my back? You're dreaming!"

"Princess, be more refined, be more refined..."

"Refined my foot! You promised to let me be unrestrained for a few months..."

"That's not called being dissolute, that's just letting loose..." the palace maid quickly advised, her heart filled with alarm at the word "dissolute." Because the previous control had been so strict, letting go outside and being released from the cage was somewhat understandable. But Princess, you can't be "dissolute"! If you indulge in dissolute behavior for a few months, you'll truly become "promiscuous," and will you ever be able to come back?

On the Jade Mist Tower...

Li Muyun turned to face Li Yuecheng: "Scholar, when you invited us to the gathering that day, you seemed to be referring to Mo Sanqiu, the prodigy of the Mo family's poetry."

"Yes, I only agreed to come because of the reputation of Mo Sanqiu, this prodigy of poetry," Du Yuxin, the Poetry Madman, laughed. "But at the last minute it turned into... this Brother Zhou, what's going on?"

"I am also completely baffled by this matter," Li Yuecheng said. "Perhaps the lady in purple could offer an explanation?"

Mo Ziyi smiled faintly: "The invitation to the Nanyang Poetry Gathering is still in my hands. It doesn't specify any particular invitees. What? My Mo family will decide who attends. Does anyone have a problem with that?"

"How dare I!" Li Yuecheng said, "It's just that everyone knows that Mo Sanqiu, the genius of the Mo family's poetry, is only worthy of discussing poetry with us."

Upon hearing this, everyone's expression changed.

This is a direct slap in the face.

Although his words were still polite, he did not directly say that this guest was not worthy of discussing poetry with them.

However, who can't understand the meaning behind the words?

Mo Sanqiu is a perfect match!

The subtext is: the person in front of you is simply not good enough for you!

This is a rare instance of rudeness among scholars.

The woman in purple's face darkened...

However, she still doesn't have a good chance of having an attack.

How can you refute someone who speaks so highly of their disciple, Mo Sanqiu?

Zhou Wenju, who was standing nearby, spoke up with a slight smile: "Everyone speaks so highly of Mo Sanqiu, praising him as a genius in poetry. As a guest of the Mo family, I am grateful for your high praise of this Mo family disciple. However, there is one thing I don't understand. I wonder which of his masterpieces you all admire so much? I would very much like to hear it, and I believe that all of you literary colleagues would also like to hear it."

The eyes of hundreds of people below lit up simultaneously.

Enjoy this excellent work.

Everyone was pleased.

However, the expressions on the faces of Li Yuecheng and the other four were conflicted.

Enjoying it in public?

What masterpieces by Mo Sanqiu are worthy of public appreciation?

They were merely using this opportunity to suppress the person in front of them, disrupt their state of mind, and incidentally vent their anger on behalf of the Grand Elder.

However, the person in front of me used this opportunity against me and took it seriously on the spot...

Zhou Wenju looked at this person and that person: "Why is everyone silent? Could it be that the title of 'prodigy of poetry' is just a polite expression? Or is today's Nanyang Poetry Gathering not about poetry and prose, but about family background and wealth?"

"How could that be? How could that be? When discussing philosophy through poetry, we naturally focus on poetry and prose. It's just that you gentlemen don't know much about Brother Zhou." Li Yufei laughed heartily, "May I ask which great Confucian scholar Brother Zhou studied under?"

"I am mainly self-taught and have not studied under any great Confucian scholars or famous masters."

As soon as Zhou Wenju said this, people below started whispering and discussing among themselves.

In this world, lineage is highly valued. If someone has a lineage, no one would dare to disown them. Otherwise, a single sentence of "disrespecting one's teacher" could easily condemn that person to eternal shame.

He stated frankly that he did not study under any great Confucian scholar, so it must be true.

Li Yufei nodded slightly: "Brother Zhou is self-taught, which I greatly admire. I wonder how many years you have studied the classics?"

Zhou Wenju laughed: "I've only had a superficial understanding for two or three years."

Two questions and two answers.

Those below frowned as they watched...

Without the guidance of renowned teachers, and without ten years of diligent study.

Can such an ordinary person really attend such a high-profile poetry gathering?

Li Yufei smiled and asked no more questions.

He has achieved his goal.

What he wanted to do was to show everyone that the person in front of him was shallow in knowledge and experience.

Their camp had reason to initially object to his suitability.

As soon as he shut up, Li Yuecheng appeared!

Li Yuecheng smiled gently: "In that case, I would like to offer a few words of advice to Brother Zhou. As the saying goes, a tall building rises from the ground, and the way of poetry ultimately needs the support of the way of the sages. Even if Brother Zhou comes up with some good lines by chance, without sufficient foundation, it will be difficult to go far and be grounded. In the future, you still need to solidify your foundation in literature and be less opportunistic in the way of poetry."

Speaking of this sentence alone...

100% correct.

Even those with insufficient literary and moral foundations may occasionally produce memorable lines.

However, they are usually short-lived.

Because "the way of poetry ultimately needs the support of the way of sages".

However, what did this public admonition turn into?

This became Li Yuecheng's guidance to Zhou Wenju, and this guidance carried a very obvious condescending tone.

Mo Ziyi's expression was very unpleasant.

She saw through the appearance to the essence.

This is not just a condescending and disgusting act; it also carries another, more sinister motive.

This person knows Zhou Wenju and knows that he wrote three poems in seven colors. Even if people in the world don't know it now, they will know it sooner or later.

It can't be wiped away.

Then let's downplay it!

Let me tell the world what I'm saying today: even if Zhou Wenju wrote the Seven-Colored Poem, it was just a fluke. Without the support of literary and moral foundation, his fame will be short-lived.

Do everything you can to downplay the impact of his three colorful poems.

"Brother, your words are truly invaluable!" Zhou Wenju clapped his hands in praise. "If one's literary foundation is insufficient, one's poetry is prone to opportunism. Today, I will carefully examine the poetic attainments of you literary prodigies and see if our past literary fame has any trace of opportunism!"

Upon hearing this, they were locked in a fierce standoff, neither giving an inch!

Wasn't Li Yuecheng questioning his poetic principles?

Alright, he also questioned the literary titles of everyone present!

Let's use actual skill levels to assess everyone's worth.

If you don't perform well, then your past literary reputation will be suspected of being opportunistic!

It was originally just a poetry gathering where everyone could have a good time.

But after just a couple of sentences, the two men had become sworn enemies, each putting all their literary reputations on the line.

The title of a literary work is something that ordinary people naturally don't care about.

However, for intellectuals of their status, that was something even more sensitive than their wife's buttocks, and absolutely could not be compromised!

Those below began to communicate telepathically: "Elder Zhang, why do I suddenly feel that the wind direction has changed?"

"Yes, we originally agreed that this poetry gathering would complement each other, but now we're at loggerheads. Is this really what the imperial court and the Mohists wanted?" said Elder Zhang.

"Neither the imperial court nor the Mohist school is willing to accept this; the crux of the problem lies in the last-minute replacement of commanders!" The old man slowly raised his gaze, looking towards the sky: "Judging from this unexpected replacement of commanders, internal strife within the Mohist school has already begun!"