I just wrote a love poem, how did that make me so powerful?

The private room on the second floor was decorated in a much more elaborate way than Xu Qing had expected.

Half a floor was opened up to form a spacious hall, with calligraphy and paintings by famous artists hanging on all four walls. In the center was a long table with tea set and several plates of exquisite pastries.

The window was half-open, and sunlight streamed in through the windowpanes, falling on the polished and gleaming floor, giving it a warm glow.

There were already some people seated in the hall.

Seated in the main seat was a young gentleman, about twenty years old, dressed in a plain brocade robe, with a fine mutton-fat jade pendant hanging at his waist. He had a handsome face and an innate composure in his demeanor.

He was holding a cup of tea and looking down at the river view outside the window.

Xu Qing's gaze swept over the jade pendant at his waist...

The quality of that jade was even better than the one Xiao Mingyuan had taken off this morning.

He lowered his head to drink tea, his posture casual yet refined, clearly a man who had grown up in a wealthy and influential environment.

Xu Qing understood.

Sitting opposite was another person, about the same age, wearing a black brocade robe with dark gold cloud patterns embroidered on the collar, and with an indescribable feminine air between his brows and eyes.

His posture was more relaxed, with one leg crossed over the other and his fingers tapping the table intermittently.

Their eyes occasionally met, and they exchanged polite smiles.

But Xu Qing noticed that the smile was only on the surface and didn't really go into her heart.

Su Man walked into the hall and bowed slightly: "I'm sorry to have kept you all waiting."

She stepped aside and introduced them, "This distinguished guest in the plain brocade robe is the heir of Prince Zhao's family, and this one in the black brocade robe is the heir of Prince Jin's family. The two heirs are passing through Hengyang and have come to Zhuangyuan Tower for a short visit."

The Crown Prince of Zhao nodded slightly, his gaze sweeping over the people who had entered. It lingered on Chen Shijin and Li Yan for a moment before naturally shifting away.

The Prince of Jin leaned back in his chair, a faint smile playing on his lips, his gaze sweeping over each face as if he were sizing up prey.

He paused for a moment on Xiao Mingyuan's chubby face, his smile deepening, before looking away again.

"Miss Su, you're too kind," said the Crown Prince of Zhao, setting down his teacup in a gentle voice.

"I've long heard that the Zhuangyuan Tower in Hengyang County houses many fine poems and lyrics. I just happened to be passing by today, so I thought I'd ask for a cup of tea."

The Crown Prince of Jin chuckled across from him: "Brother Zhao is right, I'm just as curious... What good things could a teahouse in a small county town possibly have? It's probably just a publicity stunt, isn't it?"

His tone was somewhat casual, and even contemptuous.

Su Man's smile remained unchanged: "Since both young masters are interested, then please take a look first..."

She clapped her hands, and Cui'er brought up a tray with three framed scrolls of poetry neatly arranged on it.

The first picture is Xiao Mingyuan's poem "Zhuangyuanlou";

The second painting is "Climbing the Tower to View the River";

The third painting is "Alone Leaning Against the River Tower".

The three pieces of calligraphy paper were exquisitely mounted and hung on a specially made wooden frame for people to examine closely.

The Crown Prince of Zhao rose and walked over, his gaze falling on the first painting. He raised an eyebrow, then looked at the second painting, straightening his posture.

Upon seeing the third picture, he paused for a moment, then nodded emphatically.

"Good! These three poems would be enough to impress anyone in any teahouse."

The heir apparent of the Prince of Jin also came over to take a look.

When he read the first song, the casual smile on his face disappeared;

His expression turned serious when reading the second poem;

When he saw the third song, his eyes were already wide open in disbelief.

After a while...

He turned his head and looked at a middle-aged scholar standing behind him.

The middle-aged scholar was about forty years old, wearing a worn gray cloth robe. He had a thin face and graying temples, but his eyes were very bright.

He leaned closer to the wooden frame, took a look, stepped back two and a half steps, and whispered a few words in the ear of the Prince of Jin's heir.

Upon hearing this, the Prince of Jin's smile returned, even brighter than before.

"Miss Su, these three poems are indeed quite good. However..." He turned around, his gaze sweeping over the Hengyang literati present.

"I think this content was written by different people, probably not by the same person. Paying someone to write it is a completely different matter from the real talent of local literati."

Su Man remained composed: "Your Highness is joking. These three poems were all written by a talented young man from my Hengyang County. As for who it is..."

She glanced at Xiao Mingyuan but didn't point it out. "Everyone here today is the best witness."

The Prince of Jin scoffed, his tone clearly questioning.

"That's perfect. Since we have such talented people here, let's take this opportunity to exchange poems. The gentleman next to me is Mr. Zhang from the capital, who is most skilled at composing impromptu poems. Today, let's ask Mr. Zhang to give the talented men of Hengyang a try on the spot, and let me broaden my horizons as well."

The gray-robed scholar behind him bowed respectfully, neither humble nor arrogant.

The atmosphere in the hall turned subtly cold.

The local literati present exchanged glances, none of them daring to speak.

Some people have heard of Mr. Zhang's name...

A frequent guest at poetry gatherings in the capital, he once served as the head scribe at the Wenyuan Pavilion, and later, for some unknown reason, went to the Prince of Jin's residence as a guest scholar.

An opponent of this caliber is not someone a scholar from a small county town can easily take on.

For a moment, the scene became somewhat awkward...

Just then, Zhou Kang muttered to himself, "No one dares to agree. Miss Su is going to lose face. If she steps forward now, even if she doesn't win, Miss Su will at least have to say something nice, right?"

Sun Decai: "That's right, that's right, I think this is a chance to show off, why don't we give it a try! Young Master Chen, you come on."

Upon hearing this, Chen Shijin became interested.

He crossed his arms and took half a step forward.

"Young Master Li Yan and Young Master Xiao, aren't you usually known for your poetic talents? Those poems were Young Master Xiao's, weren't they? Why are you afraid to show up now that Miss Su needs you?"

Zhou Kang chimed in from behind, "Exactly! If someone who can't even finish reciting the Three Character Classic can write poetry, then what's the point of us studying?"

Sun Decai chimed in, "Young Master Xiao, you didn't pay someone to put on a show, did you?"

The two of them sang in unison, their laughter particularly jarring in the hall.

Xiao Mingyuan laughed heartily, his laughter bordering on arrogance.

"What are you two yelling about? Who does he think he is, to presume to recite poetry with me? He should beat someone else first!"

"You..." Mr. Zhang started to say, then sneered, "Fine, fine, I'd like to see how long you can keep up this act. Who's going first?"

Su Man, who had initially been in a good mood, now looked extremely unpleasant.

When Chen Shijin first stepped forward, she even smiled slightly.

But this guy came out and immediately mocked people from Hengyang County, saying they were idiots!

Su Man's face darkened...

Seeing that Xiao Mingyuan didn't respond, Chen Shijin felt that the other party was just feeling guilty, which emboldened him even more.

He cleared his throat, walked to the table, and bowed slightly.

"Since Mr. Zhang has come from afar, I will make a fool of myself in offering my services."

He picked up his brush, dipped it in ink, pondered for a moment, and wrote a seven-character quatrain...

"The river stretches for ten thousand miles amidst misty waves, a lone sail disappears into the vast expanse. Hengyang has always been a land of talented people, and today we are fortunate to have the opportunity to appreciate their writings."

The content is plain and the rhymes are neat, but anyone with a discerning eye can see that...

The first two lines describe the scenery, while the last two lines turn into polite remarks. They lack originality and depth, and are merely a facade to fool people.

Several local literati nearby glanced at it and lowered their heads, somewhat unable to bear to look.

Especially Chen Chengbo, the instructor of Hengyang County, who was also his uncle, almost rolled his eyes after reading it...

If you, Chen Shijin, are going to mock others, you need to be quite skilled at it.

As a result, this is it?

Mr. Zhang took it and glanced at it, his lips twitching slightly as if he were about to laugh but then suppressed it.

He didn't say much, took the pen, dipped it in ink, and began to write.

The four lines of poetry were written in one breath, and handed over before the ink was even dry...