Chapter 41 Taipingju

Old Man Wang is particularly happy today. He was born as a hunter for generations, so he does not live in the town, but in a thatched cottage in the mountains and forests southeast of Yongle Town, so that he can go to the mountains for hunting.

Early this morning, a young man from a rich family came. As soon as he walked in, he threw a cloth bag on the table and said that he wanted to buy his thatched cottage. Old man Wang went up and opened the cloth bag. He was very obedient, and there were several ingots of silver shining in his face. He couldn't keep his eyes open.

Although this thatched cottage was passed down from his ancestors, it was already very dilapidated by his generation. If he didn't want to go to the mountains for hunting, he wouldn't want to live here alone.

Now that I have this free money, I will at least have enough food and clothing for the rest of my life, so I won't have to go hunting. Old Man Wang agreed without thinking about it, and his attitude was very enthusiastic. He kept most of the furniture in the house, but only packed up some soft goods, then took the money and left.

The State of Zhao Chongwen had imperial examinations in various places, and Yongle Town was no exception. Surrounded by mountains on three sides, the scenery is superb. Although it is remote, it does not prevent some talented people from gathering here. Over time, it has become a place for some down-and-out literati to recite poems and compose poems.

Taipingju is an elegant place in the town specially opened to talented people.

Legend has it that the owner of Taipingju was originally a down-and-out scholar who failed many attempts. However, when he reached middle age, he actually passed the exam and passed the exam. Later, he was spotted by the daughter of a fifth-rank minister in the dynasty. From then on, he jumped through the dragon gate and entered the imperial family. Be an official in court.

When he returned to his hometown in fine clothes, on a whim, he funded the construction of this Taiping Residence, specifically for literati and poets to drink tea and discuss poetry.

At this moment, in the middle of Taiping Palace, in a long pavilion facing the street, several scholars were sitting or standing, drinking tea and discussing poetry. One of the scholars in blue Confucian clothes was shaking his head and chanting:

"Watch the green smoke in the mountains in the morning, and watch the sunset among the bamboos in the evening. The bluebirds come and go in vain, why should they soar straight into the nine-level sky!"

"Haha, Brother Kong has such a good poem!"

All the scholars clapped their hands and laughed. One of them said again: "The imperial examination is dark and the examiners have no eyes. Although we are wandering among the mountains and rivers, we really have the ambition to reach the clouds in our hearts. I don't know if one day we can, as Brother Kong said in his poem, one song soar to the sky and reach the sky. !”

The scholar surnamed Kong looked at him and said with a smile: "Brother Sun is a great talent, and he lives in this mountainous place. Sooner or later he will surely be able to serve as an official in the court. When the time comes, please don't forget me, brother Sun."

"Haha, definitely!"

At this time, another person said: "Brother Kong's poem is a good poem, but I think there is something slightly wrong with it."

"Oh? I'd like to hear the details."

The man went on to say: "Go home late at night among the bamboos to watch the sunset. I personally think that the word 'peeping' is not elegant and does not suit our status. Why not change it to the word 'pin'. Go home late at night to watch the sunset among the bamboos. Brother Kong What do you think?"

"Haha, Brother Zhou has a quick mind. He is indeed a genius of our Zhao country. Kong admires him."

The scholar surnamed Zhou was secretly proud when he heard this, but he still said politely on the surface: "What the hell, Zhou's talent is sparse and his learning is shallow. His talent just now is just a little more than a dog's tail. It's superfluous. Brother Kong is the well-deserved leader of Zhao Guowen!"

These people were in the pavilion, complimenting each other in various ways, and they were all in a good mood. They had a feeling of poetry and immortality, unparalleled in the world. Unexpectedly, at this time, an inappropriate voice came from outside the pavilion:

"In the long pavilion along the ancient road, pigs and dogs buzz together. Pigs talk about great talents, and dogs say they are poets."

Everyone turned and looked towards the street, and saw a tall horse approaching on the stone street with the sound of hoofbeats.

Sitting on the horse was a young man in white, handsome in appearance and extraordinary in temperament. At this moment, he was gently swinging his folding fan, looking like a handsome young man from a troubled world.

In front of the horse, there is a young man in gray clothes, holding a flowery sword in his left hand and holding the horse rope in his right hand, leading the way.

The scholars suppressed the anger in their hearts, and one of them sneered: "Brother, you are talking eloquently. I think you must have great opinions. Why don't you go into the pavilion and talk about it, and share what you have learned in your mind."

The young man in white said with a smile: "Since I sincerely invite you, I can't refuse. Although it's not a high-level discussion, I can still give you some advice."

After saying that, he got off his horse and walked into the pavilion. The young man tied his horse by the roadside and followed closely.

As soon as the two entered the pavilion, all the scholars looked at them. The boy was fine, but although the young man in white had a handsome face, his complexion was extremely white, and his voice was clear and sweet, without any masculinity at all.

One of the middle-aged scholars laughed and said:

"Brother, he is really a strange man. Why bother with writing and writing to focus on finding a daughter of a magistrate? Wouldn't it be wonderful to be a quick son-in-law?" He insinuated that the young man in white looks good, and is a pretty boy. Everyone present didn't know this and burst into laughter.

The young man in white did not speak. The boy in front of him glanced at the middle-aged scholar and saw that his forehead bones were protruding and his eye sockets were sunken. He couldn't help but smile and said: "This brother is born with a strange appearance. I am so surprised that I have a poem to give to you."

"Oh?" The man asked curiously: "You little guy also understands poetry? Let's read it and listen to it."

I saw the boy shaking his head and saying:

"Three or five steps before leaving the hall, my forehead first came to the front of the painting hall. I wiped away the tears several times and it was difficult to reach them, leaving two watery springs behind!"

These few lines of innuendo about his protruding forehead and sunken eyes are extremely appropriate.

"you!"

The middle-aged scholar was so angry that he pointed at him and was speechless.

At this time, the young man in white sat down on the stone chair, cupped his hands in front of everyone and said:

"I thought that although all of you here are talented and knowledgeable, you are still educated people. I didn't expect that you would do such a thing of judging people by their appearance and being short-sighted. It is really disappointing and extremely disappointing." He shook his head loudly, as if he hated iron. look like.

The faces of all the scholars present turned dark, and one of them said: "Brother, you have sharp teeth and a sharp mouth, but you don't know how much knowledge you have in your heart? We are gathering here today, why don't we come to a poetry contest to test our true talents and knowledge?"

The young man in white folded his fan and said with a smile: "I am not boasting, but with your little knowledge, you are not qualified to compete with me in poetry. But since I am here today, I can't dampen your elegance. So, let me, a book boy, do it for you." Let me discuss it with you."

"Book boy?" The man from before said angrily: "Brother, do you look down on me?"

The young man in white glanced at him and said, "What? Are you afraid of my little book boy?"

The people present were excited by him and shouted:

"It's a competition, I'm still afraid of him!"

"That's right! Give him some color and see."

"I don't know how high the sky is, so today I will fight him first, then I will fight myself, and make him convinced that he loses!"

The scholar surnamed Kong raised his hand to signal everyone to calm down, coughed and said, "Brother Sun will come first in this first group."

"Then Sun will show off his shame first," the scholar surnamed Sun said after hearing this: "Listen up, kid, this first battle will be themed 'Mountain'."

The book boy nodded and said: "Okay!" Then he stretched out his right hand and made a "please" gesture:

"Please ask Brother Sun to show off your embarrassment!"

The word "show one's ugliness" is usually used for self-effacement, but this scholar actually asked others to "show one's ugliness". The scholar surnamed Sun glared in anger, and thought to himself: "I'll show you later."

With this thought in his mind, he began to walk around the pavilion with his hands behind his back. After a long time, he chanted:

"The green peaks of Nanshan Mountain are unparalleled in the world, and they can sweep away the white clouds to refine the elixir!"

"Seconds!"

The scholars around him couldn't help but clapped their hands and praised him. One of them even shook his head and said: "Yongle Nanshan, towering into the clouds and inaccessible, is indeed an unhuman scenery. Of course, only the immortal family lives on the top of the mountain, and only the immortal family can do this thing of sweeping the clouds and refining elixirs! Haha!"

Everyone thought they had a chance to win, and someone joked: "The little book boy has never seen this battle before, and he may only be able to write a few big characters. If he is asked to write these two lines of poetry, I am afraid it will take him ten years to think about it, haha!"

"It's not necessary for ten years, just ten breaths!" The book boy put his hands behind his back and rolled his eyes as he said:

"Chongqiu butterflies shadow the flowers in the sky, lighting up the moon and dancing swordsmen!"

As soon as this poem came out, there was an instant silence in the hall, because these two lines of poems written by the book boy and the first two lines written by the scholar surnamed Sun, both in terms of artistic conception and literary talent, were perfectly integrated, and even slightly superior.

You must know that the scholar surnamed Sun is the one who came up with the question, and it is extremely difficult to come up with the first two sentences. This kid actually came up with the last two sentences within a few breaths. If the camp was not hostile at the moment, people would be amazed.

However, when the young man in white heard the poem written by the boy, a blush appeared on his face for some reason, and his big eyes unconsciously glanced outside the pavilion.

Just as the scholars in the pavilion looked at each other in confusion, the scholar named Zhou from before snorted coldly and said:

"The fox goes wild when he gets his way, and the book boy is so ridiculous that he goes crazy!"

After hearing this, everyone cheered up and said with a smile: "Brother Zhou, you are not going to bully me, hahaha! This little book boy is so ridiculous!"

The book boy didn't feel angry after hearing this, he just smiled lightly and said:

"It's hard to express the corrupt intentions of being poor, and the talented people deceive themselves and each other!"

When everyone heard what he said, they didn't know that he was insinuating that the scholars in the pavilion had empty ambitions and actually had no real talents. They were just flattering each other to comfort themselves.

The scholar surnamed Zhou's face darkened, and he said angrily: "What are you barking about, little boy?" He rolled up his sleeves, as if he was about to go forward and hit someone.

But the scholar showed no fear and raised the sword with flowers engraved in his hand in the air. The scholar surnamed Zhou immediately lost his courage and retracted his neck. He was originally a weak scholar, and he had only been on top for a while, but when he saw that the scholar actually held a "murderous weapon" in his hand, he immediately shrank.

After that, all the scholars took turns to fight, but they all couldn't answer poems, couldn't curse, and didn't dare to hit. They hated the scholar until he bit his teeth.

Suddenly I heard someone outside the pavilion shouting: "Master Feng is here!"

Everyone's eyes lit up, as if they were hoping for a savior, and they all made way. I saw a man in a wide robe and long sleeves striding forward. This man had a Chinese character face, thick eyebrows and big eyes, and a dignified appearance.

As soon as he entered the pavilion, a scholar said to him: "You are here, Master Feng. This man has a sharp tongue and talks nonsense. It is really insulting to the gentlemen here. We still ask Master Feng to make the decision for us."

"Oh?" The bachelor surnamed Feng ignored him and just squinted at the young man in white. After a moment, he said: "How come these two talented people came to this Taiping residence without notifying Feng? It's disrespectful. Please forgive me, both of you.”

The young man in white waved his hand and said: "We are just wandering around casually, and we only discuss things with you when we feel like it. Since we have disturbed everyone's enjoyment, let's take our leave!"

The bachelor surnamed Feng persuaded you: "Why don't you two come to the inner courtyard to sit for a while and taste my fine Yunwu tea, so that I can fulfill my duty as a landlord."

At this time, the book boy said: "Thank you, Bachelor Feng. My young master has important matters to attend to, so I apologize for the inconvenience of staying for a long time."

"That's it"

The bachelor surnamed Feng nodded and no longer tried to hold him back. Instead, he put his hands behind his back and narrowed his eyes slightly as he watched the leaving figure of the young man in white, not knowing what he was thinking.

The white-clothed young man and his bookboy are naturally Tang Diexian and Liang Yan, who have disguised themselves as women. However, for some unknown reason, Tang Diexian does not have the Pixiu pendant on his neck at this time. The breath can be seen at a glance.

If there are any cultivators present, they will surely be able to recognize their fifth-level cultivation of Qi!