Su Shi's "Jinshan Temple" was a masterpiece among palindromic poems. Although it was not as well-known as most of his poems, it still had a high status in the professional field.
The development of poetry in this world was far inferior to that of the world Li Yi was familiar with. Because of the uniqueness of this poem, the shock it caused was even greater than those top works.
It did not express emotion or ambition. It was purely to show off. Bite me if you don't like it?
Zhao Xiuwen saw this, so he simply admitted defeat to avoid wasting time.
Of course, he could write a poem that did not lose to it, but to write a poem that could be read vertically and vertically, with a good artistic conception, was not something that could be completed in a short period of time. In fact, he was not even sure if he could write it.
If this poem really came from the young man in front of him, then his mastery of words must have reached a terrifying level.
Jing Di's expression was calm. He sat on the dragon throne and gave people a feeling that everything was under his control.
The officials were relieved. The Emperor was indeed the Emperor. It turned out that he had a plan to replace Wei Siye at the last minute.
The Third Prince of the Qi Kingdom patted Zhao Xiuwen's shoulder and comforted him. "I did not expect Li Xianzi to have such profound attainments in poetry at such a young age. Just try your best. There is no need to worry too much about winning or losing."
"I am very happy to have met an interesting opponent." Zhao Xiuwen smiled as if he did not care at all.
At this time, the two eunuchs had already lit their incense sticks. The Third Prince of the Qi Kingdom had drawn the first stick. The second one was naturally the Jing Kingdom's.
Prime Minister Shen casually drew a stick from the bamboo tube. After glancing at it, he looked at the two and said, "Duanwu."
It was not difficult to write poems about festivals. Every year, there would be countless of them. But because they were so common, it was especially difficult to stand out from them.
The atmosphere in the hall was quiet. The officials held their breath and tried not to make a sound. Zhao Xiuwen closed his eyes again. The officials in the court had already investigated him. When he wrote poems, he liked to close his eyes and meditate. When he opened his eyes, it was the time when the poem was completed.
Because it was too quiet in the hall, the sudden footsteps were especially clear.
When the crowd saw Li Xianzi walk to the table and start writing, their expressions froze again.
From the time Prime Minister Shen announced the topic to the time he walked to the table, it was only a few breaths of time. In such a short time, he actually thought of a poem?
No matter how high his attainments in poetry were, it was impossible for him not to think!
All the officials had strange expressions on their faces and sighed inwardly. "Even if His Majesty really had made arrangements, this County Magistrate Li should have acted more realistically. With such poor acting skills, he couldn't even fool them, let alone the people of the Qi Kingdom. His Majesty really found the wrong person this time. Which of the officials couldn't act better than County Magistrate Li?"
Under everyone's gaze, Li Yi put down his brush and said in his heart, "Mister Dongpo, I'll borrow your poem again. I hope you won't mind …"
The eunuch immediately hung up the paper, the ink still wet.
This time, when the officials looked over, their expressions were completely different from before.
Different from the previous poem, this one didn't deliberately show off. Whether it was the content or the form, it was recognized by countless people as the mainstream.
"Huan Xi Sha, Duanwu."
"Light sweat slightly penetrates the blue Wan, Ming Dynasty Duanwu baths fragrant orchids. Fragrant blossoms fill the clear river.
Colorful threads gently wrap around the red jade arm, small talismans hang diagonally from the green cloud. Beautiful people meet for a thousand years. "
The few lines of the poem not only vividly displayed the folk customs of the Duanwu Festival, but the last line was the finishing touch. Beautiful people meet for a thousand years. This was probably the longest and truest promise, right?
He just didn't know who this beauty was. Could she be his wife?
No one knew when Zhao Xiuwen had opened his eyes, but he didn't immediately start writing. Instead, he walked over to Li Yi, cupped his hands, and asked, "I am Zhao Xiuwen. May I know your name?"
All the officials were surprised. At this moment, Zhao Xiuwen didn't write a poem, but came over to get close to Li Yi.
"Li Yi." Li Yi cupped his hands. He thought to himself, "Hurry up and write. Once you're done, we can end this boring competition. If this goes on, Master Dongpo's coffin won't be able to hold on any longer."
"As expected, Li Xianzi, Li Yi. I should have known …" Zhao Xiuwen didn't look surprised at all.
He sighed and took out a thin book from his sleeve. He said, "I originally thought that among the younger generation, no one could compare to me in poetry. It wasn't until I passed by Qing 'an Prefecture and bought this Ming Yue Collection that I realized how foolish I was. Ever since then, I have often read Brother Li's poems and my emotions have been stirred up. I can't sleep at night. I think a true immortal of poetry is nothing more than this. I've always wanted to be friends with Brother Li, but I've never been able to do so. I didn't think I'd meet you at such an occasion. Fate really does make fools of people …"
Zhao Xiuwen's words left all the officials speechless.
Even though Zhao Xiuwen was from Qi, all the officials recognized his poetic talent. He had defeated Wang Zhong, the Poetry Demon. Many scholars of the Jing Kingdom had been defeated by him. But such a person had described himself as a "frog in a well". How much praise was this for Li Xianzi?
Every word he said was praising Li Xianzi and was not stingy with his choice of words. The meaning behind his words was that he had admitted defeat in this competition.
In this case, the Jing Kingdom had lost one round and won another. Although it was a draw, it had given them a chance to catch their breath. This was extremely important.
"I'm not as good as you," Zhao Xiuwen said seriously as he looked at Li Yi.
The Qi Kingdom's ambassadors' faces darkened. One of them was about to speak, but the Third Prince glared at him and he swallowed his words.
Li Yi was also surprised. Zhao Xiuwen had said such words in front of the Qi Kingdom's ambassadors and the officials of the Jing Kingdom. This was beyond his expectations.
Had he met a fan?
He had to admit that regardless of whether it was the Third Prince of the Qi Kingdom or the person in front of him, even if they were from different camps, it was difficult for him to feel any ill will towards them.
"Thank you for letting me win." Li Yi cupped his hands again.
The Qi Kingdom's Third Prince nodded his head at Li Yi. Then he lifted his head and said, "Your Majesty, we have lost this competition."
From the beginning to the end, he had not asked a single question of Zhao Xiuwen.
As the Qi Kingdom's Third Prince's words fell, there was an immediate uproar in the court.
No one had expected that this competition of poetry would have such an outcome.
There was no judgment, no debate. Li Xianzi was direct and efficient. Zhao Xiuwen had admitted defeat twice and won so easily.
At a time when the people of the Jing Kingdom were in low spirits, this victory was undoubtedly an uplifting event. The imperial court's reputation had been restored.
Not long after, the officials walked out of the main hall. At the same time, news spread from the palace gates.
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