bookrebus Chapter 8 The first revelation of talent
Chapter 8 The first revelation of talent
Shen Wenshu walked up to the crowd holding a peach blossom and said, "This is a spring banquet, and the peach blossoms are in full bloom. Let's play the game of passing the flower to the beat of the drum. Your Highness the Crown Prince and Your Highness Prince Gong will be the judges, and I will beat the drum. Whoever the flower lands in when the drum stops will have to write a poem about spring scenery. If they fail, they will be fined a glass of wine. If the drum stops and the flower lands in the hands of both parties at the same time, they will each write a poem and the judge will decide the winner. Today's winner will receive a bottle of Chang'an wine from the Zuixian Tower in Shuiyunjian as a prize."
"Chang'an wine? So many people are trying their best to buy it!"
"Miss Shen is so generous!"
Everyone was eager for the upcoming poetry reading.
Everyone took their seats in turn, with Qin Yuyan sitting at the top.
Su Yuejian sat at the bottom, with Su Xuewei and Shang Huilian sitting on either side of her.
The drums sounded, and the peach blossoms began to spread from Qin Yuyan.
The drum beats were sometimes slow and sometimes fast. As the drum stopped, everyone started to rebel.
Talented Scholar A: "The bamboo pavilion is covered with green spring grass, and the gentle rain brings the fragrance of flowers."
……
Talented Scholar C: "The spring light is gentle and the days are long. It is the time to catch butterflies in the famous gardens."
……
Qin Yuyan: "The scattered red apricot hairs are scattered everywhere, and the new green water apples are spread out evenly."
After she finished speaking, all the talented men and noble ladies cheered. Qin Yuyan looked at Su Xuewei with pride, and then shyly glanced at the crown prince Xiao Chengnian.
……
It was passed down to Su Xuewei: "At sunrise, the river flowers are redder than fire; in spring, the river water is green as blue."
"Great! Miss Su Er is indeed a talented woman from Tianjin!"
"That's right, the choice of words is really wonderful!"
"A beautiful person is even more beautiful. I admire you!"
The praises kept coming, and Su Xuewei was very pleased with herself. She nodded lightly and saluted, "Thank you for your praise."
Qin Yuyan snorted coldly and rolled her eyes.
The drums continued to beat. Su Xuewei and Shang Huilian exchanged a glance, a hint of sneer playing on Su Xuewei's lips. The drums slowed, and Su Xuewei, just as the beat was ending, thrust the flower into Su Yuejian's hand. Just as Su Yuejian was about to pass it on, Shang Huilian pretended not to notice. The drums stopped, and the flower branch landed squarely in Su Yuejian's hand.
Everyone's eyes immediately fell on her.
Su Xuewei was secretly delighted in her heart. This blind man couldn't see, was stupid and dumb, so how could he have any talent? She was just waiting to see Su Yuejian fail to answer and make a fool of himself. Then she would step forward to recite a poem, and she would surely gain both fame and fortune.
But she still pretended to be surprised and asked, "Sister, why is it you?"
Su Yuejian remained silent. She sneered in her heart. She had seen everything she and Shang Huilian did through the veil.
Seeing that Su Yuejian was silent, Shang Huilian showed a mocking expression: "Miss Su, why don't you answer? Su Taifu is the most talented civil official in the court. You are the eldest daughter of the Su family, don't you know how to recite poetry?"
Qin Yuyan was disdainful of the words and sneered, "Composing poetry requires extensive reading. It must be difficult for Miss Su. After all..."
Shen Wenshu interrupted, "The fine wine prepared today is the finest wine collected by my father. Miss Su, you don't have to recite a poem, you can drink a glass of wine to express your apology." Shen Wenshu was the daughter of the Prime Minister's Mansion, so she naturally knew the twists and turns between these noble ladies, but when she saw Su Yuemian's frank look in the face of doubts about her identity just now, she felt a little favorable towards her and didn't want to see her being embarrassed like this.
Seeing this, Su Yanzhou was about to speak up to help her out.
Su Xuewei stood up with a meek look on her face, and said softly, "Sister was blinded and disfigured when she was young, so it's understandable that she lacks talent. Besides, sister is weak and can't drink. Why don't I take her place..."
Before he could finish his words, Su Yuejian spoke slowly: "When people are idle, the sweet-scented osmanthus flowers fall, and the spring mountains are empty at night. The moon rises and startles the mountain birds, which sometimes sing in the spring stream."
Her voice was very clear, like the melted snow on the top of a snowy mountain, clean and slightly cold.
For a moment, the banquet fell into silence.
"Great!" Someone in the crowd broke the silence and everyone applauded.
"This poem uses movement to describe stillness. This technique is truly amazing!"
"More than that, just a few words, it is a picture of the spring mountain scenery on a moonlit night, like a poem or a painting."
"This wonderful Zen conception can only be compared to the poetry of Master Shuiyun!"
Crown Prince Xiao Chengnian nodded repeatedly, "Excellent! Excellent poem, beautiful scenery! Excellent artistic conception! I never thought Miss Su was so talented."
Xiao Chengchang beside him also nodded. It was indeed a good poem. He believed that there were not many people in the whole Tianjin who could create such a mood.
Su Yanzhou was surprised. He had never expected Yue'er, who was usually quiet, to be so talented. He immediately liked this little sister even more. How wonderful! How wonderful!
Su Xuewei was standing awkwardly at the table at this moment, her smile frozen on her face and her eyes full of shock.
what happened? !
She was obviously stupid and dull since childhood, and couldn't even recite the Thousand Character Classic. How could she suddenly become so proficient in poetry and books!
She didn't know that Su Yuejian had a photographic memory since she was young. After she entered the mansion, her grandmother invited the best teacher in Tianjin to teach her the eight elegant arts for girls. She was extremely talented and excelled in all of them.
It was because in her previous life, she had stolen the limelight from Su Xuewei in front of Su's father, which displeased Qiao's mother and daughter. Since then, she has been cautious, studying only secretly in private, and pretending to be extremely stupid in front of others.
Qin Yuyan looked at the cheers from the crowd, even His Royal Highness the Crown Prince and Prince Gong kept praising her. She felt even more angry and secretly resentful towards Su Yuejian.
Seeing this, Shang Huilian tried to smooth things over for Su Xuewei: "Miss Su is really a hidden talent. It seems that she is just trying to keep us in suspense. It's hard for Wei'er to apologize for your sake."
Su Yuejian stood up and picked up the wine glass. "My dear sister, I was thinking about poetry just now and was unable to respond in time. This glass of wine is my apology to you." After that, she drank it all.
Su Yuejian put down the wine glass in her hand, picked up Su Xuewei's glass, touched the wine in the glass with her finger casually, and handed it to Su Xuewei: "Sister, can you forgive me?"
Su Yuejian's attitude was sincere.
The Tianjin Kingdom always attaches great importance to the distinction between legitimate and illegitimate children and the distinction between seniority and youth. She and Su Xuewei are both illegitimate daughters, and she is older. Now, she is making a gesture to apologize to Su Xuewei in public, which is a great concession.
Upon seeing this, all the talented men and noble ladies felt that the eldest daughter of the Su family was truly a virtuous person.
Su Xuewei felt as nauseous as if she had eaten a fly. She could only take the wine glass with a fake smile and take a sip. "Sister, you are too kind. I am being rude."
After the episode, everyone continued to pass the flower. After this incident, Su Yuejian and Shang Huilian never let Su Yuejian get the peach blossom again, for fear that she would have another chance to show her talent.
At the end of the game, no one's poem could surpass the one written by Su Yuejian.
Everyone waited for His Royal Highness the Crown Prince and Prince Gong to judge.
"I believe the winner this time is Miss Su from the Imperial Tutor's Mansion. What do you think, second brother?"
The prince turned and looked at Prince Gong.
"I think Miss Su Er is more talented and even better." Prince Gong said with a smile, glancing at Su Xuewei from time to time.
When Su Xuewei heard what Prince Gong said, she blushed and thought that with her beauty and talent, no man could refuse her.
Qin Yuyan listened to what the two said and looked at the two sisters of the Su family with resentment. She didn't know what she was thinking about, and a sneer appeared on her lips.