Under the spotlight, Shen Youyu stepped to the center of the stage.
Looking at the huge crowd below the stage, Shen Youyu frowned slightly and asked curiously, "Qing'er, why are there so many people?"
"Qing'er doesn't know either."
Qing'er gently shook her head, a curious expression on her face, and asked, "Besides, they all seem very excited..."
Upon hearing this, Shen Youyu's eyebrows furrowed even deeper, sensing that something was amiss.
"Qing'er, go and ask."
Shen Youyu asked in a low voice.
"Yes." Qing'er nodded and stepped off the stage.
At this moment, someone couldn't help but shout, "Young Fish, what's the topic for today's poetry competition?"
Upon hearing this, everyone's ears perked up, eagerly awaiting Shen Youyu's reply.
"In the past century, the Great Xia Dynasty has produced very few outstanding poems..."
Shen Youyu, a lover of talent, couldn't help but sigh when talking about this: "This time, we won't set a topic. Everyone can just write poems freely and express themselves as they please."
Actually, she wasn't in the mood to set a topic at the moment; she just wanted the poetry competition to end as soon as possible so she could go home with Shiro.
"No proposition?"
"That leaves a lot of room for improvisation!"
"Ha...as if you can write good poetry just by improvising?"
"Free rein? Then what should I write?"
"What kind of poetry can outshine all others and win over the young fish maiden?"
Everyone frowned, their minds racing as they racked their brains.
However, how easy is it to come up with excellent poems? You should know that the Great Xia Dynasty has not produced any excellent poems for nearly half a year.
"...What should I write?"
Xiao Yu was also thinking.
He had many excellent lines of poetry in his mind, but for a moment he didn't know which one to use!
After all, he was unfamiliar with the poetry of this world, and Xiao Shilang in his previous life had no memory of poetry because of his intellectual disability.
For now, we can only wait for someone to emerge as the first to speak out and see how high the level of poetry has become in this world.
"Since no one else is here, I'll go first."
Suddenly, a slightly plump scholar spoke up, saying, "I have already prepared a poem for Miss Yuyu."
Who is this?
Someone stared at the scholar and asked.
"Him? He's a student at Yunhe Academy, Lu Yun... but his talent... humph!"
Someone who knew the person offered an explanation, but the last "humph!" was quite meaningful.
"Young master, please come up on stage."
Shen Youyu said politely, her voice gentle but her tone flat.
"good."
Lu Yun, holding a fan, walked onto the stage.
There are writing brushes, ink, paper, and inkstones on the stage.
Poets can choose to write their poems down or recite them in public.
After going on stage, Lu Yun first circled around Shen Youyu, unable to take his eyes off her, and almost had the word "obsessed" written all over his face.
"Hurry up!"
"Hurry up... what are you dawdling for!"
Urged on by the crowd, Lu Yun finally snapped out of his daze, then fiddled with the fan in his hand and said, "Listen carefully..."
"Quiet as water, deep as the sea,"
"Childhood memories are sought in dreams."
"Fish swimming in shallow waters cannot hide their emotions,"
"I wish to spend my life with you."
"The love is so deep it's hard to express,"
"We rely on each other to spend our days and nights together."
Lu Yun finished reciting his poem with a look of enjoyment, and asked with a smile, "Miss Youyu, what do you think of my poem?"
Shen Youyu: "..."
At this point, someone in the audience couldn't help but shout: "You call an acrostic poem a poem? You're a disgrace to Yunhe Academy!"
"This is supposed to be poetry?!"
"If someone dares to go on stage like this, I could do it too!"
"Rubbish!"
Down in the audience, Xiao Yu couldn't help but chuckle, saying speechlessly, "It seems they're all all talk and no action, but none of them can actually fight!"
Just as they were about to go on stage to end this farce, someone else came up.
“Young Miss Yu, I am Gu Quan from the Imperial Academy.”
A scholar with a gentle and refined appearance walked onto the stage and said in a loud voice, "I have written a poem specifically for Miss Yuyu, and I humbly offer it to you."
"please……"
Shen Youyu's attitude remained calm and did not change because the other party was a student of the Imperial Academy.
"Gu Quan? Is that the famous scholar from the Imperial Academy?"
Why is he here?
"The ancient spring has arrived, do we still have a chance?"
"I'm afraid there's no chance!"
Upon hearing the name Guquan, many scholars frowned and looked discouraged.
However, there were also those who disagreed.
"So what if it's Gu Quan? He's certainly good at writing essays and couplets, but as for his poetic talent, well, humph!"
"The Great Xia Dynasty hasn't produced any outstanding poems in nearly a century. How could Gu Quan possibly write one?"
"Let's listen to it first!"
Amidst the expectant gazes of the crowd, Gu Quan began to recite a poem:
"The young Oiran looks like a fairy,"
"A smile that turns heads is as beautiful as a hundred charms."
"Slender, jade-like fingers caress the strings of the zither,"
"The melodious singing lingered in the air."
"Her dance was as graceful as a swallow in flight,"
"Her unparalleled beauty evokes pity."
"Everyone was amazed and in awe."
"Her beauty was renowned throughout the land."
After it was read aloud, everyone frowned slightly.
This poem isn't actually of high quality, but it praises Shen Youyu's beauty from beginning to end, as well as her talent in music, her beautiful singing voice, and how she is the center of attention!
"That kid Guquan is really cunning!"
"This poem isn't very good, but perhaps... it might touch the young fish girl's heart!"
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