That's insane! Absolutely insane!
Sitting atop the dragon throne, Xiao Yu looked around, gazing down at the scene, and asked a question.
Who can provide a matching couplet?
After he finished speaking, the hall fell silent.
Seeing that no one spoke, Xiao Yu couldn't help but let out a cold snort.
“Send this first line to the Great Li Academy. I refuse to believe that the mighty Great Li cannot even come up with a matching couplet of five characters.”
Xiao Yu was clearly a little angry at this moment.
The scholars of the Hanlin Academy looked at each other in bewilderment and began to whisper among themselves in discussion.
Seeing this, Xiao Zi couldn't help but ask.
"It's just a simple five-character couplet, what's so difficult about it?"
As soon as he finished speaking, Chu Fu, who was sitting behind Xiao Zi, spoke up to explain.
"Your Highness, it is precisely because the first line of the couplet only has five characters that it is difficult to come up with a matching line."
“The first character is the character ‘三’ in the first line of the couplet.”
"Three is a specific number, so this requirement means that the first character of the second line must also be a different number."
"The beginning is to frame the first character within the remaining eight characters from one to nine, excluding the number three."
"And then there is the three words 'sun, moon and stars' in parallel."
Xiao Zi asked, puzzled.
What mysteries do the sun, moon, and stars hold?
Chu Fu continued speaking.
"The sun, moon, and stars are the light of the heavens and are of the same kind. The words in the second line must also be consistent with the first line in both meaning and form."
"Moreover, in the first line of the couplet from the Zhao state, there is a connection between the three luminaries and the sun, moon, and stars."
"The three lights refer to the radiance emitted by the sun, moon and stars. Therefore, the second line must correspond to the first line, so that the number of characters and words must be self-consistent in terms of combination."
"Therefore, the reason why the three lights of the sun, moon and stars are difficult to match is because of the requirements in many aspects such as the number of characters, parallel structure, semantic connection and the connotation of the couplet."
"This first line truly deserves to be called an absolute masterpiece for all time."
After hearing Chu Fu's explanation, Xiao Zi felt a surge of anger.
"If what Mr. Chu said is true, then isn't the State of Zhao deliberately looking for trouble?"
"Don't you have a way to come up with the answer either?"
Chu Fu remained silent upon hearing this, but his meaning was quite clear.
Xiao Zi exclaimed in regret upon hearing this.
These are opportunities to show off in front of my father, the emperor!
Eunuch Cao hurriedly left with the first line of the couplet in his hands.
The originally lively imperial banquet was put on hold at this moment.
Li Shang stood confidently in the center of the hall, and then spoke.
“There are still quite a few couplets like this within the Zhao state.”
"I have heard that the Great Li is now thriving, and not only that, it has also won the war against the Xiongnu, which has shaken the world."
"But I wonder who can shoulder the responsibility of carrying this literary tradition on their shoulders?"
"Is it possible that not a single civil or military official in the entire city dares to give it a try?"
Upon hearing this, all the civil and military officials in the hall turned ashen-faced with rage.
Song Min, sitting upright in her seat, calmly took a sip of the tea in front of her.
Song Min is a cautious person, and she will never underestimate any hero in the world.
Therefore, if we want to suppress Dali, we must go all out from the very beginning.
Therefore, she dropped a bombshell right at the start.
Now it is quite clear that the entire Dali court is in a daze.
At this moment, Prince Fuyang held his wine cup with a carefree and unrestrained air, his eyes sweeping contemptuously over everyone present.
The bitterness and irritability I felt a few days ago have vanished. What could be more delightful than watching the officials of Dali suffer setbacks?
As time ticked by, the scholars of the Hanlin Academy were all drenched in sweat.
Eunuch Cao hurriedly returned and whispered to Xiao Yu.
"Within the Great Li Academy, there is no one who can match him."
A slight ripple appeared on Xiao Yu's otherwise calm face.
If such a vast country as Li cannot even come up with a simple five-character couplet, wouldn't it become a laughing stock of the world?
Sensing the awkward atmosphere in the main hall, Li Shang suddenly spoke.
"If no one can come up with a matching couplet, then it seems that I, your daughter, will have no chance to present it today."
Li Shang's words transformed into sharp blades, piercing the hearts of everyone present.
Xiao Yu took a deep breath and spoke from the dragon throne.
"Is it possible that no one in my glorious Great Li Dynasty can come up with a matching couplet?"
As soon as he finished speaking, Du Yuheng bowed and said.
"We are incompetent! We beg Your Majesty to punish us!"
As soon as Du Yuheng spoke, the other officials also knelt down.
"Your Majesty, please punish him!"
Seeing this, Li Shang's smile became even brighter.
Turning his head, he came face to face with Prince Fuyang.
With just one glance, Li Shang understood what the Crown Prince of Fuyang wanted to express.
Song Min, who was standing nearby, sensed something was wrong and immediately gave Li Shang a look, signaling him to stop while he was ahead.
After all, they have already achieved their goal.
However, Li Shang seemed oblivious to Song Min's gaze and continued talking to himself.
"I've heard that there's a child prodigy in the capital who's famous throughout the land named Pei Shaoji. I wonder where he is?"
"If it were him, he might still have a chance to match my timeless masterpiece."
"Pei Shaoji?"
Li Shang had barely finished speaking!
Suddenly, a flash of inspiration seemed to strike the civil and military officials present!
Instantly, everyone's eyes fell on Mu Zian.
Even a prodigy like Pei Shaoji was driven to his death by Mu Zian's timeless verses!
My dear reader, there's more to this chapter! Please click the next page to continue reading—even more exciting content awaits!
Continue read on readnovelmtl.com