The drums stopped beating and everyone was silent.
Zhou Shancai bowed to the crowd and then said with a smile, "Dear guests, please take a seat. Thank you for your kindness in attending this annual gathering of elegant scholars. On behalf of all the major bookstores in Beijing, I extend my greetings and gratitude to you all."
Some people in the audience cheered.
The two who came after Xu Jiang and the other six were also very enthusiastic and kept cheering, which made Lin Qinnian frown.
Seeing this, Xu Jiang poured Lin Qinnian a cup of tea, but Lin Qinnian waved his hand and refused to drink. Xu Jiang was slightly startled, put the teapot down, and refused to touch any of the tea or food on the table.
On the stage, Zhou Shancai was talking non-stop, and only got to the point after he had finished speaking some formalities.
"I'm sure everyone here is familiar with the rules of the Shiwen Yaji, so I won't elaborate. Last year, ten talented people were selected, and their collections of poetry and prose were sold out as soon as they were printed and put on the shelves. I wonder which ten will be selected this year."
After saying this, he raised his hand and dozens of scholars entered the hall, holding poems in their hands, each of them with surging emotions.
"The auspicious time has arrived. I invite all the talented people to submit their excellent works for you gentlemen and colleagues to review and select."
As soon as they finished speaking, the scholars distributed their poems and essays to the sixteen distinguished guests in the front row for them to read.
Xu Jiang tapped the table with his hand and chuckled in his heart. If the article was not read out in public, but only screened by these sixteen people, then these sixteen people would have the final say on whether it was good or not.
Li Tongxue had just introduced these sixteen people, and half were officials and half were bookstore owners. It seemed that the collection of these elegant scholars wasn't about literature, but about status and wealth. However, considering that even a pearl like Hu Xu could be abandoned, it seemed reasonable for them to do such a thing.
Xu Jiang yawned secretly, feeling extremely uninteresting and bored.
"Excellent! This article is fantastic!" Someone in the front row slammed the table and stood up, startling Xu Jiang. She looked up and saw the man holding a booklet, his expression extremely excited.
Upon hearing this, Zhou Shancai stepped forward and said with a smile, "A work that has won the favor of Lord Jin must be a top-notch piece."
Jin Gong stroked his beard and sighed, "It is indeed a masterpiece. The original theory fully captures the legacy of the ancient sages, which makes us admire it."
As soon as Mr. Jin finished speaking, several people in the front row gathered around to read. Xu Jiang saw that one of the scholars had a smug look on his face, so she guessed that the article was written by him.
But whether it was Mr. Jin or Zhou Shancai, including the people who came forward to admire it, although they all said it was good, they did not explain what was good about it, which made people confused.
Xu Jiang went to see Lin Qinnian and the others, but saw that they all had sarcastic expressions on their faces. She immediately realized that they were setting up a stage for a show.
Sure enough, after a while someone else followed suit, saying this article was good and that poem was unique. After several rounds of shouting and arguing, not a single poem or piece of writing was shown to anyone.
Xu Jiang sat there for more than half an hour, and finally ten 'talented men' were selected. Look at those ten 'talented men', each of them wearing rings and pendants and well-dressed.
I don’t know whether he is virtuous or not, but I can tell whether he is rich or not at a glance.
After several people gave speeches and introduced themselves one by one, the crowd in the audience became lively. When the "talented" people stepped down from the stage, they all surrounded them to congratulate them like ants seeing honey.
Xu and Jiang were also pulling each other away.
Zhong Lu sighed, "I thought there would be some rising stars this year, but the result is no different from last year. I won't come next year."
Li Tongxue was full of venom, sarcastically saying, "These days, it's hard to find a new talent, but there are so many different kinds of idiots." Then he added a sour tone, "That old guy Yuan Zuzhi is just damn lucky."
Xu Jiang couldn't help but burst out laughing.
When Lin Qinnian looked at her, she immediately straightened her clothes and sat up straight, but she couldn't suppress the smile in her eyes.
Zhong Lu glanced at Lin Qinnian and said, "Fortunately, the imperial examinations are fair nowadays, so we won't let such a fool into disgrace himself in the imperial court. Otherwise, the future of our Dasheng would be in jeopardy."
Hearing this, Xu Jiang and Li Tongxue looked at Lin Qinnian at the same time, but found that his expression was calm and his eyes were peaceful, as if what Zhong Lu was referring to was a past event that had nothing to do with him.
Xu Jiang thought about his and Madam Lin's current situation, and then looked at the dandy fools around him who were all show and no substance, and felt a dull pain in his heart.
Just as Xu Jiang was hesitating about whether to leave the table, Wu Guanshi came over with Zhou Shancai. Zhou Shancai bowed to them from a distance.
Manager Wu followed Zhou Shancai, his chin raised high, his nose pointed at everyone, especially Xu Jiang, his eyelids almost rolled up to the sky. He thought to himself: If it weren't for her friendship with Yuan Zuzhi and his men, I should have made her suffer that day. Now that the boss is here, I must open this village woman's eyes and wear down her power, so as to teach her a lesson.
Xu Jiang turned a blind eye.
Zhou Shancai approached Lin Qinnian and said, "I didn't realize you were coming, sir. I apologize for my neglect."
Xu Jiang frowned. What's the use of student or not? It sounded disgusting.
Lin Qinnian said indifferently, "My boss is so polite. I dare not marry someone so high."
Zhou Shancai hit a snag, but still smiled and said, "Sir, you are here for the banquet today. Do you have any talents you like?"
“No.”
"How about I introduce you two to them?"
Lin Qinnian frowned slightly, but before he could say anything, Du Hui approached from behind and asked, "Master, who would you like to recommend? Why not bring them over to me for my inspection? I'm in need of two disciples. If you find someone you like, it would be a perfect match for us both. Wouldn't that be wonderful?"
Zhou Shancai's smile froze, and he turned around and replied, "Master Du, you're joking. You're the director of the Imperial College, and you're still short of students?"
"Who can complain about having too many talented people?" After saying this, Du Hui turned to Lin Qinnian and said, "Brother Rushan, please don't compete with me today."
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