After saying this, Shen Zizhen, one of the judges of this competition, shared the submission in her hand to the 'judges group'.
In fact, it's the same as having 'internal referral' slots for judges in the preliminary selection process.
Each senior judge also holds five slots, and each slot is a pathway to the final round.
In principle, the judging panel usually decides which five works will receive the nominations only after reviewing all the submissions.
But Shen Zizhen felt that the piece 'Birds and Fish' in his hand was so wonderful that he felt there was no need to wait any longer.
Because this poem is guaranteed to take up a spot, there is no other possibility.
Moreover, after learning some inside information, he felt quite disgusted.
Therefore, sharing "birds and fish" with the "large judges group" at this time is actually a way of making a gesture.
Zhang Xi, who was standing next to him, gave him a thumbs up and said:
"Old Shen, are you really not afraid of offending Chairman Zhou? You're pushing this poem out now."
"Old Zhang, we are the chief judges of this competition. Our job is to be fair and impartial. We're not here to be sycophants. What am I afraid of?"
Besides, we've already reached a consensus that 'Birds and Fish' definitely has the potential to win the championship. My recommendation is perfectly reasonable, right?
"No problem, no problem, whatever makes you happy. Anyway, I'm not involved in your modern poetry circle, so it has nothing to do with me! If you're not afraid, then I'm even less afraid."
Zhang Xi chuckled and said.
That's right.
Although Zhang Xi was one of the ten judges, he was not actually a member of the modern poetry circle; he was an essayist.
Of course, he does have an appreciation for art; otherwise, he wouldn't have been invited by the Federation of Literary and Art Circles to serve as a senior judge for the competition.
This guy had previously suspected that Shen Zizhen might be involved in some insider dealings, but Shen Zizhen didn't turn around and suspect him after hearing it, and that was because of this.
Zhang Xi doesn't write modern poetry, so what kind of tricks could he possibly have up his sleeve?
The two chatted for a bit and were about to part ways when Shen Zizhen's email started flashing again.
He clicked on it and found that it was from his student Xiao Su, who had recommended another work to him.
"What's going on with Xiao Su? She hadn't recommended any works for several days, but now she's recommended two to me in just over ten minutes? Could this one also be a masterpiece worthy of using a referral slot?"
Shen Zizhen muttered something in a puzzled tone.
Zhang Xi, who was about to leave, stopped in his tracks and said with a smile:
"Hurry up and open it, see what works your precious student has recommended for you this time!"
Shen Zizhen nodded and opened the referral email.
Soon, he saw the title of the poem in the manuscript.
"'To the Oak'? Another interesting name. Could it be, as I suspect, that Xiao Su has recommended another masterpiece to me?"
Upon seeing the poem's title, Shen Zizhen couldn't wait to open the main text of the manuscript.
Then, he and Zhang Xi, who was next to him, saw the poem "To the Oak Tree".
'...The roots...clutch tightly in the ground...'
'...Leaves...touching in the clouds...'
"Well written, well written! If it weren't so short, I would have thought I was reading a wonderful essay!"
This time, Zhang Xi was the first to offer his comments.
Upon hearing this, Shen Zizhen nodded repeatedly and said:
"The poet interprets the meaning of love for us from a special perspective, and the choice of the two central images, the kapok and the oak, is truly unique."
"Old Zhang, if I hadn't just seen that song 'Birds and Fish,' I might have thought 'To the Oak Tree' was the undisputed champion."
Zhang Xi nodded slightly and said with a smile:
"You are a poet, and your appreciation of poetry is superior to mine, but there is no doubt that these two poems are both extremely impressive works."
"Yes, I personally think 'Birds and Fish' has the potential to be a consistent champion, and this 'To the Oak Tree' should at least be in the top five, or even the top three!"
Shen Zizhen gave her evaluation.
Zhang Xi, standing to the side, asked curiously:
"Take a look and see who wrote this poem. By the way, who wrote that 'Birds and Fish' poem before?"
"Let me see, the person who submitted this poem 'To the Oak Tree' is 'Qinglian Jushi'? It's obviously a pen name."
Shen Zizhen was slightly taken aback, and then flipped through the information of the previous internal referral article.
Then, he froze:
"Was the person who submitted the poem 'Birds and Fish' also 'Qinglian Jushi'? Were these two poems written by the same person?"
Seeing Shen Zizhen looking at him with a somewhat dumbfounded expression, Zhang Xi quickly waved his hand and said:
"Don't look at me, I don't know either!"
By the way, you're a famous poet too. Have you ever heard of this "Qinglian Jushi"?
The person who could write the poems 'Birds and Fish' and 'To the Oak Tree' must not be an unknown figure, right?
"I don't know, I've never heard of the name 'Qinglian Jushi' before!"
Shen Zizhen shook his head and said:
"Either this is a pen name newly adopted by a famous person, or this person is simply a rising star."
Which possibility do you prefer?
Zhang Xi asked curiously.
Shen Zizhen pondered for a moment and said:
"I prefer the latter one because I haven't seen the style of these two poems anywhere else before."
In fact, the two poems are quite different in style. I'm really curious about who this "Qinglian Jushi" is!
Are you also planning to share this poem in the group?
Zhang Xi suddenly spoke up and asked.
Shen Zizhen thought for a moment, shook his head, and said:
"We can wait a bit for this one. We've already submitted one, so we'll put it in the selection pool along with the other three!"
"That works too. By the way, Lao Shen, go check if anyone in the group has commented on the poem you just shared?"
Zhang Xi asked a question.
Shen Zizhen quickly logged into the judges' group and found that the group was quite lively.
Unread messages are displayed as '99+'.
Zhang Xi, who had come closer, glanced at it and suddenly smiled and said:
"Old Shen, it looks like you've stirred up a hornet's nest."
Upon closer inspection, it was discovered that all of these unread messages had been posted five minutes earlier.
It just so happens that Shen Zizhen shared the work 'Birds and Fish' with the large judges group earlier.
After he shared the poem, the group chat for the judges immediately fell silent.
The unread messages were all comments from several people praising another poem.
Shen Zizhen and Zhang Xi curiously scrolled through the pages until they finally arrived at the source of the unread messages.
Before Shen Zizhen shared "Birds and Fish", another senior judge also shared a poem.
This prominent judge is none other than Zhou Wenhao, the current president of the Modern Poetry Society! He's also the 'President Zhou' they mentioned earlier!
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