Seeing that they remained silent, Jing Zhe continued, "Do you really think that someone ghostwrote those poems for me?"
"..."
Although the crowd remained silent, their gazes toward him were unfriendly, indirectly revealing their thoughts.
Jing Zhe didn't take it to heart and said, "I see that you are all scholars. If you wrote your own Mid-Autumn Festival poem, 'When Will the Moon Be Bright?', would you be willing to give it to someone else? Or any other poem, if someone could write one, they wouldn't be unknown. Why give such good poems to others and let them become famous?"
"..."
Yes, any one of his poems would be enough to make him famous, so why should he do the work for someone else?
At this moment, Jing Zhe spoke again, still with sarcasm.
"Oh, I forgot, with your mediocre skills, you couldn't possibly write such good poems, let alone imagine them?"
"President Jing is truly impressive!"
Others could tolerate it, but Feng Mubai truly couldn't.
"President Jing, are you speaking to us now as a scholar or as the president of the Da'an Newspaper?"
Jing Zhe glanced at him coldly, "What, is there a difference?"
"Of course there's a difference!"
Feng Mubai said, "If you were to speak to us as the president of the Da'an Newspaper, just like you are now, how many people do you think would dare to tell you the truth? You are a second-rank official. Even the highest-ranking official in Jiangling, Prefect Xu, is two ranks below you, let alone us ordinary people. If President Jing takes advantage of his status and uses his official position to oppress people, you will never hear the truth!"
Jing Zhe smiled and said, "Alright, then I will attend the Peach Blossom Poetry Gathering today as a scholar, and everyone can speak freely."
"..."
Although that's what they said, the others were still wary and didn't speak. Feng Mubai, however, let loose and started mocking them as well: "Then I won't call you President Jing anymore, I'll call you Young Master Jing instead!"
Jing Zhe didn't reply, but simply made a "whatever" gesture.
Seeing this, Feng Mubai continued, "Young Master Jing just said, who would be foolish enough to give away such good poems and lyrics? Indeed, any poem or lyric that could win first place at a poetry gathering would not be given away by a normal person."
At this point, he suddenly changed the subject: "But what if it wasn't given willingly?"
Jing Zhe glanced at him. "What do you mean?"
"As I just said, President Jing is a high-ranking official of the second rank, with an extremely high status. No ordinary person would dare to disobey what President Jing says. Moreover, I have also heard that President Jing enjoys the Emperor's special favor. If His Majesty issues an edict, let alone sending a poem, even if someone were to give up their life, no one would dare to utter a word of dissent!"
Feng Mubai said coldly.
"It seems that Young Master Feng simply doesn't believe that all the poems I've 'written' were actually my own?"
"It's not just me who doesn't believe it; it's all the scholars in Jiangling who don't believe it, because we've always believed that seeing is believing!"
"Yes, seeing is believing!"
After a long silence, the crowd finally spoke.
Jing Zhe laughed and said, "Alright, seeing is believing, right? Then tell me, Young Master Feng, how can you be convinced?"
"That's easy!"
Feng Mubai's eyes lit up. This was exactly what he was waiting for: "If Young Master Jing can still win first place in the Peach Blossom Poetry Gathering, even if he doesn't participate as the president of the Da'an Newspaper, but as an ordinary person, then we will all be convinced!"
"As an ordinary person? Absolutely not!"
"Oh? It seems Young Master Jing is truly afraid?"
"You're overthinking it. I'm the number one scholar in Anguo. How could I possibly participate as an ordinary person?"
"..."
Feng Mubai was momentarily speechless before saying, "Young Master Jing, you'd better not boast. Wait until you beat me before you claim to be the number one talent in Anguo. Otherwise, if you lose, wouldn't you become a laughingstock?"
Jing Zhe rolled her eyes at him. "Don't talk nonsense. I've never lost a poetry competition. Do you think I'm some kind of eternal runner-up?"
"Pfft~"
Feng Mubai's face turned red with anger at Jing Zhe's words, and everyone else was also holding back their frustration. Only Lin Wan'er had no such concerns; she focused all her energy on Jing Zhe.
Although the two had recognized each other, they had not spoken to each other alone yet, and they were not familiar with Jing Zhe's current behavior. Naturally, they could not remain as calm as Qing Qiu and Pei Yunxi, so they couldn't help but laugh out loud.
When she realized she had attracted everyone's attention, she immediately covered her mouth and waved her hand, signaling everyone to continue and not look at her.
Feng Mubai, humiliated by Jing Zhe in front of all the Jiangling scholars and his goddess, trembled with rage: "Fine, fine, fine!"
After saying "good" three times in a row, he didn't want to wait any longer. Looking at Jing Zhe, he said in a deep voice, "Talking nonsense is no skill. Let's see who has the real talent in poetry!"
After saying that, he probably thought of the peach blossom poem that Fatty Wei had just written, and said sarcastically, "Oh, I almost forgot, Young Master Jing has already written a peach blossom poem, right? Hmm, not bad—Young Master Jing, are you planning to use this poem to participate in today's poetry gathering? If so, I'm afraid Young Master Jing will not be able to win first place in the poetry gathering."
"Of course not. I could write a whole bunch of these lousy poems on a whim. What's so special about that?"
"…good…"
Feng Mubai decided to stop talking and go straight to the poem, because he was afraid that if he said anything more, he would die of anger before he could even write the poem.
"I, Feng, am not very talented, and I have made a fool of myself!"
As he spoke, Feng Mubai took a step out, put his hands straight behind his back, nodded slightly, looked ahead, and then began to pace around in the open space in front of the stone table, looking quite imposing.
After walking around a few times, he suddenly stopped, opened and closed the folding fan in his hand, shook his head, and began to recite.
"Red flowers bloom all over the mountain, and spring water flows alongside the mountain amidst clouds."
The red flowers fall easily, like the heartache of a lover; the flowing water is like my sorrow.
The peach blossoms bloom first in the warm spring, their bright beauty attracting all who behold them.
Unfortunately, the strong wind blew it all away, leaving only crimson patches on the mossy ground.
This poem was prepared by Feng Mubai over several months. It uses scenery to express emotions and fits the theme of today's Peach Blossom Poetry Gathering perfectly. The first line describes the scenery. In just a dozen words, it depicts the spring scenery of Jiangling, the mountains, peach blossoms, and streams. Even with your eyes closed, you can imagine the scene of peach blossoms and willows just by hearing these few lines.
Starting from the second stanza, the poem uses scenery to evoke emotion.
"The red flowers fall easily, just like my lover's heart; the flowing water is like my sorrow." This is a true reflection of "The falling flowers are willing, but the flowing water is heartless." Moreover, when Feng Mubai recited this line, he looked at Lin Wan'er with deep affection. Even a fool could understand what he was trying to express.
Although I can't stand him, I have to admit that the poem is indeed of good quality, more than enough to win first place in the Peach Blossom Poetry Festival. But unfortunately, he met his match.
————
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