Prefect Liu was filled with resentment. He resented not being dressed in his official robes when he came, and he resented not having brought his constables with him.
Otherwise, we could take him away in one fell swoop, lock him up in jail, and let him live or die as he pleases!
Jing Zhe didn't want to get entangled with Prefect Liu anymore, because he was afraid of getting beaten up by Prefect Liu's monstrous daughter...
So he looked at Manager Hu and said, "Manager Hu, since we made a bet, we should honor our loss. Let me tell you, I will not give you this ten thousand taels of silver unless you—"
"Unless what?"
Seeing that Jing Zhe was not afraid of even Prefect Liu and directly confronted him, Manager Hu felt slightly relieved. At the same time, he secretly concluded that he probably wouldn't get the money back today...
However, when Jing Zhe suddenly changed his tone, as if a glimmer of hope had appeared after a period of uncertainty, he suddenly became interested.
"Unless you make a bet with me!"
"Oh? What are we betting on?"
Manager Hu's interest was completely piqued.
"The Lantern Festival Poetry Gathering is about to begin, so let's make a bet and have a poetry contest. What do you think, Manager Hu?"
"..."
Manager Hu didn't say anything after hearing this, but his slightly widened eyes and the disdainful expression on his lips clearly showed his attitude at this moment.
Jing Zhe immediately laughed and said, "Of course, Manager Hu is quite old, and his cultural attainments are certainly not comparable to those of a great talent like me, so it's understandable that he's afraid to bet with me!"
Seeing Jing Zhe's carefree and laughing manner, Manager Hu became even more furious: "You? A talented scholar? You dare to call yourself one?"
"How can I not be considered a talented man?"
Jing Zhe said nonchalantly, "Whenever I attend a poetry gathering, I casually throw away hundreds of taels of silver. Every young lady says I'm talented; they all call me the number one talent!"
Manager Hu was no stranger to talented people, but even if they were arrogant, they had the means to back them up. Someone like Jing Zhe, who talked about money all the time, didn't seem like a talented person at all. In his eyes, Jing Zhe was more like a gambler!
So he continued to sneer.
"Ha, you still don't believe me? This young master can compose poems and lyrics on the spot, and is known as the 'Quick Poetry Master.' Do you think this is a joke?"
"It's not something you can just pick up casually, but something you can just grab off. What do you think you've got on your hands?"
Despite not having read many books, Manager Hu still accurately pointed out Jing Zhe's grammatical errors, which made him even more contemptuous of him.
"Heh, none of that matters!"
As he spoke, Jing Zhe swaggered forward a couple of steps, then shook his head and said, "Today is the Lantern Festival. Because we eat glutinous rice balls tonight, in my hometown, the Lantern Festival is also called the Yuanxiao Festival. I was inspired to write some poems!"
Before anyone could react, Jing Zhe began creating.
"Yuanxiao is good, Yuanxiao is wonderful, Yuanxiao is delicious!"
Enjoy the lanterns, solve riddles, and celebrate the Lantern Festival with great joy!
"good!"
After Jing Zhe finished reading, Chen Jiannan led the applause, followed by a sparse clapping sound. The applause was naturally from the dozen or so people from the Da'an Newspaper.
The others exchanged glances, suppressing their laughter.
This... is considered poetry?
Although Ruzhou City was primarily a commercial center and didn't place much importance on poetry and literature, and truly talented scholars were few and far between, as learned people, they still possessed basic appreciation skills.
That doggerel was so cheesy, even the old man who sells oil probably wouldn't bother reciting it. Does he really think his life is all about being cheesy?
Jing Zhe waved his hand, signaling everyone to be quiet, a smug look on his face.
"Isn't it good? I happen to have a burst of inspiration today, so I'll compose another one!"
"On the Lantern Festival, the moon is round. The round glutinous rice balls are sticky and sweet."
Lantern viewing, stilt walking. The streets and alleys are bustling with activity!
"Great! Great!"
"Bullfrog! Bullfrog!"
"..."
Chen Jiannan and the others naturally cheered, while Jing Zhe also seemed quite satisfied: "Manager Hu, did you hear that? This young master doesn't lie. If I say I'm a 'Quick Poetry Master,' then I am a 'Quick Poetry Master'!"
"..."
"It is indeed fast, but as for experts, well, that's a matter of opinion!"
Manager Hu sneered and said that he was now certain that Jing Zhe was just a worthless poet. To call him a genius would mean that all the scholars in the world were geniuses!
It seems that fate is fair after all, granting him extraordinary riddle-solving skills, but few other talents.
He was filled with regret. He'd bet Jing Zhe's mediocre poetry skills were so poor that he could easily lose to any talented poet. Unfortunately, Manager Hu, a businessman his whole life, could recite poetry, but composing it? He truly couldn't…
"Heh, Manager Hu, you're still not convinced? Then let's make a bet! I'll bet over ten thousand taels of silver. If you do a better job than me, I'll give it to you without batting an eye!"
Jing Zhe said indignantly.
To be honest, at that moment, Manager Hu was tempted.
"Young master, you mustn't!"
"Yes, my lord, we mustn't gamble!"
"Young master, we can just enjoy your poems ourselves, but using them for betting... is not a good idea!"
Chen Jiannan and Zhang Xiaoyu immediately spoke up to dissuade them.
"What's the meaning?"
Jing Zhe said with dissatisfaction, "You guys obviously don't have confidence in me! With just those two poems I casually picked up, is it too much to ask me to take first place in this poetry competition? It's not too much, is it!"
"Easy to pick up, easy to pick up!"
Manager Hu seemed to have a mild form of obsessive-compulsive disorder; he couldn't stand it when Jing Zhe pronounced "拈" as "沾," and he roared angrily.
"Don't worry about these details, they're not important. Manager Hu, just tell me if you dare to gamble! What, you were so eager to get those ten thousand taels of silver back, but when it came time to give it to you, you chickened out?"
"..."
How would you like to bet?
While Manager Hu was still pondering what to say next, Prince Yu, accompanied by Master Qu, descended from the cloud ladder.
"It is the heir of King Yu!"
"Greetings, Your Highness!"
In Ruzhou, King Yu was undoubtedly the highest-ranking figure, so his heir was also highly respected.
The Crown Prince of Yu waved to everyone, his amiable appearance making Jing Zhe wonder if he was the same person who had been spouting nonsense about male thieves and female prostitutes in the private room that night.
Jing Zhe replied nonchalantly, "Of course it's a poetry contest, but after witnessing my skills, Manager Hu has become afraid and dares not gamble!"
The Crown Prince of Yu sneered, "Young Master's poetic talent... is indeed very high! But Manager Hu is not only too old, but he has also spent his whole life in business and has never written poetry. Don't you think it's too unfair to directly compete with Manager Hu in poetry? Even if you win, it will be an unsportsmanlike victory!"
Having gained the approval of the Crown Prince of Yu, Jing Zhe nodded slightly, his face beaming with pride, and said with a smile, "What the Crown Prince says is true. With my reputation as a master of quick poetry, let alone Manager Hu, even in the entire Ruzhou City, no one can rival me, hahaha..."
"..."
————
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