Ma Biao's couplet was actually given to him by Pan An.
Who is Pan An? He was the most talented scholar in the capital.
He simply couldn't believe that anyone could match couplets as well as Pan An.
Upon hearing this, Qin Yu gave a disdainful smile.
In his previous life, he was the top scorer in the college entrance examination and was specially recruited into the army. He had been forced to learn couplets and poetry by his Chinese teacher for three years! Otherwise, how could he have gotten a perfect score on the college entrance examination essay?
These three couplets are far inferior to the "return" couplets and five-element couplets that our Chinese teacher used to give us!
"Alright, you just wait."
After Qin Yu agreed, he began to ponder.
When everyone saw that Qin Yu had actually agreed, they couldn't help but shake their heads and chuckle.
But after all this commotion, the news that Pan An had advised Ma Biao had already spread.
This young master, whom we haven't met yet, is ostensibly testing his skills against Ma Biao, but in reality, he's competing with Pan An, the most talented scholar in the capital!
Everyone knows that Pan An is exceptionally talented and learned; even the most learned scholars at the Imperial Academy praised him as a genius of the world!
Although the third couplet faltered due to momentary tension, the first two couplets were already absolutely perfect, and it would be extremely difficult to surpass them.
For a moment, everyone whispered among themselves and sighed repeatedly, seemingly lamenting that Qin Yu had overestimated his abilities and ruined his own life.
Hearing the whispers around him, Ma Biao felt even more smug.
He's now eager for Qin Yu to be embarrassed, and he can't wait to kill him!
"Kid! Hurry up! You think you can avoid dying by stalling for time?!"
Ma Biao grinned maliciously and mocked him.
Qin Yu remained unmoved, simply lost in thought.
Soon, after a while, Qin Yu suddenly raised his head with a faint smile on his face.
"Got it!"
Qin Yu picked up his wine glass and drank it all in one gulp, then put down the glass and stood up.
As soon as he stood up, he immediately attracted everyone's attention.
"The first couplet of Miss Bai is: Golden willows by the Jinshui River."
"The couplet that Pan An helped Ma Biao with was 'A jade hairpin flower outside a magnolia stem.' Although it was well-crafted, it lacked any elegance or charm. Today is Miss Bai's grand wedding ceremony, so I will snatch this jade hairpin flower from Ma Biao's hands and present it to Miss Bai!"
"This young master's matching couplet is: A jade hairpin adorns a jade-like head!"
As soon as he finished speaking, the previously noisy Shuiyun Pavilion fell silent.
Qin Yu's opening line instantly surpassed Ma Biao's previously much-discussed second line.
Moreover, Ma Biao's elegant and refined second line was completely outshone by his!
Moreover, the artistic conception within it, and the subtle connection between it and the preceding line, are worlds apart.
Bai Ruyan's beautiful eyes flashed with surprise. She gave Qin Yu a deep look, then smiled and said, "What a wonderful second line! This young master is quick-witted. I will accept this jade hairpin. Thank you, young master."
At their first meeting, she thought Qin Yu and those two lecherous scoundrels were birds of a feather, but today he surprised her and made her look at him in a new light!
As soon as she finished speaking, a heated discussion broke out at the scene. Miss Bai was a well-known aloof courtesan, and this was the first time she had openly shown affection to a man!
Ma Biao couldn't tell whether the couplet was good or bad, so he could only look to Pan An.
At this moment, Pan An's expression was also extremely interesting. This top scholar of the capital was actually carefully appreciating Qin Yu's couplet. His eyes were filled with astonishment, his face turned ashen, and he dared not look directly at Ma Biao.
Upon seeing this, Ma Biao immediately knew that he had lost the first couplet.
Moreover, after Pan An's explanation, Ma Biao was even more furious. This bastard kept saying he borrowed his jade hairpin flower, wasn't he obviously trying to step on his head to enter Bai Ruyan's boudoir!
"Damn it! So what if you won the first pair? You were just lucky. I don't believe you can beat me on the second pair!"
Enraged, Ma Biao glared fiercely at Qin Yu.
The crowd's expressions turned strange; they wanted to see whether Qin Yu was just lucky or truly exceptionally talented.
Qin Yu smiled slightly and said calmly, "The second couplet, Miss Bai's first line is: 'Looking at the river tower, looking at the river, looking at the river from the river tower; the river tower is eternal, the river is eternal.'"
"Hmph, that's right. This couplet is much harder than the first one. I'd like to see how you're going to respond!"
Ma Biao sneered, and he even gave a wink to his men.
He was just waiting for Qin Yu to suffer a setback, then he immediately drew his sword and chopped Qin Yu into eight pieces on the spot!
Everyone present held their breath, waiting with extreme tension.
Qin Yu remained calm and composed. After a moment, he spoke, “My second line is: Poetry Competition Stage, Poetry Talent Competition, Poetry Talent Competition on the Poetry Competition Stage; The Poetry Stage is Unparalleled, the Poetry Talent is Unparalleled.”
As soon as he finished speaking, Ma Biao's lips twitched, and he was completely dumbfounded!
This pretty boy actually managed to come up with a matching couplet for the second one too?
How could that be!
He spent a fortune to hire Pan An, the most talented scholar in the capital! He racked his brains to come up with a matching couplet!
This pretty boy came up with the answer in the time it takes to drink a cup of tea?
Ma Biao simply could not accept this outcome.
Ignoring the gasps of those around him, he looked at Pan An with bloodshot eyes and asked urgently, "How does his couplet compare to ours just now?"
"This...this..."
Pan An stammered a few words but couldn't answer.
Qin Yu's couplet is indeed much better than his.
Why aren't you answering!
Ma Biao roared, his face contorted with rage.
Pan An was so frightened that he knocked over his teacup. He stammered and trembled, "Young Master Ma, for the second couplet, I... I matched his and he did almost the same, it's hard to say who will win."
Ma Biao was stunned for a moment, then realized what he meant and said through gritted teeth, "I spent so much money to invite you here, and you're telling me it's a draw?"
Ma Biao suddenly turned fierce, his glint of malice fully revealed!
But now is not the time to deal with this poor scholar!
Turning around, his face flushed, he looked at Qin Yu and snorted coldly in front of everyone.
"Kid, you're lucky! But this second round will only be a draw against me, no doubt!"
As soon as he finished speaking, a murmur of disgust rippled through the room.
"I have never seen such a shameless person!"
"That's right. Putting aside the fact that the young master won the first couplet completely, his second couplet is even better upon closer examination. Yet Ma Biao has the nerve to say that it's a draw?"
"..."
The crowd chattered amongst themselves, secretly trying to undermine Ma Biao's integrity.
Ma Biao's face flushed red instantly. He immediately turned his head and glared fiercely at them. The secret镖客 (bodyguards/escorts) who were whispering among themselves were so frightened that they shut their mouths and lowered their heads, not daring to make a sound.
Ma Biao then took a deep breath, suppressed his resentment, and sneered.
"I said it's a draw, so it's a draw. What's wrong with that?"
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