After Xie Shu put down his pen, he did not need to copy it onto a clean piece of paper like others did. I don’t know if it was due to the habit of modern examinations, but Xie Shu would think about his ideas before writing each time, and after he started writing, he would finish it in one go without any need for changes.
Therefore, although Xie Shucheng's work was not in the earlier part, there was actually plenty of time left.
When several staff members in charge of public announcement came forward to copy, Xie Shu observed the people from Qi and Lu opposite, especially Kong Xiu. He knew before that this person was intelligent and eloquent, so he was always several steps ahead of others.
However, Xie Shu discovered that Kong Xiu had just finished writing. Not only that, there was another person who caught Xie Shu's attention. It was almost the end of the essay contest, and everyone else was writing faster, at most they would think twice about a few words, but this person was different. He seemed to be unfamiliar with his own essay and paused from time to time.
The reason why Xie Shu had an impression of him was that this person had always been beside Kong Xiu, and he was the one who spoke just now. From Kong Xiu's attitude towards this person, it was not difficult to see that this person should be a person of some fame.
However, when Xie Shu asked Zhang Enshi and others, he found that none of them knew his name, so Xie Shu couldn't help feeling confused.
Not long after, the literary competition was over and it was time for the judging. When everyone presented their works to the stage for each other to see, Wangchuan Tower suddenly became lively.
They saw each other's work one step ahead of everyone else on the stage and were eager to express their opinions.
In fact, in this literary battle, the focus of everyone's attention was on Kong Xiu. Who was this talented person who had such a great reputation at a young age?
The momentum created by Kong Xiu this time was successful enough. Most people in the capital had heard about this literary duel, and even those who did not come in person would come to discuss it.
But Xie Shu happened to come. People are visual animals. Xie Shu's appearance is too handsome, which attracts a lot of attention. The key is that Xie Shu is not an unknown person, and Xie Shu is really capable!
Because Xie Shu and Kong Xiu finished their works almost at the same time, everyone happened to witness their works at the same time.
After reading it, everyone was surprised to find that Xie Shu's literary talent was no less than Kong Xiu's! Some people even thought that Xie Shu's poems were better than Kong Xiu's!
The reason for this is of course not only Xie Shu's work itself, but also because of the gap between the two people.
First, Xie Shu had never appeared in the capital before and was very low-key. Even if someone had heard of his deeds, they could not match him with the real person. So when Xie Shu showed such outstanding talent, how could he not attract attention? Secondly, Kong Xiu had a great reputation before, but compared with Xie Shu, he did not seem to have anything special. Once people have too high psychological expectations and fail to achieve the expected results, it is easy to have a huge deviation.
This is the case with Kong Xiu.
At this time, after watching Xie Shu's work, the people of Qilu were no longer so confident, especially after hearing the discussions of the audience around them.
Kong Xiu also felt bad. He thought he could easily win the literary duel, so he didn't try too hard. But he never expected that Xie Shu was a man of real talent. To be honest, there were two lines in the other party's poem that made him feel ashamed!
However, Kong Xiu did not think that he had been defeated by the opponent, and it was impossible for Kong Xiu to give in like this. He had not come to this point to make things easier for others!
However, Kong Xiu knew very well at this moment that if he failed to beat Xie Shu, then in the eyes of others, he would be a loser. Although he had a great reputation, he was also burdened by the fame...
While Kong Xiu was struggling with all kinds of conflicts, the judgment was still going on.
Of course, everyone's attention was focused on the poems of Xie Shu and Kong Xiu at this moment. The level of the two was much higher, so even if everyone had a critical eye, it was difficult not to appreciate them. Sometimes they would silently recite the words and discuss with each other.
As a result, the atmosphere was much better than before, and for a moment, the two sides even seemed to be communicating harmoniously.
However, since it is a literary battle, who has to win in the end.
Poetry comes first among all poems and essays, so everyone starts with poetry.
If Xie Shu's poems are mentioned alone, no one in Qi and Lu can find any flaws. The most important thing in appreciating poetry is the artistic conception. Xie Shu's poems make people pay attention not to the scenery described in his poems, but to the feelings he wants to express. This poem, titled "Autumn Thoughts over the River", begins with a description of an imaginary scene in Shu. The verbs used make movement in stillness and sound in silence.
When one does not care about the content of the poem itself, but focuses more on its artistic expression and its sad emotions, one can see how high the artistic level of Xie Shu's poem is. When the gorgeous words are discarded and the sincere and simple sentences are used to express the feeling of missing, the contrast between the two is more obvious, making people feel the emotions described in it, as if no matter how beautiful the scenery in the world is, it is no more than this.
Therefore, although Kong Xiu's poems are good, they are inferior to Xie Shu's natural and spontaneous poems.
When it came to judging the fu, everyone was a bit stumped. After all, Xie Shu and Kong Xiu's fu each had their own strengths, and it was difficult to tell which one was better.
However, since Xie Shu's poem was superior, even if Xie Shu and Kong Xiu's fu were tied, Xie Shu would have won. But how could the people of Qi and Lu accept this outcome? Were they really going to lose to these people from the south of the Yangtze River in the literary duel today? How could they hold their heads up in the capital in the future?
At this time, Xie Shu said calmly: "In fact, my poetry is not as good as the one present here. I saw his poetry just now and I really have to admit that he is better. I thought he was the best."
As soon as he finished speaking, everyone was a little surprised. They just thought that Xie Shu was talking about Kong Xiu, and he was really humble. They didn't expect Xie Shu to be willing to take a step back in front of the victory that was within his grasp. Qi and Lu were naturally very happy about it and were convinced. The people in Jiangnan were led by Xie Shu, and they had no objection to seeing Xie Shu like this.
After Xie Shu finished speaking, he walked to the table, picked up a piece of poetry, and asked, "Who wrote this poem?"
Hearing this, Prince Yu on the side seemed to have some feelings, stepped forward, took a look and said slowly: "What you took should be mine."
As soon as he said this, everyone noticed him and couldn't help feeling surprised and puzzled. The poem was indeed very well written, but this person had never heard of it before and had never noticed him.
Xie Shu couldn't help but feel surprised again, it turned out to be him.
Just now, Xie Shu discovered that although this person wrote good fu, his poems were extremely mediocre... Thinking of the many doubts before, all kinds of speculations flashed through Xie Shu's mind.
However, Xie Shu did not say anything and just pretended not to know. He now had to be cautious in every step in the capital and could not make any mistakes. No matter who this person was, he must be someone who could not be provoked as Kong Xiu was willing to write for him under such circumstances.
Therefore, Xie Shu just nodded in return, and Prince Yu just looked at Xie Shu for a moment longer, then smiled without any unusual expression, and did not seem to intend to say much.
In this case, this literary fight ended peacefully, with each side winning and losing, and it was a draw.
However, victory or defeat had nothing to do with Kong Xiu.
Kong Xiu felt very complicated at the moment. He didn't expect Xie Shu to pay attention to the poem he wrote for Prince Yu. Kong Xiu looked again and found that he had put more effort into writing the poem for Prince Yu.
On that day, Xie Shu got together with everyone, then told them to be careful with their words and actions before going into seclusion again.
The most important thing for him now is to prepare for the upcoming imperial examination. Although the prosperity of the capital is great, it is just a passing cloud to him.
Time flies, and in the blink of an eye, summer is coming to an end and the autumn examination is finally here.
The chief examiner of this year's joint examination is appointed by the Ministry of Rites, and the examination will be held in the Imperial Examination Hall. Before taking the examination, all candidates need to report to the Ministry of Shangshu and submit their written examination papers.
Xie Shu was of course among them. He met many familiar people on the way, and when others saw Xie Shu, they couldn't help but keep an eye on him.
What Xie Shu didn't know was that he had already become very famous among his fellow candidates, especially since the literary competition at Wangchuan Tower, his poems and essays began to circulate in the capital.
Everyone was curious about who this elegant young man from Jiangnan, whose talent was no less than Kong Xiu's, was. When they learned of his identity, many people were surprised and regretful. After all, according to a rough hearing, this promising young man was not only from a poor family, but also married into a merchant family at an early age. However, because of this, although everyone knew that Xie Shu was a very strong competitor in this examination, they were not very hostile.
Just as Xie Shu was walking with Zhang Enshi and the others, they suddenly heard someone shouting behind them: "Rong Zhan!"
Xie Shu looked back and found that it was Tao Yun whom he had not seen for many days. There were a few people around him. They looked well-dressed and should be young masters of noble families.
Tao Yun's face was full of joy. He came here to take part in the imperial examination. It turned out that he was struggling with how to tell Cui Yuan that he wanted to take part in the imperial examination. Unexpectedly, Cui Yuan took the initiative to bring up the matter, asked him to enter the officialdom through the imperial examination, and explained the interests involved.
Emperor Qing is now devoted to promoting the imperial examination system. Not only has the system become increasingly perfect, but many important official positions with rapid promotion and good reputation have been given to successful candidates in previous years. If this continues, those who have been admitted to the officialdom through their patronage will inevitably fall behind.
Of course, there is another layer that Cui Yuan did not mention, that is, there are only more than one hundred places for the imperial examination every year. If disciples from aristocratic families compete for it, how many will end up falling into the hands of poor families?
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