There was no choice, so the shopkeeper braised the pork belly and hurried back to find Baili Tang.
Hu Panpan, who was disdaining the fat meat one moment, started eating it voraciously the next second!!!
“This is so delicious!”
Then when the shopkeeper came back, there was only a little soup left in the three plates of braised pork belly!
"Where's uncle?" Hu Panpan had eaten enough and didn't plan to eat anything else today, otherwise she would get fat.
"Where's the meat?" The other three only cared about this!
The shopkeeper complained in his heart: The meat is gone, but no one is coming.
"Mr. Yu, let me ask you a question." He changed his address to Mr. Yu. Because the shopkeeper was impressed by Baili Tang's talent!
"You say." Hu Zhenxing said.
The shopkeeper asked: "Are you considered scholars?"
Except for Hu Zhenxing, the others all nodded!
Then the shopkeeper said, "Mr. Yu said that if you are scholars, you must match his couplets before he will see you. And, starting tomorrow, anyone who claims to be a scholar must match his couplets before entering the store to consume."
Everyone is curious and hopes that the chef’s talent can be as good as his cooking skills!
Hu Panpan had seen the uncle's ability to silence those who were scolded with just his mouth, and she had also seen the uncle's couplets and poems. What would be the first couplet of his poem now?
The shopkeeper chanted, "All the scholars of this generation are short-sighted!"
"Boss, can you write it down?" asked Master Zhang. He didn't hear clearly.
“Wait a moment!!”
After reading it a few more times, Hu Panpan said, "I think the entire couplet should be saying that all the scholars in the world today are short-sighted, that is, nearsighted. You may not know that earlier, the uncle read Liu Zhongqing and others and belittled them as worthless. So, he wanted to use this couplet to mock scholars!"
"Brilliant!" Hu Zhenxing praised his niece upon hearing her words. "All the successful Jinshi scholars of this era are shortsighted! I may not be considered a scholar, but I know quite a few words! This couplet, the pronunciation of each word is similar, but each character is different! Put them together and it becomes a complete sentence! The irony is especially strong!"
How could Hu Zhenxing lead troops to fight if he couldn't read?
The most distinguished gentleman smiled helplessly and said, "If I had known this earlier, I would not have admitted that I was a scholar!"
"Miss Panpan, you're a renowned talent in Qinhe. Could you possibly come up with the second line?" Lord Zhang smiled warmly at Panpan. This kind of person is incredibly cunning. He can't come up with the answer, and while he might seem to be giving it to the younger generation, he's actually trying to save face. He seemed to have been a top scholar back then.
"Master Zhang, I am a weak woman, how dare I show off my skills in front of you?" Do you think that if you, Zhang Zhilin, say a few coaxing words, I, Hu Panpan, will become like those foolish juniors and forget myself?
Hu Zhenxing may look rough, but he's actually quite sophisticated. Naturally, he had to speak up for his precious niece: "Our Panpan's title of talented woman is just a random claim made by the common people. How can it compare to your Lord Zhang's title of third place in the imperial examination, which was personally chosen by the late emperor!"
To put it in modern terms, Hu Panpan's title of talented woman is hype, and you, Zhang Zhilin, are the one with real talent and knowledge, and the nationally recognized third place in the imperial examination!
The gentleman thought that Hu Zhenxing looked heroic and spoke so eloquently on weekdays: "Sir Zhang, you are the only one here who is a Jinshi!" With his status, he doesn't need to take the imperial examination!
Looking at the beads of sweat on the prefect's forehead, the shopkeeper, who had already written it, thought to himself: "How wonderful! It's really wonderful!"
"This is an unprecedented couplet. I cannot answer it for the moment!" Zhang Zhilin said embarrassedly.
But Hu Panpan didn't want to let him go: "Master Zhang, if you don't try, how will you know if it's not right? If you, a dignified prefect, can't even match a couplet, won't it let the world... You know, they are clearly targeting us scholars. Oh, that's right. Don't you still have the Four Talents of Qinhe?"
Humph... It's fine if you insulted her idol, but just now you even tried to treat her, Hu Panpan, as some heartless junior...
The gentleman also said: "Let's try it together."
Half an hour later, the four of them, led by the shopkeeper, went to find Baili Tang. They came up with a second couplet, but wondered if it was a good match.
At this moment, Baili Tang was washing white clothes in the house. Worried that he would take the opportunity to slip away, Ye Hongxue stood in a place with a wide view, watching Baili Tang while thinking about the couplets he would come up with.
The more I think about it, the harder it gets: "The soldiers will be... No, no..."
Could it be that Zhang Dongzheng also came up with this first couplet? Could it be that Zhang Dongzheng has the ability to predict the future? Did he write it in advance for the tyrant emperor so that he could embarrass these scholars?
"Mr. Yu, they came up with a second line. Is it correct?" the shopkeeper came over and delivered the message.
"Uncle, did the drummers in ancient times know ancient poems? Can they be considered well-versed?" Hu Panpan asked loudly.
"Is it that beautiful, kind-hearted, and passionate Miss Hu Panpan? Miss Hu, your couplet is passable. But did you notice that there's a repeated word? And the second half of the couplet seems to lack a certain charm; it's too forced!"
"I don't care. Uncle, I've passed anyway, right? Can I come in?"
"No. I'm washing my white."
Wash it clean?
"It's just a bath. Uncle, I haven't had a bath in four or five days." The water in the tub has turned black. It's all because of that bitch Ye Hongxue...
"Oh. Uncle, I'll wait for you."
"What are you waiting for me for? Uncle, I have no money, no good looks, and I'm already married. Miss, you'd better respect yourself."
The gentleman said: This voice sounds familiar. Could it be him? He can't talk this funny!
"Uncle, is this how you treat your benefactor? If I hadn't stepped forward to help you, would you still be able to wash yourself clean in there now?" He must have been thrown into the river, right?
"Then what do you want to talk to me about? My wife is a jealous woman. She can't stand seeing any other woman around me. Especially one as talented and beautiful as you... I have to earn 10,000 taels of silver within five days before I can divorce her. I've already wasted a day today. How about you, Miss Hu, use 10,000 taels of silver to buy a roast duck from our shopkeeper..."
Ten thousand taels of silver to buy a roast duck from our shopkeeper? "Uncle, my father will break my legs!"
"Hmm...that's right. How could an uncle put Miss Hu in such a difficult position? How about this? To show my gratitude for your generous help today, I'd like to invite you to see a performance of 'Farewell My Concubine'. How about I have the troupe truly recreate the masterpiece of Zhang Dongzheng, the most talented scholar in Jing State, including the story and the songs!"
After hearing Baili Tang's words, not only Hu Panpan and the others, but even Ye Hongxue was moved! Ye Hongxue knew that Baili Tang had sung it before, and many people said that he sang well. But Ye Hongxue didn't believe it. Unless she could hear Baili Tang sing it himself...
Why did Baili Tang say this to Hu Panpan—to hype himself up by hanging on to a celebrity?!
This is a very common marketing tactic!
Some people follow celebrities, while others follow famous brands!
His first couplet is also a gimmick!
The shopkeeper thought: Could it be possible that Mr. Yu could really earn ten thousand taels in five days?
Who is he?
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