After our homes were confiscated and we were exiled, the women in my clan and I raised a million sol

Not long after, He Tianshun raised his head and said with a smile, "Since ancient times, scholars have all loved to compose poems on the theme of spring. Today, I will follow the ancients and make 'Spring' the theme of this poetry gathering."

As soon as the words fell, a whisper suddenly sounded in the hall.

Some people looked happy, obviously because they had written some poems about spring. Although they thought these works were not particularly outstanding, they could at least cope with the situation.

Others seemed worried, especially those who had neither ready-made works nor immediate inspiration, and felt very anxious in the face of sudden challenges.

After a cup of tea, several talented people were eager to try, and the most active among them was Chu Xun.

Although his character is not very popular, he is indeed outstanding in literary talent and can be regarded as one of the best among those present.

After waiting for a while, Chu Xun suddenly stood up, breaking the silence.

After scanning the area, his eyes finally fixed on the direction where Zhang Liang and the others were.

Especially when his eyes swept over Qin Youlan and others, he deliberately raised his eyebrows, as if showing them the wonderful performance he was about to begin.

However, Qin Youlan and the others did not buy into Chu Xun's self-proclaimed cool and handsome behavior.

On the contrary, they were displeased with such exaggerated behavior, and some even almost vomited.

Despite this, Chu Xun was not discouraged or embarrassed.

After all, only women like this can arouse his desire to conquer.

He smiled slightly and said in a seemingly humble but actually confident manner, "Since everyone is so shy, I'll start first."

As soon as he finished speaking, he bowed respectfully to He Tianshun, and then began to pace back and forth thinking.

After a moment, Chu Xun slowly spoke, "The willow catkins drift lightly, the flower shadows fade without a trace. I walk alone in search of a secluded path, my heart dimming with the dusk."

When Chu Xun finished his poem, there was a burst of applause.

One of his lackeys immediately stepped forward and said, "Master Chu, this is brilliant! You've captured both the flourishing of spring and the peaceful and prosperous lives of the people of Daqian. You truly are one of our great talents!"

Another person echoed, "That's right! After hearing Master Chu's poem, I felt a breath of spring blowing in my face!"

It goes without saying that these guys are really trying to flatter Chu Xun. After all, who doesn't like to hear good words?

However, it is a bit too far-fetched to say that this poem describes the peaceful and prosperous life of the people of Daqian.

Although Chu Xun felt extremely happy, he still pretended to be modest and said, "No, no, thank you for the compliment, I still have a lot to learn."

After saying this, Chu Xun looked at Qin Youlan and the others, wanting to see if they were mesmerized by his beautiful poetry.

But after looking over, I found that Qin Youlan and the others had no expression at all and were just chatting among themselves.

Seeing this scene, Chu Xun's face darkened slightly, and he thought to himself: These women are really difficult to deal with. It seems that I have to spend more time on them in the future.

But now, he could only continue to pretend to be elegant and return to his seat with a smile.

He Tianshun looked at the self-satisfied Chu Xun in front of him, and a complex emotion surged in his heart.

He coughed lightly, and everyone immediately quieted down, as if this cough had some kind of magic.

When the whole audience was silent, He Tianshun slowly spoke: "Mr. Chu's poems are indeed well written."

His tone was calm, but every word was clear and audible: "Do any of you talented people have any masterpieces to show?"

As soon as he finished speaking, a man stood out from the crowd, looking a little nervous but also confident.

After a moment of contemplation, the man began to recite his own work: "The spring breeze caresses the long willow branches, the clear water reflects the sunlight. The blooming and falling flowers are always full of emotion, and the birds sing on the branches to celebrate the busy spring."

As the verses flowed out one after another, the people around nodded in praise and applauded, as if they gave the poem a very high evaluation.

However, amidst all the praise, He Tianshun felt a deep sense of helplessness and sadness.

He knew that although such poetry appeared beautiful and pleasant on the surface, it actually lacked depth and connotation, and was more like a word game deliberately put together to suit the occasion.

Thinking of this, He Tianshun couldn't help but sigh, and sighed in his heart: Nowadays, the literary attainments of students are really getting worse and worse! Are these so-called "excellent works" they created really worthy of such enthusiastic pursuit?

Just as He Tianshun was immersed in his own thoughts, the young man who had just received applause from the whole audience returned to his seat with a smug look on his face, obviously very satisfied with his performance.

Chu Xun, who was closest to He Tianshun, had eyes as sharp as an eagle. He keenly caught the flash of displeasure on He Tianshun's face.

This realization made him feel an irrepressible sense of joy, as if a long drought had finally brought a downpour and he had finally waited for the perfect opportunity for revenge.

His thoughts quickly drifted back to the unpleasant confrontation he had with Zhang Liang earlier, and the resentment and anger that had been pent up in his heart instantly found an outlet.

"Great! Here's my chance!"

He was secretly delighted in his heart, and a sneer appeared on the corner of his mouth inadvertently.

Damn it, I will definitely bring disgrace upon you this time, he secretly swore in his heart that he would make Zhang Liang lose face in front of everyone.

Thinking of this, Chu Xun no longer hesitated. He immediately stood up and clapped his hands vigorously, attracting the attention of everyone present.

When everyone's eyes were focused on him, he slowly spoke: "Everyone, please be quiet. Next, we would like to invite a talented scholar to compose a poem to enhance the atmosphere."

His words were so powerful that the originally noisy scene instantly quieted down.

The people present looked at each other in confusion, looking around, trying to find answers from each other's expressions, wondering who this "talented man" who was suddenly nominated was.

Behind Zhang Liang, a group of girls were also very curious about this sudden proposal, whispering and discussing it.

Among them, Wang Yuehan even leaned close to Zhang Liang's ear and asked in a low voice, "Uncle, do you know who this talented person he's talking about is?"

There was a hint of eagerness and curiosity in her tone, and she was obviously very interested in this sudden poetry challenge.

Zhang Liang frowned slightly when he heard this, shook his head, and answered frankly: "I don't know either, but we'll know who this person is soon."

He felt that Chu Xun had no good intentions in suddenly saying this, and it was very likely directed at him. After all, he had just embarrassed this guy.

Just as Zhang Liang finished speaking, Chu Xun suddenly pointed his finger at him, his voice carrying a subtle hint of cunning and provocation: "That's him! The great talent I'm talking about is that young master."

"Just now, when I passed by him, I heard him say with my own ears that the students from our cities are not worth mentioning. Such words can only be uttered by someone of great talent."

As soon as these words were spoken, the entire hall seemed to be thrown into a stone, causing a thousand waves.

Yang Bao was stunned at first, then quickly leaned over to Zhang Liang's ear and whispered a warning, "Wen Zhuo, it seems Chu Xun is deliberately trying to put you in the spotlight. Revenge comes so quickly, which really suits his character!"

Upon hearing this, Zhang Liang glanced across the hall and saw that the literati, who were originally immersed in the joy of poetry and wine, were now casting angry glances at him. Each gaze was like an invisible sword, pointing at him. The air was filled with a tense and subtle atmosphere.

The habit of intellectuals looking down on each other was completely aroused at this moment. They could not tolerate someone openly belittling them as a whole.

Even the highly respected He Tianshun couldn't help but frown upon hearing this, thinking to himself, "This guy is a bit too arrogant."

"But these words may not be said by him! If not, that Chu family kid is really too vicious."

Thinking of this, He Tianshun glanced at Chu Xun, then at Zhang Liang, and was looking forward to what Zhang Liang would do.

Should he bow his head and admit defeat to Chu Xun, or fight back?