In a blink of an eye, it was the last day of the fourth-grade test, and today was a chess match with Guozi, who was studying at the third-grade. In the past two days, Chen Fan was no longer as easy to win as he was in the county, especially yesterday. After all, his opponent was a fourth-level player. Chen Fan also had to be careful and think carefully. Today, he had to fight for 12 points. In terms of spirit, Master's apparent chess ability is at level three, but it is likely that it has exceeded level two, or even higher. It's just that he hasn't been tested on his level of chess, so naturally he can't be careless.
Fortunately, today we are playing handicap chess, and the master who is playing against him looks to be in his fifties. He plays chess quite well. Although the layout is rigorous, there is no special skill. After two games, Chen Fan still successfully won and obtained the fourth-grade certificate.
After winning the chess game, Chen Fan left the chess court and was about to return to the inn, but was suddenly blocked by someone at the door.
When Chen Fan saw and recognized the person who blocked me when he came to register before, he felt happy and said, "Why, you stopped me the day before yesterday and asked me to do an arbitration. Why did you stop me again today? Is there anything else that needs arbitration?"
"That's not true. Lang Jun was joking. We were in a hurry last time and forgot to ask one thing. You said your name is Chen Fasheng. I wonder if you are the Chen Fasheng of "Drinking" and "Encouraging and Quitting Drinking".
"Exactly, what's the matter?"
"Sure enough, it's you. It's like this. There will be a poetry party in two days. It was held by Xiao Tong, the king of Yuzhang. He invited your husband to the banquet." After saying that, he took out a post and handed it to Chen Fan.
Chen Fan did not take it immediately, but said: "Who is Xiao Tong, King of Yuzhang? Why did you invite me?"
"You have met the young master who asked you the question that day. At that time, everyone just thought your name was familiar. Later, they remembered the two poems that caused a sensation in the capital recently. The author has the same name as you. I was sent to ask. I didn't expect it to be you. "
"Who were invited to the poetry meeting?"
"In addition to the students of Guozixue, there are also Fang Junxue, the most talented person in the capital, Yun He, the successor of the Sword Master, and young masters from various major families. In addition, Wu Guibi, the mother of King Yuzhang, invited the female family members of the capital to enjoy the chrysanthemums in the palace. , maybe he will also participate in the poetry meeting, it’s good that Chen Langjun has an idea.”
"Thank you very much. I wonder why this poetry meeting invites the descendants of the Sword Master? Will there be a martial arts contest?"
"Not only is Yunhe the successor of the Sword Saint, he is also the leader of the four young masters in the capital. He has a prominent family background and has a very good relationship with King Yuzhang. He is a man of the hour in the capital."
"Oh, I wonder what you call me brother?" After talking for a long time, Chen Fan still didn't know the other person's name, so he naturally wanted to ask.
"My name is Sun Mengcheng. I am currently a second-year student in Guozixue. I would like to ask Chen Langjun for more advice in the future."
"I don't dare to take it seriously. I need more advice from Brother Sun."
"Chen Langjun is polite. Can Chen Langjun accept this invitation?"
"Okay, I will keep the appointment then." Chen Fan said after taking the invitation.
After this episode, Chen Fan returned to the inn.
In the two days after the wedding, Chen Fan visited Jiankang City and visited his two uncles. Both uncles were relatively enthusiastic. Although they had not seen each other for many years, the family relationship was still there. There was an introduction from Zhang Ke, and an introduction from his mother. Through letters from home, we got to know each other better.
The two uncles were full of praise for Chen Fan's knowledge. The name of this poem had already spread in Jiankang. Others didn't care about it, but the two uncles still cared about it.
Chen Fan also took the opportunity to inquire about the Prince's Poetry Club in Yuzhang, and got a rough understanding of the unfamiliar Jiankang. In fact, there were not many people who went to the Poetry Club. Only forty or fifty people were invited to the Prince's Poetry Club at one time. Since there is a chrysanthemum viewing party this time, the number of people is expected to be slightly larger. From the two uncle's families, the eldest uncle's family has three sons and two daughters, and the second uncle's family has two sons and three daughters. Only the eldest uncle's second son was invited because he was studying in Guozi, and the others did not receive the invitation.
Those invited must either have prominent family backgrounds or have real talents. This era had not yet seen the rise of imperial examinations. How to prove one's talents was to write poems, talk, and play chess.
The current emperor, Emperor Wu of Liang, is a master of poetry and chess. The criteria for selecting and employing people are based on these two preferences. Those who are good at the top must be good at the bottom. Therefore, the most popular activities in the capital now are poetry gatherings and chess competitions. .
The most authoritative poetry fairs and chess fairs are not sponsored by Guozixue. As a place of teaching, Guozixue is usually a gathering attended by students. Occasionally, poetry meets and chess competitions are held for external parties. However, too many dignitaries in the capital Duo, the dean of Guozixue, is currently held by the second-rank Zong Zheng. Although the official is prominent, it is far from the level of a single call and a hundred promises. More importantly, he does not have the prestige of a literary master or a first-rank chess master. Although he is still one of those It is a gathering that students flock to, but it is not a top-notch gathering.
As for the prince, his status is naturally prominent, but in the assessment of the level of the contestants, as a prince, his talent and knowledge are not weighted enough, and the assessed results cannot be unanimously recognized, unless there are one and two and a half participants, then The level of the party will rise to the top.
This one naturally refers to His Majesty the current Emperor. As the founding emperor of the Liang Dynasty, Emperor Wu of Liang was praised not only for his literary and martial arts, but also for his chess and poetry. In the capital, only Liu Hui, who is of the first rank, can compete with his chess skills. This may be a bit exaggerated, but his poems are talked about by people, such as "Qixi", "Cai Ling Qu", " "Song of the Four Seasons" and more than 80 other poems are widely circulated and are known as the saints of poetry. Naturally no one doubts his assessment of poetry and chess.
The other two and a half refer to literary great Fan Zheng and chess master Liu Hui. No one has any doubts about their evaluation of poetry and chess.
Fan Zheng, a representative figure of Confucianism in the capital, a holy teacher of Confucianism and Taoism, once served as a tutor in the previous dynasty, and is now the master of Emperor Liang Wu. He is highly virtuous and respected. Although he has resigned and no longer interferes with the affairs of the court, he occasionally He organizes or participates in poetry gatherings, and the poet who writes poems that are praised by him will become famous and attract much attention. Fan Zheng also has another characteristic, that is, he will attend the prince's poetry gatherings, he will also attend the poetry gatherings of King Yuzhang, and he will go to other princes' poetry gatherings when invited, but he only expresses his opinions on poems and never expresses his opinions on poetry. Evaluate a person's character.
As for the sage Liu Hui, he is also the organizer of the national chess tournament and a first-level national master. Apart from the banquets and chess tournaments held by His Majesty, he never accepts any other banquets. He has never attended the banquets of the Prince's Palace and various princes' palaces. Currently, Huweiying, who is in charge of the capital, is a first-class general and has won the trust of His Majesty.
Two days passed quickly. On this day, the Yuzhang Palace was heavily guarded. Since the Chrysanthemum Appreciation and Poetry Festival were held at the same time, Yuzhang King Xiao Tong also specially borrowed a battalion of soldiers from His Majesty the Emperor to consolidate the defense, sealing the entire palace. No one will be allowed in without an invitation. Of course, this is for people like Chen Fan who have no background. If they are royal relatives and dignitaries, it is still okay to bring one or two followers in.
In the east garden of Prince Yuzhang's Mansion, there is a large pavilion in the middle, surrounded by corridors. There are scattered seats in the corridors and gardens. People sit in groups and chat together. Chen Fan is one of these people. One of them had his uncle's second son Shen Chong and Sun Mengcheng beside him. One of them was entrusted by Chen Fan's uncle Shen Wen, and the other was entrusted by Xiao Tong. They took care of him during the poetry meeting.
"It's about to begin." Sun Mengcheng suddenly pointed at the pavilion and said.
Chen Fan followed Sun Mengcheng's fingertips and saw an old man walking in surrounded by a group of people. The old man sat in the middle of the pavilion, with Xiao Tong accompanying him. Three other old people sat on the left side, three middle-aged people. Sit on the right side.
"It's Master Fan and the three elders of Meishan. I didn't expect them to be here!" Sun Mengcheng said excitedly.
"The ones on the left are the three elders of Meishan, and the ones on the right are the three deans of Guozixue Jing, Li and Dharma." Shen Chong added from the side.
How come there are so many great Confucians and celebrities in this poem today? Unlike the excited Sun Mengcheng, Chen Fan suddenly smelled an unusual smell. Shen Chong next to him also frowned, not knowing what he was thinking.
"Who are these three elders of Meishan?" Chen Fan was curious and asked in a low voice.
"The three elders of Meishan are gentlemen among people, with noble character and good at divination. It is said that it is difficult to hide anything from them in the world. However, in recent years, they live on Meihua Mountain in Dongqiu. They rarely go down the mountain and do not know. Why did you appear at the poetry meeting?" Shen Chong replied.
Chen Fan was also curious. He didn't know that so many important figures came to a small poetry gathering. The three of them looked at the pavilion quietly.
Xiao Tong stood up and said, "Everyone, today my king has the honor to invite Master Fan, the three elders of Meishan and the three deans of Guozixue to attend the poetry meeting to evaluate the world's talents. We are all gathered here today. First, Dean Chen from the Department of Economics proposed a topic on behalf of Guozixue. The title is "Autumn Cold", and everyone composes a poem, with the time limit of one stick of incense." After speaking, Xiao Tong sat back.
Servants had already placed the Four Treasures of the Study on the desks nearby, and people came to pick up their pens one after another to write. Most of the people who came to the banquet were talented and learned, especially the students from the Academy of Economics. As soon as the Qiuhan question came up, some people rushed to write it. No matter what the poem was, they wanted to gain a reputation for quick thinking.
"Look, everyone, someone has already submitted his paper. He is indeed the most talented person in the capital."
Chen Fan looked towards the pavilion and saw a man dressed in white and walking gracefully. Unfortunately, his back was facing the direction of Chen Fan, so he couldn't see his face. However, he had a strong poetic temperament all over his body, which made people feel good about him at a glance. .
"I've thought about it, let's write it first." At this time, Shen Chong got inspiration and stood up and said.
"I'll go too." Sun Mengcheng also stood up.
Chen Fan thought for a while and felt that the first poem was more satisfactory. He also stood up and wrote a poem about the coldness of autumn. He handed it to the servant next to him and handed it over.
Not long after, the incense burned out, the first competition ended, and the atmosphere outside suddenly became lively.
"The dean's title "Autumn Cold" should refer to the troubled autumn and the warmth and coldness of human relationships. I took this title as the title and wrote a poem lamenting the coldness of the world, hoping it would be appreciated by the masters." Sun Mengcheng said from the side.
"Me too, feeling the desolation of the world, lamenting the troubled autumn, when my generation is working hard, I wrote an aspirational poem to express my feelings." Shen Chong said.
Autumn cold is just autumn cold, does it still have so many meanings? Chen Fan felt that ten thousand horses were running through his heart. Although he didn't want to be famous at the poetry festival, it would be too embarrassing if he went off topic. Just when he was about to say nothing about what he had written, the shameless person asked : "Fa Sheng, what did you write?"
Chen Fan looked at Sun Mengcheng who was speaking. Although he didn't want to mention it, he still said bluntly: "I wrote a poem about the cold autumn."
"Ah, you are not superficial, you are straightforward. It doesn't matter. There are so many experts here today, and there will be questions later. There are plenty of opportunities for performance. Don't be discouraged."
What is superficiality? What is straightforwardness? Why am I discouraged? I just didn’t think too much of it! Chen Fan rolled his eyes inwardly, pretending to be ignorant and said: "I wonder who Brother Sun thinks will win the championship?" Let you talk nonsense, let you talk nonsense, I will dig a big hole for you to jump into.
"Needless to say, of course it's Fang Junxue. I admire his talent."
"Isn't he King Yuzhang? As a prince and the organizer of the poetry meeting, if he writes poetry, he will definitely not lose to Fang Junxue." Chen Fan looked at Sun Mengcheng and asked.
Now it was Sun Mengcheng's heart that ten thousand horses ran by. He looked around nervously. Fortunately, there was no one else except Shen Chong. He immediately explained in a low voice: "This is not comparable. King Yuzhang is in my heart." He is extremely talented, but as the owner of this place, he may not necessarily know how to write poetry, so he is excluded."
"Oh, if you do it, will you be better than Fang Junxue?"
"They each have their own merits, both are very strong."
"Well, it turns out that in Brother Sun's mind, he is tied for first place."
Sun Mengguo decisively decided not to speak. There was no way to talk that day. Fortunately, a servant came next to him and said to Chen Fan, "Your Excellency, are you Chen Fasheng?"
"Yes, I don't know what's the matter?"
"My master invites you to come to the pavilion for a gathering."
Everyone looked towards the pavilion and saw Xiao Tong looking this way and nodded towards them. Chen Fan immediately stood up and followed the servant towards the pavilion. The two people around him also followed Chen Fan, but they just stayed outside the pavilion and did not go in. The people nearby guessed that the evaluation of the poems was about to be announced, and they also gathered around the pavilion.
"Fang Junxue and Chen Fasheng, I invite you to the pavilion this time because in this piece of "Autumn Cold", one of you wrote about the feelings and the other about the scenery, which made us feel that we were indistinguishable for a while, so I would like to ask you to explain your mood when you wrote it. " said a dean of Guozixue.
"How did you feel at that time? I just wrote it. I just wanted to get to the point and didn't think much about it." Chen Fan thought to himself. Unexpectedly, Fang Junxue next to him was the first to give an amazing answer.
