Confucianism under Heaven

Chapter 27: The Alliance is Absolute, the Literary Star Shines 2 Times!

Chapter Twenty-Seven: Ten Absolute Couplets, Two Illuminations of the Literary Star!

Everyone looked at Ye Ru with admiration, their hearts unwittingly stirred with a storm of emotions.

This last couplet is a ten-character couplet. If Ye Ru can get all ten couplets right, then his literary reputation will be even stronger than that of an ordinary student.

Because getting all ten correct will trigger the blessing of the God of Literature once again.

Everyone held their breath, forgetting Ye Ru's identity. They all wanted to see if Ye Ru truly possessed the talent to answer all ten questions correctly!

Wang Bieqiu's face flushed red. Looking at Ye Ru, he picked up his pen and wrote:

"Remain unmoved by favor or disgrace, and calmly watch the flowers bloom and fade."

As soon as the first line of the couplet was presented, countless eyes turned to Ye Ru. Although they did not think highly of Ye Ru, they still hoped that he could succeed, because when Ye Ru's literary fame spread far and wide, they would also benefit from it.

"This is the last one."

Zhao Cheng breathed a sigh of relief, but his expression remained solemn.

"My talent is almost exhausted. If there are eleven more chapters, I won't be able to write them."

Registrar Wen smiled wryly.

"Who is the great scholar behind Ye Ru? In just a few days, he has transformed from an unknown poor student into a renowned scholar with outstanding talent."

County Magistrate Song looked at Ye Ru with some envy and said in a deep voice.

Under everyone's gaze, Ye Ru glanced at the couplet, pondered for a moment, then raised his head, and his clear voice resounded throughout the world.

"I have no intention of staying or leaving; I let the clouds drift and gather as they may!"

Wow!

The entire audience erupted in uproar!

call out!

Just then, the registrar finished writing the ten couplets. Suddenly, the table was cracked by the pressure of the Xuan paper, and with a loud bang, the table shattered!

All ten combinations are out, all ten combinations are absolutely perfect!

Everyone's face was filled with horror, followed by a series of gasps of shock.

The sheets of Xuan paper suddenly glowed faintly, and the characters inside seemed to emerge from the paper, eventually swirling around Ye Ru before disappearing into the space between his eyebrows.

At the same time, Ye Ru's calligraphy studio, now containing dozens of couplets, has grown even larger.

"If the historian were here, he would surely record today's literary gathering, so that it would be remembered for all time."

Magistrate Zhang lamented that this was just an ordinary student literary gathering, yet it had unexpectedly attracted the blessing of the God of Literature, something that even a scholar or a graduate could not achieve.

If it were truly recorded in historical books, it would certainly have a place there.

"I answered all ten couplets correctly. Shouldn't you give me that calligraphy copybook by the Sage of Calligraphy, Wang Youjun?"

Ye Ru smiled.

"you!"

Wang Xiaoyang's face was so gloomy it was almost dripping with water, then he took a deep breath:

"It is said that if you get all ten correct, the God of Literature will shine upon you again. But the God of Literature has not yet shone upon you, so your result is not absolute!"

"Yes, the star of literature has not yet shone upon us!"

Upon hearing Liu Zhi's speech, Wang Xiaoyang glanced at him gratefully.

Everyone was furious.

Wang Bieqiu glanced at Liu Zhi, but before his smile could fully appear, a beam of bright silver light suddenly shone down from the sky, freezing his smile completely on his face.

call out!

Suddenly, the Wenquxing star burst forth with a strong light, shining upon Ye Ru and making him appear as if a saint had descended.

An aura of majesty also burst forth from all directions.

"The God of Literature shines upon him? This is the second time the God of Literature has shone upon Ye Ru!"

Magistrate Zhang's eyes widened in shock.

When the Wenqu star shines for the first time, it can enhance one's talent and wit.

The presence of two Wenqu stars can ward off all poisons from insects and herbs.

"Karma has come."

Someone said something that made Liu Zhi and Wang Xiaoyang's faces burn with embarrassment.

"Confucius said: 'A person without integrity cannot stand.' Do you intend to go back on your word?"

After the Wenqu light disappeared, Ye Ru smiled and then said:

"How about this, I'll give you a couplet, and whoever can solve it will receive this letter as a prize, how about that?"

This statement undoubtedly caused an uproar.

"Ye Tongsheng, hurry up and get out."

"I want to see how difficult Yip Tong-sheng's couplets are."

These words gave Wang Xiaoyang and Wang Bieqiu a glimmer of hope.

"Say it quickly!"

"it is good!"

Ye Ru paused for a moment, looked up at the window, and said:

"Be content with what you have, but also be aware of what you lack."

"One minute limit."

The first line of the couplet stumped everyone, and they all frowned and discussed it.

"Loves beauty and lust."

One person spoke up, which caused the others to burst into laughter.

"Brother Geng is truly a man of strong character..."

"Haha."

The man blushed with embarrassment and lowered his head, remaining silent.

Even Magistrate Zhang and others were deep in thought, but they couldn't come up with a solution no matter how hard they tried.

Wang Xiaoyang and Wang Bieqiu also had their brows furrowed.

A minute will pass in the blink of an eye.

"Ye Tongsheng, we can't figure it out either, so why don't you enlighten us?"

Countless people raised their hands and spoke out.

"In that case, I'll gladly accept this calligraphy copybook by Wang Xizhi."

Many people held their breath and looked at Ye Ru.

Ye Ru smiled slightly at everyone, then took out his brush and ink and began to write:

"Be content with what you have and know what you don't have; know what to do and what not to do."

The ten characters were written on two separate sheets of paper, but no poetic light appeared.

"Haha, this pair of calligraphy scrolls is nothing special. It seems you, Ye Tongsheng, are not fortunate enough to get your hands on our Wang family's calligraphy scrolls."

The "poetic light" is used to determine whether the second line is perfect. If no "poetic light" appears now, it means that the second line is not acceptable.

"Shameless!"

"Little man!"

Some students from poor families who had grudges against the Wang family cursed in low voices, while Wang Xiaoyang's eyes flashed with even more murderous intent.

"Ye Ru, now you've lost convincingly—"

Wang Xiaoyang's smile froze on his face halfway through his sentence, as a two-foot-long radiance of talent suddenly burst forth on the Xuan paper.

'It's the Xiude Alliance!'

Many people exclaimed in surprise.

"With his talent and virtue, he is undoubtedly a genius. Who is the teacher behind this child? He has created such a prodigy. We are ashamed of our own inferiority."

Magistrate Zhang took a sip of tea, feeling ashamed.

"Ye Tongsheng, could you tell us about the origin and history of this couplet?"

One person shouted.

"Alright, I'll make a fool of myself with this."

"This first line comes from the Analects of Confucius, which says, 'Only after learning do you realize your shortcomings.' It means to know what you are content with and what you lack."

"The second line comes from the Book of Rites, which says, 'There are things to do and things not to do.'"

Ye Ru pondered for a moment. In his previous life, Ye Ru had visited the former residence of the great writer Bing Xin. Ms. Bing Xin was one of the teachers he respected. He remembered the couplet because it served as a reminder to himself. He never expected to use it here.

"Excellent, excellent, excellent! May I have this couplet as a gift?"

Magistrate Zhang clapped and cheered, speaking first.

“Magistrate Zhang, that’s not fair. I want it too.”

The county magistrate, Song, panicked and quickly stood up, snatching the couplet into his arms.

The expressions on everyone's faces were uncertain; they wanted to laugh but dared not. This couplet had actually attracted two important figures from Qingyun County to fight over it.

With a long sigh, Registrar Wen gave a bitter smile and murmured, but his words carried a hint of envy:

"How can a county magistrate and a county assistant vie for a scholar's couplet? This is utterly disgraceful..."