Meng Hai Zhou and the others took the opportunity that followed Li You Ranās challenge, and started to jeer at Jun Mo Xie. They never realized that Li You Ran had put forth his challenge with the utmost sincerity.
āYoung Master You Ran is indeed very funny,ā Kong Ling Yang didnāt seem very pleased. āPerhaps the Young Master Junā¦ is an expert in some other aspects of lifeā¦ However, his knowledge on literature isnāt very eminently knownā¦ā
Some people couldnāt help but laugh up their sleeves. Master Kongās tone had been very obscure. However, everyone had reached the conclusion that the Young Master Junās areas of āexpertiseā were brothels, dog and cock fighting, and other contemptible activities. What would this youngster know about the more important aspects of life? Everyone had started to think very high of the old Masters of the Institute; [These old Masters are amazing. They can manage to insult people in such a refined manner!]
āMaster Kong shouldnāt have anything to worry about. He heā¦ why donāt we have one of your disciples contest against Jun Mo Xie. Then, weāll know if heās any match for Young Master Liā¦ he heā¦ā Meng Hai Zhou smiled and replied. His remark was aimed to incite Master Kong for a war.
Kong Ling Yang was annoyed at this. He thought, [Iāve nurtured these disciples with such meticulous care. I might as well tie a rope to the ceiling and commit suicide if my disciples are unable to beat this debauchee.] He didnāt say anything in response. He merely waved his hand and appointed one of his disciples to take-up the challenge.
āDisciple Han Zhi Dong requests Young Master Jun for some advice,ā A young man stood up with a smile. He then cupped his hands in greeting and looked up. A trace of disdain flashed in his eyes; seemingly for his opponent.
āEnā¦ I donāt give advice but I do have the time to teach you a trick or two. Youāll be able to move about the Spirit Fog Lake unbridled after Iām done with you. What could be better than a demonstration of the profound mysteries of that universe? Iāll take the lead if you donāt mind.ā
Jun Mo Xie had seen the expression in that youngsterās eyes. So, he was aware of the contempt that youngster held for Jun Mo Xie. Therefore, the Young Master Jun had winked as he stood-up, and laughed along with the crowd as he voluntarily put on his āhat of shameā.
āThis young disciple had shunned evil influences in his life. This young disciple shall never go near the Spirit Fog Lakeās territory.ā Han Zhi Dongās voice was somewhat cold. He disdainfully thought, [heās the biggest degenerate. Iāve asked him for scholarly advice, and he starts by mentioning a brothel! Are you aware that this is public event? This is very humiliating!]
āYouāve never been to the Spirit Fog Lake? Then where do you go?ā Jun Mo Xieās heart was brimming with disdain; [Iām not done with you yet.] He then crossed his legs, and continued in a leisurely tone, āAh, thatās right. This Young Master had neglected that Scholar Han isnāt very wealthy and may not have been able to afford the prices of the services rendered in that area. It seems that he holds his pike in his own hands inside his tent as he imagines the battle formations. He must require to struggle up and down the battlefield. He must manage to relinquish millions of soldiers until heās too exhausted to continueā¦ā
[What the hell is this!] Han Zhi Dongās fair facial color turned as red as a dead chickenās blood. In fact, his neck turned red as well.
Jun Mo Xieās choice of words had been very elegant, yet very energetic. Suddenly, everyone present in the hall seemed to be a bit distracted. They carefully pondered on his words in the hope to interpret their true meaning. However, most people spat-out the food they were chewing and burst into laughter once they understood the meaning of his wordsā¦ [This kidā¦ is too much!]
Every man present in the main hall had understood Jun Mo Xieās remark in a matter of a few moments. However, the indecency of their laughter couldnāt be conveyed in wordsā¦
Princess Ling Meng, Dugu Xiao Yi, Han Yan Meng and the other ladies of note looked-on with an amazed expression in their eyes. They couldnāt understand the crowdās reaction. They could distinctly sense that this matter wasnāt good. However, they couldnāt figure what was wrong with it. [Jun Mo Xieās words seemed to have described a majestic generalā¦ but why does it feel weird?]
Several old men were making gestures at each other with their eyes. However, there were only a few men who were able to laugh-out unrestrained without bothering about the consequences. Some even patted their hand on the table, while some others patted their thighs in applause as their eyes closed-shut from the intensity of their laughter. Dugu Zong Hengās body trembled with laughter as he slapped Tang Wan Li on his shoulders. He then whispered, āOld Tang, I just remembered the time when the two of us had just joined the army. We were sent-off to the battle at the Heavenly Wolf Mountainsā¦ Old Jun was a young captain back thenā¦ We had caught sight of you when you had left the camp to fight your glorious battles at dawnā¦ā
Tang Wan Li suddenly turned red with rage. He forgot about Dugu Zong Hengās fearsome reputation as he extended and grabbed his sturdy neck. He then roared in a whisper, āYou old bastard! Go on, I dare you to say another wordā¦ā
Dugu Zong Heng started to cough. He seemed to be laughing as he begged for forgiveness. A few other Family-heads raised their thumbs in quick succession as they gestured to Tang Wan Li. It seemed as if many people had heard that remarkā¦
Old Man Tangās face flushed red with rage. He stood-up panting and tried to exit the hall. However, several other old men got up from their seats in unison, and persuaded him to calm down.
Dugu Xiao Yi saw that her seven brothers were laughing with their lips sealed. Their overjoyed faces revealed the merry of their hearts as their shoulders trembled with laughter. She figured that it mustāve been something awfully funny. So, she couldnāt help but ask, āWhat did that mean? Is it that funny?ā
[Uhā¦] The seven brothers looked at each other in dismay. They realized the awkwardness of the situation and quickly readjusted themselves. They shook their heads in unison as they replied, āItās not funny; howās it funny? Itās not funny!ā
Dugu Xiao Yi groaned. She turned her head away in anger. She suddenly felt annoyed at the sight of her brothers and Jun Mo Xie since they hadnāt answered any of her questions today.
She secretly recalled Jun Mo Xieās words, and repeated them again to memorize them by heart. [You think I wonāt find out if you donāt tell meā¦? Iāll ask mother once I get homeā¦ I donāt think sheāll deny meā¦]
Han Zhi Dong took a deep breath. He was aware that this debauchee had gained the upper-hand as he said, āThis Golden Scholarly Talent Feast is being conducted by His Majestyās grace. However, this young disciple is ashamed to be in company of his opponent. To pair this young disciple with Young Master Jun for a scholarly advice is the same as the accidental pair of Golden chrysanthemums and orange osmanthus!ā
He didnāt wait for Jun Mo Xieās reaction, and continued, āChrysanthemumsā fragrance, Orchidās fragrance, osmanthusā fragrance from the Imperial gardensā¦ the fragrance of these fragrant flowers float in the Tian Xiangā¦ Their heavenly fragrance floats for a thousand milesā¦ and a thousand miles their heavenly fragrance floatsā¦ ā[1]
This poetic verse caught everyoneās attention.
This poetry had sounded simple, but it wasnāt. Especially that last part. He had repeatedly used the words āHeavenly Fragranceā as a metaphor to bless āTian Xiangā. Everyone started to rack their brains in search of a comeback in order to display their talent in front of His Majesty.
Everyone had nearly forgotten of Jun Mo Xieās involvement. [How could he possibly make a joke out of such a poetic verse? He wouldnāt be able to conjure a come-back even if he was given two lives to tryā¦]
āYoung Master Jun, this young discipleās talent is humble, and knowledge is shallow. This young disciple can only come up with such shallow words. This shouldnāt be much of a problem in your eyes?ā Han Zhi Dong chuckled. He then humbly looked at Jun Mo Xie with a sincere expression on his face, āI hope that Young Master Jun will still teach me a thing or two!ā
Everyone would have waited for Jun Mo Xie to come-up with an answer in case this last sentence hadnāt been spoken. They wouldāve looked down on him but wouldnāt have blamed him for falling short since this poetry was indeed excellent and difficult to counter. After all, no one had considered him to be any match to this young scholar. Moreover, the young scholar wouldāve left a special effect in the hearts of everyone present since his talent was original as well as amazing. However, this last sentence had left everyone sighing.
His unreasonable last line had exposed the savagery of his nature, and had lowered his prestige. [Youāve been studying at the Wenxing Heavenly Literature Institute for many years. So whatās there to be so proud of about being able to speak a few lines of poetry?]
[This so-called young scholarās future achievements are bound to fall short.]
The big shots may allow scholars to climb-up the ranks of their families. However, they would never promote such a person to the top. [Whatās the guarantee that he wonāt get rid of us once he gains enough power in the family?] Han Zhi Dong was unaware that he had declared the doom of his future political-career with that last line he had spoken. Therefore, he stood there with a sense of complacence in his heart.
Jun Mo Xie puckered his brows. Any verses heād come up with in reply would merely be plagiarized. However, even plagiarizing poetry of such level was beyond his ability. [Ahā¦ should I come up with nonsense poetry from my previous life? Noā¦ that wonāt do! This motherfuc*er!]
Master Kong Ling Yang narrowed his eyes. He seemed pleased with himself, āIt is okay if Young Master Jun canāt come up with a poetic verse to match thisā¦ the Young Master Jun wouldnāt lose face because of this matterā¦ā
Everyone chuckled. [This old man doesnāt forgive easily. Heās just using his usual methodā¦ he abuses a person without using abusive wordsā¦]
A burst of vigor rushed inside Jun Mo Xieās heart. He shouted in a harsh and loud voice, āWhatās so difficult about this? Wasnāt that a shi*ty poem? I will better him and walk all-over this Wenxing Heavenly Literature Instituteās chump!ā
Several people issued sounds of displeasure. [This kid dares too much when he speaks. Heās challenged to come up with a rival verseā¦ heās lost his mind. He should think before he talks. Looks like heās going to get a tough lesson from that young discipleā¦]
However, Li You Ran and Jun Zhan Tianās expressions were very different from the rest of the crowd. Li You Ran was convinced he had the talent to come-up with a worthy reply. However, he himself had tried, but hadnāt been able to so far. However, Jun Mo Xie had declared that he would reply with a fitting verseā¦ [Is he better than me?]
Grandpa Jun was somewhat anxious. [Didnāt we agree that he wouldnāt make a complete fool of himself? Howās he going to beat that?]
Kong Ling Yang sneered and he spoke, āYoung Master Jun seems very confident of himself. I propose an arrangement. The institute shall concede defeat if the Young Master Jun is able to come-up with a reply before the incense stick burns out. However, if he shall loseā¦ Young Master Tang will have to act in order to mediate his losses. Thereafter, he would willingly return my poor disciple backā¦?ā
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He was obviously referring to the disciple Tang Yuan would bully into cleaning womenās underwear ā Scholar Zhao Cheng Song. However, Fatty Tang was worried about leaving such a presence un-monitored in his house. Therefore, Tang Yuan had bludgeoned him to death after he was expelled from his household. So where would he return that scholar from? His stinking bones probably wouldnāt accept his soul even if it was somehow recovered from the depths of hell.
āThatās done!ā Jun Mo Xie stretched his neck. [I donāt have any problems in agreeing to that. Weāll return his skeleton if I lose. You never said whether you want him back dead or aliveā¦? So why should I even botherā¦]
āHowever, you will submit to my superiority if I win. Your Institute will never mention the words āpoetryā is front of me after that. Agreed?ā Jun Mo Xie smiled.
Notes:
Native word play. Tian means heavenly. Xiang means fragrance. Tian Xiang means heavenly fragrance. He repeatedly uses the word āXiangā in the poetic passage.