The same moment, in the back courtyard of the Pan residence, the women participating in the performance were putting on makeup or resting in their respective rooms. The garden of the Still Water Poetry Gathering was only a wall away. If they left the corridor, they could watch the proceedings of the gathering from behind the gauze curtains at the entrance. Search: \(?Complete?Book?God?Station) to read excellent literature for free.

Most of the women who came to participate in the performance tonight already had some reputation along the Qinhuai River, each possessing their own unique charm. At ordinary poetry gatherings, any one of them could take center stage, but that was not the case today. Not all those who came to the Still Water Poetry Gathering were men. Many were accompanied by their wives, such as Qin Lao, who brought his concubine, Yun Niang, who understood poetry and literature. Others brought their wives or daughters of noble families. In such a setting, they absolutely could not become the protagonists, and even attracting attention beyond their performances was out of the question.

However, even if they were only performing songs and dances, as long as they had outstanding talent, it would be enough to leave a deep impression. For women like them, if they were surrounded only by men, they would maintain a high and reserved posture. But in an environment like this, they would quietly play the role of supporting players, subtly making themselves remembered. Pride and reserve were just means; reputation was the most important thing.

The two most famous women present tonight were probably Yuan Jin'er of the Golden Wind Pavilion and Lu Cai'cai of the 引春阁 (Yin Chun Ge - Spring 引ing Pavilion). At this moment, in her room, Yuan Jin'er was holding her cheeks, looking left and right at her made-up face in the bronze mirror. Her maid, Kou'er, was also watching beside her, chatting and giggling with her mistress: "Miss, when you went out to perform just now, that Young Master Cao kept looking at you. He didn't even blink."

Yuan Jin'er glanced at her with a smile: "Of course they'd look at me when I'm performing. What's so strange about that? You're the one who only saw Young Master Cao. That's what's strange."

"Miss, it's true," Kou'er protested, her little red face scrunched up. "He didn't take his eyes off you!"

"If you weren't watching him without blinking, how would you know he was watching me without blinking?" Yuan Jin'er continued to tease her. The little maid pouted, deciding to ignore her, but after a moment, she leaned closer again: "Miss, who do you think will win the poetry competition tonight?"

Yuan Jin'er tilted her head, tucking a small flower into her temple: "Literature is limitless, and there's no real standard for poetry competitions. How can there be a true champion? You always ask these questions. But it's possible to see which poems will be recited for the longest time." She picked up several pieces of stationery from the table. "Young Master Wang's, Young Master Xi's, and your favorite, Young Master Cao's, '碧天如水，湛银潢清浅' (Bi Tian Ru Shui, Zhan Yin Huang Qing Qian - The blue sky is like water, the Milky Way is clear and shallow). Heh, this one is probably the best. You're happy now, aren't you? And Young Master Li from Lichuan, Young Master Tang..."

The little maid pouted: "Who likes Young Master Cao?"

"Uh, you hate him?" Yuan Jin'er looked at her playfully.

"It's not that, but Kou'er is thinking of you, Miss. Young Master Cao likes you, and you came with him today. If Young Master Cao can help you, you'll probably be named the Qinhuai Flower Queen next year. And if Young Master Cao passes the imperial examinations next spring..."

The little maid chattered on, and Yuan Jin'er laughed, hooking her nose: "I know." Then, she picked up the poem written by Cao Guan. Among her and Lu Cai'cai, Lu Cai'cai excelled at the pipa, while she excelled at the guzheng. Her singing was better. She would sing this poem later. As she looked at it, she hummed it softly in her heart, smiling gently as if she were experiencing the happiness of being courted by a great talent.

In fact, most of the courtesans on the Qinhuai River who were even slightly dedicated claimed to have a troubled past. Most of it was fake, fabricated. But that was only the fabrication of details. They all generally had the concept of a troubled past. For famous courtesans like Yuan Jin'er and Lu Cai'cai, having learned poetry and literature, it was only natural that they would admire all kinds of talented scholars. However, although there were occasional stories of famous courtesans simply admiring a scholar's talent and marrying a poor scholar, those were truly the exceptions. She had accepted the Pan residence's invitation today and came by carriage with Cao Guan, which seemed very intimate. She admired Cao Guan's talent, but whether she truly liked him, liked him to the extent that Kou'er said, was something even she didn't know. For them, despite seeming to be the center of attention, they actually had very few real opportunities to choose.

However, if she could put those thoughts aside for a moment, she would indeed have gained a lot from tonight's poetry gathering.

She repeatedly sang the lyrics and melody. After a while, Kou'er came over from the door: "Miss, Miss, it seems like there's another good poem! Let's go see."

"Oh?" She put down the stationery with a smile and went out with Kou'er towards the gauze curtains at the end of the long corridor. Several women had already gathered there. Lu Cai'cai had also come over. She said softly: "Sisters, what's wrong?" Then she also joined them, watching from the edge of the gauze curtains. She heard the voice of "把酒问青天 (Ba Jiu Wen Qing Tian - Raising my cup to ask the blue sky)" coming from the other side. Pan Guangyan had already read it once. This was the second recitation by one of the scholars.

The atmosphere of the poetry gathering was actually a little strange at this point. It was a little quieter. During the earlier lively moments, everyone was enthusiastically composing and reciting poems, laughing and talking. Now, it was as if they were suppressed by some kind of aura. Everyone was still savoring the poem. Then, the women also got a piece of paper that had a copy of the poem and looked at the whole thing together, then looked at it again. Yuan Jin'er looked up and met Lu Cai'cai's eyes.

"The Puyuan Poetry Gathering..."

"How is that possible..."

"苏府, 宁毅, 宁立恒 (Su Fu, Ning Yi, Ning Liheng - The Su Residence, Ning Yi, Ning Liheng), who is this?"

"Never heard of him..."

Compared to the scholars outside who were first immersed in the poetry, the women here, after realizing the significance of the poem, were primarily concerned with who wrote it. Several of them looked at the inscription over and over, asking each other, but they had never heard of the name. At this time, someone outside also asked: "What does everyone think of this poem?"

"人有悲欢离合，月有阴晴圆缺，此事古难全 (Ren You Bei Huan Li He, Yue You Yin Qing Yuan Que, Ci Shi Gu Nan Quan - People have sorrow, joy, parting and meeting, the moon has its waxing, waning and fullness; nothing is perfect since ancient times)..."

"This poem..."

"Who wrote this poem?"

For a moment, no one offered an evaluation. Someone was muttering "marvelous" while nodding, and then the person who had been reciting the poem picked it up again and read the inscription: "苏府、宁毅、宁立恒 (Su Fu, Ning Yi, Ning Liheng - The Su Residence, Ning Yi, Ning Liheng), does anyone know who this person is?"

There was a moment of silence.

"But, since the surname is Ning, why is it inscribed as Su Fu?"

"Which Su Residence?"

"The Puyuan Poetry Gathering, I'm afraid it's the Su family's cloth business."

"Could this person be a manager or advisor of the Su Residence?"

"I haven't heard of this person before..."

For a moment, everyone looked at each other, discussing the matter, but they were all in the dark about the name. No one had heard of it. Pan Guangyan then had to call the person who had gone outside to get the poems. This person was not a servant, but a half-disciple of his, who also had some talent. Hearing his teacher ask, he smiled and said what he knew.

"Oh, I heard that this person is a live-in son-in-law of the Su Residence, who only married into the Su family a few months ago, as the husband of the Su family's second daughter, Su Tan'er. Interestingly, I also heard that this Ning Liheng caught a cold today and did not attend the Puyuan Poetry Gathering. He said this poem to a little maid while resting at home tonight, originally for his own amusement. Who knew that someone at the poetry gathering said he had no poetic talent, and this little maid, unable to bear it, took out this poem... Hehe, that's what they said over there, but I don't know if it's true or false."

"The Su Residence... a live-in son-in-law?"

As soon as these words came out, not only the people present, but also the women behind the gauze curtains looked at each other, and then the sound of conversation also rose.

"Did not attend?"

"This is too bizarre..."

"I have never heard of a live-in son-in-law having such talent..."

"宁毅宁立恒 (Ning Yi, Ning Liheng), I have never heard of him..."

On the gauze curtain side, the little maid Kou'er said suspiciously: "This isn't something the Puyuan Poetry Gathering bought to make a name for themselves, is it?"

Every year at poetry gatherings, it wasn't uncommon to buy poems to gain fame. Everyone knew the inside story. But even if they bought it, they probably couldn't buy a poem of this quality. After knowing the person's identity, everyone had such suspicions in their hearts. If he truly had such talent, how could he have run off to be a live-in son-in-law? At this time, someone also voiced their doubts.

"This is probably hard to believe..."

"Could it be that the Su Residence wanted to gain fame and bought the poem?"

The voice was not loud, and the person speaking was only using a tentative tone, but everyone could hear it. After a moment of silence, someone clearly wanted to express agreement: "This kind of thing..."

Initially, everyone was infected by this poem and didn't think too much about it. But then the information of "live-in son-in-law" and "unknown person" came up, and after contrasting it with the poem, it created a huge contrast. Some doubts almost uncontrollably arose. After all, there were some calm people who hadn't spoken, but tonight's poetry gathering still had a lot of competitive spirit. Some people subconsciously spoke out. At this moment, a stern voice suddenly came from the stage: "Zixing! Shut up!"

The person who spoke was named Yu Zixing. He was startled by the voice. He looked up and saw Kang Lao holding a writing brush, looking at him with a serious expression, awe-inspiring without anger, suppressing all the discussions. For a moment, the scene became silent.

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