Chapter 354: All Thanks to the Contrast

Gu Fei picked up a brush and wrote on the paper: "Ode to the White Begonia."

A pale spring beauty reflected on the grand gate,

Clustered stems like a basin overflowing with snow.

Like the bathing beauty, a shadow cast in ice,

Like the pained maiden, a soul carved from jade.

’In the book, this poem was written by Bao Yu,’ she thought. ’I only changed the character for "autumn" to "spring." There’s a second half to the poem, but it didn’t fit the current scene, so I couldn’t be bothered to write it. Half a poem by Mr. Cao is more than enough to save me from embarrassment.’

After she finished writing the poem and signed her name, a servant girl came over and collected it.

In a short while, the servant girl had collected a stack of poetry sheets. The Guardian Lady smiled and said, "Take them over there and ask the tutors from the academy to judge them."

The servant girl then took the stack of poetry sheets over.

Gu Fei considered her task complete and prepared to leave. ’I’ve written the poem, after all,’ she thought. ’Surely they won’t keep pestering me now.’

She stood up, and just as she was about to walk away, a servant girl approached. "Miss, do you wish to freshen up? I can escort you."

Gu Fei glanced at the servant girl. "No need. My legs just went numb from sitting. I’m just stretching them."

The servant girl curtsied and stood by her side, not leaving.

After standing for a moment, Gu Fei helplessly sat back down.

’It seems Shen Qingluan won’t be satisfied until she sees me make a fool of myself.’

To the left, the tutors from Qinglian Academy were examining the poetry sheets that had been brought over.

Su Chen strolled over and sifted through the pile of poetry sheets, quickly finding the one Gu Fei had written.

He read it over carefully. Even at the academy, few students could produce work of this caliber. It was truly stunning. He had to admit that his own poetry was only about on par with this.

The phrase "a soul carved from jade," in particular, was refreshingly unique and skillfully used.

However, the poem felt incomplete, as if it was missing a second half.

Su Chen was overjoyed. ’I knew I wasn’t wrong about her,’ he thought. ’Little Fei is a true scholar, beautiful both inside and out.’

He passed the sheet to a tutor. The tutor read it, stroking his beard. "Not bad, not bad at all. This is a superior piece of work. It’s just that the poem feels somewhat unfinished."

The tutors finished reading all the collected poetry sheets, conferred with each other in whispers for a moment, and selected two. They handed them to a servant, saying, "Go inform the Guardian Lady that these two are practically equal. Either one could be chosen as today’s winner."

The servant brought the poetry sheets over, presenting them first to the Princess Consort, as was proper.

After the Princess Consort finished reading, she passed them to the Guardian Lady, unable to contain her surprise. ’One of these poems is signed by Qin Ying,’ she thought. ’I know her. She’s the granddaughter of Qinglian Academy’s Mountain Master and has long been known for her literary talent.’

’But the other one is signed by... Gu Fei!’

’Isn’t that the girl who runs an inn? How can she write poetry?’

’And it’s actually quite good, too.’

By now, the Guardian Lady had finished reading as well. She smiled and asked, "Your Highness, which one do you think is more fitting for the top prize?"

The Princess Consort glanced at Gu Fei. "Well, it’s hard for me to say... but I prefer this one." She pointed at Gu Fei’s poetry sheet with a broad smile.

The Guardian Lady looked at the signature, not recognizing the name Gu Fei or which family she belonged to. However, since the Princess Consort had spoken, she certainly wouldn’t object. She announced, "Then this poem shall be the winner of today’s ladies’ poetry competition."

"And who might Miss Gu Fei be?"

Hearing the Guardian Lady’s words, Gu Fei felt little joy.

’I tried my best to keep a low profile,’ she thought. ’I deliberately avoided using the other, more famous ’Ode to the White Begonia’ from that book—the one that’s far superior to this. I can’t believe I still ended up winning, even with this one.’

’It seems the literary talents of these young ladies are rather limited. I guess I have my competition to thank for this win.’

Gu Fei stood up and curtsied. "I am Gu Fei."