A poem worth a thousand gold coins!
Upon hearing this, not only did Peng Benzhi look foolish, but Su Yu, the onlookers, and even Liang Zhen raised an eyebrow, gazing at Song Zhengming.
The latter, however, remained unruffled, continuing to speak to Su Yu in a serious tone:
“Miss, this poem was written on the spot, inspired by my emotions. If you think it’s worth a thousand gold coins, then please fulfill Peng Gongzi’s wish.”
“If you think it’s not, then let’s just forget I ever said it.”
“Th-this……”
Su Yu had never encountered such a situation, her mouth agape as she didn’t know how to respond.
After all, poetry wasn’t something you could buy like vegetables, with a fixed price.
Song Zhengming claimed his poem was worth a thousand gold coins, but regardless of its quality, it couldn’t be sold!
She didn’t know how to react, while others were eager to join in, and someone soon exclaimed:
“Song Dajia, why don’t you recite the poem first?”
“Yes! We’d also like to hear it and help Su Yu decide its value!”
“No matter what, having Song Dajia compose a poem for this grand occasion is already a wonderful story!”
“……”
The commotion erupted instantly, and Song Zhengming didn’t hesitate, turning to hand the poem to Peng Benzhi, who still hadn’t regained his composure.
“Peng Gongzi, you can present this poem to Su Yu.”
“Gulp……”
Peng Benzhi’s Adam’s apple bobbed up and down as he trembled, opening the paper to glance at it, his face instantly turning from pale to red, his expression increasingly agitated.
He seemed to have obtained some rare treasure, clutching the paper tightly, reading it repeatedly before finally gazing at Song Zhengming with gratitude.
“Song, Song Dajia……Did you really give me this poem?”
Song Zhengming adjusted his Buddhist robes, sitting down calmly: “A gentleman’s word is as good as gold, and cannot be taken back.”
“Thank you, thank you, Master Song, for the poem!”
Among the countless eager gazes, Peng Benzhi first bowed deeply to Song Zhengming, then straightened up, scanning the room before finally settling his eyes on Su You.
Compared to his previous dispirited state, he was now as excited as if he had downed five cans of Red Bull and a bottle of wind oil.
“Miss Su You, everyone! Please listen to this poem!”
The room fell silent, with only Peng Benzhi’s trembling and high-pitched voice echoing within.
“The last remnants of red fade, and the fragrance begins to emerge.”
“The finest name is called the King of Hundred Flowers.”
“Competing with the heavens, unmatched in beauty.”
“Occupying the top spot in the mortal world… the first fragrance!”
“…”
The poem ended, and the room paused for a brief moment.
“Great poem!”
Someone shouted first, and the chorus of approval quickly spread.
“Indeed it is!”
“Occupying the top spot in the mortal world… Miss Su You might become as famous as Yang Liu’s poem in the capital, just with this one line!”
“This line is truly exquisite!”
“True to Master Song’s reputation……”
“……”
The murmurs of admiration filled the air, but Wei Changtian remained unmoved.
Yang Liu asked with a smile, “Young master, what do you think of this poem?”
“It’s okay, I suppose.”
Wei Changtian nodded noncommittally.
This was indeed his genuine opinion.
The poem might be said to be exquisite enough to be passed down for centuries… but that was far from the truth.
However, one sentence did fit the current atmosphere perfectly.
More importantly, the entire poem used the metaphor of the peony to praise Su You, calling her the “first fragrance in the mortal world”, which elevated her to a very high position, making her extremely attractive to the ladies of the brothel.
From Su You’s current excited state, it seemed that she might indeed change her mind about choosing Peng Benzhi because of this poem.
……
Just as Wei Changtian had expected, Su You was indeed very torn.
She could see that Liang Zhen’s identity was extraordinary, but the allure of this poem was substantial.
A poem was worth a thousand gold coins; even if this story spread, it would become a legendary tale.
Moreover, this poem greatly elevated her own status.
For a high-ranking courtesan like Su You, earning a lot of money was no longer the top priority; what mattered most was to gain a good reputation.
Only if her fame grew would those young masters from prominent families be interested in redeeming her, allowing her to completely escape this brothel and return to a normal life.
Thinking this, Su You finally spoke up:
“Thank you, Master Song, and Mr. Peng, for the poem… I really like it.”
“To be honest, I’ve been thinking about it day and night since I heard that ‘cloud-like clothes and flower-like face’ poem, hoping that one day I could get a timeless masterpiece like this.”
“Who would have thought that today my wish would come true……”
Her words actually carried a hint of mutual flattery.
This “Occupying the top spot in the mortal world” poem was not bad, but everyone knew that it was far inferior to that “cloud-like clothes and flower-like face” poem written about Yang Liu.
It’s completely on a different level.
However, no one would dare to jump out and argue against this atmosphere, and instead, Song Zhengming himself suddenly turned gloomy after hearing these words.
“Hmph! Don’t compare my poetry to that of others!”
“A person who has committed a heinous crime, killing the current prime minister, no matter how well they write poetry, it’s all in vain!”
What the hell, can this even be tolerated?
Wei Changtian was speechless, and Yang Liu’s poetry, which was also mentioned, was secretly laughing on the side, covering her mouth.
“Master, it seems that this Song gentleman is afraid of the Liu family.”
“I’m well aware of it.”
Wei Changtian rolled his eyes, and Su Yu on stage was also slightly embarrassed.
She lowered her head and said, “I’ve misspoken,” then looked at Liang Zhen again.
“Lord Liang, I’m grateful for your appreciation of me…”
It seemed that she had already decided to choose Peng Benzhi and was preparing to apologize to Liang Zhen.
Liang Zhen’s face naturally looked unpleasant, and the fat county magistrate was anxious to the point of being unbearable.
However, neither of them could say anything at this point, after all, it wasn’t good to force a weak woman in front of everyone.
But Wei Changtian was different.
He was already furious, and adding to that, he wanted to do Liang Zhen a favor, so he immediately interrupted, saying:
“Wait a minute! Is this broken poem worth a thousand gold?”
Boom!
It was like igniting a barrel of explosives, and the entire audience in the pavilion erupted into chaos.
One wave had not yet subsided, and another one arose. The people present felt that tonight’s events were more thrilling than watching a play.
From noble mtl dot come
“Isn’t this the same young master who rejected Miss Su Yu earlier?”
“Yes, I remember his surname is Wei, and he should be with Lord Liang.”
“He dares to insult the Song family’s face like this, what kind of background does he have?”
“Hehe, we’re here to watch the drama unfold…”
“…”
In the midst of the noisy chatter, Su Yu didn’t know what to do again.
And Song Zhengming was first stunned, then glared at Wei Changtian with a stern voice, saying:
“This young master, my poetry’s value is for Miss Su Yu to evaluate, and it’s not up to you to point fingers here!”
“Such rude behavior, didn’t your family teach you any manners?”
This remark was quite impolite, and Wei Changtian naturally wouldn’t tolerate it, coldly laughing and directly retorting:
“If I didn’t want to avoid trouble now, just based on your last sentence, you would’ve already lost your head.”
“You!”
Song Zhengming had never seen such a rude person, and his anger made his voice tremble: “You, who exactly are you?”
Song Zhengming was still cursing him, and Wei Changtian sneered, saying:
“You scolded me just now.”
Wei Changtian’s mouth was full of mockery.
“I’m that sinful person who killed the prime minister.”
“I’m from the Wei family in the capital, Wei Changtian.”