Chapter 52: A contest? You're not worthy!

Among the crowd of women, a woman stood surrounded, wearing a moon-white robe and over it a cyan gauze outer shirt; her bearing was dignified and graceful, like a snow lotus on a high mountain, exuding a cold, otherworldly aura—she was Shang Jing's foremost talent, the eldest daughter of the Vice Minister of Rites, Li Songyue.

She glanced lightly at Gu Jiu Ling sitting not far away, her eyes full of contempt.

I never understood how the emperor took a liking to Gu Jiu Ling, yet he arranged this marriage for the Crown Prince; it's only thanks to this woman's self-destructive antics that she ended up in the Prince Rui's residence.

The surrounding chatter was loud; she gave a light smile and said nothing.

Gu Jiu Ling could clearly see Li Songyue's contempt for her, though the original host was also quite foolish and weak.

She simply didn't realize that Li Songyue was determined to become the Crown Princess; this woman considered herself the world's foremost talent and Shang Jing's celebrated beauty, naturally believing she deserved to marry the most exalted man.

Only the astonishingly talented Crown Prince could possibly be worthy of her.

Last time at the poetry gathering, a few words from the original host provoked Li Songyue; she couldn't retort and ended up crying herself, while Li Songyue had many helpers who joined in berating her.

The angrier she became, the more flustered she got, to the point that the host family of the poetry gathering threw her out of the venue, utterly losing face.

After returning to the Prime Minister's residence, no one comforted her; instead, Gu Nanxiang added fuel to the fire, prompting Gu Shijie to order a harsh beating, leaving her bedridden for over a month before she could get up.

Gu Jiu Ling watched Li Songyue putting on an act, and gave a cold smile.

The women beside Li Songyue were momentarily stunned; had it been before, following Gu Jiu Ling's usual temperament, they would have already spoken thus, and she would have risen to rebut a few sentences—but now Gu Jiu Ling leaned against Xiao Yin, calm and composed.

Gu Jiu Ling ignored the hostile stares of those idiots, ate a fruit, lifted her teacup and took a sip of warm tea; the liquid swirled in her mouth before she swallowed.

She fixed her gaze on Li Songyue, tipped her tongue against her cheek, and a nonchalant smile curled her lips; her look was icy and arrogant.

Xiao Yin chuckled softly: 'What are you doing?'

Gu Jiu Ling leaned close to Xiao Yin and whispered: 'Your Highness, I'm just loosening my tongue; watch how I'll curse those wretches later.'

Sure enough, Gu Jiu Ling's posture angered the people on Li Songyue's side.

A woman in yellow stood up and laughed at Gu Jiu Ling: 'Yo! The eldest Miss Gu is here today too; I only remember last year the eldest Miss Gu……'

Those around immediately cast contemptuous glances at Gu Jiu Ling.

'A mayfly shaking a tree—how laughably overconfident!' Gu Jiu Ling chuckled softly.

Xiao Yin had been holding his teacup, but hearing Gu Jiu Ling say that, he froze; if his ears weren't faulty, his beloved consort was composing poetry to insult people?

Not only Xiao Yin, but the crowd had been watching the Rui Wangfu as a joke; yet upon hearing Gu Jiu Ling's line, they all went dumbfounded.

Although it was an insult, the verse rhymed and was perfectly balanced—an excellent line.

The woman in yellow froze on the spot, her face instantly paling.

The woman in green beside her pulled her down to sit, then rose and laughed: 'I never expected the Princess Consort of Rui to write poetry; we had no idea before—who did you get to ghostwrite it?'

Gu Jiu Ling lifted her head and drained the tea in her cup, her manner exuding immense heroism.

She also happened to be a doctorate holder; although she chose medicine, medical school is hard to enter, requiring one to pass the gauntlet of the college entrance exam.

She recited those poems, songs, and essays from the textbooks every morning in self-study; did you think she'd memorized them all for nothing?

'White herons are white but not pure; their exterior is clean, yet their hearts are not benevolent.'

You are nothing but a bunch of white lotuses!

'Snatching mud from a swallow's beak, filing iron needle tips, scraping gold from Buddha's face in meticulous search: finding something from nothing.'

You shameless villains who create something out of nothing!

'You are the offspring of Midland wolves; once empowered, you run wild. With the beauty of golden chambers, you indulge in fleeting dreams.'

Wretches! All of you, drop dead!

……

Gu Jiu Ling recited a line with each sip of tea, another with each fruit eaten, cracking melon seeds while leaning on Xiao Yin's shoulder, ready to fire off another insult.

At first the onlookers wore amused smiles, but Gu Jiu Ling's thoughts flowed like a spring, golden lines pouring forth; the surrounding scholars found it increasingly odd, some beginning to fetch paper and pen to copy down her words.

Her poetic attainment was profound enough that even Mr. Wen, seated in the place of honor, frowned slightly and turned his gaze toward her.

The woman in green who had been refuted instantly lost all color in her face, and in the end she turned out to be the clown.

After all, those poems Gu Jiu Ling spoke—Mr. Wen might not even be able to compose them; who would she be copying from?

It's clearly the eldest Miss Gu's own composition.

The atmosphere shifted instantly; the onlookers' gazes toward Gu Jiu Ling changed from earlier contempt and disdain to growing solemnity.

Crown Prince Xiao Ting stared fixedly at Gu Jiu Ling as she spoke eloquently; each line of her poetry was sharp, yet brimming with talent.

Xiao Yin had already set down his teacup, his gaze toward the woman beside him deepening and growing complex.

Just how much more she hides is unknown to him.

How does she keep surprising him every time?

A clear, lovely voice came from near Gu Jiu Ling: 'Miss Gu truly possesses genuine talent and learning, unlike certain people who only gather a rabble to mindlessly gossip.'

'Clearly no different from a long-tongued countrywoman, yet you pretend to be lofty and refined—how disgusting.'

'Who are you talking about?' the woman in yellow jumped up, losing all composure.

Gu Jiu Ling looked at the woman speaking up for her, dressed in a bright goose-yellow robe, her visage lovely, that little mouth utterly adorable—she liked her.

Upon closer look, she turned out to be the eldest daughter of the An Guogong Manor, Lin Ruojun.

Gu Jiu Ling smiled and thanked her; Lin Ruojun's gaze met Gu Jiu Ling's, her eyes softening considerably, losing their sharpness, and she returned a modest, neither arrogant nor self‑effacing smile.

Li Songyue could no longer stay seated; it was obvious that in this round Gu Jiu Ling had pressed her to the ground and humiliated her, and she couldn't swallow that indignity.

She rose slowly, bowed to Gu Jiu Ling, and said coldly: 'Princess Consort of Rui, your talent is truly astonishing; how about we try a couplet duel?'

The surroundings held their breath; Shang Jing's foremost talent had openly challenged her to a contest.

Gu Jiu Ling slowly sat down, lifted her chin, even deliberately raising it higher than Li Songyue's.

'No contest! Just play by yourself!'

Li Songyue's face changed instantly, her eyes turning slightly cold: 'Princess Consort of Rui, can't you bear to lose?'.

Gu Jiu Ling gave a light scoff: 'No, you're not worthy.'

Ah! A gasp rose from the crowd!

"You!" Li Songyue's ever‑composed expression finally split, and she bit her teeth, saying, "Just now the Princess Consort of Rui was pretty impressive, huh? Or are you scared?".

"Not scared at all!" Gu Jiu Ling thought to herself, "The main reason is that back when I took the college entrance exam, I hardly ever had to answer those couplet questions, so I never memorized any!"

"If you say you're scared, then you are! In any case, I see you're feeling a bit queasy—let me take it slow."

A low chuckle suddenly rose from all around.

Li Songyue was left completely hanging there, her cheeks flushed red and her chest aching with anger.

Xiao Yin gave a light laugh, peeled an orange for Gu Jiu Ling, and said, "Little one, eat an orange to soothe your throat."

"Thank you, Prince!"

Gu Jiu Ling felt her Prince was quite understanding!