Chapter 422

"Zixi."

The Son of Heaven turns around with a fatherly smile on his face.

"Father Emperor! You agreed?!"

Xiao Zixi's beautiful eyes are sparkling, full of anticipation.

"That... what is that elegant gathering of yours called again?"

Xiao Zixi pouts:

"Zaizhou Elegant Gathering! Zaizhou Elegant Gathering! Father Emperor, you—"

"Oh right, Zaizhou Elegant Gathering." The Son of Heaven nods slowly and frowns again, "Is that Zaizhou Elegant Gathering of yours a real thing? It wouldn't be that you just called it an elegant gathering after hosting a few guests, would it!"

Xiao Zixi gets anxious:

"Father Emperor, what are you saying! How could it be that I just called it an elegant gathering after hosting guests! This is a proper elegant gathering! We discuss poetry and essays,

singing and responding to each other! Those who come are all masters of literature and celebrities of the time! It's not much worse than Second Imperial Brother's Western Residence—"

The Son of Heaven almost laughs out loud:

"You really are thick-skinned! You still have the nerve to compare it to the Western Residence! You're not afraid of being laughed at!"

Xiao Zixi hums:

"Father Emperor, just go ahead and mock your own daughter! If your teeth fall out from laughing, no one will pay attention to you! Besides, I didn't say my elegant gathering could surpass the Western Residence; I said it's 'not much worse than the Western Residence.' How long has the Western Residence been open! My elegant gathering was held late, so it's normal that it can't compare for now! But it might not be the case in the future! The Western Residence focuses on both literature and classics, while we focus on literary meaning, which is the same as the Imperial Academy focusing on classical meaning! I'm still waiting to petition Father Emperor after it's well-run in the future to make it an official school, on par with the Imperial Academy—"

"Nonsense!" The Son of Heaven raises his hand, pretending to flick her forehead, "Be careful that the Censorate doesn't impeach you!"

Xiao Zixi says "Ouch" and dodges back, covering her forehead with both hands, but seeing that the Son of Heaven didn't really flick her, her morale revives:

"I'm not talking nonsense! In those days, Emperor Wen of Song opened four halls for Confucianism, Huan Xuan, history, and literature; the fourth hall was dedicated to studying literary brilliance!

Father Emperor is wise, far surpassing Emperor Wen of Song! Why can't you revive the literary halls and make literature flourish?

To govern the world, one cannot do it without literature; to polish great achievements, one cannot do it without literature!

Therefore, every time the envoys of the Northern Barbarians come, they not only boast about their learning but also show off their literary talent, wanting to compete with our China!

Father Emperor, you hold the mandate of heaven! If you can cultivate elegance and revive the literary movement, making the orthodox calendar clear and taking the spirit away from the Northern Barbarians, wouldn't that be a glorious event for the four seas and a prosperous time?!"

Xiao Zixi closes her eyes and spreads her arms, looking like she is scattering stars.

The Son of Heaven laughs:

"You haven't read books in vain. Who taught you this passage?"

Xiao Zixi puts her hands down:

"Does it have to be taught by someone! My literary talent is also very good! Last time Scholar Qiu came to the elegant gathering to lecture on poetry, he even praised me: 'Divine thoughts and clever understanding, with a heart like a fragrant orchid'!"

"Which Scholar Qiu?"

"It's Scholar Qiu from the Western Residence! Qiu Lingkai!"

"Oh, Qiu Lingkai of Wu Xing, he has some reputation. You learned that passage from him, didn't you?"

Xiao Zixi puffs up her little face:

"Why does it have to be learned from someone! Father Emperor, you really underestimate people! Doesn't your daughter have literary thoughts?!"

The Son of Heaven's gaze is light, as if he sees through everything, and he disdains to say more:

"No matter how much literary thought you have, you couldn't have come up with that passage about orthodoxy."

Xiao Zixi sees she can't hide it and laughs:

"Father Emperor is wise, you hit the nail on the head! Daughter indeed learned it from Scholar Qiu. But there is also daughter's own wording in it! Scholar Qiu said, I belong to the kind with bright and elegant spirit and extremely high talent! My poetry is clear and beautiful, making people forget vulgarity when they see it! My debating style is sharp, making people listen and be convinced..."

Xiao Zixi praises herself endlessly.

The Son of Heaven asks out of the blue:

"Then why aren't you among the Three Beauties of the Imperial Capital?"

Xiao Zixi immediately jumps:

"That was because I was too young at the time! And I rarely left the palace! Father Emperor, you even believe such vulgar talk from the streets! What Three Beauties of the Imperial Capital! It looks like the work of some vulgar people with no taste or knowledge, sitting in a well and looking at the sky, measuring gold with a gourd! The vastness of the Imperial Capital, how could it be just three women? The number of famous beauties, how could it be just hundreds or thousands? Forcibly establishing names and recklessly adding rankings! Looking at the sky through a tube, measuring the sea with a gourd! It's extremely absurd, nothing more than this! Lady Xie Xiaosi is my defeated opponent in pure conversation; I scared her away as soon as I mentioned pure conversation. Do you think I would go around telling people? I have always disdained to compete for such vulgar names in the streets! Disdained!"

Xiao Zixi outputs like a little machine gun.

The Son of Heaven thinks to himself, it seems his daughter's reputation for talent isn't entirely blown out of proportion; she still has some substance...

"Hmm, what you say makes some sense—"

"It's not some sense! It makes a lot of sense! A lot!"

"Yes, it makes a lot of sense. But your Zaizhou Elegant Gathering can't compare to their Fuzhou Elegant Gathering; that's always a fact, right?"

(Chapter 104, "Empty Dreams of the Past": "You write a good one, and if you write it well, I will invite you to join the Fuzhou Elegant Gathering in the capital..." Chapter 231, "Dialogue": "Young Master Wang really should come to our Fuzhou Elegant Gathering to be a commentator.")

"Who says it can't compare? Where is it a fact! Besides being held early, where does Fuzhou compare to our Zaizhou! Lady Xie Xiaosi just takes advantage of time and location! She started early and it's convenient to pull people in! If I had a princess mansion outside! Would there be anything for her to do! Father Emperor, think about it, when the Western Residence first opened, who knew it would become a climate in the future? In the world, which grand event didn't start from nothing and grow from small to big? Although Zaizhou's name is not as loud as Fuzhou's now, whether an elegant gathering is held well or not doesn't depend on whether it's held early or late, but on whether there are many heroes and whether the talent is real! Our Zaizhou Elegant Gathering is full of talent and has outstanding strength; what it lacks is only a name! That's why I'm begging Father Emperor to add—"

The Son of Heaven says leisurely:

"What full of talent and outstanding strength, you can stop it! I've heard it all; Fuzhou is a phoenix tree, specifically summoning phoenixes; Zaizhou is a withered branch, mostly perching crows—"

Xiao Zixi explodes!

"Who said that?! Who?! Father Emperor, tell me, who said that?! Simply despicable! Shameless! Shameless!"

The Son of Heaven coughs:

"A girl shouldn't scold people—isn't that what everyone says outside?"

"Where is it everyone! Where is it everyone! Who is slandering us!"

Xiao Zixi is so angry her face turns red! Her whole body is trembling! The tip of her nose also turns pink!

The Son of Heaven originally wanted to continue adding fuel to the fire, saying something like, look, it's not that I'm unwilling to join your elegant gathering, it's just that your reputation isn't very good, and I also have to save face; even if I really want to join, I should join Fuzhou. But seeing that his daughter seems about to cry, and this crying is not easy to coax, in order to avoid lifting a rock only to drop it on his own feet, he changes his tone:

"Don't be angry. Words outside have always been swayed by the wind; how would they know what is good or bad, high or low. The main thing is that your Zaizhou is held too late, so you lost the first opportunity. Now the most important thing for you is actually not to let Me participate. Although My participation can make Zaizhou famous, when the time comes, people will say you rely on your father, so what's the point? Besides, I'm not good at literary arts; I can't just show My face and then issue an edict saying Zaizhou Elegant Gathering is far better than Fuzhou, announcing it to the middle and outside, making everyone hear about it..."

Xiao Zixi can't help but laugh, and then becomes distressed again:

"Then what should I do..."

"This is not difficult. I'll give you a trick! Aren't you trying to make Zaizhou famous now? Then why go to so much trouble? Just step on Fuzhou! You create a big momentum, speak publicly, and say you want to fight with Fuzhou to compare who is better! If they don't dare, let them admit they are not as good as your Zaizhou! Wouldn't you become famous? If they dare, then compete. If you win, you'll become famous in one battle! From now on, you'll be one step ahead of Fuzhou! Even if you lose, it's not embarrassing; anyway, your reputation is small and you started late, so it's normal to lose, but your prestige will be spread out. No matter if you win or lose, you will definitely make a profit!"

Xiao Zixi's eyes light up when she hears this, but then she is a little worried:

"But... but Father Emperor, I don't want to lose..."

"You don't want to lose? Then like this, slow down the fighting matter for now, and I will first find you a master who is both powerful and suitable to participate in your Zaizhou Elegant Gathering. Once you find one, then you start. By then, you will have a heaven-sent general, and won't you kill the opposite side until they are turned upside down?"

"Hahahaha!"

Xiao Zixi's eyebrows and eyes unfold, and she laughs wildly!

She hugs the Son of Heaven's arm, wishing she could jump up:

"Father Emperor! I knew Father Emperor loves me the most!!!"

The Son of Heaven's mouth curls up slightly.

After Xiao Zixi finishes being happy, she thinks about it, her expression is a bit empty, and her voice suddenly drops by half:

"By the way, Father Emperor, don't ever tell my Seventh Sister about what I said about the Three Beauties of the Imperial Capital..."

The Son of Heaven:...

Xiao Zixi sees the Son of Heaven doesn't answer, and feels even more that she might be reported, so she hurriedly remedies:

"Among those Three Beauties of the Imperial Capital, the one I admire most is my Seventh Sister! She deserves the name and is worthy of it! As for the other two, I can beat one with one hand! Especially Lady Xie Xiaosi! I beat her twice a day!"

The Son of Heaven looks at his daughter's appearance of being both cowardly and brave, and is speechless. He thinks, with your little courage, who can you beat? In the future, won't you be pressed down and beaten by your Seventh Sister five times a day?

The Son of Heaven laughs:

"Are you that afraid of your Seventh Sister?"

Xiao Zixi stiffens her neck:

"I, I'm not afraid! It's... it's courtesy!"

The Son of Heaven frowns:

"Courtesy? Then if there is something your Seventh Sister wants, and you also want, what are you going to do? Yield it?"

Xiao Zixi asks curiously:

"What thing!"

"Never mind what thing, anyway, it's something you both want, will you yield it?"

"Then what's there not to yield! Kong Rong could yield pears!"

The Son of Heaven glances at his daughter:

"Kong Rong yielded the big pear and took the small one. Now there is no small one for you to take. There is only one thing, and if you yield, you won't have it. Are you still prepared to yield?"

Xiao Zixi's eyes drift, and she says dryly:

"I am a relatively calm person..."

The Son of Heaven has a look of contempt:

"You don't even dare to grab it?"

Xiao Zixi lowers her head and plays with her fingers.

The Son of Heaven looks at his daughter with hatred for her lack of ambition:

"What if you can't be calm? What if you must get that thing!"

Xiao Zixi pulls her fingers for a while, looks up, and says weakly:

"Then... then I can share it with Seventh Sister. Or take turns—"

The Son of Heaven hears his daughter talking more and more nonsense, and pokes her forehead:

"You have no ambition!"

Xiao Zixi laughs awkwardly.

The Son of Heaven says seriously:

"Listen well—if you encounter something ownerless, and you want it yourself, then grab it first. Once you have it in your hands, everything is easy to talk about. If you can't grab it, then talk about being calm or sharing, do you understand?"

"Oh."

"Oh what oh, I'm asking if you understand!"

"I can recite it backwards!"

"..."