Chapter 4

First Volume, Chapter 4: Astonishing the Entire Arena

"Seven coffins of dragon wood, golden scales coiled round; the Yin Lord wakes in dread at the third watch's chill; white robes and plain linens, bones entwined in sleep…"

The examiner slammed his table and snapped, "Bad luck! Did your parents ascend to heaven? Go home and mourn them—don't disrupt this place!"

Though only the preliminary round, it was still extremely strict; a third of the thousand candidates were eliminated in an instant.

Soon, it was Qin Feng's turn.

As he stepped before the examiner, a familiar voice rang out.

Cheng Fa, who had just passed the preliminary round, deliberately raised his voice, sneering mockingly.

"Come on, everyone! Gather round! Today, you absolutely must hear what literary masterpiece our Young Master Qin has prepared!"

Fuck, you dare make me humiliate myself in public? Have you forgotten your own level?

Cheng Fa seethed inwardly.

Hearing this, the other candidates grew curious and turned to glance at Qin Feng.

This Poetry Contest had an exceptionally strict selection system; to prevent favoritism and fraud, even the preliminary examiners were personally appointed by the Dean—no matter how powerful your family, no noble son was given special treatment!

With Qin Feng's literary skill, passing the preliminary round was as impossible as a dream—everyone merely waited to see how badly he would embarrass himself.

Under Cheng Fa's goading, some students began to stir up trouble.

"That's right, Qin Feng! Recite your masterpiece aloud so we can all appreciate it!"

"Hahaha, will it be 'beneath the bridge out front, a school of ducks swims by' again?"

"Even though I won't pass the preliminaries either, with Young Master Qin setting the bar, I'm not worried at all…"

Liu Hongyan bit her thin lips, her palms sweating slightly; the scholar Xie had demanded too high a price, so she had gritted her teeth and begged for just one poem, hoping to help Qin Feng pass the preliminaries and retain his place at Shenglin Academy.

Now she realized the screening was far stricter than before—Qin Feng likely wouldn't even pass the preliminary round.

Losing ten thousand liang of silver was minor; if he was expelled from Shenglin Academy, the Qin Family's reputation would be ruined entirely.

Just as Liu Hongyan was frantic with worry, Qin Feng acted as if nothing were amiss, opening his folding fan and smiling lightly.

"You're making a big deal out of writing a poem? Such a simple thing—why are you all so worked up?"

At these words, everyone sneered in contempt.

Cheng Fa laughed so hard his mouth wouldn't close, deliberately goading him: "If you pass the preliminaries, I'll address you as 'Master' from now on! But if you fail…"

Qin Feng finally showed a flicker of interest, smiling as he interrupted Cheng Fa: "Just calling me 'Master' is enough? What about the brothel debts you still owe me?"

"You—!"

Cheng Fa's teeth clenched with rage; even in his worst state, he'd never needed Qin Feng, this pauper, to pay his brothel bills.

Though he wanted to refute him on the spot, remembering he could lure Qin Feng into a trap, he swallowed his retort, gritted his teeth, and committed.

"Fine! If you pass the preliminaries, I'll repay every last copper—uh, how much was it again?"

Cheng Fa's face flushed crimson; this amounted to openly admitting he'd been visiting courtesans—several female students who had favored him now looked at him with utter disdain.

Qin Feng had never forgiven Liu Hongyan for spending a fortune on a poem; he immediately held up one finger: "One hundred thousand liang."

Cheng Fa nearly spat out his tongue, his expression as if he'd seen a ghost: "Have you never seen money before?! What kind of Celestial Immortal is worth one hundred thousand liang?!"

Qin Feng shrugged: "You forgot? That night you got drunk, every expense on the Hua Fang was charged to your account—I paid for you."

"Lies!" Cheng Fa finally exploded, shouting furiously.

The moment he finished speaking, a faint voice came from behind: "No matter. Word has come from Young Master Li: that scholar begged for only one poem—if you use it now, you'll have none left for the semifinals or Finals; if you don't use it now, you won't pass the preliminaries—in either case, you're dead."

Cheng Fa's furious expression instantly calmed; he sneered: "Fine! One hundred thousand liang! If you fail, you pay me one hundred thousand liang too!"

Swish!

Qin Feng snapped his folding fan shut: "Deal!"

The incident had blown up—crowds formed three layers deep around them, all drawn by the rumor; even the semifinal examiners pushed forward to watch.

One hundred thousand liang for a single poem—truly, each character was worth a thousand taels of silver.

Who but a family with hundreds of thousands in liquid silver would dare such a bet?

Only Liu Hongyan opened her mouth, then quickly grabbed Qin Feng: "You little wastrel! That poem was meant for you to pass the preliminaries, not to gamble with! One hundred thousand liang—if that scholar Xie would sell it, it could buy you ten poems! No, I'm going right now—"

"Second Sister, calm down…"

Qin Feng patted her handback, winking: "Money's walking right up to the door—why not take it? The ten thousand liang you spent on that poem? I'll reimburse you. The remaining ninety thousand liang? That's a penalty. Just sit back and enjoy the show…"

"Huh? Penalty?" Liu Hongyan was baffled—where did Qin Feng get such confidence?

But seeing his inexplicable self-assurance, a fantasy stirred in her heart—what if her younger brother had finally awakened?

Maybe she should just wait and see?

After all, it was only one hundred thousand liang—she could earn that back in a few business trips…

Having calmed Liu Hongyan, Qin Feng strode forward with his head held high, fully embodying the arrogance of a wastrel: "Daring to show off before me? You deserve punishment!"

Under countless watching eyes, Qin Feng stepped before the examiner, smiling broadly, as if about to shout: "Everyone, move aside—I'm about to show off!"

"Foreign barbarians have repeatedly harassed our people and invaded Liang Kingdom territory."

"I shall compose a poem on this theme."

"Listen well, everyone!"

The crowd perked up, arms crossed, clearly ready to laugh.

Even Cheng Fa's face was now stretched wide with triumph.

This trip, he would not only fulfill Li Rui's orders but also earn one hundred thousand liang for free.

Where else in the world could such fortune be found?

Qin Feng, Qin Feng—your father is Minister of War, yet he gave birth to a useless waste! One day, your entire family will die for your shame!

As the crowd fell silent, Qin Feng finally began reciting his poem.

"Heavenly Moon and Ancient Pass, Qin's time; ten thousand li of march, men never return."

"If only the Flying General of Longcheng were here, he would not let the Horses of the Barbarians cross Qinggong!"

"Sssss—"

The previously noisy scene instantly fell into dead silence.

Only the sound of people sharply inhaling rose in waves.

Everyone stared at Qin Feng with mouths agape, as if gazing at a monster.

Especially those who had come to watch a joke—now their eyes bulged in shock, faces filled with disbelief.

Even the examiner had never expected Qin Feng could produce anything worthy of a poem; after a stunned pause, he hurriedly recalled and reread it, then turned and shouted to his colleague: "Quick! Bring paper and ink!"

Taking the paper and ink offered by his colleague, the examiner hastily recorded the poem Qin Feng had recited.

After reading it seven or eight times again, he reluctantly passed it to his colleague, excitedly saying: "Good… so good—'If only the Flying General of Longcheng were here, he would not let the Horses of the Barbarians cross Qinggong!' Quick, take it to the Dean! Wait!"

The examiner quickly called his colleague back, turned to Qin Feng, and asked in disbelief: "Qin Feng, has this poem been titled?"

Qin Feng feigned thought for a moment: "Let's call it 'Departing the Frontier.'"

The examiner's eyes gleamed as he filled in the title on the paper, muttering softly: "'Departing the Frontier'? Perfectly apt!"

Only when the examiner's colleague hurried away did the crowd awaken from their daze.

Loud, heated discussion instantly filled the entire hall.

"I… am I dreaming? Could this poem really be Qin Feng's? How is that possible!"

"If only the Flying General of Longcheng were here, he would not let the Horses of the Barbarians cross Qinggong… What a spirit!"

"Could Qin Feng actually have awakened?"

"The winning poem from last year's Poetry Contest pales in comparison to this 'Departing the Frontier'!"

Everyone turned to look at Qin Feng, eyes filled with stunned disbelief.

Qin Feng showed no pride at all; on the contrary, he was humble—he did not create poetry, he was merely a carrier of poems.

The timeless masterpiece by Master Wang, the Seven-Character Master, required memorization in elementary school!

Liu Hongyan covered her mouth, staring blankly at Qin Feng, speechless for a long while.

Xie Jinshi's poem, compared to this 'Departing the Frontier,' could be thrown straight into a sewer.

No wonder this brat was so arrogant just now—could he really have awakened???