Chapter 785

First Volume, Chapter 785: Three Gates Conquered in Succession

At the scene, the last trace of doubt toward Qin Feng vanished completely.

At this moment, everyone realized just how profound Qin Feng's literary talent truly was—challenging him was like carrying an axe into the workshop of a master carpenter…

Yet Qin Feng paid no heed to the burning gazes around him; he smiled warmly at the Zheng sisters and gave unreserved praise.

"Your skill in couplets is only beneath mine; across all of Heaven, no one else could possibly defeat you two."

The implication of these words was clear: blame your bad luck for crossing paths with Qin Feng.

Though Qin Feng was so arrogant, the Zheng sisters felt no disgust—instead, their hearts pounded wildly.

They were utterly smitten.

Qin Feng continued speaking as if to himself: "With time, you two will surely surpass me."

"I'll offer you a slight guidance—here is an upper line. If you can respond to it, your couplet art will surely advance further."

Upon hearing this, the Zheng sisters' faces lit up with eager anticipation.

"Quick, bring paper and brush for Marquis Qin!"

The two women scrambled to place the Four Treasures before Qin Feng; Zheng Qiao ground the ink herself, while Zheng Yu spread the rice paper flat.

Qin Feng made no pretense of modesty—he picked up the brush and swept it across the pristine paper, strokes flowing like dragons and serpents.

Crowds pressed around the desk, eyes gleaming with intensity.

Zheng Qiao whispered the characters as Qin Feng wrote: "White Tower Street, yellow ironworker, heats red furnace, burns black charcoal, emits blue smoke, flashes blue light, quenches purple iron, sits north-facing south-facing hammering east-west."

With the final stroke, Qin Feng did not linger—he turned, hands behind his back, and marched straight toward the next trial.

Behind him, silence fell like a tomb; everyone stared dumbfounded at the upper line on the paper, sweat beading on their foreheads.

"How… how could one possibly respond to this?"

"Is this Qin Feng's true strength?"

"Zheng sisters, do you have any ideas yet?"

In an instant, every eye at the scene fixed upon the Zheng sisters.

Zheng Qiao shook her head decisively, eyes filled with bewilderment: "Our previous couplets exhausted every thought we had—but compared to Marquis Qin's upper line, they seem childish…"

"We two sisters could never be mentioned in the same breath as Marquis Qin."

Beside her, Zheng Yu stared at the upper line and swallowed hard: "This upper line may take years—even decades—to complete. If we were little students in a private school, Marquis Qin would already be a Doctor at the Imperial Academy…"

The crowd exchanged uneasy glances; they knew Qin Feng's couplet art surpassed the Zheng sisters—but never imagined the gap was this terrifying.

That meant, since Qin Feng entered Yucheng until now, he had merely been playing along with the city's Talented Scholars and Beauties?

Qin Feng had not even broken a sweat, yet Yucheng's Talented Scholars and Beauties had already poured out their full strength.

This meticulously prepared Fen Xiang Wen Tan was nothing but a joke!

Watching Qin Feng's retreating figure, the Zheng sisters' eyes simultaneously revealed a touch of melancholy—they had just missed crossing paths with such a genius…

Meanwhile, the entire city of Yucheng was already ablaze with rumor.

Young pages ran through the streets, shouting: "Qin Feng has conquered three gates in succession! Unstoppable!"

"Qin Feng has left an Ancient Absolute—can anyone answer it?"

Soon, the news reached the Cheng Zhen Fu; Governor Zhao Huansu rubbed his forehead, deeply troubled.

Not long ago, to stabilize Qin Feng's diplomatic mission and prevent his Liang Kingdom troops from causing chaos in the city, he had spent ten thousand liang of silver to buy peace.

Yet this Fen Xiang Wen Tan had still ignited a massive uproar.

Now, the entire city's attention was surely fixed on Huijuan Lou.

In Zhao Huansu's view, if Qin Feng wished to enter the city, all he needed was wine, food, and proper hospitality—just pacify this ancestor and send him on his way. Why hold a Fen Xiang Wen Tan at all?

But this affair had been initiated by Jing Ci Princess; Zhao Huansu had no power to stop it.

Thinking of this, Zhao Huansu sighed deeply: "Since our defeat by Di, our prestige has steadily declined. If we lose face today and anger His Majesty, my position as governor is finished—I must find a way to drive Qin Feng away as soon as possible!"

His advisor quickly offered a strategy.

"Master, I've already sent men out of the city to scout. Qin Feng's troops are cooking now—they've bought twenty full-grown pigs alone, plus three cattle and three sheep each. They're preparing for a feast."

"This proves Qin Feng and his army are practical men."

"Compared to empty fame, Qin Feng surely cares more about silver. Why not offer him more money to let us off the hook?"

Hearing this, Zhao Huansu's frown deepened: "More silver? How much is 'more'?"

"Besides, Huijuan Lou has already lost three rounds in a row—now offering money is too late! We'd lose both face and substance. I won't do such a foolish thing!"

The advisor hurried to explain: "What if we trade substance for face?"

Zhao Huansu raised an eyebrow: "Go on."

The advisor grinned shrewdly: "For Di, face and substance are equally vital now. Substance concerns the lives of countless people; face concerns whether the borderlands remain stable and whether the Barbarian States still fear Di."

Right now, clearly, face matters more than substance—after all, the Barbarian States harbor deep resentment toward us."

This Fen Xiang Wen Tan has drawn enormous attention—it won't be long before the whole Heaven hears of it. If we win, won't we earn a glorious reputation?"

In essence, we're buying victory with silver!"

Zhao Huansu rested his chin in his hand, thoughtful—this plan seemed feasible.

He immediately dispatched a messenger to contact Qin Feng. But since Huijuan Lou was crowded and the matter could not be made public, they finally left the city to seek out Qin Feng's men.

Soon, a young man with a faint, ever-present smile appeared before the governor's advisor.

Liu Ming's lips curled slightly: "You mean the governor wants Marquis Qin to deliberately lose the Fen Xiang Wen Tan?"

The advisor nodded eagerly: "Exactly."

Knowing Qin Feng as he did, Liu Ming was certain Qin Feng would gladly accept—after all, with Qin Feng's reputation, such empty fame meant nothing; real silver was far more valuable.

Liu Ming immediately agreed, sending word to Qin Feng while smiling and asking: "How much is your governor willing to pay?"

The advisor had already planned this thoroughly—he extended two fingers without hesitation: "Twenty thousand liang of silver. Is that acceptable?"

Hearing the price offered, Liu Ming's face fell, his eyes cold as frost: "Are you insulting Marquis Qin?!"

Before his words ended, Liu Ming had drawn his short knife and pressed it against the advisor's throat: "Just twenty thousand taels of silver? You think you can buy Marquis Qin's good name? You're treating beggars better than this!"

"Do you know how much wealth Tianji Camp holds? Or how much tax revenue Beixi County collects each year?"