Chapter 41

Last time, we talked about how Li Kuan recited a plagiarized Tang poem, winning the applause and praise of everyone present, even impressing the rough and ready Cheng Yaojin.

"Prince, with this poem, how can we dare to show our own efforts again!" Xu Jingzong stood in the crowd and said loudly. He was now afraid of flattery because he had done some unsavory things in the past and his methods were often questionable, so he was not well-liked by others in the Tiancefu. However, he was very skilled at navigating relationships. Like now, he loudly praised Li Kuan, hoping to catch Li Er's attention and thus break his current awkward situation.

People are like this; when in a difficult situation, they hope for the help of a benefactor. For Xu Jingzong, Li Er was his benefactor. Although he was unscrupulous in his actions, he was not a two-faced person. He had never thought of siding with the Crown Prince, who was at odds with Li Er. Although he did not get along well in the Tiancefu, he had always supported Li Er, which was why Li Er included him among the eighteen scholars of the Tiancefu.

"Old Xu makes a good point. Prince's poem makes us ashamed to speak of poetry again. So, we will not embarrass ourselves further!" Xu Jingzong's words resonated with others, and the pedantic Yao Silian shook his head in agreement.

"This poem is indeed excellent, but I have some doubts, and I hope the Prince can clarify: the poem is full of heroic spirit, which every general would admire, but to my knowledge, the Prince has never served in the military. How could you have such feelings?" Li Shiji voiced his doubts, which were also the doubts of others.

"Yes! The Prince is still young and full of innocence. How could he have such heroic sentiments? On the battlefield, drinking wine is forbidden, but such heroism makes one want to drink. If someone were to recite this poem in the army, half of the troops would probably get drunk!" Qin Qiong agreed.

"Well, I have always been weak and have greatly admired the soldiers who fight on the battlefield. So, I often imagine the heroic and tragic spirit of defending the country and dying in battle. This time, I just used this opportunity to express those feelings!" Li Kuan, caught off guard by the sudden scrutiny of his impromptu recitation, quickly fabricated an explanation.

"It seems the young Prince has a heart for the military. Truly, a tiger does not give birth to a dog. Prince Qin has fought for half his life, undefeated, so it's no wonder!" This explanation won the approval of most people, who accepted Li Kuan's story.

"Since the Prince has such poetic talent, why waste it in the military? You should use your talent to pursue poetry and literature!" The civil officials, however, had a different opinion. They felt that since Li Kuan could write such a poem, it would be a waste of his talent. He should study Confucianism and become a great man in the future!

"Prince, your poem has made it impossible for the poetry contest to continue. You must write another poem to give us an answer!" Yao Silian now played the role of the bad guy, making things difficult for Li Kuan. "This time, don't write for those generals. How many of them can understand? You must write a poem for us scholars, and it must be about wine!"

This was no small challenge, how could they make a child do this?

Yao Silian also had his own difficulties. Why would he play the bad guy at this moment? Although he was pedantic, he was not stupid. But the person at the top had given him instructions, so he had no choice but to follow them!

Indeed, Yao Silian's challenge was at the behest of Li Er, which puzzled him. Li Kuan's actions should have brought glory to Li Er, so why was Li Er making things difficult for him?

In fact, Li Er was far from as happy as he appeared. He had noticed that in just two days since his return, his son had shown many extraordinary qualities. Although he had accepted the fact that a mysterious scientist was teaching him and had witnessed Li Kuan's remarkable abilities on Blackstone Mountain, this had only made him more cautious. He wanted to test Li Kuan again to see if these were genuine talents or if someone was guiding him.

From the moment they entered the gates of Chang'an, Li Kuan's performance of "The General's Order" to the poem just now, everything had struck a chord in Li Er's heart, evoking the heroic spirit of battle and bloodshed. This made him feel that the people behind Li Kuan had investigated him and knew his preferences, which made him feel manipulated. So, he wanted to test Li Kuan again to see if these were genuine thoughts or if someone was teaching him. If Li Kuan had real talent, he could write another poem from a different angle. If he was being taught, Li Shimin would be wary of his son, even if his mother was the one he felt guilty about, Yin Shaohua. Li Er thought to himself: If Kuan has truly learned such talent from his teacher, it means his teacher is sincerely teaching him. As long as it does not endanger the Tang Dynasty, he would let it be.

So, this was Li Er's final test for Li Kuan. If Li Kuan could pass this test, then as long as he did not rebel, Li Er would not suspect him or take any action.

Li Kuan was also confused. What was going on? Why did he have to write another poem? The last one was just a whim, and now he had to do it again? It seemed they were forcing him to be a genius! Li Kuan grumbled to himself while looking around, thinking about which poem to plagiarize next.

The poem had to be about wine and could not mention military life. There were many such poems, but Li Kuan remembered very few, if any. As a modern man, who would memorize Tang poems for fun? If he wanted to recite a few lines, he could just search online. But in the Tang Dynasty, where was Baidu? This lady had not come with him through time.

But Li Kuan had a system! He had just received a large sum of money, so why not use it? Although he didn't know how much his body would cost, he didn't think it would be all 30 million. So, Li Kuan pretended to look around while calling out to the system: "System, help me find a poem like that!"

The system, which had long merged with Li Kuan, could scan and sense everything he saw and heard. So, when Li Kuan called out, the system responded: "There are such poems. Here are the specific exchange methods!"

A display screen appeared, showing a list of poem titles and their exchange prices.

"Drinking Alone by Moonlight" by Li Bai, exchange price: 70,000;

"Parting at the Wei City" by Wang Wei, exchange price: 8,000;

...

"Parting at Xuanzhou's Xie Tiao Tower" by Li Bai, exchange price: 80,000;

"Guests on the Road" by Li Bai, exchange price: 20,000;

...

Perhaps because Li Kuan had received a lot of energy points this time, the exchange prices were much higher. Li Kuan was taken aback: "System, why are the exchange prices so high? They weren't like this before!"

"Before, the host exchanged mostly items with little value, except for a small skill for personal use. This time, the host needs to exchange cultural works, which will have some impact on the current world. The system will set different prices based on the impact on the world."

The system's explanation made Li Kuan understand. The things he had exchanged before were only for his own enjoyment or the enjoyment of a few people around him. But poetry was different; it could spread widely and influence many people, so the exchange price was much higher.

Although Li Kuan understood this, he still felt it was unfair. It was like they were squeezing him for his energy points.

Despite this, Li Kuan decided to exchange a poem, but how could he know which one was good? He couldn't see the content beforehand, which was a problem.

While Li Kuan was anxious about finding the right poem, the people in the hall only saw him walking around, looking for inspiration. They were not in a hurry and waited patiently for the young Prince's second poem.

"Whatever, I'll choose a poet first, Li Bai! He's called the Poet Immortal for a reason. I'll decide which one to exchange after seeing the prices!" Li Kuan made up his mind, and the display screen changed, showing only Li Bai's poems.

"There are so many! Li Bai must really love writing about wine!" Li Kuan was surprised to find that Li Bai had written many poems about wine, over a dozen. He recognized a few, but they were long poems that he couldn't remember completely.

"Let's choose the cheapest one, 'Guests on the Road'!" Li Kuan exchanged it, feeling a bit pained.

Since he had already spent the points, it was time to show off. Li Kuan looked at Cheng Yaojin, who was drinking heavily, and the two other generals beside him who were already drunk, and said, "I've got it!"

Li Kuan's words drew everyone's attention. They had been waiting for a while, eager to see the young Prince's next poem, especially the scholars who, though they couldn't write outstanding poems themselves, loved to critique others' work.

"Red grapes and fine wine in a cup of gold!" Li Kuan recited.

"This line is similar to the previous poem. Is he just changing a few words? That won't do!" The scholars were a bit confused.

"Jade bowls filled with amber light!" Li Kuan recited the second line, which was still ordinary, just describing the wine in the jade bowl. The use of "light" to describe the clear wine was average.

"Let's see the last two lines. Otherwise, this poem won't be impressive!" The scholars whispered among themselves, paying close attention. The generals, however, were mostly drinking, with only a few listening.