Chapter 105: A Wager

Wagering with decorative items was a common practice among scholars during literary gatherings. For today’s poetry contest, items like inkstones and precious ink had been prepared in advance. Yet no one expected Zhang Ke to suddenly propose such a thing. A few of the wealthy young ladies familiar with Zhang Ke exchanged glances, puzzled. After all, although Zhang Ke’s twelve-year-old brother was ordinary, she herself had been hailed as a talented woman at a young age, a reputation that originated among palace concubines. Now, she suddenly challenged her cousin—this seemed highly suspicious.

Zhang Qing’s expression darkened. As the host of the gathering and the eldest daughter of the Xiangfu Zhang family, she was well aware of the various grudges within the Zhang clan in the capital. Sensing the ill intent behind Zhang Ke’s sudden proposal, she grew furious. Seeing her siblings whispering among themselves, she was about to stand up and speak.

At that moment, she felt a gentle pressure on her right hand and saw Zhang Yue standing up calmly. Briefly stunned, she immediately realized that Zhang Yue wasn’t some frivolous young man. Having passed the imperial examinations, he must possess real talent, which gave her confidence. So, she smiled, picked up her teacup, and took a sip, appearing relaxed.

Zhang Yue asked calmly, “Since Sister Ke puts it this way, Icertainly agree. But these two items were bestowed by the palace. Isn’t it disrespectful to use them in a wager? Besides, I haven’t brought my coat either. If we wager such valuable items, what if one party refuses to accept the outcome? It would be extremely difficult to make a fair judgment.”

“That’s our eldest aunt—how could it be disrespectful? If Brother Yue loses, will he deny that the items belong to me?” Zhang Ke seemed prepared, smiling confidently. “As for whether anyone will accept the decision… With so many sisters here, even if they can’t write poetry, they can at least judge its quality. Sister Meng, the fourth sister of the Meng family, can act as the judge. If anyone still disagrees, they can copy their poem and spread it throughout the city for everyone to judge. That way, fairness will surely be ensured.”

Hearing Zhang Ke say this, everyone present was shocked, filled with both astonishment and excitement. After all, they were all young people; in the past, they gathered just for fun. Now that there was excitement to watch, who wouldn’t be happy? Meng Fan and Meng Tao, who had just arrived in Nanjing and knew little about Zhang Ke, had grown quite impressed with Zhang Yue after two days together, so they joined in the cheering as well. Only when Zhang Yue nodded gladly did they start clapping happily, completely unaware that they couldn’t even tell whether the poems were good or bad.

Du Wan had been invited today for several reasons: first, she couldn’t refuse Zhang Qing’s invitation; second, there was nothing much to do at home, and her mother had joked that she should make more friends; third, Xiao Wu kept urging her, saying she should outshine everyone and gain fame, so she ended up coming along too. But she had never been very interested in standing out, so she had been playing with the cute koi fish in the water until now, when she saw the competition and finally became interested, even feeling a bit eager.

“Miss, who do you think will win?” Xiao Wu stood beside Du Wan, her little face red with excitement. Seeing Meng Min light a incense stick to keep time, Zhang Yue pacing back and forth, and Zhang Ke sitting there contentedly, she clenched her tiny fist and muttered, “Judging by that guy’s look, he probably hasn’t figured it out yet. With her confidence, he’s bound to lose! He’s even the master’s student… Ugh, I’m dying of worry!”

Listening to Xiao Wu’s non-stop chatter, Du Wan couldn’t help but smile, but soon felt a hint of unease. Yet after that unease passed, she felt relieved—after all, she was just a bystander at this poetry contest; who won or lost had nothing to do with her.

“Xiao Wu, what does it matter to you who wins or loses? You look so nervous!”

“But isn’t he the master’s student? If he loses, won’t that embarrass the master too?”

Xiao Wu didn’t notice Du Wan’s brief hesitation. Watching the incense stick gradually burn down, seeing Zhang Ke already picking up a pen to write on paper while Zhang Yue was still pondering, she grew increasingly nervous and started looking around. Being naturally friendly and unconcerned with etiquette, she quickly spotted Amber and Qiu Hen over there. Remembering that they were maids brought by Zhang Yue, she quietly approached them.

“Sisters!”

Qiu Hen was staring intently at Zhang Yue, who was deep in thought, her heart pounding rapidly. Startled by the sudden voice, she smiled and asked, “Do you need something, sister?”

“It’s been so much time already—why hasn’t Young Master Zhang finished yet?”

Amber was also a bit worried. Seeing Qiuhen’s uneasy expression, she interjected with a smile, “Writing poetry is inherently a laborious task. In ancient times, Cao Zhi took seven steps to compose a poem—didn’t he only come up with the words on the seventh step? The incense hasn’t even burned out yet. Who knows if our young master already has something in mind and is deliberately not writing it down, waiting to jot it down at the last moment? After all, he has studied under Mr. Du for many years. Please tell Miss Du that this is just a small matter and there’s no need to worry.”

Xiao Wu approached then, partly out of curiosity and partly to gauge the situation. But before she could ask anything, her own identity was revealed. Feeling guilty, she glanced at Du Wan, but unwilling to back down, she stubbornly said, “Writing poetry and writing essays are two different things. Young Master Zhang is good at essays, but no one has heard him write poetry.”

Interrupted in this way, Qiuhen became less nervous and smiled, saying, “Most of the poems the young master writes are thrown into the trash can or burned. Of course, outsiders don’t know about them. I only remember two lines: ‘Falling petals are not heartless things; they turn into spring mud to nourish the flowers.’ In this situation, what’s tested is quick wit. One may not be able to come up with such lines, but they certainly won’t fall short.”

Though she only had a superficial understanding of poetry, repeating those two lines over and over calmed Xiao Wu down. She was naturally talkative, so she simply stood there chatting idly with Qiuhen and Amber, feeling no boredom, and gradually even forgot about the gambling match over there.

By now, the incense was almost gone. Zhang Ke had revised her poem several times and had already finished one. Seeing that the blank paper in Zhang Yue’s lap remained empty, she felt somewhat proud. Although she didn’t know what her father intended for her to challenge today, the thought of winning a precious sable fur coat and, upon returning, getting the set of purple clay teapots they had agreed on made her even happier. She was almost humming a tune.

As Zhang Ke’s poem was completed in one go, curious girls gathered around her, and some even recited it aloud: “Delicate branches sprout tender yellow leaves; they don’t envy the long-lasting splendor. They repay the spring morning by sharing their fragrance with all the flowers.”

“Truly unique!”
“Sister Ke is indeed a talented woman. Now it’s time to see Brother Yue’s work!”
“Yes, yes! The incense is about to run out. If Brother Yue doesn’t write now, he’ll automatically admit defeat!”

Amidst the chatter around her and a glance at Zhang Ke’s smug expression, seeing that only a tiny bit of incense remained, Zhang Yue finally went to his small table, dipped his brush in thick ink, and wrote swiftly.

“Green calyxes reflect the fragrant clouds; noble spirit hides within a golden soul. Its gentle scent reveals refined taste, coloring an entire season of spring.”
“What a way to color an entire season of spring!”
When the poem was completed, everyone praised it unanimously, especially Meng Fan and Meng Tao, who had been deeply engaged in thinking, shouting the loudest. Zhang Ke didn’t expect Zhang Yue to produce such a poem at the last moment; her pretty face turned as pale as a frostbitten eggplant. Unlike those laypeople, she believed that while poetry should be elegant and subtle, the most important aspect was its artistic conception. Even if she tried to manipulate the evaluation today, once the poem spread tomorrow, she would still lose.
Although she had the common flaw of being arrogant due to her talent, Zhang Ke wasn’t someone who couldn’t accept defeat. She had proposed this challenge under persuasion, and now, seeing Meng Min stand up to judge, she simply stood up and said with a smile, “Fourth Sister, there’s no need to judge. I lost this bet today. I accept my loss—this sheep-fat jade token belongs to Brother Yue. I’ve shown my limited skills today and hope my brothers and sisters won’t laugh at me.”
Zhang Yue didn’t care much about material possessions. He had initially thought Zhang Ke’s interest in his sable fur coat during the bet was suspicious, and he was quite annoyed. But now, seeing her admit defeat without waiting for a judgment and even speak in such a cheerful manner, he couldn’t tell whether she was deep-minded or straightforward.
As a maid brought over a tray with the sheep-fat jade token, he picked it up casually, feeling its smoothness and delicacy, realizing it was quite valuable. Since it was the prize for the bet, he didn’t refuse and put it in his bosom before returning to sit beside Zhang Qing. After sitting down, he saw Du Wan staring at him intently, so he returned a smile.
Xiao Wu had been sweating all along. Now, seeing Zhang Yue’s smiling face, he felt frustrated and muttered irritably beside Du Wan, “What’s there to be so proud of? It’s just a poem!”
At that moment, Du Wan was savoring those four lines of poetry, but her mind wandered to her father’s thick collection of poems she had found while packing for her mother. Her father hadn’t written poetry for many years. What would he think of Zhang Yue’s four lines?
Could poetry be a source of pleasure, but not something to rely on?

Of course, the one happiest about Zhang Yue’s success was Zhang Qing. As soon as Zhang Yue sat down, she smiled brightly and ordered Bao Xia to brew a pot of fresh tea, then poured it for Zhang Yue herself before praising, “Third brother, you’ve done well! This has really brought honor to me! Girl Ke is also quite a famous talented woman in Nanjing. Since she agreed to accept her loss this time, other families with daughters won’t try to outdo you in this regard either. Your marriage prospects will be much easier from now on.”

Zhang Yue found it fine at first, but when he realized Zhang Qing was once again steering the conversation back to marriage, he inwardly sighed. Just as he was thinking of finding some excuse to dissuade his elder sister from acting as a matchmaker, Zhang Qing leaned in slightly and whispered something.

“I saw that girl from the Du family go over and whisper with Qiuhen Amber for quite a while just now. You’re Du’s student, so this marriage arrangement actually makes sense. Tomorrow, when I go to the Du family to see Madam Du, I’ll definitely try to find out more for you.”