CHAPTER 307: CHAPTER 294: A FINE POEM

When County Magistrate Ma spoke, Ma Xiyue seemed to find her backbone, immediately uplifting her spirit and said, "Yes, a literary competition should naturally be about who has unparalleled talent, rather than resorting to these petty tricks unfit for the stage."

Dean Ying was displeased and accused Ma Xiyue, "When Teacher Yu suggested playing a small game, you already agreed. What now? Are you reneging because you lost? Can’t you handle losing?"

Ma Xiyue’s face alternated between pale and flushed, yet she stubbornly retorted, "Since Teacher Yu is a Ninth Grade academic, she must be extraordinarily talented.

If Teacher Yu dares to compete with me again, and I lose, I shall concede wholeheartedly to her from now on."

Dean Ying was about to say that no one would compete with her again since the contest was over when Yu Xiaolian interrupted, "What would we compete in? Composing poetry or matching couplets? You choose!"

In truth, Yu Xiaolian could completely ignore Ma Xiyue, but the excitement of their competition had drawn all the notable people in Luocheng. Yu Xiaolian also wanted to take this opportunity to make a name for herself, to show others that she was not only skilled in mathematics, but she excelled in everything!

Yu Xiaolian’s unwavering confidence caused Ma Xiyue to feel somewhat intimidated. If she lost again, it would be utterly embarrassing, bringing disgrace to her.

Ma Xiyue hesitated for a moment.

"Let’s compete in poetry composition. The sky is overcast, seemingly about to snow—let’s use the winter scene as the theme." County Magistrate Ma knew his daughter wasn’t good at matching couplets, so he hurriedly made the choice for her.

The reason for choosing the winter scene as the theme was because a few days ago, he had composed a poem about winter, which hadn’t yet been showcased to others for appreciation, but Ma Xiyue knew about this poem.

As Ma Xiyue exchanged glances with her father, she instantly understood his intention.

Recalling her father’s poetic skills, Ma Xiyue felt a sense of assured victory and secretly rejoiced within her heart.

Ah, she truly didn’t know many ancient winter poems, but having just one or two was enough to crush Ma Xiyue, so Yu Xiaolian promptly accepted, "Um... a winter scene theme is fine.

But if I win again, will you truly have nothing else to say?

After all, it’s quite cold outside, I’m dressed rather thinly, and I’m eager to go home."

Yu Xiaolian appeared to inquire, but in reality, she was mocking County Magistrate Ma and his daughter for being untrustworthy.

Of course, anyone present with any cultural knowledge could hear it, and everyone suppressed their laughter with their hands.

Suppressing their laughter was out of consideration for County Magistrate Ma as their local official; if it were another person, they would’ve been unable to resist a few sarcastic remarks long ago.

What kind of people are these? Not keeping their word. With such officials as parents, it truly is embarrassing.

Moreover, during last year’s food shortage, the government stores sold grain at high prices, and County Magistrate Ma paid no heed and took no action to stop it.

Later, the court issued a decree to cap grain prices to prevent high-priced sales, yet the grain prices in Luocheng didn’t go down. County Magistrate Ma and Jin Cangchang, banking on the fact that the imperial envoy hadn’t arrived yet, continued selling high-priced grain.

Selling overpriced grain was one thing, but they didn’t even distribute a single meal of porridge to the surrounding people, leading to many deaths in the area around Luocheng last year.

Among those who starved to death were relatives and friends of some present; they held a great deal of resentment towards County Magistrate Ma. Although they didn’t dare to overtly criticize him, they cursed him quietly until their mouths went dry.

County Magistrate Ma suppressed his anger, "Of course, this will be the final round.

As long as his daughter wins this round, it will be a tie between the two parties.

Even if it’s a tie, his daughter would still be victorious in spirit, winning through true talent and learning, which would be much more honorable than that absurd pot-throwing contest.

Yu Xiaolian looked towards Dean Ying, "Then let’s begin."

Upon hearing this, Dean Ying lit the prepared incense, "Use the time of one incense stick’s burning for thinking and composing. Before the incense burns out, please write your poems on paper for the judges’ review."

As Dean Ying finished speaking, two attendants brought over a desk and placed it in front of Yu Xiaolian, with paper, ink, brushes, and an inkstone on it.

Of course, Ma Xiyue had the same setup on her side.

As soon as the desk was set before Ma Xiyue, she immediately lifted her brush to dip in the ink. The ink was already ground by the attendants, and in just a moment, Ma Xiyue had finished writing.

Looking at Yu Xiaolian again, she was leisurely warming her hands with the hand warmer just handed to her by Sun Mancang.

A while passed, and Ma Xiyue glanced at the incense, seeing that half of it had burned away. Yu Xiaolian still showed no sign of starting to write, which reassured Ma Xiyue that Yu Xiaolian was merely a pretender who couldn’t compose poetry at all.

"Ahem..." Su Jingchen cleared his throat, reminding Yu Xiaolian, "Stop playing around!"