In fact, as the principal of Rongcheng No.1 High School, Wu Chuan’s status was not much lower than Sun Shiyi’s. However, in the field of classical poetry, he felt that his cultivation was worlds apart from Sun Shiyi. It was precisely because of this reason that Wu Chuan held Sun Shiyi in high regard, especially in the field of poetry.
Wu Chuan, upon hearing Sun Shiyi’s call, hurried over and said with a smile, "President Sun, what’s the matter?"
Sun Shiyi’s face showed a hint of helplessness, "What’s the matter? It’s really infuriating! In this land of abundance, what kind of poems are being produced now... They are so poor that they will make people laugh out loud."
Wu Chuan said, "It’s not that bad, right? Our level in the field of ancient poetry has always been quite high. It won’t be bad this year, will it?"
Sun Shiyi said helplessly, "It’s precisely because it has been good in previous years. If there’s nothing good this year, people will definitely mock us. Moreover, I just heard that Jiangnan Province has produced a few geniuses, very talented. Yanjing also has some hidden treasures, and even Nanyun seems to have a very capable person. I don’t want to lose face."
Wu Chuan nodded, understanding Sun Shiyi’s concerns.
This poetry competition, which was organized by province, often sparked a competitive spirit among the provinces.
In recent years, the traditional strong provinces in poetry have mainly been Tianfu in the southwest, Jiangnan to the east, and Beizhili Yanjing to the north. However, this year’s harvest seems to be poor.
"By the way, why are you here? Show me what you have in your hand," Sun Shiyi said to Wu Chuan.
Wu Chuan said, "Oh, I was just about to tell you. I just got a poem and a ci from one of our students. I brought them over today for you to see, hoping he can participate in this ancient poetry competition."
"Your student?" Sun Shiyi frowned, "Isn’t that high school? A high school student can’t write good poetry, can they?"
Although writing poetry and ci requires talent, it also needs deep literary cultivation, which can only be accumulated over time to better highlight this talent.
Nowadays, high school students might be able to write naturally unadorned poetry, but they often lack depth, so Sun Shiyi wasn’t very enthusiastic.
Wu Chuan didn’t explain but said, "Just take a look."
Sun Shiyi nodded and looked at the paper Wu Chuan handed him.
"Twilight at Guizhou."
Seeing the title of the poem, Sun Shiyi didn’t have much feeling. After reading the entire poem and savoring it, he sighed, "This is well-written! Very good indeed."
Wu Chuan said with a hint of pride, "Isn’t it? I told you."
"Really very good, he can be a seed candidate," Sun Shiyi said with a smile. "The lines 'The cold wind at the end of the apple blossoms, the light smoke over the treetops half enveloping the dike' are truly brilliant! It doesn’t seem like something a high school student could write. You didn’t write it for him, did you?"
Wu Chuan waved his hands, "What are you talking about? If it were me, why would I go through all this trouble? I could just say it’s mine. But, Brother Sun, take a look at the next ci."
"Okay." Sun Shiyi was already fully interested. Although he was well-versed, a high school student writing such poetry was still surprising to him.
While thinking this, he looked at the next ci.
"Ode to the Waves at Beidaihe."
"From poetry to ci... This kid really has some talent," Sun Shiyi thought. "But I wonder how this ci is."
Although many people are proficient in both poetry and ci, most can only excel in one. After all, with thousands of years of Chinese poetry history, each field is enough to study for a lifetime.
The first line, "Heavy rain falls on Youyan, white waves surge to the sky!"
"Such a grand momentum!" A ci can be finely crafted in terms of word choice, but the momentum is often naturally revealed.
These two lines instantly impressed Sun Shiyi.
"Fish boats outside Qinhuangdao, the vast ocean unseen, where have they gone?"
The grandeur of Beidaihe was vividly portrayed, stirring Sun Shiyi’s emotions and igniting the blood in his chest.
"Past events span a thousand years, Cao Cao wielded his whip, facing Jieshi with a legacy. The bleak autumn wind blows again, but the world has changed!"
From the scenery to the commentary, the blood in his chest, which had been slowly ignited, suddenly turned into a raging fire!
This was a refreshing reading experience!
The grandeur of Beidaihe in late summer and early autumn, and the broad-mindedness of the poet, instantly struck Sun Shiyi’s mind!
Deep and resonant like the sound of a thousand mountains, vast and surging like a thousand acres of waves!
Sun Shiyi couldn’t bear to put down the ci. After reading it three times, he slowly looked up and said, "This was written by your student?"
"Yes, a senior student about to graduate!" Wu Chuan, seeing Sun Shiyi’s expression, knew he was also impressed, and couldn’t help but feel proud.
"A high school student, with such momentum!" Sun Shiyi shook his head in admiration. "I feel like I’ve wasted twenty years of studying poetry."
Wu Chuan said, "Actually, I had the same thought before... But after careful consideration, writing poetry and ci is different from writing articles. It requires more talent and passion, which can’t be cultivated."
Sun Shiyi nodded in agreement, "You’re right. It seems this Li Chencan is talented. I’ll take both the poem and the ci! You’re really a timely rain, bringing me 'Ode to the Waves at Beidaihe.' Now, let’s see who can still laugh at us for having no talent in Shu!"
Wu Chuan said happily, "Then I’ll leave it to you. I also hope that Li Chencan’s poem and ci can receive the recognition they deserve."
"Rest assured."
Li Chencan, upon learning from Yu Feng that his ancient poetry had been selected to represent Tianfu, felt a mix of emotions, but not too much.
The college entrance examination was approaching day by day. Although the imperial college entrance examination wasn’t as terrifying as the one in the previous life, it was still an important standard for evaluating a student’s years of study.
Li Chencan silently encouraged himself. He needed to pass the college entrance examination to reassure his parents and to gain greater glory. With his doubled intelligence and photographic memory, achieving these goals shouldn’t be too difficult.
The class teacher, Zuo Hong, and Li Dong, a classmate, were also working hard. Recently, Li Dong had been in seclusion, determined to defeat Li Chencan in the ultimate showdown of the college entrance examination!
As the college entrance examination approached, Ye Huanxue also worked hard every day. Even during breaks, the classroom was rarely noisy. The light filtered through the windows, and dust particles danced in the air. Everything made Li Chencan feel as if he had returned to his own time, preparing for the college entrance examination.
In that year at eighteen, he didn’t get into college... and then began a tumultuous life, a life of wandering.
In this life, he couldn’t let that happen again...