Chapter Ten: Man and Dog!
The speaker was none other than Dai Chunlin, son of Dai Shunde, the Assistant Prefect of Luozhou. Upon hearing his words, everyone felt he had a point; after all, the Lantern Festival came every year, and hiring someone in advance to compose poems meant that even if they weren’t used this year, they could be saved for the next. There would always be a need.
Dai Chunlin, hearing voices of agreement among the crowd, felt a surge of pride. Li Yi glanced over his shoulder at Dai Chunlin, noticing his exchange of looks with Li Zihao, and immediately understood. However, Li Yi paid him no mind and continued his writing.
Dai Chunlin, seeing that Li Yi didn’t respond, assumed he had struck a nerve, and grew even more smug. “What’s the matter? Did I hit the mark? Are you afraid? If you knew this would happen, why bother in the first place? Young men ought to be practical, not indulge in deception and lose face for nothing. Stop now! How dare you keep writing!”
Li Yi, without turning his head, replied as he wrote, “Young man? What’s wrong with being young? Does youth mean one cannot compose fine verse? Are you not a young man yourself? Thirty years east of the river, thirty years west—never underestimate the poor youth. Are you so certain this poem isn’t my own?”
“That’s right! How could the talent of my cousin Wen Yong be judged by narrow-minded people like you?” Li Xueyan exclaimed indignantly.
Jiang Lichen looked at Dai Chunlin with contempt. “Hmph! Judging a noble heart with a petty mind!”
Even Li Zixuan chimed in, “A disgrace to scholarship!”
Seeing the situation slip beyond his control, Dai Chunlin glanced subtly at Li Zihao. When Li Zihao nodded, Dai Chunlin straightened himself with forced bravado. “Hmph! Words alone mean nothing! Unless he can compose another poem on a topic I choose, I won’t be convinced!”
“And if I do compose another, what then?” Li Yi had just finished writing and turned to fix Dai Chunlin with his gaze.
Dai Chunlin, now riding a tiger he couldn’t dismount, blustered with more boldness than certainty. “If you can compose a fine poem on my chosen topic, I’ll admit this poem is yours, and from now on I’ll follow your lead as you command. But if you fail—hmph! I happen to need a servant, and you look fit enough!”
“Just don’t regret it later. Set your topic,” Li Yi replied with a calm smile.
“Wen Yong?” Li Xueyan grew anxious when Li Yi agreed, worried that if he couldn’t answer, Dai Chunlin could be dealt with, but Li Yi’s reputation would be ruined.
Li Yi motioned for her not to worry; it wasn’t arrogance, but the confidence of a man bearing a thousand years of culture. If he lacked even this courage, he’d be unworthy of his journey across time.
“Dai Chunlin, if you dare cross the line, I’ll make you regret it for life!” At last, Li Xueyan revealed the bearing of a princess, clearly enraged.
Upon hearing her threat, Dai Chunlin panicked and glanced at Li Zihao. Suddenly, as if struck by inspiration, his demeanor changed, and he spoke with renewed confidence. “Since the root of this is doubt over your talent, prove it to us. Any scholar can compose a couplet; lately I’ve taken an interest in palindrome poems. I won’t make it too hard—compose a palindrome poem on scenery.”
“Dai Chunlin, you’ve gone too far! It’s hard enough to compose a poem in such a short time, and now you want Wen Yong to write a palindrome poem? Watch your head—I’ll get to the bottom of this today!” Li Xueyan’s anger had turned to cold fury, and she was filled with guilt, thinking all this had happened because of her. Had she not insisted Li Yi attend yesterday, none of this would have occurred.
Li Yi smiled gently at Li Xueyan, then regarded Dai Chunlin. “The longer I deal with people, the more I like dogs—they’re always dogs, while people sometimes aren’t. I never believed that saying, but seeing you, I do now!”
“Pfft!” As soon as Li Yi finished, laughter broke out all around, though most stifled it upon seeing Dai Chunlin’s livid face, mindful of the Assistant Prefect’s reputation. Li Xueyan and her friends, however, laughed freely and heartily.
“Hmph! All talk! Are you just stalling for time?”
This time, Li Yi didn’t respond. He turned, picked up his brush, and wrote on the wall:
“Oriole sings, willows on the bank stir spring’s clear night, moon shines bright.
Fragrant lotus, emerald water moves with cool winds, summer days long.
Autumn river, Chu geese rest on sandy isles, shallow waters flow.
Red furnace, glowing embers roast cold winds, winter’s chill endured.”
Dai Chunlin was flustered at first when Li Yi actually wrote, but upon seeing the poem, he sneered. “Hmph! So you admit defeat? Don’t think a ten-character poem can fool me. I asked for a palindrome poem!”
“I wasn’t wrong about you—no matter how complex your features, they can’t hide your simple mind! You can’t even read a poem; I truly wonder if you know what a palindrome poem is. Let me teach you how to read one, but don’t tell anyone you’re my student—I couldn’t bear the shame! Listen well, I’ll recite one for you!”
Dai Chunlin’s face darkened again, but this time he was wise enough not to retort, finally realizing that in a battle of words, Li Yi could roast him till smoke poured from his ears.
Li Yi cleared his throat and recited aloud:
“Oriole sings, willows on the bank stir spring’s clear night,
Willows on the bank stir spring’s clear night, moon shines bright.
Moon shines bright, clear night of spring stirs the willows,
Clear night of spring stirs the willows, bank sings oriole.”
---
A gasp echoed around as Li Yi finished reciting.
“Is this… are these four poems? Yes! Four palindrome poems!”
“Exactly! The second should be: Fragrant lotus, emerald water moves with cool winds, summer days long.
Emerald water moves with cool winds, summer days long.
Long summer days, cool winds move the water,
Cool winds move the water, emerald lotus fragrant.”
“Autumn river, Chu geese rest on sandy isles, shallow waters flow.
Chu geese rest on sandy isles, shallow waters flow.
Shallow waters flow, sandy isles rest Chu geese,
Sandy isles rest Chu geese, autumn river.”
“Red furnace, glowing embers roast cold winds, winter’s chill endured.
Glowing embers roast cold winds, winter’s chill endured.
Winter’s chill endured, cold winds roast glowing embers,
Cold winds roast glowing embers, red furnace.”
“Heavens! Four palindrome poems, composed in such a short time, each one exquisite! Together, they form a quartet for the four seasons, and even aside from their palindromic quality, their literary merit is outstanding! Such talent at such a young age, and so swiftly composed—an extraordinary prodigy, a genius for the ages!” An elderly man in the crowd sighed with admiration, as if lamenting his own era had passed.
Dai Chunlin was now pale as a corpse, his mind completely frozen. If Li Yi were an ordinary person, perhaps he could bluff his way through, but with Li Xueyan present, he knew he was doomed.
As the crowd’s attention was elsewhere, Li Yi slipped away from the wall of poems, joined by Jiang Lichen, Li Zixuan, Li Xueyan, and the ever-silent Li Zihan.
Li Xueyan grabbed Li Yi’s arm, about to speak, but he stopped her.
Li Yi called Jiang Lichen over, whispered a few instructions, then strode to Dai Chunlin and said, “If your mind is idle, fill it with something—don’t let it be as empty as water. You don’t even realize you’re being used; being a beast of burden is one thing, but I haven’t the time to train you. This is my brother Jiang Lichen—if you please him, we’re square.”
With that, Li Yi ignored Dai Chunlin’s response, quickly leading Li Xueyan and the others away. This place was already fraught with trouble and best left behind. As for Li Zihao, now was not the time to deal with him. How Jiang Lichen would handle Dai Chunlin was not Li Yi’s concern; a leader needn’t trouble himself with such matters.
The group hurried downstairs, retrieved their horses, and departed, only stopping at a secluded spot.
“Wen Yong, about today—”
“Hey! He’s him, you’re you! You and I are brothers; what does he matter? Why blame yourself?”
“Thank you.”
“No need for that!”
“Wen Yong, sorry!” Li Zihan apologized, followed by Li Xueyan.
“What’s with all of you? Why are you all so eager to apologize to me? Haha! It’s nothing! For me, this is just a small bump on the road of life—who hasn’t stepped in dog muck once or twice?”
“Pfft! Always so irreverent. But Wen Yong, you’re so talented, and even if your words are strange—not very refined—they feel so right!” Li Xueyan burst into giggles, gazing at Li Yi with adoration, making him blush for once.
“Brother Li!” Just then, Li Zixuan, who had been silent, called out.
“Hold it! You’re not going to apologize too, are you?”
“Ah! No, not at all. I wanted to ask where he went?”
“He? Who?”
Li Yi didn’t catch on at first, then slapped his forehead and exclaimed, “Oh! You mean… who?”
“Brother Li!” Li Zixuan’s face was crimson, her head so low it nearly touched her chest.
“Haha! Alright, I’ll stop teasing! I sent Lichen to collect the money from Dai Chunlin.”
“Collect money? What money?” Li Xueyan was puzzled.
---
“Haha! Compensation, of course. Did you really think I’d make him my servant? He may not mind the shame, but I do! Arguing with fools makes it hard for others to tell who’s the real fool, so I let him pay a little to avoid disaster, and consider it a dowry for someone!”
“Hmph! He got off easy! Wait—dowry? For whom?”
“Rest assured, not for you!”
Li Xueyan’s face turned ghostly pale. Seeing her expression, Li Yi realized his mistake and quickly clarified, “Where’s your mind going? Since Lichen is collecting the money, it’s for him. You tell me, whose dowry is it for?”
Only then did Li Xueyan recover, her cheeks burning with embarrassment. “Hmph! Give it to whoever you like, it’s got nothing to do with me! Hmm… Brother Lichen’s dowry, is it for… ah!”
“Brother Li! I won’t speak to you anymore!” Li Zixuan, catching on, blushed even deeper, nearly dripping with embarrassment.
“What are you all talking about? I don’t understand—who is Jiang Lichen?” Li Zihan asked, baffled.
“Haha, even now you’re shy!” Li Yi teased Li Xueyan, then explained Jiang Lichen’s story to Li Zihan.
He then turned to Li Zixuan and said, “Zixuan, though I’m Lichen’s older brother, I’m yours too. I brought Lichen to you because I thought you two might be compatible. I don’t want you to miss a good match over material concerns. Still, that’s just my view. Happiness is yours to decide—only your own feet know if the shoes fit. This isn’t the time to be shy; a woman’s biggest matter in life is to marry well. The opportunity is before you; don’t worry about anything else. If you think Lichen isn’t for you, tell me—I’ll speak to him, and I promise he won’t trouble you again. But if you find him even a little agreeable, give him a chance! All up to your heart.”
“Yes, sister! Wen Yong is right! I haven’t met this Jiang Lichen, but I trust your and Wen Yong’s judgment. If you like him, say so—we’ll help you! Do you want Father to marry you off to someone you don’t know?”
Li Zixuan’s embarrassment faded, and after some thought, she said, “I don’t want Father to arrange my marriage with a stranger, but I don’t know Jiang Lichen well, and I’m not sure if I like him.”
Li Yi smiled, “Don’t rush—such a lifelong matter can’t be hurried! I just wanted to give you a friendly reminder; as long as you know your own heart, that’s enough.”
Li Xueyan nodded in understanding.
“Wen Yong, what about me?” Li Xueyan somehow appeared before Li Yi, asking sweetly.
“What about you?”
“You know what I mean.”
“Ahem! Lichen’s trouble is just an Assistant Prefect, but your family’s a big boss. I’m not strong enough yet—let’s talk about it later.”
“Then I’ll wait for you!”
“Ahem! Well, Lichen’s probably waiting for me at the inn. I’ll go now! Tomorrow, I’ll visit you at the Prefect’s mansion!” With that, Li Yi mounted his horse and galloped away.
“There he goes again! Always leaving just like that—hmph, Wen Yong!”