The vermillion color of the imperial palace was uninterrupted and never-ending. Sunlight passed through the silk curtains painted with swirling cloud patterns, falling on the gentle face of the youth inside the Shui Pavilion.
The youth was dressed in a light-colored, crane-patterned broadcloth. His skin is as white as porcelain, and his eyebrows are as beautiful as paintings after sitting behind the desk. The thick and slender eyelashes wrapped around his pair of shiny black eyes, gently drooping, casting two crescent-shaped shallow shadows on the bridge of his pretty nose. His black hair was tied back with a jade belt, tightly attached to the soft silk brocade, hanging down from the shoulders and neck all the way to the waist.
His graceful bearing and crane-like behaviors are in perfect harmony.
There is constant jubilation outside the Shui Pavilion. The youth, however, turned a deaf ear to it, lowered his eyes, and focused on reading the book in his hands.
“Your Highness.”
The advisors, Gongsun Yang and Fan Zhou, entered the Shui Pavilion together.
Gongsun Yang smiled and said, “Today, the Liushang Banquet is a showcase for all famous scholars and officials from all over the world to show their skills. Won’t Your Highness go and take a look?”
Sitting behind the curtain was Jiang Yun, the Crown Prince of the Jiang Empire, who is famous all over the world and has recruited countless subordinates under him. He was also one of the “Four Young Princes of the Southern Kingdoms,” whose reputation is well known in the southern countries.
This time he came to the Chen Kingdom because he was invited by the Chen Kingdom’s Guozhu to attend the annual Liushang Banquet.
This is a grand event for the six nations in Jiangnan. The attendees of the banquet are all famous officials and aristocratic children of the six nations. The main purpose is to use the name of learning and exchange views of the Confucian Six Arts1六艺 or Liù Yì is the Confucian Six Arts, namely rites or etiquette 礼, music 乐, archery 射, charioteering 御, calligraphy or literacy 书, and mathematics 数.from each other to connect the emotions of the six nations of Jiangnan, so that all nations can join forces to resist the increasingly powerful Sui Empire in the north.
Jiang Yun had never been interested in such high-profile things and shook his head lightly.
Gongsun Yang and Fan Zhou secretly thought it was a pity.
The “Four Young Princes of the Southern Kingdoms,” including Wei Yun, the Crown Prince of Wei, who was known for his “appearance,” Luo Fengjun, the Crown Prince of Luo, who was known for his “music,” Chen Qi, the Prince of Chen, who was known for his “literature,” and Jiang Yun, the Crown Prince of Jiang, who was known for his “virtue.”
Among the six kingdoms in Jiangnan, the other five remaining kingdoms are all subordinate to the Jiang Empire.
The “Four Young Princes” were jointly elected by famous scholars from various countries. Although their rankings are not divided, compared to the other three young princes who won either by their appearance, musical or writing talents, the word “virtue” of their own highness, more or less, seems to be a bit vague. It’s as if there are no other talents that can be held in high regard other than character.
As a loyal advisor, Gongsun Yang is very concerned about his own Highness.
Because he knew that, in addition to his well-known good character, his country’s Highness’s appearance, literary talent, and even musical talent were not the least inferior to the other three young princes.
Only because his own Highness is low-key and others are too high-profile, he never stands out at major gatherings such as the Liushang Banquet and was only given a lukewarm “virtue” rating!
Even some unscrupulous individuals who do not know the inside story secretly claim that his Highness’s title as the “Young Prince of Virtue” was given because famous scholars from various countries can’t directly brush off the Jiang Empire, which was the Sovereign country, so they reluctantly add it to make up the number. If the four young princes really wanted to talk about strength, it’s still up to the three young princes, Rong2Appearance, Le3Music, and Wen4Literature.
Especially the young Prince of Music, Luo Fengjun, and the young Prince of Literature, Chen Qi. If beauty is blessed by heaven and it carries elements of luck, then exquisite music skills and literacy skills require real effort. They take ten or even dozens of years of hard work and research to obtain, they cannot be obtained through a false reputation like “virtue.”
In contrast, his Highness, who is the “Young Prince of Virtue,” looks more like an addition to the list!
“First place in the music competition, the Crown Prince of the Luo Kingdom, Luo Fengjun!”
With an announcement, cheers came from outside the Shui Pavilion once again.
According to the Confucian Six Arts of the Nobles, the Liushang Banquet consists of six categories of competitions. It can be said that there is no doubt that Luo Fengjun can win the first prize in “music.”
It’s just that Luo Fengjun is aloof and proud, he is also the Crown Prince of the Luo Kingdom. Normally, it would be harder than going to heaven for these nobles or officials to hear him play a song, so even though they knew the result early, the guests were still very excited!
But Gongsun Yang muttered to Fan Zhou quietly, “I think His Highness can play this ‘Introduction to Wutong’ better.”
On the jade platform, Luo Fengjun, who was dressed in white, stood up proudly while holding the zither, his gaze casually sweeping over the surroundings. In addition to his musical skills, his appearance was also very outstanding. The crowd’s praise and pursuit were as common as eating and drinking water for him. He didn’t pay much attention to it, and he didn’t even bother to look at them straight. His gaze fell directly on the only Shui Pavilion with curtains hanging. He smiled lightly and asked, “What does Your Highness think of Fengjun’s song?”
The judges for the Liushang Banquet were composed of famous scholars from various countries. Jiang Yun, as the Crown Prince of the sovereign country and also one of the four princes on par with Luo Fengjun, was not included in the judge’s list. Luo Fengjun’s hasty questioning immediately drew everyone’s attention to the pavilion where Jiang Yun was located.
The silk curtains hung low, and everyone could only see a blurry shadow from outside.
Gongsun Yang, who had a hot temper, was the first to frown. His Highness is the Crown Prince of the sovereign country, his status is noble. While he was just a young Crown Prince from a subordinate country, how dare he offend His Highness in public like this? It was extremely rude.
The second person to frown is Jiang Yun.
He had tried his best to avoid getting involved in these boring fights, but he didn’t expect to be forcibly dragged in.
This Luo Fengjun is well-known outside and has a high reputation among the countries in Jiangnan. As a Crown Prince of virtue, he cannot ignore him.
Gongsun Yang was about to scold him, but Jiang Yun raised his hand to stop him.
Jiang Yun put down his book and answered succinctly through the curtains, “This piece of music by the Crown Prince Luo has cleared Gu’s mind. It’s like hearing the immortal musical, worthy of being number one.”
Jiang Yun is proficient in music theory. When Luo Fengjun played just now, he naturally listened to the whole process of the “Introduction to Wutong.” From a professional point of view, Luo Fengjun’s playing was indeed impeccable, even far better than that of many of the world’s oldest music masters.
It is a beautiful thing to receive such an evaluation from the Crown Prince of the sovereign country.
The crowd on the stands immediately praised and boasted again, congratulating Luo Fengjun, and some even proposed to record this matter as a beautiful story.
Unexpectedly, Luo Fengjun remained motionless, and instead, continued to gaze at the silk curtains hanging outside the Shui Pavilion and said, “I have long heard that Your Highness is also proficient in music. At the age of eleven, Your Highness became famous in the Jiang capital with your song ‘Feng Qiu Huang’. Today is a grand banquet. Would Your Highness consent to compete with Fengjun?”
As soon as these words were spoken, everyone was in an uproar.
First of all, Jiang Yun is the Crown Prince of the sovereign country, and Luo Fengjun has repeatedly provoked him, which is actually a provocation to one’s superior.
Secondly, since a long time ago, Jiang Yun has almost always been an invisible person at the Liushang Banquet. Due to his weak physique, preference for quietness, and [no particularly outstanding talents], His Highness spent almost the entire time in the Shui Pavilion with windproof curtains, never participating in any competition activities, and rarely showing his face in front of people.
It is said that even among his subordinates, there are not many who have seen the true appearance of this Crown Prince.
Because of this, there are even rumors that the Crown Prince was too ashamed to show his true face due to his ugly appearance and could only rely on his so-called virtue character to persuade others and gain a reputation for being a courteous person.
There are mixed speculations about the Crown Prince’s refusal to showcase his talents at the Liushang Banquet.
Some people say that this Crown Prince is really uncontroversial and acts in a low-key manner, unwilling to steal the spotlight from his subordinate countries. Others say that this Crown Prince has no talent due to his mediocre qualifications and is afraid of losing in the competition and being crushed by his subordinate countries. Thus, he simply “hides his foolishness” to maintain the appearance of the sovereign country.
As for the release of the world-famous “Feng Qiu Huang” at the age of eleven, it is likely to build his reputation while having someone else play on his behalf! The founder of “Feng Qiu Huang” was Marquis Duan of Qi, he was praised as a musical genius that has been difficult to emerge for a century. Once the song “Feng Qiu Huang” was released, it attracted countless musicians to study and imitate it. However, after so many years, no one has been able to perfectly present its essence. The only one who scored a few points in true transmission was Marquis Duan’s son, Qi Ziqi, the Young Master of Qi. How could a mere eleven-year-old play a tune as difficult as “Feng Qiu Huang?”
Luo Fengjun is a musical genius, and his musical talent is well known around the world. At this moment, he publicly provokes Jiang Yun, who has mediocre talent. Isn’t it clear that he is going to embarrass the Crown Prince?
The ministers accompanying him from the Luo Kingdom were first startled and quickly approached to dissuade him.
But Luo Fengjun clearly had made up his mind and remained unmoved, his gaze still fixed on where Jiang Yun was. Gongsun Yang couldn’t help but get angry and said, “The Crown Prince Luo, do you know what you’re doing?”
Luo Fengjun slowly and calmly replied, “Naturally, I know. Fengjun has admired His Highness for a long time and has long wanted to find an opportunity to compete with him. Fengjun knows that I am in a low position and does not have the qualifications to challenge His Highness. However, the Liushang Banquet is a grand event for the six countries in Jiangnan. At the beginning of its establishment, it was stated that talent was to be considered regardless of status. Your Highness refuses to condescend, could it be that you look down on Fengjun and think that Fengjun is not worthy to be on the same stage as Your Highness? Or does Your Highness feel that we, the subordinate countries, are not worthy of competing on the same stage with the sovereign country?”
Fan Zhou, who had a calm personality, also revealed a dissatisfied look.
In his heart, what an eloquent Luo Fengjun used the name of Liushang Banquet to provoke His Highness. On the surface, the Liushang Banquet is a gathering of the six countries to have a competition of talents, but as everyone knows, it is more of a banquet to maintain the alliance of the countries. As the Crown Prince of the sovereign country, His Highness has the responsibility to maintain the alliance. If he publicly rejects Lou Fengjun’s request, it would seem like he was really looking down on his subordinate countries, which would be extremely unfavorable to the Six Nations Alliance.
And right now, the Sui Empire is sharpening its troops and horses, watching them intently…
Luo Fengjun’s words aroused concerns from many other subordinate countries. Plus, some of the watchers who were curious about this mysterious Crown Prince of the Jiang Empire had been watching the show for a long time. They also wanted to use Luo Fengjun’s hands to unveil the mysterious veil of this Crown Prince and see how ugly, shallow, and uneducated this Crown Prince is, so they all stood by and even implicitly looked forward to it.
After all, the one who stepped forward was Luo Fengjun, and even if he did end up offending the Jiang Empire, he couldn’t descend on anyone else.
The scene froze for a moment, and just as Gongsun Yang and Fan Zhou were both feeling anxious, behind the curtains, the beautiful voice that sounded like a jade falling echoed again:
“It’s not as Crown Prince Luo said.”
“It’s because Gu neglected the skills, the five tones have been degraded, and Gu can no longer play any music.”
“Gu admit defeat.”
Gongsun Yang and Fan Zhou stunned at the same time.
In public, in front of so many subordinate countries, His Highness directly admitted defeat to the son of a subordinate country. This is inappropriate!
Other countries also have different expressions.
Unexpectedly, the Crown Prince of the Jiang Empire was as rumored, with mediocre qualifications and a lack of proficiency in the Confucian Six Arts. Even Wei Yun, the Crown Prince of the Wei Kingdom, who is famous for his beauty, was also skilled in calligraphy and painting.
The rumor of him being ugly must also be true!
