fake gentry

Xie Hong led Xi Zhong around a bend in the mountain, and suddenly the view opened up before them.

A waterfall cascades down directly in front of us, its force immense, resembling an inverted white rainbow, its roar like thunder.

Xi Zhong was full of praise and immediately ordered his servants to invite Xi Xuan and her brother to come and watch together. He also had several servants set up a display on a nearby boulder.

A layer of straw mat was laid on the stone, followed by a layer of silk reeling mat with colorful patterns. Then, two copper incense burners to repel mosquitoes were placed on top, and finally, dried fruit, dried meat, bread, and wine were laid out. The utensils were exquisite.

Xie Hong was utterly amazed.

This is what it means for aristocratic families to go on an outing.

This is just the basic version. The deluxe version would require a band, a dance troupe, and... umm umm umm.

Once everything was arranged, Xi Zhong invited Xie Hong to take his seat. Xie Hong didn't stand on ceremony and immediately took off his silk shoes and sat down. Then he winked at Liu Chong.

Liu Chong almost rolled his eyes.

"Chen San, go and prepare some wild rabbits that we caught yesterday. Skin and clean them, then put them in the spring. I will personally roast them tonight to serve with wine to Master Xi. Tell everyone not to disturb the distinguished guest. Go quickly."

Before long, Xi Xuan led Xi Yin over, and after exchanging greetings with Xie Hong, the four of them sat around on the rocks. Xi Xuan silently admired the waterfall, while Xi Zhong and Xie Hong continued to drink and talk. Xi Yin sat leaning against her older sister, her bright eyes constantly glancing back and forth between her older sister and Xie Hong. It was unclear what the little one was thinking.

Xi Zhong gazed at the distant waterfall and exclaimed in admiration, "Fengzhi, do you know the name of this waterfall? I have traveled all over Jiangzuo and have never seen such a magnificent and beautiful sight!"

It was around three or four in the afternoon. The waterfall was spraying water like pearls and jade under the sunlight, with mist spreading everywhere and a faint purple rainbow spanning across it. It was simply breathtaking.

Xie Hong has been getting tired of watching Ge Hong these past few days.

"Master Xi, this peak is called Incense Burner Peak, and the waterfall is Incense Burner Waterfall."

Xi Zhong nodded repeatedly: "Extremely apt. Feng Zhi can write a poem about her, or a poem about metaphysics, or a poem about wandering immortals."

Xie Hong almost spat out the wine he had just drunk.

The wine was Shanyin sweet wine, produced in Shanyin, Kuaiji. Xi Zhong specially used this wine to entertain Xie Hong, because Xie Hong was now living in Dongshan, Kuaiji. Xi Zhong knew how to cater to his tastes.

This stuff is actually just fermented rice water with a slight alcohol content, which Xie Hong drinks like water.

I can compose some kind of metaphysical poem or a wandering immortal poem.

The mainstream of poetry in this era consists of these two types: simply put, incorporating metaphysical philosophy and expounding on the thoughts of Laozi and Zhuangzi and Buddhist philosophy.

This is Xie Hong's weakness.

He knows a little about everything, but he's only a dabbler in everything.

In other words, he's absolutely good at flattering and bragging whenever he gets the chance, but when it comes to serious philosophical discussions and debates, he immediately falls apart.

But he couldn't show weakness at this time, because his mind was set on Lady Xi, and the way out for Liu Chong would depend on Lady Xi.

The more outstanding one is, the more weight one carries, the brighter Liu Chong's future will be, and the greater the help he will provide to one in the future.

After slowly finishing his drink, Xie Hong picked up a piece of dried meat and chewed it slowly, saying:

"Master Xi, I dislike Laozi and Zhuangzi, so why don't you compose a landscape poem?"

Xi Xuan almost burst out laughing. She glanced at him briefly with her beautiful eyes before looking down again.

Xi Yin chuckled and muttered to himself, "Laozi and Zhuangzi, grandson of Laozi and Zhuangzi."

Disciples of the aristocratic class who were good at metaphysical discussions had to be thoroughly familiar with Laozi, Zhuangzi, and the Book of Changes. The entire aristocratic class despised those who studied military strategy, and they would not admit that they had studied Sun Tzu's Art of War.

Xie Hong's story was so vivid and interesting that Xi Zhong couldn't stop laughing.

"I know that although the Xie family is a family of Confucian scholars, Xie Youyu turned Confucianism into metaphysics, but I did not know that Fengzhi also disliked metaphysical discussions. What is landscape poetry?"

"Ode to Mountains and Rivers"

"Phoenix often utters witty remarks; please compose them."

Xi Zhong looked at Xie Hong with anticipation in his eyes, probably wanting to see what kind of beautiful verses this young man from the Xie family could compose.

Xi Xuan was also looking at him. She was curious about the young man who could receive such a warm welcome from her clan elder.

Xie Hong stared at the waterfall in silence for a long while, muttering to himself.

Brother Li Bai, the immortal poet, please forgive me.

Then, in the elegant Luoyang dialect, she slowly recited: "The sun shines on the incense burner, producing purple smoke."

Xi Zhong's eyes lit up. Seven-character verse? Is this young man imitating Emperor Wen of the Jian'an era? Emperor Wen's Yan Ge Xing is a seven-character verse.

In just seven words, he clearly described the scene that he had been looking at for a long time but couldn't find a way to describe.

Xie Hong continued reciting: "From afar, the waterfall hangs before the river."

"The word 'hang' is well used," Xi Zhong nodded, pondering the word.

"The waterfall plunges three thousand feet."

Even Xi Yin fell silent upon hearing this.

What kind of imposing presence is "three thousand feet"?

The waterfall plunges straight down from the clouds with unstoppable force.

Xi Xuan stared at Xie Hong with her mouth slightly open.

"It seems as if the Milky Way has fallen from the ninth heaven."

The last sentence says, "That's not a waterfall on earth, it's a galaxy in the sky."

Xi Zhong stared blankly at Xie Hong, and sighed deeply: "Indeed, this is the ultimate in praising mountains and rivers. Feng Zhi's four lines of poetry should be engraved on the stone wall of Mount Lu so that future generations can recite them."

Xie Hong returned the greeting with a cupped hand, appearing humble but feeling somewhat shy inside.

Does this count as plagiarism?

Xi Xuan knelt silently to the side, staring blankly into the distance as if her soul had wandered off into the distance. For a moment, no one spoke.

Xi Zhong clapped his hands and laughed, "Today, having encountered Feng Zhi and heard such a wonderful poem, how could I not play the zither? My daughter, I shall repay him with the zither!"

Xi Xuan's eyelids twitched slightly, and she softly instructed the middle-aged maid standing beside her to fetch the zither.

Before long, a maid brought over a zither case, and another strong servant brought over a zither stand.

Xi Xuan stood up, took the zither, and opened the zither case. Xie Hong's gaze involuntarily fell on the zither.

The entire body of the instrument is dark ochre with a lustrous lacquer finish and subtle crackle patterns. There is a palm-sized scorch mark at the tail end, and the lacquer color is darker than the rest of the instrument.

The tuning pegs were made of jade, which looked warm and smooth like cream. The strings were made of twisted silk, which shimmered with a faint light.

Xie Hong's gaze was fixed on the zither and he couldn't look away.

"Lord Xi, this zither... could it be the Jiao Wei?"

Xi Zhong laughed heartily, his voice filled with undisguised pride: "Feng Zhi is indeed exceptionally refined, to recognize this zither. That's right, this is the Jiao Wei zither."

Xie Hong's heart trembled violently.

It really is a Jiao Wei Qin!

It is one of the four famous zithers in ancient China.

When Cai Wenji's father, Cai Yong, was taking refuge in Wuzhong, he heard someone burning paulownia wood to cook. The paulownia wood in the fire made a crisp cracking sound. He rushed in and snatched out the charred paulownia wood, which he then chopped into a zither. The tail of the zither still had the charred marks, hence the name "Jiaowei" (Charred Tail).

After Cai Yong's death, the whereabouts of the Jiao Wei Qin (焦尾琴) were the subject of much speculation. Unexpectedly, it was found at the foot of Mount Lu, held in the arms of a young girl.

Xi Xuan sat down at the zither, first tuning the strings, then looked up at Xie Hong with slightly upturned eyelashes: "Young Master Xie just recited the Lushan Waterfall, so I will play a tune of High Mountains and Flowing Water to reciprocate your fine verses."

Xie Hong's heart skipped a beat.

Do we seek kindred spirits amidst towering mountains and flowing water?

The sound of a zither then began.

Xie Hong has heard many versions of "High Mountains and Flowing Water," but Xi Xuan's version should be the original, right?

Xi Xuan pressed her left middle finger on the fifth fret, while her right index and middle fingers alternately flicked the strings. The sound of the zither suddenly became rapid, like a stream falling from a height. Then her left hand slid down from the fifth fret to the seventh fret, and then to the ninth fret, and the sound of the zither changed from passionate to deep.

As she hooked the two strings with her right index and thumb and gently released them, the sound of the open strings lingered in the forest for a long time.

The music ended.

Xi Xuan removed her hands from the strings, the mountain wind ruffling the stray hairs at her temples, making her look like a solitary orchid in a secluded valley.

Xie Hong stood up and bowed deeply to her: "Young lady, your music is exquisite."

Xi Zhongman said with a smug look: "Fengzhi, I'm not bragging, but my daughter is a master of both calligraphy and music. She has been learning the zither since she was a child. She could play Guangling San at the age of ten and Hujia Shibapai at the age of twelve. Jiaowei is not a waste of Cai Zhonglang's legacy in her hands."

Xie Hong had nothing more to say. Historically, Xi Xuan was known as the "female calligraphy master," so her calligraphy was naturally top-notch, and she lived to be ninety years old.

Upon returning from this journey, he should be planning to marry Wang Xizhi of the Langya Wang clan.

Xi Zhong's smile suddenly held a hint of mischief: "Since Feng Zhi can appreciate the zither, she must be able to play it too, right?"

Xie Hong quickly bowed slightly: "I know a little bit about it."

Xi Zhong laughed heartily and turned to Xi Xuan, saying, "My daughter, you may observe Master Xie's appearance."

Xie Hong...

That doesn't sound very proper.