Chapter 816: The Storm Rages, Refining True Gold!

t was the bandits who killed him, we helped bury him! There is no reward for kindness, and now you're biting back! I should have left you all alone and let the wolves eat the corpse!"Li Lao'er and Li...Meow Ge'er smiled and greeted, not hiding it at all.

"Mr. Hui, over the past few years, students have often traveled outside and written down their experiences as travelogues to earn some money for ink and paper."

This poem was written on a snowy plateau during winter, inspired by the moment.

Before Mr. Mo Mei could speak, one of the elderly gentlemen said, "Oh, young friend, are you Jia Fei I've read two of your travelogues, they're very good!"

"Just one thing, I've always been curious about the special meaning behind your pen name, Xiaoyou. It sounds rather unusual!"

When he heard the name, Meow Ge's face turned slightly red.

When he first tried to write his travelogue, he really didn't know what pen name to use, so he begged his younger sister to help him come up with one.

Sister was sewing a doll, and casually used the words "Jia Fei."

After the travelogue was printed, it became a bestseller. When people inquired about the meaning behind his pen name, he went home to ask his sister. She simply shoved a lazy-looking orange cat plush toy into his hand…

Every time he thought about it, he couldn't help but laugh and cry. He desperately stopped his younger sister from putting the cat plushie in Baiyun's room.

Otherwise, that stuffed cat with the same name, who knows how many girls would be holding it in their arms...

He's really shameless!

At this point, he couldn't speak any further, so he just mumbled a casual response.

"Sir, I'm afraid you might be disappointed. It was just a casual phrase, it doesn't have any special meaning."

As people age, they become more discerning, and the older gentlemen naturally saw through Cat's awkwardness. However, they kindly refrained from probing deeper.

Soon, the second game will begin.

But Wang Sheng stood up and protested, "Sir, I consider myself a decent poet. Why do you say my work is inferior"

Several elderly gentlemen frowned, displeased with Wang Sheng's rudeness.

But Mr. Mo Mei still had the boy find Wang Sheng's poem and read it aloud to everyone.

After everyone had listened, Mr. Mo Mei gave a comment: “The language is too ornate and loses the purity of snow.”

Everyone nodded in agreement.

Wang Shengxu wanted to show off his erudition, with flowery and ornate language throughout.

If one didn't know the original poem, they probably wouldn't guess it was "Reading Snow."

Wang Sheng's face was pale and green, he looked unwilling but sat down anyway.

The second round, the topic was plum blossoms.

Everyone was still well-prepared and quickly handed in their papers.

First, it was awarded to Li Ge'er. His writing captured the proud spirit of plum blossoms and won over all the elder gentlemen.

It has to be said, Mr. Mo Mei is also a shrewd person. This time, he didn't wait for Wang Sheng to be mentioned, but proactively ordered the boy to read Wang Sheng's poems as well.

Unavoidably, Wang Sheng was crushed again!

The third round, the topic was wind.

The winner is Jia Xu. Having always cherished freedom since he was young, he has been traveling outside these years. Writing on this theme came naturally to him.

Mr. Mo Mei and several other elders showered praise upon him without reservation.

The Jia family, which was not particularly well-known before, finally gained some recognition due to Jia Xu.

The fourth round's theme was rain, and the winner was a student from Luo’an Academy, who was also well-known for his talent.

There were even rumors that the dean was interested in taking him as a disciple.

After this, it's a foregone conclusion that I'll become the Headmaster's disciple — it's set in stone.

The fifth round, the subject was mountains, and Lu Cong won.

His father had been guarding the southwestern border for so many years, like a silent and reliable mountain, protecting Tianwu from unrest.

Most people already knew his identity and were touched by his perseverance and loyalty expressed in his poems. They unanimously decided that he was the first place winner.

Lu Cong got the top prize, which was that dagger.

No matter how calm he usually was, he couldn't help but smile this time...

The sixth round was the hardest, and it wasn't an object anymore, but two very abstract characters—family.

As rounds of competition progress, the majority of participants have been eliminated, automatically becoming spectators and judges.

There were only a handful of contestants who came to write with brush and ink!

But the evaluation is what poses the greatest difficulty for the elderly gentlemen, after all, the process of separating the wheat from the chaff leaves only the gold.

After much deliberation, they chose the first prize winner. It was Jia Ren's work.

He experienced the family's journey from poverty to affluence, the national downfall's grief and fear. Therefore, he began with the idea that "a nation brings a home," then specifically wrote about the family's prosperity, which required the collective efforts of several generations.

Our ancestors were willing to be stepping stones, and our brothers stood as arms to each other, achieving mutual success...

Mr. Mo Mei read aloud personally. Besides the wind, there was not a sound from anyone in the garden.

As soon as the last syllable faded, everyone spontaneously burst into applause, completely convinced and impressed.

This is not only the vision and ambition of a family's eldest grandson, but also the guarantee for the continued prosperity of the family.

Some smart people have already thought about how to befriend Li Jiaren.

It was Mr. Mo Mei and the others, who were so angry they wanted to bang their heads against the wall.

How could I have not known about Li Jiachang's grandson's excellence before Otherwise, no matter what, I would have to get him to be my granddaughter's husband!

Now it's good, the other party has long been married, marrying a woman from the unknown Xing family, and even had children.

Jia Ren stepped forward and chatted with the several elderly gentlemen. He was articulate, composed and polite, winning their favor. They all invited him to visit for tea in the future.

Finally, he took the whip that represented a BMW's horse and went back.

Speaking of which, Wang Sheng is also a weirdo.

He actually became more and more courageous, winning all six contests. Every time his work was read aloud as a contrast to the others', he was utterly humiliated, but he still refused to admit defeat.

Liu Kui had already given up, sitting on the side, wishing he could cover his face with his sleeve and deeply regretting that he had come forward to be a clown.

On the Li family side, everyone else had made progress, but only Zhimin, Xiujie, and Guo Wenhao hadn't taken first place.

But Zhi-Min and Xiu-Jie consider themselves to have a short study period, so having achieved third place twice is already very good.

Only Guo Wenhao, who took three second places but never first, looked somewhat downcast.

Jiaren knew that this younger brother had a high aptitude for reading, but he was sensitive in mind. So, he patted him on the shoulder and comforted him in a low voice.

"Junior brother, read ten thousand books and travel ten thousand miles. You've already done well in your studies, so when you have the chance, go out and see different places, experience diverse cultures and customs. You'll definitely make progress."

Having said that, he handed over the riding whip in his hand.

"Since it was your birthday before, I couldn't find anything good, so I only gave you a set of Four Treasures of the Study.

"

"Today, this steed, shall be your birthday gift. May it carry you and let you see all the wonders of the world."

Guo Wenhao was taken aback, then as if he had been placed on a fire, the years of frost in his heart melted away instantly.

After his grandfather passed away, all the warmth he experienced in this world came from the Wen family and the Li family.

This senior brother is like a real older brother to me. How can I possibly repay him for everything he has done in his lifetime

He trembled his lips, with thousands of words in his heart, yet only uttered two words, "Senior brother..."

Jiarren put the riding crop into his hand and laughed, "Take it, when Cat-son sees it later he'll want to grab it."

As expected, Cat Brother had already come over and started to protest.

"Woooo, big brother, you're being biased. You treat your younger brother better than me, your own flesh and blood!"

Jiarren tapped him playfully and said with a smile, "Stop acting weird! Don't think I don't know. Your sister's little red horse, Xiao Hong, is ridden by you most of the time, it's practically your personal mount."

Wenhao's family only had himself, and having a horse as a companion was just right.

Meow Ge'er scratched his head and leaned in to Wen Hao, whispering, "When I get a horse someday, let's have a race!"

"Good!" Guo Wenhao smiled, the thin and cold face suddenly seemed to bloom like a flower, dazzlingly bright! two rows of pearly white teeth. Her eyes sparkled with little stars as she nodded vigorously. "Yes, yes, Uncle is the best!"She listened for so long that her admiration for her great uncle was like t...