: Bounty of 1 Becomes 4

After listening, Chen Mao turned to look at Zhu Tao.

Zhu Tao couldn't help but utter four words: "This boy is incredibly talented!"

He raised his cup to Meng Wenlang and said, "It is a cause for celebration that you have such a fine student under your tutelage. My trip today has been worthwhile."

Meng Wenlang also raised his cup and said humbly, "This humble disciple is young and still needs to be honed. Your Excellency is too kind."

Having said that, he drank the wine in his cup in one gulp.

Following that, Zhu Tao, Chen Mao, and Meng Wenlang publicly critiqued two other poems that had been selected from nearly thirty poems.

One of the poems was by Chu Jing, and the other by Zhu Yan; both were standard metaphysical poems. Chu Jing's poem was indeed quite good, while Zhu Yan's was somewhat inferior. Chen Mao chose this poem to save face for Zhu Tao.

After the evaluation, Chen Mao announced to the public: "Today's gathering of pure sounds in the cold winter, the two sessions of the young men's refined conversation and poetry composition, are now complete."

During our conversation just now, my nephew Liang's words were quite insightful: "Pine and cypress trees cannot choose their location, but they can choose their posture." This is something that all of you present can attest to.

In the matter of composing poems, my nephew Liang composed two more excellent works. The first, "Snow on Qiantang Lake," is ethereal and solitary, while the second, "Remembering My Late Father on a Snowy Day in Qiantang," is deeply affectionate.

Today, among these young men of various families engaged in refined conversation and poetry composition, Liang Shanbo emerged victorious. He is awarded ten thousand coins as encouragement to future generations!

As soon as Chen Mao finished announcing the end of the ceremony, Zhu Tao suddenly said, "Brother Minze's reward of ten thousand coins to encourage younger generations is something I greatly admire. Today, I will also contribute ten thousand coins to reward Liang Shanbo."

His gaze turned to Liang Shanbo, and he continued, "This young man comes from a humble background, yet his talent is outstanding. Despite his humble origins, he can remain composed amidst this hall full of fine clothes, speaking with neither arrogance nor servility, and composing poems with deep emotion. Such a young man should not be troubled by making a living. I offer this money so that he may be free from the burden of livelihood and be able to concentrate on his studies."

Actually, Zhu Tao had two unspoken reasons for his generosity.

Firstly, he genuinely appreciated Liang Shanbo's talent.

He had witnessed Liang Shanbo's conversation and the two poems he had just recited. This young man possessed not only ordinary intelligence and talent, but also a composure honed by adversity and a spirit forged in humble circumstances. In his more than fifty years of life, Zhu Tao had rarely encountered such a person.

Secondly, he saw a worthwhile "original stock" in Liang Shanbo.

Although this young man comes from a poor family, he is exceptionally talented and is Meng Wenlang's personal disciple. He will most likely enter officialdom in the future. Even if he doesn't reach a high-ranking position, a lower-ranking one shouldn't be difficult; if the opportunity arises, a middle-ranking one is also possible. If this boy succeeds in the future, today's ten thousand coins will be a result of the good karma that the Zhu family of Qiantang forged early on.

In the rigidly hierarchical Eastern Jin Dynasty, prominent families intermarried, supported each other, and colluded with one another, weaving a dense web of connections. For a person from a poor family to break through this web was extremely difficult, but not entirely impossible.

In his life, he had seen some poor people who managed to break through the net, and in his opinion, Liang Shanbo could probably do the same.

Chen Mao smiled and cupped his hands in a gesture of respect to Zhu Tao: "Your Excellency's noble character is truly admirable. Today's gathering of pure music in the cold winter is made possible by Your Excellency's encouragement of younger generations, which is in keeping with the spirit of 'pure music'."

No sooner had he finished speaking than Xiao Zhen suddenly raised his voice and said, "Since both Lord Zhu and Magistrate Chen have rewarded Liang Shanbo with ten thousand coins, I, Xiao, will also contribute ten thousand coins as a reward. This money is both to encourage this young man and to support Magistrate Chen's elegant gathering today. In the future, whenever Magistrate Chen holds an elegant gathering, I, Xiao, will wholeheartedly assist him."

In fact, Xiao Zhen also had two other thoughts that he didn't explicitly state.

First, he admired Liang Shanbo's talent in both literature and martial arts, and Liang Shanbo was also a friend of his grandson Xiao Hu.

Secondly, since Zhu had given money, Xiao was unwilling to fall behind.

Don't be fooled by the amiable demeanor of the heads of the prominent families of Qiantang in Zhuyun Pavilion today. In reality, these families have been vying for prestige and power for a long time.

At their level, what is ten thousand coins?

As soon as Xiao Zhen finished speaking, Sun Datian also raised his voice, "I, Sun, will also contribute ten thousand coins to reward Liang Shanbo. I just read his poem, 'Remembering My Late Father on a Snowy Day in Qiantang,' and it still makes me feel sorrowful. I admire a young man who can write such a poem. This ten thousand coins is both to encourage him and to support Magistrate Chen's elegant gathering today!"

Although Sun Datian is a straightforward person, he has two thoughts he hasn't said outright.

First, he remembered that Liang Shanbo was a friend of his son, Sun Yuangui, and that his son spoke highly of Liang Shanbo.

Secondly, since both the Zhu and Xiao families have given money as rewards, wouldn't Sun Datian seem out of touch if he didn't follow suit?

Fan Zheng sat at the table and watched all of this unfold.

He chuckled and said, "Master Xiao and Master Sun have both contributed ten thousand coins, and Prefect Zhu and Magistrate Chen have also each given a reward. If I, Fan, don't contribute ten thousand coins, wouldn't I seem stingy?"

He paused, his gaze lingering on Liang Shanbo's face before shifting to Zhu Yan behind Zhu Tao, and then said, "I, Fan, am also willing to reward ten thousand coins to assist Magistrate Chen with today's 'Gathering of Pure Sounds in the Cold Winter.' However, my nephew Liang has already received a great deal of reward today, so there is no need to add more."

Fan then rewarded his nephew Zhu Yan with ten thousand coins. "Nephew Zhu just now displayed remarkable talent in both philosophical discussion and poetry; he deserves this reward as encouragement."

A faint smile appeared on Zhu Tao's lips. Fan Zheng's move was tactful; he neither fell behind Xiao Zhen and Sun Datian, nor did he indirectly show goodwill towards him.

Fan Zheng picked up his cup and glanced indifferently at everyone.

He had his own reasons for doing this.

Firstly, it was for the sake of prestige. For a prominent family like theirs, prestige was of paramount importance. If the Xiao family and the Sun family had both rewarded them, and the Fan family remained silent, they would be seen as lacking in dignity.

Secondly, it was to support Chen Mao's "Collection of Pure Sounds in the Cold Winter," thus doing the magistrate of Qiantang County a favor.

Thirdly, he rewarded Zhu Yan with money to show goodwill towards Zhu Tao. Although Zhu Tao had resigned from his official post, he still held much more influence in Wu Commandery and even in the Eastern Jin court than Magistrate Chen.

The atmosphere in Zhuyun Pavilion had become somewhat subtle.

The heads of several prominent families have already expressed their opinions, leaving only Chu Wenju remaining silent.

Chu Wenju sat upright at the table, his expression unchanged, but he was feeling depressed inside.

In terms of today's performance in philosophical discussions and poetry writing, among the young men present, Liang Shanbo is first, but his grandson Chu Jing, Chu Wenju, is also excellent in both philosophical discussions and poetry writing. Zhu Yan is third.

Originally, if Fan Zheng had rewarded Chu Jing, he could have then rewarded Zhu Yan as well. In this way, he could have both preserved the Chu family's reputation and curryed favor with Zhu Tao. But unfortunately, Fan Zheng rewarded Zhu Yan, not Chu Jing.

His situation became awkward.

He would be unwilling to give money to Liang Shanbo; if he gave money to Zhu Yan, Zhu Yan had already received money from Fan Zheng, so giving him more would be icing on the cake; if he gave money to his own grandson, it would seem biased.

But if we don't give a reward, the Zhu family, the Xiao family, the Sun family, and the Fan family have all given rewards, but the Chu family is the only one who doesn't give a penny, where will we put our face?