sbdcsierra Chapter 139 Poetry Gathering
Chapter 139 Poetry Gathering
The tiger strutted proudly on the stage, performing various acts and roaring from time to time, which drew cheers and excitement from the audience below.
Long Chuqing did not cheer and applaud with others. She knew the hardships behind these animal performances and the suffering they endured during training.
Xiao Han, who was standing next to her, noticed her expression; she didn't seem as happy as before. "If you don't like watching, let's go!"
Long Chuqing tilted her head slightly to look at Xiao Han and nodded in response.
Just then, the tiger nimbly leaped over the last ring of fire, and in one bound, landed right in front of the stage opposite them.
Long Chuqing glanced at the tiger, and the tiger on the stage happened to be looking at her as well; their eyes met.
Upon meeting Long Chuqing's gaze, the tiger instantly became listless and deflated as if it had lost its breath.
Its head drooped, its eyelids drooped weakly, and it lay timidly on the ground, completely losing its previous majestic and domineering aura.
The crowd, who had been watching with great interest, were now filled with confusion upon seeing this scene.
They started chattering amongst themselves, wondering what was wrong with the tiger. It had been so lively just moments before, how could it suddenly become so listless?
Upon seeing this, the animal trainer standing nearby immediately strode towards the tiger, raised his whip, and lashed it hard, attempting to get the tiger to stand up again and continue performing for the audience.
Seeing the animal trainer whipping the tiger, Long Chuqing quickly pulled Xiao Han beside her, and they left the performance site through the crowded throng.
After they left, the previously listless tiger immediately perked up and continued its performance with renewed vigor.
After seeing Xiao Han and Long Chuqing leave, Zi Guang, Qing Tong, and Qing Ying also came out to join them.
Upon seeing Long Chuqing, Ziguang happily shared the performance he had just witnessed with her: "Miss, this is the first time I've ever seen a real tiger! It is indeed as majestic as described in the play."
Qingying chimed in, "I think that tiger is a bit too thin and lacks a bit of its imposing presence."
After thinking for a moment, Qing Tong chimed in, "He has indeed lost some weight. It's probably because he's not eating well, has to perform frequently, and is also because he's been whipped!"
Qingying sighed: "I guess so! Look, that tiger was just beaten up!"
"Did you go in to watch the tiger show too?" Long Chu asked after listening to their conversation.
"Yes, it was Lord Qingying who helped me squeeze in; there were just too many people," Ziguang replied.
“We went in quite a while before you and the prince. We watched a lot of performances, including a horse and monkey show. It was really exciting.”
Zi Guang spoke with a satisfied expression, presumably very pleased with the performance just now.
Qingying recalled the scene just now and sighed, "That crowd was so hard to squeeze through! It almost crushed the three of us. We had to use a lot of effort to get to the front, and we got yelled at by a lot of people!"
After Qingying finished speaking, she shook her head with lingering fear.
Bronze also said with a resentful look, "That's right, I got stepped on several times, and it still hurts a bit! There's just too many people. Most of them have never seen a tiger show before and want to come and see it."
"Young lady, were you and the prince not stepped on?"
"I wasn't stepped on, but I guess I got yelled at!" She then turned to Xiao Han and asked, "What about you? Did you get stepped on?"
Xiao Han shook his head: "No."
"Let's go up ahead and take a look!"
They continued walking forward, and after leaving the performance area, the noise and commotion subsided, and the surroundings became much quieter.
"There are a lot of people ahead, I wonder what they're doing. Let's go take a look." Zi Guang pointed to the crowd ahead, looking curious, and walked briskly ahead.
As they approached, they saw that the area was filled with tables and chairs, as well as writing brushes, ink, paper, and inkstones, and that many scholars and literati had gathered there.
It turned out to be a place for people to write poems and paint. They gathered here and were holding an event centered around the theme of "snow".
Perhaps it was because the first snow of winter had fallen today, and the streets were so lively, that these literati gathered here to exchange ideas and discuss their thoughts.
Someone was playing the guqin on site. The melodious sound of the guqin was as gentle and soothing as a flowing stream. The addition of the guqin added an elegant and refined atmosphere to the scene.
Someone sat confidently at the table, wielding a brush and writing a bold and unrestrained poem with ease.
Some people also sit at the table, holding a brush tightly in their hand, staring intently at the paper in front of them, but they can't put pen to paper for a long time, leaving only a small blot of ink on the paper.
On the shelf next to them, many of their well-written poems and lyrics were already hanging.
Those who were inspired picked up pens on the spot, wrote down the poems that came to mind, and hung them up for display.
Passersby often stop to admire the poems and paintings displayed here, sometimes whispering comments among themselves.
Long Chuqing and the others bypassed the area where everyone was writing poems and went straight to the place covered with poems, wanting to see how their work had turned out.
Looking up, one can see rows of written poems hanging on the shelves, swaying gently in the breeze.
The group glanced around perfunctorily, their faces showing bewilderment; they all seemed completely clueless.
Four out of the five people didn't really understand it, and only Xiao Han had studied these poems.
After looking around, they stroked their chins, pretending to understand, and could only remark that the handwriting was good and the poetry was quite good as well.
Later, people posted their poems online. Even though they didn't understand them very well, they still found them unremarkable and lacking in any special highlights.
After looking around, Qingying couldn't help but mutter to himself that even he, an amateur, didn't think there were any good poems. He felt that the prince's poems were much better than theirs.
He approached Xiao Han and said, "Your Highness, would you like to write one? Your poem will surely outshine all theirs."
Upon hearing this, Qing Tong also came over to persuade him: "Yes! Your Highness, you see they've been studying for so long but haven't written any good poems. Why don't you show them your skills and broaden their horizons?"
After listening to their words, Xiao Han lowered his eyes slightly and began to think seriously.
At this moment, Long Chuxiang walked slowly towards them and said softly, "Ziguang and I are going to find a latrine. Please wait here for a moment and take this opportunity to appreciate other people's masterpieces and perhaps compose a couple of poems yourself."
"Hmm..." Xiao Han nodded slightly in response.
After saying this, Long Chuqing and Ziguang turned and left. After watching them leave, the three of them stayed at the place where the poems were hung and continued to study the poems that were to be presented later.