Phoenix falls on the phoenix tree, the phoenix tree drops phoenix. Dragon lurks in the stream cave, stream lurks the dragon.

As Qiao Zhao had said, this couplet was indeed more fitting than the others.

Miss Qiao’s voice was calm as she effortlessly produced seven or eight matching lines in one breath, leaving the ladies stunned and speechless for a long time.

When they finally recovered their senses, most people, though constrained by their regard for Lan Xinong’s position, remained inwardly shaken despite saying nothing.

Dragon lurks in the stream cave, stream lurks dragon. Lan Xinong had subtly mocked Miss Li’s father for lacking true talent and being unable to raise a daughter of ability. Wasn’t Miss Li San’s matching line the most spirited response possible?

A Hanlin Academy Scholar might appear to be a minor official like a sesame seed in others’ eyes, but who could say he wasn’t a dragon lurking in a stream cave, destined to soar through the heavens one day?

The brilliance lay in how Miss Li San didn’t engage in verbal sparring with Lan Xinong, but instead used her matching line to refute Lan Xinong’s subtle mockery that her father’s “great reputation was difficult to live up to.” Compared to mere verbal prowess, this display of quick wit and talent made these young ladies, who prided themselves on living by their talents, secretly admire her.

Crisp applause rang out. The ladies looked toward the sound and saw Xu Jinghong clapping gently a few times, saying indifferently, “Miss Li San has excellent talent.”

Chief Minister Lan Shan was like a massive boulder weighing on the hearts of civil and military officials. Court politics extended into residential compounds, so these young ladies naturally harbored some wariness toward Lan Xinong. But no matter how cautious they were, this was ultimately just a gathering of young ladies. Even if real conflicts arose, the dignified Chief Minister wouldn’t be so idle as to roll up his sleeves and destroy someone’s father and brothers over who stole his granddaughter’s hairpin. Therefore, dissenting voices still existed.

Among the ladies present, at least two would not speak according to Lan Xinong’s mood: Xu Jinghong, granddaughter of Vice Minister Xu Mingda, and Jiang Shiran, only daughter of Jinlin Guard Commander Jiang Tang.

Vice Minister Xu Mingda had always been obedient before Chief Minister Lan Shan, rarely voicing opposition. Xu Jinghong’s behavior was purely due to her cold nature—she disdained playing games of flattery and scheming, not because her grandfather could match Chief Minister Lan’s power.

To speak truly, among all the ladies present, only Jiang Shiran’s father, Jinlin Guard Commander Jiang Tang, was someone even Chief Minister Lan Shan had to treat with courtesy. If Lan Shan was a favored minister who had gained imperial favor, then Jiang Tang was Emperor Mingkang’s most trusted person.

Following Xu Jinghong’s applause, like a stone cast into a calm lake, the silent atmosphere was broken.

After all, this was just a gathering of young ladies. Their fathers’ and brothers’ conflicts couldn’t completely wear away their natural dispositions, so many ladies began applauding as well.

Zhu Yán even patted Qiao Zhao gently, sighing: “I’ve always wanted to see Miss Li San’s calligraphy, but I never expected Miss Li San’s couplet matching to be even more surprising.”

Kou Zimo looked deeply at Qiao Zhao, her eyes showing a strange expression.

Palindromic couplets weren’t easy to match. Being able to produce one or two was already rare, yet this Miss Li San had effortlessly produced seven or eight—truly astonishing.

A few years ago, by chance, she had been fortunate enough to hear her aunt’s eldest daughter match couplets in this manner. Listening then, her blood had truly boiled with excitement.

Unfortunately, that eldest cousin had died young.

Kou Zimo sighed inwardly and couldn’t help but look at Qiao Zhao once more.

Lan Xinong stared intently at Qiao Zhao. Just when the ladies thought she might trouble the Li sisters again, she laughed lightly: “Miss Li San truly has excellent talent. It seems you’ve been hiding your abilities all along—you should have joined the Fushan Society earlier.”

She turned her gaze with a light laugh: “As the younger sister, you have far more real talent and learning than your elder sister.”

These words carried some meaning.

After Du Feixue’s commotion, all the ladies present knew that this Miss Li had lost her birth mother at a young age, and Miss Li San’s mother was the second wife. So then, had Miss Li San enjoyed resources that Miss Li lacked, which was why she surpassed her half-sister by so much?

Hearing Lan Xinong’s words, Li Jiǎo’s face reddened enough to drip blood. Her recently trimmed, delicate nails dug deeply into her palms, yet the physical pain couldn’t match the humiliation in her heart.

Matching couplets on the spot was different from other things—this kind of quick wit couldn’t be faked. So Li San had been playing dumb to catch the wise all along, just waiting to embarrass her!

She had previously mocked her stepmother for spending money like water, hiring tutors to give Li San extra lessons, thinking it was a waste of silver. It turned out she was the foolish one.

Qiao Zhao stood beside Li Jiǎo and smiled: “Miss Lan flatters me. It’s simply that people each have their strengths. My eldest sister’s needlework is outstanding—something I could never match.”

Indeed, among those present, probably anyone’s needlework was something she could never match, so Miss Qiao wasn’t speaking falsely.

Lan Xinong raised her eyebrows and asked airily: “So Miss Li San agrees with the saying ‘A woman without talent is virtuous’?”

Qiao Zhao curved her lips slightly.

Miss Lan was far more troublesome than girls like Li Jiǎo and Du Feixue. She pressed down with ancient maxims one after another, always able to place people in impossible situations.

If she said she disagreed, that would be disrespectful to the ancients. If she said she agreed, though the ladies present wouldn’t say anything openly, she would have offended them all.

One must know that every girl who could enter the Fushan Society was proud of her talents.

From their very bones, they scorned sayings like “A woman without talent is virtuous” and looked down most on illiterate women.

All the ladies waited for Qiao Zhao’s answer. Qiao Zhao smiled, not taking Lan Xinong’s deliberate difficulty to heart at all, saying indifferently: “Actually, this saying has a first line: ‘A man with virtue has talent.’ How does Miss Lan understand this saying?”

With these words, the ladies’ hearts jolted, shocked both by Qiao Zhao’s quick wit and her boldness.

A man with virtue has talent. Who in the world didn’t know that Lan Xinong’s grandfather, Lan Shan,s was someone whose talent was only slightly inferior to the late great scholar Master Qiao, yet such a person was precisely the great villain whom loyal ministers and fine generals cursed behind his back.

By asking this question at this moment, Qiao Zhao easily led people to think of Chief Minister Lan. If Lan Xinong gave an impassioned analysis, no matter how brilliant her reasoning, it would only be a joke in the ladies’ hearts. Yet Lan Xinong couldn’t criticize her for this, because this saying was something she had raised initially—she had simply said only half of it.

Those young ladies whose fathers and brothers stood in opposition to Chief Minister Lan Shan secretly praised Qiao Zhao in their hearts.

Ouyang Wei Yu, who had maintained an expressionless face throughout, had her dark eyes flash as she looked deeply at Qiao Zhao.

Just as the ladies had anticipated, though Lan Xinong’s face turned ashen, she didn’t explode. She said coldly, “Miss Li San truly has the heart of an orchid and the nature of a lily. Miss Du, let’s continue the activity. It should be their team’s turn to present a couplet, shouldn’t it?”

“Oh.” Du Feixue finally reacted, suppressing her shock at Qiao Zhao, and asked Xu Jinghong: “Miss Xu, would you like to present this couplet?”

Xu Jinghong’s expression remained indifferent: “Actually, I’m not skilled in this area. How about this—let Miss Li San present this couplet instead.”