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The civil officials looked at each other in bewilderment, but they had to admit that Zhou Chen's poem was well written. The most important thing was that Zhou Chen wrote it in just a short time. Such quick wit and talent did not look like that of a nobleman, but simply like one of our literati.

The official smiled and asked, "Zhou Sanlang, what is the name of this poem?"

"Your Majesty, Yulouchun, New Year's Day of the Renchen Year."

"Well, this poem is appropriate for the occasion, and it deserves appreciation!"

The official praised Zhou Chen highly and offered to reward him.

The civil and military officials present naturally had no objection. In their eyes, Zhou Chen was still just a child. He could come up with such words and make the emperor very happy, so he deserved a reward.

The generals also congratulated Zhou Yexiong. Zhou Yexiong was beaming with joy at this moment, but he spoke modestly. He glanced at Zhou Chen with eyes full of surprise.

Although he knew that Zhou Chen had passed the imperial examination and won the title of Jieyuan, it was not as shocking as when he wrote a poem in front of the palace today and made the emperor look very happy.

He suddenly had an inexplicable thought in his mind: Sanlang is so talented, isn't it really a waste of his talent to let him join the army in the frontier?

This was the first time he doubted his decision.

However, Zhou Chen was not ready to end it like this. He had come here to join in the fun today, but the emperor took the initiative to ask him to compose poetry and let him be in the spotlight in front of the civil and military officials. Regardless of whether it was a good thing or a bad thing, he felt that since he had already been in the spotlight, he might as well make it even bigger.

As the saying goes, it is better to become famous early, and today in the imperial palace is the best opportunity.

"Thank you, Your Majesty, for your reward. I am honored to see your face today. I have great respect for you. Today, the world is peaceful, the country is prosperous, the people are safe, and the rivers and seas are calm. It is all thanks to your Majesty's holy decree. I am rich and famous now, and it is all your Majesty's gift. I don't know how to repay your Majesty. I can only offer my sincere heart to your Majesty and wish to celebrate the spring with sword dance and repay your love with calligraphy and painting."

As soon as these words were spoken, Jiying Hall fell silent again. Everyone looked at Zhou Chen with strange eyes, and many of them felt their hairs on their bodies tremble.

Needless to say, the military generals were all astonished by Zhou Chen's smooth flattery, while the civil officials looked unhappy. How could the third son of Marquis Zhongjing, a crude and noble man, be so smooth and fluent in flattery?

Flatterer!!!

Zhou Yexiong was also stunned by Zhou Chen's actions. He had instructed Zhou Chen to keep a low profile and not to attract attention before he came. The lyrics he just wrote were fine because it was an order from the government. But now Zhou Chen took the initiative to flatter him and said so much. Is he really the proud man who dared to argue with him?

"Hahaha…………"

The emperor didn't know how others felt, but he himself was really pleased at the moment and felt extremely happy.

As an emperor, he was naturally praised a lot, but Zhou Chen was different from others. Zhou Chen was just a teenager, and it was his first time to enter the palace to see the emperor, but he was praised so much, which made him feel that this was different from the flattery of others. This was Zhou Chen's sincere gratitude.

"Mr. Zhou, your Sanlang is really a young man, straightforward and cute, and has the potential to be a censor."

"Your Majesty praises me so highly. I and my son are overwhelmed."

Zhou Yexiong's forehead was covered with cold sweat. Although the emperor was praising him, he was scared of Zhou Chen. This was too brave. Although the emperor was kind, what if he offended the emperor?

The emperor looked at Zhou Chen with great interest: "Zhou Sanlang, you just said that you would perform sword dance to celebrate spring and calligraphy and painting to express your love for me. So, do you want to perform sword dance and calligraphy and painting for me in this hall?"

He was very satisfied with Zhou Chen's praise of him, but he did not take sword dancing and calligraphy and painting too seriously. After all, Zhou Chen was just a teenager. Even if he could dance with a sword, how amazing could it be? As for calligraphy and painting, it goes without saying. Without decades of experience, there would be no great accomplishments.

But Zhou Chen answered with a resounding voice: "I am willing to perform for your majesty."

The official was stunned for a moment. Such a confident look, could it be that this was not just a humble statement?

"Okay, since you are so confident, I will give you this opportunity. Come, give me the sword."

Suddenly, an official in a scarlet robe stood up and said, "Your Majesty, I think this is inappropriate. This is the main hall of the imperial palace. It is not appropriate to brandish swords and knives."

The emperor waved his hand and said, "It's okay. Today is not a court meeting. Since we can have music and dance, we can also have sword dance."

An eunuch walked into the hall holding a wooden box containing a sword. Zhou Chen did not retreat. He immediately walked to the center of the hall and took out the sword from the opened wooden box.

After a closer look, he found that the sword was a good one, but it was unopened. However, this was normal. After all, it was impossible for the official to give him a sharp sword in person.

After Zhou Chen obtained the sword, he was the only one left in the center of the hall, and everyone's eyes were on him.

After what happened just now, no one dared to look down on Zhou Chen anymore. After all, Zhou Chen was born into a noble family and was from the Marquis of Zhongjing Mansion, which had made many military achievements. It was definitely more normal for him to be able to dance with a sword than to be able to write poetry.

But no one knows to what extent Zhou Chen can do so that he would dare to show his skills in front of the officials.

Zhou Chen has studied martial arts in many worlds for decades, and his sword skills are his best weapon. Whether it is used to kill people or for performance, it is a unique skill.

Everyone noticed that after Zhou Chen held the sword in his hand, his temperament suddenly changed. Before they could be amazed, Zhou Chen had already moved.

"Shh!"

The simple sword-throwing technique performed by Zhou Chen surprisingly had a different kind of grace. Everyone, including the officials, stared with eyes wide open at Zhou Chen who had already started dancing with the sword.

In an instant, the only sound in Jiying Hall was Zhou Chen's sword dancing. His dazzling sword skills were so dazzling that everyone was reluctant to close their eyes.

As graceful as a startled swan, as elegant as a swimming dragon; this phrase was originally used to describe a woman's lithe figure, but no one would find it inappropriate to use it to describe Zhou Chen's sword dance.

Zhou Chen's sword movements became faster and faster, and his body movements became more and more urgent. In an instant, it seemed as if the hall was covered with sword shadows.

The scholars only thought it was gorgeous and wonderful, but the military generals all widened their eyes. They were all skilled in martial arts, so they could naturally see the difficulty of Zhou Chen's sword dance. The sword skills Zhou Chen displayed were definitely at the pinnacle.

"This boy is extraordinary!"

Guan Jia was naturally not a person who knew martial arts, but he was really stunned by Zhou Chen's sword dance. What was the previous dance and instrumental performance? Compared with Zhou Chen's sword dance, there was a world of difference.

"A man of both civil and military talents, a man of both civil and military talents."

The official found the child more and more pleasing to the eye. Suddenly, he thought of his eldest son. If he had not died young, he would have been about the same age as Zhou Chen.

The sword dance lasted for a quarter of an incense stick. After Zhou Chen stopped, he breathed slightly.

Without any inner strength and relying only on physical power, one would definitely feel tired after performing for such a long time.

"Good, good, good..."

The emperor took the lead in clapping and laughing, his face full of surprise: "Zhou Sanlang, you really surprised me. What a great sword dance, it's wonderful and breathtaking."

No one stood up to refute, because everyone was conquered by Zhou Chen's sword dance. Even His Majesty praised him so highly, no one would jump out to refute him.

Such a wonderful sword dance made the officials even more curious about Zhou Chen.

"Sanlang's sword dance is already so wonderful, so his calligraphy and painting must be good too. Are you going to write and paint in this hall?"

"Yes, Your Majesty, please give me pen, ink and paper."

The eyes of many civil servants suddenly lit up. The sword dance just now belonged to martial arts, and the calligraphy and painting to be performed now were the standard of literati. Among the four arts, calligraphy and painting accounted for a huge proportion.

The official waved his hand, and soon the eunuchs brought pen, ink, and paper, and placed a desk in the center of the hall for Zhou Chen.

Zhou Chen held the pen and looked around the hall. Then he slowly closed his eyes and copied in his mind. With his spirit that was several times stronger than that of ordinary people, he could already initially implement the meditation copying method.

When everyone saw Zhou Chen's appearance, they did not find it strange and they all waited patiently. Writing and painting were different from the sword dance and wave of the hands before. These required brewing and foundation and could not be achieved overnight.

Even those generals who were relatively impatient in temperament remained silent and waited curiously.

For the military generals present, Zhou Chen had brought great honor to their noble group today, so most of them had a good impression of Zhou Chen. Just now, many people took the initiative to talk to Zhou Yexiong, wanting to know more about Zhou Chen.

After a while, Zhou Chen suddenly opened his eyes, then he took the pen and put the first stroke on the paper, and then began his painting. The speed was not fast, but it was very rhythmic.

Soon someone could no longer sit still. An official in a purple robe stood up from the civil servant seat and walked to Zhou Chen's side to observe his painting.

His movement was like turning on a switch, and everyone else followed suit, standing up from their seats and moving closer to take a look.

Even the military commanders stood on tiptoe and looked around curiously.

The official sitting on the imperial chair was already curious, and when he saw the officials below had different expressions, he could no longer bear it, so he stood up from the chair and walked down slowly.

When the officials saw the emperor coming, they immediately made way for him. The emperor walked closer and took a look, then he took a breath.

At this time, Zhou Chen had completed a small part of the work, and the emperor could already see that what Zhou Chen was painting was the Jiying Hall, and it was today's palace banquet.

Although he was shocked, Guan Jia still held his breath like everyone else, for fear of disturbing Zhou Chen's painting.

At this moment, Zhou Chen was probably the first person in history to have the emperor and civil and military officials watch him paint.

This painting took nearly an hour to complete, but no one was in a hurry, especially those who liked painting. They didn't even eat the banquet and just watched Zhou Chen paint stroke by stroke. As for the emperor, he could not stand and returned to his throne.

Finally, Zhou Chen finished the painting, but he did not stop. Instead, he continued to write the poem he had just written.

In this way, a painting was finally completed. Although the ink on it had not yet dried, everyone who had seen the painting was speechless because it was so amazing.

The painting was done on the spot, and it was the scene of a grand banquet in the Jiying Hall. It was lifelike and extremely spectacular.

"Really..."

An old man exclaimed in amazement, wanting to exaggerate a little, but after holding it in for a long time, he finally just said: "Good, very good."

Even the civil officials who were extremely picky about the nobles were speechless at this moment. In this hall today, Zhou Chen was the undisputed protagonist.

"The young are so heroic, and the younger generation are so formidable!"

Even the Prime Minister Pang Da, who is now a mainstay of the court, could not help but express his admiration, not to mention the others. For a moment, words praising Zhou Chen filled the hall one after another.

Zhou Chen responded to everyone's praise with a smile. Finally, it was the official who spoke that made everyone stop.

"Reward! Reward!"

…………

On the way back to the Marquis' Mansion, Zhou Yexiong's eyes never left Zhou Chen. Today's trip to the palace shocked him greatly.

In the past, all his attention was focused on training his eldest son Zhou Tong, and he didn't care much about his second son Zhou Chen. So even though he wanted to send Zhou Chen to the frontier to join the army, he didn't feel any reluctance.

But Zhou Chen's performance today was beyond his imagination. A 17-year-old boy without an official position became the protagonist of the palace banquet and received praise from the emperor more than once. He was also rewarded with a sword and many other items.

Even Zhou Chen had never experienced the kind of limelight he had today.

"Don't you have anything to say to me?"

After a long silence, Zhou Yexiong saw that Zhou Chen was just playing with the sword bestowed by the emperor and had no intention of speaking, so he could no longer bear it and broke the silence first.

Zhou Chen asked: "What?"

Zhou Yexiong's breathing became heavier due to choking. He found that his son was becoming more and more difficult to discipline.

"You are too popular today. This may not be a good thing for you."

"I'm going to the frontier soon, so what if I become famous?"

Zhou Yexiong was stunned. Oh, right, he was going to the border soon. There was nothing wrong with showing off at this time. At least it could deepen the official's impression.

Suddenly he felt a chill in his heart. Was all this done on purpose?

His son has really changed a lot. He was not shy at all in the hall today. Whether he was writing poetry, dancing with swords or painting, he was doing things he had never seen before.

Courage, ability, quick wit, cunning, eloquence, he seems to be good at everything and better than many officials. Is this his true face?

It really is the case that if you don't make a sound, you'll be nothing!

Overnight, Zhou Chen became famous in Tokyo City. First, he won the top prize in the autumn examination, and then he wrote lyrics for the palace, which pleased the emperor very much and he received rewards from the government. So it was hard for him not to be famous.

Because of his disturbance, all the dandy young men in Tokyo City were in trouble. With Zhou Chen as a comparison, the dandy young men's elders no longer looked down on their own dandy young men, especially the sons of nobles, most of them were severely punished by their elders.

After tonight, Zhou Chen's name will also be remembered by many people.

(End of this chapter)

Chapter 1110: Departure to the Frontier, Mother's Promise of Marriage

Since the New Year's Day court banquet, Zhou Chen became famous in Tokyo City. The poem he wrote spread quickly, but what really made Zhou Chen a god was the last painting of the banquet in Jiying Hall.

The painting was completed on the spot within an hour. The painting was lifelike, ingenious, and the carving was truly amazing. All the civil and military officials in the court praised it.

During the period after the New Year, many people came to visit the Marquis' Mansion, but were all rejected by Zhou Chen. He was already preparing to leave Beijing, so naturally he didn't want to make friends with these people anymore.

He still knows the principle of being high-profile in work and low-key in life.

Court banquets can help him build a reputation, but he doesn't want to make friends with others privately. If someone is short-sighted enough to report him for forming a clique for personal gain, he will be in trouble regardless of whether it is true or not.

In the Chuigong Hall, the emperor was reviewing memorials to the emperor. As an emperor who was willing to delegate power, he did not have many affairs to deal with every day. However, he still insisted on reviewing them every day, and would often think about some things for a long time.

Today's situation was a little special. When he saw a memorial submitted to him, his brows furrowed.

In fact, it was not a big deal, just a letter of appointment from the frontier, but the names on it made the officials quite concerned.

Zhou Chen.

Although some time has passed, he is still impressed by the name Zhou Chen, and the painting of the banquet in Jiying Hall by Zhou Chen is still collected in his hall.

But the appointment was actually about Zhou Chen, and it was an appointment for Zhou Chen to go to the northwestern frontier.

As the legitimate son of the Marquis Zhongjing, Zhou Chen was naturally eligible for a title, and it was no big deal for him to get a seventh or eighth rank military position.

But the problem was, he had seen Zhou Chen's knowledge and talent. Such a person had passed the imperial examination and won the first place in the imperial examination before. Coupled with his performance in the New Year's Day court, as long as he took part in the joint examination, he would definitely be a first-class Jinshi. Even if it was the palace examination, as long as he was not bad, he was willing to select Zhou Chen as the third place.

Zhou Yexiong actually allowed such a young man with the talent to become a prime minister to join the army in the northwestern frontier. Isn't this ridiculous?

But if you think about it carefully, the sword dance Zhou Chen performed that day shows that Zhou Chen’s martial arts skills are not bad either, and he will definitely have no problem being a military general.

But how could a military general make full use of Zhou Chen's knowledge? He felt that Zhou Chen was more suitable for a civil service position.

He instinctively wanted to reject it, but after some consideration, he decided not to comment on it and just keep it.