Reborn as an Ugly Wife in the Countryside

The three little ones at home got nervous again upon hearing this.

"Oh no, oh no, oh no, having Fourth Uncle guess is worse than writing."

"If it were writing, maybe Fourth Uncle could write a few words and not be too embarrassing. But not guessing anything will be really humiliating."

"..."

"..."

Hearing the children’s discussion, Yang Gang spoke up, "You three, watch out or I’ll smack you. The contest hasn’t even started yet; how do you know your Fourth Uncle won’t be able to guess?"

Though he was thinking, Old Fourth, you better hope for luck. Everyone knows how little you know, even the kids at home. If you can guess, then pigs might fly.

There was a constant buzz of discussions among the crowd.

"Oh dear, it’s really hard to say who will get that jade hairpin."

"Yeah, look at the guy with Miss Li; he doesn’t seem too smart. And that Young Master Zhao, he looks like a showpiece. I think Young Master Zhou might end up with the jade hairpin."

"It’s hard to say; let’s wait and see."

"..."

"..."

Yang Dong didn’t expect to be the one guessing. If he couldn’t guess, winning the championship would be out of the question. Having him guess was worse than having him write; at least he might be able to write a few big words. Scratching his head, he awkwardly said, "Well, um..."

"It’s okay. If you can’t guess, it’s fine. You’re up; go ahead and draw a lot." Li Chuntao chimed in.

It was only then that Yang Dong went to draw lots.

Two women and one man; if Yang Dong lost here, it would indeed be embarrassing.

The three quickly finished drawing lots.

The onlookers also quieted down, all waiting for the next part of the contest.

The first person to open the slip of paper was the woman with Young Master Zhou. After opening the paper, she showed a confident smile and spoke, "The challenge is matching couplets. The upper line is: Black isn’t it, white isn’t it, red and yellow aren’t it either, resembles foxes, wolves, raccoon dogs, and dogs, neither poultry nor a beast."

Upon hearing this challenge, everyone knew it was rather difficult, not fully understanding it. They were all wondering with such a tough challenge, could the woman match it?

The woman spoke confidently, "I matched it with: Poems have it, verses have it, the Analects have it, vague towards east, west, south, and north; though brief, it’s exquisite prose."

Many people seemed to understand suddenly, offering endless applause, "Brilliant, brilliant!"

Young Master Zhou started writing vigorously, putting the matched line on prepared white paper, his mood extremely good, never expecting his young lady to make him so proud.

Young Master Zhou’s writing was excellent as well. After finishing, he lifted his long arm, revealing strong and powerful characters to everyone.

Everyone praised him wholeheartedly.

"Such beautiful writing!"

"Ah, it seems that jade hairpin will go to Young Master Zhou and them. What did I say just now?"

"That’s not certain yet; aren’t there still two people left?"

"Let’s wait and see; maybe there’s something even more impressive."

Seated at the lantern festival were several esteemed elders, acting as judges for the guessing game. Even in the second round, they judged whether guesses were correct. Seeing this couplet and writing, they nodded repeatedly, laughter full.

The scene had reached a new peak of excitement, and the host continued, "The contest continues, so let’s have Miss Wang with Young Master Zhao open the slip of paper."