The Reincarnated Science Whiz

Chapter 4: Tang Poetry

“Meng, what are you reading? Let’s go play some basketball!” Skinny Monkey’s voice reached Qin Yuanqing’s ears. Qin Yuanqing looked up and saw Skinny Monkey, already drenched in sweat. Shao Hou had dark, tanned skin—it was unclear whether this was his natural complexion or the result of playing basketball every day, rain or shine. Ever since Yao Ming entered the NBA—the world’s biggest basketball stage—as the first overall pick, he had ignited a passion for basketball in Huaxia. Coupled with the fact that Yao Ming lived up to expectations and became a basketball superstar, countless young people viewed him as their idol and favorite sports star, and basketball quickly replaced soccer as the most popular sport. As the best high school in Jinpu County and a key high school in Shuixian City, Jinpu No. 1 High School has always closely followed national policies. The comprehensive development of moral, intellectual, and physical education has become well-established here. From freshman to senior year, there are two physical education classes every week—the students’ favorite classes. Both boys and girls enjoy PE; the boys play basketball, while the girls play volleyball, badminton, and similar sports to relieve the stress of their studies. Qin Yuanqing had never been particularly fond of physical education classes and didn’t really fit in with the group. He excelled at running and jumping—especially the 100-meter dash, high jump, and long jump—and had won first place in all of these events at the school sports meets during his freshman and sophomore years. As for basketball, however, he wasn’t very good at it because he had only started playing in high school; as a result, he was a bit clumsy and tended to accidentally injure his classmates while defending. During a basketball game in his freshman year, he twisted “Skinny Monkey’s” ankle. Qin Yuanqing felt so guilty that he never played basketball again. As for badminton and volleyball, he didn’t know how to play them. And in PE class, who would choose to do the sprint, high jump, or long jump? So, since the start of his senior year, during the few PE classes he’s had, Qin Yuanqing has been sitting under the shade of a tree reading a book. For example, right now he’s reading *Three Hundred Tang Poems*—a key topic on the college entrance exam’s poetry section. Besides, as the saying goes, “If you read *Three Hundred Tang Poems* thoroughly, even if you can’t compose poetry, you’ll be able to recite it.” This can enhance one’s inner cultivation; at the very least, it allows one to describe beautiful scenery when they see it. After all, you can’t just stand looking at the ocean and blurt out a praise like, “Ah, ocean, you’re all water!” During PE class, Qin Yuanqing mainly reads extracurricular literature to broaden his knowledge. After all, with the ongoing reforms to the college entrance exam, the proportion of extracurricular material in the Chinese language section has been increasing every year—especially in reading comprehension and the interpretation of classical Chinese texts. These topics are drawn entirely from outside the textbook, and the original passages found in the textbook rarely appear on the exam. Therefore, extracurricular reading has become an essential part of his studies—first, to build up his knowledge base, and second, to strengthen his linguistic intuition. Linguistic intuition is a crucial foundation for the Chinese language subject; with good intuition, comprehension becomes easier. Just like his homeroom teacher, who would even sing poetry aloud when teaching it—and it didn’t sound bad at all. According to Teacher Chen, Southern Fujian is essentially the ancient official dialect of Luoyang, and singing poetry in Southern Fujian is the most evocative way to do so. Moreover, and most importantly, Qin Yuanqing is preparing for his college entrance exam essay. To score a perfect score, he must prepare meticulously. To do well on the Chinese exam, Qin Yuanqing is even practicing his handwriting. Qin Yuanqing’s handwriting isn’t particularly beautiful, nor is it ugly—it falls into the “legible” category. The system store offers a calligraphy practice item, but it costs 200 study coins, which Qin Yuanqing simply couldn’t bring himself to spend. He figured it would be better to use those 200 study coins to boost his IQ—that way, his grades might improve by a few points. After turning down Skinny Monkey, who looked a bit disappointed, he went to the convenience store and bought two bottles of water, giving one to Qin Yuanqing, who said, “Thanks.” “Meng, look—that’s Dai Qiuyu…” Skinny Monkey nudged Qin Yuanqing with his elbow, his eyes sparkling as he pointed to the girl ahead who was playing badminton with Lin Yuling. Dai Qiuyu was 157 cm tall, weighed 83 jin, had shoulder-length hair, an oval face, and two cute dimples that made her smile look adorable. She was the class beauty—the most attractive and popular girl in their class—and even students from the neighboring class had written her love letters. “Meng, Dai Qiuyu went to the same middle school as you—why not give your brother a hand?” Skinny Monkey swallowed hard; as an 18-year-old boy with raging hormones, his imagination was already running wild. Qin Yuanqing rolled his eyes and said, “Skinny Monkey, you’d better give up on that idea. There’s not even a one percent chance of success—you’d just be wasting your emotions and energy.” It was true that Qin Yuanqing and Dai Qiuyu had attended the same middle school, though they were in different classes; of course, they’d known each other since seventh grade. After all, as top students at the same school, they were bound to cross paths from time to time, and Dai Qiuyu was also a close friend of one of his friends. Later, they both attended Jinpu No. 1 High School—only 13 students from their entire middle school class had been admitted there—so naturally, they got along well. But Qin Yuanqing knew full well that Dai Qiuyu wasn’t a good choice. As far as he knew, dozens of boys had pursued her in middle school—one of them was even a friend of his, and the two seemed to be dating. To make matters worse, he also knew that Dai Qiuyu was the girlfriend of a classmate from his own village. Although their parents had found out and forbidden them from seeing each other, they were still secretly in contact. Even after entering high school, Dai Qiuyu still had no fewer than thirty suitors. Just among the boys in her own class, there were more than twenty who had a crush on her, and love letters from the neighboring class arrived every single day. Skinny Monkey, for one, didn’t excel academically, and for another, he was dark-skinned and skinny—looking just like a monkey. He wasn’t exactly a looker, and he couldn’t even speak coherently in front of girls. How could he possibly win Dai Qiuyu over? Besides, Qin Yuanqing knew that Dai Qiuyu remained “single” even after turning 31—no one knew if she had a boyfriend or when she would get married. A woman like that just wasn’t right for Skinny Monkey. After Qin Yuanqing poured cold water on his hopes, “Skinny Monkey” felt a bit down. He took a sip of water, then spotted a classmate waving at him from the basketball court, so he set down his cup and ran off to play. Qin Yuanqing shook his head. Typical of young men with raging hormones—it’s best to steer clear of the trouble that comes with women. Besides, in his entire grade at Jinpu No. 1 High School, there were only two or three girls who were actually good-looking; the rest just didn’t measure up. Those wicked female influencers have subtly raised people’s standards of beauty so much. No wonder female influencers are so popular—they easily rack up a million followers, and whenever they go live, a huge crowd of men beg and plead to tip them. There was even one female influencer who, thanks to her looks, had the son of a super-rich tycoon willing to act like a sycophant—only to be harshly rejected, becoming a laughingstock across the internet, the biggest gossip for countless onlookers, and drawing fierce criticism from countless feminist activists. Yet that very influencer went viral, her fan base skyrocketing by millions, and she raked in millions of yuan in a single night’s livestream. Qin Yuanqing had absolutely no interest in the girls in his class. Women were such strange creatures—it was best to keep his distance. Qin Yuanqing looked at Tang Shi and silently took note. He had to admit that Tang Shi truly represented the pinnacle of Huaxia poetry, brimming with a cultural beauty that, even after thousands of years, still held an irresistible charm. “The silkworm spins its thread until death, the candle weeps until it turns to ash! These lines have now become the quintessential love poems; who knows how many men and women have used them in their love poems to instantly move their partners. Why not, O man, take up the Wu hook, And conquer the fifty states beyond the mountain passes? Please ascend the Lingyan Pavilion for a moment—which scholar has been made a marquis with ten thousand households? This Tang dynasty poem stirs the blood the moment one reads it, making one want to draw a sword, mount a horse, and go to war to earn military glory. Achieving great deeds and establishing a legacy has been the dream of the people of Huaxia since ancient times—what Huaxia man has not dreamed of becoming a general? Have you not seen the waters of the Yellow River coming down from the heavens, rushing to the sea never to return? Have you not seen, in the bright mirror on the high hall, the sorrow of white hair—morning like black silk, evening like snow? When life is at its best, one must revel to the fullest; do not let the golden cup stand empty before the moon... This week’s “Ode to Wine” is so carefree and bold that it makes people unable to resist singing aloud as soon as they drink—this is how life should be. Qin Yuanqing was completely immersed in Tang poetry, as if conversing across the span of history with the great poets of a thousand years ago. Qin Yuanqing felt that this was what life was all about—this was how one should live. Thinking back on his past life—day after day of overtime, endless drawings to complete, and then, whenever he looked up, the sky-high housing prices—the pressure was overwhelming. Back then, Qin Yuanqing would sometimes burst into tears for no apparent reason, wailing uncontrollably. How could he have had any dreams back then? How could he even dare to dream! So he saw through the way of the world: no matter how hard a wage earner works, they’ll always remain just that—a wage earner. The glass ceiling is right there. The boss’s talk of “more work, more pay” is nothing but bullshit in the face of that ceiling. You’ll find the boss will pile on a mountain of tasks for you to do—for free, no less. You’ll be swamped with work every day, while the boss keeps dangling a pie in the sky. If you really want to make money, remember to strike out on your own—be your own boss and work for yourself! Sometimes Qin Yuanqing would think that perhaps the entire social landscape was changing back then. The post-90s and post-00s generations were stepping onto the social stage; with their distinct personalities, they truly embodied the phrase “a once-in-a-century transformation.”