The Cold Door Hero

Summary

In this chapter, Li Yan Qing is called to Yao Ding's study, where he is confronted about a couplet he wrote, which Yao Ding believes he copied. After some questioning, Li Yan Qing admits he was inspired by a student who saw the couplet through an open window. Yao Ding punishes him with three lashes for entering his study without permission but acknowledges Li Yan Qing's honesty. Afterward, Yao Ding is impressed by the couplet and decides to write his own version. Later, Li Yan Qing meets his father, Li Da Qi, who is excited about their family's newfound fortune. They encounter Master Luo from the local bookstore, who praises Li Yan Qing's manuscript and offers to publish it. Despite initial misunderstandings about copyright, they agree on a price of forty guan for the book. Li Yan Qing cleverly negotiates terms for future works, impressing Master Luo and leaving his father both proud and bewildered by his son's shrewdness.

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