Chapter 504 - 326: Encounter Another Roadblock
By afternoon, these young men and women had formed a gathering to compete in poetry and the arts of Qin, Chess, Calligraphy, and Painting.
Ye Shiqi did not shamelessly plagiarize a private collection of 300 Tang poems, nor did she frivolously display modern poems and prose about love.
She was just herself, and if she truly had literary talent, then at her current age it wasn’t appropriate to show it off too much, especially since she was someone who had not attended an academy.
The teacher Scholar had taught her to read and write, choosing a method suited for teaching girls, which included understanding and applying poetry. The educational approach was different from that for boys, and somewhat simpler.
Seeing her own sister, Ye Fengqi, not prominently displaying her talents though she had also learned to recognize characters over several years, she still did not perform well in poetry.
Si Ma Roumei had no such concerns; she was used to competing with these boys in the academy, being the only female student at Xinghe Academy.
It was fortunate that she usually dressed as a boy while studying, the academy had provided her a private room complete with a latrine, so she didn’t have to crowd in with the boys.
The head of the academy had received a letter sent from the Capital, which was why they made an exception to admit Si Ma Roumei to study.
If it had not been for that, even with her status as the daughter of the County Magistrate, Si Ma Roumei would not have been allowed to enter the academy.
Some daughters of wealthy families within the county had also been suggested for academy admission, and their indulgent fathers had used their connections to inquire, but they never received approval from the academy.