286, A Gift for the Empress, a "Love Poem" from Another World (5000 words)_3

The common folk had little strong perception of who was powerful and who was weak, so controlling public opinion was quite essential.

Xu Zhenguan knew the intricacies well, and tonight, he had arranged for quite a few literati to attend.

When the banquet began, after the singing and dancing, it moved into the poetry contest segment.

A group of literati and poets threw out their prepared poems, heaping lavish praise upon Zhao Douan and the Royal Family of Great Yu.

Their words were so blatantly flattering and sycophantic that even Zhao Douan, the petty man that he was, felt humiliated by the comparison.

He suddenly realized why the Empress usually remained unmoved by his own flattery—

These literati were just too good at licking boots!

Zhao Douan witnessed a literatus holding a scroll of poetry arrive at the entrance of the hall and read aloud, lavishing praise on him from every conceivable angle.

Praising him to the heights of heaven and the rarity on earth.