Hu Xiaotian had not intended to give an answer, but when he heard there was such a wonderful prize-free food and drink for life-he changed his mind. Holy shit, I can't let an opportunity like this slip away. Still, the fellow understood the principle of ladies first, at least to some extent. Smiling, he said to Huo Xiaoru, "After you, Miss Huo!" He was being courteous, but he also wanted to test her literary abilities. Back at the Misty Waters Pavilion, she had not had much opportunity to display them. There had to be a reason she was known as a talented lady.
Huo Xiaoru had actually heard of the Natural Residence's couplet before and had tried composing a matching line, so it was not particularly difficult for her. She said softly, "There isn't one fixed answer to this couplet. I heard it long ago and thought of a matching line, but even after turning it over many times, I still don't think mine is the best fit. My answer is: 'Boats cross a thousand miles of river; on the river, a thousand crossing boats.'"
Hu Xiaotian had originally planned to use Ji Xiaolan's answer outright, but now that Huo Xiaoru had offered her line, it would be awkward to show off too much. Although her answer was ingenious, its tonal pattern still fell short.
Everyone praised it in unison. "An excellent line!"
Huo Xiaoru said, "My line still has some flaws in its tonal pattern. The phrasing corresponding to 'residence' and 'temple hidden' isn't quite parallel, and ending with three level tones makes the pairing improper. But however much I thought about it, I couldn't come up with anything better. Please forgive my poor attempt."
Several people turned to Hu Xiaotian together. Huo Xiaoru's line was already remarkably ingenious;