This chapter opens with the narrator lamenting that he cannot believe that the poet, xiao lang, is so talented. He says that everything in the universe is good for something, and that everything that is gone will eventually return. The narrator then goes on to explain that he hates the poet as a person, but that he does not understand why the poet's poems are so beautiful. He then describes the three poems that he wrote for hongdou. The first poem is about red beans, the second is about sprouts in spring, and the third is about a red bean. He wishes that he could pick as many sprouts as possible, so that when he returns, he would be able to get as many stabs out of them as possible. He is ashamed of himself for not being able to match the talent of the poet. He will go to the north border tomorrow and die fighting for his country. He vows never to write another poem, and says that he will die as a soldier in the northern border. He also says that the bastard poet, who teased him, should focus on writing poetry. He wonders if his aunt found out about the incident with the poet and that he was secretly studying literature. She tells him that the scholars have invited him to join their association and that the emperor has granted him a post as a scholar. He tells his grandfather that he is not interested in writing any more poems, but will continue to practice martial arts.