Great Song Dynasty Writer

Chapter 142 Enlightenment
The heat subsided slightly in the evening, but even with the doors and windows open, the indoor temperature remained high due to the gathering of people.

The people fanned themselves more vigorously with their palm-leaf fans, and the pages turning over carried a sticky, damp smell.

President Cui Wenjing wiped the sweat from his brow and shared, “Gentlemen, the poetry topics for the Four Prefectures Joint Examination have always emphasized ‘relevance, rigor, and grandeur.’ Last year’s topic, ‘Ascending to a Height on an Autumn Day to Reflect on the Past,’ had many poems with strict adherence to the rules, but few were able to break free from the ‘melancholy of autumn’ and write with a grand or profound new meaning. This year, it’s Jiaozhou’s turn to set the topic, and its officials tend to prefer a clear, vigorous, and elegant style, especially emphasizing the word ‘grandeur.’ We need to study it carefully.”

"Could the president explain the key points of this 'weather'?"

"The so-called 'atmosphere' does not mean simply being grand; it also means having substance, being sincere and earnest, and revealing the spirit in the details. For example, 'the cicadas' chirping makes the forest seem even quieter, and the birds' singing makes the mountain seem even more secluded.' The interplay of stillness and movement is what constitutes atmosphere."

“Indeed,” another older student from the upper dormitory added, his voice a little hoarse from the heat. “However, in the examination room, time is tight, so the most important thing is to be ‘steady.’ You must be accurate in your approach to the question, hitting the key words; you must be strict with the rules of prosody, ensuring that the tones and parallelism are correct; and you must use allusions appropriately, preferring to be safe rather than risky or bizarre.”

"That's right. Especially now that it's so hot, it's easy to make mistakes when you're impatient and restless. Don't lose your composure in pursuit of novelty. Last year in Rongzhou, there was a question about 'a scene of lotus pond in summer.' One classmate tried to imitate the beauty of 'lotus flowers reflecting the sun are especially red,' but forgot that the question required 'expressing feelings about the scene.' He wrote about the scenery all the time but forgot the word 'feeling.' He was careless and fell out of the top class."

Lu Beigu listened attentively; the issues being discussed at the meeting were precisely the dilemmas he was currently facing.

He often has flashes of inspiration in his poetry, such as "the sound of dragons and snakes on paper," but under strict format and topic requirements, his poems sometimes seem not "sturdy enough," or he abandons things that are more important in exams in pursuit of "grandeur."

"I've actually gained quite a bit from attending this club meeting with Zhou Mingyuan," Lu Beigu thought to himself.

In fact, this is how exam-oriented education works. As long as there are no major changes to the overall system, everyone's path is pretty much the same as that of their predecessors.

The experienced and established patterns have often already been summarized by predecessors. If we can obtain them directly, it will be much more efficient than figuring it out slowly on our own.

The discussion continued.

Seeing that Lu Beigu was deep in thought and didn't speak, Cui Wenjing was afraid that he would be shy, so he took special care of him.

“Brother Lu, I have heard the poems you wrote at the welcoming gathering. Your talent is excellent, especially in creating the artistic conception.”

Cui Wenjing advised, "But writing examination poems is like walking in heavy shackles. Following the rules is the first step. The so-called 'steady' principle is truly golden advice. Especially in this joint examination of the four states, when faced with a massive number of papers, the examiners will first look at whether the format is neat and the topic is accurately addressed. If this hurdle is not passed, even if there are amazing and brilliant lines, they may be like pearls covered in dust."

Lu Beigu agreed wholeheartedly and nodded, saying, "Thank you for your guidance, President. I have been practicing recently and also feel that this is a bottleneck. I often feel that my ideas are magnificent when I am conceiving them, but after putting pen to paper, I feel constrained and my writing is not smooth because of the constraints of the rules, the awkward use of allusions, or the failure to grasp the 'eye' of the topic."

“Brother Lu, there’s no need for such modesty,” Cui Wenjing encouraged. “Your ‘On the Six States’ is magnificent in its style and insightful in its historical analysis, demonstrating your profound knowledge. Although the art of poetry and prose differs from that of policy essays, the concept of ‘theme’ is the same. You only need to incorporate it into the metrical framework of poetry and prose, closely adhering to the ‘atmosphere’ or ‘sentiment’ required by the topic, and you will surely create something unique.”

He paused, picked up an old scroll from the table, and pointed to one of the poems used as an example, explaining: "Take this poem, 'Evening View from the River Tower,' from the Jiaozhou provincial examination two years ago. The topic required 'reflections on the scene, reflecting thoughts of home and country.' The writer did not express his feelings directly, but used the scenery to metaphorically represent the traveler's journey and the precarious state of the nation, elevating his personal sorrow of being away from home to concern for the current situation. It is both relevant to the topic and has a grand vision, and its meter is impeccable. Brother Lu, you may find this method of 'implying the greater in the lesser' useful."

Lu Beigu carefully savored Cui Wenjing's analysis and the poem's imagery, and combined this with the struggles he had encountered during his practice. It was as if a layer of fog had been cleared from his mind. He had previously been too preoccupied with whether "atmosphere" was equivalent to a grand narrative, neglecting how, within the framework of rules, one could more skillfully express the theme subtly and powerfully through the selection of imagery and the fusion of emotion and scene.

This method of "implying the greater in the lesser" is precisely the test-taking skill he needs to hone.

“Brother Cui’s words are like a wake-up call.” Lu Beigu sincerely cupped his hands and said, “I was indeed too focused on the form of ‘atmosphere’ before, and neglected that its spirit must be attached to the bones of the topic and the form of the meter. It seems that the first thing in this examination poetry is to ‘stand firm even with heavy shackles’, and only then can one cultivate flowers that conform to the rules and do not lose their spirit in the limited space.”

His analogy was so apt that it drew agreement from the several students present.

"Exactly!" Cui Wenjing clapped his hands. "Brother Lu, your comprehension is exceptionally high! The two words 'stand firm' are the foundation, and we must not neglect them because of the heat, anxiety, or other reasons. As for how to 'dance' after standing firm, that requires us to encourage each other and practice more. Come, let's look at a few more past exam questions and analyze their key points and commonly used imagery."

The techniques shared by senior students like Cui Wenjing were quite practical, and Lu Beigu listened very attentively.

Lu Beigu, lacking teacher guidance, did not make significant progress in poetry and prose after entering the state school. This was partly because he did not have enough time to devote to poetry and prose, and partly because poetry and prose require extensive training and correction to develop reliable test-taking skills.

Regarding test-taking skills, Lu Beigu indeed gained a lot from listening in at this club meeting.

In fact, it is precisely because the accumulation of exams and study time gives senior students a significant advantage over freshmen that state schools use the dormitory system for management and differentiate students in terms of living and educational conditions. At the same time, they have opened up the "club" system and used reward mechanisms to enable "senior students to mentor new students" among student groups, thereby improving the overall level of state students.

After studying poetry and prose, we finally moved on to policy essays.

"The topic of our policy discussion tonight is 'On the Profits of Salt and Iron and the Poverty of the People.' This is a common topic in the joint examination of the four states, and its theme and style of argumentation vary greatly. Each person has a limited time to come up with an idea, and there is no need to write it down. After one incense stick has burned, each person will present their views, and then we will debate and supplement each other."

Inside the incense burner, a stick of incense is lit, and wisps of smoke rise gently.

Since you only need to think about it and don't need to write it down completely, even if you're afraid of forgetting it, you can just write a draft, so there's enough time.

The only sound in the room was the rustling of papers.

The incense stick burned out quickly.

“The time has come.” Cui Wenjing tapped the table lightly. “Let’s begin with Brother Zhang and proceed in turn.”

The student whose name was called on immediately began to state their opinion.

(End of this chapter)