Top Scholar

Chapter 184 Metamorphosis

"When I was young, I carried a hoe in the fields. The scorching sun beat down, sweat soaked through my thin clothes, and every drop of earth turned into smoke. The sorghum stalks were like halberds, their leaves like frost-covered blades, cutting my skin and leaving me nearly dizzy and falling to the ground. On the way, I was met with disdainful looks, and the powerful bullied me for my weakness. When I returned home, I would eat coarse food to fill my stomach, struggling to swallow and stretching my neck like a goose. I couldn't sleep at night, clenching my fists against my chest, and thus I resolved to study diligently to alleviate this poverty!"

"As I grew up, I was fortunate enough to be favored and sent to study in a studio. I wore fine clothes and ate clean food, no longer needing to be exposed to the dust; I sat upright discussing the classics, why should I need to be exposed to the sun? The neighbors asked with smiles, 'How is the young master?' The gentry praised him, saying, 'He has the potential to become a useful person.' Only then did I realize that the neighborhood was like a warm spring breeze, with green mountains and clear waters, as if I had been transported to another world. However, the fields remained unchanged, and the warmth and coldness of human relationships remained the same. It was not that the world had changed, but that I had changed my position."

"Alas! My heart changes with my circumstances; this is a warning to me. I once despised the arrogance of the wealthy and powerful, but now I forget the hardships of farming; I used to resent the insurmountable barrier of noble families, but now I indulge in privileged treatment. How is this self-satisfaction any different from what I once criticized? Tao Kan, even while carrying bricks, never forgot his worries; Sima Qian, even while using his pillow, warned himself against complacency. How much more so should I, who am still unsuccessful, be even more vigilant and self-aware—"

"The journey here was short, the sweat still damp; our initial aspirations burned like a torch, illuminating the dark path. When the south wind rises, let us not forget the cold of the northern lands; after three meals a day, let us remember the hardship of harvesting grains. To remember suffering while enjoying peace and honor is not a pretense to gain fame, but a genuine fear of being enslaved by material possessions!"

The next morning, the old mountain chief finished reading Su Lu's essay "Metamorphosis" in one breath and laughed heartily, "Good, good, good! This is exactly what I wanted—a good article with flesh and blood and genuine feelings!"

"You're a promising young man! You're truly promising!" he praised happily. "Try to write with this sincerity in your future articles..."

"Yes, I will keep your teachings in mind." Su Lu said with a wry smile, "It's just that I am ignorant and lack knowledge and talent, so I have very few articles that I can write from the heart."

Last night, he racked his brains and realized that he couldn't possibly write even ten or eight articles like this...

“The students are even worse,” Zhu Zihe said with equal distress. “They have even less experience…”

He went home last night and spent the whole night trying to write something, but he couldn't produce a single heartfelt article.

I did write one, but it's called "Ode to My Godfather," so it's not suitable for public circulation.

"Hehe." After listening to their troubles, the old master smiled understandingly and said, "That's normal. Young people have less experience and less knowledge, so they 'don't know the taste of sorrow when they are young, but they force themselves to write poems about it.'"

"Then make up for what you lack. If you have little experience, travel and see more; if you know little, get to know more," he said with a smile to the two of them.
"In the past, when the Duke of Zhou saw farmers who were 'without clothes or coarse garments' and were 'gathering tea and firewood,' he realized the hardship of farming and thus composed the poem 'July.' When I was inspecting Lingnan, I saw the Tanka people living under their boats, wrapping their children in discarded nets on winter nights, and being unable to sleep after returning home. So I composed the poem 'Song of the Twelfth Month,' which moved the officials and slightly relieved the Tanka people's plight. It is said that even today, the boat people in Lingnan are still singing this song."

"Therefore, scholars must read ten thousand books and travel ten thousand miles to cultivate their literary spirit from the world around them. Only by witnessing farmers toiling in the fields can one truly understand the hardship behind every grain of rice, and then write about the people with a heart full of compassion; only by seeing the vastness of the mountains and rivers can one truly appreciate the grandeur of 'standing on the summit and looking down upon all the mountains.' Then, when writing about the world, one will have a sense of magnificence... Have you ever carefully observed the Yangtze River?"

"No." The two shook their heads in shame.

“The Yangtze River is right at our doorstep, yet we don’t observe it properly. That’s really wrong of us.” Pang Shanzhang shook his head and said, “From now on, you have to go and see it once a month for a year, and then write an article for me.”

"Yes," the two quickly replied.

"It's not just about seeing; for every event you witness, you must remember five things: the time, the place, the person, their appearance, and their heart." Master Pang further instructed, "When dealing with people, you must 'observe their expression, hear their voice, feel their labor, and touch their heart.' Your inkstone must be filled with three parts sweat and two parts tears to produce the perfect writing. Only then, when you pick up your pen again, a full-bodied and heartfelt article will naturally emerge."

"Yes, disciples will remember." The two hurriedly replied, "From today onwards, we will observe, listen, and remember more."

"Of course. Relying solely on personal experience is too little and too slow a process. It's unrealistic to expect you to abandon your studies and experience all the hardships of life," the old headmaster added with a smile.

"This requires the help of others. First, we need to read more articles and notes by famous scholars, to understand through their eyes and empathize with their feelings. Second, we need to utilize official documents from the government; Zi and Hongzhi should both be able to obtain various notices from the prefectures and counties." He paused, then continued:
"Furthermore, although I have been retired for many years, the province still sends me a monthly copy of the official documents. These are confidential documents that even the prefectures and counties cannot access, so I cannot give them to you to take back and read. However, you can read them here to understand national affairs, people's livelihoods, and the ever-changing political landscape. This will greatly broaden your horizons and allow you to see issues no longer limited to a single prefecture or county..."

Just then, the clapperboard sounded, signaling the start of class, and the old headmaster laughed, "That's all for today."

~~
Taiping Town, Sweet Water Story.

The doorbell rang with a pleasant tinkling sound...

After the busy temple fair in the first month of the lunar calendar ended, the proprietress gave her employees double pay and three days off so they could go home and get some rest.

Exhausted and looking noticeably thinner, Manager Su slumped against the counter and said lazily, "Sorry, sir, we're closed today. Please come back tomorrow..."

But then he heard the tapping sound of a cane getting closer and closer, and Su Youcai looked up and immediately stood up.

"Master Cheng, what brings you here..." Even though the answer was already clear, Su Youcai was still very nervous when he saw Scholar Cheng come in.

"Can't I come to see my daughter?" Cheng Xiucai was the same. Although he already knew everything, he was still furious to see this guy blatantly hogging his daughter.

"Father, what brings you here?" The landlady came downstairs at the sound of her voice, her long, black hair still loose, which she quickly tied back with a hair tie. After a few days of rest, she looked radiant and even more beautiful than before.

"Why is everyone asking this? Can't I come?" Cheng Xiucai said dejectedly.

"No, no, please sit down." Su Youcai quickly helped Cheng Xiucai to a seat and then went to boil water to make tea... Actually, these tasks were not usually his responsibility; he mainly used this opportunity to avoid them so that the father and son could talk.

The proprietress also sat down next to Cheng Xiucai, and the two of them remained silent for a while, separated by the tea table.

"Father, what's the matter?" the landlady asked first.

"You two, are you just going to leave like this?" Cheng Xiucai asked in a muffled voice. "Ah..." The landlady glanced at Cheng Xiucai in surprise. For her father, the most conservative man in Erlangtan, to ask such a question was itself a positive sign.

"Dad, what did you hear this time?" the landlady asked noncommittally. Her and Su Youcai's principle was to neither admit nor deny, and to wait and see.

"Do I even need to listen?" Scholar Cheng said helplessly, "The Su family all call me father-in-law..."

"Then what do you mean?" the proprietress asked in a low voice, her head lowered.

"Do you even listen to what I'm saying?" Cheng Xiucai said irritably.

"If Dad says something nice, then we'll listen to it." The proprietress spoke with the gentlest tone but with the firmest words.

"You brat, you've really grown wings!" Just like twenty years ago, Cheng Xiucai raised his hand as if to hit her.

"I won't do it again, I won't do it again." The proprietress looked at him with the same pleading expression she had when she was a child.

The father and son chuckled, considering it a closed chapter...

"You're no good manager. It's been ages and you still haven't brought the tea," Cheng Xiucai said deliberately.

"Tea's here, tea's here." Su Youcai then lifted the curtain and came out from behind with a tea tray, serving tea to Cheng Xiucai. Dried fruit and snacks were also arranged on a plate, showing that he had really put thought into it.

Cheng Xiucai deliberately acted haughty, watching Su Youcai pour him a cup of tea and then pick it up for him before reaching out to take it. His expression softened slightly as he said, "Don't just listen to my daughter, or she'll take advantage of you."

"Dad, what are you saying..." The landlady blushed deeply.

"Hey, we discussed it together." Su Youcai grinned from ear to ear and said, "Old man, don't leave at noon today. I'll order two dishes later, and we'll have a drink together."

"You still have to cook for yourself." Cheng Xiucai scolded his daughter again, "You should go to the kitchen when you need to. Don't treat yourself like a pampered young mistress."

"Oh," the landlady responded, clearly displeased. "What's wrong, Dad? Stop beating around the bush."

"There is indeed something," Scholar Cheng coughed and slowly asked, "It's about the Langquan Well..."

"What?" Su Youcai's smile vanished. This well was the most sensitive topic between the two tribes, the kind that always ended in bloodshed whenever it was brought up.

"Looking back now, we also made some mistakes. Actually, there was enough water in the well to accommodate two wineries." Cheng Xiucai said with some difficulty, "When I wrote to Magistrate Lu back then, I was hoping to achieve the best possible outcome, with both families sharing the Langquan Well."

"Huh? Is that so?" Su Youcai, no longer bothering to play the dutiful son-in-law, widened his eyes and said, "Why didn't you say so sooner?"

"Didn't I break your father's arm later?" Cheng Xiucai said irritably, "To vent my anger, I'm going to take Langquan Well back!"

“That used to be our Su family’s well!” Su Youcai shouted. “And if you hadn’t been stirring things up with those ‘Go ahead and hit me’ and ‘You won’t dare to, will you?’ my father wouldn’t have broken your arm in the heat of the moment!”

"That's called a provocation, you know? He even commands troops!" Scholar Cheng snorted. "I never expected him to actually fight. Now I can't even lift my arm."

"Serves him right!" Su Youcai was there at the time, and thinking about how annoying Cheng Xiucai was, he still felt a burning hatred in his teeth.

"Alright, alright, you two stop arguing." Luckily, the proprietress was there, preventing the two from starting a fight on the spot. "If you want to argue, go to the street, or better yet, have a fight to vent your anger before coming in!"

"Humph!"

"Hmph!" Cheng Xiucai and Su Youcai turned their heads away, refusing to look at each other.

“Everyone has their own reasons for what happened in the past, and even if the lawsuit is taken all the way to Beijing, it won’t be resolved.” The proprietress said in a deep voice, “So you can either stay stuck in the grudges of the past and keep hurting each other, or you can let go of the grudges and look forward!”

“My daughter is right.” After all, the Cheng family was the weaker party, so Cheng Xiucai took the initiative to back down and said, “I came here this time to see if there is any possibility of reconciliation.”

He rolled his eyes at Su Youcai and said, "If it weren't for my daughter, I would fill up Langquan Well rather than share it with you!"

Su Youcai curled his lip, thinking to himself, "If you dare to fill Langquan Well, your clansmen will fill you up first." But he couldn't argue with his future father-in-law.

He then asked in a low voice, "So what are the conditions?"

P.S. I haven't checked the next chapter yet. This metamorphosis story took me another hour and a half... The biggest contradiction now is the conflict between Su Lu's ever-improving writing skills and the monk's limited abilities.

(End of this chapter)