Courtyard Houses: Starting as a Purchasing Agent

The old man trembled with anger: "You're being unreasonable..."

Are you kidding me? The entire Tang Poetry Collection is full of poems about lamenting white hair in a bright mirror in a high hall, isn't it?

"Alright, alright..." the old man said, "I'll listen to what you have to say today, go on!"

Liu Aiguo said, "The second mistake is that your poem says 'In the morning, black silk turns to snow by evening'... But I think the original poem should be 'In the morning, blue clouds turn to snow by evening'..."

The old man's face darkened again.

Liu Aiguo ignored him and continued, "The third mistake is that the lines 'Master Cen' and 'Danqiu Sheng' do not include the six characters '将进酒、杯莫停'!"

"The fourth error is that the original poem should be 'Sages of the past are all forgotten, only drinkers have left their names' instead of 'Sages of the past are all dead, only drinkers have left their names'..."

After saying that, Liu Aiguo stood to the side with a smile.

The old man asked in astonishment, "What about the fifth place?"

Liu Aiguo said, "The fifth point is the title of your poem. It's not called 'Drinking Alone Under the Moon,' but rather 'Regret for the Empty Wine Cup'..."

"Nonsense!"

The old man said, "The poem 'Bring in the Wine' was written by Li Bai. It was first recorded in the 'Collection of Heroes and Spirits of the Yellow River and the Yangtze River' at the end of the Kaiyuan era. This 'Collection of Heroes and Spirits of the Yellow River and the Yangtze River' was later included in the Complete Tang Poems, and it hasn't changed at all. It's still 'Bring in the Wine'!"

"However, the annotation mentioned that it is also written as 'Xi Zun Kong,' but whether it is actually 'Xi Zun Kong' is impossible to verify!"

"Really?"

A slight smile appeared on Liu Aiguo's lips as he said, "Then I'm afraid you haven't seen the handwritten copy of the Dunhuang Poetry Collection, sir... In this handwritten copy of the Dunhuang Poetry Collection, this poem is called 'Regretful Empty Wine Cup,' and the five errors I mentioned are derived from the Dunhuang Poetry Collection!"

"The Dunhuang Poetry Collection?" The old man frowned and asked, "What is this?"

Liu Aiguo said, "It's also a book from the Kaiyuan era of the Tang Dynasty, and it was written around the same time as the 'Collection of Heroes and Spirits of the Rivers and Mountains' that you mentioned!"

"That's it!"

The old man said, "Since the books were written at the same time and record two slightly different versions of Li Bai's 'Drinking Alone Under the Moon,' why is it that the one I wrote is wrong, and not yours!"

"because……"

Liu Aiguo said, "The Dunhuang Poetry Collection I'm talking about is a handwritten copy... It was originally passed down from the Kaiyuan era of the Tang Dynasty, only a dozen years after Li Bai wrote this poem!"

"But... those 'Collection of Heroes of the Rivers and Mountains' and 'Complete Tang Poems' that you mentioned are not!"

"The Anthology of Heroes and Spirits of the Rivers and Mountains that we can see today does not have a Tang Dynasty version; they are all Song Dynasty editions... In other words, what we see is the version of the poems that was edited by people in the Song Dynasty, and it has already been revised by them!"

"According to the principles of poetry archaeology, the most recent date should be used!"

"Then... the first edition should be the Dunhuang Poetry Collection!"

Upon hearing this, the old man was taken aback.

Liu Aiguo spoke with great logic and reasoning, so it's clear he wasn't making it up.

Does such a version really exist?

If that's true, then the poem would be completely distorted.

"That……"

The old man paused, then asked, "Why did the Song people change the original version...?"

There are only two reasons why the version has changed.

One possibility is that someone deliberately altered it.

One mistake was made during the copying and burning process.

However, based on the mistakes Liu Aiguo just mentioned, it is clear that it was not a mistake.

is intentional.

After all, you can't possibly get the title of someone's poem wrong, can you?

It is obvious that someone has tampered with it.

But why would they want to alter it? That doesn't make sense.

Liu Aiguo said, "Sir, you are well-versed in history, aren't you...? The Song Dynasty was the pinnacle of Confucianism, and Neo-Confucianism reached its zenith. At that time, no one was allowed to disrespect the words of the sages, not even Li Bai!"

"Doesn't it seem a bit disrespectful to the ancient sages that all the wise men of the past have died out?"

"I suspect that this is why the Song people altered Li Bai's poem so drastically!"

"Makes sense!"

"Makes sense!"

"Makes sense!"

The old man stood there dumbfounded, and after saying "that makes sense" three times, he picked up his bucket and hurriedly left.

Needless to say, he went off to consult the classics.

Liu Aiguo was unaware that his unintentional act would have a slight impact on textbooks used in later generations.

But this is all for later.

"Hehe..." Liu Aiguo chuckled and said, "That old geezer is finally gone... Come on, Yu Li, let's continue our conversation..."

"Mmmmmmm..."

When Yu Li looked at Liu Aiguo again, her eyes sparkled with unexpected surprise.

She never expected that Liu Aiguo, besides being handsome, rich, and tall, would also be so knowledgeable.

Even that old scholar whose handwriting looked like printed text was defeated by him.

"You're so knowledgeable!" Yu Li said sourly, "Liu Aiguo... if we get married someday, will you look down on me...?"

"impossible!"

Liu Aiguo said, "What's all this talk about scholarship? Scholarship can't give me children, can it?"

"Screw you!"

Yu Li rolled her eyes at him and said, "Who said I'm going to have your baby?"

But then she added, "Later... how about next week? Come to our house... meet my mom. If she agrees, I have no objections!"

Yu Li's face turned bright red all the way to her ears.

Liu Aiguo was overjoyed: This means the girl has agreed.

Hahaha!

Yu Li is mine!

Chapter 016 Xu Damao Comes to Borrow a Bicycle

"Ding dong..."

Just then, Liu Aiguo's system suddenly rang.

"Congratulations, host! You have won Yu Lifang's heart. As a reward, you have received a special item... The special item has been placed in your system space. Please check it!"

what?

Upon hearing the system's notification, Liu Aiguo was taken aback.

Has this triggered some kind of hidden quest?

If I win Yu Lifang's heart, will I get a special item?

Let's see what it is?

Liu Aiguo instantly scanned the system space with his divine sense.

There are rows of squares, and in one of the squares at the back, there is a strangely shaped thing.

His consciousness swept away.

【Soul Chain】: A special item produced by the system. After use, it can control the soul of another person. The effective time is 60 minutes.

This……

Although he hadn't used it and didn't know exactly how to operate it, Liu Aiguo was still extremely shocked.

Can you control someone's soul for sixty minutes?

Wouldn't that allow one to do a lot of bad things?

Liu Aiguo gave Yu Li a mischievous look.

Yu Li said, "Why do you look at me like that?"

"No!" Liu Aiguo quickly replied, "What would you like to eat? I'll treat you to lunch!"

"No need..." Yu Li said, "I'll have lunch with you after my parents agree. I'm going back to my aunt's house today. Come on, please take me home quickly, so my aunt doesn't misunderstand us!"

"Hehehe... What misunderstanding?" Liu Aiguo said with a smile, "She's just creating an opportunity for us!"

In the end, however, Liu Aiguo still carried Yu Li and walked towards Li Chunhong's house.

Jingle Bell……

The bicycle and the beautiful wife drew envy from countless people on the street.