Chapter 125: Life Is Beautiful

The cold moon was like a hook, and frost covered the ground.
The north wind was like a blade, piercing through the lattice windows.
The roommates were curled up tightly in their quilts, their breath visible as they spoke...
Yet this did not dampen their enthusiasm for chatting. Tao Chengdao remarked:
"It seems no one in our class was recommended to study the *Spring and Autumn Annals*. I saw Mr. Niu looking so dejected today."
"The *Spring and Autumn Annals* is inherently difficult, and he is unreliable anyway. The academy probably doesn't want to mislead the youth," Su Dan said with a sharp tongue.
"Mr. Niu does have some competence; it's just that he belongs to the orthodox Hu school of commentary." Su Lu defended Niu Ziru, considering the man had once wanted to marry his daughter to him. "However, this year's examiners happen to be anti-Hu faction members. The academy likely considered that opposing the Hu faction might become the mainstream in the future, and thus temporarily suspended his particular classic."
"Indeed, the *Spring and Autumn Annals* is not only difficult, but the Three Commentaries each present their own views, and the various schools are countless, fighting fiercely. Truly, only immortals can fully master it," their peers agreed wholeheartedly.
"Then the *Book of Changes* is unsuitable as well. Who would dare claim to be an authority on studying the *Changes*?" Cheng Wanzhou said. "Brother, you should study the *Classic of Poetry* instead."
"Don't you start, my brother is not going to study the *Classic of Poetry*!" Su Lu had been recommended to study the *Book of Changes*, so naturally, he did not want to hear this.
"The *Book of Changes* is indeed too risky to touch," Su Lu apologized to Su Dan. "The hexagrams and line statements are abstruse by nature. Han Confucians emphasized images and numbers, while Song Confucians discussed underlying principles. Shao Yong and Master Cheng each had their own interpretations, and even Master Zhu's commentary on the *Changes* tried to balance both approaches, yet to this day, there is no definitive conclusion, let alone authoritative annotations. I suppose no one has the ability to explain the *Changes* clearly."
"Since even Brother has no confidence, then I won't study the *Changes* either." Su Dan had made up his mind; whatever Su Lu studied, he would study. He didn't care at all about any teacher's recommendation.
"Therefore, you should study the *Classic of Poetry*, Brother," Cheng Wanzhou, Cheng Wanfan, and Li Qiyu said in unison.
"The *Classic of Poetry* has Master Zhu's *Collected Commentaries on the Poetry*, wouldn't that be an easy win for Brother?"
"The *Classic of Poetry* doesn't quite suit me either." Su Lu shook his head instead.
"Why is that?" the three asked in disappointment.
"Because while it is true that the *Collected Commentaries on the Poetry* is authoritative, the controversies surrounding it are also numerous. Moreover, the *Classic of Poetry* clashes with my temperament. To seek rational answers from the most emotional poetry—wouldn't that be climbing a tree to catch fish, a dead end of my own making?" Su Lu replied.
"Very well..." The three nodded helplessly, knowing that Su Lu was speaking the truth.
Normally, whenever everyone recited poems and composed lyrics for entertainment, he never participated. When asked why, he would say that he had "always" possessed an excess of rationality and a deficiency of sensibility. The verses he composed were always stiff, entirely lacking in spiritual charm, and forcing them out would only serve to increase the laughter of others...
Therefore, Su Lu's reluctance to choose the *Classic of Poetry* was completely understandable.

"Then what about the *Book of Documents*? At least the *Collected Commentaries on the Documents* counts as an authoritative annotated edition, right?" Wang Chong looked eagerly at Su Lu; clearly, he had been recommended to study the *Book of Documents*.
"The difficulty of the *Book of Documents* lies in the text itself." Although Su Lu had not thoroughly mastered any single classic over the past five months, he had gained a very clear understanding of all aspects. He smiled bitterly and said:
"The debate between New Text and Old Text has raged for thousands of years, and just how much of the Old Text classics presented by Mei Ze is genuine has still not been straightened out. Take those sixteen-word transmissions of the mind in the *Tears of Great Yu*: 'The human mind is precarious, the moral mind is subtle.' Some say it is the esoteric method of Confucius's school, while others say it was falsely attributed by later generations. Even the commentators hold contradictory views; where is the precise answer to be found?"
"Then that leaves only the *Classic of Rites*?" Tao Cheng instantly beamed with joy. This was what you called luck. He had originally been unhappy about being recommended to select the *Classic of Rites*, because the selection of the *Classic of Rites* had always been the lowest, even fewer than the *Spring and Autumn Annals*.
To his surprise, Su Lu actually disliked the other four classics, which clearly meant he had set his sights on the *Classic of Rites*.

"Ah Cheng, you must stop messing around." The others, however, were not optimistic. "There must be a reason why the fewest people choose the *Classic of Rites*. Brother, make sure you aren't miscalculating."
"Indeed, to say nothing else, the word count of the *Classic of Rites* exceeds all the other classics combined. Studying that stuff is just asking for hardship!" Li Qiyu said.
"True enough..." Su Lu had originally wanted to argue with him, but after counting, the *Classic of Rites* had ninety-nine thousand characters, while the other four classics combined had ninety-eight thousand characters. Li Qiyu had indeed guessed correctly.
"Moreover, the content of the *Classic of Rites* is extremely vast and complex, making it impossible for ordinary people to find a starting point." He also advised, "For instance, if one wants to sort out the content of the 'Sacrificial Rites', one has to flip back and forth through numerous chapters such as *Law of Sacrifices*, *Meaning of Sacrifices*, and *System of Sacrifices*. Trying to grasp the main points is simply too difficult."
Having said that, he thought of Su Lu's ability and smiled apologetically, "Of course, this isn't a problem for Brother."
"Furthermore, scholars in our dynasty who study the *Classic of Rites* mostly follow the theories of previous generations, with very few original insights. New theories worthy of reference and good foundational guidebooks are extremely scarce. Students can only remain confined within the barriers of old learning, turning in circles within a stale framework, making it hard to catch a glimpse of fresh realms. Studying it is thoroughly dull." Cheng Wanzhou also advised him.
Little did he know that every single word he spoke sounded like celestial music to Su Lu's ears.
"Few original insights" didn't that mean "fixed content and clear examination points"?
"Too few references" didn't that mean "unified standards and no ambiguous controversies"?
"Barriers of old learning" didn't that mean "mature system and exhaustive commentaries"?
"Stale framework" didn't that mean "regularized structure and clear scope of examination topics"?
This was simply a test-taker's ultimate paradise, wasn't it?

"Besides, there are few scholars studying the *Classic of Rites*, so naturally there are few master teachers, and even the number of candidates admitted in the provincial and metropolitan examinations is the fewest. Brother really has no need to invite trouble for himself." Wang Chong also advised him at this point: "A scholarly seed like Brother should choose the classic with the highest admission rate."
These words poured a bucket of cold water on Su Lu. The *Classic of Rites* was fine in other respects, but it lacked "master teachers"!
The teacher's warning still rang in his ears: the first criterion in choosing a classic was whether there were master teachers, the second was whether one could become the disciple of a master teacher, and only thirdly should one look at one's own conditions and suitability for a particular classic.
Without a master teacher, one could not choose it...

At that moment, the fierce watchdog's scolding bark rang out from outside: "Still talking this late? I see your skin is itching for a beating!"
The classmates hurriedly ended their bedtime conversation. In the end, Su Lu still hadn't decided which classic to choose.

The next day was once again the day for the Principal's special lecture.
When Su Lu arrived at the Principal's study, he saw that Zhu Ziyu was already waiting outside.
The young man was wrapped in a pomegranate-colored jacquard cotton robe, the fabric woven with hidden key-fret patterns using combed cotton yarn, visible only at specific angles. The collar and cuffs were trimmed with a circle of light grey rabbit fur, which both kept out the biting mountain wind and avoided any appearance of bulkiness.
He held a hand warmer encased in a Songjiang cloth cotton sleeve, and coupled with his jade-like face and red-lipped, white-toothed appearance, he looked just like a young gentleman who had strayed into the mountains.
As the saying goes, the colder it gets, the more the disparity between the rich and the poor becomes apparent...
Fortunately, Su Lu had also upgraded his equipment now. The padded moon-white cloth robe and the thousand-layer-soled cotton shoes on his feet were newly purchased for him by his foster mother after the start of winter. Wearing this outfit made him look quite spirited and neat!

The Principal had decided to go to the capital to take the imperial examinations and would set off in a few days, so he had many matters to arrange recently.
The two handsome young men stood side by side in the corridor, waiting for Zhu Liu to finish discussing his matters.
Su Lu looked up at the gloomy sky. Leaden clouds hung low, and a few snowflakes even began to drift down.
The twelfth lunar month in the southwestern mountains was truly the depth of winter...
This was already his second winter here. Compared to last year's winter—when he had to eat chaff and coarse grain, his stomach growled with hunger all day long, he studied by the freezing window day and night, and kept warm solely by rubbing his hands and stamping his feet—his situation this winter had undoubtedly improved greatly.
He had successfully passed the examinations to enter the academy and had already completed his counterattack. Ever since he topped the examinations in the middle of the year, he had never surrendered the top spot to the young master standing beside him.
His studies were going smoothly, and his family's living standards had also greatly improved. Food, clothing, and daily expenses were gradually looking up; the old lady finally got to eat fine grain as she had wished, and little Jinbao's cheeks had grown rosy as well.
Every time he returned home for a holiday, his eldest aunt would cook a table of good dishes, and when he left, she would pack a bag of cured meat, Chinese sausage, or smoked fish for him, ensuring his belly wouldn't lack for oil during his time at school.
Moreover, he no longer had to wear his elder brothers' hand-me-downs; his foster mother had replaced the entire wardrobe for both brothers. However, his eldest aunt hadn't been willing to throw away a single one of those old clothes, keeping them to wear while doing chores...
He had even saved up a tidy sum of private money. The bulk of it was the study stipend issued by the academy. From the first time he received it in May until now, he had collected a total of three taels and two hundred and fifty wen from the academy's supervisor.
Over the past half year, his foster mother, eldest uncle, and father also occasionally gave him pocket money, which added up to nearly two taels. However, he wasn't a miser; he would occasionally buy snacks and hairpins for little Tiantian, and some food and drink for the boys in the community school, so he had spent some of it.
Of course, long-term poverty always leaves its mark on a person. Aside from buying snacks for his younger siblings, he basically spent no money at all.
The books he read were all borrowed from the academy's library. Not only did he read them himself, but he also borrowed them for his eldest brother...
And not only did he read them, he also copied them, squeezing the academy for all it was worth within the limits allowed by the rules.
Regrettably, his coursework was usually too heavy, leaving him with not enough time to fulfill his eldest brother's wishes. Over the course of a year, he had only copied three sets of books: *Master Lü's Spring and Autumn Annals*, *Guanzi*, and *Liezi*...
That sounded impressive, but actually it amounted to only four hundred thousand characters.
Su Lu used regular script to write within grid lines, copying two hundred characters per page, binding fifty pages into a volume, with each volume containing ten thousand characters.
He had copied forty volumes in a year; reckoned this way, it was quite a lot...
Naturally, this consumed a lot of paper, and every month he would exceed the academy's quota. But for just eight wen, he could buy a sheaf from the fierce watchdog. Not only was it cheaper than the loess paper sold by that "Air Force One" at Erlangtan, it was also whiter, cleaner, and of higher quality bamboo paper.
The fierce watchdog often engaged in buy-one-get-one-free deals; of course, this fell under the category of special treatment...
The ink was the remaining stock brewed by his second brother. His second brother was a steadfast man; the ink he brewed last winter would last three years.
As for writing brushes, his second brother had also prepared quite a few brush tips for him.
The brush tips made by his second brother had an outer layer of "seven parts wolf hair and three parts sheep hair," which was soft and highly absorbent of ink. The inner core was made of "seven parts wolf hair and three parts rabbit hair," possessing strong elasticity and excellent hair-gathering properties. When writing with the center of the brush tip, the strokes were stable, and the turning points were sharp and distinct, making them even easier to use than the "Little White Cloud" sold in town.
Therefore, it wasn't that Su Lu couldn't afford to buy brushes, but rather that his family's homemade ones were better to use. It just took a bit of a toll on his second brother...

PS: The following parts haven't been checked yet, please hold on for a moment.