Chapter 40: Half a Taoist Theory
Someone read aloud: "A golden cup of clear wine costs ten thousand coins, a jade plate of delicacies costs ten thousand coins..."
"This sentence may seem ordinary, but the writing is quite grand."
"Although the dishes on this table are not rare, they are exquisite. Using fine wine and delicacies to symbolize the precious farewell feelings of the great sages in Bailu is also appropriate for the occasion."
"This one sentence alone cannot compare to Master Xu's talent, but it is still a good piece of work."
"Just one sentence. Let's see again. Let's see again."
Jiang Zhou moved without stopping and completed the task in one go.
In the blink of an eye, half of the poem was left on the green jade and white sandalwood pillar.
"I put down my cup and chopsticks, unable to eat, and drew my sword, looking around, feeling lost."
"The Yellow River is blocked by ice, and the road to the Heavenly Palace is difficult to reach."
"Hiss~! Although these words are majestic, why do they reveal a sense of decadence and desolation?"
"How can this be a farewell poem? Mr. Dongyang is about to leave Wu and ascend to the heavenly palace. Isn't this a curse for Mr. Dongyang to have a bad start? Writing words like this is too unlucky."
"Could this officer have a grudge against Bailu Academy?"
"This is our Nanzhou's great scholar, Mr. Dongyang! How dare you, a little brat, be so frivolous and presumptuous!"
"What's your intention?"
Everyone was talking about it, especially the students in the academy, who were filled with anger.
Some people have already rolled up their sleeves, wanting to teach Jiang Zhou a lesson.
"Shut up!"
Unexpectedly, the one who shouted the scolding was Dai Yougong.
He never speaks lightly, but he is a great scholar as famous as Li Dongyang, and his deterrent power is no less than Li Dongyang.
Everyone fell silent.
Jiang Zhou paused in his unimpeded writing, turned around and grinned at the students who were glaring at him.
It seems like a provocation.
Seeing that they were even more enraged, Jiang Zhou laughed, reached out to grab the wine jug from Yan Xiaowu's hand, raised his head and gulped it down his throat.
"ha……"
Jiang Zhou exhaled the alcohol, laughed heartily, and started writing again.
Such a willful and arrogant attitude moved those who were around.
Yan Xiaowu was even more excited, completely forgetting that he was the one being treated like a servant.
Showing his two rows of big white teeth, he kept telling the crowd: "This is my brother, my brother!"
"I fished on the blue waters at my leisure, and suddenly I dreamt of the sun on a boat. It is hard to travel! It is hard to travel! There are so many forks in the road, where are you now?"
Sailing, fishing and sleeping peacefully are the ways of the hermits.
But when the last two sentences are connected, and Li Dongyang's identity and current situation are taken into consideration, the meaning changes.
He is a typical frustrated person who has difficulty realizing his ambitions and can only fish and dream in his spare time.
Two consecutive "difficult" words and a question fully express the difficulty in finding a job that recognizes one's talent and the helplessness of growing old.
Everyone was shocked.
The person is so unrestrained and arrogant, the words are so graceful and elegant, and the writing is so heroic.
But why is the mood so depressing?
Jiang Zhou paid no attention to the voices of others, and wrote the last sentence with his brush as fast as flowing clouds and ink as sharp as a knife.
“There will always be a time to ride on the wind and waves, and set sail to cross the vast ocean!”
“Wow!”
When the last sentence was read, everyone was shocked.
As soon as this sentence came out, the decadent atmosphere of the whole poem suddenly changed.
Jumping and swaying, ups and downs.
Unfettered and vast, with heroic spirit!
"good!"
Dai Jiugong slammed the table and stood up, shouting loudly, his face full of excitement.
He was the oldest and most stable person among the crowd.
This is the most exciting moment.
Probably because no one knew the situation of his close friend better than he did.
This poem is the best portrayal!
Dai Jiugong looked at his good friend, only to see Li Dongyang staring straight at the poem on the pillar with a complicated look.
Worried about the difficult road ahead?
When there is no justice in the world, will you sacrifice your life for the cause and remain steadfast and unyielding?
Is it the joy of meeting a bosom friend and knowing that you are not alone?
The joy of discovering a talented and beautiful person?
It should be both.
Dai Jiugong couldn't help but reach out and pat him heavily on the shoulder several times.
Li Dongyang's eyes returned to calmness and he looked at Jiang Zhou, and asked with a hint of expectation: "Boy, do you want to give this poem to me?"
Jiang Zhou picked up the wine jug and put it into his mouth again. When the last few drops of wine were gone, he raised his hand and threw the jug away.
In a drunken stupor, he forgot about boasting and waved his hand loudly, "Take it!"
Under the shocked gaze of the crowd, Li Dongyang actually stood up, straightened his clothes, and bowed: "I am Li Dongyang, thank you for the poem."
The great scholar showed his respect to a young demon patrol guard in his twenties.
Enough to shock the world.
This poem is indeed excellent.
But is he really so talented? Is he worthy of the respect of a great scholar?
Everyone was shocked and confused.
But they didn't know that what Li Dongyang valued was not how brilliant the poem was.
It’s the word “confidant”.
The world is in turmoil, and there is justice in the world, but it is difficult to find a friend who shares the same virtue.
It is rare to get one, but he got two, which is a great fortune.
Age? Identity?
How could Li Dongyang be the kind of person who would stick to these mundane things?
As for Jiang Zhou saying that this poem was written by his senior brother...
If there really was someone in the world who could write this poem, how could he remain unknown?
Moreover, have you ever seen anyone casually giving away other people’s masterpieces?
This kid probably doesn't want to be famous.
Li Dongyang thought he had seen through everything.
He was pleased in his heart, but he didn't know that Jiang Zhou was also extremely happy at this moment.
He copied down this poem not only because he guessed Li Dongyang's situation, but also because he thought that people like Li Dongyang had been carrying fame for half their lives and living freely in the mountains.
Are there not many people in history who suddenly entered officialdom with full of ambitions, but ended up with a miserable end?
That's why he made that tentative statement before, and Li Dongyang's reaction confirmed his guess.
Thus, the poem "The Road Is Hard" came into being.
At the same time, he was also taking advantage of the issue.
Ever since he traveled to this world, he has been very cautious and dared not overstep the mark.
I was afraid that if I made the slightest mistake, I would die without a burial place.
The witch threatened them, they were exiled to the wilderness, the evil ghosts in the mountains, Su Jingsi held the knife, the goddess besieged the city with a flood...
One thing after another, they weighed him down so much that he could hardly lift his head and he completely lost himself.
Almost all the depression and frustration accumulated during this period was poured into these few lines of text, and was completely vented out.
It was as if a heavy burden had been lifted off my shoulders, and I felt extremely relaxed and happy.
Looking at the old and the young, one with a face full of admiration, the other one being wantonly and frivolous, most of the onlookers were amazed and felt fortunate to have witnessed the birth of a good story.
Most of the students at Bailu Academy were convinced at this time, except for a few who looked unhappy.
Xu Wenqing, on the other hand, looked distraught.
Zhu Yuanhao recovered from his shock, saw the look on his student's face, and consoled him: "Wenqing, you have your strengths, don't be discouraged."
The noble young man at the side also said hurriedly: "That's right, Brother Wenqing, poetry is a minor art..."
He was only halfway through his words when he couldn't continue. After thinking about it could only say:
"At least Brother Wenqing, your writing is brilliant. No matter how good his poetry is, if he doesn't have a noble spirit, it will ultimately be insignificant..."
Although Jiang Zhou's eyes were dazzled and his mind was intoxicated, his ears and eyes seemed to be more alert.
After hearing these words, he pushed away Yan Xiaowu who was supporting him, staggered, and walked to a white jade screen not far away with a pen in hand.
"Poetry is a minor art, I will talk to you about the major art!"
Jiang Zhou laughed loudly, raised his pen to write, but found that the pen had no ink.
The fat Mr. Chen had already run to his side with an inkstone in his hand.
Jiang Zhou laughed loudly, dipped the brush in ink, and made a few drops of ink on Chen Yuanwai's fat face, but he didn't mind at all and kept smiling brightly.
"The great are at leisure, the small are at leisure. The great are eloquent, the small are eloquent. When they sleep, their souls are connected, when they wake, their bodies are open. They are connected with each other, and they fight with their hearts every day..."
While Jiang Zhou was drunk, the words he wrote were completely different from before.
Like strong grass dancing in the wind, it does not look messy at all, but instead appears more wild and heroic.
In just a few breaths, he had already written half of the Taoist theory.
This half of the Taoism is about the debater who is obsessed with sophistry all day long, is arrogant, and has an either-or attitude, and is hopeless.
It was originally a satire by a Taoist sage on the trend of endless sophistry when various schools of thought emerged and their ideas collided fiercely.
It was also what Jiang Zhou used to satirize the beginning of the dispute in Yanbo Tower today, the debate among the students about abolishing all schools of thought and respecting Confucianism alone.
Although it is only a short piece, every sentence is full of irony.
But the Taoist meaning of "I am one with the Tao, and all things are one" from the ancient sage is evident in every word.
This half of the Taoist theory is not something that everyone can understand.
Even though there were many well-educated people present, only a dozen or so could read through this half of the text.
There are less than five people who can understand even one or two of the true meanings of it.
Li Dongyang and Dai Yougong are the ones who can best understand the meaning behind it.
At this time, the two of them had already stepped out of the crowd in a somewhat inappropriate manner, and came to the screen, staring at the chapter above with wide eyes, staring at every stroke of Jiang Zhou's pen.
With every stroke and every word, he feels happy, angry, sad, worried, and frightened.
Looking back on the past, I couldn't help but break out in a cold sweat, as I realized how I had been addicted to external things and had fallen into endless shackles and all kinds of disasters without realizing it.
Jiang Zhou suddenly stopped writing, making the two of them feel suffocated and want to vomit blood.
This is probably because what Jiang Zhou wrote before was just about all kinds of worldly desires and demonic obstacles, and only vaguely revealed some kind of truth that leads directly to the great way, but did not elaborate.
Just when I saw a tendency to tell that truth, it stopped abruptly.
For the two of them, it was like a way to heaven that they had suddenly discovered, and then suddenly been cut off.
The fact that their minds were not immediately damaged was a sign of their high level of cultivation and the presence of righteousness in their hearts.
I looked at Jiang Zhou eagerly, only to see him throw away his pen and call out dazedly, "Xiao Wu! I'm sleepy, carry me back to sleep!"
Yan Xiaowu blinked, looked at the expressions of Li and Dai, and immediately showed his two rows of white teeth. He let out an "ah", ran over, carried Jiang Zhou on his back, and ran out of the crowd again.
Ran.
Li Dongyang and Dai Yougong were left looking at each other in confusion without reacting.
There were also people in Yanbo Tower who were stunned.
