xymnovel Chapter 41 There is a Jade Gentleman in Youzhou
Chapter 41 There is a Jade Gentleman in Youzhou
Cao Cao's team lost, and they accepted the defeat wholeheartedly.
However, Cao Cao said, "I lost to Liu Bei and I admire Liu Bei. It has nothing to do with you, Gongsun Zan."
Cao Cao harbored great resentment towards Liu Quan, but he was also genuinely impressed by Liu Quan's abilities.
He is not someone who can't accept defeat.
In particular, I heard a wonderful poem, which was also written by Liu Erlang.
Cao Cao was a great lover of poetry.
He enjoys creating, but at present he is still in the stage of imitating the Book of Songs and doesn't have any outstanding works.
Upon hearing Liu Bei recite "Ode to a Knight-Errant," and learning that the poem was actually written by Liu Quan, the scoundrel who had humiliated him, he finally put aside his resentment and approached Liu Quan to discuss poetry.
"Yuan Gu's 'Ballad of the Knight-Errant' is truly exquisite, combining the narrative of the 'Yuefu' poems with the lyricism of the 'Classic of Poetry,' and possessing an incomparably heroic and passionate emotion that stirs the soul and ignites the blood! However..."
He hesitated for a moment, then continued, "Brother Yuangu, although five-character poems are not uncommon these days, they are mostly folk songs, and scholars and literati generally disdain writing them. Why did you specifically choose five-character poems?"
Five-character poems originated in the Western Han Dynasty and matured at the end of the Eastern Han Dynasty.
At this time, five-character poems had already appeared in large numbers.
However, it still retains a trace of the flavor of "Yuefu" (a type of classical Chinese poetry), and is disdained by literati.
Four-character poems originated from the Book of Songs and were regarded as "refined rhyme" and "the orthodox form of poetry".
Five-character poems, which originated from folk songs and Yuefu (a type of classical Chinese poetry), were regarded by literati as a popular form "often used in comedy and entertainment" and not serious enough.
Because of the lowly status of five-character poems, many literati deliberately did not sign their names even when they created five-character poems (such as the "Nineteen Ancient Poems"), so as not to affect their reputation.
Moreover, there was another reason why five-character poems were disdained by high-ranking scholars at this time.
That is, the creative concept of five-character poems is not perfect.
At this time, most five-character poems were still at the level of realistic narration, and were relatively simple, lacking the unrestrained imagination and beautiful and elegant imagery of Tang poetry.
Therefore, it lacks the lingering charm and beauty of the Book of Songs, as well as the grand and spirited style of later Tang poetry.
It could be said that what people disliked at that time was not five-character poems, but five-character poems that failed to bring aesthetic pleasure.
In fact, many literati and scholars of this era who outwardly opposed five-character poems were secretly creating their own.
Otherwise, did the large number of five-character poems that emerged at the end of the Han Dynasty just appear out of thin air?!
Li Bai's "The Ballad of the Knight-Errant" comes from the Tang Dynasty, when five-character poems had already reached their peak.
Placed in the present day, it naturally brings a touch of awe from the future.
Of course, the most important factor is the poet's ability to express himself in words and his imagination, which are unparalleled throughout the ages.
Cao Cao was shocked.
After talking with Liu Quan, I was shocked once again.
"This brat—no, this kid—no, this gentleman—how can he possess so many insights into poetry? Such profound knowledge at such a young age!"
Cao Cao felt that all the books he had read over the years had been for nothing.
……
The repercussions of this football match will be long-lasting.
The fame of the "Liu brothers" of Youzhou spread throughout Goushi County and even reached Luoyang City in just two or three days. (Liu Deran: "The three brothers.")
Especially Liu Quan, whose name "Jade Gentleman" spread at an alarming speed among the mansions and common people of Luoyang, and was even being discussed in the inner quarters of the household.
Many scions of prominent families from Luoyang were watching the battle in Jucheng that day.
When they got home, they naturally couldn't help but talk about Liu Quan, who had shone brightly in the Cuju match, praising his good looks, his agility, and his elegance...
These words inevitably reached the inner quarters of the house.
It was then passed on to the inner quarters of other households through the inner quarters.
One pass ten, ten pass a hundred.
In less than three days, the topic of conversation among young ladies in the entire city of Luoyang was dominated by "the Jade Gentleman of Youzhou".
It is said that the daughter of a certain official even wrote a short poem in the seven-character quatrain style to praise Liu Quan, in which two lines are: "Now I know that there is a handsome young man in Youzhou, but he will not marry the golden-threaded young man in Luoyang."
The poem was circulated by busybodies, and the young men in Luoyang were instantly filled with jealousy.
Upon hearing these rumors, Liu Bei laughed heartily, "Ah Quan, you're truly destined to be known as 'Jade Gentleman'! It's the same in Youzhou, the same in Luoyang—everyone agrees! It's clear your looks are incredibly attractive to women, haha!"
…………
On the third day after the end of the Cuju (ancient Chinese football) match.
Cao Cao left Luoyang to take up an official post in another region.
It has to be said that this guy has a very powerful background. He killed the uncle of the favored eunuch Jian Shuo and was even promoted.
The magistrate of Dunqiu was granted a salary of one thousand shi (a unit of dry measure).
Before leaving, Cao Cao came to bid farewell to the Liu brothers, only to learn that the three Liu brothers had come to study under Lu Zhi.
There was another one named Liu Deran, who didn't seem particularly remarkable.
(Liu Deran: "...")
…………
After that, the three Liu brothers had a lot of free time.
Every day, besides practicing martial arts and basking in the sun without fail, Liu Quan taught Liu Bei, Liu Deran, and Zhang Fei to read.
Liu Quan set a rule: every morning he would read history, in the afternoon he would practice martial arts, and in the evening he would study on his own, without fail.
What history should we read?
Liu Quan retrieved a complete set of teaching materials from Pangu's database, ranging from the Book of Documents and the Spring and Autumn Annals to the Records of the Grand Historian and the Book of Han, supplemented by the comments and summaries of later historians.
He not only presents historical facts, but also historical theories.
It tells the story of how a dynasty rises and falls; how a decision can lead to a golden age and then to the downfall of a nation; and how the greed, cowardice, and arrogance in human nature can be amplified in the face of power, ultimately resulting in an irreparable tragedy.
Liu Bei and his two companions listened very attentively.
Even Liu Bei and Liu Deran secretly felt that Quan's teaching was much better than Lu Shi's; it was easy to understand and also interesting.
This day.
When Liu Quan talked about the rise and fall of the Qin Dynasty, he casually said, "Using bronze as a mirror, one can straighten one's clothes; using people as a mirror, one can understand one's gains and losses; using history as a mirror, one can know the rise and fall of dynasties."
No sooner had the words been spoken than a shout of approval rang out from outside the courtyard gate: "Bravo!"
The group turned around at the same time and saw two people standing at the gate of the courtyard.
The man in the lead was about forty years old, tall, with a thin face, slightly high cheekbones, and bright, piercing eyes.
Gongsun Zan stood behind him, taking a slight half-step to the side with a respectful posture.
The fact that the middle-aged man could be so humble to the usually proud Gongsun Zan speaks volumes about his identity.
Lu Zhi and Lu Zigan!
Liu Bei, Liu Quan, and Liu Deran all stood up, straightened their clothes, and bowed, saying, "These students greet Master Lu."
Zhang Fei also bowed in salute.
Lu Zhi waved his hand and strode into the courtyard.
His gaze swept around the courtyard, landing on Liu's entire body, and he looked him up and down.
Then he stroked his beard and smiled.
He took in many disciples in Youzhou, among whom he valued the five most: Gongsun Zan, Liu Quan, Liu Bei, Liu Deran, and Gao You.
Of these five people, he valued Liu Quan the most.
This teacher didn't have much time to instruct his students; he mostly assigned them problems to study on their own and then had them present the results to him.
Liu Quan's answers always caught his eye the most.
He discovered that the child's thinking ability seemed to far surpass that of his peers, and some of his views even inspired him, the teacher.
He was very happy to learn from the letter that the three brothers Liu Bei, Liu Quan, and Liu Deran would come to Luoyang to study.
However, he never expected that his three disciples—no, two disciples—would collude with another disciple, Gongsun Zan, to create a big scandal as soon as they arrived at Mount Goushi.