Farmhouse Green Plum

Chapter 605 Guidance

They are brothers from the same mother. If Song Yuan can pass the imperial examination and become a scholar or juren, it will be of great benefit to him.

Thinking of this, he raised his voice and warned: "Listen carefully to what Brother Yuan Qing says, and don't be stubborn!"

Song Yuan thought to himself: Do I need you to tell me?

However, he was too lazy to argue with him. He wiped his hands clean, went to the front counter, took out a few pages of his manuscript, and handed them to Yuan Qing with both hands. "Brother, this is the current essay I wrote recently. I always feel that it is dry and boring, but I don't know what the crux of the matter is. I hope you can give me some advice."

After adding firewood, Song Tian walked to the kitchen door and looked out. He couldn't help but curl his lips when he heard it. He was calling Yuan Qing brother just now, but now he acted like brother when he was right next to him.

Tsk tsk, this damn brat has never called him his brother like that.

But this kid looks more and more like a scholar.

He felt quite relieved and wanted to get closer to listen.

At this time, Song Ying's voice came from behind, "Song Tian, the fire is too big!"

"Coming, coming!" Song Tian had to put his thoughts aside and turned to go in to collect firewood.

In the courtyard, Yuan Qing took the manuscript and read through several contemporary essays carefully. He asked, "Are these essays written in chronological order?"

Song Yuan bowed his head and replied, "That's right."

Yuan Qing sighed softly, "My qi is stagnant and I haven't seen any improvement."

Song Yuan's cheeks flushed slightly as he said shyly, "I, too, feel my writing skills are insufficient. Despite my best efforts, my work always feels dry and dull. Every time I put down my pen, I feel lost, yet I can't find a way to improve."

Yuan Qing pursed her lips, wondering if her words were too blunt and had hurt the young man's spirit.

He decided to offer some encouragement, "Ahem, the framework of your current affairs essays is there, they are quite presentable."

Song Yuan did not feel comforted. He had been learning the craft for a year and had only learned the skeleton. How could he be happy?

Yuan Qing placed the manuscript on the table and tapped the paper lightly with his fingertips. "The introduction is quite good. It fully expresses the theme without any deviation or omission, which shows that you have a solid foundation in the classics. However, after the introduction, the language is mostly superficial, the sentences are repetitive and the meaning is heavy. It's full of empty words. I guess you must have memorized a lot of calligraphy in the imperial examinations every day?"

When he said the last sentence, he raised his eyes and glanced at Song Yuan with a smile.

Song Yuan admired him very much and saw through his true intentions at a glance.

He scratched his head and said awkwardly, "When I was trying to figure out the solution, I read more about literature."

Yuan Qing said sternly, "All the essays in the Wenfu are the works of today's famous eight-part essay writers. Of course, we should study them carefully, examining their ideas, the framework of the essay, and the rules of writing. But if we stop at the Wenfu, we will end up just repeating what others have said."

Song Yuan bowed and said, "Please teach me, brother."

Yuan Qing pondered for a moment and said, "When we were in the community school, Mr. Wang should have taught you about the three principles of reason, speech and spirit."

Song Yuan was a little confused, but he nodded and recited: "If you want to understand the truth, you must trace back to the Six Classics and study the theories of the Confucian scholars of the Song and Yuan dynasties.

The words should be suitable for the topic and should be taken from books of the Three Dynasties and the Han Dynasty;

To flourish one must cleanse one's mind with righteousness and reason, and immerse oneself in the ancient writings of the great masters of the Zhou, Qin, Han, Tang, and Song dynasties."

Yuan Qing tilted his head and smiled slightly, "You see, Mr. Wang taught us a long time ago that the art of writing depends on the principles, words, and spirit.

Your approach is sound. In terms of logic, you have grasped the essence of the Confucian scholars of the Song and Yuan dynasties, and you can be said to have hit the nail on the head. However, your words are empty and your structure is not open. This is because you are too obsessed with contemporary literature and have no foundation in terms of rhetoric and spirit.

Song Yuan pondered deeply, then suddenly realized, "Brother, do you want me to study the ancient texts of the Qin, Han, Tang, and Song dynasties?"

Yuan Qing nodded. "Your writing is logical, but your expression is lacking. It's like a person with bones but no flesh, so it's naturally dull to read. Right now, you should learn from the Qin and Han dynasties, and absorb the writings of the Tang and Song dynasties. Once you have a wealth of poetry and literature, you will be able to write with brilliant style and vivid rhyme."

After many days of difficulties, Song Yuan finally found a way out. He was so excited that he wanted to pick up the book and read it immediately.

Song Yuan took a deep breath, forced himself to calm down, and asked respectfully again, "Excuse me, brother, which article should I choose first?"

Yuan Qing held the scroll and pondered, “Compared to the obscure and difficult-to-understand writings of the pre-Qin period, the works of the Tang and Song dynasties are more sonorous and rhythmic, and reading them is like the sound of ringing jade pendants.

It would be better to start with Han Yu, Liu Zongyuan, Ouyang Xiu and Su Shi, and when you have a good grasp of the literary tradition, then go back up and study Zuo Guoshi and Han Dynasty, starting with the easy and then moving on to the difficult, in a step-by-step manner."

Song Yuan's eyes lit up, and he bowed solemnly: "Brother, your words are truly valuable advice. I will remember your teachings and study them carefully."

"The meaning of the scriptures cannot be neglected either." Yuan Qing reminded again.

Song Yuan agreed.

After asking for advice, he ran into the kitchen to light the fire, and kept saying that Brother Yuan Qing was so amazing, and that everything became clear to him as soon as he heard it.

Yuan Shan was so proud of it that she wielded the spatula with more strength, making the shredded meat and vegetable leaves dance in the air.

Song Tian, who was so angry, yelled, "Yuan Shan! Be gentle! The food will fly into my face!"

"That's perfect. Try it first to see how salty it is." Having said that, Yuan Shan finally stopped.

The kitchen was bustling with activity, and outside, although Doctors Lin and Ma were not having a particularly good conversation with Aunt Song, they were still enjoying themselves.

Near noon, the Chen family's carriage stopped in front of Yingnuoxuan. The curtain moved slightly, and Chen Yunze jumped down first and kicked away a few stones on the ground.

"There's a lot of gravel, don't jump. Lai Fu, get a step stool for Shopkeeper Luo."

Luo Yanxing was about to get out of the car, her skirt lifted. Hearing this, her steps faltered slightly. Her eyes swept across the smooth ground, and the corners of her lips curled up unconsciously. "It's okay. I'm tough, so a few stones are nothing. In the past, walking barefoot in the fields was common in the village."

Chen Yunze raised his eyebrows slightly, and the corners of his lips curled up in a smile that seemed to be neither smile nor laughter. "Oh? Then who was the one who grimaced in pain last time?"

Luo Yanxing's face flushed, and he said awkwardly, "That's just bad luck. I stepped on a sharp rock."

While the two were talking, the driver had already taken out a step stool and placed it on the ground. Luo Yanxing did not let his kindness down and stepped on the step stool to get off the carriage.

She waved her hand and said, "I should go in now. You should go back as well. Don't miss dinner."

When they turned around, they found Song Ying standing behind the counter holding Tangtang, looking at them thoughtfully, and they didn't know how long he had been looking at them.

"Wow!" She was startled. "Why are you so quiet? I was scared to death!"

Song Ying's eyes turned slightly, and he glanced at Chen Yunze, then looked at her steadily, and said with a smile: "It's broad daylight, I'm not a ghost, what are you afraid of? Did you do something bad behind my back?"

Luo Yanxing glared at her. "What nonsense are you talking about? How have I ever let you down? Hey, why are you holding Tangtang hostage? It clearly wants to come and greet me."

Song Ying smiled and didn't ask any further questions. He put Tangtang down and let it run to Luo Yanxing.

Luo Yanxing picked up Tangtang, buried his face in his soft fur, and took a deep breath. "I haven't seen our Tangtang for a long time. I miss him so much!"