Great Song Dynasty Writer

Chapter 51 Return

During his last half-day in Chengdu, Lu Beigu didn't go anywhere.

It wasn't that he was like Guan Ning, who "read as before when someone passed by in a carriage and official robes," but rather that he was afraid that if he went out to play, his heart would become wild.

He simply sat in the room and took stock of everything he had gained from this trip to Chengdu.

The spoils he had acquired included a jade pendant from Li Pan, which might be useful in asking him for some less troublesome favors; a manuscript of his thoughts on poetry and prose from Zhao Bian, which, with continued study, would be sufficient for him to use until the provincial examination; and a set of Taishan's handwritten notes on "The Spring and Autumn Annals: A Study of Honoring the King" from Zhang Fangping, which would be enough for him until the provincial examination of the Ministry of Rites.

The gains he hadn't yet received were, firstly, what Li Pan had promised him: if Li Pan were to be promoted to judge of Luzhou, then if he could pass the provincial examination and become a Juren, he would definitely be able to get a quota to participate in the Ministry of Rites' provincial examination; secondly, the letter of recommendation that Zhang Fangping had written to Ouyang Xiu: if he could pass the county examination and then the provincial examination, then he could go to Kaifeng to see Ouyang Xiu.

In conclusion, it was a very rewarding and worthwhile trip.

However, although the future is bright, Lu Beigu did not forget that the road ahead is still quite difficult and tortuous.

After all, others can help with things within the rules, but the rules themselves will not change for you.

Under the current imperial examination system in the Song Dynasty, everyone needs to compete fairly to defeat their opponents.

So, in the end, it all comes down to one's own strength!

If you don't have the ability, everything else is just empty talk!
Inside the bag, the crimson Shu brocade protected Lu Beigu's books. Lu Beigu placed them one by one on the table and, by comparing the number of pages or volumes he had already read with the total number of books, calculated his reading progress.

Poetry and Prose: Zhao Bian's manuscript of his thoughts on poetry and prose (approximately 10% complete).

春秋：12卷泰山先生手记版《春秋尊王发微》（进度约1%）、10卷《春秋集传纂例》（进度约25%）、无名氏笔记版《春秋左传正义》（进度约10%）、《穀梁补注》（进度约50%）。

The Book of Rites: 3 volumes of "Examples of the Book of Rites" (approximately 75% complete), and an anonymous notebook version of "The Correct Meaning of the Book of Rites" (approximately 10% complete).

Considering the urgency of each subject in the county examination, the first thing I need to study is the three-volume "Examples of the Book of Rites" that the examiner lent me. This book excerpts the key and frequently tested chapters of the Book of Rites in the examination, and it also has corresponding answer templates for the Mo Yi (a type of classical Chinese text) questions. It is suitable for quickly improving my score in the Mo Yi section of the Book of Rites. On my way to Chengdu, I basically only read this book and nothing else. I will finish studying it soon.

As for the Spring and Autumn Annals, I certainly wouldn't have time to study a large book like "The Essence of Honoring the King in the Spring and Autumn Annals" before the county examination. So the focus should be on studying "The Collection of Commentaries on the Spring and Autumn Annals" first, so that I can at least have a complete understanding of the Spring and Autumn Annals and ensure that I can answer any questions related to the Spring and Autumn Annals when I take the Mohist exam.

Since the "Guliang Commentary" is only a small booklet, it doesn't take much time to study, and anyone should be able to finish it if they have the time. It is a supplementary work.

As for the anonymous notes of the predecessors, the correct interpretations of "The Zuo Commentary on the Spring and Autumn Annals" and "The Correct Interpretation of the Book of Rites" are quite thick. It is impossible to finish studying them before the county examination. However, you can study them in conjunction with "The Collected Commentaries on the Spring and Autumn Annals" and "Examples of the Book of Rites", which are more relevant to the current examination situation, so that they can be mutually verified.

As for poetry and prose, his current level is already enough to barely pass the county examination. Lu Beigu believes that since Zhao Bian has already taught him a systematic method for dealing with poetry and prose exams, he only needs to keep studying the manuscript of his poetry and prose notes to improve his level.

As for reciting the Analects, that's all there is to it—just reading and memorizing the Analects every morning. There's not much to say about that.

There was no need to prepare a policy essay; Lu Beigu trusted himself.

He spent the afternoon reading "Examples from the Book of Rites" in his room at Qingyang Palace. In the evening, he ate a simple meal and continued reading by lamplight. In any case, Li Pan had already paid for the accommodation, including lamp oil and food, in advance.

Burning the midnight oil was a considerable expense for ordinary students in this era, so Lu Beigu wouldn't stand on ceremony with Li Pan. Of course, eye exercises were still necessary, since glasses didn't exist then.

Don't let your eyesight become nearsighted before you even pass the imperial examination.

As evening fell, Lu Beigu heard the four constables returning after eating and drinking their fill, and then he blew out the lamp and went to rest.

After a good night's sleep, the group embarked on their journey back the next day.

Unlike the bumpy road to get there, the return journey was much more relaxed, with the driver taking the government carriage back slowly.

They boarded the boat at Hejiang Pavilion in the south of Chengdu and traveled downstream by water.

Hejiang Pavilion not only shares the same name as Hejiang County, but also has a historical connection to it. Du Fu wrote the poem "The window frames the snow-capped peaks of the Western Mountains, the gate harbors boats from the Eastern Wu" in this very place.

The "Xiling" mentioned refers to the Minshan Mountains west of Chengdu, which are covered in snow all year round, hence the description "snow that lasts for a thousand autumns".

As for "Wanli Ship", it does not refer to a ship that travels ten thousand miles to Eastern Wu in the literal sense, but rather to a bridge called "Wanli Bridge" next to Hejiang Pavilion.

Li Pan, who was about to be promoted, was in a good mood. Although the passenger ship charged by cabin, with a single cabin costing 1 guan for 3 days and a multi-person cabin costing 1 guan for 5 days, he still generously booked single cabins for everyone.

The passenger ship was large, and the single cabin had a bed and a fixed small table, so Lu Beigu, who did not get seasick, could continue his studies on the ship.

During the summer, the river swells and flows faster than before, greatly reducing the time they need to travel back.

The passenger ship traveled downstream along the Minjiang River, passing through Shuangliu, Xinjin, Meizhou, Qingshen and other places along the way. On the third day, it arrived at Jiaozhou. In front of the Buddha, the Minjiang River merged with the Dadu River and the Qingyi River, forming a confluence of three rivers.

The river flows swiftly, and the Buddha statue lowers its head in compassion. Although it is only a fleeting scene, it still deeply moves the travelers on the river.

Even Lu Beigu, who was engrossed in his studies in the cabin, was called out to admire the scene.

Subsequently, the passenger ship continued eastward along the Yangtze River from Jiaozhou, passing through Qianwei and Rongzhou. After another five days, it entered Luzhou. Due to the rapid current of the Yangtze River, navigation on this section of the waterway required extra caution.

In the Luzhou section, many dangerous shoals require boatmen to tow the boats, and capsizing accidents are frequent during the flood season. Li Pan even considered whether to go ashore and return by land.

Fortunately, the journey was uneventful, and after spending most of the day, we arrived in Hejiang County.

To be honest, Lu Beigu felt that apart from having a slightly smaller population, Hejiang County was not much different from Luzhou City.

The reason is simple: Hejiang County has an excellent geographical location, at the confluence of the Anle River and the Yangtze River. As the starting point of the "Litchi Ancient Road" used by the Tang Dynasty to send lychees to Yang Guifei, Shibashui Station in the east of Hejiang City has always been the distribution center for goods in southern Sichuan. Not only did goods transported from the vast mountains in the south through the Anle River have to be transferred here, but it was also a necessary stop on the way from western Sichuan to eastern Sichuan via the Yangtze River.

As he disembarked, Lu Beigu, who had been studying diligently all the way, finally finished his study of "Examples from the Book of Rites"!

(End of this chapter)