Super System in the Early Tang Dynasty

Ouyang Xun and Wang Xiucai have already begun constructing the library according to their agreed plan, but it won't be completed in less than ten days or half a month. Especially the rare and ancient books that Li Xingzhi brought out; they must all be copied down and then the copies taken out. Otherwise, if those rare books are damaged, it would be a great loss.

This was a huge undertaking! Of course, gathering some scholars and distributing the books so each person could copy a few copies would be easy. However, for Ouyang Xun, who loved books more than life itself, this was clearly not a good method. What if the books were damaged during the copying process? Wang Xiucai also disagreed with this approach. In the end, the task of copying the books had to be left to them. However, at Li Xingzhi's suggestion, Ouyang Xun agreed to let Master Shi join in. Although Li Xingzhi didn't ask Master Shi's opinion, for someone as fond of books as him, it must have been a great honor!

With everything agreed upon, Li Xingzhi once again became a hands-off manager.

In the afternoon, after lunch, Li Xingzhi started to feel bored again. Life here had become more leisurely, and everything was fine, except for the lack of entertainment, which made Li Xingzhi feel somewhat uncomfortable.

The Qingming Festival has just passed, and the weather is sunny with some clouds.

Li Xingzhi stood in the courtyard, a gentle breeze rustling the leaves of the loquat tree. A thought struck him as he remembered something amusing.

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The origin of kites is unknown. During the Sui and Tang dynasties, kites gradually spread among the court and nobility. It was not until the Song dynasty that they became a traditional entertainment activity among the common people.

The best time to fly a kite is around the Qingming Festival.

A day with little rain, a light breeze, and mostly cloudy skies is the most pleasant.

Just after the Qingming Festival, Li Xingzhi felt like flying kites, one of his favorite childhood pastimes. Of course, Erlang was naturally involved in such a fun activity.

Li Xingzhi took out the bamboo strips that had already been cut, and various kite-making materials were laid out beside him, such as paper, paste, various paints, pens, and so on. When Li Xingzhi was a child, because his family lived in the mountains where there was plenty of bamboo, he had also learned to make kites. Now that he had such complete materials, he couldn't help but feel itchy to try it himself.

Under Erlang's curious gaze, Li Xingzhi took a few bamboo strips and some thinner threads, and began to twist and turn them, occasionally bending the bamboo strips gently. Soon, the frame of a kite was complete. Li Xingzhi picked it up and looked at it, quite satisfied. Although it was a bit rough, it was starting to take shape.

Occasionally, a servant would walk by and glance at the scene with curiosity, wondering what their master was up to this time, having created such a rotten bamboo frame.

Li Xingzhi had no time to pay attention to other people's opinions. He carefully examined the kite's frame and made some adjustments. Then, he laid the frame flat on a large piece of paper spread on the ground, drew a slightly larger outline on the paper, and then used scissors to cut the paper along the drawn lines. Finally, he placed the frame on the cut-out paper and glued it in place.

The next step, and very important one, is to draw the diagram.

The patterns painted on kites are diverse, the most common being eagles, swallows, and bats. Li Xingzhi made a swallow kite this time.

He drew a large swallow on it. Although he had never studied traditional Chinese painting, drawing this kind of thing did not require much painting skill.

Then, he painted several bats on the swallow's underside and wings. This was significant, as the swallow is also known as the "lucky swallow," and bats are a homophone for "abundant blessings" and "abundant wealth." Painting bats on the lucky swallow signifies "blessings within blessings!" Li Xingzhi painted a total of five bats on the swallow, which also carries the meaning of "five blessings arriving at the door!" In folk culture, people always come up with all sorts of entertainment activities, often imbuing these activities and the objects within them with beautiful stories, legends, or other meanings. This reflects their yearning for beauty and their hopes for the future!

Ordinary people are all lovely. As long as they have food to eat, they are content. Content people can always find all sorts of fun.

"Erlang, what do you think of this kite?"

"A kite?" Erlang looked at the 'big swallow' in front of him with a surprised expression, and said uncertainly, "Does a kite mean that it can fly in the sky?" With Erlang's knowledge, he didn't even know what a kite was.

“Yes, if we tie another line down there and pull it along, we can fly into the sky!” Li Xingzhi said.

Seeing Erlang's delighted expression as he stared at the kite, his eyes practically shining, he added, "This kite isn't finished yet, it'll be done in a bit!"

"Oh." Erlang was somewhat disappointed upon hearing this.

It's no wonder Erlang looked like this, even forgetting the etiquette he'd maintained all these days. After all, flying into the sky has always been everyone's dream. In ancient times, the sky was a mysterious thing; in ancient Chinese culture, "heaven" was the greatest, and even the most powerful god had to follow the "principles of heaven" and the "way of heaven"!

Erlang's yearning for the sky carries the hopes of countless predecessors!

Li Xingzhi had already drawn many patterns on two long, thin white silk ribbons, and then attached the 'long tails' made from these two ribbons to the back of the swallow. For a good kite, a long tail is essential. It can be used for decoration, but its greater purpose is to maintain the overall balance of the kite, so that it stands in the air and does not tilt to one side.

Finally, there is one more crucial item—the bamboo flute!

This is an essential part of kites; a bamboo flute is inserted into the head of each kite. After the kite flies into the sky, the small bamboo flute will play a sound like a zither.

That's where the name "kite" comes from!

Those without a small flute could at best be called 'paper kites'. However, in later generations, the distinction between the two was no longer made.

Li Xingzhi tied the string, and a beautiful kite was finished!

Erlang held the kite, examining it closely. He truly couldn't understand how this tiny thing could fly into the sky! He didn't know what kind of magical power this little thing contained that allowed it to fly! He even fantasized about when he himself could fly! It was a little child's dream! Perhaps it would wither away one day, or perhaps it would take root and sprout in his heart, eventually growing into a towering tree!

Li Xingzhi, unaware of Erlang's thoughts, continued engrossed in making his kites—these kites that once carried his childhood dreams! Kites are the release of dreams!

This time, with experience, he was much more skilled and quickly pasted the paper. Then, with a light touch of his brush, a monkey with a slender waist, peach-shaped face, no gills, and waving a big stick, leaped onto the paper in no time!

Jiro, standing nearby, was quickly drawn to the strange monkey. People at that time had limited imaginations and were unlikely to have encountered such a cartoonish character. However, even after a thousand years, the old monkey's charm remained undiminished; just look at how close Jiro's eyes were to it!

Li Xingzhi patted Erlang's head twice, "One should never be ungrateful!"

Although he usually doted on Erlang and gave him everything he could, and their relationship was more like father and son than brothers, Li Xingzhi was still strict when it came to disciplining Erlang, as he didn't want this good sapling to grow crooked.

Li Xingzhi then made a reel out of wood, wound up the thread, and although it wasn't very pretty, it was still usable.

By the time Li Xingzhi finished making the two kites and the reels, the sky was already dark, and it was time for dinner.

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At the request of some readers, here's the second update.

However, this time, I can only be a shameful 2K party member!

There will only be one update tomorrow, I'm busy; I'll see how it goes the day after tomorrow, two updates are still a bit too much. Let's practice first, one update is the minimum, and two updates if I have time.

Thank you for your support, and thank you to everyone who read this article!