Chapter 536: Water Classic
Mr. Zhuang put the book basket containing himself and Bai Ershu aside, and dragged over the two large book baskets filled with books belonging to Manbao and the others.
He put the paper book aside first, then opened the bamboo slips and looked, "Which volume is the 'Water Classic Annotation'?"
Manbao and Bai Shanbao immediately stepped forward to help check. Although the bamboo slips looked similar from the outside, the number of bamboo slips in each roll was not necessarily the same, so there were differences in thickness. Those who were more sensitive could even feel the difference.
The main thing is that these bamboo slips were found by them, and the two of them have an impression of them.
They opened the bamboo slips and could tell whether it was "Shui Jing Zhu" just by taking a look at the first entry, and handed it to Mr. Zhuang.
Mr. Zhuang held the bamboo slips and sat under the lamp to read them carefully.
Bai Erlang was naturally no longer afraid after Zhou Silang's disturbance. He squatted beside the two men and asked, "What is 'Shui Jing Zhu'?"
"It's Li Shanchang's annotations to the Water Classic," Man Bao said. "The Book of Sui says that all the mountains, rivers and streams in the world are in the Water Classic. It's amazing."
Mr. Zhuang took the time to reply, "Nonsense! When did such a sentence appear in the Book of Sui?"
Bai Shanbao explained embarrassedly, "Sir, that was a comment my father made. Unfortunately, my family's copy of the Book of Sui is incomplete, so my father only left a comment in the introduction to the Water Classic."
Mr. Zhuang's eyes shifted from the bamboo slips. He stroked his beard and said thoughtfully, "Your father is right."
Bai Jilang touched his head and asked, "So what?"
Manbao looked at him and said, "Do you know how this book was written?"
"Isn't it just the annotations to the Water Classic? Just make the annotations according to the Water Classic."
If it weren't for the bamboo slips in his hand, Mr. Zhuang would have wanted to hit him on the head. He was too lazy to teach his third disciple a lesson and directly said to Man Bao: "Tell you, third junior brother, what is the power of this "Water Classic Notes"?"
Man Bao was as proud as if he had received an imperial decree. "Do you think this 'Waterways Classic' was written randomly? In order to write this annotation, Li Shanchang not only walked through the places described in the 'Waterways Classic' and visited them in person, but also consulted countless books before writing this book."
Bai Shanbao added, "I've seen many books mention the Shui Jing Zhu (Annotations to the Classic of Waterways), saying it not only records the origins and directions of rivers, but also the natural geography and folk customs of the regions along their course, even down to the volcanoes, hot springs, and water conservancy projects within the mountains and rivers."
"Although it's an annotation to the 'Water Classic', it expands on many of the river's branches. The 'Water Classic' is only one-twentieth of it." Bai Shanbao said, "My family has the 'Water Classic', but my father commented that many of the river names have changed, and some even have their directions altered due to age. Only the 'Water Classic Annotation' is more detailed, but unfortunately I don't have it."
Bai Jilang: "Then buy it."
Manbao: "We went to the bookstore to look for it, but the shopkeeper said it wasn't available. He even asked the bookstore for us, but the bookstore said they had never printed this book, so there was no place to buy it."
Mr. Zhuang confirmed that the scroll in his hand was indeed from the Waterways Classic. He set it aside and picked up the other scroll that Manbao and the others had handed him to continue reading. He took a moment to reply, "The Waterways Classic is part of the imperial collection. Besides the palace, perhaps the Imperial College might have a complete copy. Also, some aristocratic families might have it in their collection. It's not available outside."
So when a few children said they had found "Shui Jing Zhu", he was both surprised and skeptical.
Mr. Zhuang flipped through all the bamboo slips under the light of an oil lamp. After confirming that the twelve volumes they had selected were all "Shui Jing Zhu", he touched them for a long time without saying a word.
Manbao squatted on the ground for a long time, his legs feeling numb, so he simply sat down. Seeing that the master hadn't spoken for a long time, he used his palms to support himself and crawled forward two steps, calling out, "Master?"
Mr. Zhuang came back to his senses, blinked his slightly red eyes, covered his face with his sleeves, and said, "It's the 'Water Classic'. Unfortunately, there are only twelve volumes, and they are also incomplete."
Manbao: "Let's go to the bookstore tomorrow, maybe we can find the rest?"
Mr. Zhuang thought for a moment and nodded, "That's right. I'll go with you tomorrow."
Zhou Silang knocked on the door. When he entered, he saw the three little ones sitting on the floor and frowned in disgust. "Hurry up and wash up. You are not allowed to sit on the floor anymore. Otherwise, you will have to wash your clothes yourself."
Mr. Zhuang then remembered something and nodded, saying, "Silang, don't wash their clothes for them from now on. Let them wash it themselves."
The three of them stared at each other, and Mr. Zhuang explained, "Shanbao, Erlang, if you enter the provincial school or the Imperial College in the future, you cannot bring servants into the academy, so you must learn to wash your own clothes."
Manbao immediately raised his hand and said happily, "Sir, I don't need to go to the provincial school or the Imperial College."
Mr. Zhuang picked up the book on the table, rolled it up, and knocked her on the head. "You are a girl, you should learn some laundry. Go wash clothes with your two fellow apprentices tomorrow."
Mr. Zhuang coughed lightly and said, "I'll give you my clothes as well."
The three of them immediately locked gazes. Mr. Zhuang, unwilling to join in their argument, waved his hand and said, "Alright, get out. I'll take a look at the book."
The three of them went out together. Zhou Silang had already returned to the kitchen. One pot of hot water was not enough, so he had to boil another pot.
The three little ones stood in the yard to discuss, and Manbao said, "I am the eldest sister!"
Bai Erlang said: "I am the third junior brother!"
Bai Shanbao looked around and said, "But you are the oldest."
"Alright," Manbao raised his hand and said, "Let's stop arguing and take turns. I'll wash first, then Shanbao, then Erlang, and we'll go according to the ranking."
Bai Shanbao thought about it and felt that no matter in terms of age or seniority, he was the second oldest, so he had no objection.
Seeing that Manbao was willing to take a step back, Bai Erlang naturally had no objections, so everyone agreed to it.
"Then wash in the same order," Manbao said, "I'm the oldest, so I'll go first."
Bai Shanbao & Bai Erlang:...
It was clearly her turn yesterday, so it’s my (Bai Shan) turn today.
But when they saw that she had already run into the kitchen to ask for hot water, they could only sigh and admit defeat.
It was completely dark at this time, and the entire alley was quiet. Everyone seemed to have gone to sleep.
So they subconsciously washed a little more slowly. The yard was exceptionally quiet except for the occasional sounds of talking and walking, as well as the sounds of fetching water and burning fire.
Manbao and Baishanbao, who had already washed and dressed neatly, moved a small stool and sat in the yard to look at the moon. They had spent most of the day using their brains, so now they didn't want to study much.
(End of this chapter)
Continue read on readnovelmtl.com
