Chapter 374- Child Prodigy
Qin Si was more interested in the food in front of him, while Ye Yuanzhi felt it was just average.
According to the seating arrangement, children should sit with their parents. This is mainly because some children are not very experienced in eating by themselves and may need their parents' help sometimes.
Qin Si is of course the one who doesn't need it. If he still needs help with eating at his age, his uncle will beat him to death. He himself is not shameless enough to do such a thing. Hasn't he seen that Ye Yuanzhi doesn't even need to be fed?
During the meal, the usual flattery was inevitable. The host started by talking to the village chief, praising the village in various ways, and occasionally asked the children questions, hoping to get praise from them.
Qin Si felt that this was after all his Uncle Zou's property, so he simply went out and praised it himself:
"The roads in this village are very interesting. They're all bluestone paved. I remember my teacher saying that this was the paving method of the old days, and it must have cost a lot of money. There's a square in front of the village, with pine and cypress trees on both sides. At one end of the square is an old house. It looks like a school of study, right?"
The old village chief was stunned: "Yes, yes, you are right, but little kid, how did you know?"
"I visited a similar village once before during summer camp. I remembered what the teacher said at the time. He said this kind of village layout is unique to China." Qin Si's face was slightly raised, and he was trying his best to restrain his pride.
"Not only that, I also know there's an ancestral hall next to the school. The square at the entrance to the village can be used to dry food, hold meetings, and, in the past, even for performances and events. That half-open platform is the stage, right? Your village must have had a good life in the past."
The old village chief nodded excitedly, as if he had met an expert or a kindred spirit.
"Very good, very good. I didn't expect someone to know so much. This person is still a little kid. You are really capable, kid, you even remember this kind of knowledge."
The teacher must have just said it casually, but Qin Si remembered it. Isn't that surprising?
Qin Si smiled brightly. He loved to hear people praise him the most. "That's nothing. I also know those big stone tablets in front of your village. They're the really tall ones with carvings on them. They were the memorial archways of the past, right?"
The young man who had been following the village chief was also excited: "That's right, many people think that a memorial archway is just a sign. They don't know that a memorial archway is actually more like a tall stone gate with words engraved on it."
Not to mention that most people don’t know, many people present here don’t know either.
The little guys were all stunned by what they heard. People like Wang Liu said directly, "This is the first time I've heard of this either. I never thought those big stone gates we saw outside were memorial archways. I really always thought memorial archways and memorial tablets were the same thing."
Shi Feiye finally came forward to explain. She had even memorized the concept of the archway:
"Actually, many people have misunderstandings about memorial archways. Memorial archways were structures erected in feudal society to honor meritorious service, academic success, virtuous governance, and loyalty, filial piety, chastity, and righteousness. Some temples and monasteries also use memorial archways as gates, while others use them to mark place names. Also known as memorial archways, these are doorway-style commemorative structures that promote feudal ethics and honor merit. Memorial archways are also ancillary structures to ancestral halls, highlighting the noble virtues and achievements of family ancestors and serving as ancestral worship."
The old village chief said very proudly:
"The three memorial archways at the entrance of our village are not ordinary memorial archways. The first one commemorates the fact that our village produced a top scholar three hundred years ago. At that time, it was not easy to become a top scholar."
Afraid that these people and the audience didn't know the significance of the champion, the young man added an explanation:
"Nowadays, there are hundreds of thousands of candidates taking the college entrance examination in a province, and this is just the young people of this year. Back then, the top scorer was taken by candidates from all over the country. The top scorer was equivalent to the smartest person in the country, and our village had one."
"The second one is for a third-rank official from our village who earned an imperial decree for his mother. This is the memorial archway for the lady who received the imperial decree," the village chief said proudly.
Lan Yixing was curious: "What about the third one?"
"The third one is the memorial archway bestowed upon our village by a former emperor, which said that we have produced more than 20 scholars and are a place of spiritual beauty."
"In the past, it was not easy to produce a scholar. To have more than 60 of them was truly remarkable." Shi Feiye also explained:
"Xiucai refers specifically to students enrolled in prefectural and county schools. It is a special title for those who studied the Four Books and Five Classics. To obtain this qualification, one must pass the Xuedao (Xuedao) or Tongzi (Tongzi) exam. Regardless of age, those who take the Tongzi exam are called Tongsheng. Those who pass the county, prefectural, and academy exams and enter the prefectural, state, or county schools are called Jinxue (Jinxue). Their common name is Shengyuan, which is the common name for Xiucai."
However, most people still didn't understand and looked at Shi Feiye in confusion.
Shi Feiye had no choice but to make an analogy: "It's like the people who ranked in the top few dozen in today's provincial exam."
"Wow, that's quite impressive. A village can produce so many outstanding students. It seems that even now it might not be possible." Zhang Pingwu sighed.
With this analogy, everyone has a clear idea of what this is, and it is indeed not easy.
The village chief excitedly described the village's past glory, but the host seized the opportunity to quickly bring it back to its present beauty. Qin Si wanted to laugh, but he suppressed his laughter and sat down, deciding not to say anything.
The village chief alone is capable of providing all the laughs.
What he didn't know was that the audience's opinion of him had also fluctuated greatly:
"How can a child know so much? I didn't even notice what he said just now."
"When Xiao Si said that, I just remembered that I seemed to have seen the old house and the half-open platform. I was wondering why that thing looked so strange. It turned out to be an ancient stage."
"Look at other kids. They know how to observe the environment when they go out, and they can even remember everything the teacher says. I am useless. I can't even remember what the tour guide said when I go out for a trip, and I can't even show off to others when I get home."
"I feel like watching this show can also teach me a lot. I'm probably not the only one who thinks that memorial archways and memorial tablets are similar things. I'm laughing and crying."
"Architect Dog recalled the scene just now. The village chief's words were well-founded. The feng shui layout of this village is indeed amazing. No wonder it has produced so many scholars. It is truly a place of great talent and beauty."
"Architects are also starting to get into feng shui. Is their next step to survey dragon veins and absorb the spiritual energy of heaven and earth to achieve immortality?"
"I just want to say, don't you think Ye Zi has a lot of knowledge? How come he only knows about such an unpopular topic?"
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