Chapter 113 The Ancients Are Hard to Fool
"Aying, Aying!" Someone was shouting outside the yard early in the morning.
Several people came in carrying two blackboards, and Hu Zi, Asan, A Mu and a group of children ran around happily.
"Aying, this is the blackboard you wanted. Do you like it?" Wang Sanlang and Zheng Silang said.
The blackboard is six feet long and four and a half feet wide, with a frame around it and painted black.
It's not easy to paint here. The two carpenters tried many ways to get it done. It's really difficult to do this during the busy farming season.
"Well, not bad, not bad!" Su Ying nodded with satisfaction.
The two blackboards also had support frames. After they were arranged, the blackboards were placed on them. The villagers who were watching the fun were very curious about how to use them.
Su Ying took out a piece of chalk she had made last night. It was roughly formed but not completely dry, so she didn't know if it was useful.
"Isn't it a pleasure to have friends coming from afar?" Su Ying wrote on the blackboard with chalk.
Fortunately, some chestnut powder was added to loosen the paper, otherwise the calcium carbonate would be hard after solidification and difficult to write with.
Watching the white words leap out on the blackboard, everyone finally understood and exclaimed in amazement, "Wow, you can write like this?"
"Yes, this is called chalk!" Su Ying said with a smile.
"Aying, let me try!" Su Boyan asked for chalk and wrote on the blackboard.
"Don't press too hard, the chalk isn't dry yet..."
"Snap!" Before Su Ying finished speaking, the chalk in Su Boyan's hand broke.
"Oh!" Su Boyan was heartbroken. He was so upset that he had ruined such a precious thing.
"It's okay, brother! It's normal that it broke when you first used it. It's because the chalk is made badly. You will get the hang of it after using it a few times, and you can reuse it even if it breaks."
Su Ying picked up the broken pen and demonstrated to her brother, "Try again, this is a hard pen, not a soft pen, hold it like this."
"When three people walk together, there must be one who can be my teacher!" Su Ying wrote.
"Isn't it a pleasure to learn and practice it from time to time?" Su Boyan wrote with trembling hands.
The first character was written a little crookedly, but the following characters were much more beautiful, in neat regular script.
Su Ying's handwriting is casual, between regular script and regular script, and clearly has its own style.
The official writing style of the Tang Dynasty was regular script, with dignified characters and rigorous structure. The main representatives were Ouyang Xun, Yan Zhenqing and Liu Gongquan.
Su Boyan was a student at the Imperial College. He copied his homework in regular script and still adhered to the writing habits of the Imperial College at that time.
Su Ying attended a girls' school, but mostly read miscellaneous books at home. She had no strict requirements for calligraphy and was accustomed to using regular script, which was convenient and more personal.
The villagers were amazed when they saw the brother and sister’s handwriting for the first time.
Wang Sanlang and Zheng Silang were young masters in their time and received higher education, but they didn't pay much attention at that time. Their handwriting was just barely acceptable, but they felt embarrassed to show off in front of this brother and sister.
Hu Zi, Asan, A Mu and other kids have not received any education and don't have enough paper and pens to waste. They can recognize the words they write but can't read them.
"Sir!" Hu Ziyourong and Yan shouted loudly to Su Boyan, fearing that others did not know that he was Su Boyan's first disciple.
"Let me try!" Several other teenagers were also eager to try.
Su Ying and Su Boyan handed the chalk in their hands to the teenagers.
Each of us tried to write a few words on the blackboard. The posture and feel were different from writing with a brush, and it felt very strange.
Some wrote the laws of the Tang Dynasty, some wrote the multiplication table, and some wrote calligraphy by famous masters of the previous dynasty.
The blackboard was soon filled with various contents, mostly in regular script.
Even Su Buchengdu couldn't help but give it a try, and wrote the words "Huanggou Village, Heifeng Township, Wu County" in a vigorous and powerful manner.
Everyone looked at the blackboard and laughed foolishly, finally there is a village to learn!
"Aying, what should we do if the blackboard is covered with writing?" Su Bucheng was curious about what his eldest daughter used to wipe it.
"It's simple, just wipe it with a cloth." Su Ying went into the house and took out a rag.
With a gentle wipe, the words on the blackboard disappeared.
"Girl, why is what you wrote different from what is in the book? Why is there something extra?" Hu Zi looked at what Su Ying wrote in confusion. There were strange symbols after the sentence.
"Oh, this is punctuation." Su Ying explained calmly.
When writing, it is customary to use punctuation marks.
No one else noticed this detail, except Hu Zi, who had just copied the "Analects of Confucius" and noticed it immediately.
"Punctuation? What does it mean?" Hu Zi was confused. Why were there no punctuation marks in the book given by the teacher?
As soon as these words were spoken, not only Hu Zi, but everyone else looked at Su Ying, including Su Bucheng, Su Boyan and other members of the Su family, who had never heard Su Ying mention this matter.
"Cough cough!" Su Ying coughed dryly and covered her mouth with her hands.
It’s over. I was careless for a moment and exposed my true identity. How can I cover it up?
Su Ying's mind raced as she suddenly remembered an anecdote. She picked up her chalk and wrote on the blackboard, "You can do without chicken or duck, or fish or meat, but you can't do without vegetables or tofu, and you can't do without them for a penny."
"What do you mean?" Su Ying said to everyone.
"If we can't have chicken, we can get duck. If we can't have fish, we can get meat. But we can't have vegetables and tofu. And they must cost at least half a penny." Someone thought to himself, what's so difficult about that?
"No, no!" someone objected. "It should be 'No chicken or duck, no fish or meat, but vegetables and tofu are indispensable, and not a single cent is allowed.'"
"What nonsense! Who doesn't want chicken, duck, fish and meat? You only want vegetables and tofu, and don't even ask for money? Are you stupid?" The crowd suddenly started arguing.
"You are willing to give chicken, duck, fish and meat to others, and you have to pay for it?" someone said dissatisfiedly.
Everyone at the scene had their own opinions, and no one could convince anyone else.
"Everyone, stop arguing and take a look at this." Su Ying raised her hand to stop them and wrote quickly on the blackboard, "Wine jars are good for making vinegar jars, raising pigs as big as mountains, and killing rats."
"Isn't it 'Wine vats make good vinegar, and every vat is sour; raising pigs as big as mountain rats, and every pig dies!'" someone said casually. "Oh, who is this? So vicious, cursing people!"
"What? This is clearly 'Good wine vats make good vinegar jars sour; raise pigs as big as a mountain and kill all the mice.' Don't embarrass yourself by not studying hard!" Someone next to him immediately mocked.
"Who's not studying hard? It's obvious that 'wine jars make good vinegar, and every jar is sour...' You are stupid. Others curse you, but you still laugh like a fool! Idiot!" The dispute escalated into personal attacks.
"Who are you calling an idiot?" The person being scolded was furious and rolled up his sleeves to beat someone up.
"Okay! Everyone stop!" Su Ying shouted loudly.
Everyone stopped and looked at Su Ying, "A Ying, who do you think is right?"
"Uncles and aunts! What you said is both right and wrong!" Su Ying said with a smile.
"What do you mean? Ah Ying, you can't be so biased." The villagers had never seen a case judged in this way. Neither side was offended, and neither side benefited.
"I'm not biased towards anyone! This is the function of punctuation!" Su Ying said patiently.
"You see, because there are no punctuation marks, everyone's understanding is different, which can easily lead to misunderstandings and disputes!"
"Oh, you mean if we add those symbols you wrote when writing and break up the sentences, there will be no ambiguity?" Someone with a quick mind reacted.
"Yes! That's correct!" Su Ying nodded.
"Isn't there a zhihuzheya?" someone raised a question. I remember what the teacher said about how to break a sentence using zhihuzheya.
"It's not enough to just use idioms to punctuate sentences. Sometimes we encounter sentences like the ones above. There are no clear symbols to separate them. Everyone speaks in accordance with their own opinion. No one can make a fair judgment in the case." Su Ying pointed to the two sentences on the blackboard.
Those who objected fell silent.
"This is the role of punctuation marks." Su Ying concluded.
Phew! I accidentally caused a dispute. It was really hard to fool the ancients. Fortunately, I was quick-witted.
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