Chapter 240 Literacy
"A Tu, come on, I'll take you to the Baicao Garden and you'll teach me how to catch birds. We'll go together when it snows." As soon as Ah Zhang finished his work, he hurried back to play with Runtu.
There are two versions of the origin of the name Zhang. One version says that his birthday, September 25, 1881, was the third day of the eighth lunar month, which was also the birthday of the Kitchen God. The Kitchen God's surname was Zhang, so his family gave him the nickname Zhang.
Another version is that when the news of his birth reached his grandfather Zhou Fuqing, Zhang Zhidong happened to be a guest at his home, and his grandfather used what had happened as his nickname.
Later he also used this name as a pen name. Since Runtu came to the Zhou family, one called them Ah Tu and the other called them Ah Zhang, which was quite intimate. The two were still young and did not realize the difference in status.
When he came back several years later, he had to call him Master, and thus a thick barrier was formed between the two of them, separating their childhood friendship.
The two men found ropes and bamboo sieves and came to the Baicao Garden in the backyard, a vegetable garden covering an area of nearly 2,000 square meters, where they usually planted some melons and vegetables and used them to dry grain in autumn.
It is also a paradise for children, who often come here to play, taste purple mulberries and sweet and sour raspberries, catch crickets and pull out Polygonum multiflorum near the low mud walls, cool off in the garden in the summer, and catch birds on the snow in the winter.
As soon as he entered, Zhang started talking about his favorite activities. "It's boring when it's not snowing, but it's fun when it snows. You can take pictures of snowmen and make snow arhats. But there are few people here, and few people cheer for it. It's not fun."
To make a snow arhat is to build a snowman. Runtu had played this a lot in his previous lives. To make a snowman is to lie flat on the snow and print his entire body on it.
After listening to him, Runtu began to teach him how to catch birds. "A thin layer of snow will not work. It is good when the snow covers the ground for a day or two, so that the birds have nowhere to find food for a long time. Sweep away a piece of snow to expose the ground, use a short stick to prop up a large bamboo sieve, sprinkle some chaff underneath, tie a long rope to the stick, and lead it from a distance. When you see the birds coming down to peck at the food, pull the rope to catch them when they walk under the bamboo sieve."
"There aren't that many bird species in the city. You can only catch sparrows and jaywalkers here. Oh, the ones with white cheeks. Jaywalkers are very irritable and can't survive overnight. If you see one, just let it go. It would be better to go to the beach, where there are more birds."
"Will this work?" Ah Zhang was happy to hear this and tried to prop up the bamboo sieve.
Runtu kept correcting him, "The stick is too short. It's hard for the bird to get under the bamboo sieve. You have to run farther away and hide behind the tree. Otherwise, the bird will not dare to come over when it sees you."
After a while of noise, Zhang was satisfied and packed up to leave. "I haven't practiced my calligraphy yet. If I don't go back, my father will spank me. I'll come to see you tomorrow!"
"Let me help you!" Runtu immediately realized that this was an opportunity, so he said quickly, "I heard from the bookkeeper that when the top scholar writes, his bookboy helps him grind the ink. Can I grind the ink for you?"
"Do you know how to do it?" Zhang looked at him doubtfully, then waved his hand nonchalantly, "It doesn't matter if you don't know how to do it. I'll teach you. It's very simple, much easier than catching birds!"
The two of them returned the bamboo sieve rope and ran back to the study. A Zhang's younger brothers were still young and his father was busy with household chores, so the study became their territory. Runtu quickly learned how to grind ink, and A Zhang began to practice calligraphy.
"The Xun brothers are known as the eight dragons; the brothers from Hedong are known as the three phoenixes." This is a sentence from "Youxue Qionglin". The whole book is written in parallel sentences, which is easy to recite and remember. The content is broad and comprehensive. Many people use it to enlighten their children. It is just right for Ah Zhang to read it at this age.
When he saw Zhang finish copying a sentence, Runtu pointed at the word he had just written and asked, "Is this the number eight? Is this the number three in the second line?"
"Huh? Ah Tu, you actually recognized it? Aren't you illiterate?" Ah Zhang asked in surprise.
"I haven't learned it, but these two characters are so common and so simple that you'll learn them after a while." After saying this, Runtu asked, "How do you pronounce the other characters? And what do these two sentences mean?"
"The Xun brothers were known as the Eight Dragons; the brothers from Hedong were known as the Three Phoenixes." Zhang read it again, shaking his head, and then explained, "During the Three Kingdoms period, the Xun family produced eight outstanding talents, known as the Eight Dragons of the Xun family; during the Tang Dynasty, the Xue family had three uncles and nephews known as the Three Phoenixes."
"The Three Kingdoms? Was it during the time of Lord Guan? Was there Xue Rengui among the three beauties of the Xue family?" Runtu asked hurriedly. These were all told by the storyteller.
"During the time of Master Guan, Xue Rengui was not among the three phoenixes of the Xue family." Ah Zhang did not remember the names of the uncle and nephew Xue Shou, Xue Deyin, and Xue Yuanjing, but he was sure that Xue Rengui was not among them.
He was afraid that Runtu would ask more questions, so he quickly changed the subject, "Let me teach you how to read. Since you know three and eight, do you know other numbers?"
Runtu was so happy that he agreed immediately. Zhang opened the book and found the simplest numbers and asked one by one, "Do you know this one? And this one... Forget it, one, two, three is too easy. Let's try something a little harder."
When encountering a word that Runtu didn't know, Zhang smiled proudly, "Hey, you don't know this one, right? Actually, this is also the number four. There are several ways to write four. This one is a little more difficult. Let me teach you how to write it."
Ah Zhang wrote it stroke by stroke first, then handed the brush to Runtu, "You try it."
"How do I hold a pen?" Runtu didn't dare to be polite. He was afraid that if he refused, Ah Zhang would really stop teaching him. He was still a child, and children often have no perseverance.
“—Push two, press three, and support. Fingers are firm, palms are empty, and wrists are flexible.” Ah Zhang recited the formula his father taught him, and helped Runtu adjust his posture step by step.
Runtu awkwardly wrote the word "Si" on the paper. The strokes were crooked and looked like those of an insect crawling or a chicken pecking, but at least it was recognizably the word "Si".
"You're learning fast?" Zhang became more and more interested. "Come on, I'll teach you how to write five."
One of them taught while the other practiced, and time passed unknowingly until someone called them to eat.
From that day on, whenever Ah Zhang practiced calligraphy, he would always call Runtu to join him, and Runtu's handwriting became more and more neat, with obvious progress.
After seeing off the guests that day, A Zhang's father Zhou Fengyi suddenly decided to check A Zhang's homework. When he arrived at the study door, he saw A Zhang teaching Runtu how to write, and he stopped immediately.
He just stood there, watching the two children making noise quietly. As time went by, the expression on his face became serious.
(End of this chapter)
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