Kong Yingda, courtesy name Chongyuan, was born in Hengshui, Jizhou, the 32nd generation grandson of Confucius, and a Confucian scholar of the Tang Dynasty.
It can be said that Kong Yingda became famous at a young age. In the early years of his great career, Kong Yingda was awarded the title of Doctor of County Studies in Hanoi.
Later, Emperor Yang of the Sui Dynasty recruited all the Confucian scholars from all over the world and concentrated them in Luoyang. He ordered the secretaries of the Imperial Academy to debate with the great Confucian scholars in the world. Yang Da, the provincial governor of Nayan (Shizhong) under his sect, ranked them high and low, with Sun Yingda being the best.
Since the Tang Dynasty, he has been the leader of the Confucian school. He can be said to be one of the top figures in the Confucian school after Confucius and Mencius.
Although his official position was not high, his reputation among scholars was so well-known that even the current emperor had to show courtesy to him.
Of course, Yang Fan respected such a scholar. Such a person was like an academician of the Chinese Academy of Sciences in later generations who only focused on academic research. How could he not be admired.
Seeing that everyone was quiet, Kong Yingda said: "On the day of Autumn Eve, all the heroes gathered at Wangyue Tower to discuss poetry and songs, and I was loved by all the students. Every year, I am invited to come here as a judge, which is really a great honor. Alas, the time for today's poetry meeting has not yet come, but there is a dispute between Zuo Lang's son and Wannian County Bo Xiao. I suggest that the Six Arts of a Gentleman be used as a test, as a discussion between talents. No matter whether you win or lose, there should be no gaps in your heart. I don't know what you two think. How about it, please all the heroes as witnesses."
"I will obey Kong Siye's words.", everyone replied in unison, as if they had practiced it.
Then everyone's attention turned to Xu Zhang and Yang Fan. After all, it had to be agreed by the two rightful owners.
As soon as the words fell, Xu Zhang and Xu Jingzong looked at each other, stood up quickly, clasped their fists and said, "Students have read poetry and books since childhood, and have read Confucian classics. They follow the heavy teachings on weekdays, and should follow the arrangements of the teacher. It's just that. I don’t know…” After saying that, he paused and looked at Yang Fan with a provocative look.
He said this very clearly. He said that he was proficient in poetry, songs, and ancient classics, but he was afraid that the other party would not dare to agree.
Seeing Xu Zhang's arrogant look, before Kong Yingda could ask, Yang Fan said contemptuously: "A certain dignified man, of course he has nothing to fear. Don't try to be nice with your words. You can be beaten by you even without the strength of your hands." Treating it as an honor is simply boring. In that case, what are the six arts of a gentleman?"
Hearing Yang Fan's words, Xu Zhang almost died of shame and anger.
This Bangchui actually asked such a question. As long as a child is studying, he can tell what the six arts of a gentleman are.
This was simply naked contempt, which was even more unacceptable to him than the loss of face just now.
But he had no choice but to answer, so he could only say angrily with a blushing face: "You have gone too far to deceive others. To raise a country's sons in the Tao, they teach six skills: the first is the Five Rituals, the second is the Six Joys, the third is the Five Shootings, and the fourth is the Five Controls. , Five means six books, six means nine numbers, these are the six arts of a gentleman!"
At the age of five, a certain person could recite the entire "Zhou Rites. Baoshi" from memory to fluently. You actually asked a certain person if he knew it? True Qi kills someone.
Everyone also whispered to each other earnestly, and made mocking sounds from time to time. This Yang Fan was really a stick.
Xu Zhangnai was recognized as a talented person in Chang'an, and he was familiar with the Four Books and Five Classics. If he raised this question, wouldn't he be humiliating himself?
Everyone thought there was a good show of fighting between dragons and tigers! It seems that he is not worth mentioning. This Bangchui is simply a rough person.
Yang Fan looked around, smiled slightly and said, "It's good if you're good at it. Otherwise, if you lose later, you'll be cheating again. I want to defeat you in the field you're best at, just because you make me feel unhappy!"
Xu Zhang's face suddenly turned as dark as the bottom of a pot, but he quickly calmed down at Xu Jingzong's signal. The two father and son stared at Yang Fan in unison, as if they had some deep hatred.
After hearing what Yang Fan said, everyone suddenly realized it, and the pot exploded in an instant, and there was a lot of discussion.
"This stick is too arrogant."
"Uncle Zhongyi is not scared to death, is he?"
"Do you really think Xu Zhang is bad? He is quite famous among scholars."
Even Kong Yingda couldn't help but frown slightly. He had to admit that Xu Zhang's literary talent was the best among the younger generation.
Kong Yingda, the loyal uncle of Wannian County, also heard from his old friend Chu Suiliang that he pioneered a kind of calligraphy and was quite talented, but he didn't expect that this young man seemed a little arrogant.
Thinking of this, Kong Yingda said: "Since the two talents have been decided, I wonder if I have any objection to being the judge?"
Yang Fan straightened his face, smiled slightly, and said with a small flattery: "Master Kong, what are you talking about? With your prestige and knowledge, if you are not qualified, I am afraid that no one in the entire Tang Dynasty will be qualified. , I just need to follow my orders..."
"It's just that since there is a competition, of course there must be a fortune. Although the younger generation is greedy for money, Mr. Kong Qingfeng is a great scholar of the generation. If you gamble for money, it will not be an insult to your status. So I kindly ask you to be a witness. The loser only needs to Just say loudly that you are wrong in front of everyone, what do you think, sir?"
Originally, he was thinking hard about how to humiliate Yang Fan in the competition, but when he heard this, Xu Zhang was even more delighted.
He had never been afraid of anyone in the competition with the Four Books and Five Classics. Now that he had won the prize, of course he had no objection, so he said to him, "I will follow the words of Uncle Zhongyi."
People who don’t know, would think he is so generous!
Seeing that both of them had no other questions, Kong Yingda continued: "Due to venue and time constraints, today I only chose books and numbers from the Six Arts for the test. For the sake of fairness, the rules of the competition are: one person poses the question, and the other person answers. If the answer is correct, another person will ask the question. If someone cannot answer the question, the other person will keep asking the question until the answer comes up. If you cannot answer three questions in a row, you will lose. The time to answer a question cannot exceed a quarter of an hour. How about ?”
Seeing that Kong Yingda is so familiar with the rules of the competition, he seems to be involved in such judgments. However, there is a trick in this rule, which is who asks the question first.
Just now Yang Fan looked like he had the pearls of wisdom in hand, but in fact he was panicking.
As for the contents of the Four Books and Five Classics, except for some sentences he saw on the Internet, he had no idea at all.
Come and try it quickly. 】
If Xu Zhang were to ask the question first, it goes without saying that he would be completely defeated. There would be no chance for him to ask the question.
However, Yang Fan understood psychology. The ancients were very humble and courteous, which allowed him to seize the opportunity.
Moreover, people like Xu Zhang, who has been familiar with the Four Books and Five Classics since childhood, are overly arrogant and will definitely let Yang Fan ask questions first.
That's why Yang Fan dared to be so determined and able to abuse Xu Zhang easily.
After all, Yang Fan has more than a thousand years of experience than Xu Zhang.
Sure enough, Xu Zhang pretended to clasp his fists and look around, showing everyone his graceful etiquette and elegant gentlemanly demeanor.
Amid the compliments from everyone, he turned to Yang Fan and said, "I have been studying the Book of Rites since I was a child, so I should set an example. Uncle Zhongyi is younger than so, so I asked Uncle Zhongyi to come up with the questions first."
Everyone was so focused at this moment that they wanted to stretch their ears, as if they were afraid of missing something.
Of course, Yang Fan would not refuse such a good opportunity. He took a sip of tea and said calmly: "Since Mr. Kong has already stipulated that only books and two arts are taken. Now that there are regulations, it is much simpler. Let’s start with the topic from the book…”
"The Six Arts of a Gentleman, 'Books' are divided into six books, and the rules of writing are all in them. Although we do not have the wisdom of the sages, we should inherit and carry forward the achievements of the sages. The couplets are concise and concise, neatly aligned, smooth and charming, and fully demonstrate the charm of writing. secret……"
I will write a couplet and let Mr. Xu correct it. If it is right, I will be willing to admit defeat and vice versa. What do you think?
When they heard that Yang Fan's question was about couplets, everyone started talking quietly.
"Xu Zhang is a talented man from Chang'an. Not to mention his profound knowledge and strong memory, he is also quick and quick in thinking. Fighting couplets? Isn't this loyal uncle looking for abuse?"
"Yes, Xu Zhang won the first place on New Year's Eve last year. I haven't heard of anyone in Chang'an who can beat him."
"Isn't it because Bangchui is so clueless that he can't think of any good questions?"
"Well, I think so. This Bangchui probably hasn't even read the Four Books and Five Classics. How can he ask any difficult questions?"
…
Li Ke and the others next to him had obviously heard of Xu Zhang's reputation for couplets, and they gently pulled the corners of Yang Fan's clothes a few times to signal.
Wu Meiniang and Xibeiguo's pretty faces were so nervous that they were sweating. The temples on both sides seemed to be soaked with sweat and stuck tightly to their pretty white faces. They clenched their hands into fists, their fingers were a little white, and their eyes were wide open. His eyes stared at Yang Fan worriedly.
Hearing that Yang Fan actually said that he wanted to make couplets, Xu Jingzong breathed a sigh of relief. He thought there was some conspiracy! It seemed that he was worrying too much. He was full of confidence in his son Xu Zhang, and he picked up the tea cup and took a sip of tea with a leisurely expression.
Kong Yingda was a little surprised, but didn't say anything.
For a time, everyone was in different shapes.
Hearing everyone's discussion, Xu Zhang looked at Yang Fan with a half-smile but said to himself, "You really want to die. Don't you know that you are the "Couplet King" of Chang'an?
As a result, my confidence increased greatly and I said confidently: "Please..."
