This gift of cultivation is the tuition for students and disciples. They should bring ten slices of dried meat and a jug of fine wine and offer it at the beginning of every month. This is slightly different from the six rituals performed by students when they become apprentices. There is no need for celery, lotus seeds, red beans, red dates and longan.
Today is the first day of the Lunar New Year, which coincides with the beginning of the month and the beginning of the year. On this day, students usually give their teachers some extra gifts with special meaning. Rich families naturally give some calligraphy, paintings, jades, and antiques, while poor students can only use their brains to give some meaningful small gifts to win the favor of their husbands and avoid looking too shabby.
Although this academy is a place for teaching, and it is supposed to teach everyone without distinction, but there are hundreds of people in it, there will always be some greedy teachers who value those expensive gifts, which makes it difficult for the students who are struggling at home. Every year during the holidays, That's when the biggest headache comes.
As the headmaster of this academy, Bai Dinggong, almost every new year, all the students in the academy will try their best to send gifts to his room. Although he has refused many times, it seems that the enthusiasm of the person giving the gifts has not diminished but increased, and it is even more... Persistence.
In desperation, Bai Dinggong set a rule in the academy: it is okay to give him gifts, but he must see them in person. If he likes them, he will keep them, and if he doesn't like them, he will not accept them. It was hard for all the disciples to be upset at this time, because they usually had no idea what this old Master Bai’s likes were!
Because Bai Dinggong has an indifferent temperament, it would be an insult to give him gold, silver, and jade articles, and he thinks calligraphy, painting, and antiques are too precious. Send books? It's just a joke. Who in this academy has more books than him? So one year, a student unexpectedly gave him a nanmu bookshelf in a creative way. It meant that you had so many books that you had nowhere to put them, so I gave you a bookshelf just for you to put your books on. It was really a rack of brains.
At this moment, the door of Bai Dinggong's study room was crowded with students and disciples who came to give gifts. However, the door was closed tightly. No one dared to knock on the door, for fear of disturbing the old master's study.
Fortunately, Du Wenqi rushed over at this time. As a prison guard, he is the busiest person at this time of the year. In addition to being busy collecting gifts himself, because the academy is always crowded with disciples giving gifts, it is always noisy. He has to step in to straighten things out every time to prevent the situation from being too chaotic. And every year, his first priority is Bai Dinggong's door. forward.
"Don't be noisy or crowded. Come one by one and line up."
While keeping the scene from being chaotic, he also ordered people to carry tables and chairs and place them in front of the door of Bai Dinggong's study, so that after a while, Bai Dinggong could come out and sit down to look at the gifts.
After everything was arranged, Du Wenqi turned around and bowed to the door of the study, and said respectfully: "Master, all the disciples have arrived, just waiting for you to step outside the door."
As soon as he finished speaking, the door of the study room was opened, and Bai Dinggong walked out of the door. Without speaking, he sat directly on the chair behind the table. All the disciples present bowed in unison and said hello to the old master.
Shao Xi stood at the back of the team. He wanted to see what kind of gifts the students present would give Mr. Bai Ding, and also wanted to see how Mr. Bai Ding chose these gifts.
The first disciple came forward, holding a long brocade box in his hand, and placed it respectfully on the table in front of Bai Dinggong. Bai Dinggong raised his hand and picked up the brocade box. After opening it, he saw a luxurious brush inside the brocade box.
It was a purple jade tube. The tube was engraved with exquisite patterns of landscapes, flowers and birds. The tip of the pen was round and full, evenly covered with hair. The tip of the pen was shaped like a thin cone, and the workmanship was fine.
The disciple proudly introduced: "This pen barrel is made of Xiu jade from Tianqiong Mountain and was carved by a famous craftsman. The rabbit hair used in the pen tip was caught in the autumn and has been eating wild bamboo leaves in the mountain streams for many years and drinking it." The hair of an adult male rabbit from the mountain spring water is only selected from a handful of black and extremely elastic double arrow hairs on its back. It can be said to be very rare and hard to obtain. The only hair brush made of such rabbit hair Only this kind of pen can meet the requirements of being sharp, even, round and strong. Only this kind of pen can be regarded as the "pearl in the palm" and called "treasure" by calligraphers and painters. Only this kind of pen can be worthy of a literary great like Lao Fuzi who has unparalleled knowledge in the world. .”
Bai Dinggong took this pen in his hand, looked at it, and couldn't help but praise: "The materials are carefully selected, the production is exquisite, the hair is pure and durable, and the hardness and softness are both strong. It is indeed the best pen among them."
The disciple was very proud when he heard the old master's evaluation of the gift he had given. It seems that the old master is very satisfied with his gift.
But what he didn't expect was that after some appreciation, Bai Dinggong put the pen back into the brocade box, pushed it in front of him and said: "The pen is for writing, not for showing off. If you are talented and knowledgeable, even if it is just A branch can write an immortal article on the sand; if you have nothing in your heart, even if you hold such a luxurious thing in your hand, it is just like grass and trees, what's the use? Take it back!"
The disciple thought that the gift he gave would please the old master, but he didn't want to be lectured by Bai Dinggong. He took the gift and backed away with his head hanging down in boredom.
Shao Xi stood behind and secretly admired Bai Dinggong's words. He deserves to be a great Confucian of his time, and deserves to be regarded as a sage by people. Such insight and mind are indeed beyond the reach of others.
The second disciple who came forward was holding a square brocade box in his hand. After opening it, there was a high-grade inkstone inside.
The disciple carefully introduced: "This inkstone is a famous inkstone produced in Bozhou, South Zhao. Its texture is dense, solid, tender, delicate, and as warm as jade. It is world-famous for its unique and rich stone patterns and ingenious carving techniques. .”
Bai Dinggong took out the square inkstone from the brocade box, held it in his hand and looked at it repeatedly. I saw that the texture of this inkstone is moist and the carving is exquisite. The green pines and elegant towers, small bridges and flowing water carved on the inkstone are really lifelike and exquisite. It is indeed a fine inkstone.
"It is indeed a good inkstone. It is soft but hard. It feels like a child's skin when pressed. It makes no sound when rubbed. It retains water without leaking. It can be used to grind ink without damaging any hair. The biggest advantage of this inkstone is that it produces ink quickly."
When the disciple heard Bai Dinggong's praise, his face showed joy, and he bowed and said, "This inkstone can grind ink smoothly. It can save the old master some time, and he can write more noble opinions on world affairs and spread them to the world."
Bai Dinggong raised his eyes and looked at the disciple in front of him and asked: "Do you know how difficult it is to travel? What is the difficulty? When you reach the place you have reached, how do you feel when you look back at the way you came from?"
This disciple is actually a smart person who can understand everything at once. After hearing what Bai Dinggong asked, he quickly bowed and cupped his hands and replied: "Disciple understands, this journey of study is as difficult as traveling. The articles you write are like the places you reach, and the path of study is like the insights gained on this road. , so the journey should not be too smooth. If it is too smooth, you will have too little knowledge. Studying ink and writing is like walking. You must think and gain insights in the process. My disciple, thank you, old master, for your advice!"
To put it bluntly, people's insights and insights are gained from adversity. If everything goes too smoothly, the insights and insights gained will be much less. The same is true for writing articles. If there is no thought, deliberation, or revision, the article written will definitely be superficial. Studying ink and writing is likened to a thinking process here. Although there will be many difficulties, you will definitely gain something, so there is no need to rush it.
The disciple respectfully left with the gift, but Bai Dinggong nodded with satisfaction, feeling like a "little boy can be taught". In fact, this made him happier than receiving the gift.
The third disciple held a brocade package in his arms. Shao Xi felt puzzled after looking at it. Could it be that he had given the old master a set of clothes?
After opening the package, everyone saw that it was a knife of paper wrapped inside.
But don't underestimate this paper. Literati are very particular about paper when making calligraphy and painting, so good paper is also expensive. This is the case with the paper in front of you.
After the paper was unfolded, looking into the light, a pattern like clouds and mountains appeared faintly, as if there were pavilions in the clouds popping up on the paper. It looked very novel, unique and unique.
The disciple who delivered the paper stood with his hands down and said nothing, as if he was looking at the two people before him, fearing that he would say the wrong thing.
Bai Dinggong reached out and gently touched the paper in front of him, then looked closer and looked at it carefully, stroking his beard and nodding.
"This is water-patterned paper, also known as 'flower curtain paper'. When viewed against the light, it can show bright lines or patterns in addition to curtain lines. The purpose is to add the potential beauty of the paper. There are two methods for making it: 1. It is to use threads to weave textures or patterns on the paper curtain, which is raised on the curtain surface. When making paper, the pulp here is thin, so the texture is shiny and appears on the paper; the second is to carve wooden or other patterns with textures and patterns. The mold of the material is pressed against the paper with strong force. When the paper is spread out on the table, it already has its own beauty before the pen is put down. It is really wonderful."
Bai Dinggong also pushed the package back and said solemnly to the disciples in front of him: "We, the literati, should be concerned about the world, and the articles we write should also speak for the people of the world. We should not only see the beautiful rivers and mountains, but also the barren mountains, remote areas, poverty and suffering. . A true splendid article does not care whether it is written on a splendid piece of paper, but rather what you write. Take it back! Write the article well."
The next disciples all gave gifts such as paintings and calligraphy by famous people, and they were all returned. However, the gifts given by two of them were things that literati usually liked.
One of them brought up a small wooden box. After opening it, it was lined with brocade. There were two ingots in the box.
"My disciple is stupid and doesn't understand ink. I just heard from my father that this is the best tribute ink. I'd better ask the old master to taste it!"
Bai Dinggong took a look at it, then came closer to smell it, and said: "This is Gui ink, made from 'Shangyan'. The ink is one pound of pine smoke, three liang of pearls, one liang of jade chips, and one borneol." Lianghe pounded a hundred thousand pestles with raw lacquer, so it is as hard as stone and can survive being soaked in water for three years. It has rich texture and smooth texture, and is as lustrous as lacquer. It is light when picked up, clear when rubbed, fragrant when smelled, hard as jade, and makes no sound when grinding. A little bit is like lacquer, and it remains true for thousands of years. It is the best among ink. However, you should take it back!"
"Since this ink is so good, why did the old master let his disciples take it back? Wouldn't it be better to leave it to the old master's handwriting for future generations?"
"A hundred years later, there will be no emperor but the emperor's ink; a thousand years later, there will be no emperor's ink but the emperor's name. It is not important whether the words can be passed down to the world, what is important is whether the theory you wrote can be passed down to the world."
"Disciple, I understand. Thank you, Old Master, for your teaching."
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Regarding the production technology and related introduction of the Four Treasures of the Study, part of them is quoted from the Internet.
A hundred years later, there will be no king but the king's ink; a thousand years later, there will be no king's ink but the king's name. ——Adapted from the evaluation of Dong Qichang, a great calligrapher of the Ming Dynasty, on the "Xuanyuan Lingqi" and "Liao Tianyi" inks made by the Huizhou ink-making master Cheng Junfang: "A hundred years later, there will be no Junfang but Junfang's ink; a thousand years later, there will be no Junfang ink" , without the ink of Junfang but with the name of Junfang."
