AWB Chapter 108 What is the purpose of studying?
Chapter 108 What is the purpose of studying?
Xiao An became even more furious and said, "I told him nicely that I wanted to return the book, but he kept scolding me. Zhang Dahu and the others happened to be playing there, and when they heard it, they came over and scolded me, and even snatched the book away... I clearly returned the book to Song Chunbo, but Song Chunbo threw it on the ground himself, and Zhang Dahu tore it up, and he's blaming me for it!"
Song Chunbo rolled his eyes and said, "Who allowed you to touch my books? I didn't ask you to cover me with clothes, but it's wrong for you to touch my books!"
The scholar's wife immediately chimed in, "That's right, my son Chunbo will also take the imperial examination to become a high-ranking official in the future. How can he possibly touch his secretary Jing'an? He can't bring bad luck to my son Chunbo."
In the past, my younger brother had fought with other children in the village so many times and suffered so much injustice at home and outside, but he never cried.
But when he heard these words today, his eyes turned red and he couldn't help but burst into tears. He quickly wiped them away with his sleeves to prevent them from falling.
Seeing this, Si Muyan stood in front of her younger brother, looked at the mother and son who were talking, and said, "Little brother, do you remember now? You don't have to be so kind to those who blame others for your mistakes. You don't mind them being poor, dirty, or uncultured, but I do, your sister!"
The scholar's wife took a while to realize that Si Muyan was scolding them, saying that his family was poor, dirty and uncultured.
"You...why are you cursing?"
Si Muyan curled her lips and said, "What's wrong with cursing? People like you, I not only want to scold you, I also want to beat you up!"
It's a complete waste of time to reason with people like this. They think they are superior and that they hold the truth, so there's no need to reason with them; they just start cursing.
Moreover, the scholar's wife was not just like this to the Si family, she looked down on everyone in Songji Village equally.
After all, among all the people in Songji Village, only her husband passed the imperial examination. This meant that her husband was the best person in the entire village, and others should show special respect to them and praise them highly.
Therefore, Si Muyan's brutal method actually gave other villagers an inexplicable sense of revenge.
Si Muyan put her hands on her hips and said, "My brother didn't do it, but you're chasing him and scolding him? You think my family is easy to bully, don't you? I'm telling you, if Song Chunbo doesn't apologize to my brother today, this matter won't end. I'm going to sue you for false accusations and have the officials put Song Chunbo in jail!"
The scholar's wife was extremely angry, but she prided herself on being from a scholarly family, so how could she possibly curse at the scoundrel in front of her?
"Do you want to apologize?"
The scholar's wife was scared, and Song Chunbo was even more scared. He was afraid of seeing the officials. He heard that people who had committed crimes could not take the imperial examinations.
He was furious: "Si Jing'an, you guys did this on purpose. You're the descendant of a criminal and can't take the imperial examinations, so why are you reading my book? You just want to blackmail me, right?"
The younger brother's face froze, and he pursed his lips as he looked at Song Chunbo, his eyes filled with sadness.
Yes, what was the point of him reading? He was the descendant of a criminal, and although he was only exiled and became a commoner, it was destined that he could not take the imperial examination.
"Who says people who can't pass the imperial examinations don't need to study?" Si Muyan shouted, "Song Chunbo, have you read so much that you've lost yourself in it? The sages said that reading is for understanding the ways of the world and understanding the principles of life. So, you're only studying for wealth and beauty? For profit?"
Song Chunbo's eyes widened. He studied in order to pass the imperial examinations and become an official. How could this woman say that he studied for the same reason as a businessman, a profit-seeking behavior?
The younger brother looked up at the older sister, his eyes filled with emotion.
He was an awkward person. Ever since he learned to read with his elder brother, he knew he loved reading. However, he was not very willing to read because he knew that his so-called status meant he could not take the imperial examinations, let alone become an official to serve the Great Zhou. So what was the point of reading?
Sometimes he would read books secretly, and sometimes he would even run to the school in Dahu Village to listen to the teacher teaching the students, and he would pretend to be there to have fun.
Sometimes I give up on myself and throw all my books away in anger, and then put them away one by one.
He told himself that he had carefully collected the books because they had been collected one by one by his deceased elder brother. But in his heart he knew it was because he liked them, he loved them very much.
Today was the first time he heard someone say that studying is not for fame or fortune, but for understanding the world and the truth.
Si Muyan continued loudly, "Besides, everyone has their own preferences. Some people like music, some like painting, some like calligraphy and seal carving. So, if some people like reading, what's wrong with that?"
Hobbies?
The villagers don't understand these things. Hobbies are the leisure and elegance of the rich. They don't even know how to live their lives...
"Just like someone likes gambling, if many of you like gambling, that's fine, but why is it wrong for my brother to like reading?"
The second sister in the crowd suddenly said, "I thought my eldest sister had changed a lot before, but today she seems to have changed back to the way she was before."
The younger sister said: "Big sister is getting better and better. With big sister around, we will be better in the future."
In the end, Song Chunbo couldn't stand it anymore, so he hastily apologized to his younger brother, pulled his mother and ran out of the crowd quickly.
Si Muyan held her brother's hand tightly and did not let go. She pulled him to the tree to find clothes, dusted off the clothes, and put them on her younger brother.
"Little brother, you did a great job. You are a kind-hearted person. Seeing a child from the same village sleeping in the cold, you put your clothes on him. This shows that you are kind-hearted."
The younger brother hesitated and said, "But he doesn't need it..."
"Because he's not a good person. The way people get along with each other is based on mutual understanding. You can tell what kind of person is suitable to be a friend by getting to know each other. You weren't the one who did something wrong, so why blame yourself?"
The younger brother nodded heavily: "Thank you, big sister."
Si Muyan smiled and said, "Tomorrow we will go to the county town together. You can buy whatever books you want. Don't worry, we have earned money now and can afford to buy books!"
The younger brother blushed: "But I... Big sister, reading is really useless to me."
"Who says reading is useless? Have you ever heard the saying, 'Read ten thousand books and you will travel ten thousand miles.'"
"Um……"
Si Muyan added, "There's another saying: one of a person's thoughts and actions must always be on the road. Travel across the country, see the world in all its forms, and you'll understand the true meaning of life. But what if conditions don't allow it? We can't travel thousands of miles, so we can only read and think. The more we read and think, the better we will become. Do you understand?"
The younger brother doesn’t understand, but he thinks he can understand.
"Sister, my brother left behind a lot of books. I haven't read many of them, and I don't understand many of them. I think I should finish reading those books first."