Only a Little

Liu Zhao was about to ask further about Wang Yang's family background when Wang Yang said, "Today, let us discuss scholarship alone, not family standing."

Liu Zhao was delighted. Wang Yang's words suited his taste perfectly. "Good, scholarship alone! Then allow me to ask-"

Yu Yuling hurriedly said, "Since we are discussing scholarship alone, Young Master Wang, please uphold scholarly impartiality, rather than using victory or defeat to deceive-"

Liu Zhao's face hardened, and he snapped at his disciple, "Zijie!"

Wang Yang was bewildered. "When did I ever say I intended to deceive anyone through victory or defeat?"

Yu Yuling's tone was cold. "Although Young Master Wang has come at someone else's behest, you should still-"

"No, wait! At whose behest?" Since Wang Yang wanted to befriend Liu Zhao, he first had to clear up this misunderstanding.

"Weren't you sent by the Wang Academy?" Yu Yuling asked, astonished.

"Of course not! I heard that Master Liu had studied the Book of Documents in depth, so I came on my own to discuss scholarship. What does that have to do with the Wang Academy?"

Wang Yang finally understood. All the obstacles Yu Yuling had thrown in his way outside the door had stemmed from mistaking him for someone from the Wang Academy. It seemed the conflict between the Wang Academy and the Commandery Academy ran deep.

Hearing Wang Yang himself declare that he had no connection to the Wang Academy, both Liu Zhao and Yu Yuling were overjoyed! Xie Xinghan, hidden behind the screen, also breathed a sigh of relief.

Yu Yuling's face lit up. "I knew someone of Young Master Wang's family standing and talent could never be so blind to right and wrong! I was rude earlier. Allow me to apologize!" He promptly bowed to Wang Yang with clasped hands.

Wang Yang did not hold it against him and returned the bow. "Think nothing of it."

Yu Yuling continued, "Master, I also have a question. Earlier, Young Master Wang said that Zheng Xuan's commentary on 'Lesser Minister of Education' states, 'Cheng means to determine.' Then 'Lesser Minister of Education' is..."

"'Lesser Minister of Education' appears in the 'Earth Official' section of the Rites of Zhou. You have yet to master the Three Rites, so leave it aside for now. The same note also appears in Wei Zhao's commentary on Discourses of the States. You may look it up yourself," Liu Zhao said briskly.

This man truly is a master of Classical Studies, Wang Yang thought. He had not known about that note in Discourses of the States himself.

Yu Yuling asked again, "Then Book of Documents: Examining the Luminous Signs is-"

"That is an apocryphal text from the Han Dynasty. Your learning has not reached that level yet, so do not interrupt for now. Make a note of your questions, and I will answer them another day." Having said this, Liu Zhao turned eagerly to Wang Yang. "Young Master Wang, shall we continue?"

"The forty-eight characters at the beginning of 'Announcement to Kang,' from 'In the third month, when the moon first waned' to 'Then he issued a great proclamation of governance,' all belong to 'Announcement of Luo.' They should be moved before 'The Duke of Zhou bowed with clasped hands and touched his head to the ground' in 'Announcement of Luo.' How do we know this? The Duke of Zhou campaigned eastward and took two years to pacify Guan and Cai, only afterward enfeoffing Kang Shu. In the seventh year, he restored royal rule, and Luo was built that same year. Thus, when Kang Shu was enfeoffed, construction at Luo had certainly not begun. We can therefore tell that this passage resulted from later slips becoming detached and misplaced, disrupting the original text."

"What does 'guiding the mountains' mean? 'Guide' here means 'road'-the same word used for a roadway. When Records of the Grand Historian quotes the Tribute of Yu, it uses precisely this character for 'road.' One followed the routes people traveled, observed their direction, and measured the distances along them; hence the word 'guide.' That is why the text also says 'mark and array.' What does that mean? 'Mark' means to set up identifying markers, and 'array' means to arrange in a sequence. Setting up markers in an ordered sequence was the ancient method of measuring distances!"

"'Heaven has inflicted no small calamity upon our house, extending greatly to me, a young and immature man.' This is a punctuation error made by earlier scholars! Those who read 'no small' together take it as referring to the rebellions of the Three Supervisors and the Huaiyi. Yet if we examine the entire chapter, it first speaks of the newly founded Zhou Dynasty and King Wu's death, then of King Cheng succeeding to the throne in his tender youth. Only from 'Then these stirred to rebellion' onward does it address the Three Supervisors and the Huaiyi. Thus, the sentence should end after 'house,' and 'delay' belongs with the preceding phrase: 'Heaven has inflicted calamity upon our house, without the slightest delay; great was the burden upon me, a young and immature man.' 'Without the slightest delay' merely refers to King Wu's sudden death..."

Tea had been replenished three times, and books covered the table.

Liu Zhao, Yu Yuling, and Xie Xinghan had long since been left dumbstruck!

Fifteen hundred years separated Southern Qi from the modern era. Throughout that time, great scholars had appeared without cease, and masters had emerged generation after generation. Through prolonged discussion and debate, countless scholars had advanced research into the Book of Documents to heights utterly beyond the reach of the Southern Qi era.

Combined with Wang Yang's grasp of the development of scholarship, each insight he offered was a key to unlocking difficult questions and unresolved problems that had lingered in the study of the Book of Documents since the Han Dynasty. How could the three listeners not be dazzled and spellbound?

At first, Liu Zhao had frequently consulted books and asked questions. Later, the discussion became entirely Wang Yang's one-man show!

Once Wang Yang got carried away, he no longer confined himself to what could be proven. Alongside rigorous scholarship, he interspersed ingenious theories capable of overturning established views and shaking the scholarly world. Liu Zhao listened with mounting excitement, beside himself with joy, feeling that an entirely new world had opened before him!

Wang Yang took a sip of tea to moisten his throat, then continued with easy eloquence:

"The Tribute of Yu says, 'The three Jiang rivers entered, and Zhenze was settled.' What are the three Jiang rivers? The river flowing down from Yuzhang into Pengli, then eastward to the sea, is the southern Jiang; the river flowing from Mount Min to the Nine Rivers and Pengli, then into the sea, is the middle Jiang; the river flowing east from Mount Bozhong as the Han, passing the Three Shi Rivers and Mount Dabie to enter the great Jiang, then gathering eastward into the lake of Pengli before entering the sea, is the northern Jiang."

Liu Zhao exclaimed in surprise, "Young Master Wang, you are also proficient in geographical studies?"

Wang Yang replied modestly, "Only a little, only a little."

"Indeed, only a little." A young woman's cool, clear voice suddenly came from behind the screen.

Wang Yang jumped. He had been here all this time without realizing anyone was back there!

Earlier, Liu Zhao had been so immersed in scholarship that he had forgotten Xie Xinghan was still there. Seeing Wang Yang's surprise and uncertainty, he immediately explained:

"She is the daughter of a friend of mine. Young Master Wang arrived so quickly that she had no time to withdraw, and so she concealed herself behind the screen. Please do not take offense."

Yu Yuling suddenly remembered something. He looked toward the lacquer-painted screen, and his expression changed drastically.

Xie Xinghan said, "The waterways Young Master Wang described are broadly the Northern Han River, the central Min River, and the southern Yuzhang River. Yet according to this account, once the three rivers converge at Pengli, they merge into one, passing Moling and Jingkou before entering the sea. By then, they are no longer three. Why, then, does the Tribute of Yu still describe three rivers entering the sea separately? You flaunt your talent and parade your erudition, young master, but isn't your argument rather too much a castle built in thin air?"

What the hell?!

She knew her stuff!

But what was with the barbs in her words?

In his scholarly work, Wang Yang normally placed the greatest emphasis on documentary evidence. Yet today, someone had accused him of building castles in thin air!

That meant inventing arguments out of nothing and forcing connections where none existed.

For a scholar, such a judgment was a tremendous disgrace!

Still, Wang Yang had only himself to blame for getting carried away. He had casually quoted Su Shi's argument without paying attention to its rigor.

Ordinarily, Wang Yang could simply have admitted that his argument was not entirely rigorous, but not now.

This time, he had to outshine everyone present, or he would not achieve the best possible result!

Wang Yang immediately countered, "Why can they not be called three Jiang rivers after merging into one? The Jiang flows from the west, and at Mount Jin its waters are distinguished as the Three Chills. Tea connoisseurs prize the flavor of water and say that even when the Three Chills are mixed, the palate cannot be deceived. This means that although the waters merge, their flavors do not. Thus, even after the Jiang rivers merge, they can still be distinguished as three."

"The Three Chills? What Three Chills? What is your source?" Xie Xinghan asked.

Wang Yang inwardly cursed his slip. The term Three Chills had only appeared during the Tang Dynasty, when the art of tea had become highly refined. It was far too early to cite it now!

Seeing Wang Yang hesitate without answering, Xie Xinghan furrowed her brows, curled her lips slightly, and wore a look of distaste. "You didn't make that up, did you?"

Liu Zhao and Yu Yuling both turned to look at Wang Yang.

Note: As Wang Yang went on, he repeatedly cited unconventional theories to impress Liu Zhao. Some of these arguments lacked factual evidence and were merely inferences, without conclusive proof. Yet brilliant inferences are the most stirring, whether correct or not. Qing Dynasty scholars spoke of "the learning of independent judgment" once scholarship reached a certain level. Such "independent judgment" meant pronouncing decisively in the absence of conclusive proof: declaring that something was right, and that was that. It was an intuition cultivated through profound learning, a flash of inspired genius, all embodied in the word "judgment." Interested readers can read Chen Yinke's "Corroborating Evidence for The Peach Blossom Spring" or "Reading The Tale of Yingying." The conclusions of these two essays are not necessarily correct, but they convey the fascination and brilliance of inference.