Chapter Summaries

Chen Caozhi avoided a scheme to ruin his reputation and handled Ding Chunqiu’s outburst without retaliating. At the Wu Commandery grading gathering, Quan Li singled him out, and Chen Caozhi won first place with an original interpretation of the Analects.

• A finely dressed young woman pursued Chen Caozhi, but he recognized the likely scheme and arranged for Lai Fu to escort her away.
• Ding Chunqiu kicked over a food hamper, and Ran Sheng grabbed him before Chen Caozhi stopped the confrontation and spared the Ding brothers from public disgrace.
• Quan Li arrived, greeted Chen Caozhi warmly, and invited him to climb the mountain and share his mat at the feast.
• At Guanlan Terrace, Quan Li tested the gathered scholars on the meaning of Confucius’s words, “I am with Dian.”
• Chen Caozhi argued that Confucius agreed with Zeng Xi’s wish to live freely while still cherishing the ambition to save the world, and Quan Li ranked his discourse first.

Chen Caozhi won recognition at the Qiyun Mountain gathering through his knowledge of the classics and his flute playing, and Quan Li promised to recommend him for a sixth-rank assessment. He returned home to a changed reception from the Ding brothers, while Feng Lingbo’s father considered arranging a family visit on her behalf.

• Chen Caozhi’s flute performance moved the gathering, including Feng Lingbo, and made him famous among the assembled scholars.
• Quan Li praised Chen Caozhi’s talent, offered to raise him to the sixth rank, and invited him to Wu Commandery for assessment the following spring.
• Feng Mengxiong offered Chen Caozhi a place to stay, and later asked Feng Lingbo whether her mother should visit Chen Caozhi’s family; she insisted the visit remain purely friendly.
• Ding Youwei waited with Zongzhi and Run’er for Chen Caozhi, while Ding Yi and his sons arrived and unexpectedly greeted her warmly.
• Chen Caozhi returned home, and Ran Sheng told Ding Youwei that Quan Li had held his hand and that the gathering had gone well.
• Ding Xiashang and Ding Chunqiu visited Chen Caozhi, and Ding Chunqiu asked about the young woman he had seen with him.

Chen Caozhi returned to Chen Family Cove after learning that Quan had provisionally ranked him sixth, and his clan celebrated the honor. He then hurried to Chuyangtai Taoist Monastery, where Ge Hong announced he was returning to Lingnan and gave Chen letters of recommendation and instructions for his studies in Wu Commandery.

• Chen Caozhi told Ding Youwei that he had received the sixth rank and explained how Chen Liu, Lu Clerk, and the Qiantang Chu Clan had tried to frame him.
• Lai Zhen summoned Chen Caozhi to Master Ge, so he left Ding Youwei and returned to Chen Family Cove with Zongzhi and Run'er.
• Chen Xian took Chen Caozhi to the ancestral hall, where the Qiantang Chen Clan celebrated his provisional sixth-rank placement.
• Chen Caozhi went to Chuyangtai Taoist Monastery and found Ge Hong preparing to leave for Lingnan.
• Ge Hong told Chen Caozhi he would be away for one to three years and gave him letters recommending him to Lu Na and Xu Zao, urging him to study with Xu Zao and learn Luoyang Standard Pronunciation.

Chen Caozhi prepared to leave Chen Family Cove for Wu Commandery to study, carrying Ge Hong’s cryptic warning not to travel after the fifth month of the following year. His family encouraged the journey, and he learned that Liu Shangzhi would travel with him, while Jing Nu decided to remain behind with Ran Sheng.

• At their parting, Ge Hong advised Chen Caozhi to study under Xu Zao, practice Luoyang pronunciation, and avoid traveling after the fifth month next year.
• Chen Caozhi showed Lady Li Ge Hong’s recommendation letters and decided to leave for Wu Commandery on the twentieth, while keeping Ge Hong’s warning from her.
• Chen Caozhi comforted Zongzhi and Run’er by explaining that he would scout the way beyond the mountains and return, while they stayed to keep Lady Li company.
• Chen Xian told Chen Caozhi that his local assessment was excellent and that Liu Shangzhi would travel with him to Wu Commandery.
• Lai Fu told Chen Caozhi that Jing Nu had wanted to go to Wu Commandery but gave up after Ran Sheng objected, and Chen Caozhi said not to investigate their background.

Chen Caozhi left Chen Family Cove with Liu Shangzhi to study in Wu Commandery, saying goodbye to his family and rejecting Xiao Chan’s hope of accompanying him. On the road, he met Feng Mengxiong’s family and worried that his mother might arrange his marriage before he returned.

• Chen Caozhi taught Zongzhi and Run'er and instructed them on their studies before his departure.
• Liu Shangzhi visited Chen Caozhi, asked to travel with him to Wu Commandery, and requested recorder lessons.
• Chen Caozhi declined Lady Li’s suggestion that Xiao Chan accompany him, leaving her heartbroken as he departed with Liu Shangzhi.
• Chen Caozhi said goodbye to his family and clanspeople, telling Run'er he would return when the heavy snow fell.
• Chen Caozhi and Liu Shangzhi met Feng Mengxiong, Sun Shi, and Feng Lingbo at Maple Forest Ferry as the family traveled to visit Lady Li.
• Chen Caozhi continued toward Qiantang County town and worried that his mother might arrange his marriage while he was away.

Chen Caozhi set out for Wu Commandery to study, stopping in Yuhang with Liu Shangzhi and his servants. After discussing his studies and plans for his family’s reputations, he escaped a nearby fire with his companions, while Liu Shangzhi carried A Jiao from the inn.

• Chen Caozhi told Ding Youwei he was leaving for Wu Commandery, then departed after briefly greeting Ding Chunqiu.
• Chen Caozhi and Liu Shangzhi reached Yuhang, where Ran Sheng teased Liu Shangzhi about his indulgent behavior toward A Jiao.
• Chen Caozhi copied Biographies of Eminent Recluses and considered how to write distinguished biographies of his father and elder brother.
• Liu Shangzhi discussed their upcoming studies with Chen Caozhi while A Jiao tapped on the adjoining room’s partition.
• A thatched cottage caught fire, and Chen Caozhi sent Ran Sheng and Lai De to carry out the book chest as Liu Shangzhi fled with A Jiao in his arms.

Chen Caozhi and Liu Shangzhi reached Huating, where the cranes recalled Lu Ji’s last lament, and Chen reflected on the fates of the region’s famous families. The next morning, he reunited with Lu Weiwei after her ink chrysanthemum broke, advised her how to save it, and left as she pleaded for him to stay.

• Chen Caozhi and Liu Shangzhi watched cranes rise over the Song River while a boatman explained that the Lu family was honoring Lu Ji and Lu Yun.
• Chen Caozhi thought about Zhang Han’s retreat from public life and Lu Ji’s disastrous pursuit of fame and unsuitable friendships.
• The next morning, a flowerpot fell from the Lu family procession, breaking Lu Weiwei’s ink chrysanthemum and bringing her to tears.
• Chen Caozhi recognized Lu Weiwei from their earlier meeting and told her to join the stem with beeswax, replant it, and support it with bamboo splints.
• A young Lu gentleman questioned Chen Caozhi, who answered coolly and continued on his way while Lu Weiwei called after him.
• A dignified middle-aged man reproached Lu Weiwei for calling after Chen Caozhi, but she protested that he could save her chrysanthemum.

Chen Caozhi and Liu Shangzhi traveled to Xu Zao’s Thatched Cottage to seek instruction and faced Xu Miao’s entrance questions. Chen Caozhi passed both questions, including the one Liu Shangzhi could not answer, and the pair were admitted to the school.

• Chen Caozhi and Liu Shangzhi arrived at the Thatched Cottage with their servants and tuition gifts, while A Jiao waited in the ox cart.
• Xu Miao introduced himself as Professor Xu’s son and tested the two visitors before allowing them to meet his father.
• Xu Miao asked Chen Caozhi to interpret a line from Mao Poetry, and Chen Caozhi answered to Xu Miao’s approval.
• Xu Miao asked Liu Shangzhi to explain a saying from the Dao De Jing using the Zhuangzi, but Liu Shangzhi could not answer.
• Chen Caozhi offered to answer for Liu Shangzhi and cited a passage from the Zhuangzi, earning Xu Miao’s approval and passing the test.

Chen Caozhi and Xu Miao quickly became friends, and Xu Zao learned of Chen Caozhi’s talent and Ge Hong’s recommendation. After hearing that Chu Jian had tried to block Chen Caozhi’s admission by threatening Xu Zao and his son, Xu Zao decided to admit Chen Caozhi despite the trouble it might bring.

• Xu Miao welcomed Chen Caozhi and Liu Shangzhi at the Xu Clan School, and he and Chen Caozhi bonded over their studies during a walk around Little Mirror Lake.
• Xu Miao accepted their tuition gifts and invited Chen Caozhi to meet Xu Zao the next day, passing along Ge Hong’s letter of recommendation.
• Xu Zao praised Chen Caozhi’s abilities after reading Ge Hong’s letter and hearing Xu Miao describe their conversation.
• Xu Zao told Xu Miao that Chu Jian had asked him to humiliate Chen Caozhi and deny him admission, while threatening Xu Miao’s prospects for rank.
• Xu Miao urged his father to defy Chu Jian, and Xu Zao said they would neither flatter the powerful nor act recklessly, but would continue doing what was right.

Chen Caozhi began studying at Xu Zao’s school, impressed Xu with his quick mastery of Luoyang Standard Pronunciation, and learned that Xu would protect him from the Chu Clan’s troubles. Meanwhile, Chu Wenbin tried to turn Lu Qin against Chen, and Lu Qin concluded that Chen was unfit to enter the Lu Clan’s estate, despite his sister’s request that Chen treat her chrysanthemum.

• Chen Caozhi and Liu Shangzhi began lessons at the Xu family’s Thatched Cottage, where Chen quickly mastered Xu Zao’s Luoyang-style chanting.
• Liu Shangzhi left to arrange lodging, and Xu Zao invited Chen to stay with him and reassured him after hearing about the Chu Clan’s grievances.
• Xu Zao suggested that Liu rent a room from a farming household at Gu Clan Manor instead of building a lakeside house.
• Chu Wenbin arrived hoping to see Chen rejected, but grew furious when Xu Zao treated Chen warmly and summoned him for a private talk.
• Chu Wenbin spoke with Lu Qin and slandered Chen, prompting Lu Qin to say Chen’s conduct made him unsuitable for the Lu Clan’s country estate, where his sister had hoped he would treat her chrysanthemum, Jade Edition.

Chu Jian plotted to use Lu Qin against Chen Caozhi and arrange for Chu Wenqian to become Qiantang’s magistrate, while Chen Caozhi continued studying and befriending Xu Miao and Liu Shangzhi. Liu Shangzhi moved into a cottage in a peach grove, but the old farmer soon warned that its owner was coming and demanded they leave.

• Chu Jian told Chu Wenbin to befriend Lu Qin and gradually provoke him into clashing with Chen Caozhi, while planning for Chu Wenqian to succeed the Qiantang magistrate.
• Xu Miao warned Chen Caozhi about the Chu Clan’s likely schemes, and Chen Caozhi said he would face them without fear.
• Liu Shangzhi rented a secluded cottage in a peach grove, and Chen Caozhi and Xu Miao agreed to visit and gather there.
• Chen Caozhi ran around Little Mirror Lake, prompting several gentry youths to mock him, but he dismissed them as narrow-minded.
• Xu Zao praised Chen Caozhi’s ambition and told Xu Miao to run with him to build his strength.
• After Liu Shangzhi moved into the cottage, the old farmer hurried in to warn that the young master was coming and begged them to leave, but Liu Shangzhi refused.

Chen Caozhi met Wei Xie and Gu Kaizhi at Peach Grove Cottage, where he offered Wei Xie a simple prescription for his heart pain. Wei Xie invited Liu Shangzhi to remain at the cottages, and Gu Kaizhi ended by asking whether Tenant Mao’s daughter was beautiful enough to paint.

• Gu Kaizhi brought his ailing teacher Wei Xie to Peach Grove Cottage and discovered that Lao Mangtou had rented the cottages to Liu Shangzhi and his companions.
• Chen Caozhi recognized Wei Xie and introduced himself as a disciple of Ge Hong, then offered to write a prescription for Wei Xie’s heart pain.
• Chen Caozhi gave Wei Xie a prescription using dried lacquer, and Gu Kaizhi ordered a servant to prepare the medicine.
• Wei Xie asked Gu Kaizhi to let Liu Shangzhi stay in two of the cottages, and Gu Kaizhi returned the rent and praised Lao Mangtou for bringing them together.
• Chen Caozhi and Xu Miao left the grove, while Gu Kaizhi asked Lao Mangtou’s son whether Tenant Mao’s daughter was beautiful enough to paint.

Chen Caozhi found his own expression on the Keting Flute while climbing Lion Mountain, then faced Chu Wenbin’s attempt to provoke a conflict with Lu Qin. He left without agreeing to treat Lu Qin’s sister’s chrysanthemum, and Lu Qin was left furious with both men.

• Chen Caozhi played the Keting Flute on Lion Mountain and discovered a way to adapt Ji Kang’s guqin music to his own feelings.
• Liu Shangzhi arrived late after spending the night listening to Gu Kaizhi talk about painting, then joined Xu Miao and Chen Caozhi for Scholar Xu Zao’s lecture.
• Chu Wenbin praised Lu Qin’s calligraphy and agreed to request one of Lu Qin’s practice copies of the “Letter on Recovery.”
• Lu Qin asked Chu Wenbin to summon Chen Caozhi to treat his sister’s chrysanthemum, Jade Edition, but Chu Wenbin instead claimed Lu Qin demanded that Chen Caozhi apologize.
• Chen Caozhi confronted Lu Qin about Chu Wenbin’s message, refused to treat the chrysanthemum unless Lu Qin asked him again, and left with Liu Shangzhi.

Chen Caozhi gained Wei Xie’s approval as a painting disciple after sketching a peach tree, and later went to Peach Grove Cottage to show Wei Xie Huan Yi’s flute. He left Gu Kaizhi chanting poems through the night while he slept, and woke to find Gu still believing he had listened.

• Liu Shangzhi suggested that Chen Caozhi use Immortal Elder Ge’s letter to seek an audience with Governor Lu, and Xu Miao offered to arrange the visit through his father.
• Wei Xie’s heart pain flared when he mentioned it, though he said the episode was shorter and less severe than usual after taking the pills.
• Chen Caozhi painted a lifelike peach tree, and Wei Xie accepted him as a disciple after advising him to develop spirit and vitality beyond mere likeness.
• Gu Kaizhi invited Chen Caozhi to Peach Grove Cottage so Wei Xie could paint the story of Huan Yi giving him the Keting Flute, but Wei Xie fell asleep while planning the scene.
• Gu Kaizhi kept Chen Caozhi awake with hours of poetry recitation, while Chen slept in the adjoining room and had Ran Sheng occasionally call out praise.
• At daybreak, Gu Kaizhi thanked Chen Caozhi for sharing the enjoyable night, unaware that Chen had slept through his chanting.

Chen Caozhi watched Wei Xie paint a linked-picture scroll and practiced painting while Gu Kaizhi sought out a beautiful young woman to serve as his model. After hearing about Lu Weiwei, the flower-obsessed young lady of the Lu Clan, Chen was summoned to the commandery city by Prefect Lu.

• Liu Shangzhi expected Chen Caozhi to be exhausted after Gu Kaizhi's all-night poetry recitation, but Chen was energetic and invited him to climb Lion Mountain.
• Chen Caozhi watched Wei Xie outline a three-part painting about the gift of a flute, and Wei Xie agreed to continue painting after Chen left for his Zhuangzi lesson.
• Gu Kaizhi went to Shanluo Village to paint the beautiful young woman of the Mao family and stayed there to work through the night.
• Chen Caozhi practiced brushwork, while Xu Miao told Liu Shangzhi and Chen about Lu Weiwei's devotion to rare flowers and the story of her revived snowball tree.
• A school servant arrived at Peach Grove Cottage to tell Chen Caozhi that Prefect Lu had sent an ox cart to bring him to the commandery city.

Quan Li’s praise of Chen Caozhi’s calligraphy sparked Governor Lu Na’s desire to meet him, and Lu Na summoned him to the residence. Chen Caozhi examined Lu Weiwei’s dying chrysanthemum, Jade Edition, and offered a risky treatment that left its survival uncertain.

• Quan Li showed Lu Na Chen Caozhi’s calligraphy, and Lu Na admired the young man’s distinctive script.
• After learning Chen Caozhi was studying at the Xu Clan School, Lu Na sent for him.
• Lu Na brought Chen Caozhi to Golden Wind Pavilion, where Lu Weiwei pleaded with him to save her wilted chrysanthemum.
• Chen Caozhi examined Jade Edition’s badly rotted roots and said the flower might be beyond saving.
• Chen Caozhi had the serving women clean and soak the damaged roots in glutinous millet wine, then replant the chrysanthemum in a dry spot without watering it for three days.

Chen Caozhi impressed Lu Na with his insight and calligraphy, and Lu Na offered him rare modelbooks to study. After helping Lu Weiwei accept that Chrysanthemum Jade Edition might not survive, Chen Caozhi left her smiling.

• Lu Na praised Chen Caozhi’s diligence and calligraphy, then assured him that no one in Wu Commandery would trouble him over the Chu Clan’s hostility.
• Chen Caozhi explained his insight into Lu Ji’s “Rhapsody on Literature” and wrote “Song of the Yan” in left-handed regular script and right-handed running script.
• Lu Na praised Chen Caozhi’s progress and lent him original works by Wei Heng and Xie An to copy.
• Lu Weiwei waited to thank Chen Caozhi, who asked her not to grieve too deeply if Chrysanthemum Jade Edition could not be saved.
• Lu Weiwei understood his words and smiled.

Chen Caozhi continued his studies and painting while Chu Jian ordered his son to keep watch on him after Governor Lu Na praised him publicly. Ding Chunqiu delivered gifts from Ding Youwei, and Lu Weiwei visited to tell Chen that Jade Edition was recovering, leaving him with a quiet happiness as she invited him to Cherished Garden.

• Lu Qin wrongly assumed Chen Caozhi had sought Lu Na’s favor to gain a reputation, while Chu Jian told Chu Wenbin to watch Chen and report anything unusual.
• Chen Caozhi studied and practiced painting with Wei Xie, while Gu Kaizhi painted the young woman of the Mao family at Shanluo Village.
• Ding Chunqiu passed Xu Miao’s admission question and delivered a wooden chest of gifts from Ding Youwei to Chen Caozhi at Peach Grove Cottage.
• A servant from the Lu residence summoned Chen Caozhi, and Lu Weiwei told him that Jade Edition had begun to recover after he advised her on caring for it.
• Lu Weiwei invited Chen Caozhi to visit Cherished Garden and told him she had ignored her sixth brother’s insults about him before departing.

Chen Caozhi received winter supplies from Ding Youwei and grew closer to Ding Chunqiu, then visited Lu Weiwei to help save her chrysanthemum and heard her reflections on flowers and loss. Lu Qin tried to keep Chen away from the Lu residence, but Lu Weiwei defended his talent and challenged her brother to prove his superiority in calligraphy.

• Ding Chunqiu brought Chen Caozhi winter clothes, writing supplies, food, and a caring letter from Ding Youwei, and Chen suggested finding him a nearby room.
• Ding Chunqiu overcame his unease at the Thatched Cottage and admired Chen Caozhi, Xu Miao, and Liu Shangzhi, then learned Chen had been invited to Governor Lu's residence.
• Chen Caozhi visited Lu Weiwei in the Cherished Garden and found that Chrysanthemum Jade Edition had sprouted new leaves after his treatment.
• Lu Weiwei explained her love of rare flowers and spoke sadly about her deceased mother and sisters and her sickly brother.
• Lu Qin warned Lu Weiwei that Chen Caozhi was seeking fame, but Lu Weiwei defended him and urged Lu Qin to compete with him in calligraphy.

Gu Kaizhi completed his moonlit painting Nighttime Laundry Pounding and received praise from Wei Xie. The next day, Lu Weiwei waited for Chen Caozhi and invited him to see camellias at Zhenqing Daoist Abbey, while Chu Wenbin secretly followed his cart.

• Gu Kaizhi told Chen Caozhi he would teach him figure painting the following year, and the three friends joked about painting beauties and marriage.
• After a moonlit walk, Gu Kaizhi rushed back to paint Nighttime Laundry Pounding, which Wei Xie praised as a painting with a soul.
• The next morning, Duanchu told Chen Caozhi that Lu Weiwei had been waiting for him, and Lu Weiwei invited him to see camellias at Zhenqing Daoist Abbey.
• Chen Caozhi agreed to go with Lu Weiwei and followed her ox cart toward the commandery city.
• Chu Wenbin noticed the Lu residence's ox cart and had his own cart follow Chen Caozhi to discover who was with him.