Chapter 4 of 10

Chapter 4

12 min read2,998 words

After this little incident, the classroom suddenly became quiet. Although a few poor students, led by Yang Xueyu, were still muttering to each other, their voices were barely audible.

"Today we will continue to analyze the last poem. The tune of this poem is 'Man Jiang Hong,' and the author is traditionally believed to be Yue Fei." As Su Muyan spoke, he took out a piece of chalk and wrote on the blackboard, adding quotation marks before and after the name "Yue Fei."

Lin Nan was very familiar with Su Muyan's habit. Su Muyan's fondness for literature, especially ancient literature, bordered on obsession. He liked to delve deeply into many things, such as the disputed authorship of a poem or the pronunciation of an ancient character. He would write these details meticulously, but only mention them briefly before continuing with the content as marked in the book.

"Actually, whether 'Man Jiang Hong' was written by Yue Fei has always been a subject of debate among scholars. However, we usually recognize Yue Fei as the author. Now, is there any student who would like to read it aloud for everyone?" As Su Muyan said this, Lin Nan suddenly raised his hand.

"Oh? Good, Lin Nan, you come up." Su Muyan looked at Lin Nan with a slight surprise. It had been almost half a month since the start of the semester, and this was the first time he had seen Lin Nan raise his hand voluntarily.

Lin Nan closed his book, stood up, and, recalling the tone and rhythm Su Muyan had used when reading aloud, recited confidently: "My hair stands on end with rage, I lean on the railing, the rain has ceased. I raise my eyes, look up to the sky, and let out a long cry, my heart filled with intense emotion. Thirty years of glory are like dust and earth, eight thousand miles of journey are under clouds and moon. Do not let the youth's head turn white in vain, only to grieve in the end..."

Listening to Lin Nan's recitation, Su Muyan felt a strange sense of shock. The tone and the grasp of the rhythm were astonishingly similar to his own, especially the pauses at "the rain has ceased" and "I raise my eyes," which were almost identical to his own.

"... I will start anew, and reclaim the lost land, to present it to the imperial court!" As Lin Nan finished reciting, the whole class burst into applause.

"Very good, the recitation was excellent. Please sit down." Su Muyan slightly gestured for Lin Nan to sit down, then said to the class, "It seems that Lin Nan has definitely previewed today's lesson and has a good understanding of this poem."

"Did you preview it?" After Lin Nan sat down, Tong Xiaoya looked at him with a slight surprise.

"No." Lin Nan shook his head. He had already learned this long ago, so there was no need for him to preview it.

Seeing that he was unwilling to speak, Tong Xiaoya turned her head and ignored him. It was just a good recitation, not enough to change her usual opinion of him.

Under Su Muyan's detailed analysis, the 45-minute Chinese class passed quickly. As the familiar bell for the end of class rang, Su Muyan finished writing the last few words on the blackboard, closed his book, and looked at everyone, saying, "Well, that's it for today. Everyone can go home now."

"Go home?" Hearing these words, Lin Nan looked at the clock on the back wall and realized it was already time for the lunch break.

People in the classroom hurriedly walked out the door. Su Muyan picked up a few pieces of chalk from the floor and threw them in the trash bin while tidying up the lectern. At this moment, he noticed someone beside him and looked up.

"Hey? Lin Nan, why aren't you going home?"

"Sorry, Mr. Su, I came to apologize for the irrational behavior in class today." Lin Nan looked at Su Muyan with a full sense of apology and respectfully said.

"Um, it's good that you know you were wrong. I won't blame you." Su Muyan smiled slightly and turned to leave.

"Wait, Mr. Su." Lin Nan suddenly stopped him.

"Hmm?" Su Muyan looked at Lin Nan with suspicion. Lin Nan quickly came up with a reason: "That... Mr. Su, you said that the author of 'Man Jiang Hong' is not Yue Fei, which aligns with my thoughts. I have a fairly reasonable argument to prove this point."

"Oh?" This time, Su Muyan was indeed interested and said eagerly, "Then tell me your evidence quickly."

"Um, it's like this." Lin Nan recounted the findings of a well-known expert he had seen on the "Hundred Schools Forum": "We now know that the poem 'Man Jiang Hong' first appeared in the 'Yue Wumu Yiwén' compiled by Xu Jie in the 15th year of the Jiajing era of the Ming dynasty. This book contains a large number of Yue Fei's works, most of which come from the 'Jin Tuo Cui Bian' compiled by Yue Fei's grandson, Yue Ke. However, strangely, 'Man Jiang Hong' is not included in this book. Logically, such a grand and powerful poem, if truly written by Yue Fei, would not be unknown to his grandson, nor would it be left out. Therefore, it can be inferred that 'Man Jiang Hong' is most likely a forgery by later generations, possibly attributed to Yue Fei for political reasons at the time."

"Um, I know these things too." Su Muyan looked at Lin Nan with a slight disappointment: "However, to conclude that 'Man Jiang Hong' is a forgery based solely on this is somewhat far-fetched."

"That's true." Lin Nan nodded: "But I have more important evidence."

"Hmm? What is it?" Su Muyan's gaze towards him became even more curious.

Enjoying the beauty of his teacher's gaze, Lin Nan continued: "I once read a fragment of the 'Jin Tuo Cui Bian.' It contains a poem called 'Man Jiang Hong * Yu Zhu Yunzhe Shuhuai,' which goes like this: 'My hair stands on end with rage, thinking of the day, I was in the ranks. Indeed, I fought in the south and the north, the military sound was intense. A hundred miles of mountains and rivers were under my control, a unified army stormed the enemy's nest. Do not let the youth's head turn white in vain, to encourage the loyalty of the minister. The shame of Jingkang has not yet been avenged; the hatred of the minister, when will it be extinguished? Drive the long chariot to break through the gates of the Jin city. I wish to eat the flesh of the barbarians when hungry, and drink the blood of the Huns when thirsty. Together with you, I will still lay the foundation of the country, and resolve the grievances.' This poem was included by Yue Fei's grandson, Yue Ke, and is undoubtedly written by Yue Fei. If this is the case, the other 'Man Jiang Hong' is quite intriguing. After all, Yue Fei seems to have no need to write two such similar poems. Moreover, in the current 'Man Jiang Hong,' Yue Fei drives the chariot to the Helan Mountains, but the Helan Mountains were in the Western Xia, while Yue Fei was fighting the Jin who occupied the Northern Song. These two places have no connection, indicating that 'Man Jiang Hong * Yu Zhu Yunzhe Shuhuai' is the true work of Yue Fei, while the other 'Man Jiang Hong' is likely a Ming adaptation of this poem."

As he said this, Lin Nan secretly looked at Su Muyan and saw that she was lost in deep thought, feeling quite pleased.

"Um, what you said makes a lot of sense." After thinking for a long time, Su Muyan finally smiled and looked at Lin Nan: "I didn't expect you to have such a thorough understanding of a poem. You have really impressed me."

"Hehe, just a coincidence, just a coincidence." Lin Nan smiled awkwardly, realizing that the few times he had listened to the "Hundred Schools Forum" while playing games had indeed been beneficial.

"Alright, it's not early anymore. Go home and have your meal." Su Muyan nodded slightly and turned to leave.

"Wait, Mr. Su." Lin Nan suddenly stopped her again.

"Hmm? Is there anything else?" Su Muyan raised an eyebrow and looked at him.

"I..." Lin Nan actually had nothing to say. He was just too excited to see Su Muyan after being reborn and wanted to talk to her a bit more. Sighing inwardly, Lin Nan shook his head and said, "Never mind, it's nothing. Goodbye, Mr. Su."

"Really nothing?" Su Muyan looked at him with doubt.

"Really nothing." Lin Nan nodded.

"Um, okay. If you have any more questions, you can come to my office in the afternoon. I'll go now." Su Muyan smoothed her hair and turned to leave the classroom, heading down the corridor.

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