Chapter Sixty-Nine: Borrowing Books

Zhang Xuan watched as Elder Tong came out from the inner courtyard. Judging from Elder Tong’s expression, it seemed any hope of finding hidden books in the Yan residence had been dashed—unless Elder Tong was a skilled actor, playing a trick on him. “Elder Tong, did you find anything worthwhile? But from the look on your face, I guess not?”

Elder Tong saw Zhang Xuan and casually touched his own face, wondering if his disappointment was so obvious that Zhang Xuan could read it at a glance. Then he explained what the Yan family patriarch had said: that they would send someone to the town to look for books or invite a few literate people to come and teach. He also relayed the patriarch’s request that other members of the Yan family participate in the reading lessons.

Zhang Xuan nodded after listening, indicating he had no objections. After all, teaching one person or a group made little difference to him, especially since he wouldn’t be teaching himself anyway.

As Elder Tong finished, a sudden thought struck him. “Xuan, why don’t you ask Zhao Ding if he has any books with him? If he does, you can borrow them to use for now, or have someone copy or engrave them—it’s a solution, isn’t it?”

Elder Tong’s suggestion made Zhang Xuan’s eyes light up. Of course! As an ambitious scholar, Zhao Ding would certainly carry books with him. “Elder Tong, please help me find a few people who can copy or engrave books. I’ll go borrow the books, and as soon as I get them, we’ll get started.” With that, Zhang Xuan dashed toward Zhao Yun’s room, since Zhao Ding had been there just moments ago.

Elder Tong watched Zhang Xuan rush off, shook his head, and headed to the rear courtyard to look for suitable people. It wouldn’t do for Zhang Xuan to borrow books and not have anyone to copy them.

When Zhang Xuan reached Zhao Yun’s door and looked inside, Zhao Ding was gone. “Yun, where’s your cousin? He was here just now—where did he go?”

“He must have returned to his room. He just left. Xuan, are you looking for him? If so, you can wait here; he’ll be back soon.”

“I’ll go check his room then. If he comes back, let him know I need to speak with him.” With that, Zhang Xuan hurried away again.

Zhao Yun watched Zhang Xuan’s retreating figure and recalled the way his cousin had watched Zhang Xuan earlier. He shook his head in disbelief. Weren’t these two just introduced today? Why were they suddenly inseparable? The thought sent a chill down his spine. If Zhang Xuan had known what Zhao Yun was thinking at that moment, who knows how he would have reacted.

Zhang Xuan had only gotten halfway when he saw Zhao Ding walking toward Zhao Yun’s room, a book in hand. The sight made Zhang Xuan feel like Columbus discovering the New World; his eyes shone with excitement at the book in Zhao Ding’s hand. That light stood for his thirst for knowledge, the progress of civilization, and—well, that was enough embellishment.

“Brother Zhao Ding, may I ask you something?” Zhang Xuan rubbed his hands together, looking as eager as a wolf eyeing Little Red Riding Hood.

“Brother Zhang Xuan, go ahead. If it’s within my ability, I’ll certainly help.”

“Generous indeed! I appreciate your answers earlier today. So, do you have any books with you right now? If so, could you lend them to me so I can copy and read them?”

“Copy and read? What do you mean?” Zhao Ding had heard of copying books, but the phrase “copy and read” was new to him.

Zhang Xuan wanted to slap his own mouth. Why did he have to use a term Zhao Ding didn’t know? Now he’d have to explain again. The scholars of this era had such a strong thirst for knowledge! “Copy and read is simply a shorthand for copying and reading books. I combined the two for convenience; it doesn’t hinder understanding.”

Zhao Ding nodded, surprised by this new phrasing. He considered himself somewhat learned, but compared to Zhang Xuan, he was lacking. Here was a man who had read extensively and still borrowed books to copy and read—he himself paled in comparison. “Brother Zhang Xuan, I can lend you all the books I brought with me, but you’ll need to return them before I leave Yan Mansion.”

“You’re willing to lend me your books, and that’s your only condition? No problem, rest assured. Before you set off for your studies, I’ll certainly return them. But when are you planning to depart? If you’re leaving tomorrow, that might be tough. Still, I promise that whatever I say, I’ll do. If you leave tomorrow, I’ll make sure you get your books back.”

“Don’t worry. After days of traveling, our group is quite worn out. We plan to rest here at Yan Mansion for a while and buy supplies. So you needn’t worry about me leaving tomorrow. Come with me to get the books.”

“Oh, by the way, Brother Zhang Xuan, earlier when you spoke with my younger brother about ‘orders must be obeyed’ and ‘when a general is outside, he may not follow all commands from the court,’ I found it enlightening. I tried to find the sources of those phrases in my books but couldn’t. Could you tell me exactly where they come from?” Zhao Ding asked sincerely.