I showed the rubbings of the epitaph to my predecessor, Li Lianyi, and said, "Sir, you said everything in ancient times was better than now, but isn't this an article from the Tang Dynasty?" Most people in the world think that what is famous is good. But if you really want to study the facts, the calligraphy in Jin Dynasty is the best, and there must be bad words written at that time. The poems of the Tang Dynasty were the best, and there were certainly some poorly written poems at that time. Not all handyman and coolies in Jin Dynasty wrote Rainbow Xizhi's Wang Xianzhi, nor did Li Bai and Du Fu in Tang Dynasty kill pigs to write poems for business. Xi Shi and Dong Shi live in the same village, while Liu Xia's toes and toes are brothers. How can we say that one is beautiful, everyone is beautiful, and one is virtuous? The connoisseur got an inkstone from the Song Dynasty. Although it is slippery and can't keep ink, it is still regarded as a treasure. Getting a Han Dynasty rubbings, although there are many mistakes, is still regarded as more precious than precious stones. Ask him what he likes about these things, and he says they are all ancient. Su Dongpo once wrote a poem saying,' Love customs is sour and salty'. That's what I said! "
This ancient prose should be a passage in Yuewei Caotang Notes, to the effect that the author uses the topic to explore the relationship between ancient and modern times.
There are a few words to explain:
"Ming Jing": a scholar who has not been admitted to a scholar. I only learned one of the four books and five classics.
"Pen letter": letters and articles; This refers to characters, calligraphy.
"Servants": handyman and drudge.
"Tugu": people who kill pigs and sit in business looked down on people who do business in ancient times.
"Xizi Dongjia": Dong Shi and his family are people with the same surname in the same village.
Liu Xia: Liu Xia and Liu Xiahui are brothers.
Something like that.