Yan Zhenqing is one of the famous calligraphers in ancient China. In order to learn calligraphy, he first studied with Chu Suiliang and later with Zhang Xu. Zhang Xu was a leading calligrapher in the Tang Dynasty, and he knew all kinds of fonts like the back of his hand, especially cursive script. Yan Zhenqing hopes that under the guidance of this famous teacher, he will soon learn the tricks of writing and become famous at one fell swoop. However, Zhang Xu did not reveal any secrets of calligraphy after learning from a teacher. He just introduced some famous copybooks to Yan Zhenqing, and simply pointed out the characteristics of copybooks for Yan Zhenqing to copy. Sometimes, he takes Yan Zhenqing to climb mountains, go swimming, go to the market and go to the theatre. Let Yan Zhenqing practice calligraphy when he gets home, or watch him write calligraphy.
A few months passed in an instant, and Yan Zhenqing was so anxious that he couldn't come up with the secret of the teacher's calligraphy that he decided to ask the teacher directly.
One day, Yan Zhenqing got up the courage to find Zhang Xu. He blushed and said, "The students have one thing to ask. Please teach the teacher the secret of calligraphy."
Zhang Xu replied: "To learn calligraphy, one must' learn engineering', that is, study hard and practice hard; Second, we should "comprehend", that is, accept the inspiration of all natural phenomena. Didn't I tell you many times? "
Hearing this, Yan Zhenqing thought that the teacher was unwilling to teach the secret and stepped forward. On him, he pleaded: "I know everything the teacher said, such as' engineering' and' understanding'." What I need most now is the secret recipe of the teacher's stunt, so please teach me. "
Zhang Xu continued to enlighten Yan Zhenqing: "I saw the princess and the porter fighting for the way and examining the brushwork. When I saw Gong Sundaniang dancing sword, I got the charm of writing. In addition to hard work, I observe nature and there is no other trick at all. "
Then, he told Yan Zhenqing the story of Wang Xianzhi, the son of Wang Xizhi, a book sage in Jin Dynasty, practicing calligraphy. Finally, he said seriously, "If there is any secret to learning calligraphy, it is to study hard and practice hard. Remember, people who don't work hard will never achieve anything. "
Yan Zhenqing was greatly inspired by the teacher's teaching, and he really understood the learning methods. From then on, he studied hard, studied hard, learned the charm of calligraphy from life, made rapid progress, and finally became a great calligrapher, ranking first among the four calligraphers.