This little boy was a new face; she had never seen him before. So, she nodded and asked, "I'm Zhao Zhitong. Who are you?"
She had just cried her eyes out over the matter of selling children. Now, as she suddenly turned around, her eyes were still misty and red-rimmed.
Seeing this, Qiao Muchen was at a loss. The imposing aura he had arrived with instantly diminished by half. "I... I didn't bully you. You... why are you crying?"
Zhao Zhitong valued her dignity above all else. She immediately rubbed her eyes, stood up, and said huffily, "Something just got in my eye. I wasn't crying!"
"Alright then." Qiao Muchen pursed his lips, puffed out his chest again, and boldly stated his purpose, "My name is Qiao Muchen. I heard from the Teacher that you're very capable and solved a problem that had troubled Uncle Wei for a long time. I've come to challenge you!"
This matter had to be recounted starting from the first time Zhao Zhitong came to the school with Sun Mei.
That day, much like today, was clear and sunny, the sky a brilliant blue.
After placing Zhao Zhitong at the kitchen entrance and instructing her not to wander off, Sun Mei went into the kitchen to get busy.
Zhao Zhitong, being the restless little monkey she was, couldn't possibly behave. She played by the kitchen entrance for less than a minute before darting off.
By chance, she wandered into the front courtyard.
The school was divided by a courtyard wall into a front and a back courtyard. The back courtyard contained the kitchen and the dining area for the scholars, while the front courtyard was where the scholars studied.
When she inadvertently burst in, Scholar Meng was in the courtyard with a class of scholars, studying a large black ox that Country Gentry Wei had brought.
Upon seeing such a massive creature, Zhao Zhitong's eyes lit up; she desperately wanted a closer look.
Thinking this, she did just that.
Only after getting closer did she glean some information from their conversation.
It turned out that Country Gentry Wei wanted to buy this large black ox from a cattle merchant. However, the ox was of an excellent breed, and the merchant wanted to keep it for breeding the following year, so he was reluctant to sell.
But he didn't dare offend Country Gentry Wei, so he devised a plan: the ox was to be sold by weight.
This meant that if Country Gentry Wei wanted to buy the ox, he first had to weigh it. But where could he find such a large scale? Even if such a scale existed, who could possibly lift the ox?
Unless, of course, the ox was slaughtered and weighed in pieces.
However, not only was slaughtering cattle forbidden by the state, but he was also loath to kill it; he genuinely cherished the ox for its superb breed.
After pondering for several days without a solution, he had brought the ox to the Private School that day to seek Scholar Meng's advice.
Coincidentally, Scholar Meng was teaching arithmetic to the scholars that day. Intending to inspire them, he presented the problem as a test, asking each scholar to devise a solution.
At that time, the scholars were all animatedly discussing their views.
One scholar suggested that if they constructed an enormous scale and had a hundred people lift the ox, it could then be weighed.
Another scholar, with a flight of fancy, proposed weighing the front half first, then the back half, and finally adding the two weights together.
Listening to the scholars brainstorming their various, albeit impractical, ideas, Scholar Meng wasn't angry. Instead, he smiled amiably, stroking his beard.
"You can use a boat."
Just then, a crisp, childlike voice suddenly rang out, cutting through the noise and reaching Scholar Meng's ears directly.
His eyes lit up at once. "Who said to use a boat?"
The scholars all quieted down, looking at each other in confusion, not knowing what had been said.
"It was me."
At this moment, the young girl's crisp, childlike voice sounded again. Only then did everyone notice a young girl hiding behind them.
Seeing everyone looking at her, Zhao Zhitong showed no fear. Instead, she was quite happy and even grinned broadly at the crowd.
Scholar Meng was quite surprised that the speaker was such a young girl, but he still beckoned to her. "Come, you come over here."
At this moment, Zhao Yue, one of the scholars, stared at Zhao Zhitong with wide eyes. Isn't she that annoying pest who always secretly peeks into my family's home, eavesdropping on me while I study? He immediately bared his teeth at her.
"HMPH." Zhao Zhitong made a face at him and then happily walked towards Scholar Meng.
When Zhao Zhitong approached, Scholar Meng stroked his beard and asked, "Come now, young girl, what did you mean when you mentioned using a boat?"
"Teacher, it means driving the ox onto a boat. Once the boat is stable in the water, carve a mark at the waterline. Then, drive the ox off the boat.
Then, load Shi Tou onto the boat until the water level reaches the previously carved mark. Stop loading Shi Tou, and finally, weigh the Shi Tou on the boat. That will be the ox's weight."
"Ah! That's a brilliant idea!" Country Gentry Wei exclaimed in delighted surprise.
"Not bad, not bad."
Scholar Meng also said "not bad" twice, clearly quite pleased with Zhao Zhitong's answer. He nodded and then addressed the assembled scholars.
"The young girl's method is excellent! Legend has it that during the Three Kingdoms period, Cao Chong, son of Cao Cao, Emperor Wu of Wei, used this very method to weigh an elephant. This event is historically known as 'Cao Chong Weighs the Elephant.' Today, we shall study this historical account..."
While Scholar Meng began to use this incident to lecture the scholars, Country Gentry Wei, not wanting to linger, took his leave.
He had obtained a satisfactory solution and departed in high spirits, leading his ox away.
Country Gentry Wei was full of praise for Zhao Zhitong, who had helped him solve the problem. Upon returning home, when educating his children, he often recounted this incident, telling them to learn from Zhao Zhitong's example.
Subsequently, for a period, Zhao Zhitong started frequenting the front courtyard. Sometimes she would crouch by the doorway, eavesdropping on the Teacher's lectures.
At other times, inspired by Grandpa Bai in the space, she would perform good deeds, such as sweeping the floor for the Teacher, wiping the tables, or helping to water the vegetable garden.
Sometimes she would just sit quietly in the courtyard, waiting for the Teacher to finish class. Then, she would bring him his meal and eagerly await the interesting stories he would tell.
As a result of these interactions, Scholar Meng became even more pleased with Zhao Zhitong.
He discovered that sometimes she would merely stand outside the classroom, reciting along a few times. Later, when he encountered her after class and casually questioned her, she could recite the material perfectly!
For an educator, encountering such an intelligent child brought him great satisfaction and pleasant surprise.
But this extreme joy eventually transformed into a sigh.
Such an intelligent child! What a pity she was born a girl!
This sentiment would sometimes unintentionally slip out during his lessons.
As for why Qiao Muchen came to challenge Zhao Zhitong, it was because he had been sick and absent from the school on the day of the ox weighing. While recovering at home, he frequently heard Uncle Wei praising Zhao Zhitong. After he recovered and returned to the school, the Teacher also praised her often.
Qiao Muchen, who was accustomed to being the one praised, suddenly heard about this 'child from another family.' He became intrigued by Zhao Zhitong and thus ran off to challenge her, wanting to see who was superior.
"The zither, Go, calligraphy, painting, poetry, composition, mathematics, and so on—the choice of contest is yours to make."
Qiao Muchen, embodying the magnanimity of a young gentleman, generously allowed Zhao Zhitong to choose the events for their competition.