Summary of the first chapter of "The New Biography of Kong Yiji"
In the late winter of the twenty-sixth year of the reign of Emperor Guangxu, heavy snow fell in Lu Town. Kong Yiji, wearing a shabby long gown, went to the Xianheng Hotel and ordered warm wine and fennel beans. He was teased by the short-shirted gang for stealing books, but he was unable to defend himself by saying that "stealing books cannot be counted as stealing." The shopkeeper mentioned that he still owed nineteen yuan, and he promised to pay it back next time. After Kong Yiji left the store, he wanted to go to the bookstore but found it closed. He also bumped into Ding Juren and was scolded by his servants. Finally, he walked forward blankly in the cold wind, with only "The Analects of Confucius" in his arms for company.
