Original text:
"I have nothing but my hands."
Translation:
"I have no other (secret), only a good hand.
This work tells the story of Chen Yaozi's archery and the caution of the oil seller. Through the description of the oil seller's skill of dripping oil from the money hole and the discussion of the method of obtaining the skill, it is shown that practice makes perfect.
Creative background:
Chen Yaozi is just short-tempered, but he is decisive. When he was a local official, he attached great importance to water conservancy. When he learned about Yongxing Army (now Shaanxi), he found it very difficult to drink water in Chang 'an. He organized manpower to dredge the Longshou Canal and solve the problem of people's domestic water use. However, Chen Yaozi was very overbearing. He was severely punished for his politics, and several people with sticks died.
In the fourth year of Song Yingzong Pingzhi (1067), Ouyang Xiu was slandered by Fei Yu and asked to go abroad. When he came to Bozhou, he wrote this article and recorded a story about Chen Yaozi. Ouyang Xiu wants to express the truth that practice makes perfect through this little thing.