History of Women in the Wei Dynasty

Chapter 169 Maidservants Morning and Evening
Time was of the essence, so everyone agreed on a time to assemble their forces. Since they needed to combine their troops with those of Rouxuan Town, Yuanzhi had to lead the troops personally this time.

After discussing the matter, Yuan Zhi wanted to see Zhao Zhi off, but he found the sight of the Wei and Zhao couple standing together particularly jarring. At this moment, the jailer Hu Ba came running over in a hurry. "Reporting to the governor, there is a vegetable farmer who is very suspicious. He has passed by the yamen gate three times, and the vegetables in his basket have never decreased. I suspect that this vegetable farmer is one of the bandits in Luoyang."

Yuan Zhi, finally able to vent his jealous rage, shouted: "Arrest them immediately!"

Zhao Zhi had no time to deal with the bandits in Luoyang. She left through the side gate of the prefectural government and headed to Cui's Academy.

The moonlight made the road outside the school appear as if it were covered with white frost.

When Wei Yao learned that her mother was going to war, she was extremely worried. She was annoyed that she could not help her mother at all, so she could only hug her mother tightly and keep muttering to herself.

“I thought I could help my parents when I grew up, but I’ve grown up in vain and still can’t help them at all.”

“I used to think I wasn’t good enough at studying, but back then our family was together all the time. Now either I’m away from home, or my mother is away from home, and even my father can’t come home. Mother, is it because I’m too strong-willed that our life has changed?”

"Mother, if I do just average in my studies, will you and Father dislike me?"

Zhao Zhi gently stroked her daughter's back the whole time, completely unaware of the strangeness in her words. She even comforted her daughter with her hypothetical words, saying, "You are our daughter. When you were little, you couldn't even speak properly, and we didn't mind. Why would we mind you now?"

Wei Yao broke through her sorrow and turned to laughter.

Zhao Zhi continued to coax her daughter: "If your studies are average, your father and I will live an average life with you. If you are determined, our family will be determined together."

“Your father has never been lazy since he had access to education. He spends every day either reciting books or writing articles. I haven’t been lazy either. I never give up my martial arts skills. I practice with an axe when chopping wood and I practice my strength when carrying buckets of water. But we’re not competing for anything. We just want you to be able to choose whatever kind of life you want to live with peace of mind!”

“Yao’er, remember this: no one in the family will drag anyone down. Your father and I will always help you and go along with you. Whether you have lofty ideals or no ideals at all, haha.”

Wei Yao buried her tear-streaked face in her mother's arms once more. Yes, she should have known long ago. Her failure to perceive her father's cunning and her mother's military talent in her past life stemmed from her own early entanglement in love. Back then, her parents dared not show force, so that she, in her mediocrity, would realize early on that a future with Xi Jiao was impossible!
The following day, Yuan Zhi led his cavalry out of the city in a grand procession toward Rouxuan Town. Zhao Zhi was appointed as the chief clerk, with the authority to mobilize the troops of Hengzhou. The Lan archery instructor who had previously taught Wei Yao to ride and shoot, as well as more than a hundred veteran soldiers of the Wuluolan tribe, were all conscripted into this army and incorporated into Zhao Zhi's personal guard.

Time flies, and on August 10th, the monthly joint exams at Shogakukan were held as scheduled.

The National Day holiday is in effect.

Wei Yao and Er Zhu Rong both stayed obediently in Cui's school.

At the hour of Si (9-11 AM), the maid Chao Xi arrived at the Tingxing Courtyard. She walked quickly and went straight to the "Tingjian House" in the corner, calling out: "Miss Wei, your fellow disciple Wei Mao has a letter for you."

Two maids came over when they heard the noise.

One of them said, "It's you? Weren't you transferred to the greenhouse?"

Another said, "You can't even stay in the flower room anymore, can you? I heard that some maids are being sent back to Qinghe County tomorrow. You'll be one of them, right?"

Ignoring the other party's sarcasm, he simply explained his purpose: "The manager of the flower room asked me to water the plants around the gate. I happened to see Miss Wei's fellow disciple looking for her, so I took on this task on the spur of the moment." "Give me the letter."

Chao Xi appeared anxious and raised her voice: "Miss Wei's fellow disciples are still waiting for a reply outside the manor."

Only then did Wei Yao hear the maids' argument clearly, and she came out of Yuan Jingrong's room. "My letter?"

Chao Xi bypassed the two maids, holding the wooden box in both hands and handed it forward. "Yes. That young man said his surname is Wei and his given name is Mao."

Wei Yao remembered the morning and evening, but she took the wooden box and immediately went back to her room without giving the other person a long look.

Two maids from Tingxing Courtyard dragged Chaoxi out of the courtyard. Once outside, they raised their voices slightly and scolded her: "We always do our own job in the manor. Running errands and delivering messages is the job of the gatekeepers. If you come to Tingxing Courtyard again, I'll tell Steward Shen that you might not even make it back to Qinghe alive!"

Manager Shen is currently the female manager of Tingxing Courtyard.

As for Wei Yao, after opening the wooden box, just as she had guessed, it contained letters from Gao Xiaoniangzi and Jing Tongmen. They were currently at the Shutui River Defense Camp in Shuozhou. The box also contained a cloth bag and handkerchief embroidered by Gao Xiaoniangzi, as well as many beautiful river stones, which were gifts from Huandi.

Wei Yao quickly wrote a reply, packed up the notes she had been organizing during this time, and as soon as she came out of Tingxing Courtyard, she saw Chaoxi waiting by the roadside.

The maid's eyes were visibly swollen from crying. She followed closely behind Wei Yao and quickly recounted, "Young lady, you are a wise woman. You must have sensed that I have something to say. Do you remember Steward Cui from before? I was actually an orphan adopted by Steward Cui. When he was the steward of Tingxing Courtyard, he instructed me to take good care of you. Before he passed away, he could barely speak, and the only thing he uttered was the name of your father."

Wei Yao stopped and demanded, "Where did you get the knowledge of my father's name?"

“Master Wei came to borrow books from Old Master Cui several times, so I know about it.”

"There are countless people in the world with the same name, so why are you so sure that Steward Cui is referring to my father?"

But when she didn't answer Wei Yao's questions day and night, and saw a servant coming towards her, she quickly finished explaining her purpose: "There's a closed-down brothel called Bingfang in the East Fourth Ward, which is actually a place that buys and sells all sorts of information. The old man has been investigating someone through Bingfang. What kind of person is worth searching for so long? Young lady, go back and ask Master Wei, doesn't he feel any gratitude for the years he's lent you books? The old man was tormented by illness for so long before he died, and Master Wei didn't come even once. As a teacher, he's so cold-blooded, doesn't he fear divine retribution... Waaah, waaah—"

Several servants gagged and bound Chaoxi.

The leader apologized to Wei Yao, saying, "This maid is mentally ill; young lady, please don't listen to her nonsense," and then waved his hand, taking Chao Xi away.

Wei Yao didn't turn around and quickly disappeared from Chao Xi's tearful sight.

Chao Xi knew she wouldn't survive, but she didn't regret her impulsive actions that day!
She firmly believed that if Wei Yin hadn't angered the old man, he wouldn't have died from a mere cold. If Wei Yin had visited him then, even just once, the old man might have survived. Whatever Wei Yin owed the old man, it was a great karmic debt that couldn't be easily severed! If Wei Yin didn't want to get entangled, then let his daughter take on that karmic burden!

Wei Yao saw Wei Mao, but before she could wave, Wei Mao ran into the gate. "Don't come out, I know about the bandits in Luoyang."

The two went to talk under a tree nearby. Wei Mao complained, "Next time I come, you should at least bring me a pot of water."

(End of this chapter)