History of Women in the Wei Dynasty

Chapter 187 Oh dear, I'm dead again.

It was still hunting season, and due to the bad weather, only Wei Puti and Qu Rong came to class at Shijing No. 1 Dormitory, and Qu Rong was even late.

With few disciples, Master Song had Wei Yao and two others sit around the lecture platform, warming themselves by a brazier while he taught.

Today we'll be discussing the poem "Cai Qi" from the "Xiao Ya" section.

Wei Yao had missed a lot of classes recently, so she took comprehensive notes. With a student like her who could understand the poems with just a few explanations, Master Song's pace of explaining the poems gradually increased steadily.

The poem "Gathering Artemisia" consists of four chapters and is quite long. The commentary and annotations are even longer, and many of the characters are uncommon and rare, making it very difficult for elementary school children to write. If they are not taught quickly, they will have to have extra lessons in the afternoon.

Wei Puti knew that Yao was here for her last morning class and would probably have to go to Cui Academy in the snow in the afternoon, so he didn't raise his hand to ask questions about anything he didn't understand.

Qu Rong, burdened with her own thoughts, listened to this poem as if swallowing a date whole.

At noon, after school, Wei Yao bowed respectfully to Master Song.

"I will never forget the kindness of my teacher's teachings. I will persevere in my studies and practice what I preach. In the future, I will follow in my teacher's footsteps, practice the Way, benefit the world, and educate people."

She then paid her respects to Wei Puti and Qu Rong as fellow disciples. “My fellow disciple Wei Mao has gone to Luoyang. Before he left, he gave me the four words ‘May you achieve academic success.’ Now I also give my fellow disciples the same words, ‘May you achieve academic success.’ May we all rise with the light of sunrise and cherish our youth.”

Wei Puti nodded emphatically: "Yes! That's what I think too!" Yao's words were so well said, even though I didn't understand everything.

The snow was still falling. After the master left, Wei Puti helped Wei Yao pack her personal belongings. He patted her desk and said with a smile, "From now on, I'll use it and soak up some of the poet's spirit."

The two parted ways again in front of the museum. Their paths home were different, and their ideals for pursuing education were even more divergent. If they hadn't met by chance, they might never have seen each other again in the future.

The road was slippery, so Wei Yao walked carefully. She added a hood inside her straw hat, and her face towel was made of wool, wrapped around her mouth and nose in two layers. As long as her head wasn't cold, her body felt much better.

As she walked, she recalled her morning lessons, occasionally glancing back to see Qu Rong behind her, though he was walking on the other side of the road.

Qu Rong also glanced at her.

Then the two of them went their separate ways as usual, just like strangers on the street.

Just as they approached Zhuji Street, Qu Rong walked up to Wei Yao and said, "I think we will never see each other again."

Wei Yao: "Hmm."

"The things you said to Master Song were really beautiful; you truly deserve the title of the best poet."

Wei Yao did not respond.

Qu Rong: "So it's normal for you to look down on me."

Wei Yao suppressed her disgust and said, "I'm reciting my lessons. If you have endless ramblings, go find someone else."

Qu Rong shrugged and smiled nonchalantly: "I was praising you, and I genuinely admire your academic excellence. But look at you, from the moment I spoke to you, you became wary of me. Fellow disciple, doesn't that prove you're guilty?"

Just because a tiger doesn't show its power doesn't mean it's a sick cat!
The road was too slippery, so Wei Yao simply stopped and retorted rapidly, "If an insect praises a bird, does the bird have to land on the ground to express its gratitude? If a loach praises a carp for swimming upstream, does the carp have to turn back and get covered in mud? If you flatter me, does that mean I have to stop studying and waste my time on piles of nonsense like you?!"

The two men stabbed each other in the eye.

But this time, Qu Rong's argument failed, and instead of his usual anger, he felt a sense of smugness, as if he had known Wei Yao would say something nasty. They continued until they reached Yingju Bookstore, where Qu Rong spoke again, his tone condescending: "It's a pity that Mao Tong has left. The bookstore was doing so well; he couldn't take it with him. Since you're here, why don't you come in and have a look? The manager and servants have all changed. We were fellow disciples; I'll introduce you. Otherwise, if you come here only to browse and not buy books, I'm afraid the servants will chase you away."

Wei Yao understood. This bookstore now belonged to Wei Mao's eldest uncle, Military Advisor Wei. Military Advisor Wei only had one son, who was Qu Rong's nephew.

But what does it matter to her who owns the bookstore!
Wei Yao: "I made it quite clear when school ended that I would be studying at Cui Academy in Xicheng from now on, so even if I need to find books at bookstores, it will be nearby."

Qu Rong stood on the steps of the bookstore, his vision rising higher and his heart soaring even higher.

He shouted, “Fellow student, you’ve always been number one in exams, it must have been tough, right? Even if you work hard for many more years, will you be able to afford a bookstore? You think you’re so high and mighty, but is your academic achievement meaningful? With your background, what ambitions can you possibly realize? Do I look like a bird now? And look at you, do you look like a mudfish burrowing in the mud?”

Wei Yao kept her head down and walked, not falling for the trick. She wouldn't argue with this petty person on territory that had now become the master's domain.

"Hmph, how boring." Qu Rong barely managed to vent her past frustrations.

As he had said, everyone in the bookstore, from the manager to the servants, had been replaced. Everyone was busy organizing and recording the types of books and hadn't bothered to clean the snow and mud from the steps. Qu Rong's boots were already covered in thick mud, and with a misstep, he slipped and slid down the steps, his head unfortunately hitting the thick-walled water vat!

Hearing the commotion from the crowd behind her, Wei Yao walked back suspiciously and saw Qu Rong's corpse with its neck twisted and its eyes wide open in horror.

“Oh dear,” she murmured, “you’ve died again.”

This time the cause of death was clear, and the passing peddler could testify to it. The man died at the entrance of Yingju Bookstore, and the shopkeeper and servants all lamented their bad luck and quickly reported it to the authorities.

In the prefectural capital.

Yuan Zhi and the registrar sat facing each other in the pavilion, warming themselves by the fire and drinking tea. The latter noticed that the official was depressed and comforted him, saying, "As long as the officer sees the governor's painting, the adoption will be taken a step further."

"I hope so." Yuanzhi, trying to dispel his boredom, asked, "I heard you found some chapters of the 'Food Classic' on Zhuji Street?"

“Two articles.” Clerk Gou proudly held up two fingers and said, “One is the method for making white wine, and the other is the method for steaming bear.”

"The method for making white fermented rice wine requires one shi (a unit of dry measure) of raw glutinous rice and two jin (a unit of weight) of fermented yeast. After finely chopping the yeast, soak it in spring water, seal it, and leave it for two nights until the yeast floats to the surface..."

Yuan Zhi: "And then?"

Registrar Gou: "It's gone, just a fragment."

"Haha! Let's talk about the steamed bear method next."

"This is the complete version. The steaming method uses three liters of meat and one bear cub. After the bear cub is slaughtered and cleaned, it is cooked together with the meat over a low heat. The heat is turned off before it is half-cooked, and the meat is soaked in soy sauce overnight."

Yuan Zhi feigned regret: "Little bear, well then, let Black Whirlwind live as well."

The two officials laughed. The Black Whirlwind plan they had devised before the hunt had not been used. Fortunately, Xi Jiao discovered and recognized the dying bear. The state soldiers had a great deal of effort to hoist the bear up the cliff and return it to Cui Academy.

Yuan Zhi, a learned and well-read man, said: "The book 'Food Classic' is said to have been written by Cui Hao, or by Cui Hao's mother, Lady Lu. It is a pity that Cui Hao's writings and collection of books were destroyed in that calamity."

The registrar knew the official's curiosity; he had always wondered if Cui Hao's descendants were really in Pingcheng, and who they were. He spoke up for Director Cui: "Cui Xian is tight-lipped and unwilling to reveal the identity of Cui Hao's descendants, which is understandable. I heard that in the sixth year of the Taiping Zhenjun era, it was Cui Hao who advised Emperor Shizu against the policy of suppressing Buddhism. As a result, monks throughout the country were buried alive, and scriptures and images were destroyed. Alas, Cui Hao had too many enemies."

At this moment, Guan Xian excitedly reported: "A family surnamed Zong from Luoyang is currently at the matchmaker's office in Pingcheng County, seeking a matchmaker to marry the scholar Wei Yao!"

(End of this chapter)