History of Women in the Wei Dynasty

Chapter 19 The State Academy Incident

Master Duan was very pleased; it was rare to find a disciple besides Wei Yao who showed such ambition. He then asked expectantly, "Have you memorized the preface to the poem as well?"

The four men, including Wei Yao, should either have "recited" or "recited everything."

Master Duan: "Good! The four of you recite together, starting with the preface, with Wei Yao beginning."

"Yes. The poem 'Qi Ao' praises the virtue of Duke Wu."

The four men said in unison, "He was literate, listened to advice, and guarded himself with propriety. Therefore, he was able to become prime minister of Zhou. This poem is a testament to his virtue."

As the four recited the poem, their rhythms were perfectly synchronized: "Look at the bend of the Qi River, the green bamboos are luxuriant, there is a virtuous gentleman, as if cut and polished, as if carved and refined..."

Strangely enough, the unison recitation of the students was far more motivating than the individual recitations from the teacher. Even Wei Jing, who usually disliked studying the most, couldn't help but murmur along when he heard familiar phrases like "a gentleman of noble character".

Master Duan's health deteriorated day by day. Today, when he stood up after finishing his lecture, he needed two servants to help him step out the door. This sight brought tears to the eyes and saddened the hearts of all his disciples. At the same time, they felt a pang of emotion, realizing that the "virtuous gentleman" praised in the poem "Qi Ao" was none other than their Master Duan.

For the first time, the students did not hurriedly pack their books, but remained seated until the teacher had walked away.

Unfortunately, not all scholars in the world are as self-disciplined and upright as Master Duan.

The next day, the students, who had heard the news, began to discuss an incident that had just occurred at the state school.

It was Wei Zhen who first brought up the matter: "Have you heard? The worst student in the recent 'Classic of Poetry' exam at the prefectural primary school was a female student."

Wei Jing excitedly chimed in, "I know! I also know her surname is Gao."

Wei Zhen: "Yes. She's not from Pingcheng; she came from Huai Shuo Town, which is 600 li away, to study."

Wei Puti first sighed, "It's not easy," and then asked, "I've also heard people talking about this, but I didn't hear it clearly. It's said that this female student was being unreasonable and threatened to jump into a well to blackmail the school into allowing her to continue her studies?"

Wei Zhen retorted angrily, "What?! I have a friend at the state academy. The truth is, Master Du there is usually very harsh on female students. This joint exam was even worse. He stood right next to Gao Xiao Niangzi while she was writing the last two questions. Anyone would be nervous in that situation! No wonder she couldn't do well!"

Wu Ji was very puzzled: "Why are you so harsh on the female disciples?"

Wei Zhen: "Who knows? Humph, what's ridiculous is that no matter how wronged Miss Gao is, it's wrong of her to sue the teacher, so she still has to take a year off from school. Moreover, my friend said that her family is not well-off, and if her studies are interrupted, she will have to leave Pingcheng, so she went all out to make a scene."

Wei Puti held a different view: "But I think that if one has a solid foundation in literacy, what does it matter if the teacher is watching over one of the three questions?"

Wei Zhen: "You make it sound so easy!"

"Hey?"

Seeing that the two were about to start arguing, Wei Jing leaned forward, hooked his arm around Wei Puti's neck, and changed the subject with a joke: "Guess what, if that Master Du were to teach us, would he be so angry that he'd die if he stood next to me during the exam?"

Upon hearing this, Wei Yao didn't find it funny at all; instead, she looked at the other person with a sense of unease.

Wei Mao suddenly kicked her cushion. Wei Yao thought he wanted to talk to her about this topic privately, but instead he handed her a box of ink and raised his chin slightly to negotiate: "Payment. Still Cui Xueguan's notes, could you make another copy for me?"

There were three ink sticks of pine soot ink arranged in the top, middle, and bottom of the box, for a total of nine. Wei Yao took only three and then pleaded, "Could you also help me copy a copy of Zheng Xueguan's?"

Different teachers would certainly have different interpretations of the same poem. It was during this joint examination that she went to Zheng Academy, where Wei Mao was going, but unfortunately she had long forgotten what was taught.

Wei Mao smiled nonchalantly: "Fine, whatever you say."

Today was unusual; Qu Rong, who never missed a class, was absent, and it was only during the break that his second sister hurriedly came to ask for leave on his behalf. After the next class, Wei Yao packed everything on her desk into her book box. She would be gone for ten days starting tomorrow. She told Wei Mao to bow to Master Duan to say goodbye, and then she hurried off to catch up with Wei Zhen.

“Fellow disciple Zhen, wait for me. Fellow disciple Zhen, do you know where that young lady Gao you mentioned this morning lives? If she hasn’t left Pingcheng yet, I want to help her.”

Wei Zhen sighed, "I can inquire, but how can I help her?"

“I want to give her some notes. I studied the Erya and the Analects with my father, and I have all the notes I have. Also, I copied the entire Jijiuzhang when I was practicing calligraphy. Instead of leaving them idle, I might as well give them to her.”

Wei Zhen smiled and said, "Okay, I'll go and find out. I also have some unused books at home. Let's help her together."

“That’s great. Then tell her that my notes need to be organized and supplemented. Not counting today, tell her to come to Cui Academy to pick them up in three days.”

The two agreed to this and parted ways amicably at the crossroads. Wei Yao looked down at her feet; her eyes no longer held the feigned innocence, but instead displayed the considerations of an adult.

As a reborn person, Wei Yao naturally knew more about Gao Xiaoniangzi and Gao Lou than others.

The reason why he could still clearly remember the other party's name after so many years was because during the time Gao Lou left the city, a scattered Rouran army crossed the Yinshan defense line and wantonly slaughtered civilians in the northern suburbs of Pingcheng. At that time, the prefecture dispatched troops and planted the heads of all those Rouran people at the north gate.

People recounted the stories of those innocent and tragically killed souls, with the most frequent mention being of Gao Lou, the female student who had caused a disturbance at the state school.

At the time, no one around Wei Yao had seen Gao Xiaoniangzi's body, but rumors circulated about at least three different ways she could have died. Even worse, the rumors included contempt for Gao Lou, saying that she was punished for framing her mentor Du Ling and disrespecting him.

Conversely, Du Ling, whose professional ethics had been questioned, used this incident to turn the tide and gradually gain a reputation among the various schools. Later, when Master Duan passed away, the Wei School lacked a teacher, and Du Ling, who came from the "Dugu Hun" clan, volunteered to come.

Wei Mao and Wei Jing caught up with Wei Yao, who temporarily pulled herself out of her disgusted memories of the past. The former asked her, "What are you thinking about?" and then reminded her, "The book box is open."

She looked back and reached behind her back with both hands, alternating between them.

Wei Jing was amused by her puzzled expression as she spun around in circles, and said, "He's lying to you."

Wei Mao sighed helplessly, "Wei Jing, I'm talking about you. You didn't close your book box."

"what?"

This time, Wei Jing touched her with his hands behind his back and spun around in place, which amused Wei Yao.

The blush on her eyes and cheeks reminded Wei Mao of the line from Cai Bojie's poem, "In the corner of the courtyard grows a pomegranate, its green leaves bearing crimson blossoms." A greedy thought arose within him; he wanted to pluck that serene yet radiant smile from her heart!

The two of them were going to the Dongsifang market, and Wei Yao accompanied them for a while.

Wei Jing has recently taken to playing a game of stepping on shadows, jumping around non-stop, which makes people dizzy.

As Wei Yao frowned and looked down at her feet, Wei Mao asked again, "What were you thinking about just now? You had a long face all morning too. Was it because of that female student at the state academy?"

She didn't try to hide anything, and instead asked, "How did you know I had a sullen face when you were sitting behind me?"

"Then I guessed right."

Cai Bojie: Cai Yong.

庭陬 (zōu): a corner of a courtyard.

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(End of this chapter)