History of Women in the Wei Dynasty

Chapter 202 Bu Yanzhen with a Shaved Head

Back at the Pine Forest Villa, Wei Yao told her parents everything about her lecture. She analyzed her observations: "I think the three female officials who recorded the lectures were at least divided into two factions. The female official Liang should be a surrendered prisoner. The older female official who was kind to me was surnamed Zhang. She had a heavy Luoyang accent and was a 'servant'. She was also a fourth-rank female official."

Wei Yin: "So, Lady Zhang is a local from Luoyang County."

Wei Yao: "That should be true."

Wei Yin sighed, "The Xi office is just a corner of the palace, yet it is full of open and covert struggles. The evil spirits bully people by taking advantage of their power, and even the kind ones must be guarded against, for they may not be truly kind."

"Father, Mother, I'm not afraid!"

Wei Yin was amused by his daughter's nervousness and said, "Don't worry, if we were to restrict you and prevent you from pursuing your own interests, you would never have come to Luoyang. After you enter the palace tomorrow, continue to uphold your original intention of teaching. Do not talk to any palace servants about anything other than academic matters. As long as you are reasonable, don't be afraid of offending them."

"Heh, I understand."

In the afternoon, dark clouds obscured the sky over Luoyang.

Inside the palace, the new emperor Yuan Ke's face was more somber than dark clouds. Now, Prince Yuan Xi of Xianyang held the high position of Grand Commandant, wielding great power and influence. He sent a petition to the palace requesting the dispatch of courtiers to inspect various prefectures and counties, assessing the performance of officials.

Yuan Ke rubbed the chess pieces in his hand and said to several trusted attendants, "The Grand Commandant's memorial is ostensibly to understand the people's suffering, but in reality, it is to evaluate officials based on his personal grudges, install his cronies, and exclude dissidents."

Zhao Xiu was no longer the lowest-ranking white-robed servant; he had been promoted to Imperial Guard. He said fiercely, "Shall I lead men to kill the Prince of Xianyang?"

Yuan Ke was already used to Zhao Xiu's stupidity and ignored him. He instructed the eunuch Wang Yu: "Tell the matter of the petition to the Prince of Beihai and the Prince of Rencheng. Since we can't stop the Prince of Xianyang's ambition, let all the ministers participate."

At this moment, Kou Meng walked in carrying a food box, his clothes wet with raindrops. "Your Majesty, the Imperial Kitchen Supervisor has prepared various kinds of rice cakes. Your Majesty didn't eat much at noon. Please see which ones you like and have some."

Yuan Ke: "Alright, let's rest our eyes."

Kou Meng took out rice cakes. For each type, the imperial physician Wang Xian tested them for poison with a needle, and Zhao Xiu squatted down beside him, cutting off a corner of each type of rice cake to taste it first.

"Well, it's delicious."

Yuan Ke then ate a little.

Being an emperor is no easy task, and he couldn't completely rest even now. He had Wang Yu read aloud the lecture records from Qixing Academy, where the previous lecturers had all been defeated by the palace students' barrage of questions. Yuan Ke waved his hand, indicating that similar records didn't need to be read again. He said angrily, "If you're going to teach poetry, you can't just know poetry. These palace students are certainly infuriating, but the lecturers deserve it too!"

Wang Yu flipped to the last page and reported, "This morning's lecturer was named Wei Yao, and the lecture notes are complete."

Next, he read from the meaning of the character "定" in "定之方中" to the argument between Wei Yao and the palace students, then read the lecture content, and finally the dialogue between Wei Yao and the Seventh Prince Yuan Yu.

Zhao Xiu was ignorant and incompetent; he couldn't even fully understand the insults exchanged. He only discerned that Wei Yao was a woman of strong character and couldn't help but want to tame her. "Your Majesty," he said, "I think this female lecturer suits my temperament quite well. Could you bestow her upon me?"

Wang Zhongxing, the head of the temple, and Kou Meng, the guard with a sword, both heard it and glanced at Zhao Xiu with disgust.

In the past, when Zhao Xiu pleaded with Yuan Ke in a drawn-out, coquettish tone, Yuan Ke would not get truly angry even if he did not agree.

This time is different.

From Wang Yunian's lectures, Yuan Ke learned that Wei Yao not only had a thorough understanding of poetry, but also a very solid foundation in textual exegesis. This gave him the idea to establish Wei Yao as a role model for poetry, proving that it was not only the young people of the Han aristocracy and the Xiao Qi dynasty who were good at reading, but also the young people of the Xianbei people!

No sooner had this thought crossed his mind than he heard Zhao Xiu's despicable request.

Yuan Ke flicked the rice cake crumbs off his hand onto Zhao Xiu's face, his smile completely gone, and said, "Get out of the Zhai Palace. Come back to pay your respects when you've figured out what mistake you've made."

What mistake did he make... what mistake did he make? Zhao Xiu walked out of the palace in fear, but even the heaviest rain couldn't wash away the fool's ignorance. The rain also couldn't wash away the infatuation of lovers.

There is an ancient pass north of Luoyang called Zhiguan.

In the pouring rain, the young Wei Jin, who was traveling, was witnessing a love story even more intense than the downpour.

The man and woman in this poignant and absurd relationship are Wei Zhen and Bu Yanzhen.

One of them regretted leaving Luoyang and ran back.

He regretted leaving Luoyang a few days late and intensified his pursuit.

Perhaps it was fate, but Wei Zhen caught up with Bu Yanzhen, who had run back, at Zhiguan.

Amidst the thunder and rain, Wei Zhen dismounted and rushed towards Bu Yanzhen, loudly asking him, "Are you willing to give up your studies? Do you dare to leave your family and farm with me to make a living? To tell you the truth, my family is no longer stopping me, but they won't provide me with a life of luxury! Bu Yanzhen, if I become poor and lose everything, will you still love me?"

Bu Yanzhen shouted back even louder: "I like it, I like it, I like it! If I didn't like it, I wouldn't have run back! Azhen, don't be afraid, I'll tell you the truth, I've already thought of a way out, and I've already done it! I'll be a monk for a year first, so my family will give up on me, and then I'll return to secular life, and we'll hide in the mountains, living off the land and water!"

After he finished speaking, he took off his hood, revealing his bald head.

Wei Zhen was stunned, tears mingling with the rain. "Why did you shave your head?! Waaah—"

“If I don’t make this decisive move, they will lie to me and arrange a marriage for me after I return to Pingcheng.”

The two hugged each other's heads... Wei Zhen then hugged the other person's arm. Ugh—his bald head was covered in stubble, it was creepy, and she almost didn't like him anymore.

Seeing that Bu Yanzhen's cousin was very calm, Wei Jin felt a little angry and asked, "Your cousin is going to become a monk, aren't you worried?"

Pan Chunniang: "In the fifteenth year of Taihe, the imperial court issued an order that a large prefecture like Hengzhou could only have two ordination ceremonies for laypeople each year. The first date has passed, and there is only one hundred spots left on the fifteenth of July. My cousin will not even be able to eat by then, so where would he get the money to bribe the monks and officials to include him in the one hundred spots?"

Wei Jin was dumbfounded: "How do you know about this decree?"

“My late husband was a clerk in Pingcheng County. When he was too busy, I would copy documents for him, so I remember.”

"How long has he been dead? No, I mean, you just watched your cousin shave all his hair for nothing?"

"You can't break the rules of the world without exhausting yourself. Once you've used every trick in the book, whether they succeed or fail, they won't regret it. Where does Young Master Wei plan to travel?"

Wei Jin originally had no destination in mind, but for some reason, seeing Pan Chunniang's desolate appearance, he changed his words and said, "Pingcheng, I want to go back to Pingcheng for a visit."

"Lord Wei didn't bring many warriors, and I don't have many men either. If..."

"Okay!" Wei Jin wanted to slap himself. "What I mean is, let's have the three teams travel together. Safety is the most important thing when traveling."

In Yi Nian Li, Luoyang, at the residence of Wei Yi.

Wei Mao, holding an umbrella, instructed his servants to quickly move the potted pomegranate trees. Why was the rain suddenly so heavy? It seemed like it would never rain again after this downpour.

Within moments, even the umbrella was soaked through.

Lu Luo called for her sons to hurry back under the eaves, then worried about where Erlang Weijin had gone and whether he had gotten wet. "It's true that the more children you have, the more you have to worry about."

(End of this chapter)