History of Women in the Wei Dynasty

Chapter 207 The Ruthless Instructor Wei
As Wei Yao entered the office, her gaze swept from the hem of her skirt that brushed the threshold to the entire room. In just a few breaths, her ambition for power suddenly swelled and filled her vision!

She silently recited the day in her mind: "Midsummer of the twenty-third year of Taihe, Luoyang Palace, lecturer Wei Yao."

The office was simply furnished, with a wide desk on which were placed writing brushes, ink, and inkstones. Against the wall were three narrow tables for protection from dampness, with a dozen or so piles of books and blank sheets of paper. She glanced through the books and, besides the Book of Poetry and the Erya, she was surprised to find the Shiming (释名) written by Liu Xi, a Han dynasty philologist, though it was incomplete.

Wei Yao had already planned what she needed to do today. She spread out a long blank sheet of paper and quickly wrote down each question that Jiang Shunu hadn't mentioned. For example, did the lecturers have the right to select students from the palace who had dropped out of the academy? Did they have the right to increase or decrease the number of students? Did they have the right to set their own exam questions and conduct exams at any time?

She left a blank space in each column of questions. If Jiang Shunu couldn't answer, she would write in the blank space which level of government office she should go to and which official she should ask.
The more questions listed, the clearer it becomes that Jiang Shunu hadn't clearly explained the authority of a lecturer to her at all. To put it bluntly, she was trying to intimidate her!

If we don't get the answers right away today, she'll definitely encounter difficulties and have to keep asking around when she starts teaching tomorrow, which will only attract slanderous rumors.

After writing down the questions, Wei Yao took another sheet of paper of ordinary size and wrote down her class schedule for the month. She chose to teach all classes from tomorrow until the end of the month, without missing a single day.

When Wei Yao came to find Jiang Shunu again, she was writing something. She just glanced up and said, "Have you chosen your class? Put it there."

Even a fool could see the female official's aversion to her now.

When dealing with this kind of person, you must never listen to them the first time! Wei Yao sat down opposite the desk, and sure enough, the other party was writing about the content of "Zhuangzi", not important official documents.

Jiang Shunu stopped writing, her brows furrowed in dissatisfaction.

Wei Yao didn't smile either, and said seriously, "The court values ​​the new education decree, which is why it issued a nationwide notice to recruit lecturers. Since I have been retained to teach at the palace school, I must find out the problems that will inevitably be encountered during the teaching process. After asking Jiang Shunu, I must immediately prepare the next lesson, so time cannot be wasted. Should Jiang Shunu read it herself, or should I read it to her?"

Jiang Shunu's expression was as cold as the dead of winter. Her gaze fell on the first question, and she was in no hurry to answer. Just as she was about to turn to get some tea, she saw Wei Yao pull out another roll of paper from behind her waist, uncork the ink in her travel pen, and look like she was about to take notes.

"What is Instructor Wei doing?"

"From this day forward, I will make detailed records of any instances of negligence towards the new regulations that I witness at the palace school. Rest assured, I will hand over all these records to Changqiu Temple and will not take them out of the palace."

"You lowly servant!" Jiang Shunu cursed under her breath, her tightly clenched cheeks making her long face appear square. But no matter how angry or resentful she was, she had to answer Wei Yao's various questions.

First, what is the overall academic foundation of the students at Qixing Academy? Previously, was the *Classic of Poetry* taught sequentially from the *Airs of the States* section, or was it taught selectively? As of today, which poem have been taught?
The next question is whether there is a limit to the number of exams per month? Can regular instructors create exam questions?

Furthermore, do the lecturers have the right to punish palace students? If a palace student is punished, will the Xi government impose other punishments? If so, what are they?

What are the punishments for palace students who offend their teachers? If the library lacks books needed by the lecturers, which female official should be consulted? How should the vacated spots after the expulsion of palace students be filled by new students? When the lecturers enter and leave the palace, can they come and go on their own, or must they be escorted by palace maids…?

Half an hour later, Wei Yao received all the replies. The two young palace maids assigned to her arrived: one was seven years old and named Xie Yi, and the other was six years old and named Gong Ai.

Wei Yao first asked, "Can you read?"

The palace maids answered in unison, "Reporting to the instructor, we can read."

"Alright, you two stay in the office to copy the rules on the paper. I'll go check on Qixing Academy."

The library is located in the same building complex that blocked the view to the north when Wei Yao first arrived at the Xi government office. The lecturer who gave the lecture at Qixing Academy this morning had a Luoyang accent and should be a local Confucian scholar. There were only two female officials recording at the entrance, Zhang Gongren and Meng Gongren, but the palace students inside had been added to the list of sixteen.

Wei Yao listened for a while, then looked at the notes taken by the two female officials, Zhang and Meng. Afterward, she walked along the school buildings, pausing briefly at each location to listen to the progress of the lessons. When she returned, the morning classes had just ended.

Zhang Gongren, feeling he was already acquainted with Wei Yao, congratulated her and praised her, saying, "I knew you would be appointed, young lady. Although we can't lecture on poetry, we've been recording it for a long time, and we can definitely distinguish between good and bad lectures. There are only a few days left this month, young lady, have you decided on a date for your lecture?"

"It's settled, we'll talk from tomorrow until the end of the month."

"That's how it should be. Since you're new here, you should first let your superiors see your diligence."

Wei Yao smiled faintly, and pulled out a piece of proverb paper and a pen from her waistband. Zhang Gongren was curious about what she was writing down, and when he came over to take a look, he was dumbfounded!

"Miss Wei, lecturer, why are you recording what I said? And how did my good intentions become instigation of you?!"

"Hey? Instructor Wei, who are you going to give these notes to? Jiang Shunu?"

"Hey—Lecturer Wei, you can't be so heartless! Listen to me, Lecturer, are you going to the kitchen? I'll take you there. Oh, please don't hold it against me, I know I was wrong, I won't say another word, okay?"

"Hey?"

As the sun set, Xie Yi and Gong Ai, who had been slaves in the Xi government office for over a year, stepped out of the earthen-yellow high walls for the first time to see their instructor, Wei Yao, off from the inner palace.

Wei Mao and the Lu sisters, Baozhen and Baohuan, paced outside Qianqiu Gate dozens of times before finally seeing him emerge. Lu Baozhen glared at Wei Mao fiercely and whispered, "I hope everything you said today is true. If you ever dare to betray Wei Yao, I'll sever all ties with you!"

"Just tell that one heartless one that you're talking to." Wei Mao scolded Wei Yao for being heartless, but he couldn't hide his excitement. When he saw her, he stretched his eyes and strode forward to greet her.

"We're from the same school, what a coincidence."

"What a coincidence, fellow disciples Mao, Baozhen, and Baohuan, you're all here too."

Lu Baohuan was an honest man, and said, "It's not a coincidence at all! We walked this street for an hour and a half, as if we were waiting for you. Isn't that right, sister?"

Wei Yao and Wei Mao walked side by side behind the Lu Baozhen sisters. The tips of her ears were still blushing, like the lightest pink of a pomegranate flower. "Wei Mao, I will often be teaching at the palace school in the future, so I must get used to being alone."

"Heartless!" Wei Mao glared angrily at her shadow, then suddenly bumped into her and pulled her back.

"Can't I talk to you about serious matters?" Wei Yao was furious and pinched his hand hard.

The more it hurts, the happier I am! Under his sleeve, Wei Mao grabbed her little finger with his other hand, and no matter how hard Wei Yao struggled, she couldn't break free.

When Wei Yao stopped struggling, he stuffed a sheathed dagger into her hand.

He released her, grinning smugly: "Take this for self-defense. I also have something serious to tell you. My godfather wrote to me; he wants to be transferred to the vicinity of Sizhou. Once the appointment is announced, he wants me to go with him and learn how to do things."

(End of this chapter)