History of Women in the Wei Dynasty

Chapter 212 The Emperor's Complaint

It would be incredibly difficult for them to even curry favor with the head of the livestock pens, let alone befriend female officials. Furthermore, each palace maid's quarters housed more than a dozen people who were constantly scheming against each other. If the three of them showed any unusual behavior, they would definitely be reported by the other palace maids, and then they would be interrogated separately and confess after a round of torture.

Yang Miaoqian gazed at the high walls on both sides and suddenly realized that ordinary maids in the Xi official residence had no way to get out and were destined to die from exhaustion there. She looked south again and saw rows of houses blocking the palace school, like insurmountable mountains, becoming obstacles preventing her from taking the exam for female officials.

At noon, Wei Yao finished her class and returned to her quarters as usual. When she heard running behind her, she turned around and saw the maids from her own dormitory.

"What's the matter?"

Sixteen palace students stood in two rows, bowing to her in a somewhat uncoordinated manner, but their subsequent expressions of gratitude were quite synchronized, indicating that they had practiced.

"We thank Lecturer Xie Wei for his hard work in teaching us and for relieving us of our daily labor. We all know that the lecturer is good to us. We will definitely study poetry well in the future and live up to Lecturer Wei's expectations and painstaking efforts."

"Okay, okay," Wei Yao replied with tears welling up in her eyes.

Which teacher doesn't want to produce excellent students? Whether it's for their own reputation or the promotion of poetics!
Wei Yao was actually under pressure every day while lecturing. If she managed to gain benefits for the palace students at the cost of offending Jiang Shunu, but the students still disliked her and refused to study, then she would definitely fail the one-year "probationary period" assessment, and it would be even more difficult for her to become a female official in the future.

Gaining the respect of her disciples was the first step for Wei Yao to establish herself in the Imperial Academy. Next, she needed to work even harder to accumulate a foundation in philology.

Besides the Erya and Shuowen, there are also Fangyan and Shiming in the field of philology. These four types of philology complement each other. However, the only book library that Jiang Shunu allowed Wei Yao to access was the Book of Poetry library, which lacked Shuowen, Fangyan and some of Shiming.

If Wei Yao wanted to find all three types of books in other library collections, it would break the precedent of the authority of the lecturer, involve too many things, and there was no guarantee that he could find them all. It would be better to make more friends with Confucian scholars through lecturing outside the palace and collect all three academic disciplines by borrowing and copying them.

After a quick bite of lunch, she continued reciting the "Explanation of Names," having already reached the "Explanation of States and Regions" chapter.

“Qingzhou is in the east, and its name comes from the fact that things grow green. Zhou means to pour or dredge, and it is the place that the prefectures and kingdoms rely on.”

“Xuzhou, Xu means 'relaxed', referring to the gentle climate of the land.”

Wei Yao could memorize such short sentences by quickly reading them twice. He didn't try to understand them at first, but just memorized them by rote. He would write them down when he got home, and they would become part of his family's collection of books. He would then slowly interpret them through other texts such as the Shuowen Jiezi.

A long alleyway divides the imperial palace into north and south sections.

In the Zhai Palace in the southern region, the eunuchs stood holding their breath, not daring to make a sound. After Zhao Xiu was expelled from the palace, all news of him disappeared. Now everyone was certain that Zhao Xiu had been assassinated, and the method of leaving no trace of his body was chilling.

Emperor Yuan Ke remained silent for a while, lost in thought. He didn't truly feel sorry for Zhao Xiu, but rather regretted it, because there was no other close attendant who was both loyal and possessed such mindless arrogance.

Only Zhao Xiu!

Zhao Xiu's current greed and arrogance were all deliberately cultivated by Yuan Ke. He wanted Zhao Xiu to be a vicious dog who bullied others by relying on the emperor's power, and even if he couldn't kill the Prince of Xianyang, the Prince of Beihai, and their ministers, he would still disgust them to death.

When Zhao Xiu's infamy spreads far and wide, sycophants will naturally flock to him. These officials and their families will all become his forces to counterbalance the Five Regents. If Zhao Xiu wins, it will be a victory for Yuan Ke; if Zhao Xiu loses, he will be killed, and then officials and common people will all think of him as a virtuous emperor.

such a pity.

A "dog chess piece" that had just begun to show its fangs was rendered useless.

"How is the investigation into the assassination of the Minister of Works progressing?"

His Majesty finally spoke, and the eunuchs all breathed a sigh of relief. Without Zhao Xiu, Ru Hao became the first attendant. He replied, "The Sizhi Office and the Prince of Rencheng's Mansion are working together to interrogate them. Those assassins are giving random confessions. One minute they say the mastermind is the Prince of Xianyang, the next they say it's the Prince of Beihai, and yet another says the mastermind is... Minister Song Bian."

Song Bian has been dead for several months, how could he possibly be the mastermind behind the assassins!

"Have the Prince of Guangling participate in the interrogation." "Yes."

Yuan Yu, the Prince of Guangling, was the emperor's fourth uncle. He was morally corrupt and lecherous, but his strength lay in his ability to solve cases.

After Ru Hao left with the imperial edict, the imperial physician Wang Xian examined the emperor's pulse and advised, "The inner city has been in turmoil recently, but this also proves that the Prince of Xianyang is incompetent. There are gains and losses, so Your Majesty should put your mind at ease."

Yuan Ke gave a light "hmm". He wasn't worried about the death of the Prince of Rencheng, but it was best if the prince didn't die before he took over the reins of government, otherwise the current barely balanced regency would be disrupted again.

At this moment, Yuan Ke's thoughts shifted, and a hint of resentment, which he dared not admit, arose in his heart.

The mourning period has been too long!
He complained that his father always personally explained the "mourning clothes" to the court officials before his death, which made him a target of criticism for being unfilial if he wanted to take over the government ahead of schedule!
A soft clattering sound came from the chess basket beside him as chess pieces slipped and shifted, startling Yuan Ke, who was feeling guilty.

“Summoned Sun Huiwei to lecture on Buddhist scriptures.”

The seventh day of June.

"Yijingli" is located on the east side of Tongtuo Street, not far from the Changhe Gate of the Imperial Palace. Outside the north gate of the neighborhood wall, there is a well called Ganjing. Next to the well are several lush trees. Every day, travelers who come from far and wide come to drink water and cool off by this well.

However, the number of people here suddenly increased yesterday because a famous scholar used this place as a lecture hall and spent the whole day explaining the "Mourning Garments".

Poor scholars in Luoyang rarely had the opportunity to hear famous teachers lecture. They wondered if any famous teachers would come today, so they came early to reserve a spot around Yijing.

Among the crowd, a local woman who looked exhausted was Hun Yu Niang, who had come here to rest.

Hun Yu Niang had been taking care of her eldest son, Zong Yin, who had recovered from his illness some time ago. After her son recovered, she quickly returned the 20,000 coins to the Taoist priest at Chongxu Temple without telling her husband. Then, she wandered around Yonghe Lane for several days in a row.

At first, Hun Yu Niang did suspect that she had been deceived, but Yin'er's life was indeed saved by her trip to Chongxu Temple, so the "monster" had a spirit! The 20,000 coins were for buying her life! She still believed the monster's words and was sure to find Miss Wei in Yonghe Lane and Yinian Lane.

But the gatekeepers at each gate of Yonghe Lane were too strict, not allowing ordinary people to enter at all. She decided that if she couldn't meet Miss Wei nearby today, she would go to Yinian Lane to look for her instead.

Noon had passed, and the heat intensified, with countless cicadas chirping "zhi-liao."

Hun Yu Niang recovered and was about to leave when she heard someone shout, "They're here!"

A dozen or so tall and strong Confucian scholars arrived. They protected the two men. The bearded scholar walking in front was Yuan Fan, and following closely behind Yuan Fan was Wei Yao.

These tall and strong scholars were all disciples of Yuan Fan, skilled in both literature and martial arts.

"It's Yuan Sanguan, the one who lectured on 'Mourning Garments' yesterday!"

"I don't know what we'll be talking about today."

"I'll write down everything they say, haha, I've brought enough paper and pens."

Yuan Fan's eldest disciple addressed the gathered students, saying, "There will be two lectures this afternoon. First, we will discuss 'Guanju,' the first poem in the Book of Songs, and then we will discuss 'Sangfu.'"

The muddle-headed fisherwoman knew nothing and thought the place was messy. She walked out of the crowd, looked back, and was filled with surprise and delight.

The monster has appeared again!

(End of this chapter)