History of Women in the Wei Dynasty

Chapter 213 Li Biao Listens to Poetry

Although Wei Yao had only been a lecturer at the palace school for a little over ten days, the way she calmly stood at the front and introduced herself already showed the demeanor of a scholar. "My surname is Wei, my given name is Yao, and I am a student of Kong Shande from Lu County."

Not all Confucian scholars were knowledgeable; they quietly inquired who "Kong Shande" was.
"It's Kong Wenzhong, 'Shande' is the courtesy name of Kong Rushi."

That's how the world is these days. Since Wei Yao doesn't have a distinguished family background, she must have a convincing teacher. Otherwise, no matter how well she teaches poetry at her age, no one will listen.

"The poem 'Guanju' describes the virtues of the empress and concubines, and is the beginning of the 'Airs of the States' (a type of folk song), thus influencing the world..."

"Guan Ju" is the first poem in the Book of Songs, and almost everyone who studies poetry will be able to explain its meaning and historical background. Therefore, this poem can be said to be the easiest to explain, but if you want to explain it in depth, it is the most difficult!
The difference between learning poetry from a renowned teacher and learning it from an ordinary teacher quickly becomes apparent. The knowledge imparted by a renowned teacher can be extended further, with every line supported by classical texts. What poor scholars lack most and cannot find anywhere is precisely the support of classical texts.

Under the shade of green trees in the courtyard, more and more passersby were drawn to gather around. Since ancient times, the transmission of knowledge has been a solemn matter. No matter how many people gathered here, only the cicadas dared to compete with the sound of the zither for noise.

The He family members from the north of the city also came over. Among them, the young lady He Lan had been looking for a private school that taught poetry well and at a low price since she came to Luoyang. After hearing a few lines of the analysis of "Guan Ju", she was overjoyed and squeezed forward. When she saw that the person explaining the poetry was the young lady she had met once at Qianqiu Gate last month, her excitement was mixed with bitterness.

At roughly the same age, how did the other person learn poetry so profoundly? How can they so readily quote examples from various ancient texts?
Besides their own intelligence, they must have had renowned teachers to teach them this well.

He Lan quietly asked the scholar beside him, "May I ask who the poetry lecturer is?"

"His surname is Wei and his given name is Yao. He should be a Wei, a meritorious official."

He Lan was filled with envy. The thing people have the least say in is their birth. Her surname He was also the surname of a meritorious official, and it was ranked before the surname Wei. Unfortunately, her branch was a distant one. In three generations, only her great-grandfather had served as a fifth-rank official. If her brothers, such as He Erhun, who were of the same generation, did not live up to expectations, they would not even be able to be surnamed Ding in the future.

He Lan gradually came to his senses and continued listening to the analysis of the poem "Guan Ju".

While listening to Wei Yao's story, Yuan Fan observed his surroundings. Suddenly, his gaze fell on a scholar in plain clothes who was over fifty years old. Yuan Fan recognized him as Li Biao, who had previously served as the Imperial Censor and Minister of Revenue!

Last year, Li Biao was dismissed from his post by the late emperor because of the accusations made by Li Chong, the former Minister of the Imperial Secretariat. Yuan Fan did not know much about high-ranking officials. He only heard that Li Biao had been staying in Luoyang. He never expected to see him today.

After the initial shock subsided, Yuan Fan couldn't help but wonder why Li Biao, with his literary talent and experience, should have just laughed off Wei Yao's lecture. Why did he linger there for so long, seemingly listening intently?

A few days later, Yuan Fan finally figured out the reason after making inquiries. Li Biao only had a son and a daughter. His son, Li Zhi, had not yet entered officialdom and it was estimated that he would have difficulty getting a good starting position in the future. Li Biao's daughter, on the other hand, was very intelligent and could remember almost everything she read about poetry and classics.

If Li Biao cannot return to officialdom, the future of his entire family will likely depend entirely on this woman.

Li Biao's daughter was the same age as Wei Yao, and Yuan Fan couldn't help but think the worst. He thought that the other party was listening to Wei Yao talk about poetry because they were looking for trouble!
As she pondered the matter more deeply, she broke out in a cold sweat! Fortunately, Wei Yao had a solid foundation in poetry, and even more fortunately, she hadn't been arrogant that day and offered her own interpretation of "Guan Ju." If Li Biao had seized on this mistake and questioned her, Wei Yao's reputation and future would have been completely ruined!

Let’s get back to the present.

Hun Yu Niang finally found Wei Yao, but it was better not to have found him at all. She returned home listlessly and saw her eldest son coaxing the younger ones to play. Hun Yu Niang swallowed the words of advice she wanted to say.

She went into the kitchen to light the fire and cook porridge. The image of Wei Yao lecturing came to mind again. To be honest, Yin'er was not well-read and had a playful nature. She was really not a good match for him.

“Sigh—” “Mother, what’s wrong?” Zongyin asked as he entered the kitchen, added firewood to the stove, and said, “I want to find a proper job.”

"You should have done this a long time ago."

Zong Yin gazed at the flames in the stove, a look of infatuation returning to his face. "I have a job now. When I meet Miss Wei again, she won't look down on me."

Only a mother can dislike her own son!
Hun Yu Niang said angrily, "She's just a girl from a wealthy family, why does she look down on you? She's only doing this because she's educated. Otherwise, I wouldn't even want her to be a concubine in a wealthy family for you!"

"Mother! Don't talk about her like that, I don't like to hear it."

"Alright, alright, I won't say anything. You can go out now. I don't need your help." Hun Yu Niang was afraid that her son would fall ill from the shock, so she could only wait for her husband to come home and tell him about Wei Yao's lectures at Yijing.

"What should we do? I found out clearly today that Wei Yao is teaching at the palace school."

Zong Dian refuted, "Nonsense! How could that be! The school in the palace is called the Imperial Academy, it's for the royal family..." He hissed, no, there's also a palace academy in the palace! Most of the instructors at the palace academy are female teachers. "There is a palace academy in the inner palace, and most of the instructors are female teachers."

He shook his head and sighed, "Forget it, let's drop this matter. Just as you said, this Miss Wei is probably aiming for a career as a female official, and she's not on the same path as our Yin'er."

Hun Yu Niang had already given it some thought; now was not the time to bring it up, because she needed to accomplish something else first. "Didn't you want to change your official position before?"

Zong Dian: "Forget it, we have to give 100,000 coins to get the prison clerk position. It's not easy for you to run two businesses on your own. Forget it."

Hun Yu Niang immediately said, "Who has it easy? I only realized this when Yin'er got sick. When things happen, you have to come home often. I'll get the money ready tomorrow. Don't delay, and don't let someone else take over the position of prison clerk."

Both the prison clerk and Zong Dian's current position as a junior clerk are the lowest-ranking officials in the Court of Justice. The prospects of a junior clerk depend entirely on the prospects of the official they serve. Prison clerks are required to participate in the trial of cases in the Court of Justice prison; their future depends entirely on their interrogation skills. Interrogating ordinary people yields no benefit, but interrogating officials is a completely different story!
Zong Dian was in a great mood and assured him, "Don't worry, once I become a prison clerk, I'll earn back the 100,000 coins for you in two years!"

The following day, Wei Yao continued her rest.

Today her family is moving away from Songlin Villa. The new place is Quanxue Lane, which is within the neighborhood, not the outer area that Wei Yin had previously chosen.

The prices of houses vary drastically depending on the four walls separating them, but there are advantages to the higher prices! First, the houses don't need to be renovated. Second, there are over a hundred people in the neighborhood, including the head of the neighborhood, clerks, and gatekeepers. Unless bandits gather to attack, these hundred-plus clerks are enough to ensure the safety of the residents of Quanxue Lane.

Furthermore, there are shops renting out horse-drawn carriages outside the four gates of the neighborhood. Whether Wei Yao goes to Qianqiu Gate early in the morning or her father goes to the bookstore in Sitong City to copy books, they can rent horses or carriages to save travel time.

Wei Mao instructed the servants to help move the boxes and chests. Taking advantage of the fact that the teacher and his wife were not looking this way, he quickly scratched Wei Yao's arm and asked her with dissatisfaction, "Why didn't you tell me about such an important matter as your lecture in Yijing?"

Minister of Revenue: An official in charge of finance and taxation.

(End of this chapter)