History of Women in the Wei Dynasty

Chapter 262 The Lively Wei Yao

Zhao Zhi had excellent hearing and heard and remembered all the conversation inside the car. When she returned home on her day off, she told her husband and daughter about it. Then she threaded her needle and sat down to sew winter clothes while listening to the father and daughter talk.

Wei Yao asked curiously, "Logically speaking, the former Prince of Jiangyang colluded with the remnants of Sengzhi to assassinate the Grand Commandant with a poisoned crossbow. The Grand Commandant hated Yuan Ji the most. However, the case was actually closed just like that. The Prince of Guangling must have known that the Grand Commandant did not intend to eliminate Yuan Ji's family completely, so he asked the Prince of Rencheng for help."

She analyzed whatever came to mind, without any order or purpose, speaking arbitrarily: "Before the late emperor passed away, he issued an edict to the six ministers. With the death of Minister Song, only five ministers remained. Below the Grand Commandant, Prince Yuan Xiang of Beihai held the highest official position."

"It seems that King Yu cannot do a good job of completely striking down King Jingzhao alone. He must find an accomplice among his ministers. King Beihai, Yuan Xiang, is King Yu's younger brother, but King Yu did not choose King Xiang. Instead, he chose his uncle, King Cheng."

"Among the many reports from court officials that Mother brought back, Prince Xiang was almost never mentioned."

As Wei Yao spoke, she noticed something: "Yu Wang's reputation was not good even during the late emperor's reign, yet the late emperor always valued Yu Wang highly, which shows that Yu Wang's loyalty and ability were beyond doubt. Now that the emperor has changed, Yu Wang still acts as usual. Is it because his nature is truly despicable, or has he long thought that ruining his reputation can preserve his wealth and safety?"

“My father and mother thought that Prince Pengcheng was loyal, capable, and virtuous, especially virtuous! But what happened? His achievements overshadowed the new emperor. After the late emperor passed away, Prince Pengcheng did not even dare to enter Luoyang and directly handed over his military power and left the capital.”

"And what about Jia Wang, the Left Vice Minister of the Ministry of Personnel? After becoming a regent, how did he change so drastically, turning into a drunken idiot who's always hungover?"

At this point, her tone became quite agitated: "Father and Mother, don't you think that the feud between Prince Rencheng and Minister Wang Su is also intended to damage their own reputations?"

"If they are all ruining their own reputations, then who are they trying to impress? Are they afraid of His Majesty?"

She shook her head, puzzled: "But His Majesty hasn't assumed full power yet; it will be at least another year before he does. Are they wary of the Grand Commandant?!"

At this moment, Wei Yin spoke up and asked his wife, "Have the Grand Commandant and General Yu Lie had any further conflicts?"

Zhao Zhi stopped what she was doing, nodded, and said angrily, "The Grand Commandant still demands that the Imperial Guards enter his residence as his personal bodyguards! General Yu has refused again, and this time the Grand Commandant went too far by sending a servant to tell General Yu that in the Grand Commandant's eyes, General Yu and the servants in his residence are of the same status!"

In her previous life, ordinary people like Wei Yao knew absolutely nothing about the events surrounding the new emperor's assumption of power. It was only when the Gao family, the maternal relatives, committed numerous unjust acts that caused widespread panic in the capital that she began to actively inquire about official matters. But by then, it was too late for her to pay attention to political news, and she soon lost her life in an "accident."

Wei Yao asked worriedly, "Father, do you think that the Grand Commandant's repeated overstepping of his authority is because he has no fear of His Majesty at all, or is it a test of His Majesty's and the General's ability to control the palace guards?"

Wei Yin knew what his daughter was worried about: if the regent mismanages the government, the people of the capital will be the first to suffer! Then the previous promotion of Confucianism will be like trying to draw water with a bamboo basket, all for naught.

He smiled and reassured her, "Don't worry, it won't come to that. I think the Prince of Guangling is preoccupied with dealing with the Prince of Jingzhao. The fact that the Prince of Rencheng didn't expel the Prince of Guangling shows that he also dislikes the Prince of Jingzhao. Therefore, in terms of the distribution of power among the princes in Luoyang, the Prince of Rencheng also doesn't want to share any of the Prince of Jingzhao's spoils."

Wei Yao: "I understand. This shows that both Prince Cheng and Prince Yu are well aware that there is still room for maneuver in the current situation. At least the loss of Prince Jingzhao will not have a major impact on the officials in the court or the common people."

Wei Yin agreed, saying "Yes," and added, "After Yuan Biejia arrived in Luoyang, he inspected the city and its surroundings and paid respects to several powerful figures in the capital before petitioning for the construction of the Four Gates Primary School. I believe that in Yuan Biejia's view, the construction of this official school must be based on the fulfillment of all conditions, and it is just a matter of time before it is completed."

Now Wei Yao knows that the difficulty in building official schools is not only due to military influences, but also related to the lack of academic pursuits among the sons of Xianbei nobles. If the younger generation is not good at studying, their elders are not enthusiastic about establishing official schools based on ritual and propriety.

As a Xianbei nobleman, Yuan Zhi took the lead in proposing the construction of the Four Gates Primary School, which was far more likely to win the support of princes and important ministers than the proposal made by Han aristocratic civil officials.

Another dawn breaks.

Wei Yaoxin had a feeling that Yuan Mao would be waiting for her at the Changhe City Gate. Sure enough, he was sitting at the stall where she often ate breakfast. He must have been the first to arrive, and he had taken the only double stool.

Before Wei Yao could speak, Yuan Mao told the cook what she liked to eat. While waiting, he was too embarrassed to look at her, staring at the bowl, and asked in a low voice, "Yesterday you said you were thinking of me, Yao Yao, do you often think of me?"

“My mother and I went out together this morning.”

Yuan Mao was terrified, feeling as if he had been stung in the buttocks. He quickly looked around, then looked back at Wei Yao with a panicked expression, only daring to mouth the question, "Where?" Wei Yao smiled and said, "I don't know. My mother and I parted ways at the south gate."

Yuan Mao was both angry and fond of her, only then realizing that Yao Yao had been deliberately teasing him.

Wei Yao's food was brought over, and he gently rubbed the back of her hand with the handle of the spoon.

Wei Yao gently rubbed the back of his hand with the other end of her chopsticks. "Mao, I don't think about you often—"

Yuan Mao's heart sank to the bottom of the food counter; the steaming hot mutton soup in front of him turned into ice-cold food.

"Who else are you thinking about?" Wei Yao quickly changed the subject, grinning mischievously with two rows of teeth.

“I…” Yuan Mao glared at this heartless man with full of reproach.

Wei Yao tilted her head and looked at him, her smile as radiant as a blooming pomegranate flower, making his heart flutter.

"Yaoya..."

The cook misunderstood and leaned forward to ask, "What would our honored guest like?"

Wei Yao bit her lip to stop herself from laughing out loud, and scooped the piece of fatty meat she didn't want to eat from her bowl into Yuan Mao's bowl.

Yuan Mao raised his face, gesturing for the cook to get out of the way.

He first ate the fatty meat that Wei Yao scooped over, chewing it gently, his smile spreading like ripples in the bowl to his cheeks, eyes, and eyebrows.

So this is how lively Yaoyao is! She must only be lively in front of him.

Also, why is Yaoyao so infuriating? She keeps finding ways to tease him; she never used to be like this. But being teased by her, experiencing all sorts of feelings—anger, helplessness, and then joy—is truly novel.

"Yaoyao, I promise our relationship will be finalized no later than the first half of next year."

Wei Yao: "Yes. I believe you."

Yuan Mao sighed happily, his chest overflowing with joy, so much so that it ached.

"Hey? Wei Yao, tell me—if you treated me like this back in Pingcheng Wei Academy, what would have happened between us?"

Wei Yao: "There is no such 'if'."

Yuan Mao admitted, "Yes, there is no such 'if.' I know that if I don't have absolute sincerity and go to great lengths to reach you, you will never take the initiative to come to me."

Wei Yao smiled after hearing this, not letting him see the sadness in her smile. Yes, now that she thinks about it, A Mao truly had the demeanor of a gentleman. He must have liked her in his past life, but after seeing her with Xi Jiao, he deliberately gave her the cold shoulder and treated her like an ordinary fellow disciple.

Even so, she dropped out of school because of Qu Rong's death. Amao still asked his friend Zheng Zun to take care of her and copy notes for her during her days of frustration.

She will cherish such a good Ah Mao for the rest of her life!