History of Women in the Wei Dynasty

Chapter 304 The Duties of a Lady Historian!
"This servant is fortunate to have met the Dowager Consort; it's the first time I've ever seen such a young third-rank female official. Will this female official not need to meet the Emperor after returning to the palace?"

Just as someone offered her a pillow when she was sleepy, Wei Yao refused the wine, saying sternly, "I am Wei Yao, a third-rank female historian. His Majesty personally bestowed upon me the sable-cloth crown. How can I drink wine while performing official duties?"

Whether or not a subject should have an audience with the emperor after returning to the palace is a question that even a maid should not ask, let alone a servant girl!

Wei Yao then summoned the female officials behind her: "Please have the female ceremonial officer come forward and record all the impolite, presumptuous, and unrestrained behavior that I have heard or seen during the time of the Dowager Consort's birthday banquet today..."

"You lowly servant!" Consort Gao was about to slap her!

No one knows a mother better than her son. Prince Yuan Xiang of the North Sea stepped forward, blocking his mother's path and standing before Wei Yao, his threat undisguised: "Lady Wei, don't..."

“And the rebellious order!” Wei Yao interrupted the other party.

Among the female historians of the third rank, Wei Yao was the most outstanding.

Eight female scribes in charge of recording the rites stepped forward as ordered. They overcame their timidity and stood facing each other in pairs. Four of them held ink, while the other four held blank paper in their left hands and pens in their right hands, writing down the date, time, and purpose of their visit to the Prince of Beihai's mansion.

Clearly, the four female historians who held the book of admonitions were in charge of acts of rudeness, reckless speech, improper conduct, and disobedience.

Consort Gao was not afraid of any of this. Her slightly upturned lips held a murderous edge as she turned and sat back down at the birthday banquet.

Princess Chenliu was shrewd; she didn't move and gestured to the princesses closest to her not to move either.

At this point, Yuan Xiang had to speak. He said to those around him, "All who have come are guests. Let's begin the banquet! Female Minister, please make way with your female scribes, so as not to get soup all over yourselves and soil the admonition books."

Make way? The pavilion area is only so big; no matter where they stand, malicious people will throw soup at them. And once is never enough. If we make way this time, will they find another reason to kick them out?

Diao Chan's crowning was Wei Yao's confidence in confronting any court official.

Including the Prince!

Including the prime minister!

As melodious music began, the boat where the kitchen was located started serving up delicious dishes.

Wei Yao's voice was loud and clear. Amidst the music and the conversations of the surrounding guests, she gave the order to the four female scribes: "Record this now, without any evidence... that the maids of the Prince of Beihai's mansion are spying on the Emperor's palace."

Wei Yao asked Hu Shi, "Does this maid know her crime? State your name. This maid should state her name!"

“Records are disrespectful… The maid of the Prince of Beihai’s mansion showed contempt for a third-rank female official in the palace and refused to return her name.”

"Hmph." Madam Hu sneered. She had served Consort Gao for a long time and raised Yuan Hao, the only son of the Prince of Beihai. She was not afraid at all. As if she had no ears, she served wine to the Consort Gao and told funny jokes, which made the guests on both sides burst into laughter.

The music also became more festive.

"Make way."

"Make way, make way."

The servants serving the food deliberately walked in the middle, bumping into the four female historians who were writing.

The female historians' writing skills were honed through years of diligent practice; how could they fear any clashes? Besides, even clay figures have some temper; how could they allow the youngest, Wei Yao, to always protect them?

It was knocked askew, so start writing in a new column.

If soup is splashed on the book of proverbs, then blank spaces are used to avoid the dirty parts.

Wei Yao continued speaking: "Record impoliteness, reckless speech... the vegetable servant offended a third-rank female scribe. Leave a blank column and record the number of offenses with a tally mark." "Yes!" The two female scribes in charge of these records responded in unison.

Wang Sengnan, the female minister, had been scheming in the palace for over forty years and had never felt so triumphant as she did today. She whispered a few words in Wei Yao's ear.

A lump rose in Wei Yao's throat, but she suppressed her emotions and calmly ordered: "Record the rebellious order...Female Minister Wang Sengnan has violated the regulations for transmitting imperial edicts and shall drink a sip of wine."

The female historian in charge of writing the rebellious decree replied with grief and indignation, "Yes."

“Records of disobedience and misconduct...Servants serving wine, musicians, food servers, and kitchen servants at banquets who did not bow to the palace ladies-in-waiting. All fourth-rank ladies-in-waiting shall count the number of servants recorded and ask their names twice according to regulations.”

You can lie and say you didn't hear me when asked once, but if you don't answer after being asked twice, that's arrogance! It's deliberate insubordination!
Wei Yao surveyed the guests in the waterside pavilion, having already assessed their situation, and then said, "Since we came to proclaim the imperial edict, the ladies and gentlemen of the third rank and below have failed to pay their respects to the ladies of the third rank. The ladies and gentlemen of the fourth rank and below have also failed to pay their respects to the ladies of the fourth rank. Now, all the ladies holding inkstones, please move forward and inquire one by one about the names of these impolite guests and the official positions of their relatives!"

The late emperor was busy with the relocation of the capital and the southern expedition, and with the two deposed empresses, no empress recommended any of them. For several years, almost none of the wives of court officials were granted official titles.

The fifth sister of the Prince of Rencheng, Yuan Chuntuo, was in this situation. She was the wife of Xing Luan, the Imperial Censor. Everyone outside respectfully addressed her as "Lady Xing Luan." However, without an official title, she had no official title. When asked by a female official, she could only give her name and her husband's official position, and then watch as the female historian recorded her in the admonition book.

The noblewomen present, who were in the same predicament as her, realized for the first time that female officials were also officials! For the first time, the thought popped into their heads that instead of waiting for His Majesty to assume power and bestow titles upon the women of the outer court one by one, they should strive to become high-ranking female officials and achieve merit and success just like the men.

After the birthday banquet, Yuan Chun Tuo, seething with anger, went to visit her elder brother Yuan Cheng. She wanted to tell him about the humiliation she had suffered at the banquet! That despicable Wei Yao, so arrogant just because there's a cicada and a hair on her head!
Several of the warriors she sent to Pingcheng to investigate the disappearance of Wu Shibo must have been killed by Zhao Zhi. Her brother forbade her to pursue the matter, and she obeyed. But how could Wei Yao and her mother be so ungrateful? How could they forget the kindness of her brother's recommendation? Wei Yao had the female scribe record so many impolite acts; wasn't that enough to report back to the palace? Did she also have to record that these noblewomen didn't bow to a third-rank female official?

There's no need to go into details about Yuan Chun Tuo being shut out by her brother; let's just talk about what happened after the female officials returned to the palace.

Wang Sengnan was supposed to report on the events of the birthday banquet, but she requested that Wei Yao be allowed to report instead, citing the mistakes she had made on this trip.

Wei Yao spoke concisely, in a calm tone, without any prejudice or emotion of like or dislike.

The emperor listened while looking at the records in the book of admonitions.

What Wang Sengnan secretly found wonderful was that just as His Majesty put down the admonition book, the female scribe had finished her report.

The Emperor said, “The Dowager Consort and her son are not strict in managing their subordinates. For the sake of long-term stability, the unruly servants should be severely punished to rectify the atmosphere of the Prince’s Mansion. However, since it is the Dowager Consort’s birthday, if I punish them severely, I fear it will make the Dowager Consort worry and also make my seventh uncle uneasy.”

With a wave of Zhao Zhi's hand, the female officials, including Wei Yao, were led out of the palace by eunuchs to wait.

Under the blazing sun, Wang Sengnan's hands and feet were ice-cold, while the other female officials felt their hearts sink even deeper, trembling with fear. They should have known this would be the outcome; they shouldn't have hoped for it!

How to do?
If His Majesty does not punish the Prince of Beihai's Mansion, what awaits them is a fierce and swift retaliation from the Prince of Beihai's Mansion! Moreover, they have offended several noble ladies and sons of court officials today.

Inside the hall, Zhao Zhi indignantly remonstrated: "The Dowager Consort Gao and her son, relying on being His Majesty's elders, dared to make His Majesty think too much, which is already a crime! No matter how His Majesty punishes them, it is not too much."

Yu Deng, Ru Hao, and other close attendants drooped their eyelids, thinking: Today we are truly convinced by Attendant Zhao; he dares to accuse anyone.

The emperor was silent.

Zhao Zhi: "When I serve Your Majesty, I only dare to beat Chen Saojing and Wang Yu, and I never dare to act arrogantly outside. Those unruly servants are supposed to serve me, yet they dare to pretend to be deaf and blind, ignoring the official hat worn by my daughter. If I don't give them a good beating, they will become even more deaf and blind in the future!"

The emperor had become too lazy to correct the fact that the decoration on the crown was called "Diao Chan" instead of "Cicada Hair".

"All you do is punch people all day long, never use your brain to think!" After reprimanding her, he ordered, "Yu Deng, take five hundred imperial guards and keep a close watch on Zhao Changshi. Don't let her break into the Prince of Beihai's mansion."

Five...five hundred Imperial Guards!!
Yu Deng's voice trembled as he replied, "Yes."

What does Your Majesty mean? Should we take this literally or figuratively?

"Outer-ranking women": This term refers to women who received titles from the emperor. It is a general term for women outside the palace, originating in the Zhou Dynasty. When a woman's husband or son held an official position, the emperor could bestow corresponding titles upon the official's mother and wife, granting them a corresponding status, respect, and treatment.