History of Women in the Wei Dynasty

Chapter 319 The Unbeatable Eldest Princess

At night, Wei Yin gently stroked his wife's abdomen, remaining silent about his guilt, for it would only cause him more pain.

No one knows a husband better than his wife. Zhao Zhi gently stroked the calluses on her husband's hands, calluses left from years of copying and writing. "Even if I don't take the infertility medicine, I may not be able to get pregnant again. Besides, the medicine in the palace is the best, and it doesn't hurt."

Wei Yin: "Whenever I feel sad and resentful, I can only tell myself... If we have plans, we are destined to lose something."

Zhao Zhi smiled gently, then said coldly, "Husband, rest assured, whoever uses me as a weapon, I will use them as a weapon in return. The Prince of Rencheng will do the same, and so will the Emperor."

The next day.

The Luorui Lane south of the Luo River was where Yin Xun, who had recently surrendered to the Wei dynasty, lived.

Yin Xun was once Pei Shuye's advisor, but he has not yet been assigned an official position. He is quite skilled in arithmetic and divination. The day before yesterday, he received an invitation from Princess Chenliu, inviting him to participate in the divination competition at Chongxu Temple on behalf of the princess's residence. He was new to Wei territory, so how could he refuse?

Yin Xun originally planned to visit Chongxu Temple early in the morning and inquire with the Taoist priest about the competition method. After leaving the courtyard, he had a feeling and returned to the house to use three ancient coins to divine the auspiciousness of his trip today.

He held the coins and recited the incantation: "Believer Yin Xun, in order to divine an auspicious day, uses copper coins as divination sticks to predict the good and bad fortune of the coming days. Only you, the divine one, can clearly tell me."

After reciting the incantation, toss the ancient coin.

The divination result is inauspicious, warning him that he will soon encounter a bloody disaster!
Yin Xun hesitated, then whispered the divination text: "Regretfully, I took a wrong and foolish step; a fierce tiger is about to devour the art of divination?"

What do you mean?
He got up, muttering "muddled steps" to himself, and walked out of the house while pondering.

The moment he opened the courtyard gate, a clump of mud hit his left wrist.

Zhao Zhi was the one who threw the mud. She held a yarrow stalk in her hand, made a threatening gesture as if she were slitting her throat, and then left.

Yin Xun endured the pain; he knew some medical skills and knew that no bones were broken.

"Regretfully taking the wrong step, a fierce tiger is about to devour the divination arts... So that's how it is!" He understood. This divination was a double entendre, telling him that he should have left earlier and shouldn't have come back, while also warning him not to associate with the princess, otherwise a fierce tiger would follow him.

Zhao Zhi was supposed to have a day off today, but after threatening Yin Xun, she went to the palace to report to the emperor about the incident of punching and smashing Chongxu Temple yesterday.

After she recounted punching Master Lu, at least two people in the palace simultaneously gasped as if they had a toothache.

Zhongsan Dafu Zhen Chen quickly glanced at Zhao Zhi, thinking: Let's see how the emperor will favor this woman this time.

Yuan Ke's breathing became noticeably heavier. He tapped Zhao Zhi with his finger, deciding to teach her a lesson first: "There are many reasons to cancel a competition, but you chose to use the most brute force, giving the Censorate a handle to use against you!"

Zhao Zhi calmly bowed and replied, "This is what I think: When the Director of the Imperial Academy received the imperial edict for the divination competition, the edict did not bear the Emperor's seal. The Director of the Imperial Academy should have gone to the palace to inquire about it, and should not have accepted the edict. If he accepted it, he would be disregarding the rules, so I will not follow the rules with them."

She continued, "When I was in the northern border, everyone, from the elderly to the young children, knew that imperial power was paramount! Praying to gods and Buddhas for one's wishes was, in fact, praying to the emperor. Anyone who tries to use gods and Buddhas to divide or manipulate the people's hearts is a traitor!"

Yuan Ke felt very relieved after hearing this and sighed, "The people of the North are pitiful. Ru Hao should go to the Secretariat and draft an edict... to allocate grain from Sizhou and transport it to the various border towns affected by the drought, to ensure that the grain is distributed to every household of disaster victims, so as not to cause panic among the people."

Zhao Zhisheng choked up slightly and bowed, saying, "On behalf of the disaster victims of my hometown, I thank Your Majesty for your great kindness." She thought to herself, "The reason my husband gave me worked. As expected, His Majesty did not punish me and even provided further relief to the people of the six towns."

The Grand Commandant's Residence.

"What? Divination competitions are no longer allowed in the capital?"

Sikong Mansion.

"What? So the Taoist priests at Chongxu Temple who were beaten were beaten for nothing?" - Shangshuling Mansion.

Yuan Zhenjun angrily smashed his teacup: "Useless! All of them are useless! How come I can't do anything I want? The people I want to use are either dead or injured! Zhao Zhi, Zhao Zhi! Am I really helpless against this woman?"

The nanny, Dou, suggested, "Since divination can't get rid of Wei Yin, why not..." She gestured as if she were slashing with a knife.

Yuan Zhenjun shook his head: "It's too late, there's no way to make a move now. The expansion and renovation of the Quanxue Lane where that lowly woman lives will require the garrison of Sizhou troops for quite some time."

Dou protested, "When the city south is being repaired, Yanxian Lane should be repaired first, so why is Quanxue Lane being repaired instead?"

Yuan Zhenjun glared at her irritably, and Dou Shi shut up.

The maid Fu Zhuang brought in a wooden box containing a handkerchief embroidered with four lines of poetry: "Originally a silkworm on a tray, now silk on a loom. Having found a way to go and enjoy the good times, I fondly recall the tender moments we shared."

Lord Yuanzhen's brows furrowed in fury, and he was enraged!
Fu Zhuang quickly explained, "It was the Minister of the Imperial Secretariat who sent my maid to bring it over."

Yuanzhenjun's anger subsided considerably.

Fu Zhuang explained in detail: "Xie Zhi did not meet with the Minister in secret. The Minister met with Xie Zhi with the Manjushri Maiden. Xie Zhi said that the handkerchief was embroidered on his escape route, and after thinking it over, he still felt that he should give it to the Minister."

Upon hearing this, Lord Yuanzhen scoffed.

Fu Zhuang: "After the Minister returned to his residence, he asked a maid to bring the handkerchief to the princess. The Minister's meaning was... that the princess could burn or cut it as she pleased."

Lady Dou smiled and said, "Judging from this, the Minister of the Imperial Secretariat has no feelings for Xie Zhi at all, so the princess can rest assured."

Yuan Zhenjun asked Fu Zhuang, "What do you think?"

Fu Zhuang lowered her head timidly and replied, "This servant thinks that if the princess destroys the handkerchief or does not reply to Xie Zhi, it will make the princess seem jealous. This servant thinks that the Minister should make it clear how to deal with Xie Zhi, instead of letting the princess get caught up in rumors of jealousy."

Yuan Zhenjun took Fu Zhuang's hand and praised, "From now on, feel free to tell me your innermost thoughts. Even if you say something wrong, I won't blame you."

She sighed and said, "My husband is, after all, a minister, and it's a crucial time when His Majesty is about to assume full power. It's right to leave this kind of thing, which is wrong no matter what he does, to me. But people's hearts are like this; even husband and wife can scheme against each other. I'm really disappointed in him."

Yuanzhenjun instructed Dou: "Take paper and pen and tell the Minister of the Imperial Secretariat that I only know how to embroider and do not know how to compose poetry."

Dou still didn't understand and dared not ask. She quickly went to the outer courtyard as instructed and soon returned with the four-line poem.

Yuan Zhenjun softly recited the poem: "The needle is the thread that runs through the fabric, and the eye is always on the silk. When new silk is sewn, how can it be put back into the past?"

She was even more disappointed in Wang Su, and all her former admiration for him had vanished!

Yuan Zhenjun tossed the paper to Fu Zhuang, pressing his aching temples, and said, "Embroider these four lines of poetry on a new handkerchief and have Manjushri... Never mind, the children are innocent, don't make them sad. You give it to Xie Zhi yourself."

"Wait, also, from now on, decline all banquet invitations and don't spread rumors about Zhao Zhi and Wei Yao outside. I'm tired and don't want to cause any more trouble."

Dou was even more confused. She gently massaged Yuan Zhenjun's shoulders until she fell asleep, then went out to look for Fu Zhuang. "What's wrong with the princess? Why has she suddenly stopped fighting with Zhao Zhi and her daughter?"

"Sigh." Fu Zhuang explained quietly, "The princess cannot interfere in politics. All the previous discord between her and Zhao Zhi was because she was afraid that Zhao Zhi would become extremely powerful in the future, which would be detrimental to the Minister of the Imperial Secretariat. If the Minister of the Imperial Secretariat is so resolute towards his wife, how can he have deep feelings for the princess? Why should the princess bother to plan for the sake of the Minister of the Imperial Secretariat?"

Madam Dou nodded quickly: "That's right! Our Princess is such a noble person. No matter who's in charge in the court, what does it have to do with our Princess? She should have stopped caring about anything and asked no questions, enjoying wealth and luxury for the rest of her life without any worries!"

Dian Si Ling: An official in the Northern Wei Dynasty who managed temple monks.