History of Women in the Wei Dynasty

As one flower blooms, another fades; duckweed floats on the water, and a rainbow appears in the sky.

Two months have passed, and it's time for farming at the beginning of summer.

After Yuan Ke assumed personal rule, he first exempted the people from miscellaneous taxes, then strictly investigated the officials in various prefectures and counties, and dismissed all those who held nominal official positions but did not perform their duties.

After entering April, Qingzhou, Qizhou, Xuzhou, and Yanzhou sent urgent documents to the capital, indicating that the disaster situation in the four places was more severe than last year, and the famine had caused more than 10,000 people to starve to death.

In addition, Yuan Ke received a secret report that since the beginning of spring, the drought in various border towns in the north has continued, with no rain falling and the water storage ditches beginning to dry up. The border towns will follow suit, using the excuse that they have not received the official document from the court requesting disaster relief, not only failing to open the official granaries to distribute grain, but also driving the starving disaster victims towards the Rouran.

The strategists, including Zhen Chen, had no good ideas on how to relieve the border towns of Wuchuan and Huaihuang. The main reason was that the Rouran Kingdom was still in internal strife, and its military forces had withdrawn northward, constantly increasing the distance between it and the northern border of Wei. This distance of thousands of miles was vast and sparsely populated! It would be a losing proposition for the Wei army to attack the Rouran. If there was no war for a long time, the soldiers in the northern border would have no merit to achieve, and their military strength would decline. They would have no will to defend themselves, and the generals would find it difficult to advance their careers.

Furthermore, the garrison commanders in various parts of the northern border were almost entirely replaced by former Xianbei forces who opposed the southward migration. These were nobles whom the emperor did not want to promote and were deeply disliked by the Han aristocratic families of the court. This resulted in the younger generation of these garrison commanders having no future. The poorer they were, the more greedy they became, and the more greedy they became, the more lawless they became. As a result, when the court sent envoys to the border towns, the envoys did not dare to investigate seriously. Just like Yang Bo, who was sent to Hengzhou for disaster relief last year, he returned empty-handed and almost lost his life there.

A qualified strategist should relieve the emperor's worries.

Based on her experiences from her past and present lives, the letters sent by her friends Yuan Jingrong, Gao Loujin, Guo Yun, and Liu Zhenzhu from the northern border, and the news brought back by the Qihu warriors who had been sent to travel around the northern border the previous year, and after consulting with her father and Gou, the registrar of the Sizhou government, Wei Yao wrote her first memorial to the throne.

"Since the Jingming era, border defense policies have been established through bribery, forcing border soldiers to become roving soldiers and deceiving townspeople into becoming government households... Your subject believes..."

Wei Yao had three ways of dealing with the disaster in Beizhen.

The first countermeasure was to arrest the first and second garrison commanders who had harmed the people and embezzled the most fertile land. In addition to making an example of them, the imperial court issued an edict ordering the soldiers and civilians to work together to supervise the land in the border towns and strictly implement the equal land distribution system.

The second countermeasure allows the townspeople and commoners in the six garrisons and the surrounding Hengzhou, Shuozhou, Xiazhou, and Yanzhou to report the military and noble people's wanton massacre of northerners and their bullying of Han people. Those who report the truth and are meritorious can be transferred to Luoyang and allocated fertile land.

The third countermeasure was to send envoys to verify the household registers of the six towns and disperse the starving people to settle in prefectures and counties where there was no disaster.

Immediately afterwards, Wei Yao wrote two more secret memorials, which he presented directly to the emperor at the opportune moment. The memorials contained two countermeasures.

Since Wei Shi's expedition against the Rouran was counterproductive, her first secret strategy was to send spies to the Rouran and Gaoche to spread rumors of lax defenses in the Six Garrisons, thus luring the struggling Rouran and Gaoche tribes to attack the Six Garrisons. This would alleviate the shortage of livestock supplies in the Six Garrisons and also raise the vigilance of the garrison camps.

The second secret plan was to send spies to impersonate righteous men, unite disgruntled refugees dissatisfied with the court, and small landowners resentful of the garrison commanders to launch a small-scale uprising. The aim was to eliminate the root causes of instability in the six garrisons in advance, and also to use the rebel army to kill the military commanders who did not implement the equal-field system.

Yuan Ke read through all the memorials word for word, then said to Wei Yao, "Your head..."

Wei Yao was terrified, and cold sweat instantly broke out on her hands and feet. Fortunately, she had prepared a confession in advance and was just waiting for the emperor to finish reprimanding her.

"You'd better save some for me." Yuan Ke rarely had a mischievous quirk, watching Wei Yao's expression change three times in a few breaths.

"It is acceptable, but the wording and phrasing need further practice." "Yes!"

The emperor summoned Ru Hao and ordered: "The Ministry of Personnel shall draft an edict to appoint Wei Yao as 'Secretary of the Imperial Secretariat,' and the Grand Chamberlain shall appoint Wei Yao as 'Female Minister of the Imperial Workshop.' The Ministry of Personnel shall also draft an edict to summon women of outstanding learning and virtue from prefectures and counties to the palace for a classical examination. Women who pass the examination shall take the imperial examination at the Dongji Hall."

The Zhongshu Yilang was a fifth-rank official whose duties included participating in government affairs, as well as matters of etiquette and criminal justice.

Wei Yao was overjoyed and performed a grand ceremony to express her gratitude for the Emperor's boundless grace. His Majesty had finally officially issued the decree, giving all the young women in the land the opportunity to become civil officials!
The emperor's mood improved, and the court officials took the opportunity to suggest that the position of empress should not be left vacant for long. For the sake of the imperial heir, they should follow the established system to recruit more concubines. Below the empress would be the Left and Right Consorts, three ladies-in-waiting, and nine concubines.

According to old customs, all noble ladies recommended to enter the palace had to undergo a period of etiquette and rule training within the palace. During this period, the noble ladies were not distinguished by rank and were all addressed as "Noble Lady" by the palace servants.

The emperor rejected the court officials' suggestion to take in more concubines, and only four noble ladies entered the palace in the first batch: Yu Baoying, the niece of General Yu Lie; Wang Puxian, the eldest daughter of General Wang Su; Cui Likang, the daughter of Attendant Cui Liang; and Li Fo'er, the daughter of General Li Xubao.

The powerful Yu family immediately distinguished itself at this time. They recommended Yu Baoying's younger sister, Yu Baofei, for a third-rank female official position, and her maid, Yu E, for a fourth-rank female official position, so that they could accompany Yu Baoying into the palace. From this point of view alone, as long as Yu Baoying did not make any major mistakes during her studies of palace rules and successfully "cast a golden statue by hand," the position of Empress was basically hers.

The best viewpoint in the harem is Lingzhi Fishing Platform, where the Yu sisters are strolling. Consort Yu Bao pouted and complained, "I originally thought the palace was a good place, but I didn't expect it to be so boring! There's nowhere to ride horses, and we even have to be careful not to be overheard when we speak loudly."

Yu Baoying chuckled, having long since learned to conceal her sorrow. She sincerely said, "It shouldn't be difficult for you to leave the palace at this time. I'll ask my aunt to think of a way."

“No, I just wanted to complain a bit. I don’t want to leave. Sister, you’re simple-minded. I can stay and help you.”

"There are only four of us, including me. What's there to be wary of?"

"You can't say that. Yesterday I overheard the palace maids gossiping, saying that since my elder sister is only my uncle's niece, she might not necessarily be granted an official title..."

Yu Baoying put her finger to her sister's lips and warned, "Be careful what you say, or you'll get into trouble. If you keep talking nonsense, even if you don't want to leave me, I'll have your aunt take you out of the palace."

The maid Yu E quickly advised, "Consort Bao is a straightforward and uninhibited lady. She only spoke carelessly because there were no outsiders here."

Yu Baofei: "Hmph, that's right." She looked towards Xuanguang Hall, south of Diaotai, where the emperor's bedroom was located. A flash of envy crossed her eyes. Then she looked north and asked, "Before entering the palace, I heard my aunt say that the Prince of Jingzhao lived in Hualin Garden in the northern palace gardens, is that right?"

Because of the Yu family's schemes and deliberate concealment, neither Yu Baoying nor her sister knew that the Prince of Jingzhao had committed a crime and was actually imprisoned in Hualin Garden. Yu Baoying looked at her maid Yu E in confusion, and the latter immediately replied, "This servant knows nothing about the Prince of Jingzhao."

As they spoke, they saw a group of elite Imperial Guards coming from the south, surrounded by a retinue of attendants, clearly indicating that the Emperor had arrived at the inner palace.

Yu Baoying and the female officials and palace maids present all felt their hearts race instantly, and they bowed respectfully in advance. (End of this chapter)