History of Women in the Wei Dynasty

Chapter 55 Not Afraid of Minor Setbacks
The grass grows tall along the dike, and fish leap in the ripples.

In the beautiful scenery of March, Master Li led Du Ling into the Shijing (Classic of Poetry) classroom and told the students, "From today onwards, Master Du will be teaching the Shijing in this classroom. Master Du is not only proficient in poetics, but also in philology, especially in the study of ancient commentaries on classical texts..."

Du Ling remained humble with each compliment: "I dare not, I dare not..."

"Humph."

The "humph" came from Wei Jing, who deliberately made sure everyone heard it. If that Du fellow were truly capable, why would he leave the state academy? Which teacher of the *Classic of Poetry* doesn't understand textual exegesis? Doesn't he study classical texts?

Wu Ji said impatiently, "Let's hurry up and start class. After class, we still need to go to Master Duan's house to help out." The boy was experiencing the coldness of human relationships for the first time. He thought that life and death were important matters. It was one thing for the new teacher to arrive, but how could Master Li laugh in the place where Master Duan was lecturing?

Du Ling politely saw Master Li out of the hospital. After returning, he bowed to the empty desk and sat down, his expression already dignified.

"The joint exams are earlier this month than usual. Now that I've taken over your studies, I'll be responsible for you. Every day after we finish teaching the new poems, I'll quiz you on what you've learned so you can consolidate your knowledge. It's not just you who respect Master Duan; I respect him too! Don't let him leave in unease, don't let him know from beyond the grave that you're all using his passing as an excuse to neglect your studies!"

"Today we're going to learn a poem called 'Uncle Yutian.' As is your custom, whoever has memorized a new poem can start with the preface."

Wei Yao did not move.

Wei Mao cleaned his ears.

Wei Puti squinted, lost in thought.

Wei Zhen was also lost in thought, her face turned in the opposite direction from the new teacher.

Qu Rong forced the word "big" to his teeth, forcing it back into his mouth. He quickly lowered his head, afraid his fellow students would see. It seemed Wei Yao and Young Master Mao had conspired to give the new teacher a hard time. How could they do this! It was pitiful that Teacher Duan was in trouble, but what did that have to do with Teacher Du? Teacher Du had just spoken so well, worried they would fall behind and offering to make up for the earlier lessons.

Du Ling glanced at all the students' reactions and called out directly, "Wei Yao! You have achieved excellent results in the joint examinations several times. Why didn't you memorize the new poems in advance to set an example for your fellow students?"

Here they come! They really do pick on the weak. Wei Yao stood up, bowed, and said in a low, listless voice, "I have failed my teacher's expectations by not reciting this poem beforehand."

Du Ling was displeased, but since it was his first day, he couldn't lose his temper: "Sit down. From now on, you must set a good example. I will recite a poem now, and you will repeat after me for each line. 'Uncle at the Field' is a satire of Duke Zhuang. Uncle was talented but also brave..."

The students were simple-minded, and Du Ling could easily tell from their speed and fluency in reading aloud which ones had memorized the poems and which ones they truly didn't.

Wei Yao wasn't lying.

Therefore, Du Ling felt great regret! A teacher most desires to teach diligent and precocious students, yet Heaven bestowed such rare talent upon a girl from a poor family with a weak spirit. What future could a girl of such background have? She was destined to be a concubine!

On the way home from school, Wei Zhen asked, "Did you know that on our day off, Yongning Temple is going to hold a Dharma assembly? I heard that a high-ranking monk will be giving a sermon." When a high-ranking monk gives a sermon, there will be activities such as scattering flowers, giving out sachets, and offering vegetarian food.

Wei Jing: "I've been feeling down for days. How about we go shopping together?"

Wei Mao asked Wei Yao, "Yes, how can we cope with the exam if we don't get back into a good mood? Yao, let's go together?"

"Okay, let's go together."

For students studying the Book of Songs, there are twelve days of rest, thirteenth days of joint examinations, and fourteenth days of spring examinations. This March is destined to be a busy one.

The following day, students from various small private schools in the eastern part of the city began to visit the examination venue for the spring examination in batches. Land in Pingcheng was extremely valuable, and even the Weishi Academy had limited space, having combined several primary school buildings and made repairs to create a large open area. After the first class, Wei Yao and others hurriedly came to inspect the site. The academy's servants and hired laborers were all busy moving timber back and forth, rushing to build a rain shelter in case of rain on the day of the spring examination.

Wei Yao spotted someone she recognized in the crowd of laborers—her neighbor from Chi Yang Lane. The neighbor also saw her, but seemed rather reserved, unsure whether to greet her. Wei Yao smiled warmly at her neighbor, neither overly enthusiastic nor pretending not to know her.

The break time was approaching, and Wei Yao and the others hurriedly returned to the schoolhouse. Unfortunately, Master Du was ahead of them. Hearing the commotion, he stared at Wei Yao and warned, "This is the only time. Don't be late again."

"Yes."

He reprimanded his disciple in the name of the Master, and his reprimand was reasonable. Wei Mao and the others could only curse Du Ling in secret on behalf of Wei Yao.

After the second class, even more students from other schools came to Wei Academy. Wei Yao and Wei Zhen inevitably attracted admiring glances. The two young girls nervously ran out of the academy hand in hand. Once on the road, Wei Zhen regretted her actions and said, "There was a handsome young man just now, his eyes were so bright."

Wei Jing patted his chest righteously: "Show me him tomorrow, and I'll help you find out who he is."

"Let's see if we meet again sometime," Wei Zhen said, not refusing, but her earlier happiness had clearly faded.

Wei Yao and the other two knew that Zhen, a fellow disciple, must have been reminded of her aunt's painful past relationship.

The group parted ways at the crossroads. Wei Mao went to the bookstore, walking side by side with Wei Yao. He said, "We should be able to understand some of the injustices Gao Lou encountered in the past."

Wei Yao smiled: "If anyone should feel it, it's me. I can see it today; he won't scold you."

That’s what I said!

Wei Mao now looks in the mirror eight hundred times a day. He kept his composure and didn't show any fierceness. He assured her, "Don't worry, if he dares to be unfair, I'll go to the curator to settle the matter."

Wei Yao first refused seriously: "I can handle it myself. If you can't even handle a small setback, then reading more books is useless." Then she resumed her relaxed smile, "I share this with my fellow disciple Mao."

There was a noticeable increase in out-of-town vehicles and camels hauling goods parked on both sides of the streets in Dongcheng, all of them there because of the upcoming Yongning Temple Dharma Assembly.

Wei Mao pointed to a building not far from the bookstore and said, "I asked around. The high monk is using the second floor of the Xi family's Dongyue Ink Pavilion for his sermons. The Bingfang building across the street, which was involved in the crime, is no longer sealed off and is now being managed by the Xi family. It is currently being painted and renovated."

Wei Yao: "I can't imagine how congested this street will be on the day of the sermon."

Wei Mao pretended to be nonchalant: "What I discussed with A Jing was that we would stay at the bookstore the night before, so at least we wouldn't be unable to get into the street the next day. He said he would go and persuade Zhen, and ask Wu Ji and Wei Puti if they would come, and asked me to persuade you."

This is great news! Wei Yao immediately agreed.

After returning home, Wei Yao told her mother that she had to spend the night of the 11th with her fellow students at Yingju Bookstore, and also mentioned that she had met her neighbor at the academy examination hall.

Zhao Zhi: "Having work is better than having no work. By the way, I heard from your father that many schools are combining their spring exams. Do you think you can still get first place this time?"

Wei Yao snuggled into her mother's arms: "Mom likes me to get first place so much, hee hee, then I must get first place."

Not only did she want to get the best score in the first quarterly exam, but she also wanted to get the best score in all subsequent quarterly and annual exams. She wanted more people to know the name of the diligent and intelligent young lady, Wei Yao! She wanted her reputation to spread throughout Luoyang while she was in Pingcheng!

(End of this chapter)