History of Women in the Wei Dynasty

Chapter 76 Finding a Bracelet
Wei Mao tentatively asked, "Deceive Du Ling and make him expose his own flaws?"

“Yes, it seems you’ve come up with the same idea as Mao again.” Wei Yao looked at him approvingly.

Wei Mao silently swapped the positions of two words in those words: "He wants to be fellow disciples with Mao again."

In an instant, the emptiness of not seeing her for several days was filled.

“I’ll wait for you here,” he paused deliberately before continuing, “just to tell you that I did it as soon as I figured out what to do.”

Wei Mao didn't tell Wei Jing and Wei Zhen about the clues he was investigating this time, because the grand hunt of the Xianbei nobles was about to begin, and Wei Jing needed to intensify his horsemanship and archery practice. Wei Zhen's worries were written all over her face, so he decided to keep them from her for now.

Wei Mao, working alone, was actually more organized. He split into two groups, investigating Master Yang on one side and finding Du Tongding on the other. He asked Du Tongding to describe in detail the disguise of the person who delivered the pearl necklace, and then made an identical tattered straw hat and clothes.

Just yesterday, he forced Du Tongding to find Wei Weng and teach Wei Weng to memorize a passage so that they could stage a play where he would scare Du Ling in the outhouse.

"During today's second lesson, could you detect anything unusual about Du Ling?"

Wei Yao thought carefully and shook her head: "No. He taught seriously in the second class. He didn't seem anxious when the class ended. He even reminded us again to review our lessons and prepare for the joint exam this month. Mao Tong, don't be discouraged. Think about it, how old is he? How old are we? Besides, before he planned to harm someone, he must have thought about how to deal with being suspected and questioned."

“You’re right. So as long as he’s not innocent, he’ll definitely start making wild guesses. Do you think you’ll go after Du Tongding?”

"Whether he looks for it or not, it's not a good idea," Wei Yao began to reason.

“If he doesn’t contact Du Tongding, we’ll continue to use this method to trick him. The next step… is to put the pearl necklace in his sight, or send him a letter in Du Tongding’s name to threaten him and arrange a meeting.”

"He went to Du Tongding, so Du Tongding seized him without saying a word! Make him fulfill his promise! Then frame him!"

"Great idea!!" Wei Mao was truly invigorated this time. "I remember Xi Jiao said that Du Ling didn't know where the straw hat man was during the time period when he set the pearl string for Du Tong. Let Du Tong pinpoint his whereabouts! Force Du Ling to produce evidence to refute it!"

Afternoon, the old palace.

Chen Shushi, Qin Xiguan, and Wu Xiguan were bound hand and foot by a group of warriors and eunuchs and dragged all the way to the Xiguan Office, which was in front of the earthen house and storehouse where Wei Yao had stayed.

Zhou Xiguan was summoned to watch the caning. A few days earlier, out of pity for Wei Yao, she had tried to secretly deliver a book to her, but was caught by Chen Shushi and locked up in the Buddhist hall, where she was starved.

This humiliation saved her life today.

Governor Yuan had only been in Pingcheng for a short time and lacked subordinates, so he sent his nephew Yuan Yu, who was learning the ropes, to handle the situation. Xi Jiao happened to be with Yuan Yu and, wanting to take this opportunity to visit the old palace and broaden his horizons, came along as well.

The two of them entered the room and looked around. Yuan Yu praised, "Miss Wei is so tolerant!" This shabby place had several kinds of damp insects crawling on the ground, and there was a rat with staring eyes that showed no fear of people. If it were him, he could manage during the day, but he wouldn't dare to stay there at night.

Xi Jiao noticed a string of grass beads in the corner of the wall and wondered if it was left by Wei Yao. He picked it up and thought it must be the right one. When he talked to her at the Imperial Uncle Temple, she was wearing the same string of beads on her wrist.

The room was narrow and low, and the two of them came out.

Knowing she was doomed, Chen Shushi was forced to kneel, but she raised her head. The sunlight was weak; it could warm a city, but not a palace. "Hmph, haha, hmph... You were sent by Governor Yuan, weren't you? I'm not afraid of death, I only want to die knowing why. I want to ask, how did that lowly maid Wei Yao accuse me?" Yuan Yu: "We ensure that prisoners executed in the prefectural jail die knowing why, let alone you. Chen Shushi, your crime wasn't offending Miss Wei, but rather showing contempt for the new education commissioner, only caring about venting your own personal grievances, and ignoring the prefectural government's rewards for the spring examinations. Do you accept what I've said?"

Chen Shushi's cheeks trembled uncontrollably as he clenched his teeth so tightly.

Qin Xiguan, standing next to her, cried and protested, "Is it because Lady Wei wants to punish us? But it has nothing to do with me! I even brought her food. Chen Shushi never tells us Xiguan what he's going to do."

"Don't beg them!" Chen Shushi's eyes nearly popped out of their sockets as he shouted shrilly, "Don't beg them. Do you think that by playing the pitiful card and claiming you know nothing, these barbarians will spare you? Ha! They've killed too many of our Xiao Qi citizens, what's three more lives to them? What new school decree, what spring examination, ptooey! A bunch of illiterate barbarians..."

At Yuan Yu's signal, a warrior kicked Chen Shushi in the abdomen. With just that one kick, she fell to the ground, in so much pain that she couldn't even groan.

Yuan Yu's leather boots appeared before her eyes, and she could only curse silently: "Suo Lu... beast..."

But Yuan Yu's words shattered her last shred of dignity: "If you had been this principled earlier, why didn't you just kill yourself when you were captured?"

night.

The stars blanket the sky, counting how many people have been added to the mortal world, and how many have left.

Wei Yao recited her lessons, then did dictation, and during a short break she cursed Chen Shushi. Little did she know that the man she disliked had been beaten to death and buried in the abandoned livestock pen.

Inside the main house, Wei Yin spent a long time copying books. During a break from his tired rest, he listened to his wife, Zhao Zhi, recount how she had pleaded with Governor Yuan during the day.

“He told me directly that the bamboo slip contained a secret letter about Bingfang’s spy case. I felt that he immediately deciphered the contents of the secret letter when he took it. Fortunately, he didn’t ask me where I copied it from.”

"It doesn't matter where it was copied from. I estimate that the Bingfang case has been investigated almost completely. If Governor Yuan suspects you and investigates you, it would be like creating unnecessary trouble on your merits."

“My husband is right, that’s why I don’t want to be an official. Being an official means you have to be wicked.”

"Haha."

When Wei Yin first saw the bamboo slips that Cui Weng had tucked into his Erya notes, he guessed they were secret letters from spies, based on the information provided by "Shi Luo, Lan, Wei." This was an old story about someone investigating his wife's arrest of Mu Tai!
As for the other secret letter, he couldn't translate it. If he couldn't translate it, he couldn't translate it; Wei Yin was always wary of dangerous matters and never got bogged down in things beyond his capabilities.

Zhao Zhi said with concern, "Prefect Yuan agreed to my request too easily. Should I sneak into the palace to investigate myself and find the person?" She made a chopping gesture.

Wei Yin was amused by his wife again: "Haha, don't worry. He agreed to let you beat those palace servants to death because he wouldn't allow anyone to look down on the new school magistrate. It wasn't because you delivered the secret letter, nor was it to avenge Yao'er."

He continued to explain: "Prefect Yuan is more than loyal to His Majesty. He always supports and implements the policies and decrees that His Majesty promotes. The reward given to the top student in this spring examination is precisely to show the sons of the powerful and wealthy. After all, the old palace is the imperial palace. How many people are qualified to go in and see it?"

Zhao Zhi: "I understand. If the news spreads that our Yao'er went for three days in vain and didn't see or see anything, it's like slapping Governor Yuan in the face!"

I was busy today, so the update was delayed. Sorry!



(End of this chapter)