History of Women in the Wei Dynasty

Chapter 97 Wei Yao's Counterattack

The servants in the kitchen carried the tableware into the stone pavilion one after another. Cui Shang and Yuan Heng disliked each other, but they still went to the kitchen together to look at the ingredients.

Wei Yao fed the fish while observing the surrounding scenery and listening to Guo Yun and the others talk.

“I used to be like these fish, proud of myself for swimming all over the pond, thinking I was so great. But after this trip, I realized how much I don’t know, and how vulnerable, flustered, and helpless I am when faced with problems.”

Cui Ying pouted and muttered, "I'm so envious of you guys. Next month, you'll be going on a trip together from Xunyi School, and you won't have to take the joint entrance exam."

Liu Zhenzhu poked the other person's forehead: "It's just that we won't participate in the joint examination in June. Do you think we're going out to play? Everyone has to prepare lessons, and if we don't teach well, it will damage the teacher's reputation. When we have free time, we have to make the most of every moment! Otherwise, what if Xunyi Academy is at the bottom of the summer joint examination in July? That would be quite a show."

These words made Cui Zhi laugh.

Over at the wooden pavilion, Hu Wu summoned a passing servant. She gave the servant a grass cricket and instructed him, "Go to the stone pavilion over there and ask if there is a young lady named Wei. If so, give her the grass cricket and have her guess which poem the poetry club will teach first. Whether she guesses it or not, come back and tell us. If any of those people ask you why you gave the grass cricket to the young lady Wei, just say that although the Xunyi Academy has twenty-one students, we servants admire the young lady Wei's reputation as the best poet."

Xin Chun: "Huh? Didn't you just say..."

Hu Wuwu, you shrew, why aren't you going yet?!

After Guan Nu left the wooden pavilion, Hu Wuwu cleverly answered Xin Chun's doubts: "Didn't you see? Miss Wei's clothes are simple. Do you think she wanted to? It's just that her family is poor and she has no choice. So I gave her a grass cricket and praised her in front of her friends. It was to tell her that as long as she is self-reliant, she can grow as resiliently and vigorously as the cattail, and she will not lose to the beautiful flowers and bamboos around her in the future."

Xu Jiaoqing was deeply moved: "Wuwu, it's truly a blessing from heaven that I was able to get to know you."

Hu Wuwu nodded emphatically and giggled, "You're only just realizing this now?"

Inside the stone pavilion.

Wei Yao took the straw-woven cricket and confirmed with Guan Nu, "She told you to tell me this? Not a single word different?"

"Yes, not a single word is wrong. I was transferred to the poetry club precisely because of my good memory."

Cui Zhi put down his tea and said frankly, "This tactic of flattery to kill is clumsy, but it works. Even though I know the other party has ill intentions and is trying to sow discord among us fellow disciples, I still feel a little uncomfortable."

Liu Zhenzhu quickly turned her face away from the pavilion. After hearing the servant's account, she was indeed resentful and even annoyed with Wei Yao. Did Wei Yao think that just because she did well on one exam, she would always be better than her? Better than all her fellow students? Only after being reminded by her fellow students did she realize that she had fallen for someone else's scheme.

Guo Yun snatched the grasshopper and threw it into the water: "There are all kinds of people in the world! Go back and tell that servant boy..."

Wei Yao picked up the conversation and said to Guan Nu, "Tell her that we need five hundred identical grass worms. Brother Cui, when we go with the Master to the surrounding counties, we will surely meet many children. Why don't we use the grass worms as a reward? As long as the children can recite a poem, even just a verse, we can give them the grass worms as a gift."

A complete stranger dares to provoke her without cause; don't blame her for retaliating!

Cui Zhi agreed: "Good idea, I'll go talk to Teacher Cui this afternoon." This Teacher Cui was naturally the female teacher who managed the choir and taught at the university.

Liu Zhenzhu said coldly, "Five hundred is not enough. Anyway, they're free, so a thousand!"

The servant hurriedly replied, "Yes," and then asked, "Did the young lady also return their poem titles?"

Liu Zhenzhu scoffed, "Didn't they already go back? Tell them, whoever jumps around the most gets the title of poet!" Cui Ying shook her head and cast a contemptuous glance toward the wooden pavilion, "If the first poem you teach is really 'Grass Insects,' I won't come to learn it. A perfectly good poem has been turned into derogatory remarks and a scheme to sow discord."

Yuan Heng and Cui Shang returned, each carrying a basket of washed fruits and vegetables. Cui Shang noticed that Liu Zhenzhu was angry and jokingly asked, "What's wrong? I was only gone for a short while, and you were fighting with the fish?"

"How annoying!" Liu Zhenzhu's anger subsided, and she pointed at the servant boy leaving the wooden pavilion, quickly recounting what had just happened.

Yuan Heng spat out the cherry pit, clearly disdainful of the cowardly manner of these Han scholars who only knew how to argue. "You just wait!"

He bent down on the railing and grabbed a fat fish, then strode towards Hu Wuwu and the other servants.

"what--"

"Hit someone!"

"Ah, help!"

None of the people from Huwuwu escaped; they were all hit by fish, some lightly, some heavily.

Yuan Heng vented all the anger he had suffered from Cui Zhi recently, chasing the man into a hiding room before he was satisfied. He returned with the fish, threw them into the pond, and the incredibly resilient fat fish, spitting out a string of dirty bubbles, swam behind the artificial hill to heal their wounds.

In the evening, the university staff assigned the servants a task: to weave a thousand crickets out of cattail reeds, which they had to finish by tomorrow evening.

Forty pageboys, thirty-nine pairs of complaining eyes!

The roof of the crow can't stand it anymore; this time it has to "whimper."

Xu Jiaoqing pursed her lips and decided not to kick someone when they're down.

Xin Chun flung a handful of grass at her, her words laced with sarcasm: "Luckily we weren't made to pull the grass, or we wouldn't have been able to sleep all night."

Hu Wuwu sobbed as he defended himself: "Who knew that Miss Wei would be so petty and misinterpret my meaning? Xin Chun, tell me honestly, what did I say wrong yesterday? Did I mean to be sarcastic at all? It's a trumped-up charge, a completely trumped-up charge! Moreover, she even instigated people to beat us up. Instead of blaming the people who beat us up or the people who instigated us behind the scenes, you blame me. Yesterday, I even got hit by fish several times while protecting you."

Zhang Wenzhi entered the classroom and said expressionlessly, "Alright, what's the use of blaming each other? I've found a few servants who can weave grass insects, and the rest of you can each weave ten."

The group said in unison, "Thank you, Teacher Xie."

Zhang Wenzhi had been waiting for this opportunity for a long time. She earnestly advised, "I know that each of you comes from a powerful family, but this is Cui Academy, and what it has in abundance is powerful people. So why make enemies with those students? In the end, you will be the ones who suffer."

She paced slowly among the servants, her clear, cool voice continuing: "Don't forget your original intention. You came to Cui Academy to listen to lectures by renowned teachers, not to quarrel with others or form cliques. From today onwards, I hope you will dispel any misunderstandings you may have about me. Let's work together to do a good job in the poetry club's affairs, and avoid causing trouble, so that we can have time to study in peace."

Zhang Wenzhi stopped behind Hu Wuwu and patted her on the shoulder: "Miss Hu, don't you think so? Stop teaching that parrot to say things like 'Suolu'. Don't you think about it? My life and fortune are all tied to Cui Academy. How dare I be so arrogant?"

"Huh?" Xin Chun stood up: "No way?! Hu Wuwu, you taught the parrot to mimic speech? A while ago, someone said that a parrot in the Confucius Institute was mimicking human speech, saying that Teacher Zhang liked to eavesdrop. Could it be that you taught it?"

(End of this chapter)