History of Women in the Wei Dynasty

Chapter 137 Director Cui

At this moment, Qu Rong suppressed his anxiety and came out of Yingju Bookstore. He found the strange story of "The Island Barbarians Without Roots". There were only ten columns of words on a long scroll. He was so excited that his heart was pounding. He was like a thief, both tempted and timid!
No wonder his stories were either not valued or easily copied. It turns out that the plot could be so delicate and sensual, with every sentence and paragraph sparking his imagination and captivating his heart.

Qu Rong was anxious and frustrated because the shopkeeper treated him the same as any other customer this time, and wouldn't even let him borrow an extra copy. This made Qu Rong realize that the shopkeeper had never treated him as a relative of the family!
As he exited the gate, he ran into Feiming again. Feiming was holding a potted plant and smiling at him.

Laugh out loud! Qu Rong was still thinking about the enchanting female demon in the story, and at this moment he was unwilling to speak or argue.

But Fei Ming had planned to wait for him here, and now that he'd finally caught up with him, how could he let him go? "Young Master Qu?"

Qu Rong snorted: "You're asking about me on purpose?"

Feiming, limping, followed the other's steps and said quickly, "It's not a pleasant experience to read books for free, is it?"

Whether I feel well or not is none of your business.

“If you, Mr. Qu, are wronged, then I am wronged. That day I was pushed down, and only you did not despise my humble status and helped me up. I will remember this kindness.”

Qu Rong stopped. Of course, he also looked down on the other party for being so humble, but he still spoke in a slightly more tactful way: "If anyone had fallen in front of me that day, I would have helped them up. You don't need to thank me."

"You are the best person I have ever met."

"Hmph, a good person?" Qu Rong shook his head dejectedly. Good people in stories don't necessarily get good rewards, let alone in reality.

"You don't know my name yet, do you? I am Feiming, a servant of Dongyue Flower Shop. I have found out some information about the owner of Yingju Bookstore, as a reward for your help. The owner of the bookstore is a true meritorious official from Weishi, named Wei Yi."

Qu Rong said impatiently, "Do you even need to ask me that?"

Feiming was not annoyed and continued, "Then do you know what the official rank of Weiyi is?"

"of course I know!"

"Do you know if those kinds of official positions involve staying in Luoyang for a long time, or if it's easy to be transferred to other places?"

Qu Rong's elder sister hadn't inquired about this matter, or rather, she simply didn't know to inquire. If his elder sister hadn't mentioned it, of course he wouldn't know. Qu Rong stubbornly retorted, "What does this have to do with me? Why should I know this? Besides, just because you can find out something doesn't mean it's true!"

“Birds can fly, mice can burrow, everyone has their own methods. Alright, I won’t keep you in suspense any longer. Wei Yi will definitely stay in Luoyang for a long time! The young man who is currently in charge of Yingju Bookstore is Wei Yi’s third son. He will have to go to Luoyang in a year or two at most. Yingju Bookstore has been the Wei family’s business for many years. How could it be closed down? It will only be handed over to Wei Yi’s cousin Wei, who is also your elder sister’s husband… Military Advisor Wei.”

At this moment, the two of them, without saying a word, stood in a secluded corner and began to talk.

Feiming continued, "But a year or two is both short and long. Military Advisor Wei is currently doting on your elder sister, but that might not be the case in two years. What a wonderful bookstore! Instead of trying to secure it for your nephew, are you just going to wait for this good thing to be delivered to your Qu family?"

"Stop talking!" Qu Rong stopped him. "If you have such a mindset, you should think about how to heal your leg first."

"Ha, you're too scared to listen? Or too scared to try? Forget it, you're hopeless!" Fei Ming scoffed and left.

Qu Rong stood still, waiting for the other party to turn around, to see if his guess was right or wrong. He guessed that Fei Ming must need something from him, which was why he had encouraged and offered advice, hoping to exchange for greater benefits!
But the other person really did walk away.

Qu Rong had read too many tales of the strange and supernatural, and thus thought himself as intelligent as the characters in those books. But when Fei Ming mentioned Wei Yi, he shouldn't have continued listening. "People are like fish; they can't escape the bait," Fei Ming murmured to himself, laughing as he walked.

For the first time since being punished by the young master to work as a servant in the flower shop, he felt happy. Things he used to easily hear and see while following the young master were indeed difficult to learn from Qu Xiaolang, who came from a humble background. The fact that Qu Xiaolang didn't immediately refuse to listen proved he was right; the other party really did want to plunder Yingju Bookstore!

If you're greedy, things will get easier; if you're greedy, you'll take the bait.

The prefectural government office.

Cui Xian, the headmaster of Cui Academy, accompanied the Yuan governor to the north of the government office. After descending two steps from the dungeon entrance, a mixture of unpleasant smells and dampness immediately assaulted their nostrils.

At the first wall lamp, a jailer was sewing a ball by candlelight. When he saw the governor arrive, he stuck an iron needle into the ball with his little finger, bent over and explained, "I haven't had any cases to hear lately, so I'm taking on some side jobs."

“Hey, keep sewing. Don’t wiggle your butt before you speak in the future, it makes you look guilty.” Governor Yuan continued walking with his hands behind his back, and said to Cui Xian, “This official is someone I brought from Luoyang. He has two generations of elderly parents to support and a baby crying for food. It’s not easy for him to support his family. If your school needs to buy purses, you can order from him. The purses he sews are stuffed with real animal hair.”

Cui Xian: "Our school's purse has been contracted out to the choir, and it's stuffed with real black bear hair."

Yuan Zhi's breathing quickened. That was his big black bear! "Did you come here today just to annoy me?"

"How dare I? On the rest day after the joint examination, our school would like to rent a spacious area in Mingtang Ranch to hold two Cuju (ancient Chinese football) matches for adults and children. The teachers from the university school will explain the 'Great Archery Ritual,' and the teachers from the elementary school school will explain the 'Classic of Filial Piety' and the 'Classic of Poetry.'"

"It seems that if you recruit new students this winter, you'll have to teach the Classic of Filial Piety one more course than other schools?"

"Hehe, is that so?"

This is a good thing. The addition of primary school courses will be counted in the performance evaluation of officials every three years. Yuan Zhi was very happy. It's a win-win situation. He said, "How about this? I'll have the military officers lead people to build some low walls on the grassland, and I'll also allocate some bows, arrows, and shields for you. In addition to playing Cuju (ancient Chinese football), the students can also practice military formations like soldiers. What do you think?"

"Oh, that's wonderful."

"In addition, General Yu of Woye Town, his daughter is coming to Pingcheng to study. Some time ago, General Yu personally came to Pingcheng for this matter. By the way, the timing of his arrival was just right, and he met with Attendant Zhao from the Eastern Palace several times."

Cui Xian was quick-witted and understood immediately!
General Yu wants to send his daughter to the palace! Given General Yu's official rank and abilities, the Crown Prince would certainly not be interested, but General Yu's elder brother is General Yu Lie, and with the status of Yu Lie's niece, a girl from the Yu family is a suitable match for the Crown Prince.

If the girl from the Yu family comes to study at Cui Academy, won't all the students who share a room with her become her fellow students in the future?

This is about taking sides!

Cui Xian offered a sincere suggestion: "All the schools are full. If General Yu is willing to let his daughter suffer, she can first enter the choir as a page, and then transfer to a regular school later when there is an opportunity."

Yuan Zhi waved his hand happily: "Then forget it. Let's wait for the Yu family's daughter to arrive before going to the state academy."

The two passed a torture chamber with its door wide open. Inside, prisoners bound to stakes watched Cui Xian walk by and suddenly shouted, "Him! I've seen him with Manager Bingfang, Nie Zhao!"

(End of this chapter)