History of Women in the Wei Dynasty

Chapter 158 Xi Jiao Steals Books

"Stop your sarcastic remarks!" Zong Yin, unable to bear it any longer, went straight to the dark side of the other's heart. "I know you're jealous of me. If I really begged my family to agree to this marriage, I could marry the top poet of Pingcheng, while you, a mere page in a poetry club, could be fooled like a fool. So you..."

"Enough!" Yuan Yi quickly packed his bags, slung them over his shoulder, untied the horse's harness, and mounted. He said with disgust, "You really have to travel far to know if someone is a good friend. One of you, not even knowing the young lady's feelings, keeps talking about marriage. Another, because the young lady disdains your friendship, takes it out on all the female students and constantly finds fault with your companions! I'd rather travel alone at night than travel with you all! Giddy up—"

"Ayi, you don't know which way to go, slow down, wait for me." Zong Yin was worried that his companion would get lost, so he mounted his horse and hurried after him.

In the shadows, Ru Junxia hadn't left at all. He didn't care about the grudges and affections between the three teenagers; he only cared about finally finding out a clue.

"The champion of poetry...Miss Wei..."

It seems that finding the woman named Wei that these three young men mentioned will surely allow us to uncover more information about the Hu family.

late at night.

The southern pasture gradually quieted down as the students went to sleep, and the campfires went out due to the wind. Every now and then, the night patrolmen, carrying torches, would walk among the felt tents and, when they reached the campsite of Cui Academy, they would find a dozen or so students still studying by lamplight.

Wei Yao was among them, of course.

She is currently memorizing the Classic of Filial Piety in Classical Chinese, given to her by her mentor. The text is divided into sections by different calligraphic styles to distinguish Kong Anguo's analysis and Lu Fuzi's further annotations. This version of the Classic of Filial Piety is rare, and even more rare is that all the text was personally copied by her mentor, allowing her to not only learn the text but also practice calligraphy based on her mentor's handwriting.

At the beginning of Zi Shi.

The end of midnight.

Only Wei Yao was still studying. She had a great time playing during the day, but then had to catch up on her studies at night. Many students envied her title of "Poetry Champion," but little did they know that she also envied others.

She envied her senior brother Cui Zhi's near-photographic memory, her senior brother Kong Mi's ability to receive instruction from his mentor at any time, and the privileged upbringing of all the noble children, who not only had enough paper and ink to support their studies but also could learn riding and archery whenever they wanted. Meanwhile, she could only ride horses during various competitions and school events.

But is envy really a bad thought? Wei Yao didn't think so. She believed that envy was human nature, and as long as it didn't turn into resentment, why force it to be suppressed? Besides, envy could motivate her to work harder. Wei Yao believed that one day, she herself would become a strong person that everyone admired.

Wei Yao read the entire scroll to the end, but instead of picking up another one, she went back to the beginning and read it again.

"Never forget your ancestors, and cultivate their virtues..." This line comes from the sixth chapter of the poem "King Wen" in the Book of Songs, meaning...

"Control and moderate, full but not overflowing... The saying about fullness and overflowing is recorded in the Tuan of the Qian hexagram in the Book of Changes: Heaven diminishes the full and increases the humble; Earth changes the full and flows to the humble; the spirits harm the full and..."

This time, she read it much faster than before, and every sentence she softly recited was one she hadn't memorized in the previous reading. Reciting aloud is equivalent to memorizing with the heart, eyes, and ears all together, which is more profound than simply going through it in her mind once.

Xi Jiao, who had come to Baideng Mountain to pay respects to his mother, returned to the ranch. He failed to catch the deer, and his clothes were torn to shreds. Later, he suspected that he had imagined it and that the two deer had never appeared at all.

The pasture at midnight was different from when he left during the day. Felt tents were set up everywhere. He was tired, hungry and thirsty, and didn't know where to go to find something to eat. Suddenly he thought that Wei Yao might still be studying at night, so he looked for candlelight and found Cui Xueguan's tent area without any trouble.

Wei Yao was engrossed in reciting her poem when someone blocked the light, revealing Xi Jiao to be the only one who looked so disheveled. Where had he been? Why did he look so disheveled?

Just as Wei Yao was about to get up, Xi Jiao waved his hand at her, sat down on the grass, and said something important first: "I have something to tell you. I used to have a servant named Feiming..."

"The rumors? I already know." Xi Jiao was exhausted and her head drooped, but she forced herself to stay awake and said, "When I found out that it was Director Cui who reported the case, I thought it was Yuan Jingrong who persuaded Director Cui. So it was you?"

"Yes, it was my mentor who led me to Director Cui."

"Feiming is dead."

Wei Yao: Really? That's wonderful.

Xi Jiao continued, "Before he died, he confessed to something: he wanted to frame your fellow disciple Qu Rong for spreading rumors. Do you remember the case of the Disaster Relief Association? Those scoundrels who wanted to harm you back then were swayed by some of Qu Rong's complaints, which led to their foolish idea of ​​harming you and then currying favor with the Qu family. You're a smart person; I don't need to remind you to be wary of this Qu Rong. Alright, I've told you everything I know. Now it's your turn to tell me where there's food..."

His voice softened, and he lay back as if he were very uncomfortable.

"Master Xi! Master Xi?" Wei Yao called him twice, and seeing his brows furrowed and his pain increasing, she was terrified and quickly went to call the night patrol soldiers.

Hey?
You bastard Xi!!

When the soldiers carried her on a stretcher and ran after her, not only was Xi Jiao gone, but the box containing the "Classic of Filial Piety" was also gone! On the ground, there was only a small stick with a tattered piece of cloth tied to it, on which was written: "Borrowed for three days, to be returned to the library. Jiao."

My ass!
The next morning, before her friends had gotten up, Wei Yao went to the felt tent where Yuan Zizhi was resting to inquire. Sure enough, Xi Jiao had left the pasture early that morning to return to Cui Academy, saying that he wanted to review his lessons and had no interest in playing.

Now, Wei Yao only wanted to confirm whether it was the box of "Classic of Filial Piety" that Xi Jiao had taken. She asked Yuan Zizhi, "Did you see Xi Jiao carrying a wooden box that long and wide?"

"I saw it. He said it was the Classic of Filial Piety. Oh? Didn't you lend it to him to read for a few days?"

"Oh."

Wei Yao finally felt relieved, as long as she was sure it hadn't been stolen by someone else. Xi Jiao's actions were despicable and hateful, but she owed him a favor because he had helped her and Wei Zhen fight back when they were beaten by Yi Xie's gang in the Plum Garden.

Since the other party took the Classic of Filial Piety without asking, I'll consider this repayment of that favor.

After having breakfast, Wei Yao regained her good mood and went to the archery and horseback riding training ground with Guo Yun and Yuan Jingrong.

Students from Wei Academy, including Wei Mao, Wu Ji, and Wei Puti, were already waiting outside the venue. Among those Wei Yao recognized or were familiar with were several students from Bu Family Academy, including Bu Yanzhen, the brothers He Rong and He Shutong, the brothers Mu Dai and Mu Yuan, and Yuan Gong and Yuan Tianmu, two students from the Eighth Branch Academy who had participated in the Great Hunt.

Before long, Yuan Zizhi, Zhou Tai, and Yuan Heng arrived together.

A little while later, Yuan Langxi, Yuan Ning, Hu Ertiao, and other academic underachievers also rode up on horseback. There were nine academic underachievers in total. They fought as they rode, whipping each other, and it was so bad that it was impossible to tell who was in whose group.

As they got closer, the nine men started tearing and kicking at each other on the grass until the military officer who was explaining horsemanship and archery came over and reprimanded them.

Just as Hai Yeren stood up, the clasp on his blouse came undone and fell to the ground like a cylinder. To be honest, the fabric of his blouse was really thick; even after falling to the ground, it stood upright like two shields.

Amidst bursts of laughter, the military officer began to explain the rules of mounted archery.

(End of this chapter)