A Single Tie Of Long Hair Seals A Lifelong Commitment - Chapter 74

Gu Xie was besieged within the Lingjiu Academy.

Outside the academy, the noise of the crowd was deafening—a clamor of sparrows and doves gathering—so intense it alarmed both the Southern Royal Guard (Nanya) and the Yong’an Prefecture.

“Hand over the Yao remnant, Yao Jifeng!”

“Those who harbor a criminal are guilty of the same crime! Arrest Gu Xie! How can the Gu clan, who shelters a death row convict with such appalling conduct, be worthy of serving as the Headmaster?”

“A hen crowing at dawn brings chaos to the nation’s governance, leading to heavenly calamities and suffering for thousands of people! If Gu Xie is not punished, the people’s wrath will never be quelled!”

“Close the Women’s Academy! Ban the women’s schools!”

The crowd surged like a tide toward the heavy, vermilion-lacquered gate. Initially, the enraged people merely knocked and hammered on the bronze door knocker, but as more gathered, the crowd grew into a tumultuous mob, their faces flushed with anger, eyes glaring, and mouths spewing curses.

“Bang! Bang!” “Clang! Clang!”

Since the door remained shut, they began to smash it. Sticks and clubs repeatedly slammed against the door panels.

Gu Xie sat calmly in the Mingli Hall.

The sounds of sticks and the drumming clamor penetrated the gate and reached the courtyard behind it.

A tutor stood in the hall, but the sound of the smashing grew terrifying, and he quickly scurried back. He wiped the sweat from his brow and suggested, “Headmaster, let’s go hide in the back for a while.”

As he spoke, he knew there was nowhere to hide. Lingjiu Academy was situated on the Six-Foot Secluded Lane, an alley only six feet wide. The back gate opened onto the Cui Liu Lane, where the willows were lush and green. Both the front and back lanes were completely blockaded. Fortunately, Gu Xie had interpreted certain signs from the Book of Changes and its commentaries, allowing her to suspend classes early, saving the students from being trapped inside.

The instigators of the unrest were the students of the Imperial Academy. Yet, these youthful scholars, seeing the situation spiral into an uncontrollable riot, now stood amidst the crowd with astonished expressions, unsure whether to advance or retreat.

In its genesis, this was not a riot.

The Imperial Astronomical Bureau’s prophecy of a “guest star” ignited a collective outcry among civil officials. This scholarly clamor temporarily concluded with the expulsion of female students from the Imperial Academy. The academy’s male students hotly debated this expulsion, with differing opinions. In their youthful minds, there was no distinction between men and women, only right and wrong. While they argued about the expulsion, they were united in one conviction: the claim that “Great Lin’s natural disasters—be it the floods in Zhudong, the plagues in Li’an and Linxia, or the summer drought in the South—were all caused by women reading” was utterly fallacious.

What nonsense is that?

The idea that the heavenly calamities were caused by having two Emperors ruling the nation simultaneously was far more plausible. After all, the Emperor was preparing to rebuild the Yanzhi Mountain Palace, surely intending to move the Retired Emperor out of the Imperial Palace.

The Imperial Academy included bureaucratic sons—known as Yin Jian—who gained entry based on their fathers’ or grandfathers’ official ranks. Hearing some rumors from their elders, they drew a disastrous lightning bolt upon the academy.

The Gu family of Cangnan’s Han Hong Academy is sheltering the death-row convict Yao Jifeng from the Cangnan Civilian Disaster Case.

The black-and-white, right-and-wrong mentality of youth is both the most innocent and the most sharp. They hesitated, their resolve wavering. Nevertheless, for the righteous spirit in their hearts and for the rule of law, they gathered in the Six-Foot Secluded Lane, shouting slogans that were answered by others.

The Spring Imperial Examinations results were posted in the fourth month. Among the vagrant passersby in Yongdu were many who had failed the exams repeatedly, demoralized scholars, discouraged individuals, and citizens struggling with poverty who held deep resentment toward their current circumstances, not to mention the idle ruffians eager for trouble. When the elite students of the Imperial Academy first struck, the others, like starving beasts smelling blood, swarmed forward, beating, smashing, and shouting cries of arrest and murder. They vented their frustrations and indignation, as if all the suffering in their lives originated from this Lingjiu Academy in the Six-Foot Secluded Lane.

The door bolt made a dull, heavy sound during the violent shaking, as if the rioters outside would break in at any moment.

Is it finally coming?

The look of indifference to life and death on Gu Xie’s face felt out of place.

Her grandfather, Gu Changxue, was a Grand Tutor (Taishi), though not the Emperor’s tutor, but rather a senior counselor.

The Gu family rose to prominence through scholarship, but by the time of Gu Changxue’s generation, they were renowned for their geomancy and divination. During the Rebellion of the Five Princes, Gu Changxue was recruited by Emperor Xuanyuan (Xie Lin). After Emperor Xuanyuan ascended the throne, Gu Changxue sought no official post, instead returning to Cangnan to inherit the family’s legacy of teaching and educating.

Once you’re entangled in chaos, you can’t remain untouched.

His only son and daughter-in-law died by the swords of Prince Fengde’s remnants, leaving behind two young children: Gu Xie and her brother Gu Heng.

In Gu Xie’s few remaining childhood memories, her grandfather was always frowning over a pile of turtle shells, animal bones, and copper coins. One time, she climbed onto the divination table, and Gu Changxue read the profound meaning of the resulting trigram.

“Continuing the broken, reviving the fallen; the calamity is unavoidable.”

At that time, she did not know the meaning of those eight words. Gu Changxue forbade her from studying divination, yet her talent was so high that even before her coming-of-age ceremony, she divined the trigram that would influence her entire life.

The hexagram indicated that the dynasty she lived in was a “Golden Age for the Revival of Women’s Learning.”

The key points of the divination pointed straight to Yongdu, the Eastern Palace, and the North.

Could there be two people at the helm?

Once this era passed, the revival of women’s learning would not happen again for a thousand years.

She could not deduce a more precise time. It doesn’t matter, she thought, I don’t plan to live into that dynasty a thousand years from now.

Subsequent divinations consistently revealed vague timings for the Golden Age—perhaps five, ten, or twenty years, but certainly not too far off.

She sat day and night at her writing desk by the window, pouring her heart and soul into writing the “Discourse on Women” (Nü Lun).

It became a massive forbidden book. Unprecedented.

In her youthful naivety, ignorant of the world’s vastness and her own insignificance, she dared to uphold her convictions. She followed the guidance of her heart, only to be met by an imperial censor from Yongdu arriving to seal her work. Others sharply criticized the book as “nothing but misleading rumors.”

When she attempted to argue, the situation became uncontrollable, much like today.

Her cries in the writing became the ironclad proof of her violation of “feminine virtue.” Officials surrounded the Gu family residence, preparing to take Gu Xie away and send her to a Buddhist “Discipline Hall” (Jietang).

The Jietang in a Buddhist monastery had a plaque over the front hall that read “Xuanlu Discipline Hall” and an inner plaque that read “Ground of Purity” (Ligoudi), signifying the cleansing of worldly defilements to purify the body and mind.

How beautifully it sounds.

In reality, it meant forced ordination and lifelong confinement.

At the time, Yao Jifeng, who was the Vice Director of the Imperial Academy (Guozijian Siye), was traveling through his old hometown in Cangnan. He stopped at the Han Hong Academy to visit Grand Tutor Gu Changxue and was discussing academics with Gu Heng at the Gu residence. When they talked about family matters and Gu Xie, Yao Jifeng had just been comforting Gu Heng, saying, “Your sister’s words are hardly treasonous; it’s merely the nature of youth.”

The very next moment, the Censor-in-Chief (Qian Du Yushi) arrived in person, followed by a troop of soldiers, demanding that Grand Tutor Gu hand over the person.

Yao Jifeng took the “blame,” admitting that the forbidden book was a casual, idle work he wrote during his travels, which the Gu family’s young lady had accidentally read and taken seriously.

“It is my fault, Yao’s fault. Your Excellency, there is no need to harshly reprimand the young lady of the Gu family.”

The Censor-in-Chief was somewhat troubled.

At that time, printing was not yet widespread, and a comparison of the handwriting on the copied manuscript would immediately expose the lie.

The matter wasn’t major; sending Gu Xie to the Buddhist Discipline Hall would have been the end of it. But it wasn’t minor either. The students of Han Hong Academy had always been the backbone of the court, and it would be unforgivable for a young woman to conspire to bring chaos to the state without punishment.

Yao Jifeng declared, “I, Yao, will personally explain the situation to the Emperor upon my return to Yongdu.”

The Censor was also unwilling to offend the Grand Tutor Gu. The Gu family was highly respected among scholars, with students throughout the court. He had arrived out of duty to discuss sending the young woman to the temple for spiritual refinement and had already given them enough face and leeway by ceasing the investigation. Unexpectedly, the Gu family refused the courtesy, merely stating they would strictly supervise her. It was difficult to conclude the matter.

Since Yao Jifeng offered to take the blame, he was happy to step aside.

Among civil officials, whose pens hadn’t spilled words that “attacked current abuses, satirized government, and criticized contemporary customs”—words of rebellion? It was nothing unusual.

According to her brother Gu Heng, Yao Jifeng was due to be promoted from Vice Director to Chancellor of the Imperial Academy (Guozijian Jijiu) upon his return to Yongdu. Because of this incident, he received a minor, insignificant reprimand, which delayed his promotion.

Killed by wind and snow.

She wanted to save him.

To alter Yao Jifeng’s fate, she had consulted the will of Heaven countless times, but the answer was always the same.

True enough, in the 16th year of Xuanyuan, during the Cangnan Civilian Disaster, the Yao family was sentenced to full extermination at the New Year’s Palace Banquet. At that time, snow fell in Yongdu.

Gu Xie knew that when her grandfather returned to his hometown, Emperor Xuanyuan had granted him a blank imperial decree.

She could not achieve this alone, so what about Imperial Authority? Which was the true master: Imperial Authority or the Mandate of Heaven?

She thought she might have defeated the Mandate of Heaven once.

Upon divining again, the hexagram indeed changed. But soon, other things changed too. Perhaps her repeated prying into the secrets of Heaven and her forceful alteration of another person’s fate had brought about a heavenly punishment: the prophecy of Yao Jifeng being “killed by wind and snow” now appeared in her own fate.

She let out a long sigh of relief. That’s fine.

It’s nothing more than a life for a life.

Coincidentally, a close friend in Yongdu, a few years her junior, was recently negotiating a marriage. The friend sent a letter with the birth dates of the couple, asking Gu Xie to divine whether their marriage would be harmonious.

One more time won’t hurt.

She picked up three copper coins and formed a hexagram with six lines.

This is wrong. Her close friend’s father was the current Yong’an Prefect, and the family she was to marry into was headed by the Minister of War. Their fates should be noble and wealthy, so how could this hexagram predict a low-born, humble destiny?

Perhaps her skill was lacking, and she had made a mistake somewhere.

She sought advice from her grandfather. Gu Changxue patted her head and said, “Ah Xie, anyone who presumes to measure the will of Heaven cannot escape divine retribution.” He confiscated all her divination tools and forbade her from asking questions of the oracle ever again.

When Li Yuqing was reduced to a humble status due to her father Li Yilian’s conviction, Gu Xie also calmly accepted her own fate of being killed by wind and snow.

She just didn’t know which year the wind and snow would arrive.

Will the scenery be beautiful?

In the lanes around Lingjiu Academy, the raging crowd seemed to calm down slightly. Then, a sharper yelling started.

The people from the Yong’an Prefecture and the Southern Royal Guard arrived successively.

Cheng Lingdian arrived at the Six-Foot Secluded Lane before Gao Guan. The Yong’an Prefecture lacked sufficient personnel, so he could only focus on dispersing the crowd first.

Gao Guan rode up on horseback, personally leading the Twelve Guards to surround all four sides of Lingjiu Academy’s lanes, starting to arrest the ringleaders of the disturbance.

Gao Guan saw Cheng Lingdian and said in surprise, “Director Cheng, the impeachment memorials against you are flying everywhere. Aren’t you hiding? And yet you’ve come out to work?”

Cheng Lingdian was utterly exasperated. “Commander Gao, stop with the sarcastic remarks. The alley is narrow, and there are too many rioters. The patrol officers and soldiers can’t get in. How are we supposed to make arrests?”

The most aggressive rioters were also the most cunning. Just moments ago, they were fierce as mountain bandits and pirates, but as soon as the soldiers arrived, they squeezed into the crowd like cowardly turtles. If they opened the lane to let people through, these villains would surely use the chaos to escape.

Gao Guan was also worried.

This matter could not be delayed. With so many people crammed into the two narrow lanes, sending officers to force their way in and make arrests might provoke the hidden criminals to incite a frenzy in the crowd, making it even harder to control. If a stampede occurred and people died, the blame would definitely fall on him and Cheng Lingdian.

“Director Cheng, you decide.”

Cheng Lingdian moved next to Gao Guan’s horse and looked up. “Let them leave.”

Gao Guan said, “Let them leave? The Emperor is already aware of this incident. How can we report back without making arrests?”

Cheng Lingdian said, “Do you see those white-robed students?”

“I see them. The students of the Imperial Academy.”

In the Six-Foot Lane, amidst the gray and white cloth clothes, those white robes stood out.

Cheng Lingdian instructed, “Do not injure them. Don’t let a single one escape.”

Arresting the students of the Imperial Academy was a move intended to minimize the scale of the incident. These students were all highly valuable and could not be locked in a common prison or killed. They would be detained for a day or two, and after the Emperor chastised the Imperial Academy officials, they would be taken back by the academy, thus concluding the matter.

Gao Guan, on horseback, looked down at the moving mass of heads in the alley, frowned, and said, “Let’s do that.”

At his command, the officers blocking the road tore open a gap and directed the masses blocking the way to move out. Finally, only three or five groups of white-robed young men remained, squatting by the walls, occasionally peeking up to look around.

The heavy gate of Lingjiu Academy slowly opened from the inside. Gu Xie bowed to Gao Guan and Cheng Lingdian in thanks. Gao Guan dismounted and returned the salute with Cheng Lingdian.

Gu Xie said, “Thank you, two esteemed officials.”

Gao Guan replied, “We’re glad the Headmaster is unharmed. The Princess Royal is about to return to the palace. If anything happened to the Headmaster, I fear my head would not be enough to satisfy her.” He pointed to the students by the wall. “Director Cheng, take them away.”

Cheng Lingdian said, “Take the students to the Yong’an Prefecture? Isn’t your Southern Royal Guard closer to the Imperial Academy?”

Gao Guan retorted, “The Southern Royal Guard doesn’t have a jail. Where would we house so many students? Are we supposed to invite them into the main hall and treat them to food and drink?”

This hot potato was truly unpleasant. Neither Cheng Lingdian nor Gao Guan wanted to handle it.

“Commander Gao! Commander Gao!” A man dressed as a Southern Royal Guard officer ran up, shouting. “Someone is causing trouble at the Xushui River bank!”

Gao Guan felt his head explode. “Who is causing trouble now?”

The officer said, “A lot of people. They’ve intercepted the pleasure boat of Miss Qin Sen Sen of the Yifeng Pavilion! People are about to be killed!”

A momentary look of panic flickered across Gu Xie’s otherwise calm face.

Gao Guan mounted his horse. “Let’s go. We must see what’s happening.”

Gu Xie ran forward and grabbed the saddlebag of Gao Guan’s horse. “Commander Gao, could you please prepare a horse for me and take me with you?”

Gao Guan pondered for a moment, then shouted ahead, “Bring a horse. Headmaster, you had best cover your face.”

“Thank you.”