Chapter 70: Gathering

Deep within the Yu residence, eight servants surrounded a bamboo hut.

Inside the bamboo hut,

Yu Yuling sat cross-legged with his eyes closed, his lips dry and his face haggard.

This was his third day of fasting.

Yu Yi, dressed in a green-blue long robe, walked slowly into the room.

Yu Yuling opened his eyes weakly. Seeing it was his father, he supported himself with his hands, wanting to stand up and salute.

Yu Yi shook his head dismissively: "Forget it. You don't even want your life; what's the point of these empty rituals?"

Yu Yuling still stubbornly stood up and bowed to his father, his voice weak: "Rituals cannot be abandoned."

Yu Yi said coldly: "Rituals are not in the appearance, but in the heart. You Confucians say the body, hair, and skin are received from parents. What is this? Is this a threat?"

"My son would not dare to threaten my father; I just want to return to the Commandery School."

At this moment, a report came from the servants outside the door: "Master, the meal has arrived."

"Send it in."

Two servants carried the food boxes and entered, bowing.

Yu Yuling said: "Take it away; I won't eat."

The servants didn't say a word, displaying the dishes and utensils from the boxes one by one: two bowls of clear porridge, four small side dishes, and two plates of pastries.

Yu Yi said calmly: "It's not for you to eat."

The servants prepared a cushion for Yu Yi and then retreated, bowing.

Yu Yi sat down leisurely, picked up the porridge, and drank it peacefully.

"The *Han Rhapsody* says: 'The fat of the fatted ox, served with bamboo shoots and rushes.' If bamboo shoots are cooked well, they are better than beef. People in Kuaiji like to steam bamboo shoots, saying it has the 'perfection of all flavors'. I don't like that. I like to simmer them in high-quality broth, or stir-fry them in cooked oil, stir-frying until the oil overflows, best for eating with rice..."

Yu Yi picked up a bamboo shoot and put it in his mouth, closing his eyes slightly: "Hmm... it's flavorful."

Yu Yuling listened to the sound of his father chewing, swallowing hard, forcing himself not to look at the food.

"Sit down, let's talk while we eat."

Yu Yuling's lips moved, just about to reiterate his principle of fasting, when he heard his father say: "Oh, I misspoke; I will talk while I eat, you just sit and listen."

Yu Yuling couldn't stand anymore, so he sat opposite his father, smelling the fragrance of the dishes, feeling his willpower disintegrating.

Yu Yi picked up a piece of fish: "The abolition of the Commandery School is settled; didn't your brother make it clear to you?"

Yu Yuling was in a trance. Hearing his father's question, he forced his gaze away from the fish, collected his mind, and said:

"Whether the matter is settled or not is up to heaven; whether I do my best is up to me. Regardless of the result, I want to do my part for the Commandery School. Besides... besides, with the help of the Wang and Xie Xie Niangzi Xie families, it might not be impossible."

"Wang and Xie Xie Niangzi Xie?" Yu Yi smiled lightly. "Xie Xie Niangzi Xie Fei has indeed raised a good daughter, putting many noble sons to shame. As for the Wang family, you mean that Wang..."

Yu Yi couldn't remember the name for a moment.

Yu Yuling said: "Wang Yang. His academic knowledge is profound, far surpassing mine. Just in the *Classic of History* alone, I think even the doctors of the Imperial Academy might not be stronger than him!"

Speaking of Wang Yang, Yu Yuling had an expression of admiration.

Yu Yi looked up and thought for a moment, then suddenly said: "Do not see this person again in the future."

"Why?" Yu Yuling was stunned.

Yu Yi finished the remaining porridge in the bowl, wiped his mouth with a white cloth, and stood up: "There is still a bowl of porridge for you."

Yu Yuling frowned: "Father, I—"

"The East is not prosperous, and the schools are in decline. I can write to the Prince of Linchuan, recommending Liu Zhao to serve as an educational official in Dongyang, and students of the Commandery School who are willing to follow can register in Dongyang. The premise is that you drink this bowl of porridge."

"Dongyang Commandery?" Yu Yuling was stunned. "But Dongyang Commandery is in Yangzhou, not Jingzhou!"

"As long as learning can be passed on, what is the difference between Jing and Yang? Taking this opportunity to spread your school of thought to Dongyang might be a development opportunity. In the past, Zheng Huan Xuan studied under Ma Rong; when he finished his studies and left, Ma Rong sighed: 'Zheng Sheng is leaving now; my way is going east.' Now that Jing learning is moving east, why can't there be a day when it becomes a great trend?"

Jing learning moving east...

Yu Yuling's eyes brightened slightly.

"This proposal is only valid before I leave the house."

Yu Yi walked out the door with his hands behind his back.

"Thank you, Father, for your guidance!"

Yu Yuling recovered, hurriedly drinking the porridge in large gulps.

At the beginning of the Shen hour in the afternoon, Xie Xie Niangzi Xie Xie Niangzi Xie's vermilion-tasseled yellow ox cart stopped at the gate of the Commandery School on time.

Xiao Ning bowed to Wang Yang, who was full of spring breeze, and smiled: "Young Master Wang, peace in your studies."

Wang Yang was in a good mood because Liu Zhao had just told him that the registration matter had been handled, and he had been entered into the register at the Commandery Office in the morning. Now Wang Yang counted as having a 'temporary household registration' in Jingzhou.

It was just a bit bad that registration required stating the ancestral home. Although the official in charge—the Southern Commandery Assistant Zong Rui—had smoothed things over and omitted the step of sending an official letter to verify the ancestral home, the ancestral home still had to be written. So Zong Rui took it upon himself to write Wang Yang's hometown—Yixing—a place he had never been to and didn't even know where it was.

Regarding using Yixing as Wang Yang's hometown, it was purely Liu Zhao's 'wishful thinking' at the drinking table. Wang Yang had never admitted it, and of course, he hadn't denied it.

But if he didn't write Yixing, where could he write?

Wang Yang might as well let it be; Yixing it is.

Anyway, he had finally escaped the status of a 'black household', and Wang Yang's confidence had grown quite a bit. Although he couldn't sit firmly in his status as a Langya Wang clan member, at least he had a record in Jingzhou, which was enough to deal with general inquiries, adding a layer of protection to his status.

Wang Yang smiled and greeted Xiao Ning, then prepared to board the cart. Xiao Ning's face changed, and she hurriedly stretched out her arm to block Wang Yang: "What does the Young Master mean by this?"

"Boarding the cart, of course." Wang Yang was puzzled.

"This is my Xie Xie Niangzi's cart; the cart for the Young Master is behind." Xiao Ning didn't know what Wang Yang was thinking, actually daring to dream of riding in the same cart as her Xie Xie Niangzi!!

In this era, the customs of social interaction between men and women were not as strict as after the Song Dynasty, and men and women who were not in a marriage relationship riding in the same cart was not a rare thing. But given Xie Xie Niangzi Xie Xie Xie Niangzi Xie Xinghan's status and personality, she had never ridden in the same cart with a man.

Wang Yang hadn't thought that much, so he took Chen Qingshan and boarded another ox cart. Xiao Ning still remembered Wang Yang's attempt to ride in the same cart as her Xie Xie Niangzi, muttered "lecher" under her breath, and then handed Wang Yang a piece of paper, on which were recorded the identity information of the people participating in the gathering today. There were three people in total.

First was Liu Cheng of the Hedong Liu clan, son of the Duke of Liu, and a friend of the Prince of Badong (Prince's friend is an official title, not the meaning of friend), and younger brother of Liu Tan, the Libationer of the Wang Guanxue.

Second was Yan Youcheng of the Langya Yan clan, grandson of Yan Tengzhi, Administrator of Baling, and younger brother of Yan Youming, Military Advisor of Pingnan.

Finally, the host of the gathering and the judge of this pure conversation, Yu Yi.

The paper didn't write out Yu Yi's official title, only one sentence: Master of the New Wild Yu clan, head of the Jingzhou gentry!

It had to be said that Xie Xie Niangzi Xie Xie Xie Niangzi Xie Xinghan was quite meticulous. She probably considered that he wasn't familiar with the people, so she gave him some general information to understand the situation.

However, this introduction itself was written very briefly, especially for Wang Yang, because he had no concept of official titles like 'Military Advisor of Pingnan' or 'Prince's friend', and didn't know how high their specific ranks were.

But one thing was certain: since they could play with Xie Xie Niangzi Xie Xie Xie Niangzi Xie Xinghan and Yu Yi, the status of these two 'n-generation ancestors' would definitely not be low. This made Wang Yang start thinking about the strategy for the pure conversation in a while.

Note: ① The matter of strange men and women riding in the same cart is recorded in *In Search of the Supernatural* and *Comprehensive Meaning of Customs*. The customs of the Wei, Jin, Northern and Southern Dynasties were relatively open, far from the many taboos that existed after the rise of ritual law in the Southern Song Dynasty. Like joking that Wei Wu liked married women, it is actually a manifestation of the cultural atmosphere of that era. This loose atmosphere actually had signs in the Han Dynasty. Regarding this point, Peng Wei's *Marriage Forms in the Han Dynasty* summarizes it well, which can be consulted.

② The clarification of the rumor that there were no stir-fried dishes and iron pots in the Northern and Southern Dynasties can be found in the appendix of Chapter 91. ===== CHAPTER 71 =====