1057 AD, Kaifeng Prefecture Imperial Academy
The area around the northeastern corner of Zhuque Gate in the inner city of Kaifeng Prefecture was the most prosperous and bustling place in Eastern Capital. Because the Cai River flowed through here, it formed an elegant river bend.
The Cai River Bend was extremely prosperous, with various shops and buildings visible everywhere. What was even more peculiar was that this area simultaneously housed the Imperial Examination Hall, the Imperial Academy, the Imperial University, the Imperial Music Academy, hospitals, brothels, and gambling houses. From the highest to the lowest classes of society, almost everything was squeezed into this one area, making this unique landscape the most renowned place in Eastern Capital.
Wang Junmin, who had just reached the age of capping ceremony, followed his classmate and close friend Chu Yushi as they slowly walked out from the solemn and dignified academy on the south bank of Cai River Bend, gradually blending into the lively crowd of Cai River Bend under the moonlight.
Wang Junmin had entered the Imperial Academy at seventeen, becoming a student at this highest institution of learning. Of course, if not for the Qingli New Policies introduced by Minister Fan Zhongyan twelve years ago, which established the Xiqing Academy and Imperial Academy, he would still be studying poetry and classics somewhere unknown.
The Imperial Academy had residential halls – as long as tuition was paid, room and board were provided.
After three years of struggling in the Imperial Academy, this was Wang Junmin’s first time being dragged out to properly tour the famous Cai River Bend. He was immediately dazzled by the bustling crowds shoulder to shoulder before him.
In the crowd, he could see many people wearing the same round-collar wide-sleeved white fine cloth lanshan robes as them – these were the Imperial Academy uniforms.
Wang Junmin’s sharp eyes spotted several students wearing Imperial Academy uniforms boldly walking toward brothels and pleasure houses, and he couldn’t help feeling embarrassed for them, wishing he could change out of the same white fine cloth lanshan robe he was wearing.
But he also knew this was the way of the world. In the marketplaces, romantic stories of talented scholars and beautiful ladies were often circulated. Most of those unnamed authors were his classmates.
“Kanghou, what are you thinking about?” Chu Yushi had already walked several steps ahead before realizing the person beside him hadn’t followed, so he turned back to call out.
“Oh, Hefu, I was just thinking that tomorrow is the Upper Hall examination. Isn’t it inappropriate for us to be out wandering now?” Wang Junmin had the best relationship with Chu Yushi – they were not only from the same hometown but also roommates.
“You’ve studied yourself silly. Coming out for fresh air will help with tomorrow’s performance!” Chu Yushi tapped his shoulder with the folding fan in his hand, looking completely unconcerned.
Wang Junmin hesitated for a moment, but ultimately couldn’t bear to dampen his friend’s spirits, so he stepped forward to follow.
The Imperial Academy was divided into three halls: Outer Hall, Inner Hall, and Upper Hall.
New students entered the Outer Hall upon admission to the Imperial Academy. After passing monthly private examinations and annual public examinations, and with academic officials considering their daily conduct, qualified students could advance to the Inner Hall to become Inner Hall students. Inner Hall students took examinations every two years, with outstanding ones entering the Upper Hall. Upper Hall students could take examinations every two years, and if all their evaluations reached excellent level, they could become top-tier Upper Hall students and be directly appointed to official positions upon graduation. If one subject was rated as average, they became middle-tier Upper Hall students and were exempted from the Ministry of Rites examination. The next level became lower-tier Upper Hall students, exempted from the preliminary examination.
It could be said that within the Imperial Academy, the Outer Hall, Inner Hall, and Upper Hall directly divided the academy students into upper, middle, and lower tiers. The Upper Hall wasn’t accessible to everyone – Upper Hall students were almost at the very top of the Imperial Academy pyramid. They naturally enjoyed the guidance of the academy’s best academic officials and instructors, the finest residential halls, and the best study rooms. In the Imperial Academy, they always walked with their noses in the air.
The Imperial Academy uniform’s white fine cloth lanshan was a type of men’s long robe with a horizontal lan hem attached to the lower garment. The entire outfit was simple and plain, looking no different from ordinary scholars’ lanshan robes, except for an indistinct dark-colored trim on the black lanshan. Everyone in Eastern Capital knew that only Imperial Academy students could wear this trimmed lanshan, and the not-very-obvious colors distinguished the levels of academy students.
Wang Junmin looked down at the indigo-colored trim on his hem. He thought that he had previously worn ultramarine, now indigo, and hoped that soon he could change to the low-key but honor-representing crow-blue color of Upper Hall students.
Lost in these random thoughts, Wang Junmin didn’t notice the gazes of passersby. The two of them were already handsome and tall, and wearing the Inner Hall Imperial Academy uniforms, they were quite eye-catching.
Having entered the Inner Hall of the Imperial Academy, though not yet Upper Hall, they could be said to have one foot already through the court’s threshold.
So as the two walked down the street, envious or jealous glances were constantly cast their way. Wang Junmin followed Chu Yushi through countless alleys and lanes, and only when he noticed the surroundings had become quiet did he realize they had arrived in a very secluded alley. Yet this place was clearly still near Cai River Bend, because the noisy shouting and hawking could be heard clearly from not far away. This alley also had quite a few shops, many selling antiques and calligraphy paintings. Because this trade had the iron rule of “don’t judge colors under lamplight,” they all closed shop after nightfall, though it should be quite lively during the day.
But what were they doing here when everything was closed? Wang Junmin was about to ask when he saw an antique shop with lanterns still lit in front. He only had time to see by the lantern’s dim light that the antique shop’s sign read “Dumb House” before being pulled by Chu Yushi through the shop’s entrance.
Before he could clearly see the shop’s interior furnishings, Wang Junmin already smelled a heart-refreshing fragrance – sweet but not cloying, fresh and pure, as if it had washed away all the impurities in his heart, immediately lifting his spirits.
This antique shop was truly luxurious. Though he didn’t know what kind of incense this was, it was definitely not cheap. Wang Junmin unconsciously touched the money pouch at his waist. His father was merely a minor judge in Kaifeng Prefecture, living on his salary and having to grease palms everywhere. Supporting his Imperial Academy education was already the limit, not to mention he had three younger brothers at home who hadn’t grown up yet – he needed to be frugal.
Since he was determined not to buy anything, Wang Junmin could calmly appreciate the antiques in the shop, marveling as he looked.
The shop’s arrangement was elegant and pleasant, with various antiques displayed just right, without the mercenary feeling of goods waiting to be sold. Instead, it felt like entering the main hall of a wealthy family, where every antique looked gorgeous and precious, worth a fortune.
Chu Yushi didn’t have Wang Junmin’s leisure – he immediately rushed to where the scholarly antiques were placed and began picking through them. Besides some jade pendants and fans, Imperial Academy students generally preferred these scholarly items they could use daily. Moreover, antique shops often had scholarly playthings used by famous scholars – no one knew if they were real or fake, but buying them before exams could serve as good luck charms, blessing them to pass every test. In Chu Yushi’s view, this was much more useful than reviewing before exams.
“Shopkeeper! Is that cloud-pattern white jade brush washer that Li Bai used, which I saw this afternoon, still here?” Chu Yushi urgently pulled out banknotes from his pocket. “I brought enough money this time!” Wang Junmin didn’t know how to react. Though this shop looked quite nice, with antique charm and aged artifacts, a brush washer used by the Immortal Poet Li Bai was too ridiculous. But he knew his friend’s temperament – there was no dissuading him. Besides, Chu Yushi’s family was wealthy, so he didn’t care about such expenses.
Even thinking this way, Wang Junmin couldn’t develop good feelings toward this antique shop’s owner. After the man emerged from the inner room, he looked away and no longer paid attention to the bargaining there, casually scanning the nearby antique shelves. But his gaze was suddenly drawn to a jade figure in the corner. He curiously walked over and discovered it was a jade wengzhong only as large as a thumb.
Jade wengzhong was a type of ornament for warding off evil spirits. Wengzhong was originally a strongman during Emperor Qin Shihuang’s time, named Ruan Wengzhong. Legend said he possessed immense strength and martial prowess. Emperor Qin Shihuang had Ruan Wengzhong guard Lintao, striking fear into the Xiongnu. After Ruan Wengzhong’s death, Emperor Qin Shihuang cast a bronze statue of him and placed it outside the Sima Gate of Xianyang Palace. When Xiongnu people came to Xianyang to pay tribute, seeing this bronze statue from afar, they thought it was the real Ruan Wengzhong and dared not approach. Thus, later people cast wengzhong into bronze figures or carved them as stone figures, placing them before palaces, temples, and tombs to ward off evil. Gradually, people began wearing jade wengzhong to ward off evil. Jade wengzhong, along with magnetic compass pendants and gangmao, were extremely popular during the Han Dynasty and were collectively called the “Three Treasures of Evil-Warding.” Though the gentleman doesn’t speak of strange powers and supernatural phenomena, Wang Junmin normally didn’t believe in such things, but he felt this white jade wengzhong was carved with extreme ancient simplicity and elegance, so he couldn’t help reaching out to pick it up for careful examination.
This jade wengzhong adopted the Han Dynasty style of “Han Eight Cuts,” with an ancient and refined style. Just a few simple cuts carved out a young man’s face, with lustrous jade light and a soul-stirring sense of vigorous determination. This jade wengzhong’s perforation was herringbone-shaped, running straight from the top of the head to the abdomen, then splitting into two paths emerging from both sides of the waist. The herringbone-shaped red cord also ran from the head down to knots tied at both sides of the waist, so the wengzhong could hang upright when suspended. This herringbone perforation was also a clear marker of Han Dynasty wengzhong.
Wang Junmin fondly caressed it. This jade wengzhong, perhaps due to its ancient age, had a brand-new cord, but the wengzhong’s body had several cracks and blood-thread-like discoloration, looking like blood left by the jade wengzhong, giving an indescribably eerie feeling.
“Oh my, Kanghou, why are you looking at this?” Chu Yushi had already bought that brush washer and came over holding a brocade box. Seeing the jade wengzhong in Wang Junmin’s hand, he made a big fuss. “What’s wrong?” Wang Junmin frowned, his gaze falling on the shop owner who had followed over, shocked by the man’s extraordinary temperament.
This person wore ancient Qin-Han period clothing – a wide-sleeved, fitted wrapped deep robe, with elegant black straight hems hanging by his feet, further accentuating his jade-like face. He looked exactly like an elegant figure stepped out of ancient paintings. Such scholarly temperament couldn’t be matched even by the Imperial Academy’s Grand Academicians, not to mention his hair wasn’t bound, showing he was still under twenty.
“This jade wengzhong is said to bring misfortune!” Chu Yushi said with exaggerated tone. “You know Zhang Shizheng, right? The one who’s been competing with you for Inner Hall Teaching Assistant? He didn’t believe in superstition and bought this jade wengzhong recently, but then had continuous bad luck, even losing the Inner Hall Teaching Assistant position to you. Later he had no choice but to return this jade wengzhong.”
Inner Hall Teaching Assistant was selected from the most outstanding Inner Hall students to guide other Inner Hall students’ coursework when academic officials were unavailable. Wang Junmin had applied for Inner Hall Teaching Assistant for the monthly silver stipend and had never paid attention to who was competing with him.
But he had an impression of Zhang Shizheng. After all, there were only so many extremely outstanding Inner Hall students – they were all candidates for entering Upper Hall. No matter how unworldly Wang Junmin was, he knew those few people. But that wasn’t the point. Wang Junmin ignored Chu Yushi’s dissuasion and directly asked the silent shop owner: “How much for this jade wengzhong?”
The shop owner smiled lightly and said: “Your friend says this jade wengzhong brings misfortune. Why do you still want to buy it?”
“Does it really bring misfortune?” Wang Junmin furrowed his brow. He had thought this shop owner, who could hype up an ordinary-looking brush washer as used by the Immortal Poet, would naturally be eager to sell this jade wengzhong, making up all sorts of strange origins.
But the shop owner didn’t answer his question directly. Instead, he said slowly: “Jade is originally stone, formed by gathering heaven and earth’s spiritual energy, then carefully carved by craftsmen into ornaments. Jade that has blocked disasters for its owner often develops cracks or even breaks due to spiritual energy depletion. Jade has spiritual nature, but conversely also has evil nature. Broken jade easily attracts unpleasant things.”
He didn’t say this jade wengzhong would bring misfortune, but every word implied it.
Wang Junmin looked down at the jade wengzhong in his hand. He knew the cracks on the wengzhong weren’t natural stone patterns in the jade itself, but real fractures, and even the discoloration had penetrated very deeply.
But what if he just really liked it? The affinity between jade and people also depended on fate. In this room full of precious antiques, with just one sweep of his gaze, he had only taken a fancy to this one. He just wanted to possess it, as if it naturally should belong to him.
“How much for this jade wengzhong?” Wang Junmin began calculating how much money he could use. After becoming Inner Hall Teaching Assistant, he did have some stipend.
The shop owner smiled slightly and said casually: “Since you want it, just take it. Treat it well, and if you truly grow tired of it, don’t discard it carelessly.”
Wang Junmin joyfully thanked him and immediately hung the jade wengzhong at his waist, feeling that coming out tonight was truly the right decision.