He bowed respectfully to Bai Qingyan with a formal salute, then continued: “For a woman to govern a nation’s court affairs is unheard of in our Kingdom’s history. While it’s true that the Jin Emperor was obsessed with alchemy like a madman in his later years, you should have supported the Crown Prince’s ascension. Yet you destroyed the Jin Dynasty because of the Bai family’s private vengeance, completely disregarding the righteous duty between ruler and minister. Where is your virtue?”

Xue Renyi’s gaze then turned to Bai Qingjue, who knelt beside Bai Qingyan with distinguished bearing: “Even if it was ultimately a case of officials forcing the people to rebel, and the Bai family had no choice but to rise, couldn’t the Bai family’s Seventh Young Master… have taken the throne? What virtue and ability do you possess to ascend to the imperial position? You acted willfully, ascending the throne alone as a woman, implementing new policies and governing the Kingdom without respecting the methods of sage rulers throughout history, promoting harsh new laws! Now you’re even using your authority for personal gain, allowing women to take imperial examinations and serve as court officials, wanting to break customs and principles that have existed since ancient times. Isn’t this because you fear that ascending to the imperial throne as a woman lacks legitimacy, so you want to raise women’s status as quickly as possible?”

Xue Renyi’s voice was strident.

“Xue Renyi!” The Imperial Academy’s Sacrificial Wine turned pale and stood up, shouting: “Take Xue Renyi away!”

“Sacrificial Wine, there’s no need for that. Today in this Naxian Hall, there are no rulers and ministers—everyone is simply discussing matters based on their merits!” Bai Qingyan slowly stood up, looked around, and said with a smile to the furious Xue Renyi: “Xue Renyi, I remember you… You beat the petition drum for students throughout the realm, exposed the imperial examination fraud case, and sought justice for all students. You are truly worthy of your name—a man of high righteousness!”

Bai Qingyan bowed to Xue Renyi, her voice flowing like gurgling water as she spoke: “When physicians heal and save people, would they be unable to cure patients simply because the physician is a woman? Long ago, my aunt Bai Suqiu volunteered to enter Jiaozhou during the great epidemic there when the entire nation was helpless. She eliminated the plague and saved the people! Who would dare say that because my aunt was a woman, her medical skills were inadequate?”

The matter of the great Jiaozhou epidemic was indeed known to all the students present. Thinking of Bai Suqiu… that noble legitimate daughter of Duke Zhenguo’s mansion, the legitimate daughter of Prince Zhenguo Bai Weiting and the Grand Princess, who entered Jiaozhou for the sake of the people and died for Kingdom and people, all the students pressed their lips together in silence, seeming to understand what Bai Qingyan was about to say.

“Treating illness… governing a Kingdom—both follow the same principle! I govern the Kingdom to save all people under heaven. As long as I can ensure that the people don’t suffer from cold, hardship, or hunger, even though I am a woman, who would dare say I am not a good ruler?”

Bai Qingyan looked around, her expression carrying a faint smile, unhurried and unperturbed: “Just as though I am a woman… who would dare say that in leading troops to battle… I am inferior to men?”

Bai Qingyan’s achievements in military leadership were indeed unmatched throughout the Great Zhou. Xue Renyi’s face looked terrible as his pointed questions were refuted one by one by Bai Qingyan, and though his heart was full of indignation and dissatisfaction, he found himself convinced.

The surrounding students held their breath and watched Bai Qingyan intently. The entire Naxian Hall was silent except for the sound of flowing water and the bamboo continuously striking stone as it filled with water.

“If we speak of women bringing disaster to nations, then who was it that kept Daji and Baosi by their sides? King Zhou was the ruler of a nation, who could command him? Indulging in wine and beauty… wasn’t this the ruler’s fault, yet we blame women for their beauty? What kind of logic is this?” Bai Qingyan paced back and forth beside the seats in a measured manner, then turned to look at the students either upstairs or in the courtyard. “When King You of Zhou lit beacon fires to amuse the feudal lords, was it because Baosi threatened King You’s life? She showed him no favor, and isn’t her integrity worthy of your respect? Throughout history, there have only been cases of rulers and treacherous ministers disrupting the court and bringing disaster to the Kingdom—never cases of women bringing disaster to nations!”

Some Imperial Academy students were hearing such views for the first time, yet they had to admit that what Bai Qingyan said… was not without reason.

Blaming the fall of a nation on one or two weak women was indeed somewhat far-fetched.

“If we must blame the fault of a nation’s destruction on a woman, wouldn’t that precisely show that King Zhou, King You of Zhou, and all the male court ministers of those two dynasties combined had less influence than a single woman? If this is the case… is Great Zhou wrong to employ women as officials?”

Xue Renyi’s eyes widened, his lips moved, but he couldn’t find words to refute this.

Bai Qingyan looked at Xue Renyi again: “You say I lack virtue and am unworthy of the ruler’s position, but what is virtue? What kind of virtuous person is qualified to sit in this supreme position? In my view, those who can bring real benefits to the people and the nation are virtuous people. You say my methods are disgraceful and don’t respect the governance methods of sage rulers. Bai Qingyan’s talents are shallow and learning limited—I dare not say the sages were wrong…”

She looked around and sighed: “But everyone… times have changed. We are no longer in that era when the sages were alive and ritual and music had not yet collapsed. Methods of governance… should adapt to historical progress and be perfected according to national strength and the people’s conditions, rather than… being constrained by conventional practices. Only respecting the governance methods of sages while ignoring national strength and the people’s conditions will only perpetuate past mistakes. Even policies that were once correct for pacifying the people, if they don’t match current circumstances and national strength, will still cause the people to suffer…”

Some students were already nodding slowly, acknowledging that what Bai Qingyan said was correct.

Even laws were repeatedly revised as times progressed—there were no laws that were perfect from the start.

Bai Qingjue watched his eldest sister standing under the shade of trees, with brilliant sunlight filtering through the layered green foliage, fine golden light, and white sophora flowers falling all over her. She only smiled as she looked at the students, her voice calm, gentle, and appropriate, her arguments sharp yet without an arrogant display of talent. Her voice flowed like the water in this Naxian Hall, already winning over most of the Imperial Academy students.

“Bai Qingyan’s talents are shallow and virtue limited. I admit that, as Xue Renyi said, initially… the intention to replace the Jin imperial court was indeed born from private vengeance! But this was based on the foundation that what the Lin clan of Jin had done could no longer bear the burden of governing a nation!” Bai Qingyan spoke candidly. “The ancestors of the Bai family, through generations, sacrificed their lives and forgot death for the grand aspiration of unification, dying wrapped in horse hide on battlefields. As a descendant of the Bai family bloodline, Bai Qingyan has never forgotten this. Bai Qingyan considers herself not merely someone who engages in empty talk and lofty discussions. Every new law I have implemented benefits the people. The new policies can be summarized in four words… benefiting the Kingdom and the people.”

“Today, if any of you can point out flaws in the new laws and discuss improvements with Bai Qingyan, I will regard you as a senior minister!” Bai Qingyan gave a deep bow to all the students, showing utmost respect and treating these students as worthy scholars.

“Your Majesty!” Another student stood up and bowed to Bai Qingyan, but by this time, there was no longer any contempt because Bai Qingyan was a woman. “Your Majesty wishes to allow women to take imperial examinations and serve as officials, but has Your Majesty considered that, aside from noble families, which ordinary families… would let their daughters go to school, take examinations, and serve as officials? After all… once women marry and bear children, they no longer belong to their natal families! Even if women take husbands who marry into their families, compared to spending money to send women to school, families would certainly still prefer to spend money on their sons.”