Seeing Bai Qingyan nod, and noticing his classmates also nodding in agreement, the Imperial Academy student grew bolder and continued: “Your Majesty’s promulgation of this new policy will surely give women ideas, but if family elders are unwilling to spend money on women, the women will rebel against their families, which might trigger chaos throughout Great Zhou!”
“Therefore, this humble one’s foolish opinion is that men and women should each perform their duties. Allowing women to enter schools would be sufficient—this is currently the best and most stable approach for the Great Zhou. The Great Zhou has abundant talented people, with talent emerging in every generation. Even if we only select from among men, why worry about not finding great talents? After all, from ancient times to now… amazing talents like Guan Zhong and Shang Yang have all been men!”
Saying this, the student seemed worried that Bai Qingyan might be displeased, so he quickly added: “This humble one doesn’t mean to say that women cannot produce world-class talents. I also have a mother, whom I respect and love, and I have never looked down on women!”
The student looked up at Bai Qingyan: “This humble one only feels that… The Great Zhou has maintained the system of men managing external affairs and women managing internal affairs for hundreds of years. When men and women each perform their duties, families are harmonious. When women support their husbands and teach their children, men have no worries at home and can strive outside! Your Majesty, only when people’s families are harmonious can the Great Zhou be peaceful. The Great Zhou has just been established… and is implementing new laws. We should prioritize the stability of the Great Zhou’s people and court. New laws like allowing women to take imperial examinations and enter government service might trigger chaos in the Great Zhou. Please reconsider, Your Majesty!”
“Well said! Women should know their place and behave properly… only when men and women each perform their duties can the Great Zhou have peace!” Xue Renyi added.
Cheng Yuanzhi and Shen Kunyang, who had escorted Bai Qingyan here with the imperial guards, stood outside the small courtyard. Hearing these words, Cheng Yuanzhi could no longer contain himself, rolling up his sleeves and nearly charging in again, fortunately being stopped by Shen Kunyang.
“Don’t stop me, let me beat that pretty boy to death! Damn it…” Cheng Yuanzhi was so angry that his chest heaved rapidly. “If it weren’t for our Young Marshal Bai defeating Yun Poxing decisively on the Nanjiang battlefield, this pretty boy wouldn’t even have the life to speak here! He might have been cut into hundreds of pieces by Yun Poxing long ago. Back then, he didn’t talk about performing separate duties—now he’s spouting nonsense about separate duties! If he has the guts… damn it, he should take a blade and go chop down Yun Poxing! Why make our Young Marshal Bai go to the battlefield? Yet he treasures his dog life hiding here in the capital!”
Cheng Yuanzhi had a rough voice and spoke loudly, drawing the attention of students inside the Naxian Hall, and even the literati gathered outside the hall to watch the excitement turned to look at him.
Yang Wuce glanced at the agitated Cheng Yuanzhi and couldn’t help but sigh inwardly. Indeed, these were Bai Qingyan’s direct Bai family army troops—extremely loyal, unable to tolerate others’ rebuttals. But didn’t they think about it… what kind of person was the Great Zhou Empress? Could she be easily defeated in debate?
Yang Wuce had experienced Bai Qingyan’s eloquence… she could turn Zhao Sheng, a military general whose family had been loyal to Great Liang for generations, to their side. Could such eloquence be ordinary?
Zhao Sheng had merely conveyed Bai Qingyan’s words of persuasion to him, yet that had moved Yang Wuce. Could such eloquence be ordinary?
Yang Wuce held his sword and glanced at Cheng Yuanzhi, then immediately spotted Xiao Rongyan standing conspicuously in the crowd.
Yang Wuce, thinking of establishing good relations with the future Imperial Consort or Noble Consort, saw that Shen Kunyang was lecturing Cheng Yuanzhi, so he quickly squeezed out of the imperial guards, circled, and ran to bow to Xiao Rongyan: “Master Xiao has also come!”
Xiao Rongyan, standing under the tree shade, nodded slightly, his gaze falling on Bai Qingyan…
“General Cheng was somewhat impetuous, please forgive him!” Bai Qingyan bowed deeply to all the students, then gestured for the Imperial Academy student who was bowing to the ground to sit down, before slowly speaking: “What this student said, I understand… First, you think continuing the system of men managing external affairs and women managing internal affairs is very good, and you worry that allowing women to take imperial examinations will cause chaos! Second, you think the Great Zhou already has enough talented people and doesn’t need to select more talent from among women. Is this correct?”
The student quickly straightened up and bowed deeply to Bai Qingyan, indicating that what she said was exactly his meaning.
“Then let’s first discuss men managing external affairs and women managing internal affairs…” Bai Qingyan smiled as she sat down on the sitting couch, her expression carrying an extremely faint smile.
The bamboo struck the stone again and again. All the Imperial Academy students held their breath and looked at Bai Qingyan, hoping either that she could be persuaded by this student, or… that she could persuade them.
As wind passed through the dappled shadows of swaying trees, Bai Qingyan’s voice came slowly: “Men managing external affairs and women managing internal affairs—can this achieve family harmony? All of you here are men. Do you think… your mothers or wives truly enjoy being confined to the inner quarters, supporting husbands and teaching children? Or do you think… that only men have grand ambitions, while women think only of their small plots of land every day?”
Bai Qingyan adjusted her sitting position, as if casually chatting with these students under the tree shade on a sunny day: “Which of you has ever asked your mother, or wife, or sisters what aspirations they might have?”
The Imperial Academy students were stunned. It seemed… no one had ever thought to ask their mothers, sisters, or wives what their aspirations were, as if they were born believing that women were naturally meant to marry and support husbands while teaching children.
For instance, when their sisters were young, family elders would have them learn needlework, while the boys learned poetry and literature.
“To confine them, the saying of ‘men manage external affairs, women manage internal affairs’ was created, hoping women would remain simple and dutiful, taking care of the inner quarters, so that men could have no worries at home and free their hands to strive outside. But are women inferior to men?” Bai Qingyan looked at all the students and asked in return. “Everyone… among those Bai Qingyan knows, such as my maternal grandmother Old Madam Dong, like General Fu Ruoxi’s mother Old Madam Fu, and like General Zhao Sheng of Han City’s mother Old Madam Zhao—which of them doesn’t match any man in capability? After their husbands passed away, they single-handedly supported entire families! If these women could enter the court and serve as officials, they would surely achieve great things! But because women are not permitted to enter government service, they can only be confined to the inner quarters…”
“To maintain a household, they usually must exert ten or a hundred times more effort than men, fundamentally… because women’s status is low.” Seeing all the students quietly watching her, she continued, “Speaking of this, I’m not afraid of your laughter. It’s precisely because of male supremacy and female subjugation… the ancient principle that women cannot inherit family property. When the Bai family suffered calamity, we orphans and widows had our family property completely taken away by our clan using such reasoning, and could only rely on my mother’s and aunts’ dowries to survive.”
Who could not know of this matter? The Shuoyang Bai clan members came to the capital precisely because the Bai family had no men left… they didn’t even respect the Grand Princess and made her vomit blood from anger. The Grand Princess held such noble status, and the Bai family’s direct lineage ancestors had such meritorious achievements—the clan dared act this way simply because the Bai family had no men left!