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Despite the internal lament, Fei Qian couldn't just leave without submitting his homework. Not only would it be rude, but it would also make him look bad. So, he braced himself and went to see Cai Yan.
Women in the Han Dynasty weren't as restricted by the oppressive rules that would later emerge in the Ming and Qing dynasties; they enjoyed relatively more freedom. The stringent rules about gender segregation, which became more severe than flood prevention, actually started in the Song Dynasty and were propagated by Zhu Xi, reaching their peak in the Ming and Qing dynasties. For instance, the famous official Hai Rui once declared, "How can a girl accept food from a male servant? She is no longer my daughter. Only if she starves to death can she be called my daughter." This was because his daughter had accepted a piece of cake from a male servant. Later, Hai Rui's daughter cried incessantly, refused to eat, and starved to death after seven days. The most tragic part was that she was only five years old at the time...
Of course, the authenticity of this story still needs to be verified.
Those pedantic Confucian scholars, especially Zhu Xi, were hypocrites who preached one thing but practiced another, much like some people in later generations...
Zhu Xi had two notorious incidents recorded in history. One was that in his sixties, he took a young nun as his concubine. Taking a concubine wasn't the issue; the problem was that the girl was originally a young nun, and Zhu Xi, in his old age, couldn't resist the allure of her uniform and forcibly took her away from the Buddha... Another incident involved his daughter-in-law, who had been a widow living in seclusion and never receiving male guests, suddenly announcing the joyous news that she was pregnant...
When these two incidents about Zhu Xi came to light, even Emperor Ningzong of the Song Dynasty, Zhao Kuo, was shocked. Zhu Xi had once lectured to Emperor Ningzong, so the emperor was technically his disciple. With mixed feelings, Emperor Ningzong personally asked Zhu Xi if these rumors were true. Zhu Xi's response was ambiguous; he admitted that his teachings were "false learning" and made a profound self-criticism: "I deeply reflect on my past mistakes and carefully seek what is right now..."
Of course, those who admire Zhu Xi might argue that this was just his humble way of speaking.
In any case, learning a foreign language or discussing academic matters behind closed doors is a common practice across time and cultures.
So, if a woman were to time-travel, it would be safer to choose the Han or Tang dynasties, as they were relatively more liberal. Otherwise, in later dynasties, she might have to worry about being punished with the "pig cage" or "wooden donkey"...
Fei Qian met Cai Yan in the study. As usual, Cai Yan was silently copying books. When she saw Fei Qian, she put down her brush.
Cai Yan's calligraphy, influenced by her father Cai Yong, was as dignified and elegant as her personality. Since she was copying books, she used the formal clerical script, with each stroke strong and full of vitality. Compared to Fei Qian's calligraphy, which had form but lacked spirit, hers was on a completely different level.
Cai Yan tucked a few strands of hair that had fallen loose while she was writing and smiled faintly, asking, "How many books from the reading list have you finished?"
Fei Qian braced himself and replied, "To be honest, senior sister, I haven't read any yet..."
"Have you at least practiced calligraphy?"
"...No."
Cai Yan's dark, beautiful eyes widened slightly as she said, "Learning should never cease."
Fei Qian bowed his head and clasped his hands, saying, "I take your advice to heart, but I've been extremely busy these past few days..."
Fei Qian then thought that perhaps Cai Yan could help persuade Cai Yong to leave Luoyang. If they could move away, the father and daughter might avoid the tragic fate that awaited them.
So, Fei Qian selectively shared some of the recent events with Cai Yan. Cai Yan, who rarely went out and hadn't heard about these things, listened quietly. When Fei Qian mentioned the story of Chong'er, Cai Yan nodded slightly, as if acknowledging that his argument had some merit.
Cai Yan suddenly sighed and said softly, "In ancient times, there was the literary thief Dong; now, there is the military thief Dong. This is truly..."
Fei Qian knew that the "military thief Dong" referred to Dong Zhuo, who used military force to dominate the court and force Emperor Shao (Liu Bian) to abdicate. But who was the "literary thief Dong"?
"The literary thief Dong? Junior brother, you should go back and read the *Book of Han* carefully. If you don't submit your homework next time..." Cai Yan smiled slyly, not explaining further, and simply sent Fei Qian away with the instruction to study hard.
Can we still have fun like this? It's not fair to bully someone just because you've read more books and know more than I do...
Even Master Cai Yong answers all my questions. Why don't you learn from your father's example, Cai Yan?
And now I have to submit homework...
After leaving the Cai residence, Fei Qian saw that it was still early and decided to make a detour to the Cui family. It had been a while since his last visit after the Beimang Mountain incident, and besides, the Cui family had a commercial network that could provide information about the surrounding regions.
So, Fei Qian turned toward the northern part of the city. Along the way, he noticed that the pedestrians were in a hurry, their expressions filled with anxiety and fear, unlike the calm and natural demeanor they had before. He couldn't help but sigh inwardly. These commoners, whom the aristocratic families and court officials treated as insignificant ants, were also affected by the political turmoil and were beginning to feel nervous and uneasy. But who knew that even worse times were yet to come...
When he arrived at the Cui family estate, Cui Hou personally came out to greet him.
After exchanging greetings, Fei Qian asked about Cui Yi's health. Cui Hou shook his head with a grim expression.
In his previous life, Fei Qian only knew how to buy some medicine when he was sick. Going to the hospital was a last resort because it was too expensive. So, he had no real knowledge of medicine, just a broad but shallow understanding.
For the elderly, it's important to maintain a calm and peaceful state of mind. Extreme emotions like joy or anger can easily damage the blood vessels in the brain, leading to a stroke. From Cui Hou's description, Cui Yi's condition sounded like a stroke. However, even in modern times, there are no particularly effective treatments for this condition, so in the Han Dynasty, it was essentially incurable.
Perhaps the legendary doctors Hua Tuo or Zhang Zhongjing could have helped, but unfortunately, neither of them was in Luoyang, and there was no way to find them.
Cui Hou understood this as well, so he didn't dwell on the topic. After briefly discussing it, he presented the glass products that the family craftsmen had developed based on Fei Qian's formula.
It had to be said that the ingenuity of ancient people exceeded Fei Qian's expectations. With only his somewhat imprecise formula, the craftsmen had experimented and adjusted until they produced items that were almost as good as the glass products Fei Qian had seen in his previous life. The only difference was that the carving and design were limited by the craftsmen's vision and experience, so they weren't as varied and colorful as modern ones.
Fei Qian couldn't help but express his admiration. He was truly impressed.
Glass products were highly profitable, but they were not something ordinary people could afford. So, Cui Hou only sold the best pieces, but even so, he made a significant profit. Monopoly businesses were always synonymous with wealth.
Now that Fei Qian had become a disciple of two great scholars, Cui Hou treated him with even more respect. He even offered to share a portion of the profits from the glass products with Fei Qian.
Fei Qian understood that this profit was also Cui Hou's investment in his future, but he saw no reason to refuse. After all, if someone was willing to invest in him, it meant he still had value, right?
However, directly accepting money seemed a bit crude, so Fei Qian said, "Gold and silver are not urgent matters at the moment. What I do have is a more pressing issue."
"Please, tell me. If I can help, I will certainly do my best."
Fei Qian said, "I've been living in Luoyang for a long time and don't know much about the regions of Zhili, Yuji, and Jingxiang. Does Brother Yongyuan have any information about these areas?"
Cui Hou thought for a moment and said, "I do have some basic geographical and biographical information, but I'm not sure if it will satisfy you." He then called a servant to fetch a thin booklet from the study and handed it to Fei Qian.
Fei Qian curiously took it and was shocked!
The Eastern Han Dynasty actually had something like this!
*****
A/N: Even in modern supermarkets, perfectly packaged fruits and vegetables sometimes contain rotten pieces or bad leaves, let alone people. These examples can be found everywhere, not just in the case of Zhu Xi. It's just that he wasn't as "white" as some might think.