Chapter 191: Chapter 191
Year 2030, a university in the capital city
Midsummer was the hottest time of the year. Inside a classroom, an elderly professor dressed plainly, with a few gray strands at his temples, was slowly lecturing at the podium.
Above the podium, the projector displayed a portrait of a scholar in blue robes.
On the exquisite boat house depicted, the figure in the painting was lazily reclining on a couch, posture relaxed. Between his long, slender fingers, faintly visible were jade-white chess pieces, clearly engaged in a game with a friend.
Ancient paintings often used freehand brushwork; with just a few strokes, the unique, carefree demeanor of the figure could be seen, as well as the painter’s dedication and deep skill.
In the spacious classroom, the old professor’s voice carried a hint of excitement:
“Chu Zi’an, courtesy name Changqing, was a renowned politician, literary figure, mathematician, agricultural scientist, biologist, physicist in Great Qi’s history...
Chu Zi’an, originally from Qizhou in the Great Liang kingdom, was from a merchant family in Qizhou. Later, by his own strength, he assisted Emperor Jianyuan in unifying the realm. Holding the position of Chancellor, he was known as Prime Minister Chu. He is also a prominent figure in Great Qi’s history, a highlight in Chinese history both ancient and modern...”
“Surely everyone is quite familiar with this figure. According to all surviving historical records, his life can be divided into three major parts: a difficult and harsh childhood, a youth marked by emerging talent...”
The professor continued calmly listing achievements, while students below unconsciously recited along word for word.
They were so familiar that they no longer even needed their textbooks.
Familiar? Ha! That’s an understatement!
Many students couldn’t help but chuckle quietly. Come on, anyone who has absolutely dominated nearly all textbooks from elementary, junior high, senior high, even university, who wouldn’t know him?
Especially in recent years, from elementary language textbooks to junior and senior high history, math, biology, physics... every subject had this man.
Even the surviving essays had to be memorized word for word, every chapter recited and every sentence understood.
Fortunately, Prime Minister Chu had one merit: he was concise and straightforward in his writings, not fond of long, convoluted classical prose. Otherwise, imagine their miserable high school lives!
From the podium, the professor’s voice stirred a group of students into tears of frustration.
“Don’t worry, teacher. Others might not be familiar, but as for me, just in these few high school years, I know him almost as well as my own mother! Even more than my father!”
Perhaps it was this northeastern girl’s overly sharp words and exaggerated expression that caused bursts of laughter in the classroom.
But midway through the laughter, everyone suddenly sobered up. Wait, no. When it came to being dominated by this ancestor, it seemed everyone here was in the same sinking boat...
For a moment, the entire classroom even questioned their own lives. The history major was really terrifying!
Nearby, a beautiful math major who had tagged along with friends quietly smiled. Heh, scary? You history majors might think so, but can it compare to how terrifying the math department is?
After all, formulas casually deduced by their ancestors centuries ago still easily drive all these math nerds crazy today.
Sigh, who knows how the brain of that ancient forefather—no, thinking back to that jaw-dropping discovery a few years ago, it should be called foremother now—actually developed.
Thinking of this, the math major suddenly raised her hand with some doubt, smoothly standing from her seat:
“Teacher, it’s true that Prime Minister Chu was incredibly capable, but I have had a question bothering me for a long time...”
“It is well known that Prime Minister Chu was originally a woman, forced to disguise herself as a man due to family disputes between legitimate and concubine branches.”
“But what I don’t understand is, if that was the case early on, fine. But after many years, with the efforts of Chu and many others, women already held official positions in court. Why then did she not openly reveal her true identity?”
“Doing so would not only have quickly united the women in court to resist the later exclusion of female officials, but also inspired many women still lost in confusion!”
“Most importantly, it would have proven that even in the highly centralized power structure of ancient times, women’s wisdom could shine brilliantly, rivaling any man.”
Recalling some who once firmly claimed science was obviously better suited for men, the long-haired beauty smirked slightly, her expression clearly defiant. Yeah right, as if she wasn’t top of her class.
“This student probably isn’t from the history department, is she?”
The professor on stage remained gentle, but the girl below’s expression shifted slightly, her gaze sharp:
“Professor, does my being a history major have anything to do with my question?”
“Not at all,” the professor continued smiling, “This is an excellent question. But here, I want to tell you all that history never develops overnight...”
“Class, what do you think is the fundamental cause of the low status of women in ancient China?”
“Uh...” Before anyone could answer, the professor said:
“Is it policies? The attitudes of those in power? Or customs and folkways? Deep-rooted beliefs among the people?”
Seeing the girl pondering, Professor Hao continued: “In fact, none of these are the fundamental reason.”
“They might have some influence, but the above are not the root cause of this result over thousands of years.”
“Looking back at history, why did women’s status soar so high during the time of Prime Minister Chu? Even the rare periods of female emperors cannot compare?”
“The answer is simple: the demands of productive forces, or what we modern people call worldly value. Because the northern regions were sparsely populated, both armies and rapidly developing factories needed more manpower!”
“That is why women gradually left their homes to join the army, work in factories, and even enter politics...”
“Later, policies did not reverse because of the use of various tools and the development of handicrafts and factories. The value women could create continued to rise!”
“Of course, this also owed much to the authority of Prime Minister Chu in the eyes of contemporaneous scholars. The policies he personally enacted were rarely opposed or revoked at the time.”
“But tell me, if this prime minister’s true identity had been revealed, what would most likely happen? Perhaps with his reputation and status, he himself might not have been affected. But what about the other women in court? Especially when women’s participation in politics was not yet a strong trend?”
“A woman whose intelligence was nearly supernatural, standing alone at the peak, overshadowing almost all men of the era...”
On stage, the female professor’s voice softened considerably:
“You can imagine the outcome. After the first female emperor appeared, how did later rulers treat women in power? Did they protect them or guard against them?”
“If Prime Minister Chu had restored her female identity, would the policies supporting women’s freedom have been deliberately misinterpreted as her ‘personal bias as a woman’ rather than for the public good, greatly undermining their authority...”
“At that time, whether or not Chu’s reputation would be affected, what about the clearly weakened women still holding power in court? What fate awaited them?”
Facing the girl’s stunned gaze, the female professor smiled and continued:
“Students, throughout history, the position of any group largely depends on the value it can create and its necessity.”
“History is undoubtedly a fascinating subject. Take the simple example of widows remarrying. It is well known that during wartime, widows remarrying was allowed and even somewhat encouraged by those in power. But in peaceful times, especially prosperous eras with abundant manpower, what was the attitude toward women’s chastity?”
“If you can grasp this point, many answers become clear...”
“But there is still one more thing about this person’s identity!” Closing the book, Professor Hao laughed lightly: “Many historical records, especially countless notes from Emperor Jianyuan’s late years, show that while our prime minister was extraordinarily capable, he was extremely lazy and disliked trouble.”
“As long as it didn’t affect the overall situation, he naturally took the easiest path!”
Laughter erupted from the students below.
“Ah, Autumn!” Unaware of how the future would be arranged.
After roaming carefree with her buddies all over the place for decades, An Ning returned to the space thirty years later.
As usual, she opened the plot book in her hands.
Hmm... how to say this? Inside the space, An Ning propped up her chin. As she had guessed before, the original owner of this body in the previous life was still stuck in a familiar cannon fodder pattern, once again one of the unlucky cannon fodders who died early in the story.
Even the related plot had only a few brief lines.
Her previous speculation was correct: the protagonist of this small world was indeed her former junior Bai Zhi.
The whole story happened three years later, after Qizhou was destroyed and completely absorbed into Great Zhou.
A beautiful female doctor with excellent medical skills, who endured many hardships and persevered; a warlord fighting across the lands, but betrayed and severely wounded by her own sons and foreign enemies, drifting alone outside.
There were elements of family, national love, harem struggles, and various complex entanglements of love and hatred that were impossible to unravel clearly...
Just a quick glance made An Ning sigh; it was truly fascinating. To tell it in detail, even countless pages wouldn’t cover its brilliance.
Considering that she was already in her sixties, still fighting hard in officialdom every day, with fleeting romantic interests and complicated loves and hates involving that Minister Bai...
One could only say this person’s fate was truly interesting.
As for the original body, the unlucky cannon fodder, their connection was only in the year before Qizhou’s fall. The original was undoubtedly smart. Even without An Ning’s medical skills, discovering something was wrong with this body was only a matter of time.
Bai Zhi was the original’s personally chosen private doctor to keep secrets. After helping solve family troubles, for more than a year she visited daily as a friend to help care for the body.
Unfortunately, Doctor Wang’s medicine was truly insidious. The original body was already at its last gasp two years after Bai Zhi started treatment, spending most of each day bedridden.
Even though betrayed repeatedly by her own mother and abandoned by the family, the young original girl never gave up on herself...
Nor did she give up on life, enduring bitter medicine day after day, trying to save her broken body. In this life, she held the top position in the Medical Department for many years. Bai Zhi’s medical skill was indeed excellent, but people cannot outwit fate. Just as they worked hard for their future together, that year, the Zhou Army suddenly attacked.
Unlike in An Ning’s current life, when Prime Minister Chu repeatedly issued strict orders forbidding disturbance of civilians after the city fell, Great Zhou, led by Emperor Zhou Xuan, who honored military merit and martial prowess, was not so restrained.
Amid the widespread looting and killing, the Chu family, a famous northern merchant family where the original lived, became a prime target.
Times of chaos are the greatest test of human nature. Seeing the rampaging army, the original, incapacitated at the time, became the biggest burden in the family and was the first to be abandoned by her own mother and two younger brothers...
In the end, she died along with her elderly grandmother in the chaos of the marauding army.
The only consolation was that even though the family fled the city, the Chu family never fared well afterward. They suffered exile and hardship, and later, because of the original, were mercilessly retaliated against by Bai Zhi, who by then had entered the palace and held power...
An Ning covered her face in disbelief. Though every life was a cannon fodder, this was cannon fodder to an extreme.
But the next moment, the system spoke hesitantly: “Host, the next world will be very dangerous. You must, must be prepared!”
Looking at the stuttering teacup dog, An Ning’s expression grew serious, yet a spark of excitement flickered in her eyes.
Under the system’s obvious nervous gaze, An Ning decisively pressed the activation button.
Tasker 666, Shen Anning
Current world rating: Five stars
Hidden task: Cast off burdens and live this life freely and leisurely (Completed)
Remaining points: 578
Next world transition in progress...