Chapter 85 Mountains high and rivers long, but she must not have her own ambitions, especially…

After dealing with the grain delivery incident, life in Luxi Village returned to normal.

Although the turmoil in the capital was far away, many rumors had already drifted to Luxi Village with the passing caravans.

Someone whispered, "Have you heard? In the capital, the forces of the First Prince and the Second Prince are fighting like cats and dogs. Many high-ranking officials who were once so powerful are now being imprisoned or have their homes confiscated without warning..."

The other person quickly waved his hand, signaling him to be quiet: "Shh—don't talk about state affairs, don't talk about state affairs! Be careful, the walls have ears."

In the end, it all boiled down to one sentence: "Alas, the world is like this... This year, the harvesting and transportation of grain has been exceptionally difficult, with strict checks at various checkpoints and significant losses."

"I don't know what to do..."

When the caravan returned to Luxi Village, they were all taken aback.

This village, which used to provide plenty of high-quality surplus grain in the past two years, now has almost nothing of decent grain to trade.

When asked what happened, the villagers could only shake their heads and sigh: "Our village was robbed by bandits, and now we have nothing left. You'd better go elsewhere to buy things!"

Some people even cried emotionally: "Without food, how are we going to survive next year!"

Although the merchants found it strange, seeing that the village granaries were indeed empty and everyone looked panicked as if they had been looted, they didn't say anything more and could only offer a few words of sympathy.

As they walked towards the village entrance, one of the grain merchants couldn't help but speak up: "Alas, Luxi Village has also suffered an undeserved disaster. We were hoping to buy more grain from Luxi. Fortunately, we haven't heard of any bandits in other counties or villages..."

"You make it sound so easy!" another merchant who had been traveling the grain route for years spat, lowering his voice. "Does the absence of bandits mean everything will be fine? Don't you know that Prefect Lu recently went crazy, increasing grain taxes like he was scraping the land dry!"

Seeing the man in front of him pause in surprise, he shook his head and added, "Even if there is grain elsewhere, how much will be left for us to trade after passing through his hands?"

Sighs and lamentations immediately filled the caravan.

Someone clicked their tongue and said, "I heard he didn't fare well either. His greed was insatiable, he caused too much trouble, and a few days ago he suddenly fell ill and fainted, and he hasn't woken up yet!"

The crowd sighed, but ultimately it was a matter of fortune for outsiders. After a few words of reflection, the convoy rumbled away.

Meanwhile, the students at Luxi Academy were busy planning a new literacy book.

A few days ago, Qin Xiang from Luzhou Girls' School sent her a new manuscript that she and her companions had compiled, asking the students of Luxi Academy to help review and supplement it.

They had spent several days in meetings and discussions, and had just compiled their revisions, preparing to send them back along with other new textbooks they had written themselves, when they suddenly received another urgent letter from Qin Xiangfu.

"There has been a change in the capital. Seeing that Lord Lu is seriously ill and in a coma and unable to manage state affairs, the court has appointed a new prefect to Luzhou to handle all matters."

"Upon arriving in Luzhou, this person issued several orders: First, the private establishment of girls' schools was strictly prohibited throughout the region, and all existing girls' schools were to be closed down; second, all literacy books circulating in the market and all kinds of teaching materials bearing the name 'Luxi Academy' were to be listed as banned books and were to be prohibited from being printed, sold, or circulated."

"Several bookstores have already been raided by the government recently, and the publishers will likely be punished as well. They will probably find out about Luxi Academy soon."

"The situation is urgent. I urge you all to act with caution, avoid confrontation, protect yourselves, refrain from replying, and remain in hiding for now."

"May our journey be long and prosperous, and may we both take care of ourselves. There will be many days to come, and we will surely meet again and have a good chat!"

The signature is Qin Xiangfu's name, the ink deep and bold, penetrating the paper.

The classroom erupted in an uproar.

Chen Miaozhi took the letter, quickly scanned it, and frowned deeply.

Danzhu, who had just returned from an exchange program at the Luzhou Girls' School, stood beside her and was also filled with astonishment after seeing the contents.

"Why would court infighting involve girls' schools? Even these few books that teach people to read are no longer allowed to be published?" a student couldn't help but ask, looking puzzled.

"That's right, literacy books are only meant to benefit the people, and they don't involve any vested interests, do they?"

What exactly happened in the capital?

Chen Miaozhi gently placed the letter on the table, her gaze sweeping over the young faces before her.

The children were clearly confused by all of this.

She had a guess.

However, the information she has at the moment is not enough for her to be certain.

All she knew was that this was definitely not just about a few books or a few schools.

----

As dusk approached outside the window, the twilight outlined the deep black silhouettes of the distant mountains, with only a lamp on the table burning quietly.

Wen Yu sat alone in the room, with two letters from Su Lin spread out in front of her.

The first letter concerned the war in the North.

In his letter, Su Lin stated frankly that the army's food supplies were insufficient, and the quality of the grain transported from various places was poor, making it difficult to continue. The situation was urgent.

She implored Wen Yu to provide assistance if there was any feasible solution.

Food was not a problem, as Wen Yu had plenty stored in his personal space.

As she pondered whether to rush to the North to help them, she unfolded a second letter.

Unexpectedly, the content of the letter suddenly changed, and the tone became solemn.

Su Lin didn't mention the northern border again, but hurriedly explained the current situation of the court to her, saying that the situation in the court was deteriorating rapidly and was extremely dangerous.

In their struggle for the throne, the factions of the eldest and second princes both sent people to win over Princess Zhaoxin and demand an explanation from her.

Princess Zhaoxin naturally rejected the attempts of both sides to win her over, saying that she would wait for her father to wake up before making a decision.

However, neither side was clearly satisfied and put pressure on her by proposing a "peace negotiation".

They wanted to use Princess Zhaoxin, who was supervising the army at the front, as a bargaining chip to send her to the enemy country. Some even said that the war was still unresolved and they were worried, so they suggested that the princess be sent to the enemy country for a marriage alliance!

Su Lin, usually calm, couldn't help but show some personal emotion at this moment: "Our army's victory is assured, and the enemy is about to be defeated. Yet they propose such a self-destructive and sycophantic strategy to seek peace with foreign powers. It's either stupid or malicious, utterly absurd. Some people, in their struggle for power, have even thrown national dignity and the most basic sense of shame to the wind!"

But she quickly regained her composure and said:

"His Highness will never yield to villains. Our original plan was to clean up the court after the war in the North was completely over, but now it seems that the internal corruption is far more harmful than the external enemy."

"Therefore, Your Highness and I have decided that we must first resolve the internal troubles in order to truly stabilize the country and achieve victory against external enemies."

Finally, Su Lin solemnly instructed, "Wen Yu, the eyes of the capital will soon be on everyone connected with His Highness, and even with me."

"Whether it's Luxi Village, you, or everyone around you, you must be careful and protect yourselves. Remember this!"

At the end of the letter, I wrote a few simple sentences.

"Though the road ahead may be arduous, our aspirations are far-reaching and should not stop here. Take care."

"I am always waiting for the day when I will meet all the women who refuse to be arranged by fate at the summit."

After reading the letter, Wen Yu slowly folded it and looked out the window at the deepening twilight.

A storm is brewing, and the wind is already blowing through the building.

The screen was flooded with comments, and the number of online viewers had already stabilized at over 400,000, with the discussion being extremely enthusiastic.

[Oh my god, this is really going to be big! It feels like we're about to face the final boss.]

Does anyone still remember this was a farming livestream? The more I watch, the more it seems to be turning into a serious drama!

While the comment above is correct, in a time of global unrest, the desire to farm properly is a luxury.

I don't know who will win, but I still want to bet on the princess. She's probably the most reliable one among them.

[I agree. Those two factions are outrageous! Their knees are so weak? Are they out of their minds? It's like having an army of 300,000 but using them to fight for favor! The princess's army is so capable, why don't you cherish and utilize her, instead you want to send her away for a political marriage?]

[If they were to actually ascend the throne with this kind of power structure, the Great Yin Dynasty would be finished!]

[Don't panic, everyone. Listen to my analysis. The princess has Wen Yu, which is a win. The princess has a win, which is a second win...]

[Stop with the memes! Let me tell you something you don't know!]

Just then, there was a knock on the door.

Wen Qingshi's voice came from outside: "Sister, are you inside? Something's happened in the prefectural city."

----

Wen Qingshi led Wen Yu quickly to the academy.

Chen Miaozhi and Danzhu immediately handed her Qin Xiangfu's urgent letter.

After quickly glancing through the clues, the jumbled threads in Wen Yu's mind instantly came together.

It all fits together, everything fits together.

Everything described in Su Lin's letter was exactly the same as the actions of the new prefect mentioned in Qin Xiang's attached letter.

Wen Yu instructed everyone to close the doors and windows, and then told his close friends and family everything Su Lin had told him.

Chen Miaozhi sighed: "They want the princess to take sides, but she refuses. They want her to relinquish her military power, but she refuses again. So, they have to accuse her of being a 'hen crowing at dawn' and 'attempting to usurp the country' in order to suppress her in a legitimate way."

In a world where women are considered inferior, once a woman is labeled with this tag, she has no chance of ever rising again.

They exchanged glances, all feeling utterly disheartened.

Faced with the princess's refusal to cooperate and the possibility that she intended to seize the throne, the originally hostile factions of the eldest and second princes suddenly found a common ground.

“I think the eldest prince and the second prince probably think the same way,” Wen Yu said softly. “Whichever one of them ascends to the throne, it will still be considered legitimate.”

"But if a princess were to ascend to the throne, it would be utterly absurd. She is a woman, and no matter who sits in that position, it cannot be her!"

Chen Miaozhi clenched her fist: "So, they want to destroy all the policies the princess implemented and deny all her achievements..."

“That’s right.” Wen Yu nodded.

The first to be targeted were the girls' schools, which they saw as capable of "bewitching people," and the literacy books that made women "restless at home."

Everyone's expression turned serious.

Wen Qingshi raised his eyes, his gaze sweeping over every worried and indignant face in the room, and suddenly said, "I understand their intentions."

"They just want to push all the women who try to change the status quo back into the positions they think they 'should' sit in."

"A woman can be a virtuous wife, a good mother, a silent stone, a docile ornament, but she cannot stand up, cannot make her own voice heard, and cannot have independent thought."

“Just like Her Highness the Princess,” Wen Qingshi explained in detail, “In their eyes, she could be a gift for a political marriage, or marry a prince consort to win over subjects and consolidate power… but she must not have her own ambitions, especially not the ambition to challenge the highest authority.”

Yes, how can a woman have "ambition"?

In the eyes of those who sit high above, this is not merely transgression, but a subversion of morality and a reversal of the natural order.

Once women are allowed to have this "ambition," the old order upon which they depend for survival will be shaken to its core.

The room was completely silent, save for the sound of suppressed breathing.

Anger festered in the silence.

Their strength was far too small compared to the impending storm.

A single spark can start a prairie fire, but in the face of a raging storm, the first priority is to preserve that spark so that it is not completely extinguished.

Right now, even preserving this small academy seems incredibly difficult.

In the midst of this heavy silence, Li Yan suddenly raised her hand.

"If you have nowhere else to go, come to our Li village."

Her Mandarin still had a slight local accent, but it was much better than before.

“Our village is hidden deep in the mountains, and the roads are difficult to travel, so outsiders can’t find it easily. There is a place to stay and food to eat in the village. Mother and the people will definitely protect all those who come to seek refuge.”

Wen Yu took a deep breath and nodded to Li Yan: "Ayan is right. If we really have no other choice, Li Village is also our way out."

She turned to the crowd and forced a smile: "Alright, things haven't gotten to the worst point yet. Everyone should go back and rest first, and not worry too much, lest you lose your composure."

"I'll discuss this further with Teacher Chen and Teacher Danzhu to see how to respond."

"We... will always find a way."