“If you’re interested, we can play it in the future. However, Cuju (ancient Chinese football) is very physically demanding, so you’ll need to exercise every day,” Ye Jingchen said with a smile.
Games like this, which can both exercise the body and test teamwork, are definitely worth playing.
Even without watching this football match, Ye Jingchen had already planned to lead them in playing more games in his spare time.
Few children can resist the allure of games.
Playing games can not only make their relationship more harmonious, but also improve their understanding and cooperation, making them more united and cohesive.
"If my sister's health is too poor, she might end up like that person, rolling around in the ball and unable to get up on her own," Ye Jinghe said in a childish voice, pointing to the child being pulled up from the ground by his friends.
He only just realized that this tone of voice was not only very effective for being coquettish, but also even more effective for being provocative.
"Who do you think you are!" Ye Jingshu was angered by another sentence, glaring at Ye Jinghe and saying excitedly.
In her excitement, her voice instantly rose several octaves.
The girl's clear, melodious voice immediately caught the attention of those around her.
"who is she?"
How did she get in?
"The Imperial Academy is a sacred place for scholars from all over the country. How can women be allowed to enter? This is utterly absurd!"
"Whose young lady is this, so shameless as to show her face in public at the academy!"
Various voices arose around them, some with shock and others with disdain, offering their opinions.
Those who were able to sit in the stands were either officials from the Imperial College or students with special status.
Sitting next to Ye Jingchen and his group were several boys who were much older than them, around thirteen or fourteen years old, dressed in fine clothes, clearly of extraordinary status.
These comments came from them.
In this patriarchal era, in the minds of almost all men, a woman's only role is to give birth, read and write, and to them, showing one's face in public is considered unconventional and immoral.
"Why can't women enter here? Is there any law in Dayuan that says women can't enter the Imperial Academy?" Ye Jingshu glared at him and questioned.
For Ye Jingshu, she was born noble, more noble than most men in the world. In her heart, there was no such idea as male superiority over female, and she would never tolerate people who had such ideas!
“Women are lowly, how can they—” someone retorted excitedly, their expression as if they had been greatly insulted.
However, his mouth was covered by his companion as soon as he spoke.
Only after being prompted by his companion did he notice Ye Jingming and Ye Jingyu sitting on either side of Ye Jingshu.
Few students in the North and South Imperial Gardens were unfamiliar with the two princes.
Now, the princes of noble status sit on either side, while this little girl, who looks very elegant, sits in the middle.
"Greetings, Second Prince and Third Prince!" The boys hurriedly bowed and paid their respects.
Ye Jingming and Ye Jingyu both looked at them with serious expressions, remaining silent.
Ye Jingshu is their royal elder sister. To insult Ye Jingshu is to insult them!
Insulting royalty is a grave offense!
"How are women considered lowly? Tell me!" Ye Jingshu asked angrily.
She was still young and the center of attention in the palace. Before this, she had never truly experienced gender discrimination. This was the first time someone had told her, to her face, that women were of lowly status.
The boys had different expressions, but none of them dared to speak up under these circumstances.
"How can you have such prejudices at such a young age? Who taught you that?" Ye Jingchen stepped slightly to the side, blocking Ye Jingshu's view, his dark eyes fixed on the boys, and asked in a deep voice.
Although he looks like an eight-year-old child, and is more than a head shorter than these teenagers, when he asked the question, he had a superior and authoritative aura that immediately intimidated the group of teenagers.
Now no one dared to speak up easily.
"Answer my question, why do you have such prejudice?" Ye Jingchen continued, drawing out his words to make his voice sound more imposing.
"Men are superior to women, and women are noble; this has always been the case since ancient times! Why is it considered prejudice?" Someone mustered up the courage to look Ye Jingchen directly in the eye and boldly asked.
"Then let me ask you, are your sisters lowly? Is your mother lowly?" Ye Jingchen countered.
"If you think they are all lowly, then aren't you, who was born of your mother, even more lowly?"
The boy's lips twitched, as if he wanted to say something but dared not. However, his expression told Ye Jingchen that he was not convinced.
Ye Jingchen knew what he wanted to say, but since Dayuan governed the country with filial piety, and children should not speak ill of their mothers, he could not say anything in public.
Ye Jingchen didn't want to argue with them. In this era, most people, including most women, held this view. It was deeply ingrained and couldn't be changed by a few words or overnight.
"Royal sister, there's no need for you to lower yourself to their level, lest you tarnish your noble status!" Ye Jingchen comforted her.
The events in the stands had already attracted a lot of attention, and Ye Jingchen did not want to reveal his identity here and draw attention to himself.
“Jingyu, let us take you back to Dongyuan!” he said to Ye Jingyu.
Ye Jingyu's face immediately fell, and she glared resentfully at the people who were terrified because of the words "Royal Sister".
It's rare for my elder brother, the Crown Prince, to come and visit, but these people have ruined his mood. They even bullied my elder sister. It's outrageous!
"The person in charge should know very well what the punishment is for insulting the royal family!" After coming down from the stands and away from the bustling crowd, Ye Jingming said to the person in charge who was following them with trepidation.
"I will certainly punish those students severely afterward!" the official said urgently, wiping the sweat from his brow.
"As the highest institution of learning in Dayuan, the Imperial Academy is a sacred place in the hearts of students all over the world. Surely it wouldn't teach students such prejudiced ideas as 'male superiority over female'?" Ye Jingchen asked meaningfully.
"This—this is definitely not possible!" The person in charge was sweating even more.
"Heaven is high and earth is low—Bei Chen, what did Confucius say again?" Ye Jingchen asked Gu Beichen.
He remembered reading in a book before that the idea of 'male superiority over female' was the biggest misunderstanding of Confucius's thought by the ancients.
"Heaven is high and earth is low, thus the universe is established. The lowly and the high are arranged, thus the noble and the lowly are positioned." Gu Beichen answered without hesitation.
“The male is formed by the Heavenly Stem, and the female is formed by the Earthly Branch.”
"The Heavenly Venerable refers to the vastness of the sky, which is impartial and selfless. The Earthly Humble refers to the groundedness and intimacy of the earth, which does not distinguish between purity and filth, nobility and baseness. The Male Venerable means that men should be as upright and noble as the sky, and the Female Humble means that women should be as humble and tolerant as the earth. There is no sense of nobility or baseness in these terms," Gu Beichen explained earnestly.
“Well said! No wonder he is the most renowned child prodigy in Dayuan! I think this explanation should be widely publicized in the Imperial Academy and even in all the schools in Dayuan. What do you think, Lord?
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