Chapter 33: The Supportive Spouse

Inside the study of the Prince of Qin’s mansion.

"Your Highness, since ancient times, scholars, farmers, artisans, and merchants have each performed their own duties. To abolish this system would be to turn the world upside down and extinguish the light of the sun and moon."

"Tie Xuan, you really enjoy opposing me, don't you? Have you finished your own duties? Are the horses in the stables all groomed?"

Tie Xuan replied with a speechless expression, "Your Highness, I am a Master of the Crown Prince’s Household, not your stable master."

Yang Shiqi also advised, "Your Highness, the four-fold household registry is an ancestral tradition. If you abolish it rashly, the scholars will drift away, and in time, it will surely lead to disaster. It would be better to proceed gradually."

"Heh, I know what you scholars are thinking. This so-called 'Confucian etiquette' is merely a fig leaf. This 'Scholar-Farmer-Artisan-Merchant' hierarchy is the lifeline of you scholar-officials."

"With status, you don't have to pay grain or taxes. You are exempt from common punishments. You share the governance of the world with the Emperor, and even after resigning to return home, you become local gentry, bullying the common folk and acting as you please."

"As the saying goes, a magistrate can ruin a family, and a prefect can wipe out a lineage. You treat farmers and artisans like your own domestic slaves, and no matter how rich a merchant gets, he must still attach himself to you. Your opinions are presented as the 'will of the people.' You scholars hold the greatest power of discourse in this world; it looks like equality for the four classes, but in reality, your group holds absolute monopoly."

"In my domain, I don't care about background. Scholar, farmer, artisan, or merchant—these are just professions. To hell with ancestral traditions; I am rebelling against the Great Yuan Dynasty."

"Before Guan Zhong, did these household registries even exist? Don't you Confucian scholars always talk about emulating the sage kings Yao, Shun, and Yu? I am restoring the prosperity of their eras to return equality to all the people of the world."

Watching Zhu Shuang roar, Tie Xuan broke into a cold sweat, secretly thinking that the inherent hostility these father and son felt toward the gentry was eerily similar.

Yang Shiqi said in a troubled tone, "Since ancient times, reform must be gradual. What if you take too large a step and cause chaos?"

Zhu Shuang laughed. "Mr. Yang, the reason I haven't moved my troops north is specifically to use Kaifeng as a pilot zone—a 'Special Zone.' With over thirty thousand peacekeeping troops stationed outside the city, Kaifeng will not fall into chaos. This city is waiting for rebirth. If we don't do it now, will the imperial court ever allow us to do it later?"

"Your Highness is wise. Your servant will obey."

As Yang Shiqi withdrew, Tie Xuan still looked unconvinced. Zhu Shuang said helplessly, "My expectation for you is that you become the backbone of the Great Ming and the backbone of the people, not a loyal dog to a single family. Tie Xuan, you have disappointed me greatly."

Left alone in the hall, Tie Xuan stared at the back of the departing Prince of Qin, and the convictions he had once held firm began to crack.

In the side room, Xu Miaoyun, who was organizing the ledgers, asked with concern, "Is Brother Qin angry?"

"Hmm, you heard it all?"

"I did not mean to eavesdrop. Master Tie is a mere mortal; it is normal that he cannot grasp your grand ambitions for a moment. I have heard that Guan Zhong once shot Duke Huan in the belt buckle, yet the Duke ignored past grievances, employed his talents, and eventually became a hegemon. Wei Zheng once advised Crown Prince Jiancheng to kill the future Emperor Taizong, yet after the Xuanwu Gate Incident, Taizong valued his talent and entrusted him with great responsibility, creating a classic tale of a wise ruler and a capable minister."

Seeing her serious expression, Zhu Shuang couldn't help but kiss her forehead. "Alright, my little strategist, I won't hold a grudge against a blockhead."

"Why do you call Master Tie a 'blockhead'? Giving nicknames to subordinates—doesn't that undermine the reputation of a ruler's benevolence?"

"My dear Miaoyun, although Tie Xuan is a bit stubborn, I especially value his integrity. I hope he can be like the iron rod of the Monkey King, smashing the shackles that bind the people of this world."

Xu Miaoyun frowned. "Brother, what is this 'Monkey King'?"

Zhu Shuang slapped his forehead. Aside from *Water Margin* and the manuscript Luo Guanzhong was currently writing, the other two of the Four Great Classics had not yet been born.

Zhu Shuang patted his thigh. "Come, sit here, and I will tell you the story of Sun Wukong wreaking havoc in the Heavenly Palace."

Xu Miaoyun blushed, her face as delicate and tempting as a flower.

Tie Xuan was busy brushing a horse with a wooden bucket in hand when Ma Sanbao rode up, pulling out an envelope. "Master Tie, this is a letter for you from Princess Xu."

Tie Xuan was baffled, as he had never even met Xu Miaoyun. He opened the envelope to find the story of Sun Wukong wreaking havoc in the Heavenly Palace, and at the end, a line of elegant script:

*'My husband hopes you can be like the 'Sea-Pacifying Needle,' smashing all injustice to save the people of this world. Please, take care.'*

Tie Xuan burst into tears, choking out, "The Prince loves me, and I have been utterly foolish. I truly deserve to die."

Inside the study, Zhu Shuang held Xu Miaoyun in his arms, her hair disheveled and her hairpins askew.

Zhu Shuang had done everything but the final act, thinking proudly, *With such a beauty in my arms, I remain calm and composed. I really am a modern-day Liu Xiahui.*

Xu Miaoyun, her eyes dazed, pouted and pressed against his face. "Brother, you have so many lipstick marks on your face. Let me wipe them off."

Zhu Shuang quickly pulled away, looking stern. "My good sister, you cannot wipe them. If you wipe any more, things will go too far."

"Hateful, once you are satisfied, you ignore me," Xu Miaoyun murmured, her lips slightly parted, her mind clouded with passion.

"Uh, you are still too young. In two years, I will surely satisfy you."

"I don't believe you. Look, Brother, where am I small?"

Zhu Shuang was alarmed and quickly held down her hand as she reached for her collar. *My dear sister, if I really eat you now, won't my father-in-law, Xu Da, lead his 250,000 troops back to attack me?*

"Wait two years, wait two years. We'll do it for real when we are married."

Xu Miaoyun adjusted her messy clothes and flipped through the *Civil Code* that Zhu Shuang had handwritten on the desk. "Brother, under your new policies, can women also become officials?"

"With Neo-Confucianism in power, it is difficult for women to become officials. However, I have decided to open examinations for clerks, selecting solely on merit regardless of gender. I intend to open an upward path from clerk to official; if one wants to become an official, they must have three years of experience as a clerk. If I can reach that position in the future, perhaps there will be women ruling the nation."

Xu Miaoyun worriedly asked, "With the examples of Moxi, Baosi, and Daji, the world says women are the source of disaster. Brother, are you not afraid of the 'hen crowing at dawn'—that they will bring disaster to the nation and create the evils of Empress Lü or Wu Zetian?"

Zhu Shuang stroked her messy hair and said warmly, "My silly girl, in prosperous times, beauties are ornaments; in chaotic times, they are scapegoats. If a kingdom falls because of a few torn clothes, a fire, or a few days of dancing in a wine pool, that is the fault of the ruler, not the woman. Emperor Xuanzong of Tang killed Yang Yuhuan at Mawei Slope, but he still lived the rest of his days like a stray dog in constant fear. A ruler who cannot guard his own heart against the world's greatest temptations and instead indulges his own desires is the root of a nation's destruction."

"Take the legend of Yue Fei’s mother tattooing his back: if she had not possessed a patriotism as lofty as a mountain, how could she have raised a national hero whose name would be recorded in history? In my heart, a woman's contribution in supporting her husband and educating their children to become talents is no less than expanding the frontiers."

"Whether this world values men over women or women over men, both are deformed societies. Only through a true division of labor and the recognition that human dignity is equal from birth can there be true equality between men and women."

"To achieve gender equality, it is empty talk if we do not raise the social status of women."

Xu Miaoyun looked at him with stars in her eyes, admiring him. "My husband is truly the greatest man of all time."

Zhu Shuang shook his head and smiled. "I am not worthy; I am merely repeating the words of others. Only the one who said 'Women hold up half the sky' is worthy of the word 'great'."