Eyes Charming - Chapter 18
"If anyone brings up this matter again when you attend court tomorrow, please stand up and tell the Emperor: The misalignment of the stars and the celestial bodies is indeed caused by those who defy Heaven and obstruct the Way, and Kang Ying is one of them. Please suspend him from his post. The sky will surely clear within three days of his suspension. If it still rains after three days, I am willing to accept the punishment of being dismissed from my post as prime minister."
Wang Anguo asked curiously, "How can you be so sure the weather will clear up within three days?"
Pang Di smiled slightly and said, "If I weren't confident, how could I dare to gamble with the position of Grand Secretary?"
What if it still rains in three days?
"Then I'd rather be divorced and sent back to my parents' home."
"Good!" Wang Anguo tapped the cups on the table with his chopsticks and said, "Everyone heard that; you can all be witnesses from now on."
Wang Pang couldn't help but feel a little worried. He was also doubtful whether the weather would clear up in three days. He was afraid that his wife would lose the bet because of her quick wit, and then his uncle would definitely hold a grudge and force him to divorce her. So he turned to look at his wife, but found that she seemed confident and was still smiling and nodding firmly at him.
Wang Pang was slightly relieved and asked Wang Anguo, "If the weather really clears up, how will you, Uncle, handle this?"
Wang Anguo snorted and said, "If that's really the case, I'll live in seclusion in a secluded courtyard from now on, and I won't say another word of those 'insulting nonsense' that you don't want to hear."
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Wen'er
The next day, as soon as Wang Pang returned from court, he went straight to his room and found his wife. His face was beaming with joy, clearly in high spirits. Pang Di pulled him aside and asked if he had acted as instructed. Wang Pang smiled and said, "Yes, indeed. The Director of the Astronomical Bureau, Kang Ying, again presented a memorial in court, saying that the rain was entirely due to those who defied Heaven's will and obstructed the Way, causing divine wrath and public resentment. He requested that Your Majesty investigate and punish them before the weather would improve. Wen Yanbo and others hurriedly fanned the flames, denouncing those who 'defied Heaven's will' while glancing sideways at my father. The Emperor, quite annoyed by their antics, also turned to my father, asking how he would handle the situation. At this moment, my father calmly strolled out, gracefully bowed, and said, 'The Director of the Astronomical Bureau's memorial is indeed reasonable; I second it.'"
Pang Di listened to his vivid account, as if the scene were unfolding before her eyes. She imagined the uproar among the court officials upon hearing Wang Anshi's words, and couldn't help but raise an eyebrow and smile. She then asked her husband, "And then?"
Wang Pang unfurled his folding fan, his arms outstretched, his expression like that of a storyteller: "Father's words astounded the entire audience. The old party officials stared at him in disbelief, unsure whether they or the prime minister were confused. The emperor, too, frowned deeply, leaning back on his dragon throne, looking at his father with suspicion, remaining silent for a long time. Father proudly raised his head, glancing left at Kang Ying and right at Wen Yanbo, cleared his throat, and then reported to the emperor: 'The prolonged overcast skies and the eclipsed stars are indeed caused by those who defy Heaven and obstruct the Way. This person abused his power, using the pretext of predicting celestial phenomena to conspire with treacherous officials to frame loyal ministers. Heaven discovered his wicked intentions, and thus sent rain for days as a warning, forcing him to trap himself and expose his conspiracy.'" Under the sway of Heaven's justice. Then Father turned and pointed directly at Kang Ying, angrily declaring, "This wicked villain is none other than Kang Ying, the Astrologer of the Imperial Observatory!" The court officials immediately erupted in discussion and uproar. Kang Ying, completely unprepared for his father's betrayal, scrambled to his knees and knelt before the Emperor, repeatedly crying out his innocence. Wen Yanbo also rushed out, stammering incoherently, to defend him. Father, however, remained calm and slowly knelt, removing his hat and holding it neatly to his chest, and said loudly to the Emperor, "Your Majesty, I request that you exile Kang Ying to a prison to punish him for spreading rumors, inciting unjustly, and framing loyal officials. I dare to guarantee with my prime minister's hat that if the rain stops and the weather clears up within three days after Kang Ying's punishment, I will resign and return to my hometown."
"Exile to the prison?" Pang Di was taken aback. "Didn't I say I only asked the Emperor to suspend Kang Ying from his post? How did it change to exile?"
Has the Emperor agreed?
Wang Pang laughed heartily, turned and sat down, lightly waving his folding fan. He said, "His Majesty is wise and has always trusted my father, so of course he approved it. That old man Wen Yanbo's face turned ashen; he almost vomited blood. Adi, your plan, though brilliant, still retains a woman's compassion. It's not suitable for handling political matters. Kang Ying spread rumors and misled the public; Father has already been very merciful in sparing his life. In my opinion, even being executed by slow slicing wouldn't be too much."
"Why are you always so violent? If this continues, you will be condemned by future generations!" Pang Di's joy turned to anger upon hearing this. Before her marriage, she had always seen people at her parents' home speak of the reforms with disdain, mostly opposing them, and many harbored prejudice against Wang Anshi. After marrying into the Wang family, she carefully observed and discovered that Wang Anshi and his son's reforms were indeed aimed at benefiting the country and strengthening its military, and they had devoted themselves wholeheartedly to this cause. They were not, as the staunch opponents of the reforms claimed, treacherous ministers who deceived the emperor and sought personal gain. Although some laws had flaws, if the officials implementing them worked together, they could achieve good results. For example, the agricultural irrigation law, after its implementation, truly benefited the people, and the court also benefited. Every time she heard good news about the benefits of the reforms, she was extremely happy. From the day she married, all her joy, happiness, and glory were linked to her husband. Last year, the weather was favorable, and the laws concerning seedlings and farmland irrigation were implemented smoothly. However, this time, Kang Ying and his associates, taking advantage of the prolonged rains, fabricated a story of celestial anomalies to embarrass Wang Anshi. She found this petty and despicable, and thus advised her father-in-law to retaliate by requesting the Emperor to suspend Kang Ying from his post. Unexpectedly, they showed no mercy, exiling Kang Ying to a prison, reducing a once dignified official of the Imperial Observatory to a tattooed prisoner. Her greatest worry was Wang Anshi's overly harsh punishments. If he continued in this manner, not only would the people of today be disgusted, but future generations, when revisiting this period of history, would also find his legalistic approach detrimental to his image as a reformer, perhaps even viewing him as a treacherous and cunning man.
"This is called making an example of someone to warn others. In this way, no one will try to overthrow the reforms by using wind and rain as a pretext. Haven't I explained this to you many times?" Wang Pang knew she was unhappy, so he smiled and deliberately changed the subject: "Adi is incredibly intelligent, even able to predict celestial phenomena. Have you studied astronomy?"
Pang Di rolled her eyes at him and said, "No, it's just that I've been looking around the house when I have nothing to do and noticed something."
"Oh? You can tell just by looking at home?" Wang Pang was very interested and leaned over to listen.
Pang Di nodded and said, "The changes in the weather are indicated by signs. For example, before every heavy rain, ants on the ground will rush to higher ground. And whether the weather will clear up in a day or two after the rain can be seen from the smoke rising from the kitchen chimney. When it rains for a long time, the smoke will rise like white clouds emerging from the mountains, dissipating before reaching high altitudes; if the weather is about to clear, the smoke will rise straight up and slowly ascend into the sky. I have observed this for a long time before I dared to tell you this with certainty, Father-in-law."
"Your Majesty's insight is truly remarkable; I am ashamed to admit my inferiority." Wang Pang stood up and bowed deeply, seemingly as if to pay his respects, but when he raised his head, the smile on his lips was impossible to conceal.
"Alas, I don't need your kind words. If you truly believe what I'm saying is reasonable, then please reduce the number of people you criticize," Pang Di sighed. He continued, "This matter isn't over yet. Wen Yanbo and the others certainly won't let it go easily. With so many days of rain, some areas will inevitably suffer from floods. They might continue to say that this is because Your Excellency's governance is against the will of Heaven. The best course of action now is for Your Excellency to prepare food for the disaster victims and make all necessary preparations for the construction of water conservancy projects in the disaster areas. In this way, even if they use this as an opportunity to attack Your Excellency and try to remove you from your position as prime minister, we can refute it by saying that floods and droughts are beyond human control, and their occasional occurrence is simply an accident. The only thing a ruler can do is provide disaster relief. If the prime minister is helpless or lacks food for disaster relief after a disaster, he should be willing to accept punishment. But since he has immediately implemented disaster relief measures and constructed water conservancy projects to benefit the disaster victims, it demonstrates that the prime minister's planning and coordination are effective. How can he be blamed?"
Wang Pang opened his eyes wide and looked his wife up and down, clicking his tongue in admiration, "My wife is truly a woman of remarkable insight. Even ordinary court officials rarely possess such foresight. If she were a man, she would surely be my father's right-hand man. I am utterly ashamed before Zeng Bulu Huiqing!"
Pang Di smiled but remained silent. Wang Pang continued, "However, I have already considered my wife's plan. Besides that, I have another plan to subtly trap Wen Yanbo, drawing him into a snare."
Pang Di asked curiously, "How do we lure you into this trap?"
"I've already ordered someone to investigate the weather disaster records from when Wen Yanbo was prime minister, to find out the detailed extent of the disasters, the number of casualties, the amount of property damage, and his methods of dealing with them. Leaving aside other matters, the massive flood in the capital sixteen years ago, in June of the first year of Emperor Renzong's reign, is enough to leave him speechless and unable to defend himself for a long time." Wang Pang couldn't help but laugh: "That year, it rained for almost a month, nearly the entire city of Bianliang was flooded, tens of thousands of houses were destroyed, and rescue boats were floating everywhere in the city. If it were a warning from heaven, that old man Wen should have died sixteen years ago. And after the disaster, he argued endlessly with Fu Bi about the amount of money and grain allocated for disaster relief, arguing back and forth until the disaster victims waiting for aid were on their last breath before he finally stopped. How could such a person not be dismissed as prime minister?"
When Pang Di heard him recount Wen Yanbo's past deeds, he found Wen's pedantry and ridiculousness, his bureaucratic style too pronounced. This time, his malicious attack on his father-in-law warranted a lesson; if he were to use the disaster as an excuse to make things difficult again, Wang Pang would surely expose all his past misdeeds, leaving him humiliated. Thinking of this, he couldn't help but smile slightly.
The next day, the clouds dispersed and the rain stopped, revealing a bright and sunny day. Wang Anshi and his son were overjoyed and immediately went to the palace to meet the emperor. Everyone in the household also felt refreshed and energetic, busily airing out bedding and clothes, cleaning the rooms, and getting rid of the dampness and mustiness that had accumulated over the past few days.
Around noon, Wang Anshi's youngest daughter, Wen'er, skipped and hopped into Pang Di's room. Before she could even speak, she was already doubled over with laughter. She leaned against the door, laughing for a while before finally managing to stop, and asked, "Sister-in-law, do you know what happened in the side courtyard?"
Pang Di shook his head and said, "I can only faintly hear a constant clanging sound over there. Could it be that they're repairing the house and yard?"
"No, no!" Wen'er waved her hands repeatedly, saying, "Uncle Anguo is busy sealing off the main gate to our house, and he's also opening another large gate at the back of their side courtyard for people to enter and exit."
The mansion where Wang Anshi now resides originally belonged to Wang Shenqi, a meritorious official of the founding of the Song Dynasty. Its roof was magnificent, with soaring eaves, carved beams, and painted rafters. However, the descendants of this meritorious official were unable to maintain the family fortune, and it gradually declined. During the reign of Emperor Shenzong, the mansion was confiscated as an official residence. After Wang Anshi was summoned to the capital, his family moved from Jiangning Prefecture to the capital, and Emperor Zhao Xu granted him this mansion to live in. The mansion is located in Dongtaishi Lane, west of Duting Post Station, and includes a side courtyard and garden. The main house has seven gatehouse rooms, seven front hall rooms, and seven rear bedrooms, connected by a covered corridor. Wang Anshi and his children lived in the seven rear bedrooms and ten facing side rooms on either side of the covered corridor. To the right of the main house is an exceptionally spacious garden, exquisitely designed, with a beautiful lake, artificial hills, clear springs, and flowers blooming in all seasons, along with willows and wisteria. Beside the lake stands the Wenxing Tower, four stories high, ideal for moon and star viewing on clear nights. The side courtyard was located to the left of the main house and was connected by a door. Wang Anshi's younger brothers, Wang Anguo and Wang Anli, and their families lived there.
Upon hearing Wen'er's words, Pang Di knew that Wang Anguo was very angry because he had lost a bet, so he ordered the gate leading to the main house to be sealed off to show that they would not have any contact in the future. He then said to Wen'er, "Uncle is taking this too seriously. How can family members not have contact? Go and persuade him not to seal the gate."
Wen'er smiled and shook her head firmly, saying, "No way. I wish he wouldn't come over anymore, so I wouldn't get annoyed by him."
"
Pang Di was surprised. She knew that Wen'er had never liked her uncle Wang Anguo, but she didn't expect her to be so disrespectful to him, saying directly that she hated him. She thought to herself that although what she said was just a child's words, it was enough to prove how pathetic Wang Anguo was, that even such a little girl didn't give him any face.
Wen'er was fourteen years old at the time. As the youngest and most intelligent, she was the most beloved by her parents and brothers, but this also made her somewhat willful. Wang Anguo always acted aloof and arrogant at home, which Wen'er found most distasteful. She often scoffed at him and secretly mocked him countless times. Seeing him lose the bet and lose face, even having the door leading to this side blocked, she was naturally delighted and rushed over to tell him as if it were the best news ever.
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Lady
"My uncle lacks talent but has ambitions that soar to the heavens," Wen'er continued, her face clearly showing disdain. "He wanted to be an official but was afraid people would say he only got promoted because of my father, so he was as stubborn as a mule, always opposing my father. Well, he angered the emperor and didn't promote him, so he pretended that there were treacherous officials in power who made him feel unappreciated, keeping a dark face at home every day. Anyone who didn't know better would think everyone owed him five million strings of cash. Watching my father and brother skillfully maneuver and carry out their political revenge, he couldn't catch up even if he tried, so he stayed at home all day writing and painting, sometimes even awkwardly imitating Liu Yong's poem, 'I'd rather exchange fleeting fame for leisurely drinking and singing,' bah! Pretending to be a romantic and talented scholar!"
Her description was vivid and playful, accompanied by gestures like frowning, waving her hands, shaking her head, and waving her sleeves. Her words were full of emotion, making Pang Di want to laugh, but she barely managed to hold it in. She said to Wen'er, "You've gone too far. He is, after all, an elder, and we should show him some respect."
"He was the one who acted disrespectfully in his old age first," Wen'er pouted, revealing a small dimple on her cheek, making her look incredibly charming and cute. "Now he's desperately trying to become a romantic scholar, but not many people are willing to give him face. Heh heh, he thinks knowing a few famous courtesans makes him a romantic, and being able to write a few characters makes him a scholar... Oh, sister-in-law, have you ever seen his calligraphy?"
Pang Di smiled and shook his head.
"He would often study the calligraphy of famous masters from ancient and modern times, both Chinese and foreign, for a long time before putting pen to paper. A single piece of calligraphy would not be completed in a day; he would work on one piece today and two pieces tomorrow. After finishing, he would hold it and admire it, thinking that he had grasped the essence of all the masters. He was completely absorbed in his work, but little did he know that others would cover their mouths and laugh, saying that it was a mishmash: its plumpness and dynamism were not as good as Su Shi's, its unrestrained and rugged style were not as good as Huang Tingjian's, its elegance and boldness were not as good as Mi Fu's, and its dignified and composed style was not as good as Cai Xiang's."
In learning an art, if one lacks their own independent judgment and blindly imitates others' styles, while attempting to master everything at once, they are indeed prone to going astray and ending up with something neither fish nor fowl. Pang Di thought that Wang Anguo's flaw was precisely his excessive self-confidence, which often led to his incompetence and subsequent ridicule, a great tragedy for him. He then asked Wen'er, "And what about his paintings?"
"His painting is another story. He initially studied Fu Wenyong's style of painting flowers, bamboo, and birds, but could he possibly learn the exquisite detail of a wild quail's plumage, discerning the colors of its feathers in all four seasons? Later, he studied Li Ji's Huang-style court painting, but he refused to learn it properly. Hearing that Cui Bai and Wu Yuanyu's sketching techniques were fashionable, he couldn't help but follow suit, and the result was predictable. He even thought he was good at landscape painting, but comparing his landscapes to those of the Imperial Son-in-Law Wang Shen and Wang Jinqing... If I were him, I would have the self-awareness to simply crumple up my paintings and bend down to polish the shoes of the Imperial Son-in-Law."
Among the painters in the capital, Wang Shen, the husband of Princess Shu and a military officer, was the most skilled in landscape painting. Pang Di knew this, but unfortunately, he had never seen any of his paintings. So he asked, "Does our household possess any authentic works by Military Officer Wang?"