Glossary

Written and edited by: tofubrains

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Historical Background

The majority of the story takes place during the third year of the Zhihe (至和) Era during the Song Dynasty. Historically, the era only spans three years from the third month of 1054 CE to the ninth month of 1056 CE. The emperor during this time was the Renzhong Emperor (宋仁宗), given name Zhao Zhen (趙禎).

[More historical background if you’re interested, but a little TL;DR

The Renzhong Emperor reigned from 1022 to 1063 CE, spanning 9 eras. The only ones of importance to the story are Qingli (庆历), Zhihe (至和) and Jiayou (嘉佑).

The Qingli era spans 1041 and 1048 CE and is two eras before the Zhihe era. Meanwhile the Jiayou era is directly after the Zhihe era and spans 1056-1067, even extending past the Renzhong Emperor’s reign to the entirety of the Yingzong Emperor’s reign.]

Government System

The Song Dynasty was ruled by the Three Departments and Six Ministries system. More detailed information can be found here. Each ministry is headed by a Minister (尚书), who is accompanied by two Vice-Ministers or Assistant Ministers (侍郎). In relevance to the story, of the six ministries, we’ll see the Ministry of Justice (刑部), the Ministry of Personnel (吏部) and the Ministry of Rites (礼部) mentioned.

• The Ministry of Justice is responsible for judicial and penal processes. Su Yunkai works primarily under this ministry.
• The Ministry of Personnel is responsible for appointments, promotions and demotions etc. Essentially everything related to the management of officials is done by the Ministry of Personnel. 
• The Ministry of Rites is responsible for imperial examinations and anything related to religion, such as ceremonies and rituals and the registry of Buddhist and Daoist priests.

Below the Three Departments and Six Ministries are the Nine Courts, which work in conjunction with the ministries. The only court of relevance is the Court of Judicial Review (大理寺), also called Court of Judicature and Revision or Grant Court of Revision, which reviews all judicial proceedings and singles out cases for retrial. It works closely with the Ministry of Justice. Su Yunkai had previously worked under this court.

Territory in the highest unit are states (州), headed by prefects (刺史). (In the translations, the transliteration of the names will include zhou (means state) at the end. For example, Jiangzhou, Anzhou, Luzhou etc. are all states) The lower unit are counties (县), headed by magistrates (县令). During the Song Dynasty, a unit called the circuit (路) – which translations will refer to as province for simplicity – was created, where officials held jurisdiction over several states and counties together to control the prefects. Responsibilities are split amongst these provincial (or circuit) officials to prevent there being one person in complete control. There are four departments: the Department of Crime for judicial affairs, the Department of Transport for supply affairs, the Department of Commerce for fiscal affairs, and the Department of Security for civil affairs. A notable position in the novel is the Chief of Crime (提刑官), which is the circuit official responsible for judicial and penal affairs in the province and also oversees the undergoings in the states and counties. The Chief of Crime is the head of the Department of Crime.

In the counties, the magistrate is also responsible for judicial rulings, acting as a judge for criminal cases. As such, the magistrate may spend a significant amount of time and even live in the yamen, the ancient Chinese equivalent of a police station. Additionally, the residential area of the yamen is called the neiya (内衙). Nei means inner and ya means yamen, thus neiya can also be translated directly as the inner yamen.

At the foundation of the yamen are yamen runners, or referred in the translation as yamen officers. The officers are separated into three categories. Two of the categories act as officials’ bodyguards and security guards, respectively. The last, constable (捕快), summons defendants and witnesses to court. This means they tend to travel long distances and can be sent to far places to collect evidence and people. Bai Shui is a constable. The officers constitute the lowest class in society, even lower than commoners.

Coroners (仵作), like Ming Yue, act to help assist the yamen, but are not counted as part of the yamen. They are equivalent to forensic pathologists, or medical examiners, and they are responsible for performing autopsies. Women can become coroners because it is not an official position. Coroners are also of the lowest class, together with yamen officers.

Nobility

Male aristocracy is separated into duke (公), marquis (侯), count (伯), viscount (子) and baron (男). In the novel, we’ll only see the top two, duke and marquis. Dukes include relatives of the emperor, generally given the position junwang (君王). However, in the novel, all mentioned dukes are guogong (国公), second only to junwang among all four sub-ranks of dukes. The marquis is the second-highest rank in the aristocracy. Qin Fang’s father is the Duke of Yan. Qin Fang himself is set to inherit the marquis position when he reaches the age. If his father dies, as he is the only son, Qin Fang will become duke.

For females, there is generally only the title of princess (公主), used to refer to the emperor’s daughters (can also be adopted) and other direct female relatives of the emperor (i.e. sisters).

Characters

Main

Ming Yue 明月	The granddaughter of Ming Sheng, a prominent coroner. As such, she has inherited much of his abilities. Since young, she has lived with her grandfather as just the two of them. Her name put together means bright moon.
Su Yunkai苏云开	A traveler passing by Nanle County. He is talented in solving cases. It appears his identity is more complex than he lets on. He has also met Ming Yue when he was young, where he saved her from a dog. His hometown is in Jiangzhou (江州). His name is a combination of ‘cloud’ and ‘open’. As introduced in the prologue, his name (as is Ming Yue’s) is part of an idiom: waiting until the clouds clear and the moon shines.
Bai Shui 白水	A constable from the Nanle County yamen that is known to work very hard on cases and who also has a good relationship with Ming Yue. Known to have a brother, but his whereabouts are unknown. Hails from Linzhou (临州). Name means white water.
Qin Fang 秦放	Also called the Little Marquis. He is the only son of the Duke of Yan and is the heir to the position. He doesn’t like Kaifeng, constantly escaping from his father’s people, and following shadow play troupes around. Interestingly, his name Fang, means to release, to place, to let go etc. In a turn of misunderstandings, Ming Yue has given him the nickname Little Monkey.

Volume 1

Yang Fugui 杨富贵	Village head of Yang Family Village. Interestingly, his name, Fugui, means wealthy. Even when the characters fu and gui are taken separately, both still connote money and wealth.
Yang Qianli 杨千里	An average-looking young man from Yang Family Village. Used to be childhood playmates with Yang Baijia.
Yang Baijia 杨百家	An orphan raised by Yang Family Village together. Has some mental deficiencies. Suspected by the villagers to be the culprit behind the disappearance of many people in the village.
Li Da 黎答	Not born in the Yang Family Village, but part of it, despite having a different surname. Constantly surveys the mountains.
Herbal medicine shopkeeper	The first person to discover a ten-year old skeleton in the forest. Or rather, his dog was the first to find it and he stumbled upon the location when he followed his dog.

Volume 2

Lord Qin 秦大人	His name is unknown. He is the county magistrate for Nanle County and the highest official responsible for the case. As he is leaving this office in a month, he desires to do well and get a position raise as he is already in his fifties. However, he is also lazy. It has been stated that Ming Sheng doesn’t like him.
Liu Peizhen 柳佩珍	The victim of the first case and the owner of the antique shop. She is also referred to as Madam Liu as a form of respect for a married woman. She is known to be frivolous and have many affairs.
Wu Chou 吴筹	Liu Peizhen’s husband. He’s well-known for being a good-for-nothing.
Li Zhizhang 黎知章	A coroner of the yamen. He is skilled in the craft and worked with Ming Sheng. Ming Yue calls him Uncle Li.
Ge Song 葛送	A winemaker. He owns the Jiuxian Pub. He is also known to have a fierce wife. He is from the Ge Family Village.
Cheng Da 程达	A watchman. He patrols in the night.
Yu Youshi 于有石	A gambler at the Lailai Casino.

Volume 3

Zhu Changrong 祝长荣	Village chief of Banyan Village. Originally from the military. Doesn’t believe in the supernatural.
Zhu Ankang 祝安康	Eldest grandson of Zhu Changrong. An means peace. Kang means healthy. Interestingly, his surname Zhu could mean to wish or bless someone. So put together, his name means blessing you with peace and health.
ah’Wan 阿菀	A young woman that apparently hung herself on the banyan tree in front of the village to avoid her arranged marriage. The infamous nursery rhyme appears to use her as the muse for the song. Her full name is unknown.
An Dexing 安德兴	Childhood friend of Zhu Ankang. Lives right next door to Zhu Ankang. Known to be an outgoing, talkative, loud person.
Sun He 孙贺	Childhood friend of Zhu Ankang. Lives near the village entrance. A more quiet person than An Dexing.
Lord Xu 许大人	The county magistrate of the county that Banyan Village is part of. Known to be a relatively responsible and meticulous man aside from his timidness.
Yang Jing 杨敬	A chief escort. A man in his forties and well-seasoned.
Yang An 杨安	Son of Yang Jing. Leader of the specific ten-person escort mission of five vases. A handsome, well-built man in his twenties.
Chang De 常德	A coachman from the Damingfu Yamen. Accompanied the four during their patrol through the counties.
Mo Geng 莫耿	The registrar of Yuzhou.
Lou De 楼得	The prefect of Yuzhou.

Recurring

Ming Sheng 明盛		Ming Yue’s grandfather. A talented coroner that served in the Nanle County’s yamen.
Su Gu 苏顾		Su Yunkai’s father. A steadfast, loyal official.
Bai Ying 白影		Bai Shui’s elder brother.

Terms

Gongzi 公子

Has multiple meanings. The closest translation could either be gentleman or male descendant of a reputable or aristocratic family. However, this term may only be used for relatively young people. It is especially applicable if the other doesn’t have children. It is an epithet of respect and generally added after a person’s surname (i.e. Su Gongzi or Qin Gongzi). When combined to make gongzige (公子哥), it has a derogatory meaning and is a mockery of the uselessness of the male descendants of prominent families as a result of living in luxury with everything handed to them.

Lord 大人

In actuality, taken out of the context, the words could mean adult, as is conventional in modern times. Taken literally, it is best translated as big person or great person. As that might imply, this is used to refer to someone of a higher status that you, especially in the government. This term itself is not an official position. This can be analogous to calling someone teacher, which has no implications of the specific position, but expresses their superiority.

Locations

Kaifeng 开封	The capital of the Song Dynasty. Modern-day Kaifeng is located in central China’s Henan province. Historically it has been the capital of the Northern Song Dynasty from the 10th to 12th centuries.
Damingfu Province 大名府路	A province that encompasses Nanle County and a variety of other counties and states.
Nanle County 南乐县	Nan means south and le could mean music or joy. This is the county where Ming Yue has lived for the most of her life and where the story starts. The county is within Damingfu.
Yang Family Village 杨家村	The village of a victim whose bones were only found ten years later. The village is the focus of Volume 2.
He Family Village 何家村	Another village. Close to Yang Family Village.
Banyan Village 榕树村	Where the majority of Volume 3 occurs. The village has a huge banyan tree at it’s entrance, hence the village’s namesake.