Meng Shi (孟诗, Mèng Shī) was a prostitute, one of Jin Guangshan's many short-term lovers, and Jin Guangyao's mother. She was also the paternal grandmother of Jin Rusong
Appearance[]
Meng Shi was considered beautiful. Jin Guangyao strongly resembles her, as many cultivators mistake the statue of his mother for Jin Guangyao himself.[1]
Personality[]
Meng Shi seems to have been an educated woman, which was rare for a prostitute of her times. However, she was also hopeful and naive enough to steadfastly believe her ex-lover Jin Guangshan would rescue her and their child from the brothel.[2] She was proud of her learning, which later led to public abuse in front of her teenage son.[3]
Meng Shi is noted to have been a caring mother who loved Meng Yao, and for his part, he built an entire temple in his mother's image so that she would receive the praise of thousands, allowing her to reincarnate into a better life.[1]
History[]
Meng Shi was one of the most prominent prostitutes of her time, simply because she was one of the few prostitutes who knew how to read and write poems, sing, paint, play the guqin and chess. After hearing rumors of this famous prostitute, Jin Guangshan visited her once and left her a pearl as a token.[4]
When Meng Shi became pregnant, she hoped her privileged lover would return to ransom her and their son from their positions. Though Jin Guangshan certainly had the means to help, he believed that an educated woman was "too much trouble."[5] Moreover, in contrast to what he led her to believe, the pearl trinket held little real value.[4]
Still, Meng Shi continued teaching Meng Yao cultivation techniques from books she bought, taking care to educate him for the day his father would return. Unfortunately, she is noted to have been extremely sick by the time Meng Yao was ten.[4]
When her son was a teenager, Meng Shi was once stripped in public and tossed from the brothel by a disappointed john. She was rescued by Sisi, who later engaged in a fight with another prostitute to defend Meng Shi and Meng Yao.[3]
The exact timeline of Meng Shi's death is uncertain, but it was before the Sunshot Campaign and after Meng Yao was at least 14.[4][3]
It is implied that Meng Shi's body was buried on the grounds of the Guanyin Temple built by Jin Guangyao. However, by the time he returns to disinter her body to bring with him to Dongying, her coffin had already been dug up by an unknown party and filled with poisonous smoke. The fate of her body is unknown, but Wei Wuxian speculates that it was cut up and scattered to mimic the fate of Nie Mingjue. When questioned, Nie Huaisang likewise hints that he had destroyed it terribly.[1]
References[]
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