Chapter 39 It felt like I was kicked while walking down the street.

Du Ziheng originally thought that since he spoke up for Yu Zhiyi, even if Yu Zhiyi wasn't grateful to him, she would at least give him a kind smile.

Unexpectedly, the other person looked at him as if he were a thief.

he:"……"

Yu Zhiyi looked away: "How could you find such a terrifying story moving?"

“Terrible…” someone asked, puzzled.

Yu Jiaojiao said secretly, "Sister, why would you think that way? This is clearly a happy and fulfilling story. You can't make malicious assumptions about others just because you have an unfortunate background, can you?"

Yu Zhiyi ignored her and glanced indifferently at the noble ladies present: "You all envy the heroine in the story so much, so if you have daughters in the future, will you allow them to date poor boys?"

"Even if she breaks off all ties with you for a poor guy, you can still laugh it off? You're even moved by their beautiful love story?"

Everyone: "..."

Some people who even briefly put themselves in my shoes felt suffocated: "How could that be?! If some poor kid dared to kidnap my daughter, I'd beat him to death!"

After saying that, the noblewoman realized something was wrong and looked around at the people around her with embarrassment.

The noble ladies all looked away uncomfortably. This person had simply spoken their minds, so naturally they wouldn't laugh at her.

However, since they didn't get along with Yu Zhiyi, they naturally wouldn't agree with her.

Du Ziheng felt like a dog walking down the street, who had been kicked for no reason.

He wasn't a daughter, but he was...

Seeing that everyone was speechless, Yu Jiaojiao was so angry that she almost ground her teeth to powder: "Marrying your daughter to a poor boy is indeed a very risky thing, and it is understandable that most parents would hesitate."

"But no matter what, the two in the story had a happy ending, didn't they? The man became the top scholar in the imperial examination, and the woman became a noblewoman..."

Yu Zhiyi interrupted her: "The woman suffered all kinds of torment in the man's family, and was only posthumously granted the title of Lady. Do you want such glory if it's offered to you?"

This story is a typical tale filled with male fantasies and melodramatic tropes.

A rich man's daughter fell in love with a poor man, but their relationship was opposed by her parents.

The poor boy's family, however, expressed their warm welcome to the arrival of their daughter.

However, the daughter's parents refused to budge, stating that if their daughter dared to have any further contact with the man, they would make it impossible for the poor boy's family to survive in the area.

So the poor boy's family moved with their daughter to another city a hundred miles away.

The two held a simple wedding without any parental consent or matchmaker's involvement.

The daughter received no betrothal gifts, and the poor boy's family was dirt poor.

The young lady suddenly became a poor woman, eating simple meals that she couldn't get used to, so she could only use the money she had brought with her to make ends meet.

The poor boy only became the top scholar in the imperial examination ten years later.

By this time, the young lady had spent all the money she had brought from home and sold her jewelry and clothes, completely transforming herself from a rich young lady into a poor woman.

Meanwhile, the poor boy's mother gradually gained the authority of a mother-in-law.

A once pampered young lady with servants to attend to her had to serve her mother-in-law and sister-in-law after marriage, as well as manage household chores. All the big and small matters in the family fell on her frail shoulders, and the once delicate young lady became a wife who had shared hardship.

After the man graduated from high school, she indeed became the wife of the top scholar.

Unfortunately, she didn't enjoy a few good years before passing away due to poor health.

After her death, the man married the prime minister's divorced daughter, becoming the prime minister's highly sought-after son-in-law.

This story is both melodramatic and terrifyingly realistic.

But this reality only serves to highlight the steadfastness and preciousness of so-called love?

faithful?

Pooh.

The woman is the one who is steadfast, and she is also the one who is precious.

This so-called love is nothing more than a horror story about a man who leeches off a rich woman until she's no longer useful and then disappears.

Yu Zhiyi mercilessly criticized the story, leaving no stone unturned: "Love that transcends class is indeed precious, but what is precious is only the courage. Whether the rest is worthy of praise depends on whether the person is worthy."

Du Ziheng asked curiously, "What kind of person do you think is worthy?"

"If I were the woman or her mother, before marrying down or letting my daughter marry down, the first thing I would consider is the other person's character."

"Both parents are poor and raise their sons. If the son is sensible, he will be considerate of his parents' hardships and will do what he can to ease their burden during breaks from studying."

"A true gentleman cannot be simply summarized by the three words 'stay away from the kitchen'."

"What is a gentleman? In my opinion, he is loyal to the country and good at making decisions; he is filial to his parents and knows how to share their burdens; he cherishes his wife and is considerate; and he loves his children and sets a good example. He is not someone who spends the money his parents earned with their blood and sweat and uses the excuse of studying to slack off and be lazy."

“It’s not about shirking the responsibility of supporting parents to the wife after she enters the family; rather, it’s about supporting parents together with her.”

"Many men say when their new bride enters the house, 'My mother raised me with great difficulty, so you must take good care of your parents after you enter the family...' This is truly laughable."

"His mother's hardships were not caused by the new bride, but by a husband who did not love her and a son who did not know how to share the burden of his mother. He enjoyed all of his mother's love and care, but he wanted to leave the responsibility of supporting her to the woman. It was simply the most ridiculous thing in the world!"

Her eyes were too clear, yet too wise, as if they possessed the power to see through people's hearts.

Du Ziheng felt uncomfortable being stared at and quickly reflected on whether he had said those words when Yu Zhiyi entered the room.

Good news? No.

The bad news was that he said something even harsher and more offensive.

He really wanted to become withdrawn.

The noble ladies present were also stunned by Yu Zhiyi's novel perspective.

Thanks to the efforts of Princess Jialuo, the protector of the nation, and countless outstanding female predecessors, the mindset of women in the Great Sheng Empire has changed from that of women a hundred years ago.

However, they are still trapped in that circle and unable to break free.

Yu Zhiyi's words were like a wake-up call, showing the noble ladies a completely new perspective on male-female relationships.

The ladies began to reflect on whether the rules they had followed over the years were truly the right ones.

Some of them, who were already "unorthodox," had even brighter eyes.

Yu Zhiyi, who had brought all this to light, seemed to have misspoke: "Oh dear, I was just saying it offhand. You can just listen to it casually. After all, if you all find that love story so poignant, feel free to give it a try."

However, I have something to say to you all—it only takes you a lovestruck mind to go from wealth to poverty, but your children will need to spend their entire lives to go from poverty to wealth... and they may not even succeed.

After all, not every poor boy can become the top scholar in the imperial examination.

At this moment, the second gold medal embroiderer also took the stage.

However, everyone was still immersed in the shock of having their values ​​reshaped, so their reaction to the clothes that followed was rather indifferent.

Until the fifth game.

This time, the most famous top embroiderer from Jinxiu Pavilion will be on stage.

Yu Zhiyi's gaze passed over Zhou Xiuniang, and she saw Hongluan peeking out from behind a door not far away, giving her a bright smile.