Li Xiaoxiao let go of her sisters' hands and walked forward slowly. "Even if I marry a powerful man, what if he has three wives and four concubines? If I am impulsive and fight with my concubines all day long, I will be guilty of the seven grounds for divorce if I am not careful. Now I have enough to eat and wear, but I am restricted in my freedom every day. Why is that?"

The sisters pondered carefully, and Li Xiaoxiao didn't say anything more. People's minds were restricted in this era, and it wasn't easy to change their minds.

Shan Yunfang suddenly realized, "Master, you are right. In the past, I wanted to marry a scholar, but if I don't think about it now, I'm afraid I will be disliked even if I marry him."

Li Xiaoxiao found the straightforward and simple-minded Shan Yunfang quite adorable. "Why rush into marriage? Now that you've come down from the mountain village, what kind of life will you have after marrying into a husband's family? It's not too late to consider this matter when you have some ability."

This was just a subtle reminder, but He Chunying burst into tears of grievance after hearing it. "Master, your words are so uninteresting. Entering that mountain stronghold is not a choice we sisters could make. Why did you have to bring it up?"

The women fell silent instantly, no longer daring to whisper among themselves.

Li Xiaoxiao flicked her sleeves impatiently. "Chunying, you also talk about my husband, and you secretly look down on him. Why can you talk about others but others can't talk about you? The way others look at you is the same as the way you look at Qi Yu. Now that you live with this identity, you need to accept the facts of your past. You despise yourself, so why do you expect others to respect you?"

"A person's character and ability are never measured by whether their body is clean or not. Dwelling on this too much will only limit you. Having some ability only means that if you choose the wrong person, you still have a way out."

“You are you, why do you need to act according to other people’s wishes? My husband is also himself, and at least I am happy when I am with him, and no one else can give me this kind of happiness, do you understand?”

After Li Xiao finished speaking, she looked at Chunying, who was shrouded in shadow and stopped talking. She lowered her head, seemingly lost in thought. The women also lowered their heads, tears streaming down their faces, one after another falling onto the stone bricks of the courtyard, leaving a mark.