Chapter 035 Girls Can Also Be Ambitious
Xu Lezhi frowned, pretending to be in a state of great embarrassment. While glancing at Madam Fang's expression, hesitantly spoke, "My sixth sister is quite opinionated. When her fiancé's family broke off the engagement in prison, she...she insisted on getting five hundred taels of silver in compensation...My father resented her for trading her marriage for vulgar things, which affected the Xu family's reputation, and he scolded her. Who knew..."
Xu Lezhi shook his head. "Who would have thought she would speak so arrogantly and disrespectfully to the elders? One moment she blamed our second branch for getting her into trouble, and the next she proposed a division of the family. She made my grandmother so angry that she almost fainted."
Having said that, Xu Lezhi raised his sleeves and wiped away the tears of emptiness.
Fang Ruyu frowned and immediately said angrily, "How could the Xu family's sister be such a person? Grandmother and parents are still alive. How could a girl like her dare to ask for a separation from the family? And since her marriage was broken off, she should reflect on herself. How could she go on to ask for money?"
Xu Lezhi nodded repeatedly, pretending to be helpless and worried. "I don't know why my sixth sister has become a completely different person since she went to jail. My father was just kindly reminding her to keep a low profile after the breakup, so as not to let anyone get hold of her and use her as leverage to ruin the reputation of the Xu family girls. But not only did she not listen, she contradicted him ten times for every word he said. It really wasted my father's love and care—"
"Don't worry, sister." Fang Ruyu only regretted that her legs were injured and she couldn't get out of bed. Otherwise, she would have asked Xu Qingying in person. Now she could only lie in bed, but she didn't want to stay out of the matter. "Women should be chaste and proper, behave with shame, and follow rules for their actions. She is young and doesn't understand these principles. Tomorrow, you can let her come to me and I will teach her about the virtues, words, appearance, and work of a woman."
"This..." Xu Lezhi acted flattered. "I heard that Sister Fang was already famous for her talent when she was still young, and she was an expert in calligraphy and painting. It would be a great honor for me to receive your help. But would it be too much trouble for Sister Fang?"
"How could that be?" Fang Ruyu was very excited. She just wanted to meet Xu Zhenying in person right now and let her know the truth. "I have nothing to do now. Bring her to see me tomorrow night. I have several copies of "Female Discipline" and "Female Training". I believe that after reading these books, she will definitely understand where she went wrong."
Will there be another chance to contact the Fang family tomorrow night?
Xu Lezhi was delighted. Although he hadn't seen the Second Master Fang today, maybe he could see him tomorrow.
She was confident that as long as Mr. Fang II saw her once, he would never forget her.
Right now, she must create more opportunities to meet with the Fang family.
"Then I'll trouble you, Sister Fang." Xu Lezhi bowed cheerfully and bowed to Old Madam Fang. "Old Madam Fang, it's getting late. I'll take my leave first."
Madam Fang waved her hand, the smile on her lips still undiminished: "Go."
After Xu Lezhi walked away, Old Madam Fang frowned slightly, with a hint of disdain in her eyes.
Seeing her grandmother's unhappy expression, Fang Ningmo asked, "Grandma, what's wrong with you? What's wrong with that Xu sister?"
Old Madam Fang glared at Fang Ruyu. Fang Ruyu didn't know what she had done wrong and lowered her head in a bewildered manner.
She was becoming more and more afraid of her grandmother.
She also complained to her mother privately, saying that she always felt that her grandmother didn't like her. However, her mother comforted her and said that her grandmother was just getting older and her temper had become more eccentric, and asked her to learn to be more considerate of her grandmother.
Madam Fang glanced at Fang Ruyu, then turned to Ning Mo with a friendly expression, smiling and saying, "Ning Mo, tell me, what do you think of the seventh daughter of the Xu family?"
Fang Ningmo didn't know what her grandmother agreed with. She thought about it, carefully trying to gauge her grandmother's expression. Then, recalling Xu Lezhi's expression and words just now, she said slowly, "My granddaughter thinks...that the seventh daughter of the Xu family is a little loose-lipped."
"Oh, how do you know that?"
Fang Ningmo, encouraged by her grandmother, continued, "They say family disgrace shouldn't be made public. Besides, grandma and her aren't close, but she tells you everything she asks. Of course, I don't want to be mean... But it seems to me that either Seventh Miss is too honest, unguarded, and easily tricked. Or maybe she's doing it on purpose..."
Fang Ruyu immediately defended Xu Lezhi, saying, "Sister, why would the Seventh Miss of the Xu family deliberately expose the shortcomings of her own sisters? Don't use your mean mind to speculate about others—"
Fang Ningmo felt a little aggrieved, but knowing her sister's stubborn and opinionated nature, she didn't want to argue with her. She just raised her eyebrows and said, "Sister, you're right. Ningmo is the one being mean."
Old Madam Fang felt a headache listening to the quarrel between the young sisters.
It was all because she thought that her eldest brother had a stubborn temper and was easily broken, so when getting engaged, she deliberately chose a woman with a gentle personality.
She used to think that there was nothing wrong with a woman being obedient, so she allowed her eldest daughter-in-law to train her granddaughter to be virtuous and chaste. However, she never expected that after being exiled, she realized the use of a woman's meekness. Fang Ruyu couldn't even see through Xu Qi's little thoughts, and she didn't know how much suffering she would have to endure in the future.
Seeing her grandmother was silent again with a frown on her face, Fang Ruyu felt a little scared for no reason and whispered, "Grandma, what did I say wrong?"
Old Madam Fang sighed and wanted to say something, but then she changed her mind and thought that Xu Qingying was a courageous person who knew when to advance and when to retreat. Maybe if the two of them interacted more, she could change her granddaughter's stubborn personality!
She then touched Fang Ruyu's head and said earnestly, "Ruyu, Ningmo, Grandmother can't protect you forever. Some truths need to be understood by yourselves, and some detours require you to walk them yourself before you know what's right and wrong. Observe and think more about everything, and don't be fooled by a few words from others."
Fang Ruyu couldn't understand the heaviness of her grandmother's mood at the moment, but she knew that her grandmother was doing it for her own good, and she also had a hunch that her grandmother didn't like Miss Xu Qi.
She kept saying yes, but in her mind she couldn't help but review what Xu Qi had just said. After thinking about it, she still didn't know what Xu Qi had said wrong to displease her grandmother.
Could it be that she was wrong?
But Miss Xu Qi looked so honest and quiet, it really didn't seem like what Grandmother said -
Xu Yinxi was also unable to fall asleep.
Dozens of women were crammed into the large bunk bed, each so tightly pressed together that it was difficult to even turn over. Despite the shabby conditions, no one complained. Tired after a day's work, everyone fell asleep as soon as they touched the bed.
The autumn wind was blowing outside the window, and a full moon was faintly visible.
She lay fully clothed on the large bunk bed that smelled of sourness. She could hear faint shouting in her ears, and for some reason she found it difficult to fall asleep.
The soles of my feet throbbed, radiating to my thighs and waist, until I felt numb all the way back. My body felt like it was being torn apart, yet my consciousness was clear, even tinged with an indescribable excitement.
She seemed to have caught a glimpse of a corner of a world, a little light shining through, and she couldn't help but begin to imagine what that world looked like.
She kept thinking about what Xu Qingying said.
What about producing a thousand kilograms per mu, what about social harmony, what about the monopoly of educational resources? Inspiration kept coming to her, and something new was taking root in her mind.
She couldn't tell what it was, she just felt her body trembling and excited uncontrollably.
She remembered the defiant words she had said: she could do better than her father.
If...if...it's really possible, she would prove that she is no less capable than any man even at the cost of her life.
She must make her sonless mother proud of her, she must make her mother no longer feel inferior for not being able to give birth to a son, and she must make her mother be able to hold her head high and be proud when she returns to her parents' home.
If such a thing really happened, she would be willing to die.
But after the excitement, Xu Yinxi felt extremely heavy in her heart when she thought about her current situation.
She laughed at herself. Even if she had ambitions, what good would it do? Everything was just wishful thinking.
They don’t even know what to eat tomorrow, and the biggest problem at the moment is whether they can survive and reach Qianzhou.
What about women taking the imperial examinations, what about women becoming officials, Sixth Sister is really spreading rumors to confuse the public and deceive people's minds -
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