Chapter 346 Min Qiaoshi instructs A Shuang
Bai's maternal uncle, Gu Ning, was an honest and kind man, much like Bai herself. Although Bai's aunt was shrewd, capable, and had a strong sense of self-respect, she was not a difficult person to get along with.
After Bai married into the Duke of Jin's family, her aunt felt guilty and never thought of visiting the Duke of Jin's family. It was Bai who took the initiative to visit, and that's how the two families started to get along again.
Bai was also a learned and sensible person, and her children were all well-educated.
This time, the matchmaker appointed by Madam Zheng was Gu Yuan, the eldest grandson of Bai's maternal uncle. He is nineteen years old and has achieved the rank of Xiucai (a scholar who has passed the lowest level of the imperial examinations). He is currently preparing diligently for the provincial examinations in two years.
Madam Zheng has personally inspected the person and said that he is quite good.
The Gu family has already agreed to the marriage. However, the Yang family seems to still have reservations. They say they want to ask for her opinion.
After reading Madam Zheng's letter, Madam Min Qiao immediately opened the letter from the Yang family.
Sure enough, after Yang An talked about the operation of his estates and shops in the capital, as well as his income in the last two months, he mentioned the matter of Madam Zheng acting as matchmaker.
Originally, the Yang family planned to find a husband for their eldest granddaughter after Yang Hongyuan passed the imperial examination and became a scholar.
But they would never dare to dream of a family like the Gu family.
Although the Gu family currently holds no official positions, they are a family of scholars, with generations of students, and some of their ancestors even held the rank of fourth grade official.
Apart from Yang Hongyuan, who holds the title of Xiucai (a scholar who passed the lowest level of the imperial examinations), the Yang family has no other foundation whatsoever.
The Yang family felt that the two families were not a good match and that the Yang family was trying to climb too high.
They were worried that Yang Honglan would have a hard time after marrying into the family, but they were also afraid that if they refused the marriage, they wouldn't be able to find someone better later.
Moreover, Yang Honglan is already seventeen this year. If she delays any longer, it will be even harder for her to find a good family.
The Yang family couldn't make up their minds, so they wrote to her asking for advice.
After reading the letters from Madam Zheng and the Yang family, Madam Min Qiao handed the letter to A Shuang, saying, "You read it first, and then tell me what you think."
With Wei Jia gone to Xi'an, Ashuang could no longer limit herself to just taking care of her daily life.
Certain necessary perspectives and strategies must also be cultivated.
Ah Shuang respectfully accepted the letter and read it quickly and carefully.
While waiting for Ashuang to read the letter, Madam Min Qiao did not rush to look at Min Yuexi's letter. Instead, she patiently waited for Ashuang's answer.
Ah Shuang didn't keep Min Qiao Shi waiting long and quickly finished reading the two letters.
She put the letter away, pondered for a moment, and then said, "Grandma wants to ask me about the marriage between the Yang family and the Gu family, right?"
“That’s right.” Madam Min nodded. “What do you think about this marriage?”
Ah Shuang hesitated and said, "I think it would be best for the old lady to stay out of this."
Ah Shuang didn't say whether the marriage was good or bad. Instead, she stood on Min Qiao's side and advised her not to get involved.
Min Qiao was keen to teach A Shuang, so she didn't immediately question her. Instead, she encouraged her, "Tell me your thoughts."
After thinking for a moment, A Shuang said, "This marriage is clearly a case of the Yang family climbing the social ladder."
"If the old lady supports this marriage, and Miss Yang lives a good life after marrying into the family, that's fine. But if she doesn't, she will inevitably harbor resentment. The Yang family may also develop a rift with the old lady because of this."
"On the contrary, if the old lady opposes this marriage, and the Yang family regrets it later, they will also resent the old lady. If Miss Yang marries into an unsatisfactory family, this resentment will probably be even stronger."
"Therefore, I think that in order to avoid unnecessary trouble, it would be better for the old lady not to give the Yang family any explicit advice."
After hearing Ah Shuang's words, Wen Xiu and Ah Jiu, who were unaware of the situation, nodded in agreement. Even Zhen Huan, who was hiding in the shadows, silently gave Ah Shuang a thumbs up in his heart.
Madam Min Qiao couldn't help but smile. But after smiling, she shook her head helplessly.
This is the difference between A Shuang and Wei Jia.
Ah Shuang always considers things from her own perspective.
Therefore, it was not surprising to Min Qiao Shi that A Shuang would give such an answer.
If it were Wei Jia, her first thought would definitely be: what does this marriage mean? Is there any profit to be made in this marriage?
When Wei Jia is around, Ah Shuang is just fine like this.
But now that Wei Jia is gone, Madam Min Qiao hopes that Ah Yan can broaden his horizons and see things more comprehensively.
Seeing that Madam Min Qiao shook her head, A Shuang asked nervously, "Grandma, am I wrong?"
Madam Min smiled and shook her head. "What you said is very good. I am also very happy that you can think of me anytime, anywhere."
"But that's not enough."
She seemed to be thinking about something, and then said seriously, "Please teach me, madam."
Madam Min's smile grew even gentler. Ah Shuang was a loyal, intelligent girl who understood things quickly, and she immediately felt a fondness for her talent.
After a moment's thought, she said in a serious tone, "When considering this marriage, we can't just think about the pros and cons from our own perspective. We should consider the pros and cons from all sides and think about the significance of this marriage from all angles."
"The first thing to consider is the two parties involved in the marriage."
"Let's talk about the Gu family first."
"This marriage is not a good match for the Gu family. So why are they willing to lower their eldest son to marry a girl from the Yang family?"
Min Qiao looked at A Shuang.
After thinking carefully, A Shuang replied, "Because this marriage was arranged by Madam Zheng, the Gu family agreed in order not to offend Madam Zheng."
Madam Min Qiao remained noncommittal. "That's only one of the reasons. More importantly, if this marriage goes through, the Gu family can use this opportunity to get closer to Madam Zheng, and at the same time, they can use the marriage to climb the social ladder on her side."
"From now on, the future of the Gu family's sons will be guaranteed."
"Moreover, the Yang family has been with me for decades and has accumulated considerable wealth. When they were released from their citizenship, I gave them a generous subsidy. It's not an exaggeration to say that the Yang family is very wealthy."
Ah Shuang said incredulously, "Does the Gu family even care about the dowry of the Yang family's daughter?"
Madam Min looked at her with amusement: "Have you forgotten that Madam Zheng mentioned in her letter that the Gu family is a family of scholars, with generations of them being scholars?"
"This also means that the Gu family has a lot of books and many scholars, but not much money."
"With the connections of both Madam Zheng and me, and the opportunity to marry a wealthy daughter-in-law, why wouldn't the Gu family be happy to do it?"
Ah Shuang nodded repeatedly, "What the old lady said is right. What about the Yang family?"
Madam Min didn't keep them in suspense and said directly, "It's even simpler for the Yang family. By forming a marriage alliance with the Gu family, the Yang family will have a relative they can rely on for mutual support."
"The Gu family has a long history of scholarship and a rich collection of books. Gu Ning is also a genuine scholar who passed the imperial examination. After the marriage, Yang Hongyuan can openly seek Gu Ning's guidance and discuss scholarship with the Gu family's sons."
"Whether for her own family or for her in-laws, Gu Ning will teach Yang Hongyuan everything she knows."
"For the Yang family, nothing is more important than Yang Hongyuan's success in the imperial examinations."
"Moreover, if the two families were to form a marriage alliance, the relationship between me and Madam Zheng, and the Duke of Jin's mansion, would become even closer."
“In the past, the relationship between our two families was only maintained by the friendship between me and Madam Zheng. With this marriage, our relationship is no longer pure.”
"Isn't this a bad thing?" A Shuang asked, frowning.
“It depends on how you interpret it,” Madam Min smiled. “A purely platonic relationship can be good or bad.”
"With the involvement of interests and the exchange of favors, the relationship may no longer be pure, but it can become more solid."
"Because such relationships are often not something you can easily sever with just a word."
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