Chen's attitude of not asking questions and doing things according to the elders' requirements deeply influenced Xu Mian.
No matter how big the doubts in my heart are, since my mother has told me that this is the truth, then this is the truth of the matter.
Xu Zhi nodded after hearing Xu Tong's words and said, "I feel the same way. As you travel west from the capital, the sky seems to rise higher and higher, and my heart opens up a lot. Thank you all for your hard work along the way, sisters. I thank you all."
Xu Zhi gave a curtsy to the sisters present. Xu Mian quickly led the girls to stand up and said, "Ninth Sister, this is only right. When we came, Second Sister even went home to ask us to bring the gift she gave you."
Xu Gao and Xu Yao are in Liaodong, and it's unknown whether their families have sent any messages. After Xu Tao married into the Feng family, she lived there. It's said that the young couple's relationship is quite good. Xu Tao heard that Xu Zhi was getting married in Ganzhou. Since she was a married woman, she could have gone home to see her off if she were in the capital. However, Ganzhou was a long way away, and she still had her parents-in-law to take care of, so she couldn't just go with them out of the capital.
Upon hearing this, Xu Zhi happily said, "Thank you, Second Sister. How have you been lately, Second Sister?"
Xu Tao is Xu Tong's older sister from the same mother. When Xu Zhi asked, Xu Tong smiled and said, "My second sister is doing well. Her husband treats her quite well. Knowing that she misses home, he accompanied her back to her parents' home a few times, which made my mother give him a good scolding."
Xu Li said, "Fifth Sister, why did Fourth Aunt say that about Second Sister? Isn't it good for Second Sister to go back to her parents' home?"
Xu Tong said, "I asked my mother the same question. She said that if a married girl goes back to her parents' home so casually, people will think she is restless. What kind of logic is it for a married girl to run back to her parents' home all the time?"
Xu Li shook her head after hearing this and said, "Once you get married, you can't go back to your parents' home whenever you want. If I don't get married in the future, I think how painful it would be if I missed my father and mother but couldn't see them."
Upon hearing this, Xu Tong said, "But isn't this how all girls are supposed to be? Everyone knows that Fifth Aunt loves you, but if you don't get married, Fifth Aunt will be even more worried."
Xu Gui said, "It's really not good to be a girl. You have to get married and you can't go home to see your mother whenever you want."
Xu Tong said, "Then you can marry someone closer to home. Don't marry into those high-class families with strict rules. Just find a small family with fewer rules and you won't have to deal with those rules."
Upon hearing Xu Tong's words, Xu Mian quickly said, "Fifth Sister, you're going too far with your words."
Xu Tong playfully stuck out her tongue and said, "Third sister, is it wrong to say that?"
Xu Mian said, "Marriage is arranged by parents and matchmakers. How can you do whatever you want? Girls shouldn't talk about getting married all the time, or people will laugh at our family's daughters for being unruly."
Xu Tong said somewhat indignantly, "Third sister, these are all the truth. How is that considered lacking manners? Ninth sister, do you think I'm right?"
Thinking of the fates of her sisters back then, Xu Zhi realized that when she got married, the situation was already dire. First, the old lady was bedridden, then the Marquis suddenly died, and her eldest uncle inherited the title. The old lady managed to force the second branch of the family to separate and move out, and then urged the girls in the family to get married as soon as possible. On the eldest branch, besides Xu Gao and Xu Tao who were already married, there was only Xu Zhi, who was married in place of Xu Yao and Xu Tong, who married into a wealthy family in the suburbs of the capital with meager dowries. As for her sisters from the second branch, Xu Zhi had already married into the Duke's mansion at that time and knew nothing about the outside world. She really didn't know how her sisters spent the rest of their lives.
It's really not easy for a girl to get married. It's like being reborn for the second time. It's one thing to marry a responsible and dependable man, but the worst thing is to marry into a family that's greedy and opportunistic. If the bride's family is prosperous, that's fine, but if something happens to the bride's family, life in the husband's family will be very difficult. Some unkind men will even be afraid that their own family will affect them, so life will naturally be hard. Some might even divorce their wives or be secretly harmed.
Thinking of this, Xu Zhi couldn't help but sigh softly and said, "Sisters, marrying into a wealthy family doesn't mean you've married well. Life is like the shoes on your feet; only the wearer knows if they fit. That's what my mother told me. She said that no matter what, as long as you can live comfortably, that's a good life. Small families have their advantages. Wealthy families may look glamorous, but they're also prone to scandals."
Xu Gui looked at Xu Zhi with her bright, big eyes and asked timidly, "Ninth Sister, is it only by marrying into a humble family that one can have a good life?"
Xu Zhi said, "No, I mean that there are advantages to being from a wealthy family, and there are advantages to being from a humble family. But some people from humble families are fixated on the rules of wealthy families. When their daughters-in-law marry into such families, they insist on acting like mothers-in-law and tormenting their daughters-in-law. It's not uncommon for this to happen. When it comes to marriage, you should marry into a family where the husband is ambitious and responsible, and the mother-in-law is kind."
Xu Mian listened, seemingly lost in thought, while Xu Tong asked curiously, "Ninth Sister, what kind of person is this young master of the Zheng family you're going to marry?"
After listening, Xu Zhi thought for a moment and said, "He is a very responsible and dependable person."
Xu Li said, "But he's always been a soldier, and I've heard that soldiers are often reckless."
Xu Zhi smiled and said, "Why would you think that? Big brother served in the Yanmen Pass garrison for a long time. He met many like-minded comrades there. Eighth sister, I think these people are straightforward, responsible and have a strong sense of duty."
Xu Tong laughed and said, "No wonder you didn't like any of the men in the capital and came all the way back to Ganzhou City."
Hearing this, Xu Zhi said somewhat embarrassedly, "I didn't know that my mother had arranged a marriage years ago. My mother only remembered it when Brother Zheng came with the token. But even without Brother Zheng's marriage agreement, I would still have found a like-minded person here to marry."
Hearing this, Xu Mian looked at Xu Zhi and saw that Xu Zhi had a smile on her face and light in her eyes. This made Xu Mian's heart flutter slightly, and she said, "Ninth Sister, after hearing what you said, we sisters have come to understand a lot of things."
Xu Zhi gently shook her head and said, "Sisters, I'm telling you the truth. I went to Hexi with my parents when I was young, and I've lived here for so many years. I'm used to life on the border and I like it here. The sky is high and the land is wide. I can cry when I want to cry and laugh when I want to laugh. I'm really not used to life in the capital. I've been in the capital for so long, and I always feel that the sky in the capital is pressing down on the capital, making it hard for people to breathe."
Continue read on readnovelmtl.com
