Feng Shaoli led Zheng Boyuan to the backyard. The Feng family and the Zheng family lived in the same courtyard, both of which were three courtyards. Feng Shaoli and Madam Ping only lived in the front courtyard, while the two back courtyards were empty.
When Ping heard that Feng Shaoli planned to lend her house to Zheng Boyuan, she quickly took two maids to clean the house.
Zheng Boyuan quickly stopped her, saying, "Sister-in-law, I'll arrange for someone to clean the house."
Just then, Xi Jing'an brought people to deliver firewood over here. When Ping saw the dry firewood, she thought that everyone was short of firewood because of the bad weather recently, but Xu Zhi had brought so much, so she didn't want it.
Xu Zhi quickly said, "Oh, my dear sister-in-law, we are so grateful that you can lend us your yard. We would be happy to give you any firewood, or even gold and silver."
Ping laughed and said, "Don't talk about gold and silver. What's valuable in the city right now? Besides grain, isn't firewood the most valuable thing? Yesterday, the Niu family from the front street came over to borrow firewood from me. Do you still know the Niu family? They run a dried goods shop. Their shop has even expanded to the capital. This time, the eldest son of the main branch of the family was taken away by the old master, leaving only the two sons of the concubines at home to guard the family property."
Ping was a talkative and cheerful woman who could talk to anyone. She treated everyone kindly, regardless of whether they were born of the principal wife or a concubine. In recent years, she had made several close friends in Miaozhou City.
Xu Zhi thought for a moment and said, "I remember now, their family has a legitimate daughter who married into some kind of earl's family in the capital, right? Their daughters are all very beautiful."
When women get together, they sometimes unconsciously start gossiping. It's not that they're trying to make fun of anyone or spread rumors about anyone; they just want to find a common topic to talk about when they're together.
Xu Zhi understood perfectly. Unlike men, women don't travel around and have a lot of experience. When they get together, they usually talk about things they've seen and experienced in other places. Women usually live in this small house, and besides their husbands and children, they just stay in this small courtyard. The gossip about the families they often associate with naturally becomes the topic of conversation when they get together.
Ping clapped her hands together and said, "That's right. In Miaozhou City, there are so many young ladies. It's just that their daughter is beautiful. If she didn't have good looks, how could she have caught the eye of the Earl's son? I've heard that their daughter married into the Earl's family as his principal wife. They are truly unique in Miaozhou City."
Xu Zhi thought that the count's mansion was probably in decline, and the family members were not good at managing the business. Over the generations, the family's assets had been squandered. They had taken a woman from a merchant family as their wife, partly because they were interested in the girl's dowry, but more importantly, they probably wanted to find someone to help them reorganize the family's assets. After all, doing business is not something that anyone can learn; it also requires talent.
Ping thought for a moment and said, "I still remember what the girl from the Niu family looked like. Back then, she was still young and ate with us with her mother. Not only was she beautiful, but what was most unforgettable was her kind nature. At such a young age, she helped take care of all the children at the table, whether they were older or younger than her. I heard from her mother that before she could even speak, her father would hold her on his lap and look at the account books. She was only three or four years old, but she could do the abacus beads faster than the experienced accountants. At that time, we were saying, 'Such a good girl, I wonder which family will get her.'"
Upon hearing this, Xu Zhi understood that the Earl's family must have been drawn to the girl's talent. After all, it's easy to find daughters of merchants, but not so easy to find a capable legitimate daughter of a merchant family. She didn't know which Earl's family it was, but such a family was certainly bold and resourceful, knowing their own shortcomings and finding such a wife to marry. She estimated that their assets would multiply several times over in just a few years.
Ping said, "I heard that the Earl's family is a military family. The Niu family's daughter married a man who is serving in the army. Ninth Sister, we are all from humble families. I don't know how this girl will live after marrying into such a family."
Xu Zhi knew that He'er was now of marriageable age, and Ping Shi was inquiring everywhere about suitable families. Ping Shi was not someone who wanted to marry into a higher social class, but she did not want her daughter to marry into a merchant family. According to the current dynasty's regulations, merchants could not participate in the imperial examinations for three generations, but if she wanted to marry into an official family, Feng Shaoli's family background was there, and there were really no suitable candidates.
Xu Zhi thought for a moment and said, "Sister-in-law, no matter what kind of family a girl marries into, the most important thing is to have confidence in herself. This confidence is not just about the dowry, but also about our knowledge and experience. Take the Niu family's daughter for example. Since the Earl's mansion chose this girl to marry their eldest son, it means that the Niu family's daughter has something that the Earl's mansion values. It's not just about money, but most importantly, the girl's own abilities."
Ping nodded in agreement, and Xu Zhi continued, "Let's take the case of Miss Niu as an example. Her husband is serving in the army outside, while she takes care of her parents in the capital. If she has children, she also has to raise them. No matter how high a position her husband achieves outside, he must still be grateful to Miss Niu. Therefore, as long as Miss Niu is capable and becomes an irreplaceable person in the Earl's mansion, even if her husband has other intentions, he must still respect Miss Niu's position as the principal wife."
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