The old lady chuckled and said, "Yes, I believe what our Di-ge says. Xu Di, your grandmother is so old, and after all these years, I've managed to build this whole family. I'm quite content with that. But as the tree grows, branches will grow, and people will grow up and separate. It's not good for us to always live together like this. Your grandmother knows that your grandfather is a good brother and a good uncle, but he can't disregard our ancestral rules. I think that while I'm still relatively clear-headed, I should divide up my things to avoid any future disagreements over them."
Xu Di smiled and said, "Grandmother, is it time to divide the family property?"
The old lady smiled and said, "Yes, even if we don't move out, we should first divide up the house and shops."
Because of the old lady's insistence, the Marquis and the Second Master had a detailed discussion with the old lady that very night, and the family property was divided up within a few days.
The Yongning Marquis's Mansion quietly split up, with the second branch receiving another large mansion in the capital. The size of that mansion was not much different from the Yongning Marquis's Mansion. Because the old lady was still alive, the Marquis strongly opposed the second branch moving at this time. Therefore, although the family split up, the second branch of the Yongning Marquis's Mansion still lived in the Yongning Marquis's Mansion.
After Xiao Yuan ascended the throne, he completely stabilized the situation in the court and then began to promulgate some new measures, such as encouraging artisans to bring their handicrafts to the capital to participate in the Ministry of Revenue's selection. If the artisans' skills passed the Ministry of Revenue's review, they could stay in the Ministry of Revenue as national artisans of the Great Liang. National artisans had ranks and salaries. This policy basically did not touch the interests of anyone. Therefore, after the policy was promulgated, many famous artisans from all over the country brought their handicrafts to the capital to participate in the Ministry of Revenue's selection.
After a period of time, the Ministry of Works had many more experienced craftsmen. It was these craftsmen who worked together to improve many tools, such as those for farming and weaving. Gradually, the tools improved by the craftsmen covered all aspects of daily life, and the technological level of Daliang slowly began to improve.
Chen Zhaoci's medical school was initially run at home, enrolling young girls selected from the sons of the Marquis's household. Gradually, a group of boys were also selected. The curriculum expanded beyond nursing and gynecology to include surgery, particularly the treatment of battlefield wounds. After Xiao Yuan ascended the throne, Chen Zhaoci's medical school was merged into the Imperial Academy. This newly established Imperial Academy not only taught the Four Books and Five Classics but also many specialized subjects, such as water conservancy, mathematics, agriculture, and military science. Later, medicine was added. Decades later, the Imperial Academy of Daliang was no longer limited to citizens within Daliang; people from neighboring countries even sent people to study specialized knowledge there.
During Xiao Yuan's reign, with Xu Di's assistance, the Great Liang cultivated many talents and established many traditions. Xu Di once told Xiao Yuan that with these talents and traditions, even after their generation passed away, the Great Liang would be able to prosper for decades. As for what the Great Liang would be like in the future, that would depend on the abilities of the successors.
Xu Zhi later traveled to many places with Zheng Boyuan. They had four children together, and when Zheng Boyuan was fifty, the two returned to the capital. Xu Zhi often thought that she was so much happier than in her previous life. She had loving parents, affectionate siblings, a dear lover, and sensible and obedient children—all things that the once miserable little girl longed for but could never have.
Sometimes, Xu Zhi would still think back to that afternoon when she was three years old, sitting alone in her room, listening to people outside talking about how her parents and brother had encountered danger outside the city. Xu Zhi believed that that moment was the turning point in her life. It was because of that afternoon, which seemed like any other, that she later experienced this blissful life that she just wanted to immerse herself in. Now a grandmother, Xu Zhi would return to her parents' home and, just like when she was a child, lean on her mother's side. But this time, her mother, who was over seventy, could no longer hold her in her arms, gently pat her back, and hum lullabies to lull her to sleep. Instead, Xu Zhi would stretch out her arms and hug her somewhat thin mother, listening to her mother laughing and telling her about the funny things her nephews and grandnieces did.
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