Why not?
Everyone asked.
Gu Baozhu said seriously, "Qin, the scholar, will definitely pass the imperial examination and become an official in the court. I heard from my third sister-in-law that the Qin family is a prominent family with a long history of learning. Such a family should marry into a family of scholars. If our daughters, who are from military families, marry into such a family, they will not be well-educated and will not only feel uncomfortable associating with the wives of civil officials, but they will also be looked down upon. A husband and wife should be like my third brother and sister-in-law, respecting each other to have a harmonious and lasting relationship."
Madam Gu was surprised that Gu Baozhu could say such things in public, and couldn't help but look at her again and again.
The two old ladies fell silent.
Madam Dai said, "Seventh Miss is right. Our master works in the Five Cities Military Command. Although they are all officials in the court, the people in the Jingzhao Prefecture have a completely different style from them, and the people in the Ministry of War are even more different."
Qin Yuan laughed and said, "Who told the Five Cities Military Command to have so many old women? They can manage anyone."
“Indeed,” sighed Madam Dai. “It’s really not easy. They dump everything on the Five Cities Garrison. These days, in preparation for the festival and the Empress Dowager’s birthday, the master goes out at dawn and doesn’t return until dusk, afraid that something might go wrong. All those years of hard work have been wasted. His lips are so sore from worrying. And yet, the Imperial Censor still finds fault with everything.”
Because the Five Cities Military Command was of low rank, it was a place where many low-ranking military officers' families received government rations, and several members of the Gu clan also served there.
The topic then shifted to the Five Cities Garrison.
Qin Siyuan finally breathed a sigh of relief.
As a young scholar, he was truly no match for the old ladies in the military general's household.
Qin Heng quietly tugged at Gu Baozhu's sleeve and whispered, "Let me tell you, although my family is a large clan, not everyone likes to read or has any talent. For example, if I married a wife from a scholarly family, she would be constantly nagging me about scholarship and poetry, which would give me a terrible headache."
Gu Baozhu looked at him with sympathy and laughed, "Indeed, it's better for us women. Even if we don't study, no one will say we're not ambitious. If your husband wants to learn from someone, he can just ask a friend. If you married a wife who is well-read and expects her husband to be ambitious, she would be constantly pricking you with an awl and chasing you to read. You would be truly pitiful."
Qin Heng said with a mature look, "I just think girls from military families are better. Look at my second sister, she's quite spoiled at home, but she doesn't live as freely as girls from military families."
Gu Baozhu chuckled and asked, "Don't you find the daughter of a military general to be vulgar and lacking in manners?"
Qin Heng slapped his thigh and said, "I like that kind of carefree life. All that polite formalities is so annoying. Let me tell you, I'm much more comfortable and fun with Shen Changle than with my classmates at the Imperial Academy. I also find Xu Tang and his gang interesting, but I would never do what they do, or my father would be furious."
Gu Baozhu spoke to him enthusiastically, which Qin Siyuan found quite amusing.
Kang Ge'er asked, "Little Aunt, do you not plan to become the wife of a scholar in the future?"
Gu Baozhu blushed and waved her hand casually, saying, "Being a scholar's wife means being nagged by my mother-in-law, who controls me from head to toe. Even my dowry money gets me scolded. How can it compare to the joy of riding horses and playing polo?"
福哥儿就贼兮兮地看了眼秦思远，又看了眼一脸赞同的秦恒，踮起脚，趴到顾宝珠的耳朵边，小声道：“我觉得嫁给恒哥哥做进士的亲戚也不错，他又不爱读书，喜欢蹴鞠，还喜欢和沈长乐在一起，家里又没什么钱。小姑嫁妆多，怎么也够花了，嫁妆铺子还可以让他帮着你管。最最关键的是，恒哥哥长得也还不错，又不会武艺，小姑你一定能揍得了他。日后他要是敢纳妾，小姑就可以回来给三伯母和三伯告状，他铁定不敢。”
Goodness.
Gu Baozhu thought to herself, "Wow!"
This little nephew of mine, Fu Ge'er, has quite a bit of knowledge in his belly.
Seeing Gu Baozhu hesitate, Fu Ge'er comforted her, "Auntie, don't worry. I'll have Xiao Dong go with Doctor Li on his house calls and ask around. He'll definitely be able to find you a good one."
Gu Baozhu said, "Stop, stop, stop, stop. You're such a young person, yet you worry about so much. Be careful you don't grow too tall."
Fu Ge'er glanced at his brainless aunt with disapproval and said, "Didn't Mr. Songshan say that a person who does not plan for the future will have trouble in the present? If we don't think about it now, won't we be caught off guard when we need it? If you don't want it, Aunt, I'll keep an eye out for Lan Jie'er."
Gu Baozhu's eyes widened, and she said, "Lan Jie'er?"
Fu Ge'er puffed out his little chest and said, "As the elder brother, I should also start thinking about these things."
Gu Baozhu: "Hey!"
She really didn't understand how Fu-ge'er, at such a young age, could have so many things on his mind.
"You spend all day thinking about these things, how can you possibly absorb the words of sages? Don't you want to take the imperial examination?"
Fu Ge'er said, "Master Songshan said that reading is for understanding principles. Everything in this world has its own reason. If you can figure out a small matter clearly, you will understand the reason behind it. This is not easy. Moreover, while you must study hard to pass the imperial examination, you cannot just study hard. The country selects the best candidates for the imperial examination once every three years, with fewer than three hundred people each time. This includes those who pass the examination at the junior level. If you pass the examination in your thirties, you are considered a junior candidate. Many people pass the examination in their forties or fifties, and some are still taking the examination in their seventies or eighties. If you only study to pass the imperial examination and ignore everything else, you will not understand the principles of things. If you pass the examination in the future, how will you be able to manage affairs? You will become a bookworm."
Gu Baozhu said, "I also listened to Mr. Songshan's lectures, but I didn't hear any of these things."
Fu Ge'er rolled his eyes and said, "Little Aunt, you were probably only thinking about going out of the mansion to play back then."
The aunt and niece were whispering to each other when they heard Qin Yuan call them over for a meal.
Qiuju and the others had already set out the food, with Old Madam Gu and the others at one table and the children at another.
Qin Yuan went to serve at Old Madam Gu's table. She had just set out two dishes when Old Madam Gu said, "Yuan'er, go to that table and talk to your brothers. We old women sit at the same table and talk about social etiquette. You kids don't like listening to that."
In the past, when Qin Yuan came to the main room for meals, Old Madam Gu never asked her to serve her much. Now that there were guests, she only slightly showed the proper etiquette in front of others before urging her to accompany the guests.
Qin Yuan smiled and agreed. Gu Baozhu quickly moved to the side and then asked someone to set up a seat, saying with a smile, "Third Sister-in-law, come and sit down. Let's have a good chat."
Xiao Dong sat next to Kang Ge'er, his bright black eyes looking at her expectantly, clearly wanting to get closer to her as well.
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