Chapter 72 Girls’ School,
They said they wanted to go out before the heat subsided, but after a long night of fussing, Lingyi didn't wake up until noon.
I woke up starving and, unusually for a summer day, drank two bowls of porridge before heading out.
Accompanying her was Qin Feng, the new head steward of the Prince's mansion who was about to take over.
Most of Qin Xiaoshan's generation are now serving in the government, and the new generation of secret guards personally trained by Qin Lie have just come of age.
—Now she and Qin Lie get along very well. Although Qin Lie occasionally suffers from nightmares, his health is generally good, and Qin Xiaoshan no longer needs to be used underutilized in the Prince's mansion. Qin Lie has secured him the position of Vice Minister of Revenue. Although Qin Xiaoshan has also participated in military campaigns, he cannot be compared to those generals who have made significant contributions. Moreover, he is meticulous and thoughtful, making him most suitable for the Ministry of Revenue. Furthermore, the Minister of Revenue is already advanced in years and will retire in three to five years. At that time, Qin Xiaoshan can naturally take charge of the Ministry of Revenue. As long as he is competent, entering the Grand Secretariat and becoming a prime minister will be Qin Lie's paved path for him to rise through the ranks.
Despite taking office the day after tomorrow and having his own residence, Qin Xiaoshan still waited for the princess to return at the Prince's Mansion, and then had Qin Feng explain in detail the princess's situation at the Xiaoyao Marquis's Mansion.
Qin Feng held Qin Xiaoshan in high esteem and recalled earnestly, "After the Princess Consort entered, the Marquis of Xiaoyao asked, 'You've come,' and the Princess Consort responded. The Marquis of Xiaoyao asked if Song Pingkou had been killed by her, and the Princess Consort answered yes. After a while, the Marquis of Xiaoyao sighed and said that he had known all along, and before, he had wanted nothing more than to tear the Princess Consort to pieces. But now, as she was about to die, he felt that the Princess Consort's actions had saved millions of people in Zhuozhou, and he said that the Princess Consort had done well, that she was a person of great courage and magnanimity. The Princess Consort did not speak, and the Marquis of Xiaoyao remained silent. Then the Princess Consort was about to take her leave, and the Marquis of Xiaoyao asked in a trembling voice, 'Is Lin'er still alive?' The Princess Consort replied, 'He is alive and well, and he will grow up safely in the future. I heard that the family also happened to be surnamed Song, so he still retains the surname Song and has not changed his surname.' The Marquis of Xiaoyao was very gratified, saying that he could die in peace with this. Later..."
Qin Xiaoshan asked nervously, "What happened next?"
Qin Feng continued, "Later, when Marquis Xiaoyao coughed, the princess went up and fed him some medicine."
Qin Xiaoshan asked, "Did they say anything else?"
You shook your head: "No, even though the princess had her back to me, we were so close that I could hear her if she spoke."
Being sharp-eared and sharp-eyed is the most important skill for these people, even more important than physical strength. Since the prince chose him to be the chief steward, Qin Xiaoshan naturally wouldn't question his abilities.
Even after Qin Feng left, Qin Xiaoshan still had a furrowed brow.
Seeing this, Qin Xiaohu comforted her, saying, "The princess is just a woman, and she has a child. The prince dotes on her so much that even the hardest stone would be warmed. Besides, the world is now unified, the prince holds a high position and great power, and Song Lin is in our hands. Even if she has other ideas, she has no one to help her and will definitely not be able to carry them out. Brother Xiaoshan, you are too nervous."
Qin Xiaoshan was nearly thirty years old and would definitely get married and have children after taking office. However, he had followed Qin Lie for more than ten years and knew too many secrets.
In this world, only the dead can keep secrets. No matter how careful he is, there are some things that cannot be hidden from the person he lives with day and night. Therefore, Qin Xiaoshan originally planned to leave his wife and keep his child. Once he had a child to continue the family line, he would no longer need his wife.
It was the princess and the prince who took Qin Xiaohu and then handed her over to him.
It must be said that this princess truly possesses a crystal-clear and exquisite heart.
Qin Xiaohu grew up with him, so they naturally had a bond that others couldn't match. Moreover, both of them were former secret guards and were extremely loyal to their master. Originally, one was destined to lose his wife, and the other could only be a secret guard for the rest of his life.
Now that the two of them are supporting each other, they can avoid loneliness for the rest of their lives. How could they not be grateful to the princess?
But Qin Xiaoshan was always somewhat afraid of this princess.
The more considerate and thoughtful she was, the more wary he became.
Throughout his life, except when his master was wounded and dying in Zhuozhou, he had never felt fear. This was because in his heart, there was nothing his master couldn't accomplish, and there was nothing to worry about. His fear stemmed from his master's fear; his master had no control over the princess and was constantly plagued by anxiety and uncertainty.
But after listening to Qin Xiaohu's words, he couldn't help but feel that he was worrying unnecessarily.
Yes, she was just a woman. Now that she has the title of princess and a child, even if she had a lot of resentment before, after being pampered and cherished by the prince for a few years, it should all be resolved.
Even if resentment cannot be resolved, knowing that one cannot escape or run away from it, one should at least learn to accept one's fate.
She accepted this noble destiny: born into the imperial family, and married to Song Pingkou, who was the emperor himself. The prince was currently enjoying the emperor's favor, in charge of the Ministry of War and the Ministry of Revenue, and even participated in cabinet discussions alongside the crown prince. Who dared to say he wouldn't be the next emperor of the Great Xian dynasty?
That night, the Marquis of Xiaoyao died of illness in his mansion. The once majestic general had once held the emperor hostage to command the feudal lords, and even donned a dragon robe and proclaimed himself emperor.
In the end, he died in the capital, a thousand miles away from his kingdom, as a puppet hostage.
But in his final moments, he passed away with a contented smile.
There are many people in the world who know the truth, and they all believe that he is so peaceful because he knows that the Song family bloodline is still alive.
Only he and Lingyi knew that it was because she had lip-read the message to him while he was giving her the medicine.
"Song Pingkou, he is still alive."
.
Lingyi established a girls' school in the area where the palace servants lived in the north of the city.
She bought several neighboring courtyards, renovated them, and connected them into one large courtyard to serve as a school.
At first, it was only Yin Shuang and Ao Xue who mentioned that several of the old women from the palace were getting old and were gradually no longer needed by the new master. Unfortunately, they each had their own special skills, which they could pass on to the palace maids when they were in the palace. But now everyone was busy making a living and had no energy or time to learn new skills.
Lingyi vaguely remembered some of these old women. Even if she couldn't remember them, she might have eaten the dishes they made, worn the clothes they made, and put on the jewelry they made.
Moved by compassion, she instructed Yinshuang Aoxue to buy a courtyard next door and bring over those old women. These palace maids could learn from them, and even if they couldn't, it would be considered as providing for their old age.
The old nannies began teaching in this courtyard. At first, there were only a few palace maids, who only learned when they had free time. Not wanting the people around to know that there were imperial palace skills being taught here, some wives and old women from the neighborhood came to learn. The palace nannies' skills were far superior to those of ordinary people, and gradually more and more people came, with many traveling ten miles to come.
With so many people, chaos is bound to arise, so rules were established first.
Since everyone wants to learn different things, a daily teaching schedule was set.
Since the small courtyard was no longer enough, Lingyi simply bought several adjacent courtyards, combined them together, and renovated them.
With the venue, rules, and courses all in place, they simply started a girls' school.
Now that things were going properly, the palace servants organized another apprenticeship ceremony.
The common people love to watch a spectacle, especially with the presence of Princess Duan, so the area was already packed with people before dawn.
However, apart from eunuchs from the palace, no other men were allowed to enter the girls' school, and guards from the Prince's mansion kept most people outside.
Nevertheless, there were still many women standing in the courtyard, both young and old.
Besides the common people, many female relatives of high-ranking officials and dignitaries also came.
Prince Duan is now quite favored by the Emperor, subtly overshadowing the Crown Prince. The capital is full of opportunists. The powerful and noble people who refused to visit Prince Duan's wedding in the past are now making their female relatives travel to the northern city, which they used to avoid, for the sake of a small girls' school.
There are now seventy or eighty female students at the school, but they are busy with housework and working to support their families, so they can't come every day. Fortunately, most of these elderly women are too old to teach every day, so they are arranged to teach on a five-day cycle, with only one day of class every five days. This way, the women won't be too tired, and the students can make time to come.
Today they all came over, first paying respects to Confucius, then to the old woman, and finally to the lady-in-waiting.
They originally wanted to kneel before her, but now they are only bowing, which is the result of her repeated refusals.
The onlookers and the noblewoman stood on opposite sides, clearly separated.
Most of the women brought their younger relatives with them so that the younger ones could enroll in school and then use this opportunity to establish a relationship with the Prince Duan's mansion.
Unexpectedly, the girls' school taught cooking, embroidery, weaving, hairdressing, and clothing making. The noble ladies looked at each other in bewilderment, and one of them asked bluntly, "May I ask Your Highness, with your status, why is it that the girls' school teaches you things that servants do?"
Her mother hurriedly apologized to Lingyi: "Your Highness, please forgive me. It is all my fault for neglecting to discipline her. Please forgive her this time, considering that she is still young and did not mean what she said!"
"It's alright." Lingyi smiled at the trembling noblewoman first, then explained to the young lady, "Playing the zither, chess, calligraphy, and painting can cultivate one's character, and it is certainly excellent to learn these. However, there are also people who need to support their families and only want to learn some skills that can earn money, so that no matter what situation they encounter, at least they will have food to eat."
She was dressed in plain clothes, with a warm demeanor and a gentle voice, showing no sign of arrogance.
The young ladies who were sent over were mostly quite young and didn't have much fear or wariness. Seeing that she seemed easier to talk to than the elders, and since they really didn't want to learn these things, one of the ladies spoke up: "But we don't have families to support, and we're not going hungry, so learning these things is really useless..."
At this moment, amidst the jostling crowd of commoners, a shrill voice rang out: "Don't say that you nobles are useless, we commoners are useless too! As for women, as long as they are born beautiful and marry into a high-ranking family, they will have no worries about food and clothing! Instead of teaching them those useless things, Your Highness should teach them the art of managing husbands, how to make men infatuated with you and unable to resist you!"
Lingyi's identity was originally a secret between the palace and the powerful, but after the incident with Xiaoyao Hou, it also spread to the common people.
There were many rumors circulating, some of which were even unbearable to hear. Lingyi originally did not want to pay attention to them, but in the blink of an eye, whether they were noble ladies or ordinary people watching the spectacle, they all felt nervous and fearful upon hearing this, but none of them showed any sign of agreement.
Even the trainees were the same.
Lingyi understood that what they agreed with was not the denigration of her in the conversation, but the fate of women all over the world.
Being born beautiful, marrying into a wealthy family, and knowing how to manage a husband—it seems that having these things is enough for a woman to defy fate and live a carefree life.
There is an old saying: "Do not rejoice at the birth of a son, nor grieve at the birth of a daughter." But did we not see how Wei Zifu dominated the world?
And now, I have truly set a terrible example for them.
She only intended to go through the motions today—with the support of the Prince Duan's mansion, the girls' school would have far fewer troubles in the future.
Since we've encountered and heard it...
Lingyi stopped the guards who were about to grab the speaker, and instead smiled slightly: "That's right. I'm sure many of you know that I have no special skills. I only married the prince because of my beauty, and since then I've been rich and carefree. That's why I can talk so smugly to you all here now."
Everyone was taken aback by her words and held their breath as they looked at her, only to see her expression turn arrogant: "But if anyone wants to follow my path, they should first examine themselves to see if they have the same appearance as me!" She looked around and smiled contemptuously: "Excuse my bluntness, but I only said that I am not quite right, just to save face for you all."
These words were incredibly arrogant, yet she stood there in simple clothes and light hairpins, without any deliberate adornment. Her hair was styled in a raven-black bun behind her ears, and her face was as white as jade, with red lips and white teeth. She clearly had an extremely charming appearance, but her pair of bright, clear eyes also carried a captivating fragility that made even women feel pity for her.
The common people were one thing, but even the young noblewomen, in their early teens, dressed in fine clothes and made up, some of whom were exceptionally beautiful, seemed insignificant in comparison to her.
Lingyi, having humiliated them, now flatters them: "I was born into a farming family in Jiangnan, naturally unlike you who grew up in the capital. You see only the splendor and prosperity of the capital, while I have endured nearly ten years of natural disasters and war. I have seen trees devoured, human flesh boiled in iron pots, and people who, after a great battle, only care for corpses instead of helping the dying. I have also seen mothers who, despairing that their children could not be saved, drowned themselves." Her gaze sweeps over the silent, sorrowful people, then turns to the shocked and astonished noblewomen. "The former Emperor Chengtai of the Great Han Dynasty was a man of many affairs, having had countless princesses. Their status was hundreds of times higher than yours. Where are they now? How many have survived? You are all women. If you were like them, stripped of your princess status and with your homeland shattered, would you rather have a skill to make a living, or a peerless beauty that would bring endless disaster?"
The entire room fell silent.
Apart from those noble ladies who were only teenagers, who among those present had not experienced that period of time?
The people thought of the suddenly soaring grain prices, the days of not having enough to eat, the relatives who were forced to leave during the war, and many of them were refugees who had fled to the capital. They thought of the pain of extreme hunger, the family members who did not survive, the hometown that was turned into scorched earth by the war, and the desolation and despair of leaving their homes.
The noblewomen recalled the unease during the several changes of dynasty, the fear of having nowhere to turn for help, and the relatives and friends who were once surrounded by distinguished guests but were now executed along with their entire families. At their level, who hadn't heard of several horrific tragedies? Those princesses, those county princesses, those former close friends, their daughters... In chaotic times, beauty was not a gift from heaven, but clearly a woman's original sin!
In the silence, someone murmured, "But now the country is peaceful and prosperous, and there is no war..."
Lingyi said, "What if it's not war? If one is born into a poor family, who knows when one might be married off to a fool to carry on the family line, bringing only a few dozen taels of silver to one's parents and relatives? If one is born into an official's family and becomes the wife or concubine of a high-ranking official, one might be murdered due to the power struggles and conflicts of interest in officialdom, and even then, justice might not be served. Even princesses are not immune to being married off to foreign lands, with their brothers dying and their sons succeeding them." She looked at the noble ladies, "I suppose your families are not lacking in beautiful women, and your fathers and brothers' courtyards are not lacking in concubines who have fallen out of favor due to aging, or even whose favor has ended before their beauty has faded. Are their new favorites more beautiful than their old ones? I'm afraid not. As a woman, if you have beauty but no means of support, how can you achieve fulfillment?"
Someone couldn't help but ask, "According to the princess, is there absolutely no way for women to survive?"
Someone else whispered, "But the Princess Consort is deeply favored by Prince Duan, and you are the only one in the Prince's mansion. Isn't that perfect enough?"
Lingyi lowered her eyes and smiled: "Of course I am perfect. You can just take these words as alarmist talk. Although it has been said since ancient times that a woman's virtue lies in her lack of talent, I believe that a woman should be talented. This talent is not necessarily in music, chess, calligraphy, or painting. Traveling all over the country and practicing medicine to help the world is a virtue. If her husband dies early, she can support her elders and raise her children on her own. This is also a virtue. In my heart, talent and virtue are the courage and ability to make a living in any situation. If one can also help others, then one is a person of great virtue."
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