Jiang Tian's words brought tears to the eyes of many women.
But in reality, most people feel extremely angry.
Some applauded, but many more remained silent.
Many people are simply angry, but they don't know what they're angry about.
Why would she do that?
Everyone only had this one question on their minds.
As if anticipating this situation, Jiang Tian did not show any signs of being hurt because others did not cheer for her.
Just as she was about to talk about her plans for the college, discordant voices came from the audience.
"In these chaotic times, with starving people everywhere, you have money, connections, and ample resources, yet instead of working for the benefit of the people, you want to create some kind of women's academy. Do you have any respect for the land beneath your feet?"
The old man's voice was tinged with the weariness of time, but his every word and action revealed his deep-seated prejudice.
As the old man asked a question, a path slowly opened up in the crowd.
Many people were taken aback when they saw the old man's appearance.
This old man was a well-known scholar in the city and a highly respected elder.
He was probably brought here for dinner and happened to listen to Jiang Tian's speech.
He looks quite old now, but in the silence, his voice can be heard by everyone, so he doesn't seem so old and sickly.
"Mr. Chen also came to see the excitement. Sure enough, everyone wants to know the news about the warlord."
"Mr. Chen is quite right. Jiang Tian really does things on a whim. Why doesn't she consider her own limitations? So many people are starving and freezing, and she still wants to provide academies for women. She's just being a busybody."
With a respected old gentleman backing them up, those who were already dissatisfied immediately began to gossip in secret.
They genuinely couldn't understand what this Boss Jiang was thinking. How could she be so arrogant? Did she think she was someone special just because she made a little money? And she even wanted to waste money on old-fashioned education for girls. She really had money to burn.
Many people don't understand what she did, and therefore treat her with disrespect and even some hostility. It's really hard to know what's going on in her head.
When they saw the old man in the crowd, many people spontaneously offered to help him.
However, Jiang Tian, who was on stage, showed no respect for the old man whatsoever.
She simply smiled at the old man and asked a question: "May I ask you, sir, are there no women among the common people?"
She even dared to ask a question back.
Many people were stunned.
They truly couldn't understand where Jiang Tian got the audacity to even contradict Mr. Chen.
The old man clearly hadn't expected that Jiang Tian wouldn't be frightened by his rebuke, but instead would challenge him to a duel.
He glanced at Jiang Tian with disdain before lazily saying, "The safety of the people is naturally a matter for those of us with a sense of responsibility to consider. Women are, of course, people of the people, but nowadays many of them are struggling to even have enough to eat. Your talk of setting up an academy is completely putting the cart before the horse!"
"You seem to have no idea that many people can't even afford to eat. It's one thing for you to live a life of luxury, but you also want to raise funds to run your girls' college. What are you thinking? Is this how you waste money?!"
The old man showed no mercy to Jiang Tian, and instead loudly reprimanded her.
His rebuke did not provoke resentment from others; on the contrary, it brought smiles to the faces of many.
It seems that the old man has said everything they wanted to say but dared not say, so they want to support him.
Many people are publicly criticizing Jiang Tian, saying that she has put the cart before the horse, that she has no conscience, and that she is not worthy of the warlord.
The situation was quite bad at one point.
Amid the chaos, Jiang Tian remained calm and composed.
She looked at the chaotic crowd, her smile unchanged.
Under the somewhat hateful gazes of the crowd, she finally spoke.
“Sometimes I really don’t understand why we are always made to back down. No matter what you do, many people will say, ‘Wait a minute, after you finish this, it will be your turn.’ If there are both men and women in a family, the men are always eligible to go to school, but the women are not. If the family is well-off, the men will go to school first, and then the women will follow. If the family is not well-off, then the women will have to remain illiterate and then be married off.”
“I understand what the old man is saying. You believe that the bigger problem nowadays lies in people’s lives, not in whether women can receive an education. But I don’t understand why we can’t address both at the same time?”
“Every time you make us wait, how long are we supposed to wait? Half the world’s population is women, and you’re always making us wait. Why can’t you help the poor while also fighting for an opportunity for women’s education?”
The old man's expression changed.
He hesitated for a moment before saying, "We still need to deal with more important conflicts and more urgent problems. Women won't die even if they are not educated, but if you waste money on these things, it will only cause dissatisfaction among others!"
"Are you getting old and blind? Do you even have any logic left? Women won't die if they're uneducated? I want to tell you how many women, because they've never been educated, think they can only depend on one man for life. If the man doesn't want them anymore, they can only find a place to end their lives. You're taught from a young age that life is vast and open, but they don't know what paths they can take. They're always the passive one. Is that what you call 'won't die'? In your eyes, aren't they insignificant?"
After refuting the gentleman's argument, Jiang Tian addressed the audience: "I know many people think that women are indifferent, whether they receive education or not, and how far they go is none of your business. You may not care, but I do, and many others do too. We are willing to contribute money and effort to give others a spark, to let them know that there is more than one path in life, to teach them to read, to learn to draw strength from books, and to help them become better—that's enough. You don't need to worry about anything else. No one can stop me from doing what I want to do."
"If you want to morally blackmail me, please pay me first. After all, my time is also money. Today is a press conference and a fundraising event. I don't want to make things too awkward, and I hope everyone will keep their mouths shut and not say things that shouldn't be said. How my money should be spent should not be decided by your opinions."
Jiang Tian's words were incredibly rude, and many people showed signs of displeasure.
Unfortunately, their dislike clearly did not cause any harm to Jiang Tian.
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