Chapter 41 How fortunate we are! But we must not forget…
That evening, the sun began to set.
At the dinner table, Wen Qingshi was distributing bowls and chopsticks to everyone when he looked up and saw two unfamiliar guests standing at the door.
The first thing I saw was a woman with a calm demeanor, exuding a scholarly air and possessing a composed bearing; she was probably quite well-read.
She was holding the hand of a little girl who looked about eight or nine years old, who was curiously peering into the house.
Wen Yu followed Wen Qingshi's gaze and knew that Chen Miaozhi and her daughter had settled their luggage and were staying temporarily. She smiled and invited them to sit down.
Although the two were somewhat prepared, they were still a little surprised to see so many members of the Wen family having a meal together.
Chen Miaozhi said gently, "I apologize for bothering you all. My name is Chen Miaozhi, and I will be teaching some practical courses at the academy later."
Today, Wen Yue was cooking, and the girls sat neatly around the table.
Wen Yu quickly introduced the girls present to Chen Miaozhi. They were both surprised and delighted to learn that Chen Miaozhi was a newly invited teacher at the academy.
"Oh my god, a woman really came to teach us our lessons!" Fan Yizhen exclaimed with delight.
She suddenly remembered something and a surge of curiosity welled up inside her.
"Sister Chen, when I was leaving school today, I heard people in the village talking about your ex-husband..." She had only said a little bit when she suddenly stopped, her face full of regret, as if she felt that she had said something wrong. "I'm sorry, I shouldn't have asked about your family affairs. I was being nosy."
"It's alright, what do you want to ask?" Chen Miaozhi asked calmly.
“Uh… what I was trying to say was,” Fan Yizhen gathered her thoughts, “there was a woman in our village who often had conflicts with her husband. They would fight and argue every few days, and sometimes they would even use knives!”
Xin Bai and Du Ran, who were standing nearby, clearly knew about this as well, and nodded in agreement, saying, "We all feel sorry for her and think she should get a divorce."
“But every time I tried to persuade her, she would shake her head and refuse,” Fan Yizhen looked at Qianshan leaning against Chen Miaozhi with a puzzled expression. “She said that she has two children at home, and once they divorce, the children will not have a complete family, so she would rather endure it and make do.”
"I just want to ask, Sister Chen, your situation is so similar to hers, so why were you able to be so decisive and determined to get a divorce?"
Chen Miaozhi gently stroked Qianshan's hair and asked in return, "Do you think it's more important for a family to be 'complete' or 'happy'?"
"Of course, it's happiness," the girls said in unison.
If life is filled with nothing but pain, what is the point of being whole?
“If I leave him, I can provide Qianshan with a safe place to live and make sure she has enough to eat and wear. But if I stay with him, we will have to endure his unreasonable insults every day, and even his beatings when he’s drunk.” Chen Miaozhi spoke calmly and clearly. “To me, a violent husband is the greatest danger in this family.”
The girls gasped.
As someone who experienced all of this firsthand, Chen Miaozhi remained as calm as an observer: "That so-called 'completeness' meant nothing to me, but to him it meant getting free servants and punching bags, and it also meant that he could squander my savings at will in the name of being a husband, and restrain my mother and me in the name of discipline."
"Whether it's a disadvantage or an advantage, you can all see it, right?" She looked around and said, "That's why I choose divorce. Only by getting away from him can Qianshan and I have a way out."
A moment of silence fell over the table as everyone pondered these words.
Wen Yu glanced at the comments in front of her; many people were moved by the scene.
When my dad beat my mom, she held me and cried. I urged her to get a divorce, but she said she would wait until I turned eighteen to go through with the paperwork so I could have a complete family. But Mom, do you know, more than a complete family, I want to see you stop crying.
My grandmother tolerated my grandfather her whole life, until she finally told the truth before she passed away: she didn't want to live with him and hate each other, and she wanted to be buried with him after death...
Don't rush into marriage! If you do get married, don't become a full-time housewife. You'll hand over all control to someone else, and then it will be too late to turn back...
Sigh, thankfully I don't get married or have children, which keeps me far away from the greatest danger.
There isn't much true love in the world. Many people are swept along by the tides of time and choose to "settle," which is so frustrating.
That's right, so all I can do is take responsibility for myself and, no matter what, not let them push me into the fire.
Fan Yizhen murmured, "So that's how it is... Then, that older sister's choice was wrong?"
"Since staying at home is not a good thing for her and the children, why not simply choose to escape?"
“No, it’s not a mistake,” Chen Miaozhi lowered her eyes, “it’s that she ‘can’t do it’.”
"Not all women have the opportunity to study, understand reason, and see a wider world like we do. Many people are confined to their own little world their whole lives, with no one to take them to see the outside world. How can we blame them for not being brave enough?"
As the girls listened to her words, they suddenly realized the limitations of their own thinking.
yes.
The world is full of rules and regulations that bind women, as numerous as a net covering the sky and the earth.
She doesn't struggle, not because she "doesn't want to," but because she "can't."
Chen Miaozhi sighed and lowered her voice: "Just like that older sister you just mentioned. She has no ability to support herself, her family doesn't share any land with her, and her husband's family is not kind. Even if she gets a divorce, she has nowhere to go."
"If she goes back to her parents' home, they will resent her for competing with her brothers for resources and will rush to arrange for her to marry into another husband's family. But would that really be a better place for her?"
"Ultimately, a woman without land, education, or skills is like a rootless vine in this world, only able to survive by relying on others."
“We are lucky,” she said, raising her eyes and scanning everyone, “but we must not forget the misfortunes of our other sisters.”
"Instead of condescendingly criticizing their lack of ambition, we should start by making changes ourselves so that more women can have access to education, land, and skills, and no longer have to depend on others."
Wen Qingshi, who had been silent all along, suddenly spoke up: "Sister Miaozhi is right."
"We are now carrying the blood and tears of countless sisters on our backs. When we stand at a higher level one day, we will never forget those who are still struggling and crying at the bottom."
Everyone nodded in unison.
Wen Yu noticed that the atmosphere was getting a bit too heavy, so she quickly encouraged them: "You are all outstanding women. I believe that the day we have been waiting for will definitely come."
Chen Miaozhi smiled slightly: "I might not have believed it before, but after seeing what Luxi Village looks like, I believe it."
What she didn't say was that she felt Wen Yu's future potential was far greater than this.
She gathered her thoughts and gently patted her daughter beside her: "Qianshan, come and say hello to your sisters."
“My name is Chen Qianshan,” the girl said confidently in a clear voice, “and I’ll be going to school with my sisters from now on.”
This child seems completely unaffected by her parents' divorce, remaining as resilient and radiant as a wildflower in the field.
Everyone smiled and secretly admired Chen Miaozhi for her skill in raising children.
To have raised a child like Qianshan from the environment of those years, Chen Miaozhi must have put in a lot of effort.
"Since everyone's here," Wen Yu said with a smile, looking around after everyone had gotten to know each other. "Why don't we talk about the class schedule?"
“I discussed it with Sister Miaozhi. She can teach a lot of subjects, but she can’t do too much at once. It would be better for each of us to choose one or two subjects to study in detail.”
Wen Qingshi chimed in, "I think we've already laid a foundation, it's time for us to leave the literacy class and learn practical skills from Sister Miaozhi."
Everyone nodded in agreement.
Ning Shengan's literacy class has been running in the village for some time, and most people can now read and write fluently on their own.
To cater to villagers with limited literacy skills, the literacy classes have always been taught in a simple and easy-to-understand style. However, these girls are no longer satisfied with this basic knowledge and yearn to learn more practical skills.
Wen Yu then thought of using the task of teaching beginners to lead them to a higher level.
After all, knowledge is the true foundation. These girls in front of her may all be invaluable talents in the future, and she must not let these promising talents go to waste.
Chen Miaozhi was just trying to determine the direction and content of her lessons, so she took the opportunity to ask each of the girls about their areas of interest.
Everyone started talking freely, and their answers varied.
Fan Yizhen said that she is dedicated to medicine and cannot bear to see people suffer from epidemics. She wants to learn medical skills, practice medicine, and become a traveling doctor.
Xin Bai said she has been fascinated by geography since childhood, and her dream is to travel all over the world with a backpack, to draw all the landscapes, and to live a carefree life.
Du Ran, on the other hand, is obsessed with stargazing and meteorology. She wants to learn how to predict natural disasters and earthquakes, understand the laws governing the movement of stars, and see through the mysteries behind all things.
When asked about Wen Qing, she answered calmly, "I want to study agronomy."
Everyone assumed she would choose to pursue literature or study history, so they were somewhat surprised by her answer.
Wen Qingshi said slowly, "Food is the most important thing for the people, and agriculture is the foundation of everything. If those in power only know how to exert their influence and forget the people's livelihood, they will be abandoned by the masses. Only by keeping their feet on the ground can those in power move steadily and far, and only then can the nation last a long time."
Upon hearing this, the girls exclaimed in unison, "My goodness, Qing Shi truly deserves to be the champion!"
Wen Yu was taken aback upon hearing this.
What this child wants to do is probably not simple.
After ascertaining everyone's wishes, Chen Miaozhi became somewhat distracted during the meal.
Wen Yue's cooking skills have improved even more than before, but she was eating in a daze, clearly already silently planning the next lesson.
Wen Yu then quietly went to ask Wen Yue, who hadn't been there earlier.
He paused for a moment, then said, "I also want to learn some agronomy."
The reason, however, differed from that of Wen Qingshi.
He knew he was not good at literature and had no interest in fame or fortune. He had seen through the world's pursuits at the last literary gathering and only wished to manage a piece of land well and live a peaceful life.
Wen Yu smiled slightly and decided to respect everyone's choice.
She had already memorized everyone's goals and had most of the other teaching materials ready, but remembering that she had searched the entire library last time but hadn't found many medical books, she thought for a long time and finally decided to seek help from outside.
After dinner, Wen Yu returned to her room, laid out paper and prepared ink, and began writing a letter to Su Lin.
She desperately needs a batch of medical books, hoping that Lord Su will lend a helping hand…
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The author says: When poor, one should cultivate one's own virtue; when successful, one should benefit all under heaven.
I hope that all women in the world can gain freedom.
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