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There is a large platform in Donglin Town, with a simple shed and benches underneath. When the weather is fine, storytellers will come to tell stories on it, including vernacular books from previous dynasties and notices of job openings nearby. Sometimes they will also talk about the battles the gang has experienced and those inspiring exemplary deeds.
Many people, after work, like to gather around and listen for an hour or so, not minding the jokes being old, just passing the time. As the crowds gather, nearby vendors also gather, and from time to time you can hear the sound of people hawking tea and water, making the place no different from any other stage.
Logically speaking, everyone should be used to it, but when something new is introduced, it can still make a group of people excited and talk about it.
"So foot binding has such negative effects. I always hear that women from wealthy families have trouble giving birth. It must be all caused by foot binding!"
"That's right. People say that men are yang, and their yang energy rises, so the head is more important. Women are yin, and their yin energy sinks, so the feet must be more important. How can you cling to them to death? You're not afraid of damaging the foundation."
"Some people are so obsessed with that matter that they don't even care about their offspring. Alas, this is how a family is ruined."
They were clearly a bunch of poor folks, yet they spoke with considerable eloquence and understanding about the customs of the upper classes. Of course, no one cared at the beach whether or not one's feet were bound. What woman wouldn't go to the beach? They still walked around barefoot, so binding them would waste so much fabric.
In comparison, those obscene topics are more popular.
"Tsk tsk, three-inch feet, isn't that less than a foot long? My kid just learned to run, and his feet are already this big. What girl can have such small feet?"
"Maybe he's looking for those young girls. I heard there's a Mr. Zhang in Lin County who likes young girls. He's worse than an animal and deserves to be struck by lightning!"
"I heard that a virgin has primordial yin..."
"Wow! I have Yuan Yin, but do you have Yuan Yang? You have such a strong Yin energy, don't you think about whether you can bear it! I've heard people say that only those who are not good at sex would think about these things. As a result, the more they touch virgins, the faster they will ejaculate, and they will be exhausted in a few years."
"Don't tell me, most of those who frequent brothels must be unfit, otherwise why would they praise bound feet so enthusiastically?"
"Hahaha, brother is right. It's because he's a bad mother that he wants to cause trouble to other people's daughters..."
The further they went, the faster and wider the news spread. In the blink of an eye, it had spread from Donglin Town to several nearby counties. The elders usually didn't care what the peasants said, but they couldn't help but feel that these rumors were coming from the Red Flag Gang's hospital.
I heard that hospital is a place where the dead can be brought back to life, with many patients with broken legs and arms, punctured intestines, and ruptured stomachs being saved by miracle doctors. And lately, midwives have started traveling the countryside. It's said that hiring them not only saves the fetus but also reduces maternal illness, making them very popular. Since they're such powerful figures, they must be precise with their words, right? As the saying goes, "It's better to be safe than sorry." When it comes to our children and grandchildren, it's always better to be cautious.
Some more astute people, however, sensed something else in these words. The leader of the Red Flag Gang was a woman, a ruthless warrior who had fought on the battlefield and practiced martial arts. She certainly hadn't bound her feet. Since she had natural feet, she must have disliked other women doing so, which was why she sent people to promote this bizarre idea.
That being said, the Red Flag Gang's future expansion was uncertain, so why bother causing displeasure over something as trivial as foot binding? Furthermore, the Red Flag Gang did recruit women, and each family was eager to recruit them. If they had bound feet, they might not even have that hope. Even if it was just to build connections, it wouldn't be wise to spread the word that one of their women had bound feet. It would cut off one's own escape route, which wasn't a wise move.
No matter what they thought, the practice of foot binding, which was not very common in Panyu, suddenly became less common. There was no one left who dared to "taste lotus" in brothels. They had to wait until the storm was over before reciting poems and painting, otherwise they would be laughed at and said "no" in secret. How could they still save their face?
It was clearly just a trivial matter under the woman's skirt, but it caused a lot of commotion and attracted a lot of attention, just like the old Taoist in front of him.
With a look of interest on his face, Taoist Le asked directly, "By making such a big fuss about foot binding, are you thinking about your own family?"
Even if others thought of this, they wouldn't dare say it. First, there's a difference between men and women; saying such things is too undignified. Second, there's a difference between superiors and subordinates; how could one question one's superior like that? However, Taoist Le was already old and a layman, and he knew a lot about Cheng Xi's rebellious thoughts, so he felt comfortable asking.
Cheng Xi smiled and said, "I am a woman, so foot binding is definitely related to me. Any bad habits in this world that may oppress and degrade women will also affect my interests. How can I turn a blind eye to them?"
Her answer was so straightforward and frank that even Taoist Le, who knew her character, couldn't help but be surprised. He then asked, "Then when doing good deeds, one shouldn't beat or scold one's wife. Isn't that also for one's own benefit?"
"If I really got married, I'm afraid no one would dare to make a move on me, but you're right. This is also for myself, for the fairness in my heart." Cheng Xi's words became more serious. "Since ancient times, all etiquette has revolved around the two words 'respect and inferiority'. The king is superior and the minister is inferior, the father is superior and the son is inferior, the husband is superior and the wife is inferior. Only with respect and inferiority can there be order, only with moral principles, and only with the things that scholars learn from childhood to adulthood. All of these are actually teaching people to be slaves and masters, and how to be good slaves and masters. If I attack the relationship between husband and wife, it will naturally shake the foundation of this system."
Unexpectedly, she would bring up the subject so much. Taoist Le stopped laughing and became serious, a rare moment of silence. "But we don't talk about this in Gongshan Sect."
They've been discussing the doctrine for the past two days. Regarding husband and wife, it's simply about not beating or scolding your wife casually, because she's your bedmate, your companion, and the mother of your children. If a father beats his mother, and the son doesn't rescue her, he's unfilial; if he does, he's certainly unfilial to his father. Either way, the children are in a situation of being unfilial. If you don't even spare your bedmate, how can you possibly do good deeds outside of the home? How can you maintain your status as a good person?
This principle is simple and has some meaning of encouraging good deeds. Taoist Le never thought there was anything wrong with it, but he did not expect Cheng Xi to see so far.
"No matter how stupid a farmer is, he won't beat the big livestock at home at will. As a married woman, you have to give birth to children, manage the housework, and serve your parents. It's more important than cattle and horses, right? But they can still beat and scold them at will without any scruples, just because they firmly believe that women are not honest and disobedient if they are not beaten. Those who fail to control their wives are useless. And it is in these beatings and scoldings that the distinction between superiors and inferiors is established." Cheng Xi's lips curled up with a sneer, "If you don't even treat the person next to you as a human being, naturally you won't treat yourself as a human being either. Only in this way can you serve the superiors in a servile manner and sell your children and daughters with shamelessness. Now those who beat their wives and children are all considered bad people. They must be persuaded and scolded, and they must bear the moral infamy. What do you think?"
Taoist Le didn't answer, but simply frowned at the other person. "Will this work?" Of course it can. If other sects can make others stop eating meat and committing adultery, they can naturally stop beating their wives and children.
"And when he treats his wife as a human being, someone who cannot be beaten or scolded, and who is the same as an outsider, this hierarchy will begin to waver. He will start to treat himself as a human being, his children as human beings, and everyone in the world as human beings. Since we are all human beings, why should you ride on the heads of others?" Cheng Xi paused, "As a human being, you need self-respect. Self-respect is something that can make a king bleed."
She was clearly a woman, yet she could speak so boldly. Even Taoist Le, at his age and with such a temperament, was intimidated. He knew the girl wasn't boasting or making wild claims; she was simply expressing her true feelings. Moving his lips, the Taoist muttered, "But if everyone does this, how can you control your subordinates? Isn't this just self-destruction?"
Cheng Xi smiled. "I'm a woman. If I want to hold onto my position, I can't rely on the Three Bonds and Five Constant Virtues. And the people are the ones who remember who has been kind to them. My father just wiped out the pirates, and yet he's worshipped as a god and given incense. What do I have to be afraid of?"
She didn't say what she wanted to do, but the school she opened, the public charity she founded, and the storytellers, accountants, and nurses she sent out were all talking about things that were completely different from this world. And these were the reasons why she was so open and honest.
"Being so wanton will eventually lead to public condemnation." After a long time, Taoist Le sighed.
Cheng Xi shook his head. "All the thoughts in the world are the result of discipline. However, no matter how tamed they are, they are still human. There will always be times when they can no longer survive, or even when they just can't swallow their anger. They can have their ways, but I have to have mine. After all, the majority of people in the world are still the common people. As long as they can open their eyes and understand the truth, who can resist them?"
"This is not something you can achieve alone, nor can it be changed in three to five years." Taoist Le said solemnly.
Cheng Xi smiled: "Then the Taoist priest must carefully select a few disciples, so that after a hundred years, someone can inherit his legacy."
Looking at her innocent smile, Taoist Le sighed deeply: "I was tricked by that old bastard Fang Tianxi."
The Red Flag Gang is not a place to retire at all. Alas, it’s a pity that I can’t escape.
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