68. Daily Life of the Peasant Family During the Imperial Examination (13)

When Duan Qingen wants to convince someone, it is difficult for that person not to be convinced by him.

For example, now, several people bought jewelry in Yincuilou and found a teahouse to sit down. Zhang Daoyuan was responsible for looking at the jewelry from time to time to pretend to be decadent and sad, while Duan Qingen talked about how difficult it was for women.

"Most women in the world are like this. They have been confined at home since childhood. They are not allowed to go out of the main door or the second door. They obey their fathers before they get married and their husbands after they become nuns. My family is a farmer's family. Although my wife is much freer than the ladies of the family and can walk on the street by herself, she also has to work hard for a living. She works in the fields in summer and washes clothes in winter. She also has to serve her parents-in-law and take care of my grandparents."

Duan Qingen simply pushed all the hard work to his future wife. It can be said that he has a strong desire to survive.

Liu Xinrong was interested in him before, but after being attracted by Zhang Daoyuan, she was immersed in the ups and downs of the love story between Zhang Daoyuan and the flower girl, and she didn't have the mind to think about anything else.

When the three of them sat in the teahouse, she thought about her relationship with the general, and her eyes fell on Duan Qingen again.

To be fair, although Duan Qingen looked younger, his appearance and temperament were indeed quite good, and he could even be said to be better than Zhang Daoyuan.

Just when Liu Xinrong was secretly thinking about something she shouldn't have, Duan Qingen told her what she should do as his wife, and successfully dispelled her idea.

She continued to listen.

The scholar in a green shirt sighed, his tone was compassionate, his eyes were sympathetic, but what he said was almost like a big train under Liu Xinrong's feet, and the final stop was at her "good friend".

"For example, the girl from Daoyuan has a hard life. I just look at her and feel for her. But in fact, which girl doesn't have a hard life? If I were a girl, I would feel hardship if I were locked up at home every day."

"Yes."

This really touched Liu Xinrong's heart. She said angrily: "Why should women be locked up at home, women can't be officials, and women must not go out of the house!"

"Yes, why."

Duan Qingen smiled shyly; "To be honest with you, Wulang, my wish is to change the current situation of women after I become an official in the court. I don't ask for a high status, but I just want to avoid being despised."

He added: "Since Wulang thinks so, I think you are also a knowledgeable person. Why don't you join me? Let's work together to help women all over the world get a free body."

Liu Xinrong, who was excited just now, shut up.

Although she was full of injustice that many women in many families could not read men's books, in fact, the girls of the Liu family could study, and the Liu family had a large collection of books. Generally, as long as the children in the family, whether boys or girls, wanted to read books, they could read them.

Liu Xinrong had this freedom, but she didn't like to study.

She just wanted to eat, drink and have fun, not read books.

Of course, she didn't think that she condemned "why only men can enter the court as officials" while thinking confidently that "women don't need to read books", although entering the court as an official first requires studying hard.

Duan Qingen was still saying: "I still think that the reason why women in the world have a poor status is that the world does not allow women to make a living on their own. If one day, women can go to the street to buy things openly, can do crafts without the company of their husbands, can build houses, repair rivers, and make money by themselves, they will naturally be confident. What do you think of my idea, Wulang?"

Liu Xinrong: "..."

She didn't want to talk.

What about building houses, repairing rivers, and selling things, these sound so hard.

The status of a woman in her imagination should be that she doesn't need to make money, is loved by everyone, can go out to play whenever she wants, and doesn't need to dress up as a man to go to a brothel. If she can keep a lover, it would be even better. Isn't it cool?

Unfortunately, in all dynasties, only one princess has kept a lover.

Liu Xinrong is not a princess. If she wants to feel the happiness of a beautiful woman in her arms, she can only go to a brothel to find a girl.

She thinks that if Duan Qingen really succeeds, she will not only have to work hard to make money in the future, but also can't be supported by others. That's too cruel.

But seeing Duan Qingen's face full of "this is what women all over the world want" expression, she can only smile awkwardly, "If you want to achieve it, I'm afraid it will be a little difficult."

"It doesn't matter. If it doesn't work in one year, I will do it in ten years. If it doesn't work in ten years, I will do it in fifty years. One day it will work."

Liu Xinrong still feels uncertain.

But it's okay. Anyway, she will be so old in fifty years. I guess she will become a great grandmother. By then, she will be of a high generation and no one will let her work.

Apart from the view that "giving women freedom means letting them make money themselves", she still admired Duan Qingen, especially the fact that Duan Qingen was very respectful to her and expressed his desire to make friends with Liu Xinrong, which made her feel very happy.

As expected, she was so popular wherever she went.

Because she thought Duan Qingen was a good person and he talked endlessly about women's affairs, Liu Xinrong asked Duan Qingen about her recent troubles:

"Brother Duan, what do you think, if there is a woman whose preferences are different from those of ordinary women and who does not want to be bound at home, what kind of husband should she find?"

Duan Qingen pretended to be in deep thought.

"She should find a husband who does not despise her and will support her in doing so. It would be best if this husband is in a high position. In this way, even if others have opinions about this woman, they will not dare to say anything because her husband has a high position."

He continued: "But such a husband is hard to find. He must be in a high position and not be fussy about details. It is best if he knows this woman and knows her habits and hobbies. It is too difficult, ah, too difficult."

Duan Qingen: "If such a man really appears, this woman should grasp him immediately." Crazy hint.

Liu Xinrong felt that what Duan Qingen said made sense.

She thought deeply about her relationship with her "good friend".

When she was sad, he took her to the brothel to relax, and when she was happy, he took her to the brothel to be happy.

When she was not satisfied with her future husband, he also settled everything.

Who else knows her hobbies and personality and is willing to support her except him.

But at the same time, Liu Xinrong was very hesitant.

She asked hesitantly: "But what if the man already has a wife?"

Duan Qingen took a sip of wine: "That depends on what the woman thinks."

Anyway, he would never take the initiative to ask Liu Xinrong to be a mistress.

The wife of the first wife did nothing wrong.

Duan Qingen did not propose, but Liu Xinrong kept thinking about it.

She felt that she did not like the general and only had friendship with him. If she married the general, she would not compete with the general's wife.

In this case, marrying the general was actually a good choice.

The more Liu Xinrong thought about it, the better the idea was. She stood up with shining eyes, wishing she could fly to the general right now.

She did not care about communicating with the friends she had made, and hurriedly bowed: "I suddenly remembered that I had something to do, so I'll leave first. We'll talk next time."

After that, the man with a mustache walked out of the single room with a burst of joy.

Zhang Daoyuan watched her back in silence: "... She didn't even give any money."

"She didn't even have a purse on her. It seems that she never brings money when she goes out. But it doesn't matter. Anyway, the general has plenty of money and will pay for her."

Zhang Daoyuan still felt that this Miss Liu Xinrong was hard to describe.

He couldn't hold back his strong desire to complain, and said to Duan Qingen: "One of my grandmother's sisters also doesn't like women's things. She likes to dress up as a man, but she is a generous person and doesn't like to be shy. When she goes out, she says she will take care of us. Later, I heard that she married a military general. The two of them are very compatible. I heard that they once fought against bandits together. Although she doesn't have the gentleness of a woman, everyone likes her very much and says she is as good as a man."

"But this Liu Xin... Miss Liu, what she said just now is clearly trying to take advantage of being a woman and taking advantage of men. This, this is simply."

"Shameless." Duan Qingen took over Zhang Daoyuan's unfinished words leisurely.

Zhang Daoyuan: "Yes, shameless!"

"If she wants to be like a man, she should learn from those ambitious young men who study hard for ten years. Not to mention going to brothels, they may not even have time for parties."

"Let alone those ambitious young men, let's talk about you and me. Who doesn't understand the hard work of the elders at home and dare not delay a moment every day? And Ruxiao is like living in a book. From childhood to adulthood, we have never been to a brothel, but she is good, hugging left and right, but she still feels wronged."

Duan Qingen watched Zhang Daoyuan, who almost became the husband of the "bearded man", vent his dissatisfaction passionately.

"It's done, it's done. Since she has said that she will definitely not marry you, you don't have to worry. But your second brother, didn't he say that he is already discussing marriage? Guess, will she take the initiative to say that she doesn't want either of them, and choose that general or your second brother."

"Of course it's the general."

Zhang Daoyuan didn't hesitate at all: "The way she looked just now, it seems that she was moved by what you said."

"I think she will tell the Liu family to choose your second brother." The green-shirted scholar knocked on the table very confidently: "Do you want to gamble?"

Zhang Daoyuan: "No!"

Duan Qingen: "Really not? Don't you think you have a good chance of winning? Let's try it."

"No!"

Zhang Daoyuan answered very quickly: "It's not like I haven't gambled with you before, and I won't gamble this time."

In the past nine years, as classmates and friends, he had made several bets with Duan Qingen when he was young and ignorant.

Every time, no matter how sure he was that he would win, in the end, Duan Qingen always won.

Until now, every time Duan Qingen said he wanted to make a bet, Zhang Daoyuan and Ma Ruxiao could directly determine the answer.

It was like comparing questions with a top student who always got full marks. The poor students were very confident in their answers at the beginning. After comparing questions a few times and finding that the top student always won, they would do the same again.

Top student: I choose a

Poor student: I believe it, it is a

Top student: I choose s

Poor student: Although there is no s on the test paper, I also believe it is s

In the hearts of Zhang Daoyuan and Ma Ruxiao, Duan Qingen is such an authoritative existence.

"But why did she choose my second brother? Shouldn't she choose that general? After all, they are so close."

"Although that general has a high and powerful position, he was only made a general because of the previous rebellion. What's more, the general already has a wife in his family, so His Majesty granted the marriage to a girl from the Zhou family."

Duan Qingen explained: "Mr. Zhou is a second-grade official and has a good relationship with Master Liu. You think, just like us, if my daughter gets married in the future, will you be willing to let your daughter give birth to my daughter's husband?"

"That's definitely not possible. It's so awkward."

Zhang Daoyuan felt embarrassed when he thought about it: "Whether she is a legitimate daughter or a concubine, if we really do this, how will we get along with each other in the future."

"No."

Duan Qingen said: "Even if there is no such relationship with Mr. Zhou, Mr. Liu is a third-rank official and has always had a good reputation in the court. Even if he is a concubine, he will lose face if he marries someone as a concubine, so even if If the general comes to propose marriage, he will definitely not agree to it unless..."

Zhang Daoyuan has been completely intrigued: "Unless?"

Duan Qingen: "Unless this Miss Liu herself makes it clear to Lord Liu that she and the general have known each other for a long time, and they are in love and ask Lord Liu to make it happen."

"Well, this is also a way."

Zhang Daoyuan thinks there is nothing wrong with it.

"But Miss Liu won't do that."

Duan Qingen affirmed: "If she does this, she will definitely be reprimanded by Master Liu. When I talked to her just now, I saw that she is the kind of person who wants something, but she has to show that others are forcing her to want it. With her temperament, when she goes back this time, she will definitely obey her parents' orders and choose your second brother between you and your second brother, and then ask the general to find a way to make her 'forced' to marry General."

Zhang Daoyuan; "..."

He took it for a long time before he managed to recover: "This is too disgusting..."

"If you want to get married, just say it openly. You want to marry someone else, but you agree to the marriage at the same time. In the end, you deliberately cause all kinds of 'accidents' to force the other party to break off the engagement. This is simply, simply..."

Duan Qingen reminded him: "It will be your second brother who gets the 'accident'."

Zhang Daoyuan: "Well..."

"If it were my second brother, he would have done a great job."

"I can't help it, why is he not as good as me?"

****

Zhang Daoyuan is the legitimate son after all, and he will definitely go home when he returns to the capital.

At first, he was very repulsive and didn't want to go home and face his father, stepmother and the annoying second brother.

But after listening to Duan Qingen's analysis, Zhang Daoyuan suddenly felt a strong urge to go home.

He simply wished he could airborne in front of his stepmother and younger brother, and then listen to them share the unique good news that Miss Liu and her second brother were engaged.

So after drinking tea with Duan Qingen, he went home happily.

Master Liu is not here, well, this is normal, he is always busy.

The stepmother was still there. Knowing that Zhang Daoyuan, who had fully grown up, was back, her heart was filled with confusion at first, and then she stood up and waited for him to come and pay his respects.

The nanny who was waiting for her could vaguely guess what the master she was waiting for was thinking, and comforted her: "Madam, don't be anxious, so what if the eldest young master comes back, this marriage has already been decided. The master nodded. If the eldest son makes a fuss, he will be the only one to be embarrassed. "

"Yes, he has to have that face to compete with his brother for marriage."

Recalling how many times Zhang Daoyuan had contradicted her at home, Mrs. Zhang smiled: "I heard that my eldest brother couldn't change his bad temper even after he returned to his hometown. I wonder if he is still as intolerant of people as before. Words of advice.”

Mammy continued very cooperatively: "It would be bad if the eldest son is still like before. In the past, he was a child, and he could barely say that he was ignorant when he contradicted his elders. Now the eldest son is already over twenty, so At your age, if you continue to be disrespectful to your elders, no one will take a serious look if word spreads."

"Yes." The smile on Mrs. Zhang's face became even thicker, "I just hope that my eldest brother will not be as ignorant as before."

Make a fuss, make a fuss.

At that time, when the whole capital knows that Zhang Daoyuan disrespects his elders, let's see how he still takes the scientific examination and enters the officialdom.

Thinking about it this way, Mrs. Zhang was no longer so repelled by meeting this stepson, and walked out after being supported by the hand.

I thought that Zhang Daoyuan would still have the same cold face when he saw her. Unexpectedly, as soon as he entered the door, the young man standing in the middle of the room put up a happy smile and saluted respectfully to Mrs. Zhang;

"The son pays his respects to his mother."

Mrs. Zhang: “???”

She was stunned for a second before she could barely maintain the expression on her face, "Well, let's get up."

Until she sat on the main seat, Mrs. Zhang looked at Zhang Daoyuan's bright spring face and she still didn't come back to her senses.

Every time she saw Zhang Daoyuan before, Zhang Daoyuan always had a bad face towards her. Didn't the person she placed next to the old man also say that Zhang Daoyuan was still the same as before, and his temper had not changed at all?

Why are you smiling like you've seen a ghost?

Is it because of that marriage?

Thinking of the marriage, Mrs. Zhang made up her mind, showed a smile on her face, and said to Zhang Daoyuan: "Daoyuan, since you are back, mother tells you something. After you listen, don't feel uncomfortable in your heart." Unfair.”

Zhang Daoyuan smiled even brighter: "Mother, please tell me, I'm listening."

This cooperative look really made it difficult for Mrs. Zhang to make any moves.

She managed to calm down: "It's like this. The letter your father sent you said that your marriage had not been decided yet. Now it has been decided. Soon, I will be able to arrange for your second brother to go to the Liu family. You must congratulate your brother."

"Is that so."

Zhang Daoyuan had an expression of "I just found out about this today" on his face, and nodded sincerely: "What mother said is, where is my second brother, I must congratulate him and congratulate him on his upcoming marriage to a virtuous wife."

Mrs. Zhang: "..."

She almost suspected that her ears were wrong. Is this still the self-righteous stepson who always holds his chin higher than anyone else and cannot bear any grievances?

"That, Daoyuan, don't think that your father and I are partial. It's really because you are so old, and the Liu family is a little worried that you haven't been married for so long. Is there something..."

If this was said before knowing who Liu Xinrong was, it would be strange if Zhang Daoyuan didn't explode.

But now, knowing that his second brother was willing to sacrifice himself to help his eldest brother and take over a mustache lady, Zhang Daoyuan was full of tolerance towards his second brother and his stepmother.

"I know."

The young man standing below smiled tolerantly, his face full of understanding for his stepmother and half brother: "I haven't been married for so long, it's normal for the Liu family to be taboo."

Mrs. Zhang: "... I'm glad you understand, although I also think it's not good, after all, you are the eldest son, you haven't settled down yet, but your brother has settled down, as if you are not favored at home."

"What others think is their business, I know in my heart that my parents treat me very well, and they have always regarded me and my second brother as the same."

Zhang Daoyuan finished with a smile, and bowed to Mrs. Zhang again: "Since I have already visited my mother, my son will take his leave first, and I will go to my second brother's yard to find him and congratulate him."

Mrs. Zhang was simply confused as she watched her stepson smile and retreat.

After several seconds, she turned her head to look at the nanny beside her; "Is this still Zhang Daoyuan?"

She had just used all her strength to squeeze him, and she didn't believe that Zhang Daoyuan couldn't hear it.

But he didn't seem to be angry at all, but accepted everything with a smile? ? ?

And Zhang Daoyuan, who walked out of Mrs. Zhang's yard, happened to meet his second brother who was walking this way.

In the past, Zhang Daoyuan's face turned black when he saw this younger brother. After all, from childhood to adulthood, because this younger brother had been accusing, framing, and slandering, Zhang Daoyuan's memories of this family were only painful, depressed, and aggrieved.

But now, these emotions no longer exist.

His heart was full of happiness.

So, he greeted his younger brother happily: "Second brother, long time no see."

Like his mother, Zhang Daoxing also had a face full of question marks when he met his brother with a warm attitude.

Zhang Daoyuan didn't even look at his expression, and continued to say happily: "I just heard from my mother that you are engaged, congratulations."

Zhang Daoxing: "...Thank you, big brother."

Although Zhang Daoyuan seemed to be showing his goodwill to him, how could he really treat this half-brother as his own brother just because of this show of goodwill.

Seeing Zhang Daoyuan's happy face, he couldn't help but say: "Thank you, big brother, too. Before, my father said that he wanted to marry Miss Liu to you. Fortunately, my mother helped me to talk about it, so that I could make this marriage."

Anyway, there was no one around, so Zhang Daoxing could show his true face unscrupulously.

He was thinking about saying more words to provoke Zhang Daoyuan when he was angry, so that this big brother would be so angry that he would punch him directly.

Then he would go to his father to complain about his grievances.

After all, when Zhang Daoyuan passed the imperial examination at a young age, Zhang's father, who had always been indifferent to his eldest son, actually mentioned it to his youngest son several times, asking him to learn from his brother Zhang Daoyuan.

Learn nothing.

He wished that Zhang Daoyuan would die of illness in his hometown.

Fortunately, although Zhang Daoyuan was talented, he was impatient and impatient. Every time he was provoked, he couldn't help but get angry at him.

Zhang Daoxing had a beautiful idea, but what he never expected was that Zhang Daoyuan was not angry at all.

Not only was he not angry, but he nodded generously: "Yes, it is normal for a mother to love her younger son. Second brother, don't let your mother down. When Miss Liu comes in, you must treat her well."

Zhang Daoxing: ... No, this is not the elder brother I know.

He asked tentatively: "Brother, aren't you angry?"

"Angry? Why should I be angry?"

Zhang Daoyuan said calmly: "I am your elder brother, and it is my duty to give in to you. Isn't this normal?"

Zhang Daoxing: "???"

Zhang Daoyuan continued: "Mother loves you, and you should repay her. You should study hard and take the imperial examinations. Brother hopes that you can enter the court and then ask for imperial decrees for mother and wife."

Zhang Daoxing: "???"

"Okay, I won't delay you any longer. Greet mother and go to study. Think about Miss Liu who is about to enter the house, you must make progress."

Zhang Daoyuan finished speaking in one breath, with a tolerant, gentle smile on his face, like the Father's coming to the world, and patted the speechless Zhang Daoxing on the shoulder to encourage him, and then left.

He walked away.

Only Zhang Daoxing was left standing there, staring blankly at his back getting farther and farther away.

It took a long time for Zhang Daoxing to react.

Brother, is this... has he gone crazy? ? ?

The author has something to say: One more update

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