Recently, Zhou Pei had been struggling with the fact that she was going to grow up soon.
As the young princess of the Prince Kang's household, she was thirteen last year. After the New Year this year, she would be fourteen. Fourteen years old wasn't that great of an age, but for a girl, some things were starting to become urgent and obvious. The biggest influence was that her father, who had always been irresponsible, had started to consider finding a husband for her during the New Year. Once, he had asked for her opinion. Recently, he had been comparing the outstanding youths in the Jiangning area. These things made her feel a little vexed.
It wasn't that she completely rejected the idea of marriage. With Zhou Pei's status as a princess, the education she had received from a young age was actually excellent. She had learned the "Women's Commandments", "Women's Training", and the "Three Obediences and Four Virtues" by heart. These days, as a woman, especially a woman of the royal family who could receive education, it wasn't an exaggeration to say that all the education she received from a young age was for the sake of becoming a qualified wife in the future.
It was true that an extremely generous environment could easily cultivate some personalities that people didn't like, but in this aspect, Zhou Pei could be considered relatively good. It wasn't that she didn't have any expectations for her future marriage. What would a future husband be like? What would it feel like to form a family with another man? What would she do after becoming someone else's wife? Just thinking about these things made her blush and her heart beat faster. On the other hand, this matter also clearly told her that in the future, she could only be a woman.
When it came to "a woman without talent is a virtue", Zhou Pei didn't meet the criteria. She had outstanding talent and quick thinking. Of course, this was also a lie that wasn't very convincing. Only a smart woman could truly take charge of a family. A truly stupid woman would easily suffer losses. Little Zhou Pei had seen many such stupid women in the Prince Kang's household since she was young. She wouldn't be like them.
She had all kinds of teachers since she was young, but the most important one was still Grandpa Kang's son-in-law. The old man was a nationalistic youth, which had a great influence on her. Since they were young, Grandpa Kang had taught her and her brother about the glory of the Zhou Royal Family and the ideal of inheriting the lost knowledge of the past and creating peace for all ages. Actually, he had taught her brother Zhou Junwu. But as a member of the Zhou Royal Family, she naturally had such qualifications and missions. For example, the Imperial Grandaunt and the Emperor's son-in-law did a big business and secretly supported the operation of the court in the south. This was very convincing.
Kang Xian and his wife set an example and educated everyone without discrimination. As a result, Zhou Pei, who was sensible earlier, was more deeply influenced. Since she was young, she had all kinds of ambitions. She had been supervising her brother since he was young. Although the royal family was strict with their relatives, they always had the thought of serving the country in their hearts. Just like the Imperial Aunt and the Emperor's son-in-law, as long as there was hope, there would always be a way to contribute to the country. With such a responsible sister, little Junwu, as the younger brother, became more gentle.
The two siblings grew up in this situation, and their father threw them to Kang Xian to discipline. Zhou Pei had a strong sense of responsibility, but her younger brother was a piece of sticky candy. He adhered to the principle of Shangshan Ruoshui and did not make any progress. When he was studying, his grades were so-so, and sometimes he was a little confused. If you said something like sacrificing for the country, the little guy would be surprised.
It was obvious that the country had not even asked them to sacrifice their lives. Their father was always running around and fighting with dogs. The imperial court had also restricted the participation of the imperial family in politics. Ever since they were young, they had never been able to become an official or join the army. Little Junwu also knew these things since he was young. But Zhou Pei believed that where there is a will, there is a way. She and her younger brother were raised in a free-range state, not in captivity, so she knew what was going on in the world. She was worried about the current situation and always felt that she had to do something. At least, she had to urge her younger brother to do something. After all, he was a man. Zhou Pei was anxious because there was no progress in these years, but her younger brother was only eleven years old. There was always time to take things slowly. But at this time, she knew that there was no time.
As a woman, she couldn't avoid getting married. She blushed and her heart beat faster because of the things her father said. While she was nervous, she also really found that once she got married, she could only be a woman. She had to manage the family affairs, help her husband and teach the children. She was not allowed to be too ambitious. After all, it was an extremely special situation like the relationship between the Imperial Aunt and the Emperor's son-in-law. It was hard to say what her son-in-law would be like. The Emperor's son-in-law came to marry into the family. Now it was said that those who were willing to be the Emperor's son-in-law were all ugly …
In short, once she got married, she really had to let go of what she thought in the past. Now she thought about it, it was the same for every family.
Her younger brother was interested in something now, but it had nothing to do with the things she wanted her younger brother to accept before. Everything came from the "Man 'zi" named Ning Yi. Ning Yi could be considered her master. It was a bit disrespectful to call him Man 'zi, but that was a habit she had developed last year. Now, she only used it occasionally when she criticized him.
This master was called the number one scholar of Jiangning, not because he was fishing for fame. There was nothing to say about his talent and learning. He was only in his early twenties. But he was not serious at all. He taught casually and his attitude was sloppy. When he was in class, he didn't look like a teacher at all. He often told small stories from the streets, often causing the class to roar with laughter. It was like a storytelling teahouse. It was not like the seriousness of the Emperor's son-in-law at all. She didn't know how the two of them became friends.
To be honest, she admired the Man's talent and learning. Every time he said something thought-provoking, sometimes it would make people gasp in surprise. Not long ago, because of her own thoughts, she casually asked in class, "Why do people have to get married?" In fact, in Zhou Pei's heart, getting married and carrying on the family line was something that was already set in stone. There was no need to discuss it. If she really wanted to talk about it, anyone could quote from the classics. She didn't know why she suddenly asked this question.
The students in the class taught by Ning Yi were generally young. Because the Su family treated it as a private school, there were a few girls among them. Zhou Pei was the oldest. But when a girl asked this question, the classroom suddenly became silent, and a group of children blushed. Only little Junwu nodded, "Yes, yes, why? Those girls are the most annoying. They always cry …" Little Junwu had a gentle personality. He was more liked by his sisters in the family, but they didn't expect him to feel like this. As soon as these words came out, the faces of the girls from the Su family darkened.
"I hate you too!"
"I don't want to play with you anymore."
Little Junwu hurriedly explained, and the scene was chaotic. In fact, Zhou Pei already regretted asking this question. She thought that her master's answer would be simple, but she didn't expect that Ning Yi thought for a while and said something that stunned everyone.
"There is a more interesting way of saying it …" Ning Yi began to speak with a smile. The classroom became quiet, and everyone listened carefully. Then, Ning Yi pointed to little Junwu, "For example, Junwu, you are now the only son in the family. You only have an elder sister, and no other brothers or sisters."
Junwu nodded hard.
"This situation requires you to have a father, and your father has a son. Your grandparents must have a son, and that is your father. Your grandparents must also have a son, and that is your grandfather. Then, the generation before you, the generation before you … and so on until thousands of years ago. Do you know how lucky you are?"
After all, the children's ability to understand was still a little poor. Ning Yi waited for a while.
"It may be a little strange if we think about it, but imagine that you are an ancestor from thousands of years ago. What do you need to do to pass on the bloodline from generation to generation? Junwu, you have to get married, and you must have a son. "
Jun Wu blushed, and the children all laughed.
"Your son must also get married, and they must have a son. Your grandson must also get married, and he must also have a son. Your grandson's grandson … Until your father, he must also get married, and then he must have a son. That's how you are now. We are all from the same bloodline. For thousands of years, hundreds of thousands of generations, every generation has to have a son, and every generation has to give birth to a son … "
"Look at Uncle Huang, who sells noodles at the end of the street. He has no children. For example, it has been very sad recently. The only son of the Qi family was killed by bandits when he went out to do business. Xiao Qi, your father went to visit him, right? Last year, there was a flood, and many people lost their sons and daughters. It takes thousands or tens of thousands of years for a person to reach this place. During this period, all sorts of things can happen. If one generation of people suddenly gave birth to a daughter, you wouldn't be here anymore. Perhaps, since the era of the Three Sovereigns and Five Emperors, times have been chaotic. One of your ancestors might have met with war or natural disasters and passed away before leaving behind a child. This is also very likely … "
"However, in such a dangerous process, hundreds and thousands of couples, not a single one of our ancestors passed away before they could give birth to a child, and … they all gave birth to boys. Thousands of couples, all gave birth to boys, and their children also had to give birth to boys. It's the same for your mother's bloodline. Your maternal grandparents must have daughters, and then, your maternal grandparents' parents must also have daughters … Every generation must have daughters, and daughters must also have daughters. If they all have daughters, the possibility is even smaller. Who wants daughters? Your families all value boys more than girls … "
Ning Yi smiled. "Everyone, you will think that it is natural for you to be here, but think about it, everyone's ancestors have gone through so many generations and avoided so many dangers. This bloodline has never been broken in every generation. It has been passed down, passed down, passed down, passed down … Finally, it has been passed down to you. How lucky are you? In this way, you can feel the connection between the blood in your body and your father, grandfather, and the generations of ancestors. They have gone through many hardships to let this bloodline be passed down to the present, and then there is you. This is the hard work of thousands of years, tens of thousands of years, and you can't bear to let it be broken like this, right …"
Almost all the children in the classroom were stunned. Some understood, some didn't, and some only understood a little. Zhou Pei, however, understood. When she was young, she had heard many things from her Grandpa Prince Consort, and she had also seen many poems and paintings. Originally, she thought she understood what grandeur was, such as the country, the Great Wall, the Silk Road, and her favorite "Preface to King Teng's Pavilion". But no matter how magnificent or magnificent they were, they couldn't compare to what she heard today.
She could almost feel that two bloodline lines from thousands of years ago — no, from the beginning of the world, from the beginning of the world, from the beginning of the world, from the beginning of the world, from the beginning of the human race, could be drawn from thousands of years ago, and stay in her body.
To be able to say such things so easily, this teacher of hers … was indeed a very, very powerful person.
You've already exceeded your reading limit for today. If you want to read more, please log in.
Login
Select text and click 'Report' to let us know about any bad translation.
