The Eldest Daughter Is Beautiful and Saucy
Chapter 969: Benefit the country and the people
Chapter 969: Benefiting the Country and the People
Thinking back to when the Bai family was bullied by the Bai clan, they were all furious, lamenting that this was a family of loyal ministers and good generals…all the men in the family died fighting for the country and the people, but ended up like this.
However, almost every clan has such a rule that women cannot inherit the family business. If there is no son in the family… either the family property will be handed over to the clan, or a son from a relative in the same clan will be adopted to continue the family line.
“If the Bai family is like this, then… how will the orphans and widows of ordinary families be bullied?” Bai Qingyan said slowly, “The Bai family has experienced it and knows the harm, so the new law must be changed, and the male superiority and female inferiority must be changed even more! The daughter of the Bai family is blessed by God. She was born in the Bai family of the Zhenguo Palace, a family that never looks down on girls. Like men, she reads the books of sages and learns military tactics. At the age of ten, she goes to the battlefield for training! Therefore… it is said that the Bai family of the Zhenguo Palace in Dadu City never produces useless people!”
Bai Qingyan’s voice became serious, and the students’ emotions seemed to be infected by Bai Qingyan. They straightened their backs and listened attentively.
She moved her feet: “Just imagine, if the Bai family of the Zhenguo Mansion looked down on women like ordinary families, and the King of Liang of the Jin Dynasty rebelled in the capital, how could my second sister, who is already married and has children, lead the army to fight and save the lives of the people of the capital from the King of Liang? And save the families of the officials?”
Bai Qingyan was proud of his sister when he mentioned her, and his tone was very proud: “How did my fourth sister, Princess Gaoyi Bai Jinzhi, win the battle, invade Hancheng, and become the greatest contributor to the destruction of Liang?”
“Please think about it again. If the daughters of the Bai family had not been carefully raised by their fathers, and if they had not learned the family aspirations from a young age like the boys in the family, inherited the Bai family’s spirit, and protected the people, after the battle in Southern Xinjiang during the Xuanjia years, the Bai family would have been accused of treason… and would no longer exist! And at that time… my Bai family could not take care of themselves, so how could they have rushed to the chaotic battlefield in Southern Xinjiang? If the Bai family had retreated at that time, let alone the destruction of Liang State later, it would be hard to say whether the land under our feet is Xiliang or Da Zhou now.”
“I am not saying this because I am proud of my achievements. I am telling you that even if only the daughters of the Bai family are left, they will still go to the battlefield… It is because the daughters of the Bai family are not looked down upon just like the men of the Bai family. They have also inherited the aspirations of the Bai family. It is because our grandfather, father, and uncles have never thought that the women of the Bai family are incapable of taking on heavy responsibilities. They have always taught us to take it as our responsibility to protect the country and the people.”
“When the elders of the Bai family return from the battle… they will analyze the battlefield with the descendants of the Bai family, and tell us in detail about every general they have fought with, and will not discriminate against men or women when preparing to fight with us. Therefore… we have a deep understanding of the battle situation of the commander-in-chief of Southern Xinjiang, and a deep understanding of the terrain of Southern Xinjiang! We will have a greater chance of winning than other generals!”
“This is just the Bai family. If… more families no longer look down on women, and let women learn to read and write like men, and women… are willing to take care of their husbands and children, wouldn’t they be better at supervising and educating their children because they are full of knowledge? If women have more opportunities to pursue a career in politics, they are not just born to get married and live by relying on men. If there are difficulties in the family or the country in the future, why worry about the family not prospering… the country not being strong? Why worry about orphans and widows being bullied?”
Bai Qingyan looked again at the student who had just told her that allowing women to take the imperial examination would cause chaos in the Great Zhou: “Let me tell you what this student said. He thinks that the Great Zhou has enough talents and there is no need to select women anymore…”
Hearing the students of the Imperial College responding in a low voice, Bai Qingyan laughed softly, then stood up and faced the place where the most discussion was going on, and asked: “Are there enough talents in the Great Zhou? Talent is not just about… reading some books and knowing some words! I believe that in terms of learning… everyone here is a leader, but if you are asked to implement a new policy in the old land of Daliang, who among you can come up with a relatively complete plan? Should we use a soft policy or a hard policy?”
She looked around and saw that the students’ faces had changed and they seemed restless. She looked up at the students kneeling on the second floor and asked, “Now, Xiliang and Rongdi are about to go to war, and both countries want to form an alliance with our Great Zhou. How should our Great Zhou respond? Is it more beneficial to our Great Zhou to form an alliance with Xiliang or Rongdi?”
She smiled and turned around, looking at the students kneeling on the east side: “After the disaster in Chongluanling and Shuijiang City, how should we rebuild? Can anyone give some suggestions to alleviate the suffering of the people?”
Still no one answered, and they all tightened their grips, their hearts suddenly brightened…
They knew that the talents Bai Qingyan wanted to recruit for the court were not those with outstanding knowledge, but those who could get practical things done.
Just as Bai Qingyan said before, what she wants… is the four words “benefit the country and the people”!
Bai Qingyan’s face became serious: “Talent is never enough for a country! You should have a broader vision and pattern. Even if the territory of the Great Zhou is only as large as that of the Jin State, I dare not say that the Great Zhou has enough talents! Now the Great Zhou has taken all the territory of Daliang! And it wants to use this as a basis and support to unify the world and create an era of eternal peace. In this way… can the talents of the Great Zhou be able to do it?”
This was the first time that Bai Qingyan, outside of the military and other officials, had clearly expressed his ambition to unify the country to students… and to the world.
Sure enough, the students were in an uproar, talking about it a lot.
“Unify the world?!”
“Isn’t this going to be another war?”
“Such warmongering…fighting every year and every month! They say it’s for the people, but the people are the ones who suffer in the war! Can’t we make an alliance and truce, so that the two countries don’t invade each other?”
“The Great Zhou has just conquered Daliang and taken over all of Daliang’s territory. Can’t we let the people rest and recuperate?”
“You guys who only know how to read all day know shit! If it is truly for the good of the people… the world must be unified. Only when the world is unified and everyone is one family can we usher in eternal peace!” Cheng Yuanzhi could no longer bear it. He pushed away Shen Kunyang who was blocking him and strode towards the Naxian Hall.
Cheng Yuanzhi clasped his fists and saluted Bai Qingyan. His eyes widened like cowbells, and he looked at the students of the Imperial College fiercely: “You sour scholars who only know how to read, do you know what life is like for the people in the border areas? In this beautiful and flourishing capital, all you see is paper… what kind of crazy stuff!”
“Living a life of decadence and debauchery!” A student from the Imperial Academy added this word for Cheng Yuanzhi.
“Yes, it’s this Jin Mi! Once another country invades, the people there are slaughtered like cattle and sheep by the enemy! Rongdi come to rob food every year… Once they enter the city, they massacre the whole city, not even dogs and chickens can survive! Has anyone of you ever escaped from the Rongdi’s scimitar?”