Regardless of what the emperor meant, according to what Zhang Shou said to Zhu Ying, he had already succinctly summarized what he had to do as a teacher to the mountain king, which was... Nonsense! When Zhu Ying heard this, she laughed so hard that she even ran over to listen in once, and she almost wanted to go every day to listen in.
After all, wasn't she attracted by Zhang Shou's unconventional way of conversation
However, she herself was not an idle person now, because the six daughters of Goryeo were directly allocated to the women's school by the emperor, so she had to get to know these girls well and arrange them. As a result, as soon as she met them, her blazing fire of vigilance was immediately poured with a basin of cold water.
She had planned and prepared for them as if they were her own age, but... the two oldest were a little younger than her, but the other four were no older than fourteen! The youngest looked so timid that she thought he was barely ten years old!
After Zhu Ying asked in person, she found that her judgment was correct. The oldest of the six girls from Korea was sixteen years old, two years younger than her, who was one year older than the Spring Festival. The youngest was eleven years old, and she was as young as a child. Even though she had never had any good feelings towards Korean girls, she softened her heart when she saw their aggrieved eyes.
People outside think that Miss Zhu is arrogant and domineering, but in fact, she is always arrogant on the outside but gentle on the inside. This is what Zhang Shou said, but she never thought of herself as gentle. However, at this moment, Zhu Ying finally realized that she couldn't ignore the outsiders who she thought she should hate and dislike... at least they had nothing to do with her. If this is not gentleness, what is it
Well, her heart was really too soft, and no one knew how the Goryeo side was selected, each and every girl looked delicate and timid, and the youngest one was even a little silly. But at this moment, no matter who they were, the posture of bowing deeply was exactly the same.
She took a deep breath and then said with a straight face, "Everyone, raise your heads. This is the capital of the Ming Dynasty, not your place. I don't care what others said when they taught you etiquette, but in a place like the Women's School, the first thing we teach you is to hold your head high and look straight ahead. As a woman, you should be neither humble nor arrogant, and don't always look humble and aggrieved!"
Even during the Han and Tang dynasties when women had the highest status, Ban Zhao wrote "Instructions for Women", not to mention that since the Song Dynasty, when Neo-Confucianism prevailed, more and more shackles were imposed on women. Even though Taizu of this dynasty had strongly condemned foot binding and issued ancestral precepts, there were still perverted people in the folk who practiced it. Therefore, the posture of women lowering their heads and eyes is natural in many families.
As for the Joseon Dynasty, where women had an even lower status, it goes without saying that the etiquette was modified from the etiquette of the Song and Ming dynasties, and some parts that were more in line with national traditions were even added. In addition, the word "early marriage" was implemented more thoroughly than in the Ming Dynasty. Zhu Ying disliked the girls who were sent here at this time because they were too young and childish. But if they were placed there...
This is a normal marriage age for royal and even aristocratic women. Girls of sixteen are already too old, so the two of them had their marriages delayed due to family matters. They were quite sweet-looking, and the eunuchs who selected them thought they would suit the taste of the Emperor of the Ming Dynasty, so they were stuffed in just to make up the numbers!