"Well. Sister-in-law, there's actually no need to hide this kind of thing. Maybe when big brother was preparing to go abroad, mother had guessed what you were thinking. After all, mother is such a smart person, and she's also a very open-minded person, so sister-in-law might as well just say it out loud. Then, if you need to prepare something, you can prepare it openly. If you delay until the last minute, mother might get really angry."
"Then, I will tell mother tomorrow." Yu Shi thought about it and felt that her sister-in-law was right.
"I said so much, but you didn't listen. But you listened to what Fourth Sister said?"
"How can you be the same as Fourth Sister?" Yu rolled her eyes.
Wen Renxu rubbed his nose. Was this the first time he was disliked by his own wife?! What was the difference between him and his fourth sister? Besides the gender, it was probably the different status in their mother's heart? Well, speaking of this, he really couldn't be compared. In his mother's heart, daughters were weak and needed more care, while boys should be upright. Therefore, among the five brothers and sisters, he was definitely the one with the lowest status. This was not only the case in his mother's heart, but also in his father's heart.
Just because he is the eldest son, he is the least favored one. What a miserable life.
Fortunately, he has a good attitude, otherwise, he would have been jealous since he was a child.
After seeing the couple off, Xiaocao continued writing for a while.
The next day, when Xiaocao went to her mother's house for breakfast, not only her father's concubines were there, but her eldest sister-in-law Youshi was also there. It seemed that she had been there for quite some time, and next to her mother's hand was the book that Youshi had taken from her last night.
So this has not been copied yet, it was brought to her mother first.
"Mother, sister-in-law."
"Come." Han waved her hand, then pulled Xiaocao to sit down. "I have read some of this book. Xuan'er writes very well. To be honest, this book should have existed a long time ago, but it's a pity that no one has ever written it. I'm afraid that even if there is such an idea, it's powerless. Our Xuan'er is a good child, and always wants to benefit more people with her own efforts."
She really wanted to benefit more people, that was true, but good kids and all that... "Mom, I'm not a child anymore." Even if her past life was separated from her present (in the past ten years, she really hadn't grown much mentally, her thoughts and actions were almost the same as in her previous life), her mental age should be in her twenties. How could she be a child? She's eighteen now, and girls are considered to be of marriageable age at fifteen, right? She hasn't done anything childish.
Han smiled and said, "No matter how old Xuan'er is, in my eyes, she is just a child."
Well, this is a strong reason that no “child” can refute.
Then Wen Renying followed in. After greeting, she naturally saw the book that Han was holding down. She reached out to take it, but was held down by Han, "This is not a book for you, a little girl. Go away."
Books that little girls can't read, she's not really a little girl, what can't she read? But I can only think about it, but I dare not say it out loud, I can only say "oh" in a dull voice, but my curiosity has not been suppressed at all.
After having breakfast together, everyone including Xiaocao was driven away by Han. You looked at the book eagerly for several times, but Han acted as if he didn't see it and had no intention of giving it to her. As a daughter-in-law, she couldn't fight with her mother-in-law for things, so she could only leave with her eyes looking back. However, coming here early was not without gain. She carefully mentioned that she wanted to go to work with her husband, but her mother-in-law agreed casually and asked her to take the children with her. She raised several children and didn't want to take care of grandchildren. This was naturally what she wanted.
You Shi suspected that it might be true as her sister-in-law said, that her mother-in-law had already known her thoughts, so she was not surprised at all. Instead, the gynecological manual made Han look at her more, as if she knew her thoughts clearly.
You Shi was a little at a loss. Her mother-in-law was indeed a powerful one. She had "taken advantage" of her sister-in-law a little bit. Fortunately, her mother-in-law was not angry. However, she took away the gynecological manual. She didn't know when she could give it back to her.
Han took the book and went to see Madam Wenren.
Han asked about the old lady's condition and saw that her health was getting better day by day. She no longer had body pains or headaches, and could often walk around the yard by herself instead of needing help all the time. It was a pleasure to see her.
But her personality remains the same as before, she looks rigid and difficult to get close to.
"Mom, let me tell you something."
Old Madam Wenren looked at her, as if to say, if you have anything to say, just say it directly, why are you talking so much nonsense.
Among this family, Han is the one who has the most contact with the old lady. The others only pay their respects once every five days. Since Xiaocao is feeling much better, there is no need for her to visit her often. So when Xiaocao goes to her place at other times recently, she simply drives her away, saying, "Why is there anything wrong with a young girl like her getting close to an old woman? Besides, she is not as free as other girls to do her own things."
Therefore, Han naturally knew the old lady's temper best.
"This is a book written by Xuan'er, a gynecological manual."
Madam Wenren's eyes moved, and she knew what was written just by hearing the name.
"I have only read a part of it for now. I will read the table of contents to you." Han read them one by one. "The eldest daughter-in-law went to Xuan'er's place last night to get the book. She said Xuan'er is looking for some child-rearing manuals. This one was written before, but it was put aside because it was not used. It was found yesterday. The eldest daughter-in-law has finished reading it. She said the content is very comprehensive and very useful. She wanted to get the answer but didn't know the answer. For women, this book is a priceless treasure. It's just that it's not easy to show it to girls directly, but as elders, some of the content can be taught to them. If they take good care of their health in the boudoir, it will only benefit them after they get married. When they get married, it will be the best dowry at the bottom of the box, plus the child-rearing manual that Xuan'er is still writing."
Madam Wenren knew very well that it was indeed as Han said. Such a book was of extraordinary value to women. Together with the parenting manual, it could really solve many troublesome problems. "What do you want to do?"
"Mother, as of now, more and more people will know that Xuan'er is a doctor. She is so outstanding, how can people compare her with ordinary female doctors? If they get benefits from her, some people may not be able to speak up. Xuan'er doesn't care about her reputation in order to save people and cure diseases, but as a mother, I feel sorry for her. She is obviously doing good things to accumulate virtue, why is she still being criticized?"
"You want to print this book?"
"Yes, because it is a gynecological manual, I naturally cannot send it to a bookstore for printing. In general, private workshops are mostly run by men, so I thought about setting up a small workshop myself and letting women do the printing."
"That's not necessary. I have a small printing workshop, which was passed down from my grandmother. It has been around for more than a hundred years. The people working there are all helpless women. Sometimes they print things for their families, and other times they do needlework and the like. I give them some money to make a living. To put it bluntly, it gives them a place to live. Although the printed materials are not often used, they are complete. I don't have a daughter either, so you can use the small workshop."
Han didn't expect such a thing to happen, so she was naturally happy. It could save a lot of trouble. "Thank you, mother."
Madam Wenren glanced at her and said, "Fourth girl, you are not the only one who feels sorry for us. We all feel sorry for you."
"Yes, yes, you feel sorry for every young person." Han said with a smile.
Madam Wenren withdrew her gaze, too lazy to pay attention to her, and asked someone to bring the title deed and land deeds of the workshop to Han. The workshop was also in the imperial city, but in the outer city, so it would only take a little more time to get there.
"If you have nothing else to do, just go back."
"only."
After Han left, mother Xiang, who was standing beside her, looked as if she wanted to say something but was hesitant.
"Just say whatever you want to say." Madam Wenren said calmly.
"Madam, that is, when Madam prints the book, can I ask for a copy? At my age, I don't really need it. Aren't we the young generation in this family? It won't hurt to know more."
"You've been with me for so many years, and you've done your best. I wouldn't give you nothing."
"Thank you, ma'am." Xiang's mother was overjoyed.
"Why thank me? Just remember the kindness of the fourth girl."
"Yes, yes, the fourth young lady is such a good doctor, and she is also kind-hearted. Even if we ask for something, she is always very kind. Let me tell you, even if you look around the world, there are probably not many people who can be as good as the fourth young lady."
"Alright, I want you to remember her good points, not to praise her so highly. She didn't get to that position by herself, but was praised by others. That's not solid, and she could fall at any time. When she can stand at that height one day, you can say whatever you want to her."
"You are really thoughtful, old lady."
Old Madam Wenren lowered her eyes and said nothing. If she couldn't hide it, then she would be given more protection to make her position unshakable. Old Madam Wenren also agreed with what Han did.
I have to say that Xiaocao is actually very lucky. If she had met a family that was pedantic and rigid and required women to be cautious in what they said, she would not even be allowed to practice medicine and save lives. Then, Xiaocao might not be able to stay in this family. But now her family is willing to protect her and plan for her wholeheartedly.
Han was also a man of action. He would postpone matters at home for a while. After all, there was a process for what to do. It would not be a problem if he just dealt with it later.
By the time Han went over, the people in the workshop learned that the master had changed. In fact, none of them had any indentures, and if the master didn't want them anymore, they would have to leave at a word. Some people might envy this kind of freedom, but it also made people feel insecure, especially for those of them who were alone and homeless. They didn't know what would happen to them if they were to wander around.
It was only when Han arrived that she discovered that there were nearly thirty people in this small workshop. Two or three of them were children, two were adopted, and one had come here with his mother.
After some research, I found out that the cost of raising them is not that much.
After Han explained her purpose, they all became happy. You know, the host provided them with food and lodging, but they seldom did anything, and they felt guilty inside. Now that they had something to do, they felt that their existence had value. Not to mention that Han would pay them wages in addition to the expenses of helping them get by as before.
"Madam, you are embarrassing us. The old lady has been supporting us who are just eating for free. How can we ask for your salary?"
"The quantity to be printed this time is quite large. It's not just one or two books, nor ten or eight books. We need to print a thousand copies first, and we should need more in the future, so the wages are due. If you do a good job, there will be more in the future, and the quantity will not be small."
Everyone was shocked. Why would they print so many
"Any questions?"
They were not in a hurry to agree, even though they knew they could gain a lot from it.
One of the older ones spoke hesitantly, "Ma'am, I wonder how long it will take?"
Han nodded secretly in her heart. Not bad. She was not carried away. If they agreed immediately, Han would have to think about it. "Don't worry about this. Just do as much as you can and try your best."
"That's no problem, Madam, don't worry, we will do our best and won't let you down."
Han nodded, "I'll have someone send the necessary paper and ink over later. Remember, once the book is printed, it can't be circulated outside. If you do a good job, I'll give you a reward, but if you do something you shouldn't do, I'm not a kind person."
Everyone immediately assured in fear and trepidation that they would never do that.
Despite this, Han still wrote a contract and asked them to put their fingerprints on it. She had learned before that among them, only three or four people could read. They were all relatively old and had been in the workshop for a long time, from five to six years, and as many as twenty to thirty years. Moreover, they basically only knew how to read, which was convenient for printing and typesetting. They might not understand slightly more profound content. From generation to generation, not everyone would teach them to read. The older ones were mostly carefully selected through inspections, and they were very particular about their character. To some extent, they were doing this as a kind of inheritance.
It can be said that I really cherish it.
Han had some doubts at first, but he didn't expect to get the sample books in just three days, and there were as many as one hundred copies in the first batch. Although Han didn't know much about book printing, he knew that with just that small workshop, they were definitely doing their best to rush the work. However, even so, the quality of each book was still top-notch, with clear handwriting and neat cutting. You can't find any crooked pages, let alone typos.