Women Wearing Men: The Growth Path of the Bastards of the Aristocratic Family

Feng was still smiling a moment ago, but suddenly her expression changed and she questioned herself for not binding Gu Zhaoxi's feet.Xu Shuhua's heart sank slightly, but the smile on his face did not diminish. He explained in a good voice: "Binding her feet is too painful. Xi'er is very active, so we didn't bind her."

Feng was very dissatisfied with this answer and scolded: "What are you talking about? Just because you are afraid of pain, why don't you stop pestering me? Is there any mother like you? Are you not harming your child?"

These words were serious. Xu Shuhua's expression froze slightly and his smile faded: "Did Auntie misunderstand something? Xi'er is the flesh that fell off my body, how could I harm her? Binding the left and right feet is just a trivial matter, whether or not it does not matter does not matter. , it’s not as serious as you said.”

Although there are many foot-binding phenomena nowadays, it is not very common. Even women from wealthy families do not have to have their feet bound. Xu Shuhua did not do it when he was a child.

But she once had a best friend who had bound feet. Her feet were indeed smaller than those of ordinary women, but her movements were greatly restricted. She would complain of pain in her feet after walking for a while.When she took off her shoes, she found that her feet were severely deformed, which was shocking. It left a big psychological shadow on Xu Shuhua. At that time, she felt that foot binding was not a good thing.

Later, when Xu Shuhua married into the Gu family, he found that not only did he not have his feet bound, but that Gu Yunqiao, Zheng Xiuyun and others did not have their feet bound, so he felt that foot binding was not very important and was at most a personal choice.Later, after giving birth to a daughter, the elders didn't mention it, nor did Gu Yunji, so she gradually forgot about it.

Feng raised her eyebrows when she heard this: "What do you mean no impact? The impact is huge! The most direct impact is on your daughter's future marriage, which may make her unable to get married! Nowadays, men prefer small feet, and your daughter has natural feet. Which in-law’s family will be willing to ask for it in the future?”

He said this as if Gu Zhaoxi was an object, born to marry into another family.

Xu Shuhua felt unhappy when she heard this. However, Feng was an elder and she could not retort directly, so she picked up the tea cup to cover up and said calmly: "Auntie, you are too serious. We didn't bind our feet back then, and we are still fine now. Have you ever encountered any obstacles to your marriage?”

Feng said with a straight face: "It was back then, but it is different now. I only learned about the change in the trend in the past two years. My granddaughter is 17 years old. She just started discussing marriage last year. She originally fell in love with a family, and she was satisfied with it in every aspect. It was almost decided before we saw it, but when people saw that our daughter was a natural, they immediately turned against her and cut off all contact, let alone getting married."

"I didn't understand what was going on at the time. After asking around, I found out that men in many places now, especially those in Jiangnan, prefer women with bound feet. They think small feet are delicate and delicate, while big feet are vulgar, and they don't like natural feet. woman."

Speaking of this, Ms. Feng also had an ugly face: "In recent years, every woman with bound feet has become easier to marry than the last, and families who want to raise sons are rushing to get them. It is in vain that our Xu family has a scholarly family, and all the daughters in the family are They are all ladies, knowledgeable and courteous, but because of their natural feet, they are singled out and left behind."

"There is nothing I can do about my granddaughter. She is already more than ten years old, and it is too late to bind her feet now. Your daughter is still young, and you cannot let her suffer this disadvantage again. Taking advantage of the fact that the child's bones are weak, binding her feet early will avoid future problems. A lot of pain.”

Xu Shuhua frowned slightly when he heard this: "It was fine a few years ago. It doesn't matter whether the feet are bound or not. There is no daughter who can't get married because of her natural feet. How come it is so serious now? Yunji and his family are from Songjiang Prefecture. , also located in the south of the Yangtze River, I have never heard of the custom of foot binding being so popular? How did this spread? "

Feng Shi hummed: "Who knows, it spreads from person to person, and when you see others like this, you all want to imitate it. Not to mention others, just say that my bastard little son is a father himself. When I saw that this man had married a girl with small feet, I felt very anxious, so I had to ask us to find him a concubine with small feet, otherwise there would be endless trouble, and it didn't stop until I got married a few days ago."

Hearing this, Xu Shuhua's chest suddenly took a deep breath. He suppressed it several times but couldn't suppress it. Finally he couldn't help but said: "Forget about other people's families, how can our family be like this? This is an unhealthy trend, and it has caused great harm to people." If your cousin's marriage is in the way, you should strictly resist it."

"Our Xu family is a wealthy family in Shaoxing. As soon as we make this move, we will attract tens of thousands of people even more. Then it will become a sin for women with natural feet. Our daughter will have no choice but to have her feet bound." No matter how useless his son is, he himself will You can tell, but others can't, not to mention that Xu Shuhua is still a junior.

Listening to the implicit questioning in her words, Ms. Feng's face dropped and she said coldly: "Are you blaming me for not being able to discipline my son well and for condoning this trend?"

Xu Shuhua was startled and quickly lowered his head and said, "Junior doesn't dare."

They are also direct descendants of the Xu family, and there is a sharp contrast between the eldest brother and the second brother. The eldest brother has fewer people, but each one is more promising than the other.Let's not talk about Xu Chengyu. He rose to the rank of chief minister of the cabinet. His son Xu Shujing now serves in the Ministry of Household Affairs, with increasing authority and a bright future.

Daughter Xu Shuhua also married into a good family. The Gu family in Songjiang was a well-known noble family in the south of the Yangtze River. Her husband was a first-class scholar back then, and now he has become a fourth-rank magistrate at a young age.The second brother-in-law occupies the title of clan leader, but is suppressed by the eldest brother-in-law. He cannot compare with others in every aspect.

Mrs. Feng was already feeling a little uncomfortable. Seeing that Xu Shuhua dared to question her, she even felt that she was taking advantage of her husband's family to return to her parents' family to show off her authority. She immediately put on the airs of an elder and reprimanded:
"I remind you that you bound your daughter's feet out of good intentions. It's fine if you don't appreciate it, but you actually blame me! Xu Shuhua, don't forget that no matter how well you marry, your surname is still Xu. , this is your root!"

"What do you think you rely on to live a good life in the Gu family? It's the Xu family of Shaoxing! It's your natal family that supports you! You have strong wings now. You feel that your husband is the prefect of Shaoxing, and we, the Xu family, have to look at him You have a pretty face, so you don’t take us seriously, right?”

Xu Shuhua didn't understand how he made Feng so angry because he just said two wrong words.All the Xu family members were present in the room, and their daughter was watching from the side. Feng's words were serious, and it could be said that she didn't save any face.

Xu Shuhua was extremely embarrassed, his pretty face turned pale, red, and white again. The nails in his sleeves dug into his flesh unconsciously, and he defended in a low voice: "I didn't..."

"How dare you talk back!"

Feng's voice was stern: "I am your elder, you have to listen when I reprimand you! Your father is a grown man, raising a daughter is a lot of inconveniences, and it is impossible to take care of every aspect. After all, he has not been around since he was a child. Mom, you are different without a mother’s upbringing, and you have grown up to look like this, disrespecting your elders.”

At the mention of her deceased mother, Xu Shuhua's face suddenly turned pale, and a huge sense of humiliation and anger arose. Her body trembled uncontrollably, hatred accumulated in her chest, and her emotions were on the verge of explosion.

"What's wrong Shuhua?"

At this time, a familiar and slightly urgent voice sounded at the door, which immediately brought Xu Shuhua back to his senses.She raised her head and looked toward the door. When she saw her husband, tears instantly filled her eyes: "Yunji..."