I am not Yuan Shu

Chapter 132 Du's "Legitimate Daughter"

The eldest daughter of the Du family in this generation is not very qualified.

Either they were flat in figure and failed to meet Yuan Shu's requirements, or they had some flaws in their character, being willful and unruly, not virtuous enough, and it was difficult for them to meet the requirements of the Yuan family.

It would be fine for an ordinary family, they could marry off their daughter to the Du family and treat her as a treasure. The Du family has enough power to do that. But when it comes to a behemoth like the Yuan family, do you still want to be so willful and capricious?
Don’t harm the entire Du family!

The head of the Du family knew that his eldest daughter was not up to the task, but he could not miss this good opportunity, so he urgently stopped all the current marriage plans in the family, gathered all the female relatives of marriageable age together for selection, and picked the three best ones to take care of.

It doesn't matter that none of the three of them are the legitimate daughters of the eldest son, as long as Yuan Shu takes a fancy to her, she is the legitimate daughter of the eldest son!

So, looking at the three portraits of women sent to them, Yuan Feng and Yuan Shu were quite satisfied.

Official portraits in ancient times were indeed rather abstract, and the portraits of emperors and empresses all looked extremely similar.

This is mainly due to the factors of the times. How can later generations paint portraits of their predecessors without having seen them with their own eyes and without having complete records of their appearance?
Even many portraits of emperors that have been passed down were painted by painters based on their own appearance or folk legends.

However, the portraits painted at that time were still relatively realistic, and Yuan Shu also believed that the Du family would not dare to use high-resolution retouching techniques against him on this matter.

The three women in the painting all have oval faces and sharp eyes. Beautiful appearance and proud figures are the basics, and their respective strengths and abilities are the main scoring points.

All three of them were well-educated and had received the most basic education. They had read scriptures and women's precepts, learned needlework and music, and two of them even had very good cooking skills. They also emphasized that they could make desserts and drinks, and had some special side dishes.

As for her gentle and virtuous character, that is basic quality. She has been educated this way since childhood. She has been trained to be a good wife for a rich and noble son. On this issue, Mrs. Du is absolutely unambiguous.

If you are not docile and virtuous, come to me and I will refund or exchange the goods for you!
The matchmaker of the Du family dared to make such a guarantee.

Yuan Feng was quite satisfied with this. He nodded slowly and whispered something to Yuan Shu.

"The Du family is also a century-old aristocratic family. They became rich earlier than our Runan Yuan family. They still have this family heritage and know how to train the female members of the family. You have to believe that they will never dare to choose a defective product for you. You can choose whatever you want."

Yuan Shu was a little nervous.

"Father, the eldest daughter of this century-old noble family is actually good at needlework and cooking. Why can't I believe it? For the eldest daughter of the eldest son, it's fine to be well-educated and well-mannered, and it's natural for her to learn some music, but needlework and cooking...

I remember that all Yuan family girls learned these skills urgently before getting married? Or they would bring a few maids who were good at these skills as dowry. Why would they do it themselves? Is she really the eldest daughter of the family? "

This is really not a lie. Yuan Shu remembered that when he was a child, the girls in the clan were either spoiled or taken care of, and rarely learned these skills themselves.

Generally speaking, only before marriage would there be someone to help these daughters of the direct line develop some life skills, or simply find some skilled maids to take as dowry, so that they don't have to do it themselves.

It turns out that this girl from the Du family is an excellent cook?
Aren’t you afraid that Yuan Shu will inspect the goods on the spot?

Yuan Feng smiled, looking nonchalant.

"My son, I know what you want, but I won't tell you. The eldest daughter of the Du family may not be able to meet your requirements, but the Du family is obviously unwilling to give up, so they must have carefully selected three from the entire family.

Although she may not be the eldest daughter of the first house, as long as you decide on the candidate, she will immediately become the real eldest daughter of the first house. Things like adoption are not that difficult to do. They are all living people, who wouldn't be flexible?"

Yuan Shu thought about it and suddenly understood a little.

"So, our Yuan family also..."

"Where does the Yuan family have so many women?"

Yuan Feng chuckled and said, "However, outsiders don't know how many daughters there are in the Yuan family. Daughters are not known to outsiders. It's like they don't exist. How can outsiders know whether she is born of a legitimate wife or a concubine? If we say yes, then she is. If we say no, then she is not."

Yuan Shu nodded slowly, feeling that there are so many ways in this world.

"There is also such a saying, I learned it."

"You are still young and haven't experienced this before. It's normal."

"What if this woman is not the daughter of the Du family?"

"That's impossible. You are not a daughter of the Du family. You don't have the Du family in your heart. The Du family also had their own ideas when they arranged the marriage with you. Who would dare to believe that you don't have the Du family's blood flowing in your body? The Du family is not stupid."

"In that case, maybe she is a concubine's daughter, or a girl from a side branch?"

"That's probably the case, but her status is not low. She may be the concubine daughter of the eldest son, or the legitimate daughter of a branch. Otherwise, she wouldn't have learned so many things. Our Yuan family trains women for marriage outside the family, which costs a lot of money. Not all women in the family can afford it."

"Understood, understood."

Yuan Shu nodded, no longer having any other worries.

I just feel that life is not easy for the big families these days, and the women in the family don't have as good a life as they imagined, with food and clothing to spare.

Unless she is the eldest daughter of the royal family, she was probably born to be prepared for marriage with a foreign family.

Even if she is the eldest daughter in the family, it depends on what kind of person her father is.

If you dote on your daughter, she will naturally be more spoiled and live a better life. If you don't dote on your daughter, you can just spend more resources and time on her and train her to be a more advanced tool for marriage. With this thought, Yuan Shu no longer had any extra thoughts.

He is not very interested in love or anything like that. As long as he is obedient, caring, and takes care of his daily life and food, that is enough.

Of course, being beautiful is also important!
and so……

It's just a portrait and cannot be used as evidence. Some things must be seen with one's own eyes.

"Father, can I see these three women in person? It seems that according to the rules, I can't see them before I get married, right?"

"That's right."

Yuan Feng pinched his beard and thought for a while, then said, "But if my son has any concerns, it's not impossible. Rules are used to control those below, not to target those in higher positions. You are the legitimate son of the Yuan family, so of course you can do what you want."

"Thank you father!"

Yuan Shu suddenly felt that the world was vast and that the identity of being the legitimate son of the Yuan family was truly wonderful.

But think about it.

I had to follow the rules when I wasn't rich, and I still have to follow the rules after I became rich. Then, wouldn't my wealth have been in vain?

Yuan Shu accepted all of this with pleasure.

Yuan Feng then discussed the matter with the Du family's envoy and prepared to arrange for Yuan Shu to make the selection personally.

"But this doesn't mean that the marriage is settled. Whether Shu is satisfied is one thing, and whether the negotiations between Yuan and Du go smoothly is another. You must report this matter truthfully."

Yuan Feng told the Du family envoy his words very impolitely. The Du family envoy nodded repeatedly and then went back to report without saying anything else.

After the Du messenger left, Yuan Shu sighed, which caught Yuan Feng's attention.

“Why do you sigh, my son?”

Yuan Shu gave a bitter smile.

"I just feel that even someone of Lian'er's status has to consider the pros and cons of marriage from the perspective of the family, and cannot be completely independent. What about other people? Can the couple really be of one mind and one heart if they get married like this?"

Yuan Feng stroked his beard, smiled and shook his head.

“Marriage is never something that one can decide on by oneself. When your father married your mother, it was arranged by your grandfather. Your father had never even met your mother before the marriage. So many years have passed, and you brothers have been born.

For men from wealthy families, marriage involves many aspects, and everyone involved can have a say. In this case, how much power do they have left? Even the emperor, who has the greatest power, is still the same and cannot make his own decisions.

Emperor Guangwu loved Empress Yin very much, but considering the situation, he had to establish Empress Guo first. Even Emperor Guangwu did this, let alone the rest of us? So, marriage is indeed important, but don't take it too seriously.

It is good to be of the same mind, but if you can't, don't force it. Just treat each other with respect. Men from a big family should not focus on matters between men and women. What is more important is the man's achievements and the inheritance of the family. "

Yuan Feng touched Yuan Shu's head, as if to comfort him.

Yuan Shu thought about it and realized that it was true. Throughout history, both in ancient and modern times, both in China and abroad, most people have lived this way. Thinking about it this way, he didn't seem special or innocent.

At least I have a few backup options.

Moreover, he can take concubines.

"Forget it. If my son and Mrs. Du really can't get along, I'll just feed her with good food and drink and take in a few more concubines."

"Speaking of concubines..."

Yuan Feng seemed to remember something and said, "Shu, you have arranged for Xu Chong to bring your maid back some time ago, right?"

Yuan Shu nodded.

"In that case, it's not impossible, but it's best not to have children with her first."

Yuan Feng stroked his beard and said, "Otherwise, if we have a concubine's eldest son and a legitimate youngest son in the future, it will be very troublesome. You and that maidservant should not have... slept together, right?"

Yuan Feng deliberately looked away, as if asking a question casually.

Yuan Shu was a little depressed.

"Father, I am still a virgin. I have been in mourning for the past three years! I have been observing mourning seriously and in accordance with the rules. I dare not overstep the boundaries at all!"

"That's good, that's good."

Yuan Feng coughed a few times and said slowly, "It's fine to observe mourning, but it's unreasonable to ask you to be too restrained after the mourning is over. Just do as you like. From now on, just remember to make the eldest son the heir, and if there is no heir, make the eldest son the heir."

(End of this chapter)