I'm a humble concubine. My acting skills are off the charts. You can check my performance.

Zhao Fangyu raised her head slowly. She was not as tall as Zhang Yingying, so she could not see her eyes when looking straight at her.

Standing opposite Zhang Yingying, Zhao Fangyu seemed to be looking at an ignorant student.

"Miss Zhang said that women should be freed from their restraints. Does that refer to common people or noble ladies?"

"A noblewoman from an aristocratic family reads books of sages, understands the truth, and is the head of a household. When interacting with others, she naturally needs to be dignified and behave in a proper manner. She has guards when she goes in and out, does not have to work, and does not have to serve the whole family. Naturally, she can wear the clothes she likes, just like Miss Zhang."

"But the women of Daliang only occupy a small part of the society. There are tens of thousands of women among the common people. They work in the fields and in shops like men. They walk in the streets and there are countless people around. Can they dress like Miss Zhang?"

"Does Miss Zhang think that clothes are shackles that bind women? What she means by untying the shackles is to open the clothes wide? Then will there be a day in the future when women don't need to wear clothes when going out? Will they have to be naked when going out?"

"In Daliang today, women can go out to work and walk around the streets without hiding anything. Even the seven reasons for divorce that were strictly followed in the previous dynasty no longer need to be divorced. Those with good conduct can be divorced with the permission of the clan. Miss Zhang didn't see all these things, and only saw the clothes and jewelry?"

Zhang Yingying's words simply stepped on the Queen's sore spot. In front of the Queen, she looked down on women from aristocratic families for taking concubines for their husbands. Then what about the Queen who hosted the talent show?

Her family was only the Right Prime Minister of the Taichang Temple. What good would happen to her if she offended the empress?

What a pity, he was too stupid. When someone touched him, he jumped into the trap himself.

Zhang Yingying was speechless. Seeing that she didn't answer, Zhao Fangyu didn't pursue the matter. He turned around and bowed to the queen, saying, "I think that the harmony of yin and yang is to be achieved, so we should try it bit by bit to find a way to balance the two. When you go out, dress neatly. When you are at home, you will benefit from being more relaxed. There is no right or wrong. It just depends on where and when you are."

The Queen's expression then eased a little, and she rewarded Zhao Fangyu with a pair of gold bracelets.

The eldest prince was not willing to give in. He stood up and stood beside Zhang Yingying, his eyes full of praise: "I think Miss Zhang is better. Although she has some peculiarities, her spirit is commendable."

Zhang Yingying suddenly came to her senses as if she had found her backbone. "You also said that we should try to modify it bit by bit. Isn't it just right to start with something as small as clothing? I want to liberate women because I see many women are pitiful and want to help them. Don't I know what you said?"

"I can write Song of the Wine and The Official of Stone-Harrow, so I naturally understand the sufferings of the common people. I have my own considerations. Women revolve around men all their lives. What I have done is just to break away from your old ways and pursue loyalty."

Zhao Fangyu looked at the eldest prince beside Zhang Yingying, then looked at the dark-skinned third prince, and the few minors who hadn't gotten their love number plates yet...

Are you really loyal?

Is she really loyal, or does she just enjoy being surrounded by men and being complimented by them?

If they were really determined to change, why didn't they see the life of the women in Daliang who were bound by rules? Why didn't they criticize the general views of Zhu Xi and Cheng Yixue? Instead, they only cared about food and clothing? They didn't see the sad cries of women under the rules?

Zhao Fangyu fell to the ground and bowed deeply to the queen: "Recently, there are rumors that a woman starving to death is a minor matter, but losing her chastity is a major matter. The loyalty that Miss Zhang mentioned should be no more than this."

"My mother was born in Longxi. Before entering the palace, she had the honor of having been to Longxi and seen its scenery."

"The biggest difference between Longxi and Shangjing is the war. It is close to Jiayuguan and is often invaded by bandits. The women there are also different from those in Shangjing. Even if they are girls who are raised in seclusion, when they go out to ride horses and draw bows, they are addressed as ladies."

"In Longxi, women can ride horses and shoot arrows like men, fight in battle, embroider, play the zither, play with cats and dogs, and live a life of luxury and leisure. They can do what they want, just like men."

"The literary atmosphere there is also different from that in Beijing. The boys in Beijing like to wear flowers in their hair, while the boys in Longxi are good at riding and shooting. In Longxi, no child is weak, and no child can survive. Even a daughter who is born sickly will not be abandoned."

"My mother once told me that for people in Longxi, there are only two most important things in life: living and eating."

"War is ruthless. After the invasion of bandits, being able to live safely is the greatest blessing. In Longxi, only the enemy tribes outside the pass would hope that the people inside the pass are pale, thin, and weak."

"The enemies outside the pass hope that the men inside the pass will only study, not practice martial arts, ride horses, or shoot arrows. This way, they can come to plunder more freely and easily."

"So the people of Longxi never believe that dying of starvation is a minor matter, while losing one's chastity is a major matter. The people of Longxi live their lives in a subjective way. They only do what they think is right, such as guarding Longxi for generations. Even if they have the opportunity to leave Longxi, they will still take root in that land, grow trees into a forest, and resist the dust together."

"In Longxi, women can marry a second time. With constant wars, it is common for husbands to meet with unexpected events and die on the battlefield. If a woman is faithful to her husband and spends the rest of her life holding a plaque, there would probably be no Longxi today."

Zhao Fangyu did not find any loopholes in Zhang Yingying's words. She was protected by the eldest prince and the third prince, so she was naturally safe.

But since she has offended the queen, her life will not be as carefree as before.

The Queen...is not a pushover, otherwise Meng Yanzhen wouldn't be favored every month but still have no children.

The Queen Mother and the noble ladies present were all shocked by Zhao Fangyu's words. To be more precise, they were shocked by the Longxi in her words.

Most of the women here have only been to one or two cities in their lives. Even in these one or two cities, they cannot travel freely. Most of the time they go to someone's flower banquet or go for an outing.

For most noble ladies, Longxi, thousands of miles away, is just a sentence in the book, a bitter and cold place next to Jiayu Pass.

Zhang Yingying wanted to say something else, but when she met Zhao Fangyu's eyes, she was inexplicably stunned.

"Miss Zhang is a role model for women, and her poems are regarded as the standard in the literary world. It's a pity that Miss Zhang has never been to Longxi and has never seen people outside the pass slaughtering people inside the pass. Miss Zhang's so-called liberation is just superficial and just for fame and reputation."