Return of the Antagonistic Lady Boss

"Teacher, I have something to say, but I’m not sure if it’s appropriate?"

"Go ahead." The lecturer, seeing Qian speak up, braced herself for a verbal spar. If this girl dared to bring up irrelevant topics, she’d talk about how women who gossip too much stir up trouble, making the girl embarrassed right there.

"May I ask, you mentioned the Female Virtue, where is it from? As far as I know, there isn’t any ancient book in our dynasty called ’Female Virtue.’ I’m afraid I’m not well-read enough. Could you enlighten me on which book you’re referring to?"

"Of course, it’s the book written by Mrs Xu, the Wife of Emperor Ming Chengzu. She was the epitome of women, very quiet, embodying the great virtues of women worldwide!"

"Sorry, but my graduate advisor has also delved into this area of research. He told me Mrs Xu wrote ’Inner Training,’ and there’s no book called ’Female Virtue.’ My advisor has also explained the origin of this term to me. Since you’re such an expert, you must be more knowledgeable than my advisor, right? Could you tell us the origin of the term ’Female Virtue’?"

Good grief!

The lecturer had a big "WTF" flash through her mind. Teaching for so long, she had fooled so many women, yet today she encountered a challenger. This girl seemed like an expert, opening with academic credentials and origins. How educated is she?

She doesn’t even look that old! The lecturer’s heart was in disarray.

Why would Qian’s mentor discuss this with her, especially Mr Liu, who is a staunch feminist? He would detest the restrictions placed on women, never speaking favorably of them. Qian is intentionally flaunting her academic credentials to exert psychological pressure on the lecturer.

Sure enough, hearing Qian’s academic background made the lecturer a bit nervous. Luckily, she could answer Qian’s question.

"The term ’Female Virtue’ originates from Historical Records: Zuo Commentary."

"You truly are profound, please continue."

With just two sentences, Qian tested the master’s level. It seems she bought some pirated books from the street market, memorizing a lot, but the content lacked verification.

The lecturer kept thinking about Qian’s comment regarding Mrs Xu not writing a book called ’Female Virtue.’ Words easily falter when your mind is preoccupied, and forgetting lines while speaking occurs often. Qian patiently waited to undermine her further.

After speaking for a while, the lecturer saw Qian didn’t say anything and finally breathed a sigh of relief to continue.

"Women should be gentle as water; only gentle women are lovable. The Daughter Classics say, a husband’s words should be obeyed, even if incorrect, they should be endured. What does this mean? A woman must heed her husband’s words, even if wrong, she must tolerate. Modern women lack this endurance and compliance virtue. A minor issue leads to huge arguments with husbands, eventually bringing misfortune and disaster upon themselves!"

This is absolute rubbish within rubbish; applying feudal societal constraints on modern women is begging for criticism, isn’t it? Society has evolved to a size 38 foot, yet they insist on fitting into size 20 shoes and claiming women did well doing so back then, it’s asking for trouble.

Qian’s eyes flickered as she nudged Dalong, who was about to start snoring after falling asleep. Dalong jerked awake after being prodded twice and shivered. Qian whispered in his ear, leaving Dalong a bit embarrassed, his face turning red.

Lowered his voice to speak to Qian.

"Sis, doing this... isn’t it bad?"

"This old hag just said to your sister that pretty women are all vixens. If you can tolerate it, then don’t do this."

Upon hearing this, Dalong jumped up at once. For him, there’s only one principle: if anyone dares to bully his sister, he dares to dig up their ancestral graves. Dalong would kill, but Qian cannot be humiliated!

He was the only man in the room; standing tall and catching everyone’s eye, all the middle-aged women’s gazes snapped towards Dalong, curious about what this tall guy had to say.

Dalong’s face flushed red, yet he followed Qian’s instructions and stammeringly asked.

"You said women must obey us, right?"

"Yes, men represent the dominant principle of firmness, women represent submissiveness; submissiveness must comply with firmness to maintain orderly social order. Men who cannot control women are not dominant." The lecturer believed Qian and Dalong were a couple.

"Well, what if I enjoy hitting my wife? Once I have a wife, I’ll beat her three times a day. In the morning, if I dislike her look, I’ll kick her. At lunchtime, if she cooks something I hate, I’ll smack her bottom. At night, if she doesn’t bring my footbath properly, I’ll give her a few slaps. Should women comply then?"

Whoosh~ The room exploded like a pot of boiling oil. Dalong’s words invoked immediate displeasure among the women. The lecturer’s indoctrination efforts dissipated in an instant. Even Qian’s mom trembled with anger; the brat had the audacity to say such reckless words?!

Hearing her son say this, Qian’s mom instantly dismissed all thoughts of compliance and docility. Her determination to become a gentle (old) woman lasted less than half an hour before breaking down. She stood up, intending to kick her son.

The little rascal, try saying it again and see if I don’t beat you!

Qian quickly pulled her mom down to sit, and Dalong continued to ask under duress.

"Your words implied men say whatever they want, women should listen. Even if wrong, women should endure. What if I have the habit of beating my wife? Is there a ’Male Virtue’ book governing men’s behavior?"

"This..."

There really isn’t one.

Qian curled her lips in contempt. Ancient constraints on women had some good aspects, but there was more rubbish, mostly facilitating male dominance. Why do people now overthrow books like the so-called ’female precepts’?

Because there’s only constraints on female virtue, none on men. Nowadays, both genders share household economic responsibilities, earnings are about the same, trying to apply ancient norms is stepping out of line and asking for trouble!

Faced with Dalong’s questioning and the women stimulated by Dalong’s words, the lecturer was caught in a dilemma. Denying her previous claims would have been a waste, affirming them without a reasonable explanation would also displease the women.

"Firstly, you need to restrain your own temper, preferably not hit women—"

"You said firmness is destined to suppress submissiveness." Dalong clung to the holes in her argument, refusing to let go.

"Yeah, Master, my husband often hits me. What should I do about this?" A woman from the audience asked.

"You must continue to endure. If you achieve endurance and compliance, he will naturally change. If he is the sharp knife, you are the gentle water, surrender to adversity, and he will change naturally."

No need for Qian’s instruction now, even Dalong couldn’t hold back.

"Master, for a man like me, seeing any woman acting obnoxious makes me want to hit more. The more obedient they are, the more I beat. What to do?"