Gu Sang exclaimed in surprise, "Five hundred thousand taels? That's far too much. A small contribution would suffice; there's no need to go to such lengths."
Mother Zhang replied, "Divine Lady, you may not be aware, but my family is in the merchant business. The dowry I brought with me includes several tea houses and silk shops. So for me, five hundred thousand taels is not an exorbitant amount."
Gu Sang nodded in understanding and turned to Miss Zhang, who was still nursing her emotional wounds, "You see? Your mother is quite the business expert."
"You once told me that women couldn't run businesses. Well, today I'm here to prove you wrong."
"In Jiangnan, there are several women who have built their own fortunes from scratch. Before entering the business world, they were merely palace ladies who had been released with nothing to their names."
"While it's not easy for women to engage in commerce, if you truly believe that where there's a will, there's a way, success is inevitable!"
At this moment, Miss Zhang humbly expressed her gratitude to Gu Sang, her previous doubt and naivety now completely gone.
Gu Sang was curious about what had transpired during her absence. How had Miss Zhang suddenly come to her senses?
It turned out that on the night in question, Miss Zhang had a stomach upset and needed to use the restroom. However, Scholar Li, in an attempt to save on lamp oil, refused to light a lamp and accompanied her to the foul-smelling outhouse in darkness.
The result?
Miss Zhang had never endured such hardship or such a deplorable environment before. Tears streaming down her face, she urgently needed to relieve herself but accidentally missed her step and fell right into the pit.
Ah! Ah! Ah!!
A cry of despair and anguish erupted!
After great effort, Scholar Li finally managed to fish her out, but there was no water in the house?
Water was precious, and there wasn't enough for a bath!
Miss Zhang could only grit her teeth, wipe herself down with a damp cloth, and change her clothes. The stench clinging to her body nearly made her faint.
But that wasn't the end of it!
The next day, Scholar Li's true colors were revealed. He repeatedly hinted that Miss Zhang was too delicate and pampered, taking her to the river for a cold bath and suggesting she should quickly adapt to this kind of lifestyle.
Finally, he urged her to go home and apologize to her parents, saying that there should be no overnight grudges between father and daughter.
In the past, Miss Zhang might have been moved, thinking Scholar Li had her best interests at heart.
But when she saw wild vegetables and a bowl of watery porridge with barely any rice grains for the third time, still reeking of excrement, and realized this would be her life from now on, she broke down. She finally believed that Scholar Li only wanted to leech off her family's wealth.
Miss Zhang cried heartbrokenly, "Divine Lady, you were right. My parents do love me."
"When they realized I was no longer infatuated with Scholar Li, they agreed to let me stay at home for a few more years and cancelled the arranged marriages set up by the matchmaker."
"I'm so grateful that I met you when I was still blindly in love."
"At that time, it was as if my brain had been scooped out. I couldn't see anything clearly and only wanted to elope with my beloved. If you hadn't let me experience the reality, I'm afraid I would have regretted it endlessly in the future."
"Just as you mentioned about Wang Baochuan, I would have spent my entire life digging for wild vegetables to eat, unable to even light an oil lamp. I can't bear to imagine using that outhouse again; I would be in utter despair."
"Divine Lady, we women have seen too few men in our lives and are easily deceived by their sweet words."
"So, I want to ask for your help in sharing this story as a cautionary tale for all women in the world."
"Let them know that when even their parents don't approve of a love match, they should be extremely cautious and observant. As you said, the relationship with those who truly love you is the most solid foundation."
Gu Sang raised an eyebrow, looking at Miss Zhang with newfound respect.
It seemed that yesterday's tumble into the cesspit had truly knocked some sense into her lovesick brain.
How could a pampered young lady from a wealthy family possibly endure such a difficult life? Did she really think that marrying a poor man would only mean a simple lifestyle?
She was gravely mistaken!
Someone who once splurged millions on a handbag could never imagine what it's like to not even afford a meal. The simplicity she envisioned was nowhere to be found in the lives of the truly impoverished.
Gu Sang nodded in agreement, "Very well. I'll help you share this story while keeping your identity anonymous. With your example as a reference, hopefully, fewer women will fall victim to blind love in the future."
Miss Zhang looked at her expectantly and gratefully said, "Thank you."
After ending the connection with Miss Zhang, Gu Sang was in high spirits.
Having personally pulled someone back from the brink of love-induced folly gave her a great sense of accomplishment.
After organizing the general plot in her mind, Gu Sang retrieved her computer from her room and began a livestream.
The most discussed topic among the common people lately was the Divine Lady's livestreams. Upon hearing that another stream had begun, people rushed to secure their spots.
"Hurry! The Divine Lady's livestream has started!"
Tea houses and restaurants emptied in an instant as people scrambled to watch the broadcast.
Gu Sang began, "Dear citizens, today I have a true story submitted by a sister who wishes to share her experience with all the women in the world, hoping that others can learn from it."
"But before we begin, please watch this video clip, or try to guess what kind of story I'm about to tell."
With that said, Gu Sang played a compilation video from the internet, featuring clips of Wang Baochuan and Chen Shimei's love story, among other romantic tales, for the ancient audience to watch.
"How touching! A young lady from a prestigious family is willing to eat wild vegetables for eighteen years for the sake of love. If it were me, I definitely couldn't do it."
"That's why you'll never be an empress. If you're not willing to go through hardships with a man, why should you expect him to marry you after he becomes successful?"
"My goodness, we're talking about eighteen years here, not eighteen days or eighteen months! I can't even imagine how those eighteen years passed. Is this young lady from the minister's family stupid? How could she willingly endure such hardship?"
"You don't understand. This is what love is all about!"
Hearing the discussions among the audience, Gu Sang felt somewhat relieved. Thankfully, not all women were blinded by love.
There were still many clear-headed young ladies.
They immediately spotted the problems in these stories!
"Recently, a young lady from an official's family, after watching my livestream..."
Gu Sang referred to Miss Zhang as "a young lady from an official's family," ensuring that apart from the person herself and her parents, no one else would know who Gu Sang was talking about.
This greatly protected Miss Zhang's privacy.
Gu Sang didn't omit any details about Miss Zhang and Scholar Li's brief two-day encounter, relaying everything to the audience.
She had initially thought their love might last ten days, but never expected that on the second day, Miss Zhang would see through the facade and choose to return home.
Miss Zhang and Mother Zhang stood among the crowd watching the livestream. Since Gu Sang began recounting this story, the surrounding murmurs and snickers hadn't ceased.
"Haha, are all these noble ladies really so foolish? To actually believe the lies of men - well, that gives me confidence. With my looks, surely I could seduce a noblewoman or two."
"Tsk, with your appearance? No chance. The noble ladies may not be the sharpest, but they're not blind. They're after scholars, not some burly brute like you. No woman would fancy that."
"This is what happens when young ladies never experience the hardships of life. Their heads are full of nothing but romance and love. The Divine Lady is right to make these sheltered misses get a taste of a commoner's life. Then they'll understand how tough it is to be poor."
"They've just been unlucky in love, that's all. There are still plenty of good men in the world..."
