Near Ink, Black; Can Lotuses Grow!

Xie Yuan led the group back to the second courtyard.

Zhang Yuzhi returned to the western wing of the second courtyard.

Though she was staying here as a guest, she strictly observed propriety. She had never crossed the line, nor had she ever stepped into a place where men rested. An unmarried man and woman could not share a room; she rigorously upheld the rites of Great Qi.

In Great Qi, the lives of unmarried young ladies from prominent families were far from the simple routine people imagined—dressing up, playing chess, tasting tea, the four arts, poetry, and song.

They had to learn the ways of managing a household. Not only did they need to master how to direct servants, they also had to learn investments and purchasing, as well as how to oversee shops and estates scattered across the land by their Lineage.

All this was preparation for the day they would take control of their Lineage's great power.

What was especially worth mentioning was that the personal maids of these noble young ladies were also carefully selected and trained. Every one of them was skilled in calculation and social dealings, indispensable right-hand aides to their mistresses.

Only ordinary families had the saying, "Better marry a servant girl from a great household than a daughter from a petty family." The maids of great families often surpassed girls from small households in knowledge, connections, and ability.

Of course, this was an age of cultivation. If women of the Nine Great Surnames possessed cultivation aptitude, their clans would nurture them.

In Great Qi, the cultivation paths of children from great families generally branched in two directions.

The first was to cultivate through study, enter an Academy or step into court, and govern the realm through letters.

The second was to train