"Lin Ke's" mother had indeed held prostitute status.
"Lin Ke" had indeed been raised by a prostitute.
But was that wrong?
How much bitterness and heartache had a prostitute endured to painstakingly raise a child? Others could hardly put themselves in her shoes.
And though "Lin Ke" had not understood much, Lin Ke understood very well.
Everyone knew the love an ordinary mother felt for her child.
Moreover, while raising "Lin Ke," that mother had suffered every kind of humiliation, cold stare, and harsh reproach.
Yet for "Lin Ke's" physical growth, for his understanding of the world, she had borne it all.
At least in Lin Ke's eyes, that mother had been remarkable.
Abandoned by her family as an infant because she was a girl, she had eventually been taken in by a brothel and entered into prostitute status. But that, too, had been a choice forced upon her.
That mother had never once done anything improper, nor had she sold her body. She had been a chaste courtesan.
Minister Lin had left his seed within her, and she had borne his child. Had it not been for the young Lin Ke, she probably would not have died of sorrow in the Lin Residence.
At this thought, Lin Ke could not help shaking his head. With regret, resentment, and helplessness in his voice, he sighed aloud:
"From childhood, I was devoted to learning. My household was harsh, and I had no means to obtain books to read. I often borrowed them from families with collections, copied them out by hand, and counted the days until their return."
"In the bitter cold, the inkstone froze solid, and my fingers could neither bend nor straighten, yet I did not slacken. Once my copying was done, I ran to return the books, daring