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In ancient times on the mainland, Confucianism was dominant, and the norms of etiquette and religion were strict, especially in terms of ethics and morality, and marriage between close relatives was not accepted and was generally condemned by society.
However, in the Qing Dynasty, there was such a couple of "close relatives", the elder brother did not have enough money to marry because of his poor family, and the younger sister was very ugly, no one wanted to marry her, and under the arrangement of fate, the two became husband and wife by mistake.
And the villagers are also talking about this family behind their backs, but who would have thought that the two were very affectionate after marriage, and gave birth to eight children successively, one of which became a famous Qing Dynasty minister.
Adopt an orphan of an ugly girl
This important minister of the Qing Dynasty is none other than Li Hongzhang, who later became a household name, and all this story has to start with his grandfather Li Dianhua.
Li Dianhua was born and raised in Anhui, and his family conditions were also very poor at that time, but as a scholar, Li Dianhua studied hard all his life to gain fame, but all of them ended in failure. In the end, he could only rely on a few acres of land to sustain the family.
He was helpless but didn't dare to give up, so he could only hope for his sons, hoping that they would win the championship in one fell swoop, but it was a pity that his sons had mediocre qualifications and had not been able to make a difference.
Li Dianhua had four sons under his knees, and Li Wen arranged for the fourth, although he showed extraordinary intelligence from an early age, but unfortunately, he was frail and sickly from an early age, and when other children started school at the age of four, he did not begin to receive education until he was eight years old.
So much so that when his peers began to take the imperial examination, he was still studying the "Four Books", Li Dianhua was also embarrassed about this, but he never gave up the education of his son, he firmly believed that as long as he read, he would definitely have a way out in the future.
Once Li Dianhua went into the mountains to collect medicine, ready to sell some silver to supplement the family, but on the way home, he suddenly heard the cry of a child.
He followed the sound and found an abandoned little girl in the grass, her face was covered with traces of measles, obviously she had smallpox, Li Dianhua reached out and found that the little girl was having a high fever.
A feeling of pity welled up in his heart and he decided to take the poor little girl home, and the Li family also took great care of the little girl, they changed her into clean clothes and provided her with plenty of food to settle down at home.
Under the careful care of the Li family, the little girl's health gradually improved, but there were pockmarks on her face that could not be eliminated, which made her appearance even more ugly and she was often ridiculed.
But this did not affect Li Dianhua and his wife's love for her, they did not prejudice against her because of the change in appearance, but cherished her more.
Li Dianhua and his wife regarded the little girl as their own, and finally decided to adopt her as their goddaughter. The little girl was deeply touched by this kindness, and she vowed to repay the Li family's kindness with her own efforts.
Li is also a hard-working and capable person, as soon as he is in good health, he will follow Mr. Li to do some chores and help the Li family take care of family affairs.
But under the constraints of that social concept at that time, Li's position was very embarrassing, because she was ugly, so no one wanted to marry her, and the people in the village laughed at her for not only being ugly, but also having surprisingly big feet.
Therefore, despite his efforts, Mr. Li failed to find a suitable husband for the Li family, and the Li family could only stay in the Li family all the time.
Repeatedly defeated in the examination for fame
Li Wenan has been diligent and studious since he was a child, and he is also quite famous in the local area, so he has always cherished the dream of participating in the imperial examination and changing his fate, but he is over 30 years old and has not been able to get his wish.
Li Wenan's father couldn't help but feel sad when he saw his son frustrated again and again, and he once persuaded Li Wenan not to take the exam again, to do business or learn some other crafts.
But Li Wenan didn't listen at all, and in the end, not only did he not pass the exam, but he got older and older.
Even the family's financial situation has become more strained, and Li Wenan has to sell his land in order to make ends meet, but even then he still can't make ends meet, and often has to borrow money from relatives and friends to make ends meet.
In addition to financial difficulties, Li Wen'an is also quite unhappy in marriage, perhaps Li Wen'an is too addicted to books, coupled with poor family conditions, so there are not many people in the village who are optimistic about him, and no matchmaker is willing to introduce him to a partner.
You must know that Li Wenan was in his thirties at that time, and in that era when the society was extremely feudal, it was a shame for a man to be in his thirties and not get married.
Therefore, Li Wenan's parents were heartbroken for their son's lifelong event, and went around looking for a suitable marriage partner for their son, but due to Li Wenan's financial resources and career, they have not been able to do so.
After that, Li Wen'an's life situation seemed to be getting more and more difficult, and his health began to have problems, just when he was about to lose hope, Li took the initiative to propose the idea of marriage to Li Wen'an, and said that he was willing to spend the rest of his life with Li Wen'an.
The love of childhood sweethearts
Li and Li Wenan grew up together since childhood, and she already had a good impression of this diligent and studious "brother", and when she saw Li Wenan studying hard day and night, Li was even more distressed.
So when Li Wenan stayed up late every night to study, Li would be by his side, prepare food for him, add clothes for him, and do her best to create a comfortable learning environment for Li Wenan.
Li Wenan takes great care of this righteous sister who grew up together, whenever the Li family is bullied, Li Wenan always does not hesitate to stand up for her, even if he is ridiculed, he doesn't care.
Later, Li Wen'an's father was bedridden due to illness, and the Li family took on the heavy responsibility of taking care of Old Man Li, guarding his bedside day and night.
Li Wen'an saw all this in his eyes, and admired Li's virtuous and virtuous virtues more and more, and the two guarded the old man Li's hospital bedside, occasionally looking at each other, although they did not speak, they could communicate each other's thoughts through their eyes.
As time passed, Li Wenan gradually realized that he had a special affection for this mediocre-looking, but kind-hearted "sister", although the two had each other in their hearts, they had always maintained the title of brother and sister, and no one dared to take a step beyond Lei Chi.
Until one night, Li finally mustered up the courage to confess his heart to Li Wen'an.
She said to Li Wenan sincerely: "Brother, I know that I come from a humble background and my appearance is not outstanding, but I really love you and am willing to be your wife for life and share weal and woe with you." ”
After Li Wenan heard this, he was both surprised and delighted, he never thought that this usually shy and introverted "sister" would take the initiative to express his heart to himself, at this moment he realized that Li was the real lover in his life.
Li Wen'an's father also noticed the subtle changes between the two, so he asked Li Wenan privately: "What do you think of the Li family?" ”
The father laughed when he heard this, and then said to his son gently: "You also know that the Li family is not your biological sister, if you really love each other, then your marriage can be considered." ”
When Li Wenan heard this, he immediately blossomed with joy and excitedly went to tell Li the good news.
Lee's excitement and gratitude were both thrilled and grateful when she heard the news, knowing that it was a rare blessing to be able to marry someone she loved so much.
After that, the two of them held a wedding, which should have been a happy thing, but their marriage was not understood in the eyes of outsiders, and they were ridiculed by a lot of cynicism, saying that they were a poor and ugly one, and they were simply a "perfect match".
But Li Wenan and his wife don't care about these gossips, the two have grown up together since childhood, and they are already familiar with each other's personalities and character, and they will not affect their feelings for each other because of the words of the outside world.
After getting married, Li relied on her hard-working hands to keep the family in order, taking care of the elderly at home, washing and cooking at the same time, whether it was carrying water or going to the fields, she was not a problem, such a life was undoubtedly very tiring, but she never complained.
It is precisely this tenacity and optimism of the Li family that can allow Li Wenan to have sufficient experience to regain fame and pursue his ideals.
In the end, Li Wenan did not live up to his wife's expectations, and finally passed the Jinshi examination at the age of thirty-seven.
Although the official position is not high, it is undoubtedly a rare honor for a person from a peasant family.
Li Wen'an's success also brought great changes to his family, and the two also gave birth to eight children one after another.
Even though the conditions at home have been greatly improved, Li still did not give up the habit of frugality, but took this virtue as a family motto, teaching his children to be diligent and thrifty, and know how to be grateful.
Her children are also very competitive, not only successful in school, but also good in character, the life of the family is getting better and better, and even the people who used to have opinions about them are a little jealous.
Li Hongzhang, a household name
Academically, Li Wenhua is also teaching his children hand in hand, and the children have become more and more diligent under the influence of their father's example, Li Wenan and Li have a total of eight children, the most outstanding of which is the second-ranked Li Tongzhang.
Li Tongzhang has shown extraordinary intelligence since childhood, diligent and studious, at the age of six he entered a local school to study, under the careful cultivation of Li Wen'an, Li Tongzhang's academic performance is by leaps and bounds, and soon became famous in the local area.
Li Wenan also gradually realized that his son was talented, and he could no longer continue to teach, so in order to further stimulate Li Tongzhang's potential, he sent him to Xu Ziling's door.
Under the guidance of Xu Ziling, Li Tongzhang learned a lot of valuable knowledge, and finally continued to be a jinshi, Li Wen'an, who was an official in the court at that time, and then learned that his son had achieved good results again and again, so he had the idea of introducing Li Tongzhang into the court as an official.
He used his connections in the court to bring Li Tongzhang into the capital, found a famous teacher for him, and decided to change the word "Tong" of Li Tongzhang to "Hong", implying that his son has great ambitions.
So Li Tongzhang became Li Hongzhang, that is, we are familiar with an important figure in the late Qing Dynasty, he continued to study hard in the capital, and finally passed the imperial examination, officially entered the imperial court, and began his career.
However, as Li Hongzhang's fame grew, some rumors about his life also spread, saying that Li Hongzhang was born of a marriage between close relatives and was in turmoil in the social atmosphere.
When these rumors reached Li Hongzhang's ears, he didn't agree with them, he knew very well what his parents were, although they were from humble backgrounds, but their character was excellent, so he didn't pay attention to it.
However, the rumors did not calm down because of Li Hongzhang's attitude, but with the improvement of Li Hongzhang's status, people's speculation and discussion about him also increased, and some people even took the opportunity to attack Li Hongzhang and slander him.
Li Hongzhang's mother, Li Shi, was very anxious when she saw this scene, and she was worried that such rumors would cause damage to her son's future and reputation, so she made up her mind to clarify the facts for Li Hongzhang.
After that, the Li family directly turned out his family tree and household registration that he had no blood relationship with Li Wenan, and found the old people who had witnessed his marriage to clarify, which made the rumors slowly disappear.
summary
Traditionally, marriage is often seen as a union of economic and social status, but Li Hongzhang's family story provides a different perspective and a deeper understanding of marriage.
Li Hongzhang's mother was simply judged by her appearance, but she won the respect and honor of the society by virtue of her own morality, and became a respected lady, and her children also have their own deeds, which is not only the embodiment of their personal talents, but also the result of family education philosophy and support.
Resources:
CNKI: "Building a Room for the Door to Grow - A Major Turning Point in Li Hongzhang's Life and Destiny"