Free Trusted by Jacquelyn Frank

all manner of things, almost as if the king were testing her for flaws in her knowledge. But she found herself being stubborn on that point. She would not let him prove her to be stupid in any topic.
    “So you would have females go to school as well as the males?” he asked her. “Who would then keep houses and keep men comfortable?” he asked her. But she knew he was just arguing the other side to get a rise out of her. He had already said he believed women should be as educated as the men.
    “Servants would, just as they do now. And they would go as children, before they have such responsibilities. They would learn as I have learned. With tutors for the wealthy and in public schools for the rest.”
    “And who will pay for these public schools?”
    “You will.”
    “Will I? How will I do that?”
    “Just as you do everything else. Through taxes. You can implement a specific school tax. In the end it will make the people better as a whole, so you should hear very little in complaint. The young farmers’ boys might have opportunity to better themselves as learned men. Or as farmers like their fathers only better able to keep figures and therefore able to create better trade for themselves. For merchants the same applies. The more learned their children, the better the merchants they can become.”
    “But what has this to do with daughters? They will not be farmers or merchants or learned men.”
    “Not--!” She scoffed. “Show me a farmer’s wife who is not a farmer! Farmer’s wives are in the field as often as their husbands are! And what if a woman is widowed? Then what is to become of her? She must know how to read and do figures if she is to support herself and her children.”
    “Some would say she needs a new husband.”
    “Let the woman have time to grieve in her own comfort,” Sarea said. “She shouldn’t be forced to marry again just because she can’t feed her children. And if you educate them they are less in need of charity. It serves all involved to see our women book smart.”
    “I would agree with you,” he said. “But there are many set in their ways. I could create these schools, but it may be none would allow their children to attend.”
    “But some will. And then the next yana some more will. And when this one sees how that one’s learned daughter is helping them make better merchants of them, then they will want to send their daughters as well. It will take time, yes, but eventually all will fall into line. Or, if not all…many,” she said, cutting off his argument that they would never be able to convince all.
    “And who will teach these schools? The learned men?”
    “And eventually the learned women. It would be the perfect occupation for those who come from a house with many sisters or those women who are not inclined to marry.”
    “All women are inclined to marry.”
    “Not all,” she said stubbornly. “They may be forced to it, but they are not necessarily inclined toward it. This will give them an option of supporting themselves without a husband. Or perhaps it would be the perfect occupation for a widowed woman.”
    “You have put much thought into this,” he said, clearly impressed.
    “I am a woman. I look out for my own.”
    “I see this. Would that I were one of the ones you looked out for. I would be very blessed.”
    She didn’t know how to respond to that, so she fell silent. They rode in companionable silence the rest of the way to the castle. When they arrived it was nearly midday’s meal time and, sure enough, her three best friends were there waiting for her. They were all agog at the thought of having been invited to the castle for midday’s meal with the king.
    “What has happened?” Isobol asked her directly.
    Sarea flushed. “It would appear I have garnered the dubious attentions of our king.” She told her of all that had happened, including what had transpired in her bedroom the night before.
    “Oh dear. That is a trouble,” Isobol