The way we were

Few years ago I heard it’s popular in China that women would repair their hymans to pass as virgins. Apparently Chinese isn’t the only one who’s doing it. But I’ve never seen/heard a Chinaman would openly humiliate/kill his wife if she wasn’t a virgin or rich (like the Indians).
A woman lives as a man, hmmmmm .. I know many Chinese women rose to prominent (mostly were after the death of their husbands), became the patriarch.  It’s amused me to think, on one hand we all know women have lesser social status than their counter part, like parents would always treasure the sons over daughters.  But in reality, people (women) do what they have to.
I would think one has to earn her fair share of respect before being taken seriously.  I do know that in the past, many Chinese women were being addressed as Xiansheng 先生, which also means teacher or Mister.  Nainai was being addressed as Qian xiansheng, Mr. Qian.  Nainai did command a great deal of respect .. .. I often wondered if it had anything to do with her being the top courtesan.  In the old Shanghai, the top flat sing-song girls were called xiansheng.