They've all separated, so what does it matter to me if they get poorer and poorer?

Chapter 124 The Storm Ends

Master Qin almost doubted that he had misheard, and looked at Qin Xiuhe in disbelief.

Madam Qin astutely retorted, "What are you saying, sister? Your family has prepared a dowry of 100,000 taels of silver for your marriage. Even in the provincial capital, few families can match that. Are you trying to scheme against the Qin family's assets? These all belong to Ning'an. What do they have to do with Tianyao and Tianrui? Does the Mo family not have the means to raise a son? If they truly cannot, we would not mind providing some assistance. But when did the Qin family's assets become your son's property?"

Master Qin's gaze also turned cold. He was not a fool. Some things were fine when not investigated, but once investigated, they became as clear as a beach after the tide had gone out.

No wonder this younger sister comes back every few days; no wonder she introduces people to him every now and then, trying to interfere in the Qin family's business; no wonder her two sons are finding ways to bully and suppress Ning An. He used to think it was just children playing around, but now it seems that might not be the case.

Even if his guesses aren't entirely correct, they won't be too far off.

His younger sister believed that Ning An would amount to nothing in the future, and that the Mo family wanted to seize the Qin family's assets.

Master Qin's heart turned cold; this was his own sister.
Qin Xiuhe realized she had misspoke; these were words she shouldn't have said at this moment. She hurriedly said, "Brother, I didn't mean anything by it! I didn't say the Qin family's business belonged to my son. I... I just thought, since you and sister-in-law have treated me so well, we're family, we shouldn't be so different. So why can't you help me get Tianyao into the county school? If Tianyao goes to the county school, he can keep Ning'an company, and after he finishes his studies, he can help you and Ning'an too. We're family, right?"

Master Qin's expression gradually softened, but he was no fool.

Qin Xiuhe's excuse was nothing more than a fig leaf. After all, she was his younger sister, and he wouldn't break ties with her because of this. He had to save her some face, but he wouldn't treat her the way he used to.

He will be wary of her.

Qin Xiuhe saw that her elder brother's expression gradually softened, as if he had listened to her explanation. She secretly breathed a sigh of relief and felt a little smug: they were blood relatives, and blood was thicker than water. She knew it; her elder brother had always cared for her, so how could he not believe her?

However, the matter of Tianyao going to the county school could no longer be mentioned.

Qin Xiuhe said softly, "Since you're in a difficult position, I can't bear to put you in a difficult position either. Let's just forget about Tianyao going to the county school. But because the county school exists, all the academies and schools in Qingshan County have also benefited. I'd like to find a good academy or school for Tianyao and Tianrui to study here. What do you think, brother?"

Madam Qin glared.

It's like a persistent ghost!
Even now, they still won't give up.

Very well, she'd like to see just how far she can go.

Master Qin nodded: "That's easy. You can inquire about them first, and if you find one you like, go there. There are only about three schools in the county town."

"Alright, I'll ask around first, and if I can't make up my mind, I'll ask my elder brother for advice."

"it is good."

"By the way, brother, the ice jelly at your Lotus Restaurant—"

"Manager Tang said that the seller is unwilling to sell the house, and we can't force them. Let's just let it go."

Qin Xiuhe was somewhat disappointed and displeased. It was just a prescription; surely her elder brother could get it for a few hundred or a thousand taels of silver? In fact, with the Qin family's capabilities, a little coercion would get them two or three hundred taels at most. Who would dare to go against the Qin family then?
For an ordinary family, earning two or three hundred taels of silver is hardly enough.
She really loved the ice jelly, and her two children loved it too. She wanted to get the recipe to take back to her husband's family home so they could sell it at their restaurant. Especially now that it's summer, they could easily sell hundreds or even thousands of bowls a day.

Although ice jelly doesn't earn much, it can attract customers.

Qin Xiuhe was still not quite giving up. That Manager Tang was despicable; he refused to tell her who the owner of the ice jelly recipe was. But it didn't matter; she would find out eventually.

Master Qin summoned his trusted aide and instructed, "That Zhang Cong that the aunt introduced a while ago, is he a third-class manager at the dock? Starting tomorrow, promote him to second-class manager and put him in charge of the timber import and export and warehouse operations at the dock."

“Master, this—” “Do as I say. Then, keep a close eye on him.”

"Yes"

He couldn't refuse out of consideration for others, so he kept this person with him.

He had originally intended to just let it go, but since his younger sister was so persistent, he decided to oblige and see what Zhang Cong would do.

Qin Xiuhe quickly chose a school for her two sons, Qingfeng School, where she heard that two of them had passed the preliminary examinations and become students, which was quite good.

Master Qin naturally had no objections.

The county school was located on Luming Mountain, eight miles east of the county seat. Although students were required to live in the school to concentrate on their studies, it was not completely isolated.

Students aged 15 and above are allowed to go out for a walk during the day if they have no classes, as long as they return to school before sunset.

Those under the age of fifteen are not allowed to go out. However, they may go out if a family member comes to accompany them when they are not studying. Family members may come to visit and bring things on the 1st and 5th of each month. If there is something important, they may come to visit on other days, but it is best not to come if there is nothing important, so as not to disturb the students.

Xu Zhichun had been silently counting down the days, because she had already made an agreement with Liang Mingxuan that she would visit him on the 5th and 15th of each month, and pick him up on the 29th of each month.

This was the first fifteenth of the lunar month, and also Xu Zhichun's first visit to Liang Mingxuan. She had planned and prepared for it a few days in advance.

Not knowing what the food was like at the county school, Xu Zhichun specially bought two three-tiered food boxes with handles so that Liang Mingxuan could have extra meals and use them interchangeably.

On the day of the visit, I planned to bring Liang Mingxuan chopped braised pork, fried small crispy fish and shrimp cakes, and a roast chicken that I had bought, all packed in a three-tiered food box.

In addition, the small cloth bag contained fifteen braised tea eggs and two packets of pastries and candied fruits.

Loquats and plums are fresh right now, so I bought a few pounds to pack.

I also put some of my homemade chicken and chili sauce in a small earthenware jar—it's especially good with rice!
After closing up shop at noon, they went out of town to the county school, which was just in time. The morning classes had just ended and they were about to have lunch, so Xu Zhichun brought some snacks for them.

Xu Zhichun had expected a long line of parents to visit their children's schoolmates, which might even cause traffic jams. However, seeing the deserted streets, she almost doubted that she had remembered the date wrong. She couldn't help but ask Zeng Xiaoyan and the others to confirm that she hadn't made a mistake.

Later, I realized I was overthinking it.

The main problem is preconceived notions, which lead to the confusion between ancient and modern times.

Most of the students in the county school are over seventeen or eighteen years old, and some of them are the breadwinners of their families. So how can they have so many parents coming to visit?

Unlike in modern times, which parent doesn't care about their child?
County schools are considered sacred places by ordinary people, and few dare to come unless there's something urgent to do. Transportation is inconvenient, and people might not have time at home.

Moreover, more than half of the students are from the other two counties, so it's even less likely that their families will come to visit.

In contrast, Xu Zhichun's large and small bags stood out quite a bit.

(End of this chapter)