After witnessing the severance letters between the second and third branches of the Qin family, the clan elder and the village chief felt a mix of emotions.

It must be said that Old Man Qin was wise and rational; having finally raised a promising grandson, he naturally couldn’t let others hinder his future.

However, if it were up to them, they would never be able to write such severance letters.

Sometimes, when one grandson in the family succeeds, there’s a tendency to want to help others as well.

But as long as the second and third branches of the Qin family do not act out of line, the existence of the severance letters isn’t a big deal.

Sigh… what they felt most deeply was that they still couldn’t believe that the Qin family had produced a general, a general greater than the county magistrate.

However, this was a good thing for Baili Village.

This is why the village chief was so happy about the appearance of a scholar and a successful candidate; it meant that the village had a powerful figure to rely on, and other villages wouldn’t dare bully them anymore.

But a scholar and a successful candidate couldn’t compare to a general—the scholar and successful candidate were just starting points for becoming officials, while the general was already an official, and a more senior one than the county magistrate.

The Qin family had no clan and no family tree, so writing the severance letters did not require the opening of a clan temple or a change of household registration; it was simply a matter of writing the letters and that was that.

However, due to Qin Fang’s situation, Grandpa Qin decided that the Qin family would start a family tree from his generation.

Grandpa Qin carefully put away the two severance letters and said, “Thank you, big brother and village chief; please keep the severance letters confidential.”

He didn’t want this matter to affect the second and third branches of the Qin family since they had done nothing wrong.

The clan elder and village chief, of course, were not fools, and they both agreed.

The clan elder said, “Little brother, now that A Fang has become successful and is a great general, we can’t let this matter rest; we need to hold a celebratory banquet.”

Although the Qin family members were not of the same clan, they had banded together because some people from the village had fled here and were afraid of external forces; they formed a Qin family group, which could be considered a clan. However, A Fang’s success was good news for them, and from now on, the Qin family would be the most prominent clan in Baili Village.

Grandpa Qin said, “Yes, we need to celebrate; we should indeed hold a banquet. Please inform everyone that we will have a banquet three days from now. Also, we need to buy ten acres of good land, so I hope the village chief can help us keep an eye out for anyone selling high-quality land.”

Just as the village chief was about to speak, Second Uncle Qin interrupted, “Father, I don’t want ten acres of good land; I want five acres of good land and exchange the rest for medium-quality land, okay?” It would be wasteful to have all top-quality land; some medium-quality crops could also yield good results.

Grandpa Qin thought for a moment, “That’s fine; ten acres of good land costs one hundred taels of silver. If you only want five acres, then the remaining fifty taels can be exchanged for medium and low-quality land. You can make that decision, as long as the total amount is one hundred taels.”

Second Uncle Qin was pleased to hear this: “Great!”

News of Qin Fang becoming a great general spread quickly through the village; in less than half a day, everyone in Baili Village knew about it.

The Qin family already had good relationships, and with this news, even more people came to congratulate them.

Yunxiang County

After finishing breakfast, Yang Haiyan said to Granny Lian, “It’s been a month and a half, and Aunt Fan still hasn’t returned. There hasn’t been any news, which makes me a bit uneasy.”

Granny Lian replied, “Who says otherwise? Sister Fan said she would be back within a month at most. With June approaching, could something have happened?”

Usually, Granny Lian and Aunt Fan got along quite well, so she was also worried about Aunt Fan being away for so long.

Yang Haiyan sighed, “Let’s wait a few more days. If she doesn’t return by then, we’ll send someone to check on her. How long does it take to get to Aunt Fan’s hometown from here?”

Granny Lian answered, “It’s not far, just in Lin County. If you leave this morning and take a carriage, you should arrive by evening.”

Yang Haiyan was surprised, “So close?”

Granny Lian said, “Actually, taking a carriage for a whole day isn’t considered close.”

Yang Haiyan thought for a moment and realized it was true; just sitting in the carriage for half a day could make one feel sore and uncomfortable. “By the way, Granny Lian, how’s the shop business going?”

Granny Lian wanted to talk about this too. A few days ago, she had gone shopping with Madame and taken over a shop.

The previous owner wanted to leave Yunxiang County because the business there was poor, so Madame decided to take over the shop.

However, this shop sold women’s accessories, and there were still many goods in stock.

If the shop was taken over but those items weren’t sold, it would result in a loss.

So, Madame taught the shop owner a method, such as a “buy one get one free” promotion.

Keeping excess stock would only lead to waste, so selling it was naturally better.

Granny Lian said, “Early this morning, the shopkeeper came to say that we can take over the shop tomorrow. Madame, are you really planning to continue selling snacks? Will you sell those French fries you mentioned before?”

Yang Haiyan shook her head and smiled, “No, I just mentioned it casually. I don’t plan on running a snack shop.”

As a fifth-rank noblewoman with a monthly salary of sixty taels of silver, she didn’t really want to open a snack shop.

Granny Lian asked, “Then what kind of business do you plan to run?”

Yang Haiyan replied, “When we passed by the academy, I noticed many small stalls at the entrance. I think selling snacks would be a good business. However, selling food means hiring cooks, which is a hassle.”

The main concern was that if there were any issues with the food, it could cause problems, so she didn’t want to get into food sales.

“Madame…” Just as Yang Haiyan was lost in thought, Aunt Yu’s voice called from outside, “Madame, Uncle Hong is here. Some villagers from nearby want to see you.”

Yang Haiyan was taken aback, “Villagers?”

Aunt Yu replied, “They’re from the nearby Miaopu Village. The military camp’s grain was previously purchased from Miaopu Village.”

Understanding their likely purpose, Yang Haiyan said, “Please invite them in.”

She then stood up and said, “Granny Lian, let’s go take a look.”

Granny Lian remarked, “Yes, Madame. They must have come about the grain. It’s already June, and the crops planted earlier this year must have yielded a good harvest.”

Yang Haiyan nodded.

The military camp had not yet found an accountant, so the camp’s funds were still in her hands.

She ordered the camp’s grain, vegetables, and meat each month, which kept her quite busy due to the large quantities required for the thousand soldiers in the camp.

Thankfully, it was only a few days each month; she had coordinated with the suppliers to ensure fresh vegetables and meat were delivered to the camp daily.

Yang Haiyan thought that the camp would need someone trustworthy to handle the finances.

If Qin Shouye could take over the accounts, it would be beneficial.

She could teach him how to manage the books.

While she wasn’t an expert in accounting, she had created a template to make bookkeeping very straightforward and clear.

When Yang Haiyan and Granny Lian arrived, the maidservant had already brought in tea.

In the hall, the village chief of Miaopu Village was accompanied by two men.

Upon seeing Yang Haiyan, they hurriedly bowed and said, “We greet the General’s wife.”

The village chief of Miaopu had some connections with the Bai County magistrate’s family.

When Yang Haiyan informed the magistrate that she wanted to order grain for the military camp, the magistrate had recommended the village chief, as Miaopu Village was under his jurisdiction, and the village chief’s daughter had married into the Bai family.

Although there was a familial relationship, the grain received from Miaopu Village was indeed of good quality, including grains, vegetables, meat, and eggs.

Since April, Miaopu had been consistently supplying fresh goods to the military camp.

Of course, it wasn’t just Miaopu Village supplying grain; other villages were involved as well, as the harvest from only Miaopu Village couldn’t meet the needs of a thousand soldiers in the camp.

Yang Haiyan said, “Village Chief Miao, please have a seat.”

The villagers from Miaopu Village were mainly surnamed Miao, as it was the dominant surname in the village.

Before coming, the village chief had felt a bit nervous.

Although they had met before when placing grain orders and had sensed that the General’s wife was easy to get along with, he still worried about the potential for misunderstanding.

The Bai magistrate had already made connections for them, and he didn’t want to trouble him again.

Besides, if he kept asking for favors from the Bai family and wore out their welcome, it might affect his daughter’s prospects.

After much thought, the village chief decided to bring his son and nephew to the General’s residence.

The village chief didn’t dare to sit.

He stammered, “General’s wife, I’ve come uninvited today and apologize for the disturbance.”

Yang Haiyan smiled, “No worries. Did you come for something specific?”

Seeing her friendly tone, the village chief felt more relaxed.

He replied, “This summer harvest is about to begin, and I wanted to ask if you still want to order the grain from us this year?”

Yang Haiyan asked, “If you’re asking, do you have a lot of grain from the summer harvest this year?”

The village chief replied, “Not as much as in previous years. The grains we planted have been going unsold, so each year we plant less and less. I was thinking that if you do want to place an order, our summer harvest may not be enough to supply the camp for long.”

Yang Haiyan responded, “Thank you for the reminder, Village Chief Miao. If your crop yield is decreasing each year, what happens to the additional land?”

Upon hearing this, the village chief sighed, “Some families leave their land fallow, while others continue to plant. Since grain prices are low, families with more land need to hire help, which isn’t cost-effective. However, many common folks don’t have a lot of land. Even for those with little land, the harvests we do have can still yield surplus. I know the military camp has its own farmland, and in the autumn, the harvest from that land should be abundant, but I’m unsure who our surplus will sell to.”

Yang Haiyan said, “Don’t you usually plant sweet potatoes and dry them for storage?”