Chapter 160: Academy 2/2

Li Damao and Li Ermao also expressed that they missed their dad very much.

Li Ermao kissed Li Qingzhi and said, “Dad, can you sleep with us tonight?”

They missed their dad! Let their dad sleep with them!

Li Qingzhi didn’t even think about it and refused, “No need, Dad will sleep with your mom.”

Li Ermao felt extremely disappointed, “Dad, don’t you miss us a lot?”

Li Qingzhi coldly replied, “I miss your mom more.”

Li Ermao: “!!!” Wasn’t their dad supposed to like them the most?

Li Damao said, “Dad, we miss mom too. Can we sleep with mom?”

“No, your mom belongs to me.”

Li Damao: “!!!” Mom clearly belongs to them!

After teasing the children, Li Qingzhi took them to their room and told them stories.

After coaxing the two children to sleep, Li Qingzhi went to find Jin Xiaoye to ask her to help him fall asleep.

Once Li Qingzhi fell asleep, although it was late, many families in Miaoqian Village were still awake.

The Jin family was timid, and the persimmon tree hadn’t been dug up yet… Jin Xiaoye kept pestering Jin Grandma to go to Jin’s house, “Mom, look, Yao’s family compensated us with two taels of silver, so my brother’s family made a profit. Can we sleep at my brother’s house for one night?”

Jin Aunt couldn’t help but say, “Who wants to profit from such silver!” Today’s events are so unlucky!

However, Jin Grandma’s thoughts were different from Jin Aunt’s. She glared at Jin Aunt, “If you find it unlucky, then give me the silver!”

Just because a dead person blocked the door? Jin Grandma wasn’t afraid of that!

Seeing that two taels of silver, she decided to let Jin Xiaoye’s family stay, and said to Jin Xiaoye, “The fortune teller said I have a tough fate, even ghosts would be troubled by me. How about I come to your house tomorrow? To help you suppress them?”

Jin Xiaoye hugged Jin Grandma moved, “Mom, you’re the best.”

Jin Grandma said, “I can’t come for nothing, you have to cook meat for me, understand?”

Jin Xiaoye said, “Mom, don’t worry, as long as you come to my house, I’ll make sure to cook meat for you every day!”

Jin Xiaoye had already prepared to spend money to ward off bad luck, but not only did she not have to spend money, she even got back the money she had given out before!

Just stewing some meat for her mom? No problem!

Although her mother-in-law was stingy, her household was now run by her!

Actually, Jin Xiaoye’s mother-in-law had no objection to stewing meat at all.

After dealing with the matters at Jin Xiaoye’s house, the Jin family mentioned Li Qingzhi, “It’s fortunate that Li Qingzhi is back!” “Li Qingzhi is really amazing, he even managed to bring the county magistrate back!”

“He even passed the scholar exam. It’s really different now. Today, Magistrate Wang was so polite to him…” Jin Xiaoye’s mother-in-law said.

Jin Xiaoye’s mother-in-law listened attentively, while Jin Xiaoye’s husband, Yao Zhenfu, looked resentful.

As for Jin Xiaoye, she felt even more uncomfortable.

Jin Xiaoye not only opened a preserved meat shop in the provincial capital now, but also had a scholar husband!

In her past life, Jin Xiaoye didn’t have it so good. At that time, her relationship with Yao Zhenfu was very bad, and she didn’t even bring Yao Zhenfu back to her parents’ house.

But today? She saw Li Qingzhi whispering to Jin Xiaoye all the time, and their relationship looked so good.

It was supposed to be her who got a second chance at life, why was Jin Xiaoye living better than in her past life?

This life, many things have really changed.

Not to mention anything else, just Yao Zuming’s father… in the past life, he didn’t fall to his death, but probably died of illness a few years later.

And the Jin family had always been bullied – Jin Xiaoye’s son married a wife who was also weak.

At the village chief’s house.

A lot happened today, but the village chief was very excited and couldn’t sleep all night.

“Old man, what are you doing?” The village chief’s wife couldn’t help but ask.

The village chief said, “I’m happy! Our village will be different from now on!”

“What’s going to be different?”

“In the future, our village might produce an official.” The village chief said.

Li Qingzhi had only been back for a year, but he had already passed the scholar exam. Who knows, maybe he will pass the metropolitan examination and become a Jinshi in the future.

If their village produced an official, that would be remarkable!

After some thought, the village chief said, “Tomorrow, I’ll catch a chicken and go to the city to see Li Laogen.”

The village chief’s wife said, “There are no chickens at home, why don’t you buy some meat or snacks from the town?”

“How could there be no chickens? Didn’t we raise seven?” The village chief was puzzled.

His wife explained, “The people from Juewei Restaurant came to buy chickens today, and we sold them all.”

They had quite a few chickens, and in the past, they would definitely have slaughtered one for the Mid-Autumn Festival.

But this year, Juewei Restaurant was buying chickens everywhere… so they had fish for Mid-Autumn Festival.

“Then I’ll go buy some snacks,” the village chief could only say.

The next day…

Li Laogen went to the teahouse early in the morning.

He had stopped boasting about eating with County Magistrate Guo and Governor Zhang for a while now. Recently, he had been boasting about Juewei Restaurant opening in the provincial capital.

But now…

“Our county has a new magistrate surnamed Wang, did you know?” he began.

“County Magistrate Wang just arrived in Chongcheng County yesterday. Upon learning that my son passed the scholar exam, he followed my son back to our village!”

“Yes, my son passed the scholar exam and is also the head of a case!”

“Yesterday, someone in our village cheated money and was punished by County Magistrate Wang!”

…

As Li Laogen spoke, his saliva flew everywhere, even dropping into the snacks in front of him.

These snacks were bought by several old men to treat Li Laogen, but now they had lost their appetite.

Although they weren’t particularly clean, they didn’t want to eat someone else’s saliva.

Speaking of which… Li Laogen was really lucky to have such a promising son!

At first, the people in the county thought Li Qingzhi was Li Laogen’s biological son, but after some time, they all knew that this son was adopted.

They also wanted such a son, but unfortunately, no one came to claim them.

Li Qingzhi didn’t get up as early as Li Laogen did. After breakfast, he went to the kitchen to help prepare breakfast.

After eating and drinking his fill, he went to the study and began writing.

As for what he was writing… it was certainly a rhymed praise for County Magistrate Wang!

Li Qingzhi planned to visit County Magistrate Wang later.

Although he had some money now, it wasn’t much. After Jin Xiaoye bought the shop in the provincial capital, they had even less money at home.

So he gave gifts as a token of goodwill.

For example, articles he wrote himself, and also… the preserved meat from Juewei Restaurant.

Li Qingzhi carried a basket of Juewei Restaurant’s preserved meat and the article he had just written to visit County Magistrate Wang.

On the way, he saw Du Yongning.

Du Yongning was having a meal in a restaurant, and the table was filled with Juewei Restaurant’s preserved meat.

It seemed that Du Yongning supported his business quite a bit.

Du Yongning had a dream last night. He dreamed that he married a wife who liked to beat people, and then he was beaten and ran away in embarrassment.

He woke up in the middle of the night, and it took him a long time to fall asleep again, so he woke up late.

He went to a nearby restaurant for breakfast and found that they had Juewei Restaurant’s preserved meat… he had to order some!

After eating, Du Yongning initially planned to go to Linhu County immediately, but he thought since he had already met Li Qingzhi, whether he felt embarrassed or not… why not stroll around Chongcheng County first? Chongcheng County was quite prosperous, and he heard there was a very lively night market here.

Du Yongning first went to the nearby theater, and then heard that the opera singers were singing stories adapted from Li Qingzhi’s writings.

Li Qingzhi had even written books? After listening to the opera, he wanted to buy and read them.

Li Qingzhi didn’t know what was happening on Du Yongning’s side. He had already arrived at the county yamen.

County Magistrate Wang lived behind the county yamen, where Governor Zhang’s wife hadn’t arrived yet.

Upon seeing Li Qingzhi, County Magistrate Wang greeted him with a smile.

Li Qingzhi didn’t interact with County Magistrate Wang much, but he had already noticed that County Magistrate Wang was very ambitious.

This could be seen from the fact that County Magistrate Wang made decisive decisions and joined hands with Lu Qingxi to achieve success.

Such a person, if he didn’t go astray, could still be a good official. If he did go astray… just like Magistrate Guo who was beheaded by Governor Zhang, he was originally such a person.

Magistrate Guo was a good official at the beginning, but later he couldn’t resist temptation. It just goes to show that things are unpredictable.

County Magistrate Wang hadn’t been in office for long, and there weren’t any problems for the time being. It all depended on his choices in the future.

Li Qingzhi hoped he could be a good official, and he would strive for it.

After exchanging pleasantries with County Magistrate Wang, Li Qingzhi gave him the preserved meat and the article he had brought.

County Magistrate Wang praised Li Qingzhi’s handwriting and article, and then mentioned Prefect Gou.

When County Magistrate Wang was in the capital, he had been trying to please Prefect Gou, and Prefect Gou had told him many things and even told him to go to Li Qingzhi when he encountered something he couldn’t handle.

At this moment, County Magistrate Wang asked Li Qingzhi about some matters in Chongcheng County.

Li Qingzhi said everything he could, and also mentioned his plan to establish a school.

“Establishing a school? That’s great!” County Magistrate Wang was ecstatic.

If this matter was handled well, it would be his political achievement!

He didn’t aim to be promoted several levels like Prefect Gou, but he hoped to be promoted more quickly.

County Magistrate Wang discussed the matter seriously with Li Qingzhi and expressed that he could help with anything he needed. If there were any problems with land or anything else, he could try to find a solution.

County Magistrate Wang was really proactive, which was a good thing. Li Qingzhi shared his plans.

The prices of the land near the new dock had risen a lot, but the prices of the land further from the dock hadn’t risen much.

Li Qingzhi planned to buy a piece of land in the middle between the new dock and the county town, build a school, and also a house for their family to live in.

When they first moved to the county town, Li Qingzhi thought the house behind the shop was already quite big and enough for their family to live in, but now…

There were too many female workers living in the shop, and it wasn’t so convenient for their family to live there anymore.

He had long wanted to build another house to live in, a more spacious one.

If built together with the school… even if he were to leave Chongcheng County in the future, this house wouldn’t be abandoned and could be used as a school.

As for their current living place, it could be converted into a factory or warehouse, serving as dormitories for the female workers.