Qin Fang and County Magistrate Yang sent Lord Liu to the entrance of the post station.

Lord Liu was quite satisfied; it was proper for County Magistrate Yang to see him off, but as for Qin Fang, who was a student of Du Ke, what was the big deal?

He was just trying to flatter him.

The thought that someone who was a student of Du Ke would still have to flatter him excited Lord Liu greatly.

Lord Liu said, “You may return. We can discuss anything tomorrow.”

Qin Fang replied, “Then I will take my leave.”

County Magistrate Yang said, “I bid you farewell as well.”

Lord Liu waved his hand and entered the post station.

Qin Fang and County Magistrate Yang didn’t linger and turned to leave.

Once outside the post station, County Magistrate Yang called out to Qin Fang, “General Qin.”

Qin Fang had anticipated this.

Yang’s farewell to Lord Liu was likely just a pretext to speak with him.

So he walked slowly, waiting for Yang to call him, and indeed…

Qin Fang stopped: “Is there something you need, Magistrate Yang?”

Yang nodded. “I apologize for the abrupt invitation to the general to visit my residence today. It’s quite rude of me,” he said. With Lord Liu around, he had to be polite.

Qin Fang replied, “No problem. Official business is important, and I have nothing to do after my duty is over.” Dining with these people wasn’t as appealing as eating with Yan Yan.

County Magistrate Yang said, “Thank you for your understanding, General. Since you’re new to Yunxiang County and have not met Lord Liu before, you may not understand his character very well.”

Qin Fang raised an eyebrow; he knew what Yang wanted to say. Smiling, he said, “I really don’t know him well. Not only do I not understand Lord Liu, but I also don’t have much knowledge of the officialdom.

I completely forgot that I should visit Lord Liu upon arriving in Yunxiang County; how careless of me. In the coming years, I’ll likely have interactions with Lord Liu, so I would appreciate it if you could inform me about his character and things I should pay attention to.”

County Magistrate Yang didn’t beat around the bush.

Given Qin Fang’s earlier remarks about offering the agency quota to his family, Yang felt that Qin Fang wasn’t just talking big and was quite grateful.

So he candidly said, “Lord Liu is not a magnanimous person.”

The Yang family had not fallen from grace; having met many people, County Magistrate Yang could read others well. “However,” he continued, “he is not a person with bad intentions. He can be a bit pushy and somewhat timid.”

Qin Fang looked at County Magistrate Yang in surprise; he hadn’t expected him to say such things.

Since he had just interacted with Lord Liu, he didn’t comment on his character but was taken aback that Yang would share these insights.

Regardless of Yang’s intentions, Qin Fang said, “Thank you for the reminder, Magistrate Yang.”

County Magistrate Yang said, “Then I will take my leave.”

County Magistrate Yang indeed understood Lord Liu’s character very well.

After being sent to this post, and considering the situation with the Yang family, how could he not have investigated Lord Liu?

This Lord Liu was a person who was cautious to protect himself, not colluding with high officials nor engaging in corrupt practices.

For instance, while he was dissatisfied that Qin Fang hadn’t visited him, he couldn’t act against Qin Fang due to his connection with Du Ke.

Similarly, when the Yang family fell from grace, Lord Liu didn’t make things difficult for County Magistrate Yang during his visits.

In short, this kind of person was timid and afraid of trouble but lacked the courage to do anything wrong.

When Qin Fang returned home, Yang Haiyan was already lying down.

The room was cool from the ice, but despite that, in the hot summer without air conditioning or fans in ancient times, it was still warm.

She held a fan, fanning herself, and the bed was made of straw mats, wiped down with cold water.

When Qin Fang entered, he saw her in a camisole, which he had grown used to after two years of her wearing it in the heat.

However, each time he saw it, he found it quite tempting.

Seeing him return, Yang Haiyan sat up from the bed. “Husband, what did County Magistrate Yang want with you?”

Qin Fang knew she wasn’t checking up on him but was simply curious, so he teased, “He introduced a girl to me.”

Yang Haiyan glanced at him and then cheerfully said, “That’s wonderful! I was just discussing with my teacher about dressing as a boy to accompany him to various places.

But… I was worried that after I leave, you’d be all alone. I was concerned that without me, no one would take care of you. But now I’m not worried!

A sister will come to the residence, so you’ll have someone to take care of you, and I can leave in peace. When will you bring my sister into the residence? I want to prepare ahead of time. Don’t worry, I’ll toast to her…”

Before Yang Haiyan could finish, Qin Fang had already adopted a serious expression, picked her up, and flipped her over, giving her a hard slap on the backside. “You wicked woman!”

Yang Haiyan struggled to break free from his grip, but he held her tightly.

She protested, “How am I wicked? I’m so virtuous, incredibly virtuous!”

Qin Fang snorted, “You’re not virtuous; you’re bad, cunning, like a little fox.”

As he said this, he leaned closer to her ear and whispered, “Yanyan, you only know how to bully me, little liar, sly little liar.”

Yang Haiyan felt ticklish from his words; she wrapped her arms around his head and pushed him away, “It’s so hot; don’t come near me.”

Qin Fang grabbed her hand, “I want to lean; I’m going to lean.”

Yang Haiyan lifted her head and pressed it against his stomach, using her legs to add more force since her arms weren’t strong enough.

Qin Fang couldn’t help but smile; he grabbed her leg, gave it a squeeze, and then his hand went up to tug at her underwear.

“Hey!”

Yang Haiyan quickly shrank back into the bed, realizing how cunning this guy was, “Go take a shower; you can’t get into bed before you wash up.”

Qin Fang wasn’t going to listen to her. Since the woman had come to him, it would be foolish to obediently comply.

So he pretended not to understand, pulling at her underwear and reaching directly up.

“Qin Fang, you bad guy…”

Yang Haiyan yelled angrily.

But soon, her voice was muffled as someone covered her mouth.

Outside, Grandma Lian sat in the shade, thinking that the male and female hosts were always making such a fuss every day; why was there no little master?

After a while, Grandma Lian got up and called Aunt Yu to boil water.

The general usually took cold showers in the summer, but now it seemed the young master would need a wash too, so hot water had to be prepared.

Half an hour later, Yang Haiyan was carried to take a shower by Qin Fang.

After they finished, she lay on the bed like a fish.

The man next to her fanned her with a fan; the breeze wasn’t strong, but it was exceptionally comfortable.

Yang Haiyan kicked his calf, “You still haven’t told me what we’re doing tonight.”

Qin Fang held down her feet, “It’s related to Lord Liu, the governor of Hedoongfu…”

He then explained what was planned for tonight, “Didn’t we discuss this before? Yunxiang County is managed by the Yang family; the remaining cities and counties need someone too.

As for the city, I’m considering Lord Liu first. Regardless of how he acts as the agency, it benefits us and the common people.

If someone else becomes the agency, the governor might be overly calculative. Rather than this, it’s better to consider the governor’s family first.”

Yang Haiyan had no objections, and her thoughts aligned with Qin Fang’s; it was indeed more appropriate to consider the governor’s family first: “How is the governor’s character?”

Qin Fang replied, “I just met him today and don’t know him well yet. Everyone was polite today, and besides, considering my teacher’s reputation, he would be polite to me too. But I heard from Lord Yang…”

He recounted what Lord Yang had last reminded him, “I’ll ask my teacher tomorrow to see if this is appropriate.”

Yang Haiyan nodded, “In the officialdom, you should listen more to your teacher’s advice. Like this visit to the governor, it was indeed our oversight; I also didn’t think of these things.”

Qin Fang rubbed her and gave her a kiss on the shoulder, “How can I blame you? I’m the one in office and haven’t understood the survival of officialdom; that’s my fault. This time, Lord Liu didn’t hold it against me, probably because of my teacher’s relationship. This incident reminds me to keep it in mind; in the future, no matter what I do, I must think deeply before acting.”

The ways of officialdom and the hierarchy all require caution.

The next day

Early in the morning, after breakfast, Qin Fang went to find Du Ke.

Yang Haiyan didn’t rush; the royal grain franchise in the state was under their Qin family, so she needed to start working on the matters of potato flour and sweet potato flour.

The first step was to issue an official document in the name of the general’s residence, stating that the general’s residence would purchase potatoes and sweet potatoes at a price of half a wen per pound year-round.

This document needed to be issued throughout the entire Hedoongfu, so it required the seal of the governor’s office.

The second step was to establish factories for potato flour and sweet potato flour in Yunxiang County, naming it the Royal Grain Factory.

The third step was to hire workers.

The fourth step was to produce potato flour and sweet potato flour.

With the emperor’s name as a banner, aside from the royal grain franchise, no one else was allowed to produce potato flour and sweet potato flour.

Thus, Yang Haiyan didn’t fear the methods for making potato flour and sweet potato flour being learned by others because even if learned, making them privately would be illegal, and the common people were most afraid of breaking the law.

With this plan, she indeed had no time to go out and play.

“Madam, Dr. Li has arrived.” Grandma Lian’s voice sounded from outside while Yang Haiyan was writing the plan in her study.

Yang Haiyan put down her pen, “Why has Dr. Li come? Is there something going on?”

Grandma Lian replied, “Did you forget? We have to invite him for a pulse check every month.”

This was something Yang Haiyan had established, as it was done before at the border.

In ancient times, there were no physical examinations, so it was necessary to have a pulse check every month for safety.

She said, “Right, right, I forgot the date. Please invite Dr. Li in, and gather the others in the family to the hall so that Dr. Li doesn’t have to run around.”

Grandma Lian replied, “Yes.”

Dr. Li entered the study and greeted Yang Haiyan, “Madam, is it convenient to check your pulse now?”

Yang Haiyan replied, “It’s convenient; please do.” As she spoke, she extended her hand.