"Hey? Madam, how did you get this scar on your calf?"

Qin Yao had to briefly explain to him about her incident with Wang Jin.

Of course, she didn’t mention a word about earning 500 taels.

However, even if she didn’t say it, Liu Ji could guess that she certainly received quite a few benefits, after all, no one knows her true nature better than him.

But, how could a shrewd woman like her get injured like this?

Liu Ji’s instinctive reaction was, "Did that shameless scoundrel Wang Jin trick you again?"

"Not this time." Qin Yao lifted her foot onto his knee, waiting for him to dry off the water with a towel, squinted her eyes and said, "This injury was from rescuing that loser Wang Jin."

Liu Ji’s eyes darkened, he cautiously asked, "Didn’t he claim to be a master?"

Qin Yao sneered, "Two fists can’t rival four hands, the trouble he stirred was too great."

"Did you get enough silver, Madam?" Liu Ji was very concerned, what if they made a loss?

Qin Yao slightly lifted her eyelids, glanced at him, "What do you think?"

Liu Ji chuckled, "I won’t guess, since Madam you haven’t said anything, you must have gotten enough silver."

"But..." He took the opportunity to touch the scar, it was about half the length of his finger, "it still caused you such a serious injury, leaving such a long scar."

No matter how much trouble he caused her, he never left her with a scar like this.

Wang Jin, oh Wang Jin, when I come to the Capital City, I won’t stop until I get you!

After drying Qin Yao’s feet, Liu Ji took the footbath water away.

From the start to the end, he kept his head down, not letting her see the shadowy ruthlessness in his eyes.

Qin Yao lay down and quickly fell asleep, her soaked feet stayed warm all night, and when she woke up, the daylight was already bright.

Ah Wang had already sent the children to school, Yin Le finished her water carrying chore and went to work at the stationery factory, Little Lai Fu led the green ox to the riverside to drink water and graze, with only Mrs. Li in the courtyard grinding soybeans, there was a bit of noise.

Listening closely, there was no one in the back courtyard, it seemed that Liu Ji had gone to the Lotus Courtyard to attend classes with his teacher and senior brothers.

Last night it rained heavily, yet today it was surprisingly sunny.

Sunlight streamed through the window lattices into the room, casting a bit of sparkle on the newly laid natural wood floor.

Qin Yao reached out into the sunlight, brushing her fingertips along it, warm and gentle.

Time seemed to stop at this moment, peaceful and harmonious.

Qin Yao lay on the bed, staying in laziness for a long time, cherishing this rare moment of tranquility.

Until she heard Liu Ji’s footsteps entering the room, she opened her eyes to see it was already noon, her laziness had lasted until midday.

Ah Wang had also taken on the task of purchasing groceries today and wouldn’t return home so early, leaving only Qin Yao, her husband, and Mrs. Li with her son at noon in the main room.

Qin Yao’s peaceful lunch was disrupted when Song Yu came back with a handful of invitation cards.

"Madam, these are all invitations for the Master."

Song Yu handed the cards one by one to Qin Yao to review, Qin Yao only looked at three before stopping, all were invitations from wealthy merchants in Kaiyang County inviting Liu Junren.

The rest of the invitations were similar, some were more straightforward, some were more tactful.

In short, none were inviting him to a meal without an ulterior motive.

Qin Yao didn’t expect the status of a scholar to be so sought after, Liu Ji had only been back for two days, yet so many invitations had arrived.

The two most enticing privileges of a scholar in Sheng Country are, firstly, exemption from taxes and corvee labor for oneself and one’s family.

Secondly, judicial immunity, if ever caught in legal cases, one can avoid being summoned, standing trial, kneeling, or undergoing punishment.

Except for absurd acts of treason, in most cases, they can avoid the death penalty.

Besides, there’s another hidden advantage.

That is the connections a scholar possesses.

What wealthy merchants lack are precisely these three things, but the number of scholars in a county is limited, so with the birth of new scholars every year, they become closely watched by wealthy merchants.

Wealthy merchants possess vast enterprises, the taxes they need to pay each year are a significant expense.

Qin Yao deeply understands this running her stationery factory.

So even offering a large portion of commissions as perks to a scholar is more cost-effective than paying court taxes.

The initial accumulation of wealth for most scholars also comes from these merchants’ gifts, making it mutually beneficial for both parties.

Looking at the stack of invitations in her hand, Qin Yao felt both excited and remarkably calm.

She always adhered to the principle of taking someone’s money to relieve their troubles, but at the same time, she had to shoulder significant risks.

So how many replies to send, and which ones to reply to, needs to be investigated first.

Seeing Qin Yao delaying her responses, Song Yu cautiously asked, "Madam, should we ask the Master?"

Qin Yao nodded, "Yes, I should speak to him."

But only speak to him.

So, since Liu Ji is studying with his teacher at Lotus Courtyard right now, let’s not disturb him.

Song Yu understood the madam’s intention and said no more.

"Ah Wang hasn’t returned yet?" Qin Yao stood up and looked outside the door.

Song Yu shook his head, "I haven’t seen the steward Ah Wang return."

"Alright, then you go on with your work, tell Yin Le to come home after work, I have something to instruct her."

After giving these instructions, Qin Yao picked up the stack of invitations, went back to the room to sift through the information.

She’s been running the stationery factory for several years, and has a general understanding of the wealthy merchants’ situations in Kaiyang County, first separating the ones she knows from the ones she doesn’t.

Twelve invitations, six known, six only heard of.

When Yin Le gets home, Qin Yao hands her the six invitations of the ones she knows, asking her to find out more. After all, beginners shouldn’t jump straight into high intensity tasks.

"What should I find out?" Excited and confused on her first task, Yin Le was more puzzled.

But didn’t the veterans hone their skills from periods of inexperience?

Qin Yao patiently writes a list of questions and hands it to Yin Le, instructing her to find the answers.

She also gives her one tael of silver as expense money, "You have two days, report back to me the morning after tomorrow."

"What about the work at the factory?"

Qin Yao sternly replies, "I’ll request leave for you, focus on your task."

"Okay!" Yin Le firmly agrees, after double-checking the task list, she grabs an oil-paper umbrella and strides out.

As she steps out, Ah Wang steps in, Qin Yao hands him the list of twelve names without a cent, "Help me find out about these families, I will have Liu Zhong pick up the kids from school in the afternoon."

Ah Wang glances at the list, gives it back to her, downs two bowls of tofu pudding Mrs. Li had just made in the kitchen, and leaves saying, "I’ll be back tonight." Then he rides off into the Liu Family Village.

Mrs. Li witnessed it all from the kitchen, she realized that the madam had different standards for people.

No, it should be multiple sets.

One set for the young master and young lady, one set for the household, one set for outsiders, and another set for the master.