Transmigrated as a Stepmother: Time to Bring the Family to Prosper!-Chapter 124 - 123: Complete Array of Beverages

Chapter 124: Chapter 123: Complete Array of Beverages
Having a horse makes a huge difference. Traveling from Liu Family Village to the county town no longer requires setting out before dawn with torches.
After breakfast, Qin Yao headed out, and within an hour on horseback, she could see the gates of the county town.
After paying the entry and livestock fees and leaving the horse at the ’parking lot’ by the city gate, Qin Yao checked the sky; it was midday rest time, and she headed straight to the academy to find Liu Ji.
To Liu Ji, it hadn’t been many days since their last separation, and he didn’t expect Qin Yao to come again.
He wasn’t at the academy; Qin Yao waited at the back gate for a while before seeing several figures approaching together, laughing continuously.
Leading the group were two people, one in their early twenties, the other around thirty, both accompanied by attendants.
Following them was the source of their laughter—Liu Ji.
He was still in the same white shirt he wore when leaving home, though it had been washed once, making it appear fainter. It was only his lively face that prevented him from looking impoverished in front of the other two’s cotton scholarly robes with embroidered patterns.
Liu Ji’s eloquent tongue, as long as it wasn’t directed at family, was very pleasing to outsiders.
Somehow sensing something, Liu Ji glanced aside and met Qin Yao’s eyes in the corner.
He immediately held his breath.
After escorting the two scholars into the academy, he slipped out from the back gate to Qin Yao and nervously asked:
"Why are you here, my dear?"
Thankfully, he had just driven away the Pipa Girl from the inn who insisted on following the scholars, otherwise... Liu Ji could already imagine his tragic end.
Qin Yao gave him a once-over, catching a faint scent of perfume, and waved her hand, crossing her arms with a cold smile.
Before she asked, Liu Ji hurriedly explained, "Don’t misunderstand, my dear! I swear, I’ve done nothing to betray you. It’s all for socializing necessities. You have no idea how tight-lipped those scholars are; I’ve been coaxing them for days. Today, they finally agreed to copy down the exam answers for me."
Obtaining past examination questions was not difficult, as the academy’s teachers collected them. The challenge was getting the answers, especially the ones written by scholars who achieved a title.
Exam papers were not publicly disclosed, only the Academic Administration Bureau members who graded them knew the situation.
Qin Yao, amused by his nervousness, said, "Why are you so tense? It’s not like I’m going to hit you."
Liu Ji: "..." But you might have thought of it!
"Can you help me find something out?" Qin Yao beckoned Liu Ji closer to inquire about workshops with his classmates.
Liu Ji was taken aback, "You’re building a workshop?"
Qin Yao nodded, impatient with his questions, nodding towards the academy, "Go on, I’ll wait here."
Once she knew for sure, she could decide whether to go to the government.
Just to be safe, Qin Yao decided to ask Manager Fan at the inn.
Watching Liu Ji enter the academy, Qin Yao turned towards the inn.
"You’re here again; having a horse makes a world of difference!" Manager Fan, busy, only had time to point towards the back courtyard, signaling Qin Yao to wait there for him.
During the busy time at the inn, Qin Yao waited quite a while before Manager Fan came over.
Time was limited, so without wasting words, Qin Yao directly asked if Manager Fan knew whether ordinary people needed to register with the government to start their own workshops and pay commercial taxes.
"You’re asking the right person!"
Manager Fan laughed, "The new law has relaxed many restrictions on merchants. For the kind of small workshop you mentioned, there’s no need to go to the government. Just to the village chief, ensuring no illegal activities."
"It’s that simple?" Qin Yao was slightly stunned.
Manager Fan nodded, "After years of turmoil, Sheng Country needs to recuperate."
And for the civilian population to regain vitality, the first thing to loosen is the restrictions on merchant groups.
Current policies encourage businessmen’s activities, lifting the strict control over merchants from the previous dynasty.
In recent years, Kaiyang County has become more prosperous, with small vendors contributing significantly.
Having received precise information from Manager Fan, Qin Yao felt more confident when she arrived at the academy.
Liu Ji snuck out the back and ed a similar result to her.
But with an added clear rule: small commercial activities with no more than twenty people and annual earnings under 500 taels were temporarily tax-exempt by the court.
However, it’s only temporarily exempt, with no specified end date for reinstatement.
"Are you really going to build a water mill?" Liu Ji asked excitedly.
Qin Yao knew why he was excited, thinking he could live comfortably at home.
She coolly reminded him, "Precisely because of the workshop, you need to study hard and earn a title soon to protect our family business."
"Understood, understood." Liu Ji raised an eyebrow; she mentioned "our family," implying he had a share in the family workshop!
As the afternoon class time approached, Liu Ji noticed that Qin Yao, having gathered all the information, showed no sign of leaving, and realized something.
Tentatively, he asked, "You’re not leaving, my dear?"
"Waiting for you to finish class, we’ll leave together. Go on to class; I’ll wander around the city and come by to pick you up later."
Qin Yao spoke naturally, arranging everything clearly, "Remember to ask the professor for leave. Anyway, it’s almost the Mid-Autumn Festival; combine the harvest leave with the festival, five days off should be enough for us to finish harvesting rice."
At the mention of the autumn harvest, Liu Ji’s face already bore a painful expression. He wanted to delay returning by a couple of days, claiming these days would suffice to copy down the exam answers from the scholars.
Qin Yao shook her head, "I’m very busy now, and the autumn harvest must be completed swiftly to focus on the workshop. Plans have changed; I’m giving you a few extra days. Rest assured when asking for leave; not bringing back reference answers is my fault, I won’t punish you for it."
"Alright!" With her assurance, he was at ease.
Liu Ji returned to finish the afternoon class and then asked the professor for leave.
Qin Yao strolled around the county, buying a pound of salt and five pounds of rapeseed oil, then a jar of soy sauce, and three pounds of meat.
With the hot weather, meat didn’t keep well, so she couldn’t buy much.
However, with the horse’s speed, visiting the town for meat anytime was convenient.
Anticipating the tiring labor of the coming harvest, Qin Yao treated herself to various pastries at a pastry shop.
There were mung bean cakes, sticky rice and brown sugar dumplings, lotus seed candies, and lotus sesame cakes, all made with seasonal ingredients to enjoy them fresh.
On the street was a sugar water shop selling all sorts of drinks, including cane sugar water, plum soup, mung bean water, plum wine, snow foam spleen-drink, and more.
The variety was beyond Qin Yao’s expectations.
She thought ancient people didn’t have beverages, but there was a wide range available.
Like that snow foam spleen-drink, she had never heard of it, and it appeared quite fancy.
Returning to the academy to wait for Liu Ji, she asked about it and learned it was basically iced tea.