Transmigrated as a Stepmother: Time to Bring the Family to Prosper!-Chapter 412: Inside Story

When Ah Wang went to the school to pick up the children, he brought this explosive news to Qin Yao and her husband, leaving them both stunned for two seconds.

After recovering, Liu Ji patted his chest and said, "I told you, I’ve been feeling uneasy these days. Surely no good would come of it, and indeed, nothing good came!"

Qin Yao thought to herself: what nonsense are you spouting, and quickly asked Ah Wang, "Will tomorrow’s assessment still take place? What’s the current status of the free enrollment?"

Ah Wang said, "I don’t know yet. When I picked up Da Lang and the others, people from various villages were gathered outside the Ding Family Ancestral Hall demanding an explanation. It was quite chaotic, and the Ding Family might have quite a headache."

Qin Yao rubbed her temples, thinking this is such a mess!

She turned her head to see Liu Ji still patting his chest and muttering about his ominous premonitions, feeling even more frustrated.

As they were speaking, the large group that had gone to Ding Family Manor from the village returned. Liu Zhong and Mrs. Qiu also received the news and quickly left their work, bringing Jinhua to Qin Yao’s house to anxiously inquire about the situation.

Jinhua herself seemed quite calm; when she saw Si Niang, she followed her into the room with a cheeky grin, showing no signs of worry.

However, Si Niang, hearing the adults’ conversation and seeing her Sister Jin Hua’s carefree demeanor, sighed heavily like a little adult.

As Si Niang was half-heartedly listening to Jinhua share her day’s experiences, she was also eavesdropping on the adults talking in the main hall.

Qin Yao said, "Don’t panic yet, we don’t know anything now. Let’s wait until tomorrow morning and see what happens in town. The County Magistrate has been alerted, so this matter won’t just pass by muddling through."

Liu Zhong quickly said, "Then I’ll go with you tomorrow morning."

Mrs. Qiu, feeling a bit embarrassed, said, "I have to trouble Uncle and Aunt. We don’t know anyone at the Ding Family Manor, so even if we want to ask someone, we won’t know whom to ask."

Qin Yao waved her hand, indicating she shouldn’t be so formal, got up to see them off, "You should go home first and rest well tonight. Tomorrow, we’ll go to town together to find out what’s going on."

"Alright, alright." Liu Zhong pulled the reluctant Mrs. Qiu, called Jinhua, and left.

After sending off the family of three, Qin Yao came into the room, frowned, and said, "This matter might not be so simple."

Liu Ji nodded in agreement. He had wanted to say this earlier, but couldn’t because his elder brother and sister-in-law were present.

Now that they were gone, Liu Ji didn’t hold back, curiously saying, "I wonder who has such great influence to even invite the County Magistrate."

What is the usual attitude of Kaiyang County’s government officers?

According to Ah Wang, the person who invited the officers was just a wine seller in Jinshi Town. Normally, such officers wouldn’t move for such a person.

Moreover, they arrived very promptly.

This is incredibly suspicious!

"You also think it wasn’t the wine seller who called the officers?" Qin Yao teased.

Liu Ji was convinced, "It definitely couldn’t have been him!"

The couple exchanged a look. Who is this person behind the curtains?

Is it an enemy of the Ding Family?

Or perhaps, the County Magistrate had a sudden urge to thoroughly purge these acts of corruption?

Qin Yao had a premonition that the uproar over the Ding Family School might actually benefit the common folk.

"Luckily, we left quickly," Liu Ji said with lingering fear.

If they had left a quarter-hour later, they might have landed in serious trouble.

Liu Zhong had mentioned earlier that even the families who had bribed the teachers had been summoned to the county government for questioning.

Although they were only fined a little silver, the consequences of entering the county government were unimaginable.

Qin Yao thought about this too and reminded Liu Ji, "Now that you carry the title of a Great Scholar’s Disciple, you should act low-key in the future. Otherwise, who knows when your teacher might expel you from the school!"

Just as Qin Yao finished speaking, Liu Ji spat three times on the ground, "What she says doesn’t count, passing immortals please don’t take it seriously!"

Qin Yao rolled her eyes, speechless.

The next morning, at the break of dawn, Liu Zhong and his wife knocked on Qin Yao’s door.

Knowing they were anxious about their daughter’s schooling, Qin Yao didn’t say much, but she didn’t look pleased throughout the journey, giving off an unapproachable vibe.

This made everyone on the cart so intimidated that they didn’t dare make a sound the whole way.

Due to yesterday’s incident, the Ding Family School gave the students a two-day holiday. Da Lang and the others were still sleeping at home, leaving only Qin Yao and her husband and Liu Zhong’s family on the cart.

Da Mao was left at the old house, looked after by Mrs. Zhang.

At the factory canteen, Mrs. Qiu found someone familiar in the village to cover for her for the morning, and she gave the day’s wages to them.

Compared to her daughter’s important matter, missing one day’s wages was a small price to pay.

Worrying about the matter weren’t just Liu Zhong and his wife; people from all the villages were waiting for the Ding Family to provide an explanation.

Many had arrived much earlier than Qin Yao and her group.

As the sun just peeked over the horizon, the square in front of the Ding Family Ancestral Hall was already filled with people demanding an explanation.

Yesterday’s venting was over, and today everyone wanted a clear answer: Will they still continue enrolling students?

There were too many people, so Qin Yao stayed on the cart with Mrs. Qiu and Jinhua, while Liu Ji and Liu Zhong went into the crowd to gather information.

Unfortunately, the Ding Family’s doors were tightly shut, and no one came out.

Liu Ji, unable to stand the overwhelming smell, pulled the reluctant Liu Zhong back to the cart and shook his head at Qin Yao, "No one from the Ding Family came out; let’s wait on the side and see."

Liu Zhong, influenced by the agitated crowd, was quite angry, and even as they left the square, he couldn’t resist shouting back:

"Are you enrolling or not? Someone from the Ding Family should come out and give us an explanation! What is this? Do you think we’re easily bullied?"

Mrs. Qiu called him twice, and only then did he shut up and sat on the cart shaft with Liu Ji, eyes glued to the Ding Family Ancestral Hall.

They waited until the sun was high in the sky. 𝚏𝐫𝚎𝗲𝕨𝐞𝐛𝕟𝚘𝐯𝚎𝗹.𝕔𝐨𝗺

The Ding Family didn’t appear.

But the County Magistrate did!

The situation became more interesting, and Liu Ji and Liu Zhong were invigorated.

If not watched by Qin Yao, Liu Ji would have rushed up to greet the County Magistrate, hoping to make connections.

With the officers maintaining order, the commotion at the Ding Family Ancestral Hall finally quieted down.

Upon hearing that the County Magistrate had arrived, several elders and stewards of the Ding Family hurriedly came forward.

The Ding Family elder hardly got out of the sedan chair when County Magistrate Song scolded sternly:

"Your Ding Family is audacious! You take the court’s subsidy and don’t build a school, don’t recruit students, yet you secretly accept bribes and leak exam questions, all for these few free entry slots..."

As the County Magistrate questioned them one by one, the expressions of the people on Qin Yao’s cart grew slightly peculiar.

Liu Ji "coughed" lightly, pretended to be indifferent, and continued listening intently to see how much more of this free enrollment affair was unknown to them.

To think, the court subsidy for school fees allowed the Ding Family School to obtain one hundred taels!

Also, if they went to the county government to claim the subsidy, they would receive an additional twenty taels of silver for the Ding Family School!

So, a total of 120 taels of silver, enough to build several new schools, hire several teachers, and cater to hundreds of students of eligible age, yet the Ding Family only provided fifty enrollment slots.

After hearing all this, Qin Yao and her husband exchanged a knowing glance.

Liu Ji, without a change in his expression, picked up the reins, turned the cart around, and quietly retreated a hundred meters away.

Very quickly, indeed!

Soon after, the Ding Family Ancestral Hall descended into chaos, with shoes flying, doors being slammed, and spit hurled, all targeted at the Ding Family elders.