That night, Qin Yao unusually had a dream, dreaming that Liu Ji, fearing her blame for his poor results in the courtyard exam, ran away to avoid being guarded by Ah Wang.

Years later, Liu Ji became a wandering beggar, suffering much hardship, and finally crawled step by step to his doorstep with a withered face, lovingly calling her his lady...

Qin Yao gasped, startled, and sat up in bed.

The barking of village dogs and the busy sounds of people reached her ears, and she realized she had just had an extremely terrifying dream.

"Let’s go, let’s go, if we don’t leave for school now, we’ll be late!"

Yin Le urged from outside the courtyard.

The four Da Lang brothers and sisters hurriedly dragged their book boxes and rushed out the door, Sanlang still chewing on half a piece of mooncake made during the Mid-Autumn Festival.

Mrs. Li chased after them, "The lunch boxes, don’t forget the lunch boxes!"

Little Fula, holding two water bags, ran out and threw them onto the carriage, "Brother Da Lang, catch these!"

Da Lang quickly leaned out, caught the water bags securely, and handed them to Sanlang and Si Niang with a helpless sigh, "Don’t forget next time."

The Dragon and Phoenix Twins obediently agreed.

Picking up Jinhua and Jinbao from the old house, the carriage quickly drove away.

As expected of a teacher and disciple, Yin Le had truly inherited Qin Yao’s skills, driving the carriage with the sensation of flying, raising dust along the way, creating special effects.

Arriving at Lower River Village, Jinhua, looking about nervously, noticed two people in red officer uniforms riding from the main road, quickly tugged Si Niang’s sleeve, "There are officers heading to our village."

Si Niang curiously looked over, a hunch forming, her eyes widening as she whispered, "Could it be that my dad passed the exam?"

"Huh?" Jinhua didn’t hear clearly, her open mouth filled with swirling dust from the carriage, causing her to retreat inside, spitting out several times before getting rid of the dusty taste.

Si Niang repeated, "Did Dad pass the exam? I’ve heard from Miss Ding that when Mr. Ding passed, the officer in red clothes knocked on the gong to announce the good news."

"Really?" Both Jinhua and Jinbao became excited.

But Si Niang furrowed her little brows, "I only heard about it."

Da Lang and Second Lang were also excited for a moment, but then shook their heads, thinking it unlikely, indicating to Si Niang not to dwell on it so as not to miss the teacher’s lecture.

Si Niang nodded in agreement yet couldn’t resist lifting the curtain to peek outside again.

Unfortunately, time was short, Senior Sister Le drove the carriage quickly, obscured by smoke, and the two horse-riding officers were long gone, making it uncertain if they were heading to Liu Family Village.

Si Niang could only contain her excitement, gripping the seat, adapting to Senior Sister Le’s bumpy rhythm akin to her mother’s, missing the comfort of Uncle Ah Wang’s presence at home.

Meanwhile, Qin Yao had just settled with breakfast in hand when Mrs. He’s excited calls echoed outside:

"Sister-in-law! Sister-in-law, come out quickly! The officer bringing good news has arrived!"

Qin Yao curiously set down her bowl, wasn’t Mrs. He supposed to be at the canteen of the stationery factory? 𝚏𝗿𝗲𝐞𝐰𝚎𝕓𝐧𝚘𝘃𝗲𝐥.𝐜𝚘𝕞

The government’s news arrived faster than Liu Ji’s letter; yesterday the county office already received the list of those who passed the courtyard exam, and among the three who passed in Kaiyang County was Liu Ji.

Thanks to Qin Yao, the government officers easily recognized that this Liu Ji was the beautiful good-for-nothing husband of Miss Qin from Liu Family Village—a prodigal son who turned around there.

His fortune was also good, having the luck to study under scholars and become a fellow disciple of the prodigy from the Capital.

Upon seeing this passing news today, the officers were all very shocked.

Amidst the shock, there was also a strange balance that this indeed was the level Qin Yao’s husband should have.

Delivering good news was one of the government officers’ favorite tasks, as they usually received reward silver, ranging from tens of coins to several taels.

If the hosts were delighted and hosted a feast, they might even enjoy some drinks and meals together.

And unlike the usual fearful and wary reactions from the common folk upon seeing officers, during such happy events, people greeted them with joy, sincerely happy, making them feel good.

Therefore, relying on his old acquaintance with Miss Qin, Zhou Zheng claimed this task, and early in the morning, brought his companion to Liu Family Village.

Being their first time in the village, unsure of Miss Qin’s household address, they asked outside the stationery factory.

Yin Le was supposed to arrive later, but Mrs. He was impatient, unable to wait for her to return and wash the vegetables, planning to wash them clean by the river herself.

By coincidence, Zhou Zheng asked Mrs. He.

Seeing these two officers in uniform and the copper gong in hand, coupled with their inquiry about Liu Ji’s house, Mrs. He, all excited, set down a basket of vegetables and eagerly offered to lead the way for them.

Mrs. He’s voice arrived first, followed by the sound of Zhou Zheng and his companion’s copper gong.

To do Miss Qin a favor, Zhou Zheng’s companion also bought two rolls of firecrackers, lighting them when they arrived at Qin Yao’s doorstep.

The loud sound of firecrackers echoed throughout the village, and news of Liu Ji passing the exam entered Qin Yao’s ears.

Zhou Zheng handed the document to a calm Qin Yao, silently admiring her unaffected demeanor despite experiencing great ups and downs.

Qin Yao smiled and nodded at Zhou Zheng, signaling to Song Yu, who arrived with the group.

Song Yu understood, nodding in return, and went inside to prepare the red envelopes.

Qin Yao intended to check inside further, but Old Liu, leading his clan in excitement, rushed up, leaving her to open the document before everyone.

Though she couldn’t read, it appeared she could as she examined it seriously.

While the other words were unfamiliar to Old Liu, he instantly recognized the characters for Liu Ji, shouting excitedly, "Our third son is Mr. Scholar!" nearly fainting from joy.

His cousins hurriedly steadied him, jokingly saying, "Yes, he passed, Brother Ji has made it; you’re the father of Mr. Scholar, now you’re a master!"

The aunts were also eagerly nodding at Mrs. Zhang, Mrs. He, and Mrs. Qiu, too happy for words.

Two aunts that Qin Yao barely recognized even shed tears, claiming they always thought Liu Ji was extraordinary, and today it proved true, and so on.

Qin Yao steadied her mind, withdrawing focus from others’ reactions, and reread the document content, a slight smile curling her lips.

Indeed, dreams and reality were opposites.

If luck was part of one’s skill, Qin Yao now had to admit that Liu Ji indeed had some abilities.

Moreover, he was quite obedient, so she didn’t mind continuing their collaboration at all.

The government also awarded reward silver to the scholars who passed the exam, a total of twenty taels, which Zhou Zheng handed to Qin Yao.

Although Liu Ji’s parents were alive, the families had already separated, so it was appropriate for the scholar’s wife to receive this reward silver.

With his brothers’ pats of reassurance, Old Liu finally caught his breath and, upon seeing Qin Yao receive the silver, surprisingly felt a tiny resentment in his heart.

Startled by his thought, Old Liu hurriedly closed his eyes, steadying his spirit.

He knew he must have been swayed by everyone calling him "father of Mr. Scholar," involuntarily assuming he was no longer a commoner but now father to a scholar, now a master.