The four siblings had such an air of worship in their eyes that it almost made Qin Yao melt.

She deliberately put on a stern face and urged, "Quickly wash up and sleep, are you going to school tomorrow or not?"

Da Lang, Second Lang, and Sanlang immediately nodded and quickened their pace in washing up.

Si Niang stared at Qin Yao with her big eyes and silly smile, mumbling, "My mother is the village chief? My mother is the village chief, my mother is the village chief, wow~"

Qin Yao pinched her little cheek with amusement and exasperation, "Yes, your mother is the village chief! So hurry up and go to sleep!"

She picked up her girl who was acting lovesick and tossed her onto her own little bed, blew out the candle and closed the door, urging once more, "Sleep quickly, no one is allowed to talk anymore."

When the children’s room finally quieted down, Qin Yao stepped into her own bedroom and freely lay down on the soft big bed.

The small copper seal hanging around her waist poked her, and Qin Yao took it off and placed it on the bedside, touching the little thing with her fingers before peacefully tucking herself in.

She slept sweetly, and when she opened her eyes, it was already broad daylight.

The bright flickering firelight from last night still seemed to flash before her eyes. She quickly got up and looked at the bedside; a copper-colored stamp was sitting there safely.

Qin Yao smiled, took the seal and tied it to her waist, dressed, washed up, and took the thin meat pancake Mrs. Li had prepared, eating it as she headed to the village.

She had said yesterday that they would start building the school today and wouldn’t delay it until tomorrow.

Along the way, the villagers she encountered did not call her Manager Qin anymore, they all called her village chief.

Qin Yao raised her hand to greet them, looking at the blue sky and green water, and also at the lush fields, feeling that the thin meat pancake in her hand was incredibly delicious.

As she passed by the village well, a large group of playful children saw her, wanting to approach but a bit afraid, trailing behind her from afar, soon forming a long tail behind Qin Yao.

Little Lai Fu was among them, and other kids prepared to push him forward to ask questions.

Because Qin Yao walked around the village, neither going to the stationery factory nor appearing to be looking for the clan leader or the old village chief to discuss matters.

She would look at this hilltop for a while, then enter an abandoned earthen house to inspect it. The children followed behind her, running all over the hills and fields several times, utterly confused about what she was doing.

In the past two years, many more children had been born in the village, with four or five peers of Da Mao, and this year more good news came from various families, adding three crying babies to the village.

There were also many young people getting married, with four brides marrying out and three families welcoming new wives, the festive banquets stretching from the start of the year to the end, showing that everyone’s lives were becoming more prosperous.

There were also many newcomers, with workers from Liu Family Village making up only two-fifths of the stationery factory, the rest continuously being expanded by recruiting people from nearby villages.

Qin Yao stood atop a grass-covered abandoned hillside, looking at the bustling small village below, suddenly feeling that if the village school was built, Liu Family Village could have a new look.

"It’s decided, right here!"

Qin Yao stomped on the ground beneath her feet; the first school in Liu Family Village would be built on this abandoned hillside.

The location was to the east and in the same parallel line as her home yard, except with a large field in between.

Her home yard was inside the village, and this hillside was at the village entrance, closer to Liu the carpenter’s house.

To get to this hilltop, you first need to cross the bridge beneath Liu the carpenter’s house, and around the back of his house to reach it.

From the opposite bank, one can see the entire Liu Family Village settlement, the view was very spacious.

The main point was that the land was relatively flat, and with some slight modification, a large plaza could be leveled out, leaving space for children’s playground aside from the main school building, focusing on a comprehensive development of morals, intelligence, physical, aesthetic skills.

However, the path over was very narrow, to make it convenient for the children it would need to be widened.

"How about building the school here, what do you think?" Qin Yao suddenly turned around, smiling and asking the group of children in the grass behind her.

The children, who thought they had hidden well, finally realized they had long been exposed and jumped out of the grass, chirping as they surveyed the slope.

Da Niu pretended to nod enthusiastically, saying, "Not bad, not bad."

The other children then laughed, giving Little Lai Fu a look, urging him to talk to Qin Yao.

Little Lai Fu also didn’t understand why the village children were so afraid of Qin Yao, seeing them unwilling to join him in approaching, he could only go alone to Qin Yao.

"Madam, you’ve been walking around the village, were you selecting the location for the school’s site for everyone?"

Qin Yao nodded, "That’s right."

"So afterward, we’ll have a school in our village?" A child behind her boldly asked.

Qin Yao found them amusing, fear and curiosity keeping them respectful, she maintained a cool composure, responding with a nod.

"Once the location is confirmed and the whole village agrees, we’ll report to the village chief, then into town to apply for government subsidies, then we can start breaking ground."

Another child asked, "Is it that troublesome, village chief, can we attend school this year?"

Qin Yao calculated in her heart, uncertainly saying, "If we move quickly, maybe by September."

Little Lai Fu hurried to ask, "And if it’s slow?"

"Then it’ll have to wait until next spring," Qin Yao replied.

Upon hearing this, a group of children immediately sighed in disappointment, realizing it was still a long time away.

But after sighing, they enthusiastically said, "Then at that time we will all help dig and build the school!"

Qin Yao laughed heartily, "Alright, everyone can contribute to their hometown, those who show enthusiasm will receive a medal."

"What’s a medal?" Little Lai Fu’s eyes lit up.

Qin Yao replied, "I’ll have the Lower River Village blacksmith craft a special round seal, with names and the title of outstanding village resident printed on it, awarded only to the most enthusiastic, excellent helpers."

After hearing this description, all the children gasped in awe, practically unable to be more excited.

Some impatient kids immediately ran downhill to tell their parents.

After a short while, when Qin Yao returned to the village, everyone already knew about the school building site she’d chosen.

By evening, when Qin Yao summoned the village elders to the ancestral hall for a meeting, she hadn’t started speaking before the clan leader said:

"Yao Niang, the spot you chose is good, let’s do as you thought!"

Recalling his grandson at home sharpening the hoe, he laughed:

"The village children are all itching now, tomorrow you should go to county government to apply for our village’s official subsidy, we’ll pick the manpower in the village for you while you’re away, and once you’re back we’ll start construction!"

The other elders agreed, "Yes, yes, hurry into town."

Qin Yao wished she could fly into town now, but there was still the funding issue to discuss.

She already asked Song Zhang, and the official subsidy, combined with the county subsidy, totaled a hundred and twenty taels of silver, but it’s not received in full immediately upon application.