Now it is late May, with five or six days left until June.

The next academy exam is in early August at Yingtian Prefecture.

Starting from Zijing Mansion to Yingtian Prefecture requires a ten-day journey.

It’s not too far, taking a boat via waterways, though the days on the boat can be quite uncomfortable.

Qi Xian is set to continue participating in the academy exams this year, and the Qi Family has already prepared the boats, just waiting for Liu Ji’s Prefecture exam results to be released, and the journey will begin soon.

Liu Ji barely made it on the Prefecture exam scholar list by securing the last spot; Gongliang Liao felt a bit embarrassed, but it was still a success.

The old man secretly let out a sigh of relief, quietly anticipating what kind of achievements his two disciples might achieve in the academy exam.

However, Gongliang Liao was unaware that his two disciples were the talk of the town in the Prefecture, with one achieving first place in category A and the other finishing last in category C.

However, thinking the other way, the last-place achiever has only seriously studied for about two years, yet outshone countless exam candidates who studied diligently since childhood. Isn’t this another example of late-blooming talent?

Moreover, the criteria for scholars accepting disciples are quite strict. If he lacked any outstanding talents, how could he be accepted as a disciple under such distinguished scholars?

How could he gain the recognition of the Qi Family’s young master, his senior, who bears the title of prodigy?

The sentiment subtly shifted, and now when people mention Liu Ji, the last-place scholar, they can’t help but associate him with a positive image of late bloomers who prove that it’s never too late to start studying.

As for Song Yu, secretly spreading such rumors in accordance with his wife’s request, he stated, "What you think is what others intend for you to think."

As for the truth, who cares?

From this point onward, Liu Ji’s reputation as a diligent and late-blooming scholar began to fade away.

And because of the eccentric way in which the couple checked the exam results on the day they were announced, Liu Ji became quite talked-about in May.

Transforming from an obscure figure into a poor villager that all the scholars within Zijing Mansion started paying attention to.

To catch up with the academy exams at Yingtian Prefecture, Liu Ji still needs to rush back to his ancestral home to handle all related complex paperwork.

Coincidentally, Qin Yao was also about to return, to which Liu Ji exclaimed it was wonderful.

The night before the couple’s return journey, the He Family invited them to a banquet at their mansion, both to congratulate Liu Ji for his success and to bid them farewell.

A late-blooming, diligent scholar possesses certain investment value, no matter who his mentor or senior is, in the eyes of noble families like the He Family.

Thus, the dinner was lavishly prepared, and the couple enjoyed themselves thoroughly, only returning to the inn late at night.

Liu Ji was genuinely a bit drunk; living half his life, tonight was the most glorious moment.

Even Lord Prefect offered a toast to him. Within the whole of Zijing Mansion, how many scholars receive such treatment?

Stumbling into the guest room, he smelled the scent of his bedding, and with a ’thud,’ he collapsed onto the soft quilt, chuckling foolishly to himself.

Qin Yao swept a gaze at Liu Ji lying on the floor like a crawling insect, feeling speechless and slightly exasperated.

She closed the door with a backward motion, maneuvered around the crawling figure, and started preparing to wash up at the basin stand.

Unexpectedly, a shadow crept to her feet, suddenly grabbing her leg tightly.

Lowering her head, she saw a disheveled, flushed handsome face looking up at her, seemingly confused and disoriented.

"I’m now a scholar, so you’re a scholar’s wife. Aren’t you happy?"

He asked, without waiting for her response, dropped his head, and with an air of bossiness said, "Qin Yao! You need to take good care of your husband. You won’t be lacking in food or drink in the future, understand?"

Qin Yao’s eyes narrowed dangerously.

Before she could react, the man suddenly pulled out a shiny silver ingot from under his shoe as if showing off.

"Look!" Like a lord, he threw the five-tael small silver ingot into her arms, "Here’s a reward for you! Take it! Don’t say that I only care about your money. Now I’m someone who can earn silver too..."

Before finishing his sentence, he let go of her leg, squatted on the floor, and began to cry, seeming greatly wronged.

Qin Yao’s mouth twitched; it appears he truly drank too much this time.

Liu Ji began wailing for his mother, "Mother, you don’t know how terribly your son was bullied. That wicked woman strikes with pain and loves to twist heads. Your son is about to be frightened to death... ah!"

Qin Yao chopped down with her hand, causing Liu Ji to cry out in pain and faint on the ground.

Finally, the world became quiet.

Qin Yao weighed the small silver ingot Mr. Liu had rewarded her with; this five-tael silver was likely government funding and donations from local magnates, given to scholars for their travel expenses to the academy exams.

Liu Ji had hidden it away, and were it not for his drunken boastfulness, he would likely never have mentioned it to her.

With a cold snort, Qin Yao stashed away the silver ingot, moved the crawling mound to the bed, washed her face and feet, extinguished the lamp, and went to sleep.

The next morning, Liu Ji awoke with a jolt from a dream, sensing something was amiss but unable to recall what due to his foggy brain. 𝒻𝑟𝘦𝘦𝘸ℯ𝒷𝑛𝘰𝓋ℯ𝘭.𝘤𝘰𝘮

He frantically patted himself all over, feeling a pang of shock; his precious silver ingot was gone!

When Qin Yao got up, someone was darting around the room floor.

She shrugged and didn’t ask, instead got up to wash up, packed their luggage, and then pretended to ask impatiently, "What are you looking for?"

Liu Ji forced a smile, "Oh nothing, just checking the sturdiness of the inn’s floor."

"Are you all packed, wife?"

Seeing Qin Yao nod, afraid of her losing patience and getting angry, Liu Ji gritted his teeth and let it go.

He swiftly jumped up from the floor, claiming he needed to head downstairs to check on Song Yu’s carriage preparations.

Seizing the chance, he searched along the way but didn’t find a trace of it.

Figuring if it was indeed lost, someone would have picked it up by now.

Only after boarding the carriage and watching the city walls of the Prefecture fade away, knowing it was hopeless to retrieve it, did this resilient man finally gaze at the sky at a forty-five-degree angle, tears of heartbreak streaming down his face.

Boo hoo hoo, silver! His silver!

Inside the carriage.

Qin Yao fiddled with the low-grade jade and silk scraps in the box, not daring to look up lest someone saw her almost bursting into laughter.

The Lady’s Box business, Fulong Trading Company finally gave a clear response.

Their interest was confirmed, but they wanted to see the final product before signing a contract with the stationery factory.

Qin Yao agreed readily and took some jade and silk scraps from Fulong Trading Company, planning to have Song Yu assemble a small R&D team to produce the final product as soon as possible upon her return.

Outside the carriage, Liu Ji, surrounded by sorrow, finally regained composure, clutching his chest and speaking to the inside to distract himself from focusing on the lost silver ingot.

Qin Yao, in light of possessing the silver ingot, gave perfunctory responses like "Mm, oh, ah."

The two conversed until Liu Ji mentioned needing to visit the village chief to get documentation stamped, causing Qin Yao to remember she had forgotten to inform Liu Ji of one thing.

But should she tell him now?

Qin Yao took out the small copper seal she had tucked in the waistband and chuckled mischievously.

Why not add a little shock to this man already saddened by the loss of silver?