Reborn as a Happy Wife in a Rural Family
Chapter 81: Xiao Han Passes the Childlife

Chapter 81: Chapter 81: Xiao Han Passes the Childlife

It wasn’t that she felt compelled to test human nature this way.

As the saying goes, human hearts are hard to fathom. These people were her closest kin, and she didn’t want her dearest ones to be greedy individuals.

In the future, she would become wealthier, and more and more people would be envious of her.

She didn’t want her relatives to harbor ill feelings over money and become estranged from her.

She truly considered Dashuang and Xiaoshuang her younger brothers, and Ms. Wu her mother.

Now, seeing that her family showed no trace of greed or complaint, Gu Qingli felt somewhat guilty, thinking she had been too cautious and easily alarmed.

Gu Qingli placed the box she had been holding back into Ms. Wu’s hands and said, "Mother, just take it. In the future, accept whatever I give you." _{f\r(e)ewe.b no\vel.com}

"This?"

Ms. Wu hesitated and glanced at Gu Dalin. He scratched his head and finally nodded. "It’s Li’er’s heartfelt gesture, so just accept it. We just need to be good to Li’er from now on."

The two boys said nothing. Regardless of whether their mother accepted it or not, they resolved to repay their sister’s kindness when they grew up.

That night, after dinner, the couple washed up and went to bed. Xiao Yunjing pulled Gu Qingli into his arms and said, "Li’er, Father and I have to go out tomorrow. We’ll be back in about a month, twenty days at the minimum."

"Okay, go handle your affairs. Don’t worry about us."

"Mm, I’ve arranged for four people from the Secret Sect to come. If you need anything, just call out, and they will appear."

"There isn’t much for me to handle here. Let them watch over Mother and the others. I can ask Wuqing to come back."

Xiao Yunjing thought that was a good idea. Wuqing had been with Li’er for some time, so it would be fine for him to accompany her openly.

"That’s fine."

Xiao Yunjing gave a series of further instructions, and only after he had his fill of her did he hold her and go to sleep.

With their arms entwined and heads nestling together, they were like a pair of mandarin ducks in a pond.

「The next day」

When Gu Qingli woke up, Xiao Yunjing had already left, and Wuqing had arrived.

After breakfast, the three sisters-in-law and Wuqing went up the mountain to clear the wild land. Gu Qingli planned to plant vegetables.

"Sister-in-law, what do we plan to plant once we clear the land?" Ms. Yang asked.

"Vegetables. We don’t have anything else to do right now, so let’s grow our own food."

"That’s good. It’s uncomfortable not having greens to eat."

Primarily because it’s hard to use the latrine.

It was strange; things had gotten better once they returned home. Ms. Yang attributed this to the lack of greens.

We have Chinese cabbage and radishes at home, but there are no fresh greens to buy in the city. If we grow our own, we can bring vegetables when we go to the County Town. Buying vegetables in the city is quite expensive. Once I learn from Third Sister-in-law, I can grow my own food wherever I am in the future.

The four of them worked for a whole day and only cleared about two mu of land. The progress is a bit slow, Gu Qingli thought.

So, the next day, Gu Qingli asked the four men from the Secret Sect to come out and help dig the soil.

No one came here year-round, so they didn’t need to worry about being seen.

The next day, with the four men helping, they managed to clear a full five mu of land.

Seven mu of land in total. Gu Qingli felt this was enough; if not, they could clear more later.

It took them two more days to plant the vegetable seeds.

Gu Qingli didn’t just plant chili peppers; she also mixed in seeds for green beans, cowpeas, and eggplants.

Anyway, Ms. Yang, Ms. Wang, and the unsophisticated men from the Secret Sect wouldn’t recognize the different vegetable seeds.

In the blink of an eye, it was the day the results of the Qualification Examination were posted. Aside from Ms. Jiang and the two children, Gu Qingli, Ms. Yang, Ms. Wang, and Xiao Han all went to the County Town early in the morning.

The list was posted at the entrance of the yamen, so they headed straight there.

By this time, a large crowd had already gathered in the small square before the yamen, everyone craning their necks to see the list.

Yun No. 12 parked the carriage, and Xiao Han was the first to rush out.

Gu Qingli and the other two sisters-in-law also disembarked.

There were too many people and it was noisy, so the three sisters-in-law just stood outside the crowd, while only Xiao Han squeezed in.

From time to time, voices could be heard, "I passed, I’m number eighty-three!"

"I passed too!"

"SIGH! I didn’t pass," a disappointed voice lamented.

"SIGH! I didn’t pass either."

...

The rising and falling sighs of disappointment nearly drowned out the cheers of those who had passed the Qualification Examination.

Every year, at least a thousand people in the entire county participated in the Qualification Examination, but only the top one hundred from each county were selected.

Those who passed were naturally overjoyed.

Those who didn’t pass would simply try again next time.

Here, as long as one had perseverance, even a sixty-year-old could still take the Qualification Examination.

In other words, there were no age restrictions, only eligibility requirements.

Passing the Qualification Examination was the first step to qualifying for the imperial examinations, marking the true beginning of one’s scholarly path.

It was also the path for scholars from humble backgrounds to rise in status.

Once passed, one could participate in the subsequent annual qualifying exams for a chance to become a Cultivated Talent.

"Huh? This year’s top scorer is Xiao Han from our Qinghe Town! Who is Xiao Han?" a voice suddenly exclaimed.

"Number one, Eldest Sister-in-law! Did you hear? Our Xiao Han is number one!" Ms. Wang exclaimed, grabbing Ms. Yang’s arm excitedly.

Ms. Yang also broke into a wide smile, her thoughts drifting back to the Capital City, back to the Chancellor’s Residence.

Her son is the top scorer in the Qualification Examination! HEHE, let’s see if that old man still dares to say that sons of military men are all boorish louts! Her son is skilled in both scholarly pursuits and martial arts!

"Mother, Second Aunt, Third Aunt, I passed! I’m number one!" Xiao Han squeezed out of the crowd and stood before them, grinning.

"Good boy! My son is indeed amazing!" For once, Ms. Yang abandoned her usual restraint and openly praised her son.

"HEHEHE, it’s all thanks to the excellent teachings of Grandpa, Father, Second Uncle, and Third Uncle," Xiao Han said, scratching his head.

Good, he didn’t offend anyone.

"Did anyone from the Village Chief’s family pass?" Not seeing Gu Chang’an, Gu Qingli asked.

"Yes, Gu Qingfeng is thirty-second, and Gu Qingbai is sixty-eighth."

Xiao Han knew his Third Aunt didn’t get along with Chen Erlang, Gu Qingyan, or Zhang Qiaozui’s family, so he didn’t mention their results.

Gu Qingli nodded. "Alright then. Let’s head back and tell your grandmother; she’s waiting at home."

They all nodded in agreement, turned to leave, got into the carriage, and returned to Qinghe Village.

「Meanwhile」

Chen Erlang wore a dark expression. He scanned the list and found Chen Zihao’s name at fiftieth place. He had expected him to be in the top ten, at least!

"HEHE, congratulations, Brother Zihao!" A few nearby candidates who hadn’t passed immediately offered their congratulations upon seeing his name.

Seeing so many people congratulating him, Chen Erlang felt slightly better. Looking at those who had failed, at least I passed the Qualification Examination and can take the examination for Cultivated Talent, right? As long as I passed, why care about the rank?

Gu Qingming and Gu Qingyan, the two brothers, searched for a long time before finally finding Gu Qingyan’s name among the last few on the list, within the top hundred.

"SIGH! If I’d known his name would be way down here, I would have started looking from the bottom up!" Gu Qingming exclaimed.

His words immediately drew a burst of laughter from those nearby.

Gu Qingyan shot him a fierce glare.

"What are you laughing at? At least my second brother passed! Did you?" Realizing he had angered his younger brother, Gu Qingming immediately roared at the laughing crowd.

The laughers immediately fell silent. Glancing at Gu Qingyan, who looked ready to explode, they quietly dispersed.

Gu Qingyan, his face dark, turned and pushed his way out of the crowd.