Li Yao was surprised to find that the county magistrate's wife was very talkative.
Although she was from a distinguished family, the topics she chatted with Li Yao about were all agricultural matters relating to the fields and people's livelihoods. It was clear that she had some knowledge about these things, but not very thorough.
Fortunately, Li Yao's understanding about farming matters was also limited, so the two could chat quite happily with their half-baked knowledge.
"Alas," the county magistrate's wife sighed softly in the end, "Ever since my husband got transferred here, we've encountered the once-in-a-century severe drought. He's so worried that he can't even eat. And I don't have any good solutions either."
"Natural disasters are indeed very difficult to deal with."
"I've heard some folk legends before," said the county magistrate's wife. "They say that whenever there are consecutive years of major disasters like this, the Jade Emperor will send down an immortal to help the common people get through the hard times."
Li Yao scoffed internally. She had heard this legend when she was little, but never saw it happen.
"Young lady, if an immortal really descended to earth, how do you think he would help the common people of the world?"
"Well..." Li Yao twitched her mouth and said, "I think... He should have come a few years earlier and build water conservancy projects and develop transportation in advance. That way people wouldn't have to worry about droughts or floods."
The county magistrate's wife pondered her words for a moment, then her eyes lit up.
"Young lady, you really have great insight and vision. This is more enlightened than some senior officials in the capital!"
The more Li Yao listened, the more she realized something was wrong.
Why was the county magistrate's wife seizing every opportunity to flatter her like this?
This could only mean one thing - she wanted something big from her!
No, she absolutely couldn't continue this conversation today. She had to find an excuse to slip away.
"Madam, I'm just a lazy housewife. The farthest I've been is the next county over. I don't have any great insights." Li Yao said, "Oh, speaking of which, it's getting late. I still have braised goose cooking at home and must get back."
"Well... alright then," the county magistrate's wife said reluctantly. "When you have time, feel free to come find me at the county office."
Li Yao would rather not.
Getting involved with officials undoubtedly had many benefits, but even more troubles.
After Li Yao left, the county magistrate's wife did not stay long either. She went straight back to the county office.
She had the purchased green ointment neatly packaged and rushed back to the capital, before gently walking into County Magistrate Song's study.
"You're back?"
"Mm," said the county magistrate's wife. "I got a good measure of her today. That Li Yao is really a fierce one."
"Oh? Tell me about it."
"There's a Zhang Guangsheng from the market. He's given over ten gifts to the county office. Do you remember him, my lord?"
When the county magistrate heard this name, he got a headache.
He was from an influential family in Baichuan Market and had great wealth. Even the county secretary had to speak for him. And he had heard that several yamen runners were also quite close with him.
But he broke rules openly without any concrete evidence of wrongdoing, so no one could touch him.
"What about him?"
"Li Yao beat him up badly in public. Beat him until he was a sorry sight."
County Magistrate Song: ......
......
The husband and wife chatted for half an hour, even forgetting to eat lunch.
Finally, the county magistrate's wife concluded: "The impression Li Yao gives me can be described in four words."
"What four words?"
"Inscrutable and unfathomable."
County Magistrate Song's eyebrows furrowed slightly.
He knew that his wife's father was a scholar from the Imperial College, and she had been well-read since childhood and had discerning eyes. For her to give such an evaluation meant that this Li Yao was indeed not an ordinary country woman, as he had guessed.
"My lord," said the county magistrate's wife. "A person like this may be useful to you, to help you accomplish things and build up your political record..."
"Alright, enough." Talking about his political record put County Magistrate Song in a bad mood. "The commoners can barely afford meals right now. How can I be bothered to think about my record? Don't keep mentioning this to me."
The county magistrate's wife sighed internally. Why was her husband so stubborn?
......
Returning home, Li Yao had nothing to do in the afternoon, so she went to train in the mountains.
At dusk, she happened to run into Third and Fourth Son, who were up the mountain herding pigs and picking tea seeds. The two brothers had a good haul today, filling up a whole basket again, and happily came to exchange it for copper coins with her.
On the way home, Li Yao couldn't help asking, "You've saved up so much money, what are you planning to use it for?"
"I want to buy Mother a lot of nice clothes," Fourth Son said quickly, "And lots of tasty food for Mother too."
Li Yao chuckled softly. Although Fourth Son didn't seem capable of much, his sweet talk was truly something.
Of course, it wasn't that he was completely useless. He was still young, and he was decent at arithmetic now, able to compete with Second Son.
It was just that mathematics wasn't valued very highly in a place like this, so even if he was clever, it would be hard for him to accomplish great things.
"What about you, Third Son?"
"I want to buy a big sword!" Third Son said eagerly. "And a suit of armor, and a warhorse! In the future I want to be a mighty general and kill savages at the border!"
Li Yao twitched her mouth. Little boys just loved violence.
Speaking of which, her late husband had been conscripted until he passed away.
Military service was a little different in this era though. Men had to serve from age sixteen to sixty, averaging three months a year stationed at the border. But during that time, they had to provide their own provisions and weapons.
In short, the court couldn't support too many professional soldiers, yet the borders still needed defence, so they came up with this method.
But the drawbacks were also obvious.
These part-time peasant-soldiers barely had any real combat abilities. In the event of large-scale war, casualties were bound to be enormous.
So in ancient wars, it was usually a case of a general gaining success at the cost of thousands of bones turning to dust.
Originally after her husband died, Da Zhuang would have had to take his place at the border. But after her tearful pleas, Clerk Li took pity on her family's circumstances and granted a temporary exemption.
Now that she had money, she didn't need to worry about this issue either. She could directly pay a fee, or pay someone to take his place.
But she estimated that in a few years, when Third Son grew a bit older, even his mother wouldn't be able to restrain his ambitious spirit.
"You really want to be a mighty general?" Li Yao asked.
"Mm!"
"A man's word is his bond. If you say you'll do it, you must see it through," said Li Yao. "But it won't be as easy as you imagine. If you really want to do this, you must start training from now."
"Mother, how should I train?"
Li Yao thought for a moment. "From now on, come with me to the mountains every morning and evening. I'll think of ways to train you."
"Okay! Thank you Mother!"
"Also," Li Yao continued. "During the day, you need to study with your Second Brother."
"What do I need to study for if I want to be a general?"
"Of course to make you smarter," said Li Yao. "If you can't even recognize big characters and can't read military books, how will you lead troops into battle?"
Third Son thought about it and realized she was right. He nodded heavily.
Starting today, he would train hard and study diligently.
When he turned sixteen, he could go to the battlefield and kill enemies!