Transmigrated as a Stepmother: Time to Bring the Family to Prosper! Chapter 464: Subtle Influence

The village chief reluctantly glanced at the docunt twice before returning it to Qin Yao.

"I’m busy these days, if you’re in a hurry, you can take it to the governnt office yourself."

If it were soone else, the village chief wouldn’t have said that.

But everyone knows about Qin Yao’s good relationship with County Magistrate Song in Kaiyang County, hence the suggestion.

Qin Yao had thought the sa but, out of respect for the village chief’s hierarchy, gave him so face by not going directly to the county governnt.

Now that the village chief had said this, she agreed to it readily.

Still early, she bid farewell to the village chief and imdiately headed to the county governnt to deliver the docunt.

Song Zhang was inford by the governnt staff and personally ca over to join in the fun.

He wasn’t wearing his official robes nor was he hosting; he simply stood behind the clerk in charge of school subsidies, watching the proceedings.

The clerk was utterly terrified, drenched in sweat, poor guy!

With the County Magistrate watching, who’d dare to let Qin Yao go through complicated procedures?

She was taken directly into a small office, where the docunt was passed from left hand to right within minutes, recorded by the governnt office.

The clerk said politely, "Miss Qin, the office has now received the docunt. Once your village’s school is built, send word here, and the office will arrange for a date to inspect your village. If all’s well, a teacher will be assigned, and a twenty taels subsidy will be granted..."

The clerk explained everything to Qin Yao, leaving no detail out.

After explaining, he politely asked if she had any questions and offered to clarify further if needed.

Qin Yao glanced at Song Zhang standing behind him, then looked at the clerk sweating bullets, and nodded, saying she understood.

The clerk breathed a huge sigh of relief and didn’t rush her away, allowing her to cool off at the office while he made a hasty retreat.

Qin Yao shook her head, unable to suppress a laugh, "Who knew I’d also experience wielding soone else’s power today."

Song Zhang pointed at her waist’s copper seal, voicing the long-held question he’d been pondering.

"How did you acquire this seal? I didn’t know there was such an open-minded village in Kaiyang County, where won can run for village leader and even win."

Qin Yao licked her sowhat dry lips and replied confidently, "How about you buy a bowl of iced drink, and once my throat is soothed, I’ll explain it all slowly."

Song Zhang imdiately gestured, "Let’s go!"

He eagerly walked ahead, almost impatiently, quickening his pace.

Qin Yao assud he was taking her to a shop, but to her surprise, they ended up at the Song Mansion.

Upon seeing Qin Yao’s disdainful "can’t you be less stingy" look, Song Zhang explained:

"That iced drink costs fifty or sixty coins per bowl, and I can’t afford it on my modest magistrate’s salary."

"But my elder sister made sour plum soup this morning, chilled in the well for a few hours now. It’s probably comparable to that iced drink. Drink as many bowls as you like, isn’t that more cost-effective?"

Qin Yao: "You talk a lot, so you must be right."

The early May sun was so intense at Noon that it felt like it was going to crack skulls open.

At the Song Mansion, the servants brought two bowls of sour plum soup, exuding a refreshing coolness. Qin Yao drank an entire bowl in one go, finding it as good as the iced drinks, and felt entirely at ease,

Sipping the other bowl slowly with a spoon, she recounted the election process at the Liu Family Village’s temple in a storytelling manner to Song Zhang.

Song Zhang was surprised, "Was it really that smooth?"

Yin Le said a few words, and the villagers just switched sides?

Song Zhang felt he was listening to a play and suspected Qin Yao was hiding so crucial information.

Qin Yao truly hid nothing; in fact, what part of this had been smooth?

She had spent years subtly reducing the villagers’ prejudice against won and encouraging won to be confident and strong, which was how she naturally obtained the village leader’s copper seal today.

Of course, she owed a significant debt of gratitude to Yin Le!

Lately, she had been looking into so effective scar removal ointnts at the pharmacy on the street.

"Do you know how much effort it took before I could get the entire village’s female vote this ti?"

Qin Yao ticked off fingers while explaining to Song Zhang, "Before the stationery factory was built, it was just a small workshop with only Yun Niang as a female worker because she learned carpentry from her father."

"Later, when there was a levy in the village and no n to fill the roles, the won stepped in, saving the workshop."

"Afterward, the stationery factory hired many won and provided a way to earn for won in nearby villages. After years of subtle influence, paired with my own rits, I managed to beat the competitors and pave a new path!"

Without any of these efforts, she wouldn’t have received the copper seal.

In contrast, candidates like Liu Dafu and Liu Yang did far less and weren’t as capable but easily made it onto the candidate list.

Then there was Liu Ji, who wasn’t even in the village but managed to make the list, thinking of it amusedly annoyed her.

Having finished the bowl of sour plum soup in her hand, Qin Yao felt her irritation slightly dissipate.

Song Zhang felt the fiery anger burning from her, and while he knew it wasn’t directed at him, he nervously swallowed.

But...

"What do you an by your ’subtle influence’?"

Qin Yao smiled and teasingly asked back, "Aren’t you afraid won will take your power?"

Song Zhang shook his head, giving a small smile, earnestly replying, "If it were taken by a woman like you, lessening the corrupt officials plaguing the people, I would gladly accept it."

He continued, "In truth, we both are fighting the sa enemies, those who seek to harm us, not each other. We need not oppose one another."

Qin Yao raised an eyebrow, sensing more to his words.

She sincerely praised, "You’re the most open-minded person I’ve ever t!"

Song Zhang burst into laughter, rare as Qin Yao’s praise was, he couldn’t help but feel delighted.

However, back to the point, "You still haven’t explained what ’subtle influence’ ans."

Qin Yao pushed the empty bowl toward him, "Another bowl of sour plum soup, and I’ll tell you."

Just a simple bowl of sour plum soup, it’s no trouble.

Song Zhang instructed the maid to fill this bowl and prepare a pot for Qin Yao to take away.

"Now can you tell ?" Song Zhang asked with amusent.

Qin Yao nodded and told him a story.

A story known by every scholar — ncius’ mother moved three tis.

This story explicitly points out the environnt’s influence on a person’s growth.

And this environnt can naturally form or be artificially set and adjusted.

The larger the area, the harder it becos, that’s all.

But when small regions combine, they form the larger environnt.

"I didn’t do much; I just got the village won to do things they thought they couldn’t, but actually could, and do quite excellently."

With that said, she finished her third bowl of sour plum soup.

Qin Yao contentedly took out a handkerchief to wipe her lips, picked up the special pot of sour plum soup prepared by the maid, and rose to leave.

As she walked out of the Song Mansion gates, Song Zhang still sat in a daze at the stone table where they drank, looking completely entranced.