Mrs. Huang couldn't possibly spend every day at the orphanage, especially since she didn't have the patience for supervising the work.

Fortunately, Zhao Qinglin enjoys these things. She spends her days wandering around the construction site, observing the workers' progress and skills, and calculating the labor and material usage.

After all, no one's money comes from thin air. The Zhao family's snack shop was originally built up by the sisters themselves, one step at a time.

Therefore, none of the Zhao family members are extravagant spenders, except for that freak Zhao Qingyan.

Zhao Qingyan said, "How am I extravagant? Every penny I spend is well spent. For example, buying bracelets."

Even though Zhao Qinglin wore a straw hat every day, she quickly got several shades darker from the sun.

The pretty little girl from before has turned into a dark-skinned girl.

Every time Mrs. Huang saw her granddaughter's face, she couldn't help but close her eyes.

Fortunately, he wrote a letter home, and his family should send someone over in the next few days. Once they arrive, his wife can finally take a break from work.

Because her face had darkened, Zhao Qinglin gave up and didn't care anymore. She even went to a clothing store and bought two sets of men's clothes to wear.

This makes things much more convenient every day, whether I'm at the construction site or buying materials.

"It's great to be a man. Ever since I started wearing this men's clothing, no shopkeeper will give me any strange looks when I go shopping. It really saves me a lot of trouble."

Grandma, why didn't my mother give birth to me as a boy?

Zhao Qinglin sat in the carriage on her way home, sighing to Madam Huang.

Mrs. Huang glanced at her granddaughter sideways.

"You're asking me? Who am I supposed to ask? I wanted to have a daughter, but after having your father and his two sons, I couldn't have any more."

Why don't you tell me how to have a daughter?

Zhao Qinglin looked at Huang Shi with a terrified expression.

"Grandma, are you crazy? How old are you? You still want to have a daughter? Then I'll have to call a baby girl aunt."

"Grandma, please, please don't give birth anymore."

Mrs. Huang patted her granddaughter.

"What nonsense are you talking about? I'm already this old. If I could have a child, I'd be the first in not only Lingnan Prefecture, but probably the first in the entire Shenlong Kingdom."

Haha, isn't that the old hag?

Zhao Qinglin said it was very scary.

The construction of the Fucheng Orphanage was taken over by Hai'an. At this moment, he was laying drainage pipes with the workers, sweating profusely.

He never imagined that a rough and tough guy like himself would be assigned to manage the babies.

However, this also shows that in the eyes of the master, they are useful.

The orphanage in the prefectural city was built very quickly, and it was completed in about a month.

If the house didn't need to be completely dry before moving in, it would probably be full of children by now.

Wooden bunk beds were arranged in rows in the room.

Custom-made quilts, clothes, and other items were continuously delivered to the orphanage.

There were also truckloads of grain and oil, which made the people nearby extremely envious.

Around February, the Fucheng branch of Qingmiao Orphanage opened.

Firecrackers crackled and popped as Huang unveiled the red cloth covering the plaque of the Qingmiao Orphanage. Among those who came to witness the ceremony were not only Prefect Duan, but also county magistrates from surrounding counties.

The magistrate of Qingyang County received recognition from higher authorities because of the establishment of the Qingmiao Orphanage, which made them very envious.

Now that another branch has opened in the prefectural city, they want to learn from their experience and, at the same time, try to gain favor with the prefect.

If I happen to catch the eye of the prefect and get an "excellent" rating in his evaluation, then I'll have a good chance of being promoted in the future.

Unable to get things done, they can only resort to shortcuts; that's all they are.

I thought an orphanage was just a small house housing a few dozen children.

Upon closer inspection, the area enclosed by a high wall was far more impressive than his own back office.

The children live in brick and tile houses, with stone slabs paving the interior floors.

The bedding on the bed was thick and soft, and the cost of these bedding alone was considerable.

The children's classrooms are also arranged in an orderly manner, with the class schedule posted in front of each classroom.

After seeing the curriculum of the orphanage, all the county magistrates wanted to send their own children to attend classes there.

The course content is very comprehensive, and all of it is closely related to daily life.

"These children are so lucky. Why doesn't our county have a Mrs. Zhao?"

The magistrate of Qingfeng County sighed.

The other county magistrates nearby agreed wholeheartedly.

Every county has wealthy families who have far more money than the Zhao family.

Yet not a single family was willing to spend money to build an orphanage, or even to provide porridge.

The Zhao family, however, was willing to spend a lot of money to take care of these homeless children.

This kind of treatment is something that even ordinary farmers may not be able to achieve.

The way everyone looked at Huang changed; it was as if they had seen a gold nugget.

They practically have "Welcome to establish an orphanage in our county" written all over their foreheads.

The hundred taels of gold given by the Emperor were far from enough to establish an orphanage; the Huang family had to invest a considerable amount of their own money.

Lord Duan provided a great deal of help to the orphanage in the prefectural city, including finding teachers of literature and martial arts, as well as craftsmen, all of whom were bound by life-long contracts.

This provides an extra layer of protection for the children in the orphanage.

Of course, the Huang family wasn't stingy; these people were paid quite well. According to Lord Duan, these people were mostly from the capital.

Huang didn't care about these people's backgrounds; as long as they weren't perverts and could educate the children well, that was enough.

The Emperor, far away in the capital palace, was fully aware of the Zhao family's series of actions.

As he looked at the words on the secret report, he, as the ruler of a country, fell into deep thought.

After everything at the orphanage was back on track, Mrs. Huang took Zhao Qinglin home.

Little did she know, a surprise awaited her at home.

On the day she arrived home, Huang received a subsidy of tens of thousands of taels of silver from Zhao Qingyan.

"Sweetie, what's this? Where did it come from?"

Madam Huang looked at the thick stack of silver notes in her hand, puzzled.

Zhao Qingyan smiled and said,

"A few days ago, people came to Wangyuelou and bought all the wine they had brewed. This is half of the deposit."

The remaining money will be delivered after the wine is sold. It's the same price as last year.

Madam Huang nodded. "My dear girl, this is your money. You can't take it."

Zhao Qingyan shook her head.

"Grandma, the sales home is a bottomless pit. It was my idea to open the sales home. Therefore, I should bear the expenses in this regard."

Let's use the money for milk to support our family.

I'm thinking about whether our family should open a soy sauce workshop. It seems we should cooperate with Wangyuelou, since it's good to be under their protection.

Our family has now caught the eye of those in power.

I didn't dare use my social media account for a while. Only recently have all those eyes (on my social media profile) finally left.