Liu Yuqin looked outside the research institute compound, wondering what the difference was between this place and those run-down places in the countryside. The children were still playing outside. Some of the children had gone to school, but they still loved playing in the mud when they came back.

"Are you spending the New Year here?" Xiao Dayu asked.

"If we don't celebrate the New Year here, then where should we celebrate it?" Liu Yuqin rolled her eyes.

"Where is the child? Do you want to take him over?" Xiao Dayu asked.

"No, just let him stay with my mother." Liu Yuqin didn't want to see her son, and she didn't feed him much. She felt that if she hadn't had this child, she would have remarried sooner, perhaps to someone better.

It was precisely because Liu Yuqin knew she couldn't marry anyone better that she chose Xiao Dayu. She chose this person deliberately, thinking that she would be able to annoy Liu Yulian in the future.

"It's not that good here," Liu Yuqin said. "You want the child to suffer here? It's not your child, you don't know how to feel bad."

"..." Xiao Dayu thought that he really didn't feel that much for Liu Yuqin's child, and Liu Yuqin hadn't let the child come over. Such a young child, Liu Yuqin didn't even take care of the child herself. Xiao Dayu could tell that Liu Yuqin didn't like the child very much.

If Xiao Dayu had a child, he would certainly let the child stay here. Otherwise, where would he let the child go?

In other words, Liu Yuqin could only say such things if she had other houses.

Xiao Dayu didn't like Liu Yuqin very much. She was always like that. Plus, Liu Yuqin was remarried, which made Xiao Dayu even more dissatisfied.

Even though Xiao Dayu knew from the beginning that Liu Yuqin was remarrying and he knew that Liu Yuqin was not a virgin, he still thought so in his heart.

"Okay, okay, I'm not saying you're a bad person," Liu Yuqin said. "Just think about it. You're so much older than Liu Yulian. If she can become the director of the research institute, why can't you?"

"What about you?" Xiao Dayu was a little angry. "If she can do it, why can't you, her sister?"

"That's because she is the legitimate daughter and I am just a concubine's daughter." Liu Yuqin found a reason for herself.

“…” Xiao Dayu thought this was not a reason at all.

Xiao Dayu didn't argue with Liu Yuqin because he felt it was unnecessary. Liu Yuqin was someone who could talk a lot without him arguing with her. He really regretted marrying Liu Yuqin.

In recent days, some people have teased him, saying that he is different now that he married the daughter of a marquis.

Some people got along well with Xiao Dayu, so others reminded him, "You should be more careful. It's okay to interact with your neighbors on a daily basis, but it's not good to try to win them over with small favors. If you're not careful, it will become corruption and bribery. Do you still want to stay in the institute?"

"Give them fewer gifts in the future, and just have normal interactions." Xiao Dayu said simply, "They are just ordinary people. Whoever the court appoints as an official is who they are, and these people have no control over it. If you give them something, they will just say it, and their families can't help us."

What Xiao Dayu said was true. The researchers around him were not high-ranking officials, nor were they responsible for the appointment of officials in the institute. It was completely useless for Liu Yuqin to do those things.

"That's right." Liu Yuqin said, "I was mistaken. What kind of tricks can these people come up with?"

But Liu Yuqin still hasn't thought about moving away. She wants to stay here for a while.

In the palace, the emperor's health has not been very good recently. Many ministers have asked to see the emperor, but they were all rejected by the emperor.

The Third Prince also requested an audience with the Emperor. He didn't dare not go, as all the other princes had gone. If he didn't go, wouldn't it seem like he was too ignorant? He had been forced by the Cen family to fight for the throne before. If he didn't behave better, what would he do in the future?

The emperor did not see many of the princes, but only a few. Among them, the emperor thought the third prince was the most timid and cowardly, and that the third prince's line had been the most fierce in the previous struggle for the throne.

At that time, the Cen family was powerful and influential, and they were able to win over many people. The maternal families of the other princes were not as powerful, and some princes withdrew from the competition early on, while others simply did not participate.

"Father." The Third Prince met the Emperor, "Wait... wait, let Cen go to the temple to pray for the royal family."

The Third Prince felt a little scared when he saw the Emperor looking at him. Even though the Emperor's health was already very poor, the Third Prince was still worried. He had to show his determination and it was impossible for him to contact his so-called old subordinates.

The Third Prince had no intention of contacting the scattered members of the Cen family, some of whom had not yet been dug out. He only thought that after the emperor's death, he would be lucky enough to be a leisurely prince.

The Third Prince pulled out another list and said, "These are some of the people left behind by the Cen family. I dare not use them."

If the Third Prince said these things again after the emperor passed away, he was afraid that he would be held accountable for the past and would not be able to live a good life.

"..." The emperor did not expect the third prince to do this. "Your hands are shaking."

"Tream...don't shake, don't shake." said the third prince.

After the Third Prince said this, he trembled even more violently.

"You keep shaking." The emperor said quietly.

“…” The Third Prince was indeed still shaking, woohoo, he couldn’t control himself.

The Cen family had been exiled to the northwest for the better part of six months, and their life there wasn't easy. Their farming skills weren't great, but they had the culture medium; otherwise, they would have harvested even less food.

"Father, isn't it time for the child to go to school?" someone from the Cen family asked.

Master Cen San also knew that children should be allowed to study, even if three generations could not take the imperial examinations. If children did not study, how could future generations study well?

"You must study." Master Cen San said, "Let them teach themselves. After all, they have passed the imperial examinations and have achieved academic success. If there is anyone nearby who wants to study, we can join them."

"It needs to be concluded, right?" asked Mrs. Cen San.

"Let's see." Master Cen San thought that his family's life was not so good and the family was short of money.

However, since they were criminals, not everyone would be willing to study with them. Some people might think that their character was bad, after all, the character of a scholar was very important.

They can only give it a try. If they don’t try, how can they know the result?

"Let's talk about it after the New Year." said Master Cen San.

"Yes, it's important to have a good New Year." Mrs. Cen San said, "to avoid other troubles."

Liu Yanqing would often carry his daughter to the school, even though she was still young, he would let her listen. The child was still young, but she was influenced by him subtly.

Everyone in Shiyuan Village knew that Liu Yanqing liked to take his children to school, and the teacher at the school did not stop Liu Yanqing.

"People who come from a marquis's mansion are really different." Widow Zhang sighed.

"Yes." Shi agreed. "The New Year is coming soon. Do you think we should prepare more food or just the same as in previous years?"

"Prepare more." Widow Zhang said, "After you have a child, let the child go to school too."

Widow Zhang thought that the family had enough money, and the most important thing was to let her children study more. Regardless of whether the children had a talent for studying, they had to let them study. Later, even if they did not take the imperial examinations, they could still do other things.

Shi touched her belly and found that she was not pregnant yet.

"Don't worry, you're still young," Widow Zhang said. "It's not necessarily good for a woman to have children early. Some young women lost their first one or two children. This shows that you shouldn't have children too early. Don't worry, don't worry."

"My grandson's wife isn't too worried," Shi said with a smile, "I just hope that life will get better and better. I have hope."

"That's right," said Widow Zhang.

Widow Zhang's family was not so wealthy before, and many families did not dare to marry their daughters to her because they thought she was very fierce and powerful, and also because the Zhang family was poor.

Even though the Zhang family is large and more people can do more work, it is difficult to support people if they have no money and are poor.

After Widow Zhang's family got better, some people regretted not marrying their daughters to her family earlier. If Widow Zhang were to propose a match for her grandson now, she would be even more picky.

Widow Zhang wanted to find a capable and willing grandson who would do the work. She thought having a grandson like Miss Lin San was enough.

They can't suppress others all the time, so they have to deal with these things after a period of time.

"Whether you give birth to a girl or a boy in the future, she must go to school," Widow Zhang added, "Don't think about just raising her and marrying her off."

“…” Shi was thinking about her younger sisters at home.

"Your sisters, the younger ones should go to school, and the older ones should learn a few words when they have time," Widow Zhang said. "They also have to do some work."

Widow Zhang couldn't stop those people from working. If no one worked, how would they eat? Widow Zhang said this because she saw the benefits of women studying.

If the girls in the family could learn a few words, it would be easier for them to get married.

In the capital, at the Marquis of Jingning's mansion, Liu Yulian received money from the people of the northwest manor. The manor had made some money, and Liu Yulian had previously told them to keep some of it and send the rest to her.

There were also people from Zhuangzi who followed the caravan into the capital. They wanted to see what seeds the capital had that they could bring back, or what other things the capital had.

Liu Yulian met with the people from the Northwest Manor. She had heard about the Rongning Shrine when she came back from the seaside. She was not surprised to hear the people from the manor talking about the Rongning Shrine again.

"How about this? We don't have to bring the money we earn from the farm over there anymore." Liu Yulian thought for a moment. "The northwest is close to the border, there's a lot of war, and there are a lot of poor children there. We can use the money to help the elderly, the weak, women, children, and orphans."

Liu Yulian had more money in her hands, so she didn't rely on that little money anymore. She thought that the northwest was far from the capital. Although these people sent money once a year, the amount was not particularly large. They came to the capital whenever they wanted. Even if they didn't send money, she would check the account book.

"We'll buy some more land every year," Liu Yulian said. "With income, we can better support those people."

"The princess has a kind heart." said the visitor.

"It's just a small token of my appreciation," Liu Yulian said. "The Emperor was so kind that he allowed me to return to the capital. When I was in the northwest, the neighbors on both sides were all very nice people."

"Yes." The visitor nodded. He still felt that Princess Rongning was kind-hearted.

"Now that you're in the capital, go take a walk. If time is tight and you can't make it back before the New Year, then there's no need to rush back. You can spend the New Year in the capital just the same," Liu Yulian said. "There's always a place for you to stay."

Liu Yulian didn't know how many Rongning Temples there were in the Daliang Dynasty, and she couldn't control it. All she could do was to make herself better and do more good deeds. If others saw her doing so, perhaps they would do the same.

The Rongning Temple didn't need to be extravagant and magnificent. Liu Yulian believed that such things were unimportant. The money donated by others should be taken from the people and used for the people.

Before, when Liu Yulian attended a banquet, someone mentioned this matter, and Liu Yulian said this directly.

The current imperial court does not care about places outside the secular world, that is, it does not care much about places like temples. Temples have a great deal of autonomy and initiative, unless they rebel.

The temple keeper of Rongning Temple was naturally selected locally. As for whether the temple keeper would continue to be the next generation or be chosen from another family, the imperial court did not interfere.

Liu Yulian said that because the Rongning Temple was related to her. She didn't want the temple to waste so much money in vain, nor did she want anyone to use the temple to make money. She hoped that the incense money could be used for more appropriate purposes.

After Liu Yulian's words spread, the Rongning Temples did exactly that. They used the incense money to do charity. They also bought some properties for the Rongning Temple. The Rongning Temples in various places did not communicate with each other's finances, and each managed its own.

After the people from the manor left, Liu Yulian had someone send some wine and other things to Liu's mother and others. These things were brought from the manor by those people, and Liu Yulian divided them up.

The New Year is coming again!

Liu Yulian sighed that time flies so fast.

"Mom." Liu Yulian came over to her mother, "She's knitting a sweater."

"Yes." Liu's mother nodded. "Sweaters are easier to knit because the needles aren't that fine."

Liu's mother, now elderly, rarely picks up a needle and thread. She believes knitting is more suitable for her, and she also wants to make a few sweaters for her grandchildren, to show her care for them.

"That's right." Liu Yulian said.

In the future, if there are machines to knit sweaters, people will no longer have to knit sweaters.

It's still early to say this, though. Liu Yulian has already discovered that steam engines aren't that easy to research. Researchers at the research institute are already working hard on steam engines, striving to increase their power. However, current steam engines aren't capable of powerful tasks, only simple ones.

Some people also think that steam engines are not that easy to use and are not as good as manual labor.

Liu Yulian wanted them to continue their research. Everything is difficult at the beginning, and sooner or later they would realize what a great invention the steam engine was.

In the future, things made by hand will become more expensive.

"Let's knit a scarf." Liu Yulian said.

"Is it because scarves are long? It's convenient?" Liu's mother said with a smile, "You are such a good needleworker, but you still like to be lazy?"

"I'm not being lazy. I just appreciate your hard work," Liu Yulian said. "The sweaters you knit may not be as beautiful as those made by the servants. Be careful. They say they put your sweaters in the bottom of the closet. That means they value you."

"Wear it inside." Liu's mother said, "It's still okay. It's not that ugly."

"It's not that ugly." Liu Yulian picked up the half-finished sweater. It was okay. Liu Yulian thought that her mother didn't knit sweaters often. "It's so cold, I'm too lazy to do it."

"You didn't say you were cold when you were sorting the books." said Liu's mother.

"That's because I like it." Liu Yulian thought about those books and felt that it was not easy. She thought it would be better to start with the math books, simple math.

Arabic numerals, 1, 2, 3...+, -, x, ÷...

Liu Yulian thought it was worth learning these things first. Although people in this era were very good at using abacus, they should also learn more convenient knowledge. Liu Yulian didn't want her country to fall behind other countries. She didn't know how other countries were doing now.

But since Liu Yulian came to this dynasty, she should do something.

"After a while, the math book will be available." Liu Yulian said that children in ancient times were not like people in later generations.

In later generations, people go through kindergarten, elementary school, high school, and college, and by the time they graduate from college, they are already in their twenties. But in ancient times, people could take the examination for Tongsheng at a young age and pass the Jinshi examination in their teens.

People in ancient times had short lifespans and they did not have much time to study.

Liu Yulian had never written a textbook; she simply listed what she knew. Taking advantage of the free time during the Lunar New Year holiday, she compiled more information.

Liu Yulian had other things to do after the spring. Editing a book was no easy task, and other people didn't understand mathematical symbols, so Liu Yulian didn't want to let others write it.

Don't let 2 turn into 3, then it will become Liu Yulian who is wrong and everyone else is right. Liu Yulian still hopes that these numbers are as she thought, which is also to prevent other problems from arising in the future.

"Just do it," said Liu's mother. "When the book comes out, let your nephews and nieces learn from it."

"They have learned some." Liu Yulian had taught them some, but not much.

One day, Liu Qingyun met Mrs. Huo as soon as he came out of the school.

After Liu Qingyun returned to Beijing, he also met Mrs. Huo. However, Liu Qingyun had no intention of going to the Huo family. Mrs. Huo came this time to see what Liu Qingyun's attitude was like and whether it had eased up a bit.

"Brother Yun." Mrs. Huo said.

Liu Qingyun did not go over. He planned to go back directly with the people from Jingning Marquis Mansion who came to pick him up.

"Brother Yun." Seeing this, Mrs. Huo walked over quickly, "Your grandfather hasn't been feeling well recently, and he wants to see you."

Mrs. Huo said that on purpose and let others hear it. If Liu Qingyun didn't go over, then it would be Liu Qingyun, the grandson, who was cold-blooded.

"I'll go home first." Liu Qingyun knew that it was not easy for him to say no, so he could only delay.

"Why go back? Follow your grandmother," said Mrs. Huo.

"Go home and prepare something." Liu Qingyun said.

"No need. Your grandfather doesn't need anything. He just wants to see you." Mrs. Huo said.

Liu Qingyun was in a dilemma. If he didn't go, others would criticize him. He still had to be careful. "I'll take my own carriage."

Liu Qingyun couldn't guarantee that Mrs. Huo wouldn't do anything to hurt him, and he didn't want to stay with Mrs. Huo.

"Okay." Mrs. Huo's face changed slightly. This child was still so worrying.