Qin Xiaozhou felt a lump in her throat, and only after a violent coughing fit could she breathe smoothly. Tears streamed down her face uncontrollably, an indescribable mix of sorrow, grief, and something else. "Qin..."

She really couldn't think of a way to address Qin Fu.

“From this day forward, I am no longer your daughter. As for my surname, it will not be yours. I have heard that there is a man named Qin Buxu who is a capable person. Today, I dare to take the surname of this ancestor. I am still Qin Xiaozhou.”

Qin Fu gave Qin Xiaozhou a deep look. "You're a good person. I'm at ease leaving your sister with you." He turned to leave, then turned back. "And raise Niu Niu too. If you really don't want to, just have her do chores like laundry and cooking, and feed her. In a couple of years, you can arrange a marriage for her and collect some betrothal gifts..."

"Stop!" Qin Xiaozhou couldn't control her tears, unsure whether it was because she was sad or because she felt nauseous and wanted to vomit.

Lu Yunfeng handed over a handkerchief, "I know I need the official document from the yamen to sever ties between relatives. You rest, I'll do it."

Qin Xiaozhou wiped away her tears, let out a long breath, shook her head to stop Lu Yunfeng. These things had to be done by her personally. She walked up to Qin Fu and said, "Since it's about severing ties, let's do it cleanly. Now is the perfect time to go to the yamen."

"No need to go." A voice came from outside the crowd, authoritative and dignified. Magistrate Sun, with his yamen runners, cleared the crowd. "I have already sent my clerk with the documents. You can sign and affix your seals."

The imperial court has laws that state that unless a case is being heard in court, commoners are not required to kneel before any official. Qin Xiaozhou breathed a sigh of relief; she didn't want to kneel before anyone. "Thank you, Magistrate."

The documents were quickly laid out on the table, and Qin Fu eagerly signed his name, followed by Qin Xiaozhou.

Qin Niu Niu remained huddled to the side, head bowed. Qin Fu pulled her close, took his little daughter's hand from the swaddling clothes, and made her signature. He was in a dilemma regarding Qin Niu Niu, after all, she had no blood relation to Qin Xiaozhou. He rubbed his hands together, "Xiaozhou, what about this little girl..."

Qin Fu seemed to only then realize that Qin Xiaozhou had now married into the Lu family, and that adopting a child meant raising the child in the Lu family. He should at least acknowledge the child's presence. So, he turned to Lu Yunfeng and cried, "Son-in-law... Lu family boy, look, why don't we raise Niu Niu too? She has a small appetite and can't eat much."

Qin Niu Niu remained standing there numbly, her expression unreadable.

Qin Xiaozhou walked over, took her hand, held the brush, and wrote three characters under the document: "Qin Jinshu, from now on you will take my surname and be called this."

Qin Jinshu suddenly looked up, her eyes filled with disbelief, yet a glimmer of light appeared in them. Her face was filthy, her hair disheveled, and she was as thin as a rake, like a little dog.

Qin Xiaozhou patted her, "Take your little sister inside."

Qin Fu left with the documents, satisfied. Qin Xiaozhou and Lu Yunfeng were about to welcome the magistrate to Chen Haiping's restaurant, as a way of doing Chen Haiping a favor. However, Magistrate Sun did not go. He only asked at the entrance of the restaurant, "I heard you are opening a brothel?"

"This matter still needs to be decided by the magistrate," Qin Xiaozhou bowed. "Everything is up to you, sir."

The groundwork has been laid, and as long as Magistrate Sun isn't stupid, he'll agree. From building the embroidery tower to its opening, it will solve the employment problem for many people in the county. The people in the county will earn money and pay taxes, and Magistrate Sun's promotion and wealth will be within reach.

"Hahaha! Good." The magistrate was satisfied with Qin Xiaozhou's attitude and her intelligence. "This matter is approved, but you can choose the address?"

Qin Xiaozhou knew that the magistrate also understood the benefits of the completed embroidery building, so he generously said, "The embroidery building should be large, and we hope that Your Excellency will choose the location."

The magistrate was even more pleased, saying, "I believe that the foot of the western mountain in the western suburbs of the city is a feasible option."

Xishan is small, a low stone slope, but it is surrounded by large rocks, so it is not good for growing crops. Therefore, not many people live there, and there are not many good plots of land. It is quite desolate. However, this piece of land is next to the river behind Qin Xiaozhou's cake building. If a dock is built not far from the embroidery building in the future, it will be extremely convenient to transport silk threads and fabrics in or embroidery products out.

The magistrate stroked his beard and addressed the crowd, “Gentlemen, once the embroidery tower is built, the construction, unloading, silkworm rearing, and weaving will all be ways to make a living. It all depends on whether you are willing to do so.”

"Silkworm farming?!?!" A woman exclaimed excitedly. "I know how to do that, Manager Qin. The silk threads spun by the silkworms I raise are top-notch."

"My lord, I am physically strong and can carry stones and logs without any problem. How can I register?"

"Hey! I can weave silk fabric."

"I never thought that opening a brothel would lead to so many things to do. I don't ask for great wealth and status, I just need to be able to support my family."

"I want to go back and weave flat silkworms; these are the best for raising silkworms."

"I never imagined that a mere embroidered pavilion could bring us so many benefits!"

"It's May now, there's still time to raise silkworms for a quarter. I'll go buy silkworm eggs now... I know a family in the next county who raises silkworms, but I don't know if they still have any eggs left."

The crowd dispersed noisily, still expressing their gratitude to the magistrate.

Qin Xiaozhou instantly realized that this county magistrate was not as mediocre as he appeared. This man was planning a grand business empire in his mind, but he probably just didn't have the opportunity before, so he remained an ordinary county magistrate without any major achievements. Now, however, he was the pioneer in this county magistrate's empire.

He cupped his hands in congratulations, saying, "Congratulations, Magistrate."

Magistrate Sun squinted at the woman before him, then laughed loudly and left. His advisor, who was following behind him, stroked his goatee, gave Qin Xiaozhou a meaningful look, and then followed him away.

After the crowd dispersed, Qin Xiaozhou saw Sun Yuanyuan looking relieved from afar and couldn't help but shake his head and smile. They had already been scared away, but unexpectedly, the county magistrate was brought in.

My dear reader, there's more to this chapter! Please click the next page to continue reading—even more exciting content awaits!