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Chu Qingzhi and Wu Yaqing visited the village chief, explained their purpose, and offered to rent the ancestral hall for three months at the rate of one tael of silver per month.

The village chief agreed immediately, recognizing that reading and education were among the finest pursuits, and that the sound of diligent study would be a fitting tribute to the ancestors.

With the location for the school settled, the next challenge was finding furniture.

At this moment, Grandpa Chu walked over. “Head south to Xu Village. There’s an old schoolhouse there that’s been gathering dust since the teacher passed away. Should have all the desks and chairs we need.”

This was a huge help. Chu Qingzhi said, “I’ll go and negotiate immediately.”

So, Chu Qingzhi and Wu Yaqing hopped on their horses and galloped off to the abandoned schoolhouse.

Riding made for a swift journey, and soon, they were there.

The schoolhouse, also the late teacher’s home, sat quietly at the edge of Xu Village. After the teacher’s death, his family had moved to the county, leaving the place deserted.

But as fate would have it, today marked the teacher’s death anniversary, and his family had returned for remembrance. Chu Qingzhi, who’d been thinking she’d need to track them down in the county, found them right there.

The teacher’s family didn’t make a fuss when they heard why she’d come. They agreed to let her take whatever she needed from the schoolhouse for three taels of silver.

Chu Qingzhi didn’t hesitate to pay up, then enlisted some villagers to help clear out the place. Since she’d already forked over the silver, she figured she might as well get her money’s worth.

Back in the village, they decked out the ancestral hall, turning it into a bona fide classroom.

Now, there was one last question. Who would teach the children?

Chu Qingzhi was on the hunt for talents who could contribute to the family biz, and your average Joe teacher just wouldn’t cut it. As for family members…

Chu Xuhua and Shen Ruyue were up to their eyeballs in business, no chance there.

Chu Xujin was tied up with daily duties at the county office, leaving Ge Lihua, a constable with a bit more flexibility, as a potential backup.

Chu Qingning was still mastering the art of medicine but had a more open schedule, making her another backup option.

As for Chu Qingzhi, the family linchpin, she was swamped with responsibilities, only free in the evenings.

The four youngest in the Chu clan weren’t even in the running.

Wu Yaqing and Hong Yujun, though busy, had more leeway in their schedules and were also considered as backups.

Gathering the potential candidates, Chu Qingzhi laid out the plan for classes. “We’ll teach two subjects: literacy and arithmetic. For literacy, we’re covering over two thousand common characters, aiming to cram it all into two and a half months.”

“For arithmetic, we’ll focus on the nuts and bolts that’ll come in handy for our business. Oh, and memorizing the multiplication table is a must, but that’s child’s play…”

Chu Qingzhi went over the curriculum in detail before polling the group for their thoughts.

Ge Lihua stepped up to the plate for literacy, with Wu Yaqing as her wingman.

Chu Qingning would tackle arithmetic, assisted by Hong Yujun.

Chu Qingzhi herself would pitch in with lesson prep in the evenings.

And just like that, the plan to school the kids was a go.

Chu Qingzhi made another trip to the village chief’s home, this time seeking the chief’s wife.

Qingzhi, just say what you need,” the chief s wife greeted her warmly.

Without beating around the bush, Chu Qingzhi got straight to the point, “I’m in need of two people to prepare lunch for the children starting from tomorrow. It’ll be at my elder brother’s place. We’ll provide the ingredients. It’s for three months. Would you have the time?”

The chief’s wife agreed readily. “Alright, leave this to me.”

Chu Qingzhi expressed her gratitude, “Thankyou so much, ma’am.”

With a wave of her hand, the chief’s wife brushed off the thanks, “It’s nothing, really. No trouble at all.”

After a bit more small talk, Chu Qingzhi hurried off again.

On her way back, she caught up with Chu Haodong, who was in charge of procuring supplies for the workshop. She handed him a shopping list to include ingredients for the kids’ meals in his next run.

Chu Haodong nodded in agreement.

With this new task on her plate, Chu Qingzhi found her morning quickly consumed by a flurry of preparations.

In the military camp.

Inside a tent set up for ancient-style medical experiments, Yuan Hongjun sniffed a bottle of anesthetic, detecting nothing but its intended medicinal scent. After a couple of shakes, he proposed, “Master, shall I test the anesthetic’s effect?”

“You can try,” Chu Qingzhi consented, “but don’t use too much. It’s highly concentrated and can numb for up to three hours. We’ve got a surgery for Yan Yixian soon. Don’t delay it.”

Yuan Hongjun nodded cautiously and dabbed a bit of the anesthetic on his leg with a silver needle.

After a moment of pain, his calf felt numb.

Bao Linjiang, who had been watching closely, inquired after a while, “How does it feel?”

Yuan Hongjun touched his calf. There were palm-sized areas that he couldn’t feel. He gestured at the areas that he couldn’t feel and said, “The effect is very good. Just that tiny amount, and I can’t feel a thing here.”

Excited, Bao Linjiang wanted to try it too.

Chu Qingzhi stopped him, “Let’s finish Yan Yixian’s surgery first.”

Bao Linjiangcomplied, “Yes,Master.”

Yan Yixian was in the tent next door. This tent was newly built and had been sprayed with disinfectant. It had been completely disinfected. In the middle was a rectangular operating table covered with a snow-white cloth. There was a small table beside it. Nothing was placed on it for the time being.

A few footsteps sounded. Then, Chu Qingzhi, Yuan Hongjun, and Bao Linjiang, who were wearing special clothes, appeared. They were holding a small iron ’ plate with many medical equipment and medicine bottles on it. They looked very formal and solemn.

Chu Qingzhi placed the small plate on the table and handed the medicine on the small plate to Yan Yixian. “Drink the medicine. You’ll fall into a deep sleep later. We’ll use anesthetic during the operation. You won’t feel any pain. In short, when you wake up, your leg will already be treated.”

Yan Yixian glanced at the three of them and thought to himself that if he succeeded, he would be able to return to normal in the future. On the other hand, the situation would not be worse. He would take a gamble.

After thinking it through, he took the medicine bowl and drank it in one gulp. Chu Qingzhi said, “The medicine is very effective. You can lie on the operating table now.”

Yan Yixian listened to her and acted accordingly. The moment he lay down, he felt sleepy. He looked at Chu Qingzhi trustingly and closed his eyes.

Chu Qingzhi and her disciples, meticulously prepared and after disinfecting themselves with antiseptic, began the operation.

Yuan Hongjun and Bao Linjiang were especially excited. This was a domain they had never touched before. It was as if they had opened the door to a new century and were exploring the unknown but exciting things.