Free Web NovelChapter 685: Chapter 685: Generously Bold
Caiwei said: "Write down the names, ages, and birthplaces of the wife and child, as well as the family’s general occupation, then let the child answer a few basic questions from me."
Qin Yao understood, "A background check, right?"
"What?" Caiwei was startled, not having heard clearly.
Qin Yao gave an awkward smile, "Nothing much, I’ll write, you ask."
Caiwei looked at Si Niang, who had suddenly become nervous, and told her not to worry. The two moved aside to sit face to face and began asking questions.
Si Niang thought Caiwei would test her schoolwork and was all prepared for it.
Unexpectedly, Caiwei’s first question was: "Liu Pingling, right? What do you usually like to do?"
Si Niang paused for a moment, then easily replied: "I usually like reading, practicing calligraphy, and catching fish in the river."
Playing with mud and playing house were things she felt too embarrassed to mention.
Caiwei asked again: "Have you ever attended school?"
"Yes, yes, I went to a free school." Si Niang said proudly.
In the eyes of the little girl, this was quite an achievement, as she had defeated many competitors to get in.
Caiwei inquired about Si Niang’s age, calculated with her fingers, and discovered that the year the free school opened, she just met the minimum enrollment age.
"You are indeed very lucky." Caiwei sincerely praised her.
Si Niang nodded in agreement, "Yes! That’s why I’m most grateful to the person who enacted this law!"
Caiwei smiled and asked: "Do you know who enacted this law?"
Si Niang shook her head; she didn’t know, and neither did her parents or Uncle Song Zhang.
"Sister Caiwei, do you know?" Si Niang asked expectantly.
Caiwei nodded, "Of course, this was a wish that the Empress requested from His Majesty for all the people during her 48th birthday."
"It was specifically limited by age, not by gender."
Caiwei curiously asked the little girl in front, "Are there many girls like you in the free school?"
Si Niang unhappily shook her head, "No, there are still very few. In our clan’s school, it’s just me and Sister Jinhua because all the applicants are boys, only a few girls, so drawing lots makes the odds even lower."
Caiwei was a bit surprised, "I see..."
But on closer thought, she realized that ingrained beliefs are like a mountain; breaking them is incredibly difficult and requires continued effort over generations, much like the story of Yü Gong moving mountains.
At least there is already one Liu Pingling now. Thinking like this, Caiwei felt a bit happy.
She was a little surprised when the child mentioned the word "probability," as it is a term from mathematics.
"How do you know the word probability?"
"Father said so."
Just then, Qin Yao was finishing up the family background investigation of the child’s father, Liu Ji, a scholar.
No wonder the child knew, it turns out there’s a scholar in the family.
"Caiwei, is this enough?" Qin Yao put down the last stroke and handed over the paper.
Caiwei: "Alright, let me have a look..."
Receiving the paper and looking down, what an unusual handwriting.
But everything that needed to be written was there, including the home address, which indeed was within Kuanzheng Square just across the street.
Caiwei instructed: "After the dean finishes, I will inform her about you. You can come to see me tomorrow around noon for the results. For now, just go home since the weather is hot and the child might struggle to wait."
"Alright, I’ll bring the child over tomorrow at noon then."
"By the way!" Qin Yao casually asked another question: "Are there any requirements for student admissions in the Academy?"
If there were, she thought she could suggest a charity project to her brother, like donating a classroom or renovating a playground.
Caiwei seemed slightly offended and frowned, "Madam, our Women’s Garden accepts any girl who meets the enrollment age, regardless of wealth or status."
Qin Yao was puzzled, "So why does the Garden have only about a hundred students? Is the teacher’s gift rather expensive?"
"For impoverished families, the gift can be appropriately reduced or waived." Caiwei’s tone was slightly raised, but Qin Yao could tell it wasn’t directed at her.
Caiwei sighed in exasperation: "Yet even so, there are only so many willing to send their daughters to the Women’s Garden."
The students in the Garden wore identical white clothing, nothing distinguishable by outfit. Yet the girls’ hair ornaments varied, which immediately revealed their family circumstances.
Qin Yao had just observed that many girls inside wore gold and jade hair accessories, and one had an entire set of red coral necklaces.
Gold and jade indicated a family with wealth from commerce.
Red coral, however, was a provision exclusive to the Royal Family and not something an ordinary merchant or noble family could acquire.
Otherwise, she wouldn’t have specifically asked if there were hidden conditions.
If this were an ordinary Women’s Academy, why would there be red coral?
But hearing Caiwei’s frustration, Qin Yao realized that the low number was not due to high tuition fees or hidden conditions in the Women’s Academy.
It was because too many people hadn’t yet broken free from the old rites.
Especially in the Imperial Capital, filled with prestigious and noble families, how could age-old pride easily bow to something new?
However, if the Women’s Garden had over a hundred students now, it could eventually have two hundred, three hundred, even three thousand!
Qin Yao flashed a bright smile at Caiwei, "The number of students will only grow more in the future. If the Garden ever faces any financial difficulties in expansion, you can seek me out, even if my daughter Si Niang isn’t studying here. As long as it’s within my capabilities, I won’t refuse!"
"Si Niang, let’s head home." Qin Yao extended her hand to her daughter, "Say goodbye to your sister."
Si Niang obediently curtseyed to Caiwei before taking her mother’s hand and leaving.
Only after the mother and daughter exited the gate and boarded the carriage did Caiwei recover from her shock.
In the three years of the Women’s Garden’s operation, it was the first time she’d met such an openly generous lady!
With a creak, the tightly closed door of the neighboring room opened.
The dean was amiably escorting a guest out.
Having not found a chance to speak, Caiwei hurriedly took Qin Yao’s information sheet and moved forward.
Noticing the esteemed guest, she bowed respectfully.
The guest nodded slightly at her, about to leave but suddenly noticing the name on the information sheet she was holding, pausing in their tracks.
The dean immediately sensed something and asked curiously, "Who just visited?"
Caiwei reported: "Dean, it was a lady planning to send her daughter to the Women’s Garden, and since you were busy, I told them to return tomorrow."
As she spoke, she handed over the information sheet, "This is the student information I had them leave behind. Please have a look."
The dean hadn’t taken it when the esteemed guest intercepted it, saw ’Qin Yao’, and suddenly smiled, telling the dean: "This student, Tong Jia, you absolutely must not miss."
"What time will they come tomorrow?"
Caiwei didn’t understand the guest’s reaction but answered honestly.
"Then I’ll come again tomorrow noon."
The guest returned the information sheet and left with a smile, seeming to look forward to the next day.
