After being reborn as a man, the woman improved her family's fortunes through education.

The county examination is held every year in February. It is April now, and there are still ten months until the next county examination.

Only those who pass the county examination are qualified to participate in the prefectural examination. Once they pass the prefectural examination, they are considered students and are recognized as scholars in society.

Only those with the status of a "child student" could participate in the provincial examination held every April. Passing the provincial examination would grant them the title of "scholar," marking the first step on their official career path.

This public opinion attack on the Jiang clan school was not an isolated case. After returning to the county school, the county school instructor was surprised to find that the top student in the monthly exam had also been caught in a public opinion storm.

The same thing happened in all the private schools and academies, big and small, in Xinghe Prefecture. Without exception, the reputations of the outstanding students were all damaged to some extent.

They lacked Jiang Changqing's decisiveness and political sensitivity; by the time they discovered the problem, it was too late to trace the source or remedy the situation.

This has caused many outstanding students to suffer damage to their reputation, and some have even become depressed for a long time, indirectly delaying their studies.

With more than half a year to go before the county and prefectural examinations, this is a well-intentioned person making early arrangements.

They ruined the reputations of all the promising candidates who were likely to win the top spot in the county government's exams, thus damaging the reputations of these students.

It also means nipping every potential competitor in the bud; it's better to kill a thousand innocent people than let one guilty person go free.

How vicious!

Such a gesture suggests that a scion of a prominent family is returning to his hometown to take the imperial examination; undoubtedly, that hometown is Xinghe Prefecture.

It is still unknown which county it was, since more than ten counties under the jurisdiction of Xinghe Prefecture were attacked indiscriminately.

This family's power should not be underestimated. Jiang Changqing naturally considered this, so he could only handle matters within his family academy discreetly for the time being.

At the same time, he also sent a letter to the Liu family in the capital to inquire about the situation.

After all, the Liu family was a large clan, and they were more familiar with the affairs of large clans.

While waiting for a reply from the Liu family in Beijing, Jiang Changqing also secretly investigated the matter.

The students in Class B were just small fry who were lured in with money. The real mastermind never showed his face from beginning to end and was extremely cautious.

The public opinion in Xinghe Prefecture seemed to be manipulated by an invisible hand.

Using students as pawns to stir up trouble.

This hand not only possesses information about numerous students, but it can also precisely select targets to attack.

Is it all for the title of top scorer in the county government? Or for the title of "top scholar in the county" next year?

To destroy so many talented young people for one's own benefit is undeniably ruthless and heartless.

After dealing with the few people from Class B, the Jiang Clan School gradually returned to calm, as if nothing had ever happened.

Everyone continued attending classes and taking exams as usual, and few people mentioned sensitive terms such as math problems, monthly exams, or students expelled from Class B.

After all, the county school wasn't far away, so everyone naturally heard about the unrest that had occurred there.

Most of the students in the county school were scholars who had passed the imperial examinations; very few paid money to attend as temporary students.

The county school would not normally have been affected, but the person who came down to handle the matter was unaware of the regulations for the imperial examinations.

This indiscriminate attack did not spare the county school either; in fact, it was even worse off.

After all, students from county schools are older and have more room for maneuver.

Several students from the county school were lured together to brothels and even staged a freebie scheme, ruining their reputations.

Jiang Xiaoqi felt that this tactic was somewhat familiar. Wasn't this the same way his cheap father was expelled from the Changshou County School?

Although one is motivated by fame and the other by wealth, can we really tell which one is more malicious?

The weather changed from cool to hot, and then from hot to cool; at this point, there were less than three months left until the county examination.

Because his household registration is in Changshou County, Jiang Xiaoqi needs to pack his bags in advance and go home to prepare for the exam.

The original plan was to prepare for the exam in Xinghe Prefecture, have my family come here for the New Year, and then go back to take the exam after the New Year.

But for some reason, the first snow came exceptionally early this year. It started snowing sporadically as soon as October began, and the snow became heavier as November arrived.

To avoid making the journey even more difficult after the New Year, we set off early on a sunny day.

With two martial arts instructors accompanying them, their safety was guaranteed. The three women now had some self-defense skills, and even the maids later joined in learning a few sets of boxing techniques.

Of the eight servants, half of them had received Master Lin's true teachings and had now been promoted from servants to guards of the Jiang family.

The large group of over thirty people could be described as a "nation in arms."

If ordinary bandits or outlaws rushed up, they would simply be throwing their lives away.

Master Lin and Master Zhao rode tall horses one in front of the other, with six carriages in the middle, and four guards on the left and right sides driving the carriages.

The journey was uneventful, and they were only half a day away from home when they encountered a brave bandit at the foot of a mountain.

Zhao Shengnan rode forward, exchanged a glance with Lin Feng, and decided to first probe the other party's strength.

The other party didn't utter any classic highway robbery lines; instead, they brandished their weapons, displaying a ruthless intent to kill and rob.

"Gentlemen, my master is not a wealthy merchant, but a simple scholar. Why should your esteemed department make such a grand show of force?"

Lin Feng said.

"Enough with the nonsense! Whether you're a scholar or a businessman, as long as your surname is Jiang, we brothers have come to the right person!"

"Second brother! Why waste words with them! They're all going to die anyway."

Wow! This isn't about money, it's about taking lives!

"System, come out!"

"What's wrong, host? They're just settling accounts~"

“There are at least fifty robbers ahead. Do you think the two of you can handle them?”

"Hey~ There are actually one or two decent fighters here, but their overall combat strength isn't as good as Lin Feng's. The slightly weaker one is probably about on par with Zhao Shengnan."

"You mean the other side is nothing to fear? But they still have dozens of men! We only have four guards and four servants who know martial arts."

Oh, and the maids who served my mother and sister also knew a little martial arts. Adding Li Shan, Li Mo and his son, Wenbin, and me, there were twenty-two of us in total.

Is it really okay for 22 men, women, and children to face 48 able-bodied men?

"Host, you must believe in yourself, and also believe in your mother and sisters. Don't underestimate weak women."

As far as I know, one of the three of them can already hold her own against Zhao Shengnan for dozens of moves.

Jiang Xiaoqi certainly wouldn't underestimate women, but there was no need to have them charge ahead in such a fierce battle from the very beginning.

Before they could think further, the bandit leader gave an order, and the bandits rushed forward with knives in hand.

Zhao Shengnan's eyes turned cold. She drew her sword and swung it forward, causing the bandit at the front to scream and fall to the ground.

Upon seeing this, the guards and servants immediately drew their weapons and rushed forward to protect the carriage behind them.

Hearing the commotion outside from inside the carriage, Jiang Xiaoqi told the women inside not to panic, while he drew his personal soft sword from his belt, lifted the curtain, and joined the battle.