Transmigrated into a seven-year-old child, my fate is in my own hands, not in the heavens.

Several years passed in this way. Later, a student from Gaosheng Village passed the imperial examination and became a student of the lowest rank, which greatly encouraged everyone. Many people tightened their belts and wanted to send their sons to private schools.

At the age of 30, Mr. Liu finally married Guan Qiaoyu from the neighboring Xiatang Village. Qiaoyu was only 18 years old, and she had two younger sisters and a younger brother, Guan Nan, who was 9 years old.

The father wanted his son Guan Nan to start his education, but the family was poor and had no money to support his studies.

Finally, the father came up with an idea. Since his eldest daughter, Qiaoyu, was still unmarried, he decided to make a move on her.

At first, Guan Qiaoyu disagreed, feeling that the teacher was so old, a full 12 years older than her.

But her mother tried her best to persuade her, saying that after marrying the master, she would not have to worry about food and clothing, would not have to do farm work, and might even be able to exempt her younger brother from tuition fees.

Gradually, Qiaoyu was moved. Seeing that she agreed, her mother took the initiative to find someone to propose marriage.

When Master Liu saw that Qiaoyu was young and beautiful, he fell in love with her at first sight. Qiaoyu saw that Master Liu was highly learned, did not look old, had a tall and fair figure, and looked like a scholar. She was immediately filled with romantic feelings.

And so, Qiaoyu married Master Liu, not only saving her brother's tuition fees but also earning back a tael of silver as a betrothal gift.

Three years after their marriage, Qiaoyu gave birth to two sons for Master Liu. In the third year, her younger brother Guannan also passed the imperial examination and became a student.

Although the couple is quite different in age, they are a harmonious couple and a truly beautiful story in Datian Village.

Later, due to limited energy, Master Liu only accepted 30 students each year, with priority given to students from his own village.

The private school in Datian Village has been operating for 30 years now, and seven or eight students from the surrounding villages have passed the imperial examinations to become students of the lowest rank, which is considered a very high success rate.

Tuition fees have increased from 50 coins per person per year to 500 coins per person per year, including lunch.

While at the private school, Fu Biao told Master Liu a rough account of what had happened, and coincidentally, He Run overheard it and heard that Zhao Lian wanted to sever ties with the He family.

He Run got anxious and followed behind.

He Run is ten years old this year and has been studying at a private school for two years. Although his mother is Liang, He Run is not a bad person.

At least in the He family, he was the only one who didn't bully the three sisters; on the contrary, he would sometimes speak up for them.

However, he was studying and was basically not at home during the day, so there were many things that he was completely unaware of.

Even the last time Zhao Lian fell and broke her head, he only found out later. Although he felt sorry for her, he was powerless to do anything about it because he couldn't stop it either.

All he could do was say a few words for them when he was present, and talk to his younger siblings, but the effect was minimal.

I thought everyone would be more restrained after Zhao Lian broke her head last time, but this time they've gone even further.

When Madam Liang saw He Run coming over, she immediately scolded, "Run'er, why are you here instead of studying at the private school?"

He Run did not answer Liang's question. Looking at the wounds on Zhao Feng and the others, he was shocked.

He simply couldn't believe that these were all done by his family, but he also believed that no one else could have done it. Otherwise, Zhao Lian wouldn't have said she wanted to sever ties with her family.

He Run walked up to Madam Liang and asked with a pained expression, "Mother, did you bully Zhao Lian and the others again?" Madam Liang felt guilty and avoided his eyes.

Old Mrs. Yang said with a reproachful look, "You child, why are you always taking their side? They were the ones who were wrong first."

"Even if you're wrong, you can't just hit people!" He Run shouted.

Immediately afterwards, He Run walked up to Zhao Lian and the others and said things like sorry.

Zhao Lian looked at her cousin in front of her. He had a square face, clear eyes, and a righteous air about him. He was probably the only good person in the He family.

It's a pity he was born into the He family, with parents like Liang Shi and He Zhu.

Zhao Lian was being objective, not personal. She knew her cousin was a good person, so she didn't say much when he asked her questions.

Master Liu looked at Zhao Lian and said, "Girl, you'd better think this through. Once you sign this letter of severance, you will no longer be a member of the He family."

Zhao Lian said with a relaxed expression, "Master Liu, just focus on your writing, don't worry about anything else."

Master Liu then turned to He Changfu and asked him about the division of property and the division of the house, and whether there was anything else to add so that he could write the letter of severance.

He Changfu looked at He Sen and said, "He Sen, Zhao Lian needs a roof over her head after she leaves. See if you can vacate a room in the woodshed next to your yard for her."

He Sen refused outright, his eyes sharp: "No, since she wants to sever ties with us, she has no choice but to leave with nothing. There's no room for discussion."

"Ugh!"

He Changfu sighed and looked at Zhao Lian, saying, "Girl, even Second Grandfather can't do anything about it."

"Thank you, Second Grandfather, but I don't need it."

Zhao Lian shook her head, her eyes resolute: "I don't care for anything from the He family, except for my eldest sister and second sister."

Soon, Master Liu finished writing the letter severing ties, making three copies. Then, Village Chief He picked up the letter and read it aloud.

Severance Letter

Today, He Zhaolian is determined to sever all ties with the He family. From this day forward, she will leave the family with nothing. He Zhaolian will have no further relationship with He Sen's relatives. She will also no longer be He Mu's daughter. Regardless of He Zhaolian's future wealth or poverty, it will have nothing to do with the He family. Her life and death will be irrelevant to them; they will each accept their fate.

The date of the signing is: April 27th, 215th year of the Dazhi reign (4).

The following are the signatures or fingerprints of Zhao Lian, He Sen, and their family members.

"Zhaolian, you're so young and you've gone out all by yourself. What are we going to do?" Her cousin He Run asked with concern.

Hearing the village chief read out the letter severing ties with his family, Zhao Lian felt a sense of relief and immediately smiled, "Cousin, thank you for your concern. This is the last time I'll call you that."

"From now on, we will no longer be cousins. You must strive to do well in your studies. Also, please help take care of your eldest and second eldest sisters."

Signing this severance agreement meant that she and her two older sisters would no longer be sisters. This also made Zhao Lian somewhat sad.

The original owner's sisters had a deep bond, and Zhao Lian couldn't help but feel a little sad.

However, the thought that only by getting out herself could she possibly change everything, and that she could then find a way to bring them both out, made her feel relieved.

"Alright, if neither of you has any further comments, then you can sign and put your fingerprints on the document!"

After the village chief finished reading the letter severing ties with his relatives, he checked it repeatedly and finally confirmed that it was correct.

Among those present, besides the village chief and the teacher who could read, there was also He Run.

Although the village chief had already read it aloud, He Sen had his grandson, He Run, carefully check it again and read it to him to avoid any oversights. Only then was he certain that there were no other problems with the letter of severance.

Seeing that He Sen didn't believe him, the village chief sneered: "Old He, now your grandson has seen it too, how about it? Are you relieved? If you agree, then hurry up and sign it."

After saying that, Village Chief Fu asked Master Liu to bring out the inkpad so that everyone could sign their names.

When the village chief exposed him like that, He Sen gave an awkward dry laugh and then pressed his fingerprint on the paper.

Seeing He Sen put his fingerprint on the paper, the others followed suit and put their fingerprints on the paper as well.