A Change of Heart

Mia Qian didn't linger; she left her gifts and departed.

Lily Evans heard the commotion outside, looked up at Alexander Hayes, and casually asked, "Who was that outside? Why haven't I heard of them before?"

Alexander Hayes replied, "Oh, probably someone brought by the Qian Family Patriarch. I didn't pay much attention to who it was. You've been asleep these past few days, so there are plenty of things you don't know yet."

Lily responded with an 'oh,' noticing Alexander's casual attitude. Clearly, Mia Qian hadn't made much of an impression on him yet, so he didn't even register who she was.

Lily couldn't help but regret it, thinking to herself that she must've been out of her mind. Her husband was so outstanding that every woman in the kingdom coveted him, yet she hadn't cherished him properly and even let her thoughts run wild. She really shouldn't have!

If something really happened to her, her son would have to live under another woman's care, and her wonderful husband would become someone else's. She'd be so furious in the afterlife that she'd cough up blood in front of King Yama!

Now that Lily had figured things out, her spirits lifted. With everyone's attentive care, she recuperated for a few days and her health improved significantly.

During these days, Alexander Hayes was still deeply concerned about Lily's health. He made time to visit her daily and even moved back from the side hall to live with her again.

However, Alexander was getting busier by the day. The Kingdom of Qin had just been established, and not only were regional transitions incomplete, but the entire governmental system still needed to be properly set up.

As for the officials in Charleston, most of them were unfit for important roles, so Alexander and his team had to handle everything personally, leaving them completely swamped.

Fortunately, the conscription efforts had ended, bringing in nearly fifty thousand new recruits. The land distribution was complete, and the soldiers had started farming their plots. No need to worry about next year's military rations now.

With the army's morale stabilized, they finally had a solid foundation to tackle other matters.

"Where's His Majesty?" Lily Evans sat at her dressing table as Mrs. Penny styled her hair. Mrs. Penny replied, "He's in the royal study, discussing official appointments and the imperial examination system with Lord Qian."

Lily nodded, "Originally, the selection and appointment of talent in the southeast was managed by officials sent from the imperial court. Now that we've taken over, we can't rely on those court-appointed officials anymore. We really do need to establish our own system for selecting talent."

Mrs. Penny said, "Exactly! Building a nation, talent is the most important asset. But the southeast has always been wild and remote—most people are illiterate, can't even recognize characters, and those who can read and write are even rarer. In all of Charleston, there are only three academies, and they're so expensive only wealthy families can afford to send their children. Across the entire southeast, scholars are few and far between. Even if we hold imperial exams now, it's just picking the tallest among dwarfs—there's hardly any truly useful talent to choose from."

Lily paused, feeling a wave of guilt. She'd been so preoccupied with Charles Hayes that she'd neglected the affairs of state. From Mrs. Penny's description, Alexander Hayes was clearly troubled by the lack of talent in the region. And as the Dean of the Twin Academies, Lily held the key to the kingdom's talent pool, yet here she was, wallowing in self-pity instead of helping Alexander. She was really dropping the ball.

"Mrs. Penny, help me get ready. I'm going to the royal study to join the discussion," Lily instructed.

Mrs. Penny was overjoyed to see the spark return to Lily's eyes. She couldn't hide her excitement—the legendary Queen of Qin was back!