Chapter 12: Numerous Ledgers

Chapter 12: Numerous Ledgers

The "Sixth Uncle" of the old residence clearly treated her as an unloved female relative to be dealt with.

He allocated her the most cramped room on the side, an eastern wing.

Inside, there was only a bed less than 1.2 meters wide, a small dressing table, a tiny square table set, and two low stools.

Zhang Po's room was right next door, and it was larger than hers.

Zhang Po tutted, preparing to get up to find someone to switch rooms. "I know the old residence well; there are over a dozen rooms in the inner courtyard! Even the favored maids have better rooms than this!"

"It's already good that the master provides accommodation."

Xianjin kept her position clear. "Not to mention, following Third Master, I even got three meals, fruits, and snacks twice a day."

Zhang Po immediately stopped talking.

This was for the best.

Wasn't she still looking down on Xianjin because she almost became a concubine?

Now, this young girl was earning her keep just like her.

How wonderful!

Zhang Po realized that since He Xiaoniang's death, she found this young girl increasingly likable—first fearing her non-violent, non-cooperative stance, then discovering that the girl had real skills, and now finding her actions and words extremely methodical.

Her half-century of living told her that following this girl might lead to a brighter future than following Mr. Chen.

Zhang Po expressed her affection by feeding her.

She brought another three or four mung bean cakes from the kitchen. "…Eat more. Look at how thin your face is. That Third Lady is too heartless, letting you go hungry in these times!"

Xianjin thanked her and ate carefully, chewing each bite slowly before swallowing.

After Zhang Po left, Xianjin continued tidying up.

She didn't bring much—a few sets of neat cotton clothes, a small box of ointment similar to Vaseline for both face and lips, a few wooden hairpins.

And then there was the "reach out for money"—her name registry symbolizing her ID, a reed pen that could replace a phone for communication, recording, and writing, the key to her small room at Yiyuan, and a few taels of silver.

Xianjin placed the three hundred taels of silver notes He Ainiang left her inside the seam of her undergarment, and locked away several pieces of gold jewelry in the locked dressing cabinet at Yiyuan.

That was all.

She wanted to get an abacus.

But even the rat spirit managing the accounts at the Chen family's prestigious store in Xuanzhou didn't know what an abacus was.

In the more remote and smaller Jing County, it was naturally impossible to find one.

Still, she needed to get one.

Otherwise, the accounts would be hard to calculate later.

Xianjin closed her eyes. In ancient times, there weren't so many people, and the climate wasn't warming. The Chen residence backed onto the Tianhuang Creek, a tributary of the Wuxi River, and with the weather in the twelfth month, it was truly cold enough to make one shiver. Xianjin tossed and turned on the hard bed, unable to sleep.

When she had money, she would definitely burn a warm fire pit that never went out, hold eight jade hand warmers, and lay three thick layers of silk quilts, igniting herself!

Before falling into a deep sleep, Xianjin thought viciously.

The dawn in the town and countryside was awakened by one rooster crow after another.

Xianjin and Zhang Po had just finished breakfast when the steward they met last night arrived, followed by two laborers with their heads bowed, carrying stacks of ledgers nearly as tall as a person.

"Accountant He, you're from Xuancheng, and your status is different from ours," said the steward, who was a bit fat, his belly protruding as if five months pregnant, his face shiny with oil, like a pig that had just wallowed.

Huh.

Didn't the Chen family look at appearances when hiring people?

First, there was the rat spirit Niansheng, and now this pig monster Ganglie. If they kept choosing, they could complete the twelve zodiac signs of the demon world.

Ganglie spoke with a smile. "Yesterday, didn't Third Master say he was going to manage the workshop and shop today? These are our accounts for the past three years, expenses, income, purchases, loans—all here. Please review them."

Sixth Master had inquired thoroughly yesterday.

This woman wasn't a big shot.

She was just the girl of that favorite concubine of Third Master's.

Without the bloodline or name of the Chen family, not even a proper relative, she couldn't even be called a cousin.

No one knew what tricks she used to follow Third Master to Jing County.

Most likely, she came to escape the torment of the main wife at home.

Xianjin looked up; there were at least fifty ledgers. She picked one at random, scanning it roughly. It was the "single-entry bookkeeping" method, recording time, amount, and reason, with the smallest entry being only two cash coins.

These fake accounts were done quite meticulously.

Xianjin smiled. "May I ask who you are?"

Ganglie still smiled. "My surname is Zhu. I'm one of the stewards of the Chen Ji Paper Shop. The other is the steward of the workshop. His hands are skilled, and his paper-making level is good, but he doesn't receive the favor of the nobles, so you'll see me more often."

Indeed surnamed Zhu?

Xianjin silently buried her head.

In short, two managers, one in charge of technology and the other the market, with the marketing side squeezing out the tech side.

Understood.

Xianjin turned a page in the ledger and casually asked, "What about the previous accountant? Did I take his position by coming here?"

Zhu Ganglie coughed lightly, "You put it... whoever sits in which seat and does what job is all down to the boss's word, isn't it? As long as the boss doesn't dismiss you, you should still give your all no matter what position you're in."

Old Lady Qu wouldn't specially create a post just for her, nor would she move her over because Chen Fu was coming, to have him be her backer.

Old Lady Qu must need someone here.

Someone to shake things up.

The need for change implies that things weren't going well before.

A person who wasn't performing well in the eyes of the major shareholder wasn't dismissed but merely moved to another position?

Accountants aren't usually alone; they're entangled in a web of relationships behind the scenes.

This predecessor must have had some serious backing.

Xianjin smiled and returned the ledger to its place, "What's your relationship with the previous accountant? Brother-in-law? Brother? Third Uncle? Or perhaps... related to that Sixth Uncle from yesterday?"

Zhu Ganglie's smile froze momentarily, then widened, "You really love to joke around..."

He then loudly instructed the laborers to move the ledgers inside, "Quickly bring the books into the room for Accountant He! If you delay Accountant He's work, see if I spare you!"

Xianjin stretched out her arm, blocking their path with a smile on her face, "Ledgers don't leave the accounting room; that's the rule."

"I don't know what rules the previous one had, but since I'm taking over, my rules are now the biggest in the accounting room."

The smile on Xianjin's face gradually faded, "The numbers in the book represent money. Did you draft a list when you moved the ledger out of the accounting room? Did you check the pages? Did you record it? Did you verify the watermarks? Did you sign the vouchers? Was there a third party witness?"

Zhu Ganglie didn't expect this young girl to be so aggressive on her first day.

He wanted to lash out but hesitated due to Mr. Chen.

Xianjin crossed her arms, standing firm like a gatekeeper, blocking the laborer's path, "Return the ledger to where it came from! You!"

She pointed at the seemingly more honest and quiet one on the left, "You lead the way! I'm following you, watching you return the ledger!"

Return it?

And she was coming along!?

Zhu Ganglie panicked!

These fake accounts were something they prepared to pass inspections.

They cost a fortune and were meticulously crafted, leaving no loopholes for anyone to find.

They were counting on using these accounts to stall Mr. Chen for ten days!

Everyone in the Chen family knew what kind of person Mr. Chen was.

This time, upon receiving the news, they hadn't made any preparations.

That flawed set of real account books was still sitting in the paper shop!