Chapter 36 Chapter 36 Madam, we... were wrong.

The clues provided by the monk were very limited, so Nan Xu could only send people to search various places in Kyoto where good and bad people mixed together.

After several days of no results and Yu Ming showing no signs of improvement, she felt a little annoyed.

As autumn was approaching, the weather in Kyoto gradually turned colder. Several senior officials from the mansion brought their men and account books to Jingyuan to pay their respects to Nan Xu and ask her to review them.

She wanted to ask them to wait a little longer, but then she thought it would be a good opportunity to find something to do so that she wouldn't keep thinking about the bad things.

He asked Chunya to ask the stewards to wait in the flower hall.

Speaking of which, the reconciliation should wait until the end of the year. Coming at this time, Nan Xu could vaguely guess something.

Firstly, there was a new mistress in the Earl's Mansion, and they should come to pay their respects; secondly, the fact that she had established her authority in the Earl's Mansion when she first got married must have been heard by these people a long time ago. Some of them might just be doing their job to make a living, but some might not.

This time, the stewards came with someone other than Liu Hui, but a young servant who was unfamiliar with the man. When he saw Nan Xu coming in, he hurriedly introduced everyone to her one by one.

Nan Xu looked around and saw three people standing in the hall.

Seeing her come in, the person who hurriedly stood up to greet her was Manager Sun, who was in charge of various shops in Kyoto. He was not tall and had a very friendly smile on his face. Nan Xu smiled back at him.

The tall and skinny old man standing on the other side was Manager Li, who was in charge of transportation. A gleam of light flashed in his eyes. He glanced at Nan Xu and turned to look at Manager Qian, who was in charge of the farm next to him.

From the moment he walked in through the door to the moment he sat down at the top, Nan Xu already had some idea in his mind.

Manager Qian touched his round belly and bowed to Nan Xu with the other two.

Nan Xu said there was no need to be so polite and asked the maids to serve tea.

The tea leaves were brewed in boiling water and swirled and bloomed in the porcelain bowl decorated with blue and white patterns. Steward Sun picked up the teacup, scraped it with the tea lid, took a sip, and praised it as a good tea.

"Madam, this is brewed with years of rainwater?"

Nan Xu nodded and said with a smile, "I've heard that Manager Sun is an expert at tea tasting. Now that I see he can even tell where the water comes from, his reputation is well-deserved."

Upon hearing this, Manager Sun smiled even more and repeatedly said, "Madam, you are too kind."

Seeing him like this, Qian and Li felt it would be inappropriate to just stand by and watch, so they picked up the wine, drank it once, and echoed his praise.

For a moment, the people who met for the first time in the flower hall were in a happy mood.

Of course, they didn't come just to drink tea. Manager Li put down the teacup, coughed lightly, and winked at Manager Qian.

Manager Qian received his signal and the smile on his face faded a little.

Nan Xu observed calmly, stroking the jade bracelet on her wrist, waiting for them to speak.

"Madam," Steward Qian called out to the head of the household, then stood up and said, "We three arrived unexpectedly today, please forgive me. The rule in the mansion has always been that we each manage our own affairs, and you can just check the accounts with Chief Steward Liu. Now that Madam has arrived and taken over the responsibilities of the household, we dare not neglect it. We have hurriedly sorted out the accounts of various departments and sent them to you for your review in advance. Firstly, I want you to take a look, and secondly, I want you to check the accounts. If there are any discrepancies, you are at my disposal. Thirdly, Madam and the uncle are very happy, and the three of us were busy outside and didn't come to congratulate you. So today, I took this opportunity to prepare a small gift, please accept it."

After Manager Qian finished speaking, several servants came in from outside and carried in something covered with a red cloth. Although they couldn't see what was inside, it seemed to be quite large.

Without waiting for Nan Xu to say anything, Manager Qian unveiled the red cloth, and the flower hall was instantly filled with a brilliant red light. Even though Nan Xu was used to seeing good things, she was still amazed by what she saw.

It was a half-human-high coral pomegranate ornament. The pomegranate was carved so vividly that even the texture of the stems and leaves below was clearly visible.

She had seen a lot of corals, but this was the first time she had seen one so big, so finely carved, and almost flawless.

Nan Xu lingered for a moment, then smiled faintly and said, "Such a good thing is not easy to find. Thank you for your thoughtfulness, the three managers."

As soon as he finished speaking, Manager Li, who had been silent the whole time, stepped forward and replied, "Of course, the gift for Madam must be the best. Even if it takes a little more effort, I can find it for Madam."

I heard that many merchant ships can now cross the oceans, and he travels around to transport goods. This thing is most likely found by him. Nan Xu nodded. After receiving such a valuable gift, she naturally had to express her gratitude.

Chunya took out a few heavy purses and handed them to the three of them. They were used to seeing money, so they were able to remain calm.

The gifts were delivered, and the three were about to discuss business with Nan Xu when three maids came in from outside. They were seen surrounding the coral ornament, measuring its height with a rope, and someone took out a small booklet to record it one by one.

Qian, Sun and Li were stunned.

Seeing this kind of situation for the first time, Qian and Sun exchanged bewildered glances, wondering if Nan Xu found the gift unpleasant or was deliberately trying to embarrass them.

Only Manager Sun looked at it for a moment and asked Nan Xu bluntly if there was anything wrong.

Nan Xu smiled and waved her hand, explaining, "To be honest, everyone, I have a rule here. No matter who sends me any gold, stone, or jade artifacts, they must be measured before they are put into storage. I also have to clearly record the year, month, and recipient. This will make it easier to take inventory later."

Seeing the confusion still on their faces, she covered her lips and continued, "Well, it's a habit I developed back in the Hou Mansion. I'm not afraid of being laughed at by the stewards, but there was a steward maid by my side before. She relied on her seniority and my favor, so she took herself very seriously. I don't know when, after drinking a few sips of yellow wine, she got bolder and secretly stole a few pieces of my jewelry and sold them. I was young at the time, and I didn't pay attention to whether there were any missing from the box full of gold and jade. After a while, this maid thought I was easy to bully, and she became more and more addicted to stealing. She even stole and sold a yellow jade magnolia that the imperial concubine gave me. Royal property has always been registered. In the end, the crime was discovered, and she was charged with desecrating royal property and beaten to death."

The four words "beaten to death with sticks" came out of her mouth lightly, making the three people sitting below feel a chill on their backs.

Song Guo had already recorded it and showed it to Nan Xu for review. Nan Xu, with her well-maintained nails, tapped the words "Coral Pomegranate" on the booklet. Looking at the three of them, her smile deepened. "Since then, I've found this method. Although it's a bit more troublesome, it's better than the people below stealing from me without me knowing."

"The three of you are all used to working outside. What do you think of my method?"

This story may not sound like anything special at first, but Qian, Sun and Li are all smart people and they know what Nan Xu means.

Since ancient times, when it comes to money, land, shops and farms, they are tangible gold and silver. How many people can remain unmoved by money?

Nan Xu had just arrived, and she was reminding them not to try to fool her just because she was the new wife, and she also wanted to tell them that with her identity and methods, she would not easily let go of those with ulterior motives.

Even an old woman who stole property was beaten to death, so how could they be let off easily after committing such a crime?

Among the three, Manager Sun had been in contact with gold, silver and jade for many years, so he naturally knew that any work of a great master would have a seal in an inconspicuous place on the jewelry, not to mention that it was a gift from the palace. Even if the old woman was drunk, she would not be so bold as to do so. It was probably that Nan Xu did it on purpose after knowing about it. Thinking of this, a chill suddenly rushed to the top of his head, and he stood up suddenly.

"That's a good idea. It's like keeping track of incoming and outgoing goods in a shop. Once you have a detailed list, it's easier to manage."

Seeing this, Manager Qian also agreed, "Indeed, Madam, this method is truly excellent. I admire you."

Manager Li looked at the two of them, stood up, bowed, and said hello.

Nan Xu covered her lips with a smile and handed the booklet to Song Guo. "Since the three stewards all said it's good, then it must be good. I've seen the gift and taken notes. Just now, Steward Qian asked me to review the accounts. I happen to have a maid who can do the accounting, so I'll sort out the accounts in front of the three stewards."

As she spoke, she pushed the pine cone beside her forward. The two maids who were measuring the dimensions also rolled up their sleeves and took out pens, inkstones, paper, and abacus from the ear room, intending to settle the accounts in person.

Accounting is complicated and simple at the same time.

Each property reports its accounts to the Earl's Mansion on a quarterly basis. These accounts will be checked by a special accountant who will keep a record of each account. When the accounts are summarized at the end of the year, the total number of the retained account books will be calculated and then cross-checked with the number of account books submitted, so that the total number can be clearly seen.

These procedures are not complicated or tedious, but they are not trivial matters. It is too careless to let these young girls take care of the accounts for them.

Nan Xu saw what they were thinking at a glance and thought to herself that it was just as expected. These men who were used to running around outside would not take the maids in front of them seriously.

It is true that it is rare for a woman to know a few words, let alone being able to do accounting.

The half-human-height coral ornament had been carried out, and the three managers all lowered their heads and remained silent.

Songguo and the others looked at Nanxu and asked her for instructions. Nanxu smiled nonchalantly and nodded to indicate that they could start.

Without further hesitation, they went to the accounting office to fetch the account books for the previous quarter and began to check them. The woman had neatly trimmed nails and her fingers were deftly fiddling with the abacus. For a moment, the only sound in the huge hall was the "tapping" of the abacus beads.

Although Manager Sun was shocked by Nan Xu's words, his attention soon fell on Song Guo. After a while, his eyes widened, filled with admiration and praise.

Nan Xu understood and turned to look at the other two. They were also staring at Song Guo, pretending to be calm on their faces, but the panic and anxiety in their eyes were fleeting.

Nan Xu raised his eyebrows. It seemed that some people would not give up until they reached the Yellow River.

In just half an incense stick of time, the originally smooth sound of the beads hitting suddenly stopped. Songguo frowned, pointed at the account book in his hand, and wanted to hit it again in disbelief.

This time the abacus was moved much slower, and the fear on Qian and Li's faces could no longer be hidden.

Seeing that the rematch was about to end, Manager Qian finally couldn't sit still anymore. He took a few quick steps and stood in front of Nan Xu, but he didn't dare to look Nan Xu in the eye.

He trembled and almost cried, "Madam, we... were wrong."