Chapter 23: The Overbearing CEO Su!

Not long after Xue Yuan returned to his room, Wang Yu'er, clutching the official seal and dragging her sickly frame, quietly slipped out of the Prince's Mansion. She was, of course, unaware that Jian Qi was trailing her from behind.

Deep in thought about his upcoming plans, Xue Yuan wandered into the courtyard and passed by Su Ruowei’s quarters. Seeing the lights burning bright inside, he recalled that after dinner, he had asked Jian Qi to tell her to help audit the mansion’s accounts so he could determine exactly how much silver Qian Zhongxian had embezzled. It seemed this young woman had been burning the midnight oil, living up to his expectations.

The window was ajar. Xue Yuan saw Su Ruowei sitting upright at a round table piled high with ledgers and an abacus. Three men stood by the table; Xue Yuan recognized them as clerks from the mansion’s accounting office. The three men were hunched over, beads of sweat continuously forming on their brows, as the young mistress was conducting a rigorous interrogation.

"Accountant Cao, in the first half of the year alone, you purchased seven hundred and thirty-two white porcelain bowls and basins from the Southern Kiln in three separate batches, costing two thousand eight hundred and fifteen taels?"

"Ah, yes, yes, yes! Those bowls are all here, and I have the receipts. It’s mainly because Southern Kiln porcelain is expensive, so the costs were higher!"

"Southern Kiln porcelain has a fine, thin, and lustrous texture. It should be translucent under sunlight, with the color of the clay faintly visible in thinner areas, and it should produce a crisp, ringing sound when tapped with a finger. Go to the warehouse now; if you can find me even one that meets these criteria, I will pass these accounts!"

The clerk named Cao turned pale, his face twisted in misery. After fidgeting for a moment, he stammered, "I—I must have been swindled! That damned merchant—I never imagined he would substitute inferior goods for quality ones!"

"Is that so?" Su Ruowei’s eyes were as cold as the moon. Her gaze swept across his face before she continued, "Your name is Cao Songnian, and the supplier is also surnamed Cao, named Cao Heyou. The Cao family of Jiangzuo names their generations based on the sequence of 'Pine, Crane, Longevity, and Eternal Virtue.' Unless I am mistaken, he should be of your nephew's generation, shouldn't he?"

A look of disbelief flashed across the clerk's face, followed immediately by pure terror.

Su Ruowei did not look at him again. She bowed her head to continue reviewing the ledger, her cherry-like lips parting slightly as she spoke a few words: "Mr. Cao, embezzling the Prince’s private treasury is a crime punishable by confiscation of property and execution."

The clerk collapsed to his knees with a heavy thud. Despite being a man in his fifties, he knocked his head forcefully against the floor before Su Ruowei. "Miss Su, please! Save my life! I beg you, save my life!"

Su Ruowei ignored him and turned her attention to another man. "Lin Dayou, in early spring, the mansion acquired a new batch of flowers and trees. I see one entry for 'Fire Cloud Flowers' costing three hundred and twenty-three taels."

"Yes..."

"Then tell me, what are the chances of Fire Cloud Flowers surviving if transplanted in early spring?"

"This... this..."

"You mean to tell me you don't know they must be transplanted in the summer to survive? I have indeed seen Fire Cloud Flowers in the courtyard, but judging by their height, they must be at least two years old. If I am not mistaken, these are the same ones you reported as dead and wrote off the books last year, aren't they?"

Lin Dayou also collapsed to his knees. "Miss Su, I..."

Su Ruowei still ignored him and looked at the last man. The third clerk trembled violently; without a word, he simply knelt down.

Xue Yuan, watching from the window, was struck dumb. *Holy hell,* he thought, *is she really just a nineteen-year-old girl?* She understood accounting, porcelain, and horticulture. She even knew the generational naming conventions of the distant Cao family of Jiangzuo. Was she even human? What kind of curriculum had her parents put her through?

More importantly, as an outsider, she had used only a few sentences to make three seasoned, slippery old men beg for mercy. She seemed to naturally radiate the confidence and aura of someone born to lead. Even though she was no longer the young lady of the Su family, that presence remained formidable.

"She is a genius at management, indeed..." Xue Yuan mused. If she were in the modern world, she would be a top executive at a multinational corporation. A small-time boss like him would probably need connections just to shake her hand. And on top of that, she was stunningly beautiful. If he could marry a woman like her, he would drive her around the village three times and then head to the ancestral hall to kowtow three times to his ancestors.

At that moment, Su Ruowei sat composed, silently flipping through the ledgers. The orange glow of the oil lamp bathed her exquisite, fair, and focused face, creating a scene as beautiful as an oil painting.

"I must have her!" Xue Yuan’s thought was firm. He couldn't imagine anyone better suited to be the steward—no, the President and CEO of the Prince's Mansion. With her managing the estate, he would never have to worry about money again.

"And I want to sleep with her, too!" This thought was equally firm, though it startled him. He quickly reminded his "little brother" not to be reckless. Women would only slow down his sword-drawing speed! But wait, he didn't even know how to use a sword. Oh, right, never mind.

"But regardless, I am definitely going to overturn the Su family’s wrongful conviction!"

"I’m in on this project, too!"

...

Jian Qi returned a bit late, taking about two hours. "Why are you only back now? Wang Yu'er has been back for a while," Xue Yuan noted.

Jian Qi didn't offer an excuse, simply stating, "She went to a place in the east of the city called the Thatched Cottage Tea House and handed the seal to them."

"The Thatched Cottage Tea House? So that’s the secret stronghold of the Remnant Elders Society?"

"Likely. Also, while I was on the roof, I heard the sound of a seal being stamped, and someone mentioned that Wang Yu'er had performed a great service."

Xue Yuan stroked his chin. "It seems these rebels are planning something big! I must say, I’m looking forward to it." He was, of course. He was merely a puppet; whatever chaos befell Ningzhou had nothing to do with him—in fact, it would only help him fish in troubled waters. Besides, on the surface, the seal was in Qian Zhongxian's possession; if something went wrong, he would be the one to take the fall. Why worry?

"Still, we should investigate further to see what they are actually planning. Who knows? There might be profit to be made," Xue Yuan told Jian Qi.

"Understood."

Jian Qi replied, "Also, Wang Yu'er mentioned our plan to hijack that shipment. The people at the Remnant Elders Society were very interested and are discussing striking before we do. Wang Yu'er will surely come to you to fish for the location and quantity of the goods."

Xue Yuan nodded. "Then you must find out the details quickly."

To his surprise, Jian Qi replied, "I already found the location of the Longsheng Cloth Firm’s warehouse and went inside to take a look. There is enough raw silk and semi-finished goods there that it would take at least thirty large carts to move it all at once."

Only then did Xue Yuan realize that Jian Qi had returned late because he had been scouting this. He couldn't help but praise him, "Jian Qi, you are truly reliable. If the age difference weren't an issue, I’d want to make you the Crown Prince."

"Get lost."

"Right, are the guards numerous? How strong are they?"

"As I said, I went inside to look."

Xue Yuan glanced at Jian Qi’s calm, smug expression. "Fine, you win. But putting that aside, can you give me the specifics?"

"Eight guards, the strongest being at the mid-stage of the Eighth Rank."

Xue Yuan listened and thought that with such a setup, the Remnant Elders Society should be able to take it. Everything was ready; all they needed now was the east wind.