Chapter 227: Ruan Fengshan's Shocking Sight

Duan Rong looked at Ruan Fengshan standing at the corridor entrance, and Xiao Yu behind him, his heart suddenly relaxing.

He could certainly still handle Luan Bao, but if the person who came was Luan Jingfu, he would have no choice but to step aside obediently.

Xiao Yu glanced at Luan Bao, immediately flashed in from outside the corridor, and said, "I'm late."

Duan Rong smiled and said, "Not late, just in time."

Ruan Fengshan stood at the corridor entrance, looking at Duan Rong.

Although Luan Bao had not seen clearly how Duan Rong moved just now, it was even more impossible for Xu Shouxian, who had never practiced martial arts, to see it clearly.

But he had arrived at the corridor entrance a step before Xiao Yu, and in that instant, he had seen it clearly.

Just now, Duan Rong had used a move from the Five Tigers Flock of Sheep Saber: transforming the saber into a palm, turning his body to the side, and then backhanding Luan Bao in the abdomen.

It was just that his transition between attack and evasion was as smooth as flowing water, without the slightest obstruction, and his speed was excellent, with a tricky angle.

Ruan Fengshan sighed slightly in his heart. "This kid, in just over half a year, has actually grown to this point?"

In Ruan Fengshan's view, Duan Rong's Internal Breath was already slightly stronger than Luan Bao's, and his understanding and comprehension of martial arts moves were already far beyond Luan Bao's; apart from his own talent, this also had a great deal to do with Xiao Zongting's selfless teaching.

But, in fact, Duan Rong had just used his Divine Sense to penetrate Luan Bao's body, and the Internal Breath he infused was just enough to disperse Luan Bao's Internal Breath, causing him to temporarily lose his combat ability without damaging Luan Bao's internal organs or leaving behind any future trouble for himself.

If Duan Rong had really wanted to fight, that backhand strike just now could have killed Luan Bao!

Duan Rong stood at the entrance of the Document Repository, cupped his fists at Ruan Fengshan, and said, "Manager!"

Ruan Fengshan nodded and said, "How is the account audit going?"

On the way just now, Xiao Yu had already followed Duan Rong's instructions and roughly told Ruan Fengshan the results of the account audit.

Although Ruan Fengshan was half-doubting, his mind was already in turmoil, though his expression remained unmoved; thus, as soon as he saw Duan Rong, his question went straight to the point.

Duan Rong said, "I was just about to report to the Manager inside the Document Repository!"

"Good!" Ruan Fengshan called out, then looked at Xu Shouxian, his voice containing hidden anger, and said, "Chief Accountant Xu, take your Principals from the Accounting Office and come into the Document Repository with me to hear Duan Rong report the audit results."

"Yes." As Xu Shouxian spat out the word, his mind was instantly engulfed by fear.

He could no longer predict what would happen next, and there was no room for maneuver; at this moment, Xu Shouxian, who had been an accountant for decades, suddenly felt like a fish on a chopping block. He lifted his eyes to glance at Duan Rong standing in front of the Document Repository, his heart filled with mixed feelings.

Wang Dean and Zhu Shicheng had long been hovering near the corridor of the Main Hall with panicked expressions; only after Xu Fuxian arrived did he go straight to his own East Ding Room, not joining in the commotion here.

Xu Shouxian had Wang Dean go and call Xu Fuxian over.

Duan Rong took the key in his hand and opened the door to the Document Repository; he held a lantern in his hand, illuminating the pitch-black Document Repository.

Ruan Fengshan stepped in slowly, with Xu Shouxian, Wang Dean, Zhu Shicheng, and Xu Fuxian following closely behind.

Xiao Yu did not go in and stood guard directly at the door.

Luan Bao, standing at the corridor entrance, only now felt his shaken internal organs gradually stabilize; he wiped the filth from the corner of his mouth, his expression looking rather ugly...

Meanwhile, Li Jun, who was waiting near the corridor of the Main Hall, saw Duan Rong take Ruan Fengshan, Xu Shouxian, and the others into the Document Repository, and his mind was instantly thrown into chaos.

Xu Shouxian and Wang Dean had never truly seen Duan Rong audit accounts; they had only heard descriptions from themselves and Huang Qing, so when they stepped into the Document Repository, they likely still harbored a shred of luck in their hearts.

But Li Jun had personally watched Duan Rong audit the accounts, so he could better understand why Duan Rong was blocking the entrance to the Document Repository. He was even clearer on what Duan Rong was trying to do.

That was why he was even more afraid!

Because he was more certain, his fear was also far more thorough and desperate than that of Xu Shouxian and Wang Dean!

Li Jun had already been unconscious for five days; during these five days, although his old father had fed him some thin porridge and ginseng soup every day, he had actually consumed very little.

Therefore, his body was already weak, and after sprinting such a long distance, and now losing his composure, Li Jun's eyes went black, and in a moment of incontinence, he actually fainted again.

Once Xu Shouxian left, the Apprentice Accountants in the Main Hall began to whisper like they had been let off the leash; just then, Li Jun suddenly collapsed to the ground with a thud, causing the nearby Apprentice Accountants to fall into a flurry of confusion...

Ruan Fengshan and the others followed Duan Rong, who was carrying the lantern, into the Document Repository.

The group stood at the entrance of the Document Repository, and it took several breaths before they adapted to the somewhat dim light inside.

The moment they saw the Document Repository clearly, their minds received a massive shock.

They saw that the cramped and narrow corridor of the Document Repository was filled with stacks upon stacks of account books... arranged like a formation...

Xu Shouxian stood behind Ruan Fengshan, and upon seeing this scene, he glared angrily at Wang Dean.

Wang Dean wiped the cold sweat from his forehead. He also knew he had been careless; Duan Rong had actually made such a big move in the Document Repository over these five days, and he had been completely unaware.

Xu Shouxian's gaze shifted, and he suddenly looked at a stack of account books beside him; he saw a note tucked into the top one, and with a slight crouch, he pulled the note out.

Xu Shouxian used the daylight shining in from the entrance to look at the note in his hand.

He saw that the note was covered in dense numbers, arranged in layers like a Number Array, with lines intersecting and connecting, surrounding it in as many as three layers.

As soon as Xu Shouxian saw the note, his lips trembled, and his face instantly turned deathly pale. "He actually... really understood it..."

And Duan Rong had not only understood it, but had completely cracked the Account Maze; the Number Array on the note in Xu Shouxian's hand was proof of this.

Xu Shouxian was old after all, and his figure swayed; seeing this, Wang Dean immediately reached out to steady him.

Xu Shouxian barely managed to stand firm; he turned his head and saw Wang Dean's concerned face, and was instantly furious, pushing Wang Dean away. If Ruan Fengshan were not here, Xu Shouxian would have already slapped Wang Dean across the face.

He cursed inwardly: "Stupid pig! How could I have used someone like you? Is your brain in your backside?"

Duan Rong placed the lantern in his hand on the corner of the desk, and on the desk, there were also three stacks of account books.

Duan Rong looked at the three stacks of account books on the desk and said to Ruan Fengshan beside him, "Manager, these three stacks of account books are the largest item of cash flow in the accounts for the twelfth lunar month of this year, involving five thousand six hundred and thirty-two taels of silver."

As Duan Rong spoke, he pulled a note from the top account book and placed it in front of Ruan Fengshan, saying, "Manager, please look. This is the detailed account breakdown. Out of a cash flow of over five thousand six hundred taels, there is an account discrepancy of nine hundred and eighty-five taels."

Upon hearing this number, Ruan Fengshan's heart skipped a beat. A single discrepancy was as high as nine hundred and eighty-five taels.

Ruan Fengshan immediately looked at the note, but the dense Number Array on it was something he couldn't quite understand for a moment.

Duan Rong noticed Ruan Fengshan's expression and immediately opened the account books in front of him.

Duan Rong had already folded the corners of the account books at the relevant places.

Then, using the account books and the Number Array on the note, Duan Rong began to explain.

When Ruan Fengshan was young, besides practicing martial arts, he often came into contact with the family business; he had spent half a year in the Accounting Office, and the position the Old Shopkeeper had arranged for him was to serve as an Assistant to Xu Shouxian, who was only a Principal at the time.

At that time, Xu Shouxian had taught Ruan Fengshan many of the secrets and calculation methods of the accounts without holding anything back.

But this three-layered nested account was clearly too complex and redundant; Ruan Fengshan watched for a full half-stick of incense before he finally understood the meaning of the Number Array on the note.

The moment he understood, Ruan Fengshan's mind was shaken, as if he had fallen into an ice cellar.

"What a truly fine trick!"

"Nine hundred and eighty-five taels!"

"Deceiving the heavens to cross the sea!"

Seeing that Ruan Fengshan had already understood this entry, Duan Rong directly took out the summary slip and spread it out before Ruan Fengshan.

"Manager, this is the total account for the twelfth lunar month!"

Looking at the numbers on this summary slip, Ruan Fengshan felt a sudden shock; the muscles on Ruan Fengshan's face twitched, his body trembled with rage, and he cursed in a near-loss of composure: "Vermin! This Accounting Office is already rotten!"

(End of this chapter)