Chapter 106: Audit the Accounts

The next day, the marketplace.

Sister Yuan strolled among the stalls, occasionally checking the prices of goods in various shops.

She wore a veil over her face, obscuring her eyebrows and eyes, making her expression unreadable, even altering the perception of her figure.

As market supervisor, she truly cared for this duty and patrolled the marketplace every day.

Partly for leisure, partly to check for any monopolistic or predatory practices.

Wearing the veil also prevented schemers from recognizing her identity and manipulating the market.

Today’s marketplace felt slightly off—somehow, it seemed to have more of something than usual.

But she couldn’t quite pinpoint what was wrong.

“Golden Armor Talisman! Xuan-grade Golden Armor Talisman!”

“Hand-drawn by Zheng Fa, the number one master of ten-thousand-year talisman arts!”

“Even if you don’t use it, buying it for study and observation is worthwhile!”

Hearing the words “Zheng Fa,” Sister Yuan turned toward the source of the shouting.

At a somewhat secluded stall, Han Qi stood upright, shouting loudly to attract passing customers.

His two attendants did the same; their three passionate voices blended together, drowning out other vendors’ calls and drawing sharp attention in the noisy marketplace.

Not just customers—even other stallholders stared at the trio.

A decent crowd had gathered in front of their stall.

Especially compared to the barren stalls of other talisman vendors, Han Qi’s business was thriving.

Sister Yuan finally understood: today’s marketplace was filled with these overly enthusiastic shouts!

She couldn’t help but approach.

Han Qi’s stall wasn’t entirely filled with Zheng Fa’s Xuan-grade talismans.

They had somehow acquired some low-value Huang-grade talismans to bundle with them.

“Buy one Xuan-grade talisman, and we’ll give you three free Huang-grade talismans!”

Han Qi called out to the onlookers.

The surrounding customers murmured among themselves, clearly tempted.

“One Xuan-grade talisman drawn by Brother Zheng! Plus three free Huang-grade talismans!” Han Qi raised his voice further: “If we didn’t treat you all like family, we wouldn’t offer this price! Miss this chance, and you’ll never find it again!”

Whether because of Zheng Fa’s reputation or the three free Huang-grade talismans, one cultivator couldn’t resist and bought three Xuan-grade talismans.

Han Qi happily tucked the spirit stone away, then looked up—and saw Sister Yuan standing before him.

“Lady, is there anything you’d like?” Han Qi greeted warmly. “Look, all drawn by our Nine Mountains Sect’s most renowned genius, Brother Zheng!”

“Is this your stall?”

“No!” Han Qi shook his head, half-explaining, half-boasting: “This is Brother Zheng’s stall. Otherwise, how could we get his talismans?”

“So you’re working for him?”

“Of course! Lady, what talisman are you buying?”

Han Qi answered loudly, then pressed further.

“...You work this hard just for him? Your shouting can be heard across the entire marketplace!” Sister Yuan snorted, watching Han Qi’s proud expression.

“?” Han Qi sensed something was off and studied Sister Yuan closely.

Sister Yuan removed her veil.

“Yuan...”

“Shut up!” She pulled the veil back on, frowning at the three: “You three never acted like this when working for me.”

“...”

“You raised prices on a book without permission!”

“You procrastinated and made excuses when doing tasks!”

“You never commit major offenses, but you constantly make minor mistakes!”

Sister Yuan grew angrier with each accusation.

Han Qi and his two attendants hung their heads, silent.

“If you’d acted like this earlier, I wouldn’t have... never mind.”

She fell silent, then waved her hand dismissively, realizing it was pointless.

She simply felt these three had changed too quickly, making her seem unpopular—outshone by Zheng Fa.

Han Qi lifted his head, eagerly asking: “Then, Sister Yuan, would you like to buy a talisman?”

“?”

Zheng Fa always felt Sister Yuan’s gaze toward him was odd.

Ever since he came upstairs, he sensed her watching him intermittently—her eyes held not just faint anger, but also rare contemplation—rare because Zheng Fa had almost never seen her think.

“Sister Yuan? Is there something wrong with my face?”

He couldn’t help asking, puzzled.

“It’s not you—it’s me who’s about to be in trouble!” Sister Yuan snapped back to herself, sneering: “Teach me quickly!”

“Huh?”

“Huh what? Didn’t Han Qi tell you? Sister Zhang is coming tonight to audit the accounts.”

“I know about the audit,” Zheng Fa blinked. “I’ve already organized all the ledgers.”

For the past month, he came to the marketplace every day to help Sister Yuan with the books.

The ledgers were merely tedious, not difficult; Zheng Fa was confident he’d handled them clearly.

“Is this an audit?” Sister Yuan sighed bitterly. “It’s an audit of me! Sister Zhang used to manage the accounts, but now she says I’m unfit for the role and wants to replace me.”

Zheng Fa couldn’t help nodding slightly.

“...Why are you nodding?” Sister Yuan glared, then softened her tone—she remembered she needed his help: “I boasted to Sister Zhang that managing these ledgers was child’s play!”

“...So?”

Zheng Fa began to understand Sister Yuan’s meaning.

“So I never told Sister Zhang you’re helping me with the accounts... she thinks I handle everything myself.”

...So I’m basically an outsourcer?

But Zheng Fa didn’t mind much—this job was indeed tiring.

Yet compared to five spirit stones a month, it felt easy.

Han Qi had once told him: in marketplace shops, hiring an accountant for three spirit stones a year was considered generous.

Roughly speaking, it was like a street cleaner working hard—but if their salary weren’t 3,000 but 30,000, they wouldn’t just tolerate the fatigue; they’d even feel professional pride, calling themselves “city beautifiers.”

In spirit stones, Sister Yuan hadn’t underpaid him—she’d overpaid!

Zheng Fa decided to return the favor.

“So what do you want me to do?”

“Go over the key figures in these ledgers with me...” Sister Yuan pleaded. “I can’t let Sister Zhang ask me questions and have no answers.”

So she wanted last-minute cramming.

“That’s simple.”

Zheng Fa pulled out several ledgers, spread them before Sister Yuan, and pointed out the month’s key figures.

Sister Yuan memorized them quickly—while cultivators might be poor at math, their memory rarely failed.

Zheng Fa’s thorough teaching boosted her confidence; she now felt she wouldn’t embarrass herself before Sister Zhang.

“Alright, leave early!” She patted Zheng Fa’s shoulder. “Don’t let Sister Zhang see you and get suspicious.”

“See what?”

Sister Zhang’s voice came from downstairs.

Zheng Fa felt Sister Yuan’s hand on his shoulder stiffen—she’d hit him hard.

She stared at him urgently, her face screaming: “Play it smart.”

Sister Zhang walked slowly up the stairs.

She glanced at Zheng Fa—no surprise in her eyes—then turned to Sister Yuan: “What can’t I see?”

“...” Sister Yuan laughed nervously, then blurted: “I was afraid Brother Zheng came to visit and you’d see him—this is the marketplace’s accounting room; ordinary people shouldn’t enter...”

Sister Zhang studied Sister Yuan deeply, then glanced at Zheng Fa.

Zheng Fa sighed inwardly but nodded under Sister Yuan’s anxious gaze.

“Have you finished organizing the ledgers?” Sister Zhang didn’t press further, only asked Sister Yuan.

“You came a bit early,” Sister Yuan muttered, then added proudly: “But I’ve already organized everything!”

She carried over Zheng Fa’s organized ledgers and placed them before Sister Zhang.

Sister Zhang lowered her head, flipping through the pages rapidly.

Beside her, Sister Yuan stole glances at her expression.

“Well done,” Sister Zhang said after reviewing a few ledgers, setting them down and nodding at Sister Yuan, her expression calm.

Sister Yuan’s face lit up.

“What was the marketplace’s income this month?”

“One thousand two hundred thirty-six spirit stones.”

Sister Yuan replied with delight, her face glowing with the satisfaction of having guessed correctly.

"How much is the rent?"

"The rent is nine hundred and fifty-five spirit stones: two hundred and thirty for the stall, two hundred and seventy for the marketplace, and four hundred and fifty-five for the large shop."

Yuan Shijie answered fluently, her voice growing more confident.

Zheng Fa also pondered the meaning of these figures in his mind.

The marketplace had roughly six to seven hundred stalls, about a hundred small shops, and no more than a dozen large shops opened by major sects.

Yet the bulk of the income came from those large shops.

A typical stall, like Zheng Fa’s current one, cost only about one spirit stone every three months.

But a shop averaged two or three spirit stones per month.

The rent for large shops was even higher.

The marketplace’s income also included transaction taxes, with varying rates for different goods—but these were minor compared to shop rents.

Zhang Shijie nodded slightly, looking satisfied: "You’ve put in effort."

A faint smile of pride appeared on Yuan Shijie’s face.

"How does this month’s marketplace income compare to last month?" Zhang Shijie asked again.

"Huh?"

Yuan Shijie turned her head blankly and glanced at Zheng Fa.

Damn it, I didn’t review last month’s figures!

"You tell her."

Zhang Shijie pointed at Zheng Fa.

Zheng Fa thought for a moment and said: "Last month, the marketplace income was one thousand two hundred and ninety-five spirit stones. This month, it dropped by about half a percent."

Zhang Shijie said nothing, simply watching the two. Yuan Shijie’s face was filled with shame.

"From now on, you’ll manage the marketplace." She suddenly pointed at Zheng Fa.

Upon hearing Zhang Shijie was promoting him, Zheng Fa’s first thought was—refuse!

This was a joke. Zhang Shijie acted on whims, reckless and impulsive.

How could a Qi Refining Stage Two disciple earn the respect of these marketplace disciples?

Yuan Shijie pursed her lips and lowered her head slightly.

Since Zheng Fa arrived, everyone seemed to prefer him.

Han Qi and the other three had become more diligent.

Even Zhang Shijie clearly trusted Zheng Fa more now.

Though she knew it was because she had been slacking.

She also knew Zheng Fa’s talent was exceptional, and she was willing to give him extra care.

But being outshone by him twice in one day still left her feeling disheartened.

This Zheng Shidi… could he be practicing some seduction art?

"Zhang Shijie, these figures were all told to me earlier by Yuan Shijie during our chats." He suddenly heard Zheng Fa’s voice. She looked up sharply and saw Zheng Fa speaking to Zhang Shijie: "Yuan Shijie simply forgot under pressure from your questioning."

Yuan Shijie looked at Zheng Fa and somehow found his once unremarkable face increasingly attractive...