Chapter 60: Many People Can No Longer Sit Still

The Spring Festival has always been the grandest festival for the Huaxia people.

On this day, the County Marquis Mansion, which had always shared in the joys of the people, had been serving an open-air banquet since the afternoon, with "Drunk Yinzhou" provided in abundance. After a year of hard work, everyone wanted to rest for a while. But the people had not forgotten the changes the County Marquis Mansion had brought to the land of Yinzhou; every household was either bringing meat or chicken as gifts.

"Auntie, you've come again?"

When Liu Zheng returned, he saw Wei Tiezhu's mother again.

"Young Master, Young Master, you must take care of your health!"

The auntie said with red eyes.

Others also came over one after another to show their concern for Liu Zheng. It seemed that quite a few people were concerned about the fact that Liu Zheng had been living in the greenhouse for the past few days.

Liu Zheng hurriedly thanked them.

The auntie looked around and muttered, "Such a large County Marquis Mansion, why is there no woman in charge? Young Master, you should take a wife!"

These words left Liu Zheng unable to laugh or cry, and he was almost choked by a mouthful of wine. But it was true; in this era, at his age, he would have already had three wives and four concubines; after all, he was twenty this year... But thinking about it, why hadn't his mother returned yet? Feng Sanniang had said at the time that she would be back in a month, and it had been almost three months now, yet there was still no news. Letters were sent often, however, to report that she was safe.

"That's right, Young Master. My niece is quite pretty; could she climb the social ladder and marry into your family?"

A woman teased.

The crowd roared with laughter.

Liu Zheng was teased to the point of being unable to parry, but in such an occasion, he could not just leave alone.

"Pfft, your niece is so thick-limbed and sturdy, even more robust than my Tiezhu; is she worthy of our Young Master?"

The crowd burst into laughter again.

Someone suggested, "I think the Young Master and Eldest Miss Zheng are a perfect match!"

"That's right!"

This immediately caused Zheng Yue Ru, who had just entered and sat down, to blush deeply. The crowd followed up with more teasing, which made Zheng Yue Ru, who usually had the air of a domineering female CEO, feel restless and charmingly shy. Once this feminine side appeared, it immediately stunned the entire room, and even Liu Zheng was mesmerized.

Not to mention anything else, Zheng Yue Ru's appearance was definitely stunning enough to topple cities and states, but her initial male disguise had given Liu Zheng such a shocking impression. This preconceived notion made him feel only admiration for Zheng Yue Ru, but no romantic love. If it were the Liu Zheng of his previous life, being able to marry such a wife would indeed be enough to brag about for a lifetime.

"Hahahaha!"

Therefore, Liu Zheng could only laugh it off.

Zheng Yue Ru glared at Liu Zheng. She lowered her head to drink wine and said no more.

Liu Dahao, on the other hand, became excited upon hearing this topic: "Zheng, Auntie Wei's words are good. Your father should also find you a wife..."

"Enough, enough, enough!"

Liu Zheng had black lines on his face and hurriedly made him stop; wasn't there an end to it?

Amidst the drinking and merrymaking, Qin Zhangfeng arrived, Shen Xing arrived, and Liang Erfu arrived. Those Counselors and Executives of the County Marquis Mansion also arrived. Then those Powerful Clans came as well, which made people feel that the scene was a bit surreal.

Since when could the lords of the County Marquis Mansion, the masters of the Powerful Clans, and the officials sit together with these commoners and farmers?

Just then, seeing that everyone had arrived, Liu Zheng stood up tall and gave a dry cough. The crowd fell silent one after another and looked at Liu Zheng.

Liu Zheng looked around and smiled slightly. He was also filled with emotion at this moment. After transmigrating, he started with bankruptcy, and in just three short months, he had changed so much and changed the fate of so many people. Life was truly so magical.

"Everyone, Liu Zheng has been in Yinzhou for three full months. Thanks to everyone's support, the County Marquis Mansion is established, the weather is favorable, and the hearts of the people are won!"

"With auspicious snow comes a bountiful year; the coming spring will surely bring peace to the country and the people!"

"When Spring Returns to the Earth and all things grow, Yinzhou is about to welcome a better tomorrow!"

After a few cups of wine, Liu Zheng started speaking in official jargon.

The crowd laughed, and applause thundered.

"Today is the Yinzhou Prefecture annual meeting, and it is also the day for dividends!"

Liu Zheng suddenly said.

The crowd was confused. Annual meeting? What the hell is that? And dividends? They knew about dividends; it was in the company's rules and regulations. However, this company had just been built; were there dividends already?

Liu Zheng glanced at Zheng Yue Ru. The latter was still blushing from the previous teasing and gave Liu Zheng a fierce glare before bringing over the bill.

Liu Zheng took the bill and read aloud: "County Marquis Mansion, total income this year: one million eight hundred and seventy-two thousand three hundred and fifty-eight taels!"

Boom!

The whole room was in an uproar.

Everyone discussed it in whispers, unable to believe it.

In just three months, they had actually earned so much money? Immediately, there were praises for the Young Master's great talent.

"Expenditures: one million eight hundred and fifty-one thousand and thirty taels..."

Liu Zheng said with a bitter smile.

Many people calculated it and laughed out loud. The income and expenditure were actually almost the same.

"Balance: twenty-one thousand silver!"

"The expected investment for spring plowing in the coming spring is about thirty thousand taels, so, a deficit! No dividends this year! The bill will be posted at the city gate later for everyone to calculate!"

After saying this, Liu Zheng closed the account book.

The whole room burst into laughter and chaos. This Young Master of the Liu Family was actually so funny. If there are no dividends, what are you talking about? But regardless, Liu Zheng's approach still shocked everyone. What was this? The County Marquis Mansion making its financial income public? Where had they ever seen such a practice?

As the saying goes, a clean magistrate for three years brings one hundred thousand taels of silver!

Some even said that those who excel in study should become officials, and those who excel in officialdom should be corrupt! Who comes to be an official if not for the money? Especially this Liu Dahao, who was a merchant by trade; after he came to Yinzhou to serve as County Marquis, people's biggest worry was whether he would be too greedy. Being greedy was fine, as long as he wasn't too greedy.

This kind of rhetoric had actually been circulating in Yinzhou, and even the entire Liangzhou, for a long time.

This was people's habitual thinking.

But today, Liu Zheng directly shattered their suspicion.

Not only are we not greedy, but we will also completely disclose our accounts! Just like that company, every single account is calculated clearly, letting you, the people, understand that we came here with one heart for the people, not for corruption!

"Good!"

"What a good official!"

"Lord County Marquis is a hero of this generation!"

Not only were the commoners deeply moved by this, but even those from the Powerful Clan stood up one by one to toast Liu Dahao. Liu Dahao was actually already drunk and completely unaware of what had happened, let alone that in his muddled state, his son had secured such a great reputation for him; he only knew to raise his cup and drink to socialize.

"Good, good, drink..."

"Eat well and drink well, *hiccup*..."

Liu Zheng looked at Liu Dahao and smiled slightly.

Zheng Yue Ru poked him from the side: "Brother Liu, is there really a deficit?"

Liu Zheng rolled his eyes and whispered: "Do you take me for a fool? Military expenditures are confidential and cannot be audited; ten thousand of that is my personal salary!"

Zheng Yue Ru was stunned for a long time, then pointed at Liu Zheng and burst into laughter, unable to stop; the next moment, tears were about to stream down.

Liu Zheng chuckled.

From today on, he had to slowly save money... One must know that a Viscount or a County Marquis could still be bought with money! But a State Marquis? Money alone wouldn't suffice! One also needed talent and a reputation! He himself didn't want to be an official, but he wanted to see Liu Dahao rise step by step. The next step was a State Marquis, so he had to pave the way for him bit by bit. Thinking of this, for now, Liu Dahao's reputation was still quite good, especially since the disclosure of the year-end financial balance would definitely cause a great stir in this world.

Sure enough.

It was only the first day of the Lunar New Year.

Many people could no longer sit still.

The Prefect of Liangzhou Prefecture, Chen Ping, saw the message sent by carrier pigeon, and his face turned black: "What is this Liu Dahao doing! This is preposterous, the income and expenditure of the County Marquis Mansion is a state secret, how can it be made public?"

"My Lord, they kept the military expenditure item confidential."

"You, you, you, whose Counselor are you? Hmph, playing tricks, making it public while hiding the military expenditure?"

Chen Ping was furious.

Although he said so, Liu Dahao's Yinzhou had some reservations, but being able to disclose income and expenditure still required great courage. Military expenditure? Of course, that couldn't be disclosed; in this era, it was easy to guess the strength of the Garrison, the Weaponry and Equipment, and the grain supplies of each prefecture through military expenditure, as there was very little investment in research and it was easy to deduce. It would be a miracle if he disclosed that to you!

"My Lord, people in the city are already whispering, and some are even inciting our Liangzhou Prefecture to also disclose our income and expenditure, this matter..."

The subordinate said.

A cold light flashed in Chen Ping's eyes: "Liu Dahao is going too far! He wants to build a reputation, yet he drags so many others down with him!"

"Issue a Liangzhou Prefectural Order: on the fifth day, all County Marquises of the state and counties are to come to Liangzhou to report on their duties!"

"Yes!"

Chen Ping snorted coldly: "Liu Dahao, oh Liu Dahao, if you want to find a way to survive, you still have to see if I will give you the chance!"

Yinzhou Prefecture.

Liu Dahao woke up from his drunken stupor: "My son, what good deed did you do last night? Why did I dream of evil ghosts?"

Liu Zheng smiled bitterly: "Disclosing the income and expenditure of the County Marquis Mansion, I didn't expect so many people to be unable to sit still."

"What?"

Liu Dahao felt dizzy and hurriedly cried out that it was bad, with a mournful face: "My son, how could you be so reckless? Doesn't this make me an enemy of the world?"

Liu Zheng smiled dismissively: "To be an enemy of the world is to gain a great reputation, why not do it?"

Liu Dahao was so scared he took a deep breath: "What does my son mean?"

Liu Zheng said: "Father, Empress Zheng is still on the throne. Before the world falls into chaos, Zheng intends to help you secure a future!"

Liu Dahao was shocked.

Liu Zheng smiled slightly and said: "Father, we must prepare to go to Liangzhou to report on our duties."

In fact, Liu Zheng also knew that this was a bit risky. But he really couldn't wait; the old emperor could pass away at any time. The Feudatory Kings in various regions had strong troops, sturdy horses, and plenty of grain; if he wanted to get a share of the spoils in the future, he had to speed up the process!

And a few days ago, he occasionally heard Zheng Yue Ru say that Empress Zheng intended to return to Liangzhou to visit her relatives this year!

Liu Zheng knew that the opportunity had arrived!

This trip to Liangzhou was not only to promote his Soap and Perfume, but also to make a strong impression in front of Empress Zheng; it would be best if he could help his father secure a position as a State Marquis. By then, his father would be on equal footing with Chen Ping in terms of nobility, and he would be able to govern Yangzhou—or even more prefectures—justifiably, without any legal obstacles.

Therefore, making the County Marquis Mansion's income and expenditure public was not a whim of Liu Zheng.

This was just his first move!

As for the second move, he would wait until they reached Liangzhou to discuss it.

That day, the Liu family father and son packed up, and Zheng Yue Ru and the Zheng Family caravan were already waiting outside.

Zheng Yue Ru saw Liu Zheng and asked with a smile: "Brother Liu, how do you feel about returning to Liangzhou?"

Liu Zheng laughed out loud: "When I left Liangzhou that day, I said that I would make those who humiliated me come and hold the horse's stirrups for us..."

He paused and smiled brilliantly: "Is this enough?"

With a wave of his hand, the Horse Carriage behind him was uncovered.

Zheng Yue Ru looked over and immediately exclaimed: "My god..."

【Author's Note】

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