Looking north towards the rivers and mountains

Starting on May 21, Shao Shuyi resumed his work at the Qingqi Shop.

He had already arranged with Cheng Ji that the next class would be held on the tenth day of June. During this time, he would consolidate his knowledge, mentally reviewing how to calibrate and maintain a bow, and gaining a basic understanding of the fundamental performance of bows and arrows.

He has even started taking notes on the key points of each class so that he can review them later and maybe one day he will discover something new.

Furthermore, he truly realized how expensive it was to train a martial artist; it cost far more than studying.

The cost of regular maintenance for a single bow is quite high, not to mention the consumables used during practice, which also constitute a considerable expense. Take arrows, for example. Cheng Ji said that the Hangzhou Arrow Workshop had twenty craftsmen who produced eight hundred arrows a day, consuming countless shafts, arrowheads, fletchings, and glue. The arrows produced were delivered to the army for free, but if they could be sold, each arrow would fetch several tens of coins.

This price is truly speechless; the saying "the poor study literature, the rich study martial arts" is no joke.

After lunch, Shao Shuyi went to the entrance and was dumbfounded.

"Still alive after a month?" A very ordinary oxcart was parked not far away. Zheng Fan lifted the curtain, waved, and said with ill intent.

Shao Shuyi walked over, bowed, and said, "Greetings, Lord Zheng."

"Oh, so you know how to address me now?" Zheng Fan looked me up and down, grinning. "Your complexion is much rosier, and you're much more robust. Such a big change in just one month? Did you take some kind of magic pill?"

Shao Shuyi was at a loss for words, unsure how to respond.

Zheng Fan slowly wiped the smile off his face and said, "My thirteenth brother is at the silk shop and doesn't have time to come over, so he asked me to pass on a message to you."

"Please speak, sir," Shao Shuyi said, bowing again.

"You're eating and drinking comfortably in the shop, have you forgotten about the important matter?" Zheng Fan said, "Just this sentence, you should think about it carefully."

Shao Shuyi was startled and said, "I would never forget."

Zheng Fan chuckled and said, "I really underestimated you back then. You're so cunning. Were you perhaps planning to offend neither side?"

"How dare I, how dare I," Shao Shuyi quickly replied.

"Okay, that's good." Zheng Fan nodded and said, "You're the accountant, you don't need to be taught what to do, right?"

"No need," Shao Shuyi replied after a moment of silence.

Zheng Fan leaned closer and asked, "Are you afraid of dying?"

"You jest, sir," Shao Shuyi said with a wry smile.

Zheng Fan chuckled and said, "Just kidding. Go back and do your job properly. Thirteenth Brother has long disliked Wang Sheng, and even the Third Dormitory—well, never mind, why tell you all this? You go on your way, I'm going back now. Don't tell anyone I was ever here."

"I understand," Shao Shuyi said.

Zheng Fan lowered the curtain.

The oxcart slowly started moving and gradually disappeared around the corner of the street.

Shao Shuyi took a deep breath, slowly turned around, and returned to the shop.

Some people were dissatisfied with his "passive resistance" and sent someone to urge him on. From today onwards, his room for maneuver will become increasingly smaller, and walking the tightrope will become increasingly difficult.

******

Not long after Shao Shuyi returned to the counter, he saw martial arts master Zhang Neng approaching, so he stood up and bowed.

Zhang Neng gave a perfunctory salute, his gaze sweeping over the few men who were cleaning.

The men immediately scattered like birds and beasts.

Zhang Neng withdrew his gaze, looked at Shao Shuyi, and said, "In a few days, some blue artifacts will be delivered, and we will need manpower to move them. Manager, please have some water and wine purchased in case of emergency."

Shao Shuyi understood; this meant they needed to withdraw cash for procurement.

He paused for a moment, took a deep breath, and asked, "How much wine do you want? How much money do you need?"

"Five jars will suffice, and it will cost thirty strings of cash," Wu Youcai said.

Shao Shuyi spread out the account book, and while grinding ink, asked, "Where did you buy it? What kind of wine? How many liters and how many pecks?"

Zhang Neng was a little unhappy and said, "It's just five jars of wine, from the Chen family winery near the old locust tree."

"What kind of wine are these five jars? How many dou (a unit of volume) are in one jar? How much is one dou?" Shao Shuyi asked again.

"Why does the accountant have to be like this?" Zhang Neng retorted angrily.

"It's my duty," Shao Shuyi insisted. "If you're going to keep accounts, you have to keep them accurate."

Zhang Neng's face darkened as he watched Shao Shuyi grind the ink.

Shao Shuyi remained unmoved.

Seeing his resolute attitude, Zhang Neng suppressed his anger and said, "Fire liquor! Distilled liquor! A five-liter jar of Araj!

"Where is the parking ticket?" Shao Shuyi asked again.

Zhang Neng was almost furious.

Shao Shuyi was also a little scared, but he forcibly suppressed his turbulent emotions, looked up at Zhang Neng, and calmly said, "Thirty strings of cash, the shopkeeper needs to put up a note."

Zhang Neng stared at him for a moment, then finally snorted coldly and walked towards the backyard. A moment later, he came back with a note and slammed it on the counter.

Shao Shuyi gently picked it up, carefully examined it, signed and stamped it, then pasted it onto the ledger with paste. He then dipped his pen in ink and wrote down "Chen Family Winery", "Five Jars of Distilled Liquor", "Total of Two Dou and Five Sheng", "Thirty Guan of Zhongtong Notes", and "Military Master Zhang Nengzhi", totaling more than twenty characters.

"Alright." Shao Shuyi smiled at Zhang Neng and handed him the account book.

He knew very well that two and a half dou of liquor would most likely not cost thirty guan of cash, and Zhang Neng might even earn around ten guan. But according to the rules, as long as the shopkeeper approved it, it had nothing to do with him, since he was just an accountant.

But how to put it? In the past, accounts for food and drink purchases weren't kept so clearly; most of the time they were vague, and even if someone found out, there was room for explanation. Now, that's no longer the case. What kind of alcohol, how many liters, the unit price, the total price, who bought it, and where it was bought are all crystal clear. This will make things much easier to explain if someone investigates in the future.

Zhang Neng was probably worried about this, so he didn't give Shao Shuyi a friendly look, pressed his handprint firmly, and left directly.

Watching his retreating figure, Shao Shuyi thought to himself that Zhang Neng was probably a pitiful man when it came to making money. He even had to embezzle money meant for food and drink, so he obviously didn't have many channels.

Wang Sheng is ungrateful. He didn't even take good care of his long-time follower and didn't include him in his social circle. He really lacks a sense of perspective.

After Zhang Neng left, the shop became quiet again. There was hardly any business all afternoon; only two small plates were sold, bringing in a single guan.

As evening approached, just as Shao Shuyi was preparing to wrap up work, laughter came from outside. A moment later, the shopkeeper, Wang Sheng, returned, followed by two other people.

Coincidentally, Shao Shuyi knew both of these people: Sun Chuan, a broker in the Qingqi trade, and Zhou She, a wealthy man.

He stood up and bowed.

The three men's gazes met briefly on him before returning to their own. Wang Sheng and Zhou She remained silent, but Sun Chuan chuckled and pointed at Shao Shuyi, saying, "This is the new accountant? Looks like he's already capable of handling things on his own."

Wang Sheng stroked his beard and said, "Exactly. Heroes emerge from among the young, truly remarkable."

"I like promising young people the most." Sun Chuan waved his hand and said to a follower who hurriedly entered, "Bring me a coin to add some money for Accountant Shao's tea."

Without a word, the attendant opened the package, took out a stack of banknotes, and handed them to the counter in front of Shao Shuyi, saying softly, "This is just a little money for tea; please don't think it's too little, accountant."

Shao Shuyi was startled and immediately pushed the banknotes out, saying, "You're too kind, sir. As the saying goes, one should not accept a reward without merit. I feel ashamed to accept this money, so please take it back."

Sun Chuan's smile froze, and he turned to look at Wang Sheng.

Wang Sheng pondered for a moment and said, "Little Tiger, the master means well. We'll be busy later, so please accept it for now."

Shao Shuyi shook his head and said, "I cannot comply."

Wang Sheng's face darkened, but he was a man of principle, and quickly smiled and said, "You, what can I say to you? So many people want the master's gift but can't get it, yet you turned it down. Sigh."

As he spoke, he kept glancing at Sun Chuan out of the corner of his eye.

Sun Chuan snorted coldly and stepped inside, with Wang Sheng quickly following.

Zhou She stood on the outer edge, his hands behind his back, watching everything with great interest. As he caught up with Sun and Wang, he suddenly looked at Shao Shuyi and asked, "Haven't I seen you somewhere before?"

"Zhou She has a good memory." Shao Shuyi cupped his hands and said, "I saw Zhou She at Wuling Bridge in April."

Zhou She frowned and pondered for a moment, then exclaimed, "Ah!" and said, "I remember now, you're that little servant who hasn't even grown his first hair yet."

Shao Shuyi lowered his head slightly and remained silent.

Zhou She laughed heartily, saying as he walked away, "You've offended Master Sun, and you've offended your manager too. Things are going to be tough from now on!"

Shao Shuyi smiled and ignored the man.

Now he was even more certain that there must be some unspeakable secret between the shopkeeper Wang Sheng and the broker Sun Chuan. He just didn't know why Zhou She had also been involved. Did they need to use his family's boats and men?

After thinking for a while, I still couldn't come up with a solution, so I simply stopped thinking about it.

Shao Shuyi tidied up the utensils and prepared to go to the kitchen for dinner.

Zhou She was right; he had indeed offended someone, but what could he do?

Sun Chuan immediately offered him a "red envelope" containing a tael of silver; anyone with a brain wouldn't dare accept it. After being warned by Zheng Song, he no longer had any room to maneuver.

This is the tragedy of ordinary people; you have no choice.