I asked you to go hunting, and you ended up wearing a yellow robe?

You're tired, and she's prepared hot water;

If you're hungry, she'll save some food for you.

Even though I couldn't get out of bed last night, I still struggled to get up early this morning to wash the sheets.

Qi Shan leaned back in his chair and let out a long breath.

The land of gentle pleasures is the graveyard of heroes.

But without this gentle embrace, what flavor would the empire built with such fierce struggle have?

As he composed himself, Qi Shan's brows furrowed unconsciously.

Home was peaceful, but the military camp was in complete chaos.

Money and grain.

With the 10,000 taels of silver allocated by Zhao Bingkun last night, plus the supplies captured earlier, the Qingyang garrison is now considered to be strong and well-equipped.

But problems arose.

Accounts.

The food, drink, and sanitation needs of over a thousand people, the repair of weapons and armor, the fodder for warhorses, and the resettlement allowances for new recruits—every single expense was a mess.

Meng Da's gang were incredibly fierce when they wielded knives.

Let them look at the account books?

It's harder than killing them.

Yesterday, Qi Shan asked Meng Da to take inventory of the warehouse. That simpleton counted three times and gave three completely different numbers. In the end, he almost drew his knife and slit his own throat.

Hire an outsider?

Qi Shan was well aware of the deep-seated problems in officialdom during this era.

Those scholars and old officials were shrewd and calculating.

If they were recruited as accountants, within three months, 20% of the military pay would be lost.

In the military, nothing is insignificant; if the finances are in disarray, the entire force is doomed.

Do it yourself?

Qi Shan shook his head.

He had to oversee the overall situation, train troops, and deal with the hidden attacks from the court and the border troops. How could he have the energy to spend every day lying on the table reviewing accounts?

You must find someone you can absolutely trust who is also good at math.

But these days, few people can read, and even fewer can do arithmetic.

Where can you find such a treasure?

"My lord, is something troubling you?"

Lin Wan finished washing the last piece of clothing, wrung it out, and hung it on the clothesline.

Seeing Qi Shan's furrowed brows, she went to the well, fetched a basin of clean water, wrung out a hot towel, and handed it to him.

Qi Shan took the towel and wiped his face, casually saying, "The army is short of an accountant. Meng Da and the others are illiterate and can't do the accounting. I don't trust anyone I've found outside. Do you know anyone reliable who can do math?"

Lin Wan was stunned for a moment.

She blinked, looking puzzled. "Why would my husband want to find someone else?"

"Who else can I turn to if not outsiders? In Qingyang County, I can count the number of people I can absolutely trust on one hand."

Qi Shan sighed.

Lin Wan pursed her lips and whispered, "Is settling accounts... that difficult?"

Qi Shan glanced at her and patiently explained.

"It's not a matter of difficulty. Military supplies accounts are complex, with numerous inflows and outflows. Without understanding the art of accounting, it's impossible to sort them out."

"But..." Lin Wan hesitated for a moment, then looked up, her eyes clear: "But Wan'er knows how to do it."

The courtyard suddenly fell silent.

A gentle breeze blew by, stirring up a few fallen leaves.

He turned his head and stared intently at Lin Wan.

"What did you say?"

Lin Wan felt uneasy under his gaze, took a half step back, and stammered.

"I... I said I can do accounts. Has my husband forgotten that my father used to be the Vice Minister of Revenue? I've been helping him with the account books since I was a child. I helped manage the monthly income and expenditure accounts of our family's estates and shops."

Qi Shan's heart skipped a beat.

Vice Minister of the Ministry of Revenue!

He slapped his thigh hard.

How could I forget that!

Lin Wan was a daughter of an official who was exiled because her family had committed a crime.

The Vice Minister of Revenue was a top-ranking official in the Great Qian Dynasty who was in charge of money and grain.

As his daughter, she was influenced by what she saw and heard, and keeping accounts was an instinct ingrained in her bones.

"Do you understand double-entry bookkeeping? It means that for every debit there must be a credit, and the total debits and credits must equal the total credits?" Qi Shan asked tentatively, suppressing his excitement.

Lin Wan shook her head blankly.

"Wan'er doesn't understand what her husband means by 'duplex'."

But my father taught me the Four Pillars of Destiny: old accounts, new receipts, dismissals, and actual receipts. These four items must balance each other out perfectly.

Qi Shan gasped.

Four-pillar inventory!

The most advanced accounting and bookkeeping method in ancient China.

Qi Shan pressed on relentlessly: "How about mental calculation? One hundred and twenty shi of grain, each shi worth three qian and two fen of silver, how much is that in total?"

Lin Wan blurted it out without thinking.

"Thirty-eight taels and four mace."

Qi Shan quickly calculated in his mind.

Not bad at all.

He looked at the delicate woman in front of him, dressed in coarse linen clothes, her hands red from washing clothes, with burning eyes.

It’s not a waste of time to break through the iron shoes.

The chief financial officer he had been searching for had actually been right beside him all along.

"Wan'er." Qi Shan stood up and grabbed Lin Wan's shoulder.

Lin Wan was startled, her eyes slightly reddening: "Husband, did I say something wrong...?"

"No! You've done a great job!" Qi Shan couldn't help but burst out laughing.

He picked her up and spun her around.

Lin Wan gasped in surprise, then buried her face in his chest in embarrassment.

"From today onwards, you don't need to do laundry anymore." Qi Shan put her down, his gaze intense. "The finances and accounts of the Qingyang garrison are all yours!"

Lin Wan was stunned.

"Give...give it to me?" Her eyes widened. "But I'm a woman, how can I manage the army's accounts..."

"What about the woman?" Qi Shan sneered. "My rules are my rules. As long as you can settle the score clearly, anyone who dares to utter a single word of dissent will be killed!"

He looked at Lin Wan, his tone becoming serious.

"Wan'er, would you be willing to help me?"

Looking at the trust and expectation in Qi Shan's eyes, Lin Wan's feelings of inferiority and fear miraculously disappeared.

She took a deep breath and nodded vigorously.

"Wan'er is willing."

Qi Shan smiled.

He really struck gold!

Looking at the gentle and docile woman before him, Qi Shan felt as if a huge weight had been pressing on his heart for days had been lifted.

The army's funds and provisions were secured, and they were entrusted to the person he trusted most, his bedmate.

This feeling is even more exhilarating than killing an enemy general on the battlefield.

"Okay, I'll have Meng Da bring all the camp's account books over in a bit."

Qi Shan grinned, all the pent-up anger in his chest vanished, and a blazing fire suddenly rose in his eyes.

He stepped forward, wrapped his long arm around her, and, amidst Lin Wan's gasp, lifted her up in his arms once more.

"Husband... what are you doing!"

Lin Wan was so frightened that she quickly hugged his neck, her cheeks instantly turning red.

"The gate is still open in broad daylight..."

"What happened during the day?" Qi Shan lowered his head and bit her reddened earlobe, then continued walking straight towards the bedroom without stopping. "It's our own yard, who dares to gossip?"

"Oh! Sister Xue'er and Yue'er are in the side room, they'll hear us..."

Lin Wan buried her face in Qi Shan's chest in embarrassment, her voice barely audible, her body limp as a spring pond, unable to muster any strength.

"So what if I heard it?"

Qi Shan kicked open the door, hooked the latch shut with his backhand, and carried the person straight to the bed.

The curtains fell, obscuring the spring light from the room.