Hubu Office, Side Hall.
Over a dozen gray-haired old accountants were gathered around a small mountain of account books, looking utterly distressed.
Their expressions suggested they were not so much auditing Da Ming’s accounts as mourning its demise.
When Lin Yuan was personally “escorted” here by Wang Chengen, she was met with this scene of gloom and despair.
She was assigned a small desk in the corner, ostensibly to grind ink and take notes for Shoufu Bi, but in reality…
She felt like a poor, overworked laborer forced by her boss to supervise a construction site—one without overtime pay, compensatory leave, real authority, and likely to be made a scapegoat.
The officials around her looked at her with a mix of rejection and scrutiny.
[Did I blow up the Milky Way in my past life? Is that why I’ve been sent here in this life to cultivate good karma?]
[Look at these old gentlemen—their hairlines have receded all the way to the back of their heads. Chongzhen’s talent is undeniable, but the execution of this method is a complete disaster!]
[Copying entry by entry, transcribing them one by one, and then cross-checking each one—this workload is like reliving the madness before the college entrance exams.]
“Cough, cough, cough…”
One of the old accountants suddenly broke into a violent coughing fit. His hand trembled, and a drop of ink splattered onto the freshly copied account, instantly smudging the page.
“It’s ruined…”
The old man’s hand went limp, his brush clattering to the floor as he slumped down in despair.
The atmosphere in the hall instantly grew tense.
Bi Ziyan was so anxious he began pacing in circles, his official cap discarded, his forehead glistening with sweat.
The Emperor had given him only three days, and already one day had passed with barely any progress.
“Shoufu…” one brave accountant ventured, his face etched with misery. “This method is sound, but it’s far too cumbersome. We… we simply can’t keep up. Copying one book and cross-checking it already takes the better part of a day.”
Bi Ziyan’s face turned ashen. He opened his mouth to reprimand them but found no words.
What could he say? The accountant wasn’t wrong.
Just then, the shrill voice of a eunuch echoed from outside the hall.
“His Majesty has arrived—”
Everyone in the hall was terrified out of their wits, dropping to their knees in a flurry. The sound of knees hitting the floor made Lin Yuan’s teeth ache.
She quickly knelt along with the others.
[Oh, dear heavens. The boss is so diligent, coming to inspect in person already? I’ve been here less than a day—even debt collectors aren’t this relentless!]
Chongzhen strode into the hall in dark casual attire, taking in the chaotic scene and the grim expressions of those present. He understood immediately.
“It seems you’ve hit a snag, Minister Bi?”
Bi Ziyan knelt prostrate on the ground, overwhelmed with shame.
“Your servant is incompetent and has failed Your Majesty’s trust. Although this accounting method is ingenious, we are too dull-witted to…”
Chongzhen didn’t respond, merely staring coldly at the assembled officials.
At the same time, the little palace maid’s thoughts began flooding his mind once more.
[Good heavens, using primitive manual entry and verification like this is giving me a heart attack just watching! Don’t torment these gentlemen any further. At this rate, they’ll still be cross-checking by the time Da Ming falls.]
[“If only this were modern times, a single Excel spreadsheet with formulas set up, data entered, and functions dragged would automatically highlight any discrepancies in the accounts, getting it done in minutes.”]
[“Sigh. In ancient times, though. Let’s keep it simple—draw a big grid. List categories, summaries, debits, credits, balances, and so on row by row. Where the money came from, where it went, and how much is left—isn’t that much easier than copying and checking everything on rice paper?”]
Yisai? Hanshu?
Chongzhen had grown accustomed to not understanding Lin Yuan’s new terms, automatically filtering out this incomprehensible language and grasping the core meaning instead.
Drawing grids, categorizing.
A glint of insight flashed in his eyes as he moved through the crowd and stood before Lin Yuan.
Since he had decided to wield this blade, he naturally needed to let her sharpen it first, giving her some recognition to justify her future actions and save himself the trouble of constant concealment and explanations.
“Lin Yuan,” Chongzhen suddenly spoke, his voice not loud but enough to send a chill down Lin Yuan’s spine.
“This… this servant is here.”
[“Why call me? I’m just a lowly palace maid. Don’t pick on me.”]
“Look up.”
“Yes.”
Lin Yuan timidly raised her head, a sense of foreboding welling up inside her.
Chongzhen smiled at her and pointed to the pile of ledgers on the table.
[“Oh no, boss, don’t smile at me. I’m scared.”]
“Minister Bi says they are dull and inflexible. I recall that when you were organizing memorials in my presence, you once drew a grid that was quite clear.”
Chongzhen spoke with unwavering authority, even though he was fabricating the story.
“Go and teach Shoufu Bi. Show them how it’s done.”
What?!
The entire room was stunned.
Shoufu Bi looked up in astonishment, his gaze fixed incredulously on the little palace maid who had just come to grind ink and take notes for him today.
Having a palace maid teach the Hubu officials how to audit accounts? Had His Majesty gone mad with anger and decided to humiliate them?
Lin Yuan was equally shocked!
She felt as if she were about to fall apart.
[“Holy crap! What’s going on? When did I ever draw a grid? Since I arrived here, I haven’t even picked up a brush. Boss, if you’re going to frame me, at least make it believable!”]
[“What does Chongzhen even want? Is he deliberately trying to make things difficult for me? Sending a small fry like me to teach a bunch of big shots—does he think I haven’t offended enough people already?”]
“Are you not going?” Chongzhen urged again.
“If you fail to teach them, I will hold you accountable.”
Lin Yuan inwardly groaned but had no choice but to brace herself and accept the task.
[“Fine, fine, you’re really something! You just have to force me to show off, don’t you?”]
Under the bewildered and scrutinizing gazes of everyone present, Lin Yuan walked to the desk.
She took a deep breath, picked up the ruler and brush, and her inner office worker instincts awakened.
In no time, a massive paper grid composed of countless small squares appeared before everyone’s eyes.
“Shoufu, please take a look,” Lin Yuan said, her voice now calm and professional as she slipped into her office worker persona.
She pointed to the top of the grid.
“This is… the header. From right to left, I have divided it into categories, summaries, income, expenditures, and balance.”
As she spoke, she filled in the squares with characters. Though her handwriting was not as elegant as that of the ancients, it was at least legible.
“Enter each entry from Wang Hua’s ledgers into the corresponding squares based on their nature.”
“For example, income from farmland should be entered into the cell labeled ‘Income’; embezzlement and bribery should also be entered into the ‘Income’ cell.”
“Funds spent on purchasing antiques and calligraphy should be entered under ‘Expenditure,’ and silver given as rewards should also be recorded under ‘Expenditure.'”
“Each transaction occupies one row of cells. After recording each entry, the ‘Balance’ row at the end immediately calculates the total. This way, all accounts are interconnected, and any discrepancies become apparent at a glance.”
As Lin Yuan explained, the expressions of Bi Ziyan and the various accountants all changed, eventually transforming into fervor.
Chongzhen stood to the side, watching this scene with inner satisfaction.
This girl truly has substance to her.
“Minister Bi,” Chongzhen spoke, his tone carrying a hint of admonishment. “Even a palace maid by my side knows how to simplify complexity. Yet you, as pillars of the court, remain trapped in outdated methods. Do you not feel ashamed?”
Bi Ziyan snapped out of his daze, staring intently at the “spreadsheet,” trembling with excitement.
This was nothing short of divine manipulation!
Simplifying complexity, the great way lies in simplicity!
“Your Majesty, this method… this method is truly a divine skill!” As he spoke, Bi Ziyan was about to kneel and kowtow again, but Chongzhen stopped him.
[Ah… this… this is considered a divine skill? Why does Old Man Bi always make such a fuss?]
[But looking at Chongzhen’s attitude, is he deliberately letting me shine? What’s the purpose? Could he possibly expect me to become Da Ming’s new CFO?]
Hearing Lin Yuan’s thoughts, a faint smile flickered in Chongzhen’s eyes.
This was exactly the effect he wanted—let it spread far and wide that he had a capable little palace maid by his side.
In the future, when this girl says something strange or unusual, these old-timers wouldn’t be so easily shocked.
“Now that you understand the brilliance of this method, from now on, follow Lin Yuan’s guidance entirely. If there’s anything you don’t understand, go and consult her.”
“Starting immediately, re-record all the accounts. I await your good news.”
With that, Chongzhen turned and left the Hubu.
With the emperor’s endorsement and her own demonstrated ability, Lin Yuan’s status in the eyes of these elderly gentlemen had now risen to the highest level.
Their gazes toward her had become clear and respectful.
Everyone had their roles clearly defined, with Lin Yuan surrounded in the center.
In the side hall, only the clattering of abacus beads and the swift scratching of brushes on rice paper could be heard.
Efficiency soared instantly.
By the afternoon of the next day, a young clerk responsible for the accounts of Gongbu Yuanwailang Liu Jiancheng suddenly let out a terrified gasp, dropping his brush to the floor.
His face turned deathly pale as he stared fixedly at the accounts before him, cold sweat instantly beading on his forehead.
“What’s wrong?” Bi Ziyan demanded sharply.
The clerk stood up trembling, clutching the paper, and stumbled over to Bi Ziyan, stammering as he spoke.
“Shou… Shoufu, sir.”
His legs gave way, and he knelt directly on the floor.
“It’s been uncovered. The funds allocated by the Gongbu last year for the renovation of the imperial mausoleum—the account books record eight hundred thousand taels, but… but the actual expenditures total only five hundred thousand taels.”
“There’s a massive shortfall of three hundred thousand taels that cannot be reconciled…”
These words exploded like a bomb, silencing the entire side hall.
Three hundred thousand taels!
Everyone gasped in shock, turning fearful eyes toward Bi Ziyan.
Lin Yuan was also stunned.
Da Ming truly… had its reasons for falling.
Even a random corrupt official has amassed wealth that could rival a nation…
Excellent, excellent, excellent, excellent!
With this wave of Thor’s hammer strikes, who will be the next unlucky one?
Chongzhen’s awakened power is truly precise!
The imperial court is likely to face an earthquake.