My Sister Insisted on Swapping Marriages, and I Became a Marchioness Instead

Chapter 265: Both Leads Broken

Marquis Gu said, "No worries, the house opening is two days away, and the Dean of the Imperial Hospital will only be available to check tomorrow. Let’s handle the affairs of the residence in these two days first. If the Emperor has intentions, I must find a way to decline."

Qin Yuan smiled and said, "That’s good."

These past two days have indeed been busy; the patients with smallpox in the residence have all recovered. With no more concerns, everyone moves around freely within the residence.

Suddenly, the residence became quite crowded.

Hong Ye enlisted Gu Shiliu’s help to review the ledger submitted by Hong Mian. She also checked it herself and, seeing no omissions, handed it over to Qin Yuan.

As it was her first time appearing in front of the lady of the house to handle a task, Hong Mian was very attentive and inquired about it the very next day.

"Sister Hong Ye, did I do a good job? Did the lady say anything?"

Hong Ye replied, "The lady didn’t say much, just told me to leave it there. Let me tell you, as long as there’s no mistake, there’s nothing to worry about. After the lady announces the rewards and punishments, if no one makes a fuss, that means you’ve done well. Even if someone does make a fuss, it may not be your fault. We still have to see if the steward made an error in reporting."

Hong Mian was somewhat disappointed but didn’t ask further.

Seeing her like that, Hong Ye suddenly remembered something and said, "I’ve been busy reconciling the accounts these days. Once I’m free in a few days, I plan to teach a few people how to read the accounts. Can you help me find out if anyone is willing to learn?"

Hong Mian paused for a moment, then agreed with a smile.

Of course, Hong Ye didn’t only tell her, she also informed others.

A few young maids privately discussed whether they should follow and learn.

Hong Mian said, "Even if we learn how to read accounts, who knows what use it will be? Are we girls going to become account keepers?"

This caused some hesitation among them.

Those closer to Hong Ye said, "Since Sister Hong Ye is willing to teach, learning another skill won’t hurt. I’ll follow and learn. Even if I leave the residence in the future, it could still be useful."

Hong Mian remained silent.

When Cui Ming found out about this, she informed Hong Ye, who sighed, "I just thought she was bold and capable, but little did I know she had so many thoughts."

Qin Yuan glanced at her with a smile and said, "Which intelligent person has few thoughts? But you, you’re half-smart and half-confused, using all your intelligence on work — that’s rare to see."

Hong Ye forced a smile, "Then, miss, you should favor me more."

Qin Yuan said, "Of course, who else would favor my people if not me? You’ve been with me before, without many people to order around. Once you’ve been around longer and seen more, you’ll know. These are trivial matters, but you still have to keep your eyes open and discern things clearly. You don’t have to be intimidated just because someone is clever; different people serve different purposes, and knowing how to use people is an art. You should start learning slowly."

Upon hearing this, Hong Ye immediately felt much happier.

Cui Ming sighed, "Only the miss knows how to comfort you. If it were me advising you, you wouldn’t be cheerful so quickly."

Hong Ye didn’t respond, just pulled out the inventory list she had copied a few days earlier and asked Qin Yuan, "Miss, the transfer of the monthly silver from the outer courtyard to the inner courtyard has a discrepancy of several days — short by twenty days, long by nearly two months. All of this is recorded here over the past few years."

Qin Yuan nodded and added, "Check when the public property estates of the residence submit silver and when it’s entered into the accounts, and who handles it."

Hearing this, both Cui Ming and Hong Ye had serious expressions.

As they met her serious, searching gaze, Qin Yuan said calmly, "Even if Sun Accountant’s accounts have errors, they won’t be very obvious. In fact, the most hidden and severe issues in wealthy families often lie in these areas; I am merely being preventive."

Cui Ming frowned and asked, "Miss, have you learned of the Xu family’s dealings and thus suspect this area?"

Qin Yuan nodded, "More or less. To find out for sure, we still need to keep looking."

The previously somewhat slack Hong Ye suddenly became full of motivation again.

Qin Yuan added, "The historical items from the inner courtyard have all been extracted. When someone comes to settle an account, they can consult the old records. The outer courtyard doesn’t have these yet. Since you plan to teach people to read the accounts, why not organize them together?"

Hong Ye couldn’t help but exclaim, "You really know how to assign tasks to me. At this rate, who knows when I can return the books to Sun Accountant?"

Qin Yuan laughed, "The later you return them, the happier he’ll be, thinking we lack competence and are merely putting on a show. Little does he know that Hong Ye has uncovered his secrets."

Hong Ye said, "No need to wait a few days, how about now? I’ll go teach them to read the accounts, and help me copy them while I’m at it."

She finished speaking and immediately called some people to the side room to study the account books.

Qin Yuan then instructed Cui Ming, "Go urge Mrs. Li again, see if Doctor Li and Xiao Dong’s clothing preparations are ready, they’re leaving tomorrow. Make sure they leave through the small gate used for daily purchases, tidy up in advance to prevent trouble at the time."

Cui Ming acknowledged and went to the sewing room.

Qin Yuan only kept two young maids to serve her, spreading paper and ink, writing and drawing, unaware until dinnertime when Gu Jinghui arrived and asked, "Weren’t you planning to hold a farewell banquet for Doctor Li and Xiao Dong today? What are your plans?"

"Mother said she’ll handle it, so I didn’t intervene."

Marquis Gu acknowledged and sat next to her.

Qin Yuan put down her Hu Bi, turned her head to look, and seeing his displeased expression, she knew there were other issues. She quickly had the young maids pour tea, and she picked up the round fan at hand to fan lightly.

Marquis Gu glanced at the words she wrote, put them aside after a cursory look, and said, "The woman in the dungeon has had her poison sac removed, yet remains silent despite torture and persuasion. General Jin investigated several Jizhou soldiers close to Pang Hai, most have retired; those remaining can’t remember much, as it’s been years since Pang Hai died. They say Pang Hai was very familiar with Jizhou customs and had ties with local gentry."

Qin Yuan remained silent, waiting for Marquis Gu to continue.

Marquis Gu continued, "Regarding Madam Jin and the women close to Mrs. Zhao, they recall that Mrs. Zhao occasionally mentioned having a younger sister, married to a Money Shop owner, but they don’t know where he’s from."

This essentially broke both leads.

Marquis Gu said dejectedly, "Brother Cheng and the others can’t suggest any relatives to rely on; once the house opens, we’ll need to find a family for them to stay with. I’ve asked General Jin to see if he can find an aging soldier in town without children, someone honest, reliable, though it’s difficult to find someone on short notice."

The maid served the tea, but Marquis Gu just glanced at it, not in the mood to drink.

Qin Yuan thought for a while and said, "Why not follow the prior suggestion: set aside a street-facing courtyard in the residence for them to live, and let them choose attendants to accompany them. That Fake Yang will naturally go with them; we only need to appoint an adult to oversee the children, which isn’t much different from fostering them with someone else. Tonight, let’s ask Mother if she has someone available."

The Gu Family’s collateral branches aren’t lacking in people, so why hand them over to be raised by an aging soldier? Since Mrs. Zhao returned these two maids, partly due to the chaos caused by smallpox in the residence, it should also be for these two children.

Since that’s the case, it’s naturally best to keep them under watch.