Lucky Farmer Girl: I rely on metaphysics to support my family

After lunch, Tang Bojun went to his study.

Tang Wan and Tang Jing returned to their respective courtyards, and Madam Wang also rested for a while.

At the appointed time, the two sisters arrived at the east wing where Wang usually conducted her affairs.

Account books and an abacus were already prepared inside the room.

Just as Madam Wang began teaching Tang Jing how to check the accounts, she heard Steward Zhao's calm voice announce from outside the door: "Madam, Granny Sun from 'Guangyi Brokerage' in the south city has arrived with her entourage and is waiting outside the second gate."

Madam Wang put down the account books in her hand and said to her two daughters, "Perfect, you two take a look too. When it comes to managing a household, recognizing and employing the right people is fundamental."

Then Wang called out again, "Please invite them to the open hall in the front yard."

It was still that bright and spacious hall in the front yard.

Granny Sun from the brokerage firm led about twenty people to wait quietly.

As always, Wang asked questions with practiced ease, and Tang Jing tried her best to learn from her mother to observe people's eyes, manners, and speech.

Tang Wan remained calm, her gaze sweeping over everyone, taking note of them as well.

This time, Wang's selection was more targeted.

She chose a cook who claimed to have worked in a security escort agency, was skilled in cooking large pots and pans, and was physically strong; two laundry women who were obviously used to rough work and had rough hands; four servants of medium build with clear eyes; and eight young girls aged between twelve and sixteen who were good-looking and clever.

Wang selected fifteen people, then asked everyone to raise their heads, and gestured to Tang Wan.

Tang Wan led Tang Jing a few steps forward and carefully observed the crowd.

After examining everyone's faces, he realized that his mother's judgment in choosing people was indeed excellent, and there were no particularly cunning individuals among them. Therefore, he nodded slightly to Wang Shi.

Seeing this, Madam Wang said to Granny Sun, "The indenture must have all the required documents. If there is any concealment, you know the rules."

Granny Sun quickly assured her, "Madam, rest assured, they are all from honest families with complete indentures. We would never dare to deceive you."

The transfer of money and the signing of contracts will be handled by Steward Zhao.

The newly selected servants were taken away and arranged by the steward, with the elders of the household guiding them to familiarize themselves with the rules and assigning tasks.

The hall fell silent for a moment.

Madam Wang rubbed her temples and said to her two daughters, "Now we can at least manage the manpower in various places. However, these people still need some time to be trained before they can be truly useful. Jing'er, you need to pay more attention to the rules and assignments of these new maids and learn to manage them."

He then said to Tang Wan, "Wan'er, although you don't need to deal with these trivial matters, you have a keen eye. Help me take a look at who has potential."

Wan'er doesn't need to learn how to manage people; in fact, she's incredibly good at judging character.

Tang Jing agreed earnestly.

Tang Wan said, "Mother, you've worked hard."

Next, the teaching phase begins.

Under her mother's guidance, Tang Jing continued to learn how to check accounts, while Tang Wan helped Wang Shi arrange the exchange of gifts.

After all, those who came to Tang Jing to offer gifts and congratulations didn't actually need to return the gifts, but they needed to be recorded so that they could reciprocate the gift the next time they had an important matter. Theoretically, these people should be treated to a banquet, but the Tang family had just received the imperial decree, and everything was still in order. They needed to wait for Tang Bojun to return to the yamen before discussing it further.

However, we also need to hurry up and arrange the congratulatory gifts for the officials in the northern desert who have been reinstated.

After all, most of them held official positions of the same rank, and none of them could be neglected, not to mention the bond of shared hardship during their exile to the northern desert.

As the sun began to set slightly in the west, Tang Wan and Tang Jing, who had been studying all afternoon, were released by Madam Wang.

At this moment, the War King was in his study studying a detailed map of the capital and the surrounding area.

Xishan, Qixia Manor, and Feng Yongnian's residence—the War King attempts to find more connections between these locations in space.

Just then, a soft knock sounded on the door.

"Enter."

Zhan Yi pushed open the door, closed it, and bowed, saying, "Your Highness, there has been a response, but the clues are not yet complete and need to be pieced together."

The War King turned around and said calmly, "Speak."

Zhan Yi reported in a deep voice: "The 'Ghost Hand Liu' of Beicheng said that about a year and a half ago, a mysterious person wearing a hood, deliberately lowering his voice, and claiming to be from the south, offered a high price for 'Crimson Blood Vine' at a hidden market under his control. He was extremely demanding in terms of age and quality. He was unable to provide it immediately at the time, and the person left a contact number and disappeared. However, he has not reappeared since. 'Ghost Hand Liu' said that the person paid the deposit with polished old-style Southern Xinjiang silver ingots."

The War King's eyes were cold as he muttered to himself, "Southern Frontier Silver Cakes... Continue."

Upon hearing this, Zhan Yi continued, "The 'All-Knowing Scholar' in the East City has uncovered an even closer lead. About eight months ago, two batches of high-quality Yin Ning Flower were smuggled into the capital via the Grand Canal. However, the recipients were very cunning, and after changing hands several times, they eventually disappeared in the Yongping Ward area in the south of the city. As you know, Yongping Ward is a mixed bag, with numerous workshops, warehouses, and small temples, so the investigation will take time."

Zhan paused for a moment, then added, "However, 'The All-Knowing Scholar' learned from a boatman that during the second transaction, he vaguely heard the two people who came to pick up the goods speak in very low voices. Their accents were not pure Beijing dialect, but rather had the accents of some prefectures in the southwest. One word was mentioned repeatedly, sounding like 'sacrifice' or 'ritual,' but the boatman was not quite sure."

Whether it's a ritual or a ceremony, there are usually some problems.

Thinking of this, the War King asked, "Are there any overlaps in the whereabouts of the purchasing personnel from Feng Yongnian's residence?"

Zhan Yi replied cautiously, "We are comparing them. It seems that the head steward of the Feng family and a steward in charge of external affairs have 'coincidentally' appeared near Yongping Ward several times in the past year, mostly for the reasons of purchasing writing materials or visiting distant relatives. However, the timing of these events overlaps somewhat with the period when the two batches of Yin Ninghua were rumored to have flowed in."

The War King nodded slightly and praised, "Hmm, not bad!"

Finally, there has been some substantial progress.

Zhan Yi remained calm and said, "In addition, I have increased manpower to focus on sorting out all the whereabouts records of all personnel of the Feng family in Yongping Ward and neighboring wards over the past year, and then matching them with the timeline of rumors about the influx of black market medicinal materials."

“Well done,” the War King affirmed.

Yongpingfang is likely a key transit or contact point.

The mysterious person carrying the Southern Xinjiang silver ingots and searching for the Crimson Blood Vine, and the person in Yongpingfang who received the Yin Ning Flower and spoke with a southwestern accent, are very likely the same group of people, or even the supporting forces behind Feng Yongnian, or collaborators. In any case, they are all related.

Thinking of this, the War King instructed Zhan Yi to concentrate his forces and thoroughly investigate Yongpingfang, but not to act rashly.

He was afraid of alerting the enemy, and even more afraid that the other party might have some special methods that ordinary people couldn't handle.

Zhan Yi accepted the order and hurriedly left. (End of Chapter)