From a slave to the Great Qian Martial Saint

"Then we'll source it from elsewhere!"

Inside the duty room, Dongqing stood to the side and suddenly spoke up.

The Jiangnan Provincial Inspector of Medicine is in charge of the distribution of medicinal herbs and dental plasters throughout the entire Jiangnan region. As long as there are medicine merchants in Jiangnan, who would dare to offend him?

However, the vast Qianlong Empire encompassed far more than just the Jiangnan region. It was divided into seventeen circuits in total, with sixteen of them being separate from Jiangnan. Naturally, pharmaceutical merchants from other areas were not subject to the control of the Jiangnan Circuit's pharmaceutical administration commissioner.

"inappropriate."

Chen Shi hesitated for a moment, then shook his head.

While they could certainly purchase medicinal herbs from other sources, they were unfamiliar with the area and how could they guarantee the quality of the herbs in such a rush? The procurement of medicinal herbs was a matter of life and death; if any problems arose, Chen Shi could not bear the responsibility.

Furthermore, the journey is long, and if transportation costs and losses are taken into account, the final price of the medicine may not be much lower than it is now.

The most important thing is time. Today is February 20th, and this batch of medicinal herbs needs to be purchased by the end of the month. There's no way we can make it back and forth in time.

It's impossible that the maternal uncle was only recently recognized. Gu Chenglie had this method for a long time, but he hesitated to use it, holding back until now to make his move, just to catch Chen Shi off guard.

I have to say, that's pretty insidious.

"Then we'll have to ask the government to allocate more funds."

Holly scratched his head, having no other options.

"Spend more money, ha."

Chen Shi chuckled softly and shook his head again.

The allocated funds were already sufficient, and now they want to increase them again? Do they really think the people in the manor are just sitting around doing nothing, letting them demand money at will?

Moreover, if Chen Shi really gets the money, I'm afraid his job as manager will be over.

Imagine, the previous manager always purchased at low prices, but as soon as Chen Shi took over, the prices suddenly increased so much. Doesn't that show that he is incompetent?

With just a little maneuvering, Gu Chenglie could easily remove him from his position as manager on the grounds of incompetence.

Actually, there was no need to apply to the government office; Chen Shi could have easily made up the difference himself, which would have cost only a few hundred taels.

Once we've addressed this immediate crisis, we can find alternative suppliers next month when we have more time.

The problem is that since Gu Chenglie is determined to make Chen Shi his mortal enemy, even if Chen Shi is willing to spend more money, he probably won't be able to buy the medicinal herbs.

This is not something that money can solve.

"What should we do then?! Are we just going to sit here and wait to die?!"

Nothing would work, nothing would work; Holly was like an ant on a hot pan, anxiously pacing around in circles.

Chen Shi sat there, not particularly flustered.

"Manager, Third Master is here."

Just then, a medicine servant suddenly came in to deliver a message.

Chen Shi frowned. Could it be that Gu Chenglie had come at this time to show off his martial prowess?

"What are you lackeys all standing around for? Don't you have anything to do?!"

Immediately afterward, accompanied by a sarcastic tone, Gu Chenglie entered with his servant.

"Greetings, Third Master."

Chen Shi stood up, cupped his hands in greeting, and stepped aside.

Gu Chenglie walked over and sat down directly in Chen Shi's seat, glancing at Chen Shi out of the corner of his eye.

"How can you be such a steward? All your servants are so idle."

"Reporting to Third Master, our duties in the duty room are not particularly heavy. They have already finished their work long ago, so they can take a short rest now."

"yes."

Gu Chenglie snorted, looked around, and then pointed to various parts of the duty room.

"There isn't a single medicinal herb in this house."

"Reporting to Third Master, the duty room is where we register and verify accounts; it is not used to store medicinal herbs."

Chen Shi answered again, his tone steady and flawless.

This isn't a warehouse, so why would they be storing medicinal herbs here?

First they said they were having a leisurely time, then they said they couldn't find any medicinal herbs. Gu Chenglie was clearly looking for trouble, and Chen Shi was not about to let him have his way.

However, it is clear that Gu Chenglie was not speaking without reason.

"You're quite the smooth talker. In that case, let me ask you: have you completed your procurement of medicinal herbs for this month?"

Having been dealt with by Chen Shi twice in a row, Gu Chenglie simply stopped beating around the bush.

He let out a cold snort and looked at Chen Shi with a sinister gaze.

"The procurement is not yet complete."

Chen Shi remained calm and answered truthfully.

"Not finished shopping? How can you be so irresponsible!"

Gu Chenglie smiled smugly and then gave a reprimand.

Faced with Gu Chenglie's reprimand, Chen Shi stood there without even lifting his eyelids.

He answered Gu Chenglie's question respectfully because Gu Chenglie was his master.

However, he was just a young master and did not have the authority of a steward.

Even if Chen Shi really did not perform his duties well, he could not punish Chen Shi for it.

Every country has its laws, and every family has its rules; everything has its regulations.

"It's only the 20th today. We can complete the purchases by the end of the month. Third Master, you don't need to worry about me."

Chen remained neither humble nor arrogant, meeting Gu Chenglie's gaze.

Gu Chenglie's pupils contracted slightly, and he let out another cold laugh.

"Before the end of the month? Are you sure you can procure everything before the end of the month?"

"sure."

"But I heard that there were some problems with the procurement of medicinal herbs this time."

"Yeah?"

Chen Shi feigned surprise, staring intently at Gu Chenglie.

"Where did Third Master hear this news?"

"I……"

Gu Chenglie opened his mouth, then froze for a moment.

He did it; how could he not know?

But the problem is, he can't admit it.

No matter how much the three branches of the family fought each other openly or covertly, the Marquis didn't care, but there was one rule: the interests of the Marquis's mansion could not be harmed!

"Stubborn to the end."

Gu Chenglie snorted coldly, too lazy to continue arguing with Chen Shi.

After all, he believed he had the victory in his grasp and was just waiting for the end of the month to teach Chen Shi a lesson.

And most importantly, he was the master, and Chen Shi was the servant; he had no need to lower himself.

"A mere lackey dares to challenge me!"

Thinking of this, Gu Chenglie stood up and glanced at Chen Shi with an air of superiority.

"Do you think you can stay in this position just because you've taken it? Remember, you are the servant, and I am the master. If I want to kill you, it will be as easy as crushing an ant."

"...I understand."

Chen Shi paused for a moment, then responded with a sound of agreement.

"Good to know! Haha!"

Gu Chenglie looked smug and couldn't help but burst into laughter.

Without saying anything more, he led his men away.

Even after Gu Chenglie had walked far away, Chen Shi remained standing in the same spot, his face unchanged, but his fists clenched tightly.

Gu Chenglie was born to be a master, but he couldn't be a servant forever!

Cui Nong is right, he must climb up the ladder, stand out from the crowd, and achieve great success!

"Manager, are you alright?"

The people in the room looked at each other in bewilderment, then gathered around and asked with concern.

"It's alright, go about your business."

Chen Shi waved his hand, regained his composure, and returned to his seat.

Now that he's in this position, he'll hold on tight!

"It seems this is the only way."

The Jiangnan Provincial Inspector of Medicine was coercing the pharmaceutical merchants. This problem was indeed thorny, so he decided to deal with the root of the problem.

A slight smile suddenly appeared on Chen Shi's lips. He took this opportunity to confront the First Madam.

After all, having leverage over someone is useless; it's only when you expose it that it becomes a threat.