Chapter 6

Wang Shiji's face changed, and he then laughed, saying, "What a good skill you have! You should let the other party check your calculations. I suppose you have a clear account in your hearts, right?"

Wang Huaqiang smiled and shook his head, saying to Wang Shiji, "General Wang, I think it's better if you take a look at this ledger yourself."

Wang Shiji was slightly taken aback and then angrily said, "Wang Huaqiang, what do you mean? Do you want to test my arithmetic?"

Wang Huaqiang glanced at Ji Wei, whose face had already turned pale, and said, "Not at all, not at all. I just want you to see what this financial expert of yours has done."

Wang Shiji, half believing and half doubting, stepped forward and took the draft from Wang Huaqiang. He saw that it was written in simplified characters, with crooked strokes: "By imperial decree, 14,713 soldiers of the Right Garrison Army are to be mobilized. Each soldier needs one dou of millet per day. The army has been on the move for 37 days. The price of millet in the granary is 100 coins per shi (10 dou). The daily requirement is 147,130 coins, and the total expenditure so far is 5,443,810 coins."

At the bottom of the paper, however, was the last number in the ledger: "The total cost of meals in the army up to today is 5,512,142 coins, Ji Wei."

Wang Shiji's dark face turned bright red. Holding the paper, he turned and shouted at Ji Wei, "What's going on! In just over a month, you embezzled over 60,000 coins? Ji Wei, you have a lot of nerve!"

Ji Wei was so frightened that his soul almost left his body. He no longer cared about the accounts of the rice shop, fell to his knees, and knocked his head on the ground, saying, "General, it's a miscarriage of justice, a miscarriage of justice! The expenses of your headquarters are also listed here, and they can't be counted against me. Besides—"

Before Ji Wei could finish, Wang Shiji kicked him in the chest, knocking him to the ground. Wang Shiji shouted at the guards, "Tie up this traitor who embezzles military funds, gag him, and take him back. I'll deal with him when I return to the camp!"

Several fierce guards immediately came forward, gagged Ji Wei with a piece of rag, and tied him up like a pig, carrying him out like a chicken.

Wang Shiji watched Ji Wei being carried out, his "wailing" gradually fading away. He turned and saw Wang He smiling coldly, feeling utterly ashamed. He barely managed to salute, "Cousin, I'm sorry for the spectacle. It's all my fault for not maintaining strict discipline. I will punish him severely when I return!"

Wang He said coldly, "General Wang, you are a high-ranking general of the court. Now that the Turks have invaded, the people at the border are in dire straits. You have been delaying your departure to the front lines for several days over a few shops. If this gets to the emperor, it won't sound good. Please prioritize the country's affairs. Our family's business will be handled by Huaqiang, so you don't need to worry about it."

Wang Shiji laughed, glanced at Wang Huaqiang, and said, "Nephew, you have great talent, and I, as your uncle, am proud of you. I have military duties, so I won't disturb you further. Goodbye." He then fled out, and the guards followed, leaving the small courtyard empty and the air much fresher.

Wang He gave Wang Huaqiang a meaningful look and turned to walk to the back yard. His three sons understood and closely followed their father to his study.

As soon as they entered the room, Wang He put his hand on Wang Huaqiang's shoulder and laughed, shaking him, "Is this still my second brother? Are you possessed by a god today?"

Wang Huaiwei also laughed, "Second brother, when did you learn arithmetic so well? I never knew before."

Wang Huaqiang, shaken to the bone, laughed and begged for mercy, "Brother, stop shaking me, my bones are about to fall apart. If you shake me any more, the old god who possessed me will fly away."

Wang He watched them play for a while and then said, "Huaqiang, where did you learn your arithmetic skills? Why didn't I know about it before?"

Wang Huaqiang replied seriously, "Father, I used to play with abacuses and read some arithmetic books. After I was hit on the head a while ago, some previously difficult concepts suddenly became clear, so I dared to challenge Ji Wei."

Wang He nodded, his expression becoming more serious, "But you didn't know Ji Wei before. How could you be sure you would win?"

Wang Huaqiang smiled, "Father, I thought about this challenge carefully. Even if Ji Wei's skills were better than mine and I lost the first question, I was confident I could win the second question and make Wang Shiji never dare to covet our family's property again.

Because this matter has nothing to do with arithmetic. Wang Shiji has the authority to establish his own headquarters but not to manage the family's business. This is why he covets our shops. Given his greed, he must have embezzled military funds and sold military supplies. So I used the arithmetic challenge as a bait to make him produce the military ledger.

Wang Shiji, greedy for small gains, thought he could take a big advantage of me, but he didn't realize that as soon as I saw the ledger, I could see how much he had embezzled and how many private soldiers he had recruited. From what I saw, Ji Wei didn't have the nerve to embezzle so much money in just one month. He could have embezzled at most a few hundred coins.

The empty entries in the ledger must be the expenses for the private soldiers and strategists that Wang Shiji recruited. The court doesn't pay for these people, so they are essentially Wang Shiji's personal slaves and managers. From the ledger, it appears he has about one or two thousand such people. If we report this, we can accuse him of secretly raising private soldiers and plotting against the state.

The current emperor is benevolent, but he is still a usurper. He is wary of military generals. Just like Yang Su, who lost his position over a joke, Wang Shiji, who has thousands of private soldiers, would be in serious trouble. That's why he was so angry when Ji Wei opened his mouth and didn't dare to argue with us."

Wang He nodded in admiration, "Huaqiang, where did you learn this? I don't remember teaching you these things."

Wang Huaqiang thought to himself: I watched a lot of TV shows before I came here. Knowledge is power. But he still had a doubt. Wang Shiji, a high-ranking general of the court, why would he only covet our family's dozen or so shops? Even if it's for private soldiers, the money we have is far from enough, and it would also bring us the bad name of robbing our own family. Why bother?

But he said, "Reading history can enlighten one's mind. These things are all in the history books, Father. I used the knowledge from the books to help you this time, and I want to continue reading."

Wang He laughed and said to Wang Huaiwei and Wang Huaiwei, who were looking at him with admiration, "You should learn from Huaqiang and read more. It's not that martial arts are unimportant, but you can win the world on horseback, but you can't govern it from there. The same applies to a family. You didn't listen when I told you to read and study before, but now you know the importance, right?"

Wang Huaiwei and Wang Huaiwei nodded and said solemnly, "We will remember, Father."

Wang He looked at Wang Huaqiang, thought for a moment, and said, "Huaqiang, starting today, the Yufeng Rice Shop in the eastern part of the city will be under your management. If you do well, the rest of our family's business will also be entrusted to you. Don't let me down."

Wang Huaqiang was excited inside but put on a frightened face, waving his hands, "Father, I can't do it. I just know how to use an abacus. Managing a rice shop is beyond my ability.

Besides, my elder brother hasn't managed the rice shop yet. As a younger brother, how can I take over before him?"

Wang Huaiwei laughed and patted Wang Huaqiang's shoulder, "Second brother, why do we need to be so formal? There are still many bad people like Wang Shiji who are eyeing our family's business. We need to work together to help Father run the business. Do your best, and I will support you."

Wang Huaiwei also said, "Yes, second brother, your arithmetic skills are so good, and I can't learn them. In the future, you can manage the accounts, and I will help with the transportation and delivery."

Wang He nodded in satisfaction, "Since your elder brother and younger brother have no objections, Huaqiang, take on this responsibility. The family will support you."

Wang Huaqiang was moved. After seeing so much intrigue in the future, this strong family bond touched him. He held back his tears and solemnly bowed to his father and two brothers, "I will not let you down, Father and everyone."

Ten miles outside the city, the Sui army camp was bustling with flags fluttering and soldiers coming and going. Wang Shiji, dressed in military attire, stood on the high watchtower, looking at the distant Xin Feng city, his face dark and thoughtful.

Huangfu Xiaoxie, standing beside him, couldn't help but speak, "General, I really don't understand. Is it worth it to fight over a few small shops? You are a high-ranking general of the court, and even I wouldn't care about such a small fortune."

Wang Shiji sneered, "You know nothing. This family doesn't even have the Wang surname; they are actually surnamed Lu. Wang He's mother was originally married to a wealthy merchant from Ganzang, who later went bankrupt and came to Guanzhong. Wang He is the son of that merchant and only changed his surname to Wang after his mother remarried Wang Jie. These Silk Road tycoons hide their wealth in secret places. Unless they are driven to the brink, they won't reveal it.

Years ago, Wang Jie refused to share his wealth. Even when my father threatened to expel him from the family, he didn't budge, which proves he must have the merchant's hidden treasure. Now it's Wang He's turn. If it weren't for that little brat today, I would have already gotten it."

Wang Shiji clenched his fists in anger, hitting the railing of the watchtower, causing wood chips to fly.

Huangfu Xiaoxie cautiously asked, "General, should we keep an eye on this family to see if they will move the treasure?"

Wang Shiji waved his hand, "No need. I have people watching them. If there's any movement, they will report it. Damn, I couldn't get the family's wealth this time because Wang He's mother just died. The next opportunity might not come for a long time. After all, I am a high-ranking official, and this place is close to Daxing. I can't be too obvious. For now, we will set out tomorrow and return with military honors before dealing with them."

Wang Shiji's eyes flashed with a fierce light, "Especially that little brat Wang Huaqiang, who embarrassed me in public today. I will find a way to get rid of him."