Chapter 208: The Troublesome Leader Ji
Clutching his head tightly, Li Heng almost screamed in despair, “My body, skin, and hair are gifts from my parents. Your Highness, you cannot!”
Jinsui smiled and tapped his hand with the back of her small knife, “Let go!”
Li Heng’s eyes were full of pleading, “Your Highness, spare this subordinate this once!”
Jinsui was amused by his dramatic reaction and withdrew her knife, “Now, can you show me the commercial law clauses? Also, this young lady is not your Prince!”
Li Heng looked regretfully at the beard that had fallen all over the table, then at Jinsui, who was playing with the small knife, feeling like he was still in a nightmare.
The fake Li King was a woman?
This joke was too much! No wonder there had been no news of the fake Li King in the border city. Who would believe this if it got out!
If anyone else had told him that the fake Li King was a woman, and a great beauty at that, he wouldn’t have believed it even if they swore on it.
He quickly handed the commercial law clauses to Jinsui. Amusingly, because the commotion inside was too loud, Miss Yan kicked open the door and shouted:
“Don’t bully Sui Sui!”
Then she saw Li Heng covering his chin and Jinsui looking at the commercial law.
Li Heng was about to cry. Who was bullying whom? The beautiful beard he had cultivated for several years was gone.
Instantly, the image of Zheng Yun’s head being cut off by the fake Li King flashed in his mind, and he felt fortunate that the cut had been to his beard.
“You are too slow. After discussing for so many days, you’ve only drafted this little useful material! Call all the officials over. Before the Prince returns, we must finalize the commercial law!”
Li Heng looked at her, wanting to speak but hesitating. It was Miss Yan who was quick-witted, “This is Leader Ji.”
Li Heng: …Alright, I, a dignified official of the Imperial Court, have now joined your border city gang!
“Leader Ji, please wait a moment. This official will go and summon people now.”
Jinsui, afraid he would run away, tugged at his sleeve, “Have the subordinates go and call them. Lord Li, you sit and preside.”
Jinsui needed to go to the space to get some documents. She said to Miss Yan, “Keep an eye on him. Don’t let him run away.”
Li Heng truly wanted to cry. I’m not a prisoner! Besides, why would I run? Where could I run to? If I had known you were the fake Li King, I wouldn’t have been so careless!
Before the officials arrived, Jinsui used the excuse of going to the toilet to enter the space. She printed a pile of forms, brought a box of coffee and energy bars, and packed a bag of jade ornaments traded from the Northern Frontier, preparing to have Hei Hu lock the main door and guard it.
No one leaves until the commercial law is finalized! These officials are too fond of slacking off. Their work progress is too slow. They are all old hands in officialdom, adopting an attitude of “the more you do, the more mistakes you make; the less you do, the fewer mistakes you make.”
If they aren’t pushed, this commercial law won’t be finalized until next year!
This young lady will play this waiting game with you. Let’s see who can outlast whom!
When Jinsui returned, all the officials had arrived. She asked the Yan siblings to leave, but Miss Yan insisted on staying, saying she wanted to protect her.
In the end, Yan Shiyi went back. Yan Jiu was not present; he had to preside over matters. Miss Yan and Hei Hu, like Zhang Long and Zhao Hu protecting Lord Bao, stayed by Jinsui’s side.
Anyone who didn’t know would think they were here to cause trouble!
One person per table and chair, like distributing test papers in an exam hall, each person received several forms and an energy bar. Coffee would not be served yet; tea would be served first.
Jinsui sat in Li Heng’s seat and, with a clang, stuck her short knife into the table, causing all the officials present to break out in a cold sweat.
Then she poured the box of jade ornaments next to the knife, “I believe everyone present understands my methods. Those who achieve merit will be heavily rewarded.
Here, I’ve given you the forms. All of you, propose your solutions. Anyone who offers a useful suggestion will be rewarded with a piece of beautiful jade.
Of course, if anyone dares to leave before the forms are filled out, they will be rewarded with a knife!”
Someone objected, “Miss Ji, we respect Lord Li, which is why we tolerate your behavior here! We are officials of the Imperial Court. Are you going to imprison us?”
Jinsui smiled, “Imprisonment sounds so unpleasant. We are all serving the Prince. This young lady just wants to finalize the commercial law as quickly as possible. We are providing good food and drink for all of you, so how can it be considered imprisonment?”
That official stood up, “In that case, this subordinate has important matters to attend to and will take his leave.”
Jinsui gestured to Hei Hu with her chin, “Bring Lord Liu over.”
The word “bring” caused Hei Hu, Lord Liu, and everyone present to freeze. How should he be brought?
Hei Hu quickly reacted. Standing nearly two meters tall, he walked in front of Lord Liu, who was just over 1.7 meters tall. Lord Liu’s voice became distorted with fear, “What are you doing? This official is an appointed official of the Imperial Court… Ah, put me down…”
Hei Hu placed his hands under Lord Liu’s elbows and lifted him up as if he were carrying a child for a piggyback ride.
“Leader Ji, where are you taking him?”
Jinsui smiled, “To admire Lord Li’s beard.”
Li Heng was both ashamed and angry, his face turning red. He had been covering his chin with his sleeve, but now he had to lower it.
Then everyone saw Prefect Li’s new beard. The long whiskers below were shaved unevenly, and half of the two sideburns were scraped off. The appearance was as comical as it could be.
Except for Miss Yan, no one dared to laugh. This Miss Ji was truly audacious and reckless to the extreme!
“If you want to leave, I’ll give you a new hairstyle and let you go immediately.”
Jinsui played with her small knife and said with a smile to Lord Liu. Li Heng really couldn’t stand it anymore and advised,
“It is only right that we do our best to quickly draft the commercial law that the Prince wants.”
He kept winking at Lord Liu, urging him to finish the task quickly and send this plague god away. We can’t defeat her!
Jinsui clapped her hands, “Lord Li speaks well! Come, Miss Yan, give this thumb ring gifted to me by King Batel to Lord Li.”
Hei Hu ‘carried’ Lord Liu back to his seat and patted his shoulder, saying like he was comforting an elementary school student, “Just fill in these three pages.”
He added, “Don’t write nonsense! Leader Ji gets very angry.”
Jinsui smiled, “Come on! Let’s discuss one by one. Where else does our new commercial law need improvement or additions? All of you are talented officials of the Imperial Court, you must have many ideas. Don’t hold back.
I know you don’t want to see this young lady. As long as we finalize the commercial law, this young lady will immediately leave Yanzhou.”
The officials gritted their teeth, helpless. They couldn’t fight her, nor could they win an argument. And if they argued with her, no matter the outcome, they would be the ones to lose face.
As Prefect Li said, let’s finish the task quickly and send this plague god away!
In the past, the Li King was lawless, but at least he didn’t come to Yanzhou City. Now that it’s Miss Ji, it’s even more troublesome.
The progress was indeed rapid. Even Hei Hu said, “Before, when the Prince asked, they would all put on a pained expression and say it was difficult. Only Leader Ji has a way. The Prince was too soft-hearted with them.”
Gu Changxiao wasn’t soft-hearted; he just didn’t understand the mindset of these officials. Sometimes, reasoning with them is useless; they are trained in reasoning.
Flipping the table is what works! Besides, I’m not afraid of you writing memorials to impeach me afterward or damaging my reputation.
Some officials who finished submitted them to Jinsui for review. She asked about each point, gave her opinions, rewarded those who wrote well immediately, and sent back those with issues to revise.
They would stop to discuss for an hour once, write down the agreed-upon clauses, and then complete the rest.
After dark, lamps were lit. Some people dozed off in the middle of the night, and the coffee came into play. Going to the toilet was personally escorted by Hei Hu, and if they were hungry, they ate energy bars.
It was truly an all-night session for everyone. Many officials were whispering among themselves, saying they hadn’t worked this hard since the Imperial Examinations!
They deeply regretted their procrastination when the Prince was around. The Prince was so lenient back then! If they had finished the discussions those days, this situation wouldn’t have happened.
By dawn, the new commercial law was finally drafted. Everyone had red eyes, and a few officials were on the verge of tears.
Amusingly, they dared not look at Jinsui with resentment, only with helplessness and pleading. Leader Ji, can you take your things and leave now?
Please never come to Yanzhou again, okay?
However, some clerks were quite happy. Their salaries were low, and the rewards they received from Leader Ji tonight were equivalent to a year’s salary.
“Very good. Everyone go back and get a good night’s sleep. When the Prince returns, I will definitely report the merits of all of you.”
Li Heng spoke first, “We dare not seek merit, only hope the Prince will not blame us.”
“What is Lord Li saying? In the future, when Yandi and the Northern Frontier trade, everyone will make money together. This commercial law is drafted for the entire Yandi. Today’s hardship is for tomorrow’s prosperity!”
“Besides, for any Yandi goods entering the Northern Frontier, they must pass through the Li Da Wu Qiong Pass. Our Yanzhou and Li Da Wu Qiong City will have to cooperate more. Everyone, don’t look so glum!”
In other words, you might have to ask me for help later!
The officials suddenly had no words to express their bitterness, yet they had to force smiles and bid farewell to ‘Leader Ji’.
As Li Heng was leaving, he looked at Jinsui multiple times but still didn’t dare to ask. Jinsui couldn’t stand it anymore because his expression was too pitiful.
She smiled, “I’ll be leaving tomorrow.”
Li Heng breathed a long sigh of relief and cupped his hands, wanting to say a few polite words. Jinsui raised an eyebrow, “If you try to keep me, I will really stay.”
Li Heng immediately dared not say anything. He put the unfinished energy bars on the table into his sleeve and looked at Jinsui silently.
Jinsui was about to ask him if he wasn’t leaving when she realized they were at Li Heng’s home. She waved to him, “This young lady will take her leave now. I will visit again another day.”
Li Heng: …You’d better never come again!
Carrying the new commercial law back to the Yan Clan, Jinsui and Miss Yan slept soundly. Hei Hu slept in the guard room, and Baozhu took care of him.
They slept until the afternoon, and Yan Shiyi prepared hot pot for them to eat when they woke up.
Yan Jiu sent a message back that the refugee matter had been handled. The gentry households that had taken in refugees had sent them all back without exception.
The word ‘taken in’ was used masterfully! Jinsui ate hot pot with a cold smile.
The gentry were indeed powerful. They could use the term ‘taken in’ even when forcibly taking refugees as slaves. If Gu Changxiao hadn’t been so assertive, they might have spread rumors that coming to the border city was the best way for refugees to suffer and become slaves.
Being ‘taken in’ by the gentry was their best way out! If any common people believed it, they would surely organize a rebellion. Then, would Lord Li suppress the rebellion or suppress the rebellion?
She wasn’t suspecting; she was certain that there were people arranged by Prince Yu among the refugees, specifically responsible for stirring up trouble. There were definitely Prince Yu’s Faction among the Yandi gentry, cooperating with these people to cause trouble.
Thinking of Huo Zi’an’s past experiences, Jinsui decided to conduct a population survey and identify all suspected spies, sending them all to the Tuntian Camp to shovel dung!
Both sides were progressing rapidly. Gu Changxiao was expected to arrive at the border city the day after tomorrow. At that time, Yan Jiu would bring the stewards sent by the Yandi gentry to the border city to discuss Northern Frontier trade matters.
“Fortunately, the commercial law has been drafted. I guess they didn’t expect it to be so fast?”
Yan Shiyi said sarcastically, “That’s because you were here. Anyone else couldn’t have done it so quickly!”
“Lock up all the Yanzhou officials and don’t let them leave until they finish writing. Only you in the world could do something like this!”
Jinsui snatched a piece of hot fat sheep he had cooked with her chopsticks and smiled, “Just tell me, is it useful or not?”
Yan Shiyi had to admire, “It’s indeed very useful! You say, can I learn it?”
Jinsui shook her head, “No.”
“Why?”
Miss Yan answered for Jinsui, “Because our family is in Yanzhou! Do you want our family to be constantly harassed by officials?”
Jinsui giggled, “Exactly! A monk who runs away can’t escape his temple, but this young lady’s temple isn’t in Yanzhou! So I’m not afraid of offending them.”
Yan Shiyi praised again, “You are also truly generous. You said you would reward them, and you really did. Perhaps after some time, when the officials’ resentment dissipates, they will look at the jade ornaments you gave them and want to work with you on something big again.”
“This is exactly the effect this young lady wants! It’s best if it spreads throughout the world that working with Leader Ji means good food and money to be earned!”
“Heh heh, Leader Ji, Miss Yan said she wants to be a female teacher at your Academy. What can I be?”
Jinsui’s eyes flickered, and she lowered her voice to ask, “How much pocket money have you saved?”
Yan Shiyi also whispered, “My eldest brother doesn’t want the money I earn from the restaurant. The real gold and silver I’ve received, I can come up with fifty thousand taels of silver!”
Jinsui patted his shoulder, “If you really want to join my Academy, then I’ll let you be one of the shareholders. Invest fifty thousand taels of silver and become the Dean of Students!”
Yan Shiyi was overjoyed, “Dean of Students! This title sounds powerful just hearing it, much more powerful than Salt Carrier! Then it’s no problem, fifty thousand taels, right? You can take it back directly when you return to the border city!”
Jinsui blinked her eyes, “Don’t tell your eldest brother yet, lest he ask too many questions.
By the way, if any of your friends can invest fifty thousand taels of silver, I still have a few positions available: Head of Security, Minister of Logistics, and Head of Childcare. These are all good positions, first come, first served!
Not just anyone can invest in my Academy!”
Yan Shiyi was very excited, “No problem. Jin Zilin often asks me if there are any other businesses you have that he can cooperate with. I’ll write to him right away.
Don’t worry, I won’t tell my eldest brother. He always thinks I can’t accomplish great things. This time, we’ll do something big for him to see!”
Jinsui laughed heartily in her mind. The young masters of Yandi’s gentry, give all your pocket money to this young lady!
Miss Yan was anxious, “What should I do, Sui Sui? I don’t have fifty thousand taels of silver!”
Jinsui patted her little hand, “You are a special case! You don’t need to invest to have shares. The Women’s Academy will be entrusted to you.”
On her last day at the Yan Clan, Jinsui was still busy. Yan Shiyi cleared out a separate courtyard to serve as a wool textile workshop, and all the embroiderers moved there.
